Kwabs - The Wilhelm Scream (James Blake Cover)

Before I begin. I know I've been slacking this week. It's quite ironic how I've been consistent with my posts up until the point where I set myself a deadline. I said every other day and now it's been 8 days. As soon as I set myself that deadline, I began rushing and writing because it was time to. I feel as though in terms of my blog, I produce better content when I write as it comes to me. I always have something to share and so a post every other day would have been practical, but once I start Sixth Form I may not have as much time on my hands. The last thing I want is for my blog to become a chore and so I've decided on putting up at least 2 posts a week, and more as and when my cerebrum is struck with new blog post topic ideas.

Swiftly moving on (no Taylor) to today's topic. Whilst on one of my regular YouTube perusing sessions, I stumbled across this cover of James Blake's 'The Wilhelm Scream' by Kwabs. If I tell you that as soon as he opened his mouth to sing I was violently hit by the soft matured tone of his voice. Beautiful Homicide is what I like to call it. When something so beautiful makes you feel like you've been a dished dirty slap on tray made of fine China.

I love what Kwabs has done with this song. I'm not even going to get technical and talk about his tone, diction, clarity & how he made the song his own. I'm not a judge. My opinion on music is generally based on how it makes me feel and/or the lyrical content. 

The way that this 3 minutes of effortless soul made me feel is what marked me with an obligation to write and to repeatedly molest the repeat button.

The USP of this cover is how stripped back it is, it has that kind of 'singing to yourself in the comfort of your own room' type feel to it. His voice makes you feel as though he singing from somewhere deep. Not as though his sole intention was to show off his vocal talent by perfectly executing every note as how James Blake would've done. He's just. Singing.

This is how I saw it anyway. 

Let me know what you guys think of these kind of posts and what you would like for me to write about, be it Music, Fashion or even Literature. What you thought about this cover and Kwabs' voice? I love hearing from you all and if you comment below, make sure you check back for a reply!

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Desirable: Nike Air Max 90 Hyperfuse/Minimalism

My current 'desirable' is these cocaine white Nike Air Max 90 Hyperfuse. *sniffs*. 

See what I did there?

Their beauty just gets me emotional and have me experiencing those Drake like symptoms.

Like imagine if you were mine. I want you to meet the rest of my wardrobe. I'll keep you clean and you keep me looking phresh. I'd be lying if I said there weren't other trainers, but I'll never love another the way I love you. So I'm happy to empty my pockets for you, because baby... you the, you the best.

I don't know either.

What I like about these is the lack of colour that disturbs the silhouette and detail of the shoe. They are clean, crisp and would look perfect paired with muted tones or an all white ensemble.

I've developed a penchant for muted tones, white space and minimalism. I'm not the only one either. 2013 has seen an increase in reserved clothing choices (in terms of colour) which may have previously been considered as plain and boring by the masses. Labels such as Phidel and HRue Porter, Bloggers such as Ivania Carpio, Hannah Sadler and even Alexander Wang's SS14 collection have proven quite the opposite.

Below are selection of photographs that display some great examples of minimalism, that belong to some of my favourite bloggers.

sadlerhannah.blogspot.co.uk

love-aesthetics.blogspot.co.uk

love-aesthetics.blogspot.co.uk

http://fashionbysi.blogspot.co.uk

sadlerhannah.blogspot.co.uk

sadlerhannah.blogspot.co.uk

lightningfactory.blogspot.co.uk

lightningfactory.blogspot.co.uk

Kojey Radical

Image from pushcrayons.com

I want to share something with you guys, or rather someone. A very talented someone. I discovered him on Twitter and was lead to a YouTube account that goes by the name of PUSHCRAYONS. An account that showcases inspiring art, poetry, imagery, spoken word, courtesy of a guy named Kojey Radical.

Before you continue to read this post. Watch this video. Really watch it, in fact listen.

Have you watched it? 

I hope it made you feel the same way I felt. When I listened to the words this guy had to say I was left in awe. They were more than just words, it's like he was speaking life, his life, our lives. As unnecessarily philosophical as that sounds.

I could not only understand what he was saying, I could feel it. I could relate. I was left in a pool of my own thoughts. What a cliche. Lets call it a river, spice things up a little bit.

Thoughts about life, our goals, are they really worth it? Is hard work everything? The challenges of society. Making something of yourself, leaving a mark for eternity. Decisions.

I can't really describe the state of mind this left me in, I don't know if you can tell. Either way this guy is extremely talented and I felt like you all needed to see it.

How I Style: Dungarees

This post was requested by a friend of mine and it's on how I would style a few variations of dungarees/overalls.

Dungaree Jumpsuit: Asos // Crop Top: Primark // Hat: H&M // Arm Cuff: River Island // Shoes: River Island/New Look //

This outfit is a simple monochrome ensemble featuring this dungaree jumpsuit that I've been drooling over for a while. I've kept everything quite simple and minimal because I find outfits like this really effective. The gold upper arm cuff gives the outfit an nice touch and compliments the buckles on the shoes really well. 

Onto the shoes. They are dupes of the Jeffrey Campbell Coltrane boots, they look VERY similar and are at a fraction of the price. They are £45 (and sold out online), however New Look also have some for £30. If you want to get your hands on them, prepare yourself for the mission because they are selling out fast!

Dungarees: Topshop // Crop Top: River Island // Shoes: Nike Air Max 90 Hyperfuse // Curb Chain: Ebay

This second outfit is a lot more casual than the first and it's centred around this denim number. I would want the dungarees to be oversized and slouchy for this outfit.
I've kept the other colours quite toned down to allow the shoes to stand out.
I saw these shoes on one of my favourite bloggers, Maria at pigeonfightsandcigarettes.blogspot.co.uk and they looked beautiful. If you don't already know of her you should definitely go and check her blog out!

Dungarees: Topshop // Crop Top: Topshop // Flatforms: Topshop // Arm Cuff: River Island //

For the third and final outfit I've chosen these full length dungarees. I've paired them with simple items again because I like to keep everything minimal when styling dungarees. I would wear them with the straps down for this outfit to show the top off.
Miss Guided have a really nice version of this mesh panel crop top but I couldn't get a good picture of it. Click here if you want to see it.

Over here - Party Next Door x Drake

I've had this song on repeat for a couple of hours now, I'm just in love with Party Next Door's hazy voice. I'm currently a huge fan of alternative R&B, the sounds of Frank Ocean (my babes) , Jhene Aiko, The Weeknd, Miguel and James Fauntleroy have made a reoccurring appearance in my recently played playlist. If you haven't heard of Party Next Door before then definitely check out his debut self-titled mixtape. Party Next Door. 

I've noticed a lot of people saying that music nowadays isn't as good as it was in the 90's for example. This is partially true, 90's R&B and Hip Hop will always have a place in my heart. However I think it also depends on where you're looking. If you listen to the charts all the time you generally will be disappointed because most of it is commercial.

Hop onto YouTube and discover someone new, an underground artist? Download a mixtape. Let yourself be inspired by something different, something fresh and alternative. The reason why I favour underground, indie or non-mainstream artists (I'm not a 'hipster' I promise) so much is because they don't have to meet the expectations of an opinionated society. They can stay true to themselves and their art because they don't have a big time record label focusing them on sales.

Sales are great, don't get me wrong but when money becomes the sole purpose for doing something, everything else is lost along the way. That is also why I like mixtapes. They don't have to sell, they just need to be heard and when you focus on the music rather than the number of album sales then the true artist is unvieled.

Back to the artists I mentioned above, they are bringing something new to the table which we wouldn't have necessarily heard back in the 90's. So I'm not completely disheartened. Music has to evolve just like everything else and so we couldn't have stayed in the 90's forever.

Hackney Street Style School

As I mentioned in a previous post, I took part in 3 day styling and image making workshop in East London called the Hackney Street Style School (run by Slashstroke Magazine and Create London) at the beginning of July. We were introduced to the fashion industry as a whole and the history of style.

We had a talk with dynamic menswear designer Martine Rose and Diverse fashion buyer Alex Mein. They gave us an insight into what it's like working in the industry, their inspirations and their struggles (which occur in almost every career).

It was then onto styling. We were given three rails full of intriguing garments and accessories by London based designers such as ZDDZ, Use it up Wear it out, Noel Stewart, Martine Rose, Mirja Rosendahl, Electronic Sheep, Makinjanma and Roberto Piqueras, as well as vintage clothing from Beyond Retro. Our task was to create or select a style tribe of our choice. A style tribe being a group or generation of people who's characters are reflected in what they wear. Once we'd established our style tribe, we composed outfits to suit it, cast models and then shot the outfits.

My partner Sian and I chose a tribe of people who were experimental, weren't afraid to stand out and didn't care what anyone had to say. Having done all the shooting, we took a trip to Middlesex University where we edited our photographs ready for print. We also had an insightful chat with the head of fashion Meg Ausborne, who really helped us understand what you need to succeed as a fashion student and how to build your self up towards it.

Overall it was such a great experience and I left with a greater understanding of the industry and how it works, how shoots are planned and what it's like being the the studio.

I also got the chance to meet some amazing people and some fellow bloggers: Bella @ fashioncultt.blogspot.co.uk, Ally @ allysworldd.blogspot.co.uk @RiannaJacques and @StephiieBlahh. Make sure to visit their blogs and/or follow them on Twitter!
If you want to see more photographs from the event or find out more about the event, you can go to slashstrokemagzine.com.

ONE MORE THING

On the subject of street style. I took a trip to Oxford for my birthday on Thursday (All I want for my birthday is a... let me stop). I had intentions of doing some street style photography but my phone ran out of battery so I only managed to get this one snap of this really cool Italian guy. He was sat on a stool near KFC doing dreadlocks for £2 a lock in these lively trousers. Like I said he was a really cool guy.

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HYPETHRASH RUE PORTER

hrueporter.co.uk | Photography by VDR @ vintagedollrisa.blogspot.com

Hypethrash Rue Porter. A brand new label from London town that is the epitome of the phrase "simple yet effective". 

Hypethrash's minimalistic and monochromic approach, possesses an aesthetic that is pleasing to the eye. The designs are consistent and stick to a colour scheme of white, grey and black. The limitation of colour allows you to focus more on the design of the garments and yields an effortlessly cool vibe. 

The name Hypethrash is a tribute to two magazines, Hypebeast and Thrasher Magazine, that introduced creative director/owner Tej Adenuga into the world of Fashion and the skateboarding culture. Tej says "I felt it was right to pay homage to those two publications because that is where I get most of my design inspirations from".

The SS13 collection presents a series of military inspired t-shirts. Perfect for throwing on during the summer months, as well as layering up as the temperatures begin to drop. The versatility of the t-shirts make them great wardrobe staples. Everyday garments that make you look as though you have made an effort, what more could you ask for? I am in love with the simplicity of the SS13 collection and the use of complimentary shades of colour. 

Plans for the future? Hypethrash Rue Porter aims to branch out into other forms of clothing as the label progresses. The store opens tomorrow so make sure to head over to hrueporter.co.uk and have a look for yourself and let me know what you think!

You can also follow the label's Instagram and Twitter accounts to keep to up to date.

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