Posts Tagged ‘Damon Albarn’

features, music

Why Blur’s Modern Life Is Rubbish is one of the most special albums ever

By Stefano on May 10th, 2013

Today we are celebrating Blur’s Modern life Is Rubbish – you’ll find out why in mo – one of the most brilliant and influential albums of the 90s. Here’s ten reasons why you should give it a spin tonight (and every night).

1 It has the most amazing image on the cover

modern_cd_cover_big

That’s The Mallard, the art deco-esque train, coughs, Class A4 Locomotive, that was the fastest in the world at the time

2 It really was the album that made started to make Britain, and especially London, an incredible place to be in the 90s.

blur-box-sp4-620

The early days of Brit Pop were incredible. And this album’s success inevitably made it easier for Pulp, Oasis, Elastica and, err Menswe@r to break through.

3 The brilliant B sides

This beautiful song inexplicably didn’t make the cut and ended up as the B side to Chemical World.

4 Those group photos

blur-british-image-1

Remember this was a time when no one was wearing British clobber. No one else dressed like this in the early 90s.

5 It is partly responsible for finishing Grunge’s popularity in the UK

Soundgarden

Grunge by then was well past its sell by date. Nirvana was one thing, Alice in Chains and Soundgarden were another..

6 It kicked off the trend for those bonkers instrumentals that Blur are so good at

Intermission and Commercial Break were just the start

7 Without Modern Life there would be no Parklife

The fantastic reception the albums got was the catalyst for Blur to create Parklife, End Of A Century and especially this tune

8 It brought classic British songwriting back to the fore

Small-Faces-3467

This lot. But also The Jam, XTC, Teardrop Explodes, The Kinks, Bowie and this fella.

9 For Tomorrow’s video captures a moment in 1993 when to be young and living in London was like winning life’s lottery.

I am not sure if Damon intended it to be taken that way but it just exudes optimism.

10 It is 20 years old today

Modern Life

Now don’t you feel old



Coats & Jackets, features, Gallery, Style, Style Safari

Style – Harringtons – a round up of this year’s best Spring casual jackets

By Stefano on February 27th, 2013

Baracuta Made In England G9 Navy £279

Picture 1 of 19
Picture 1 of 19

The original design from 1937 and worn by everyone from mods to scooter boys since, This is available in Navy and several other colours. As you'd expect for the price it is the attention to details that makes it stand out. It is made from 100% cotton, boasts the classic check polyester viscose lining, has ribbed nylon cyuffs and a vent on the back. Oi Polloi

I checked an hour or so ago and it appears that the temperature, in the south east at least, is heading for double figures tomorrow. Spring might not be here, but it is certainly on its way. And that means it is time to ditch that heavy wool coat that kept you warm all winter for something a little flexible and lightweight.

And when it comes to stylish casual jackets it doesn’t get much getter than the Harrington. Always associated with the mod movement – they became popular in the late 60s on skin and suede heads and again in the late 70s and early 80s when they were championed by  Jam fans – they are the staple of heritage brands and everyone from Ben Sherman through to Merc has a range.

Last year Damon Albarn seemed to spend most of the spring wearing his navy Fred Perry and there are plenty of other high profile Harrington wearers like Terry Hall and Daniel Craig.

For a classic you need look no further than Baracuta who were pioneers of the jacket back in the 1930s. If you want something with a twist check out the quilted version or the dog tooth one. Purists please note we have included a jacket or two that could be seen as a bomber jacket/Harrington hybrid. But then we make the rules.

Which one do you like? More on their history here.



Style, Style Safari

Style Safari – InterCity British Rail T shirts

By Stefano on January 21st, 2013

Train travel was much more fun in the 80s. Then you had the wrong sort of leaves on the track, pissed footy fans on Inter City Specials, Jimmy Saville doing the TV adverts and timetables that were quite possibly penned but The Brothers Grimm. Yes those days sure were fun.

Actually the best bit about the, coughs, golden age of train travel, was the Inter City logo and it is great to see that it is making a bit of comeback on a T Shirt or two.

Leading the trend is Renaissance Man, and quite possibly serious train spotter, Damon Albarn who was seen wearing one in the summer when riding The Africa Express to Glasgow. They are available from the V&A but it seems that they are short of stock at the moment.

Here is that shirt and a couple of others.

Inter City British Rail T Shirt

Picture 1 of 3
Picture 1 of 3

This is as close we could get to the Albarn shirt and guess what, it is out of stock. I can't imagine that the V & A won't be selling them again though. V&A




©2012 Shiny Digital Privacy Policy
-->