I’ll keep it short and sweet. If you want comprehensive coverage of COE content, follow me on twitter. Serving up fresh and frequent golden nuggets of COE goodness in the form of 140 words or less at coenthusiasm.
-Paul
As an extension of Components of Enthusiasm, I’d like to bring to your attention the COE visual inspiration board, Enthusiasm Documented. It seemed like the next logical step. I always seem to stumble upon incredibly inspiring photographs online, and it also didn’t help that my buddy Lawrence over at Sartorially Inclined helped to stoke the fire. If you find yourself enjoying the topics found on COE, there’s no doubt you’ll find yourself similarly pleased by what you’ll find on Enthusiasm Documented. Be sure to check it out. There’s a permanent link to the site towards the top of the links column to the right, as well as a page tab titled “Enthusiasm Documented” at the very top of this site. If you want to get automatic updates, copy and paste http://enthusiasmdocumented.tumblr.com/rss into your RSS reader. By the way, epic new COE feature coming up early next week, I realize it’s been awhile.
-Paul
Last night, a friend mentioned to me that never in a million years would he have pegged Jim Jones rapping on the same track as Mos Def. Neither would I, but then again, I doubt anyone would’ve predicted those two, and Dame Dash, and The Black Keys, all working together on the same project. Luckily for us, the fellows from the Blakroc project just released the video to their new single, “Ain’t Nothing Like You (Hoochie Coo),” which of course features each of these aforementioned musical creatives. We’ve got thick bluesy guitars courtesy of The Black Keys, Jim Jones rapping in his usual gruff voice, and Mos doing his thing like we’ve come to expect. In this age of collaboration happy musicians, Blakroc teaches us that good things can indeed come from such concepts. Dame Dash becomes relevant again.
Discovered this over the weekend. Always a fan of amazing camera work and unique videos, I found this music promo for the track “Spheres of Fury” by two Berlin based producers Hecq and Exillion, strangely captivating. Here we have phenomenal editing and production, oddly intriguing electronica, and a cool take on gang wars involving a meadow, purple smoke flares, and best of all, Super Soakers. Just try to resist watching. It starts off slow but really hits its stride a third of the way in, so just stick with it. Excellent stuff from UK duo Tim Brown and Christopher Hewitt.
So here’s the deal, I need you guys’ help with this, a little class participation, if you will. As many of you well know, over the last few months I haven’t exactly been known for my frequency in posting new articles. As it just so turns out, these last few weeks I’ve had a serious case of writer’s block. I’m itching to find something incredible and type up something special, but there just hasn’t been much that’s caught my attention lately.
Which is where you guys, the readers, come in. I’m just testing this out, so we’ll see how this works, but if any of you guys know of any great stories you’d like to see on the blog, do me a favor and shoot me an email (mpmunford [at] gmail.com). You know the deal with the blog. The aesthetic is that whole classic/timeless/authentic type deal, so if you know of any under the radar brands and labels, bands and musicians, shops and boutiques, artists, authors, photographers, etc. that you think would fit within the general theme of COE, I would absolutely love to hear about these individuals and brands. So be on the look out and send me over an email if you happen to stumble upon anything cool. Thanks guys!
-Paul
Btw, stay tuned to an announcement in the coming weeks, I’m involved in an incredible new project launching soon featuring an all-star collection of some of the most respected young bloggers and creatives out there. It’s going to be major! Surely can’t wait to share it with all of you…
I don’t know jack squat about this fellow except for the fact that this dude knew how to play. After spotting the incredible artwork (seen above) for his 1969 album I Love You on FFFFound!, I did a little Googling and downloaded Mr. Takehiko Honda’s album. Immediately, one of the best decisions I’ve made in a long, long time, let me be the first to tell you.
Mr. Honda displays brilliant pianist ability throughout the five-song-gem of an obscure jazz album that is I Love You, and he’s got Vince Guaraldi (the Charlie Brown guy) written all over him. What makes this find that much more intriguing, however, are the facts that not only was this guy a Japanese jazz pianist, but I also can’t find any information on this guy, at least not in English. Indeed, type in “Takehiko Honda” and aside from the obvious “pianist” and “I Love You” results that pop up, Google is at a loss for information. And so be it. During an age when information is literally in your face at all times (and if not, just a quick Google search away), it’s good to just live in the moment and soak up great obscure music in which you know little to nothing about. After all, ignorance is bliss. If you’re interested, you can download the whole album from the link below.
Well documented throughout this blog is the fact that I am in every facet a lover of all things music. I breathe it, live for it, can’t imagine life without it. That being said, I’ve found the last few months a bit difficult. Something’s been missing, and until this week, I’ve just realized what it was: a complete lack of great music releases that wow me. I don’t know about you, but I find this lack of fresh, inspired musical material particularly disheartening. During a time where the recession has made life a bit tougher for everyone, one would imagine and hope that artists would rediscover some sort of invigoration amid any jadedness they may have. You would assume that these hard times would find the majority of these artists buckling down to refocus, refine, and produce musical jewels of recession-repealing albums and songs, yet this doesn’t seem to be the case. Cudi’s demeanor says it all; the current state of music is leaving us a feeling a bit dejected. Follow the jump to read on.
Constantly on the search for creative individuals and the stories behind their creative projects, I learned about the Close Up & Private project a few weeks ago and, like many, thought it an intriguing concept. After seeing a round of posts by various bloggers highlighting the project, I decided to contact Sergei Sviatchenko, designer and founder, for an interview in hopes digging a little deeper. Turns out this Ukranian-born artist who moved to Denmark in 1990 to run his own studio (www.sviatchenko.dk) under his own name (and who also owns and runs Senko Studio, a non-profit for emerging and promising artists) really knows a thing or two about Ivy League style and it comes across as genuine. You get the sense that this is the type of stuff Sergei actually wears throughout the week. For more on Sergei’s story and Close Up & Private, follow the jump.
Big fan of Jeremy Enigk. The guy’s voice is one of a kind, very distinctive, and strangely relaxing. For those unfamiliar, Enigk’s music can often be moody, somewhat emotional, but powerful just the same. Here’s his first video from his new album Ok Bear. Gorgeous video, definitely good stuff. Probably want to watch it in HD. Just saying.
