We’re having our big end of season sale starting today Sat Aug 6th through the 30th. Up to 50% off all clothing, shoes, and selected jewelry and accessories. Brands include Marshall Artist, Trois Filles, Kunzi, Penfield, Tinwell & Bismark, Munster, Paper Wings, Mr. Simple, Clae Shoes, Boamie, Vanishing Elephant, Twenty8Twelve and more!!

Come early to browse the items and enjoy a pre-sale coffee and cupcake at the Cafe!

We mentioned Loomstate’s 41Strings event earlier this week in a previous post and got some insight into Nick Zinner’s inspiration for the musical piece but had no idea what to really expect and were indeed moved by the gorgeous composition.

The 41+ musicians circled Zinner as he played lead guitar man and conductor and led us through a whimsical journey of the four seasons.

Vice Media and Intel’s Creator\’s Project have also come on board to document the event in its entirety so we can look forward to that!

The experience included video installations by Yoshi Sodeoka, E*Rock and Dawn of Man, an interactive installation from Ernesto Klar and a playful 41 questions and answers video connecting a series of questions thrown from one person to another to answer and in turn posing a question to be answered.

Following last year’s 40 Drummers performance led by Bharoocha and this year’s Zinner’s 41Strings, what will the brilliant Loomstate minds of Rogan and Berrin Noorata bring to us for Earth Day’s 42^nd?

What Happens to all the Asian-American overachievers when the test-taking ends?

By Wesley Yang

http://nymag.com/news/features/asian-americans-2011-5/

Wesley Yang

“I’ve realized that food is one of the only places in America where we are the top dogs,” he says. “Guys like David Chang or me—we can hang… There’s a younger generation that grew up eating Chinese fast food. They respect our food. They may not respect anything else, but they respect our food.” Rather than strive to make himself acceptable to the world, Huang has chosen to buy his way back in, on his own terms. “What I’ve learned is that America is about money, and if you can make your culture commodifiable, then you’re relevant,” he says. “I don’t believe anybody agrees with what I say or supports what I do because they truly want to love Asian people. They like my fucking pork buns, and I don’t get it twisted.”

- Eddie Huang of NY’s Lower East Side’s BaoHaus

Eddie Huang

Nick Zinner- Crowd, Brooklyn, May 2007

It has been an especially busy week for artist and musician Nick Zinner as two events culminate; a photo show opening last week at Anastasia Photo and an upcoming experimental musical performance, 41Strings. This might seem overwhelming to the average person but if Zinner is overwhelmed at all, his mild-mannered demeanor doesn’t make it known. Perhaps playing music since the age of six and shooting photos since high school doesn’t hurt either.

Zinner’s candid, documentary approach not only captures engaging images but also reveals a tender sentimentality with simply wanting to “remember a situation or a person or a time.” Last week, Anastasia Photo presented “Nick Zinner,” a series of large-scale crowd images captured at his band’s, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, shows. Generally, he prefers anonymity when shooting his subjects. However, these crowd shots are taken at his own shows sparking my curiosity to whether or not that factor affects his relationship with the content because in a sense they are watching him watching them watching him. Zinner detaches from the crowd, even conceptualizing a completely different set of circumstances for them:

I never think that they are there for me. It’s more a case of documenting the people who are there for one event, together and in a formation that will never be repeated. I’m not the singer, so most of the time people are not watching me, and if I’m sneaky enough, I want to try to create a frame with as many faces as possible, ideally all equally interesting to look at. And at the same time, I like to try to imagine that you can remove the context of a rock show, specifically my band’s rock show, and maybe think about different situations that those people could be gathered for.

Nick Zinner- Crowd, Tuscon, March 2004

The Anastasia Photo gallery connects its exhibits with philanthropic initiatives. For this show, Future of Music Coalition and JOICFP, a Japanese organization committed to helping tsunami victims are apropos selections with music being obvious and Japan with current global relevance. Japan is also one of Zinner’s favorite countries to play and this is only one of several of his efforts in contributing to its recovery, including JAPAN: RISING. “Nick Zinner” at Anastasia Photo is up until June 4.

Nick Zinner- Crowd, Tokyo, October 2003

Tomorrow marks the day of the highly anticipated Loomstate 41Strings event honoring Earth Day’s 41^st anniversary with Zinner, Soft Circle’s Hisham Akira Bharoocha and Ben Vida and Gillian Rivers. They have composed and are leading 41+ musicians through an original piece of music inspired by the four seasons. Zinner has listed Steve Reich as a music inspiration so perhaps this is an homage to “Music for 18 Musicians“ with the addition of 23 or so musicians- no big deal. Zinner shares details on what we can look forward to experiencing:

A minimalist, traditional interpretation of classically played music, with guitars and drums, as well as violins, violas, cellos, double basses, and electric basses.  I’ve been really going for an epic feeling with each season, and I’m hoping we can make some people really feel something powerful. The music is more focused, working with repetition and strong melodies, divided up into four 6 or 7 minute sections for each season.

41Strings takes place at Good Units at the Hudson Hotel tomorrow, May 11 from 8-11pm.

Photo by Brian DeRan

With their records and live shows alike, Gang Gang Dance always allure me into and on an entrancing otherworld journey. Lizzi Bougatsos’ haunting vocals and dynamic layers of melodies lead me into ethereal dream states only to be brought back down moments later with solid pounding rhythmic drums. Last week’s show at Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn was no different as they played their last hometown NY show before heading off to Europe continuing the tour for their fifth album, Eye Contact, on 4AD. GGD’s Brian DeGraw took time out from busy tour preparations to discuss Eye Contact and their new relationship with 4AD.

Eye Contact

DeGraw walked me through the three-part process of recording the record. They started with writing and recording in the desserts of California in Wonder Valley near Joshua Tree.  Then tracking was done near Woodstock, NY in a studio previously converted from a church with large stained-glass windows.  DeGraw recalled the studio having “really magical light shining in at all hours of the day” and the surroundings providing “lots of room for solitude,” comically adding, “there was also a ghost there that ate [his] cookies.” The final mixing was also done upstate New York, but in Tivoli, where he resided this past year. Surrounded again in remote settings, DeGraw appreciated being “able to mix and simultaneously look out the windows at the trees and wild turkeys.”  He compared the process of recording this album to previous ones:

This is the first record we have made that involved so much space and serenity in terms of the physical environment and I really think it made a huge difference with the sound of the finished album. Most of our records have been made in extremely claustrophobic city spaces with all the usual chaos going on around us. The last record [Saint Dymphna] specifically was one of the most uncomfortable records to make in terms of cold weather, small rooms, lack of studio time, etc. I think you can hear [those influences] on the last one… the way it’s sort of thrown together more like a rushed collage. With Eye Contact I’m really happy to hear the spaciousness in the sequence of the songs and within some of the songs themselves. I think it has a much better arc to it and it sort of tells a story… which I didn’t realize until it was done- more proof of the subconscious being a very sensible place I guess.

Photo by Brian DeGraw

GGD’s subconscious is undeniably sensible with Eye Contact. Pitchfork commend this to be their “finest, weirdest, and most uplifting statement yet.”

The Guardian praise Eye Contact with relevance to 4AD as “an even more lush and spangled work that fits snugly with their new label, 4AD, once home to the likes of the Cocteau Twins, whose post-verbal dreamlands Gang Gang Dance also distantly evoke.” DeGraw “grew up pretty fascinated by the output of the label and the consistency of their aesthetic.” Also being influenced by the Cocteau Twins, he feels “honored to be a distant cousin to them in some respect.” Along with Cocteau Twins, Bauhaus and Dead Can Dance gave way to 4AD’s beginnings. In recent years, the label’s roster include a majority of independent rock bands like Blonde Redhead, Deerhunter and Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti. However, upcoming releases on the label are more electronic focused and this is where GGD play a pivotal role. DeGraw recaps a conversation with the label about GGD representing “a perfect bridge between the ‘old’ 4AD and the ‘new’ 4AD because [their] sound has a foot in both worlds. [They] are essentially an electronic band but have guitars and drums and play everything physically rather than through programming sequences.” Not surprisingly, DeGraw appreciates this association, “I like the idea of being that bridge. I like GGD to be a gateway in any respect possible.”

Gang Gang Dance’s genre defiance is indeed a gateway into unchartered frontiers as they encapsulate diverse and global yet obscure influences from electronic to Asian pop to drum and bass to R&B to afrobeat to grime… even to other worlds.

Stream the entire album courtesy of 4AD here. Eye Contact releases this week.

Music video for Mindkiller- Directed by Shoji Goto of the Boredoms:

“Glass Jar” live from last week’s Music Hall of Williamsburg show:

Here for more photos of GGD by Brian DeRan, who also manages them through Leg Up! Management.

For more on GGD and Brian DeGraw, follow his blog.

The L’usine family extends across lands and oceans to New York City with our favorite Lower East Side Vietnamese eatery, An Choi. Vietnamese-American and first-time restaurant owners and brothers, Tuan and Huy Bui opened An Choi with first-time chef, Dennis Ngo. As it enters into its second year, it continues to secure its position as a prime destination for classic Vietnamese cuisine set in an intimate beautiful space inspired by that of an authentic Vietnamese street alley café with small metal stools and construction phone number graffiti lining the warmly lit walls.

On a beautiful Spring afternoon, I sat down with the brothers in their new Williamsburg, Brooklyn studio to reflect on the beginnings of An Choi, where it is now and where they see it going. As I walked past the first room of the studio, I peered in to see Huy and his architecture team, HB Collaborative, covered in wood shavings in their workspace. In the next room, Tuan was feverishly plugging numbers into a worksheet in preparation for an investor meeting. I waited patiently until they had a spare moment and then we began on a journey into the past and beginnings of An Choi.

The economic crash gave impetus to Tuan’s departure from the real estate industry. Huy had recently graduated with a Parsons Masters of Architecture degree. At this pivotal moment in their lives, they were individually seeking opportunities to work on projects aligned with their personal passions. Serendipitously inspired by a visit together to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam in the Fall of 2008, the Bui brothers returned to New York excited with plans to concept a restaurant together. Before this trip, there was some talk of developing a fashion boutique. However, Huy said they “were just blown away by the raw energy of the city and found the ubiquitous street alley to be quite fascinating and full of vitality.” Tuan “wanted to bring this unique dining experience to NY” and that is how it all began.

Since its opening in February 2009 with the Vietnamese Tet/New Year, An Choi has received many accolades and mentions and has expanded its business in several ways. Listed alongside Saltie, Vinegar Hill House and Momofuku Milk bar, it was one of the Top Best Restaurants Under $25 by The New York Times in 2009. Tuan and An Choi were featured in a national U.S. Blackberry campaign, “Pursuing the Dream with Blackberry.”

The restaurant has expanded its physical space with custom and unique HB Collaborative designs and they have embraced their original love for fashion by bringing in Derrick Cruz’s Black Sheep and Prodigal Sons shop, Occulter, into part of the expanded space. For the restaurant expansion, HB Collaborative maintained the communal and casual family-style spirit of An Choi with a dining furniture collection that re-purposed architectural elements and reclaimed industrial materials with a series of tables, chairs, and benches derived from vintage doors, antique stair spindles, and other found objects.

Beyond its restaurant doors, An Choi participates in local food community events as part of the Lower East Side’s Hester Street Fair and Momofuku’s Lucky Rice Night Market.

To continue with the excitement, An Choi confirms the addition of a fully stocked bar at the restaurant by this Fall and there are talks of expanding in the future into other New York neighborhoods, top U.S. cities and possibly even into global markets with more gourmet, high-end cuisine.

As someone who has loved An Choi since day one, I felt honored to get this intimate update from the brothers and couldn’t maintain the excitement of my continued support for them when Tuan nodded to excellence. Keith McNally was unaware of the future NY restaurant empire that awaited him as his original film director career path was thwarted by a means to an end in restaurants finding himself as an oyster shucker to general manager of One Fifth. Speaking fondly, Tuan expressed admiration for McNally as well as his own commitment to his An Choi clientele, “As Keith McNally’s clients, such as Anna Wintour, grew he grew with them and we want to grow together with the community that surrounds us.”

Since March 11, the entire world has stood aghast at the destruction and devastation from the 8.9 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that continues to overwhelm Japan and its people. Through the fog of chaos and crisis comes love and light as communities across the globe come together to help Japan. Last night in New York City at Milk Studios, that light shined bright through a group show fundraiser, JAPAN: RISING.

Emanated deep from the heart of Japanese-American Mayumi Tatsuta, JAPAN: RISING is without a doubt a project of pure love. Fortunately her family in Japan has managed to remain unharmed but her homeland still has a long road of recovery ahead. Mayumi partnered with friends Ben Pruess and Erik Lavoie to concept and develop the silent art auction to aid in this recovery. Their efforts gave way to Mayumi and Ben creating A Good Gathering, a charitable events production company and platform for the event.

Ben Pruess and Mayumi Tatsuta of A Good Gathering

JAPAN: RISING brought together over 75 of the most talented established and emerging artists submitting works reflective of the same hopefulness, rebirth and rediscovery as Japan as it rebuilds.

Mike Perry- The Shapes Moving Up

Kenzo Minami- Phoenix Victorious

Nick Zinner- Tokyo Crowd #2

Sebastian Kim- Devon Aoki

Madame Ngo Dinh Nhu (aka “Dragon Lady”), former First Lady of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, has died in Rome at the age of 86.

As the wife of the chief advisor/head of the secret police and brother of the single, President Ngo Dinh Diem, Madame Nhu acquired the role of First Lady.

Raised Buddhist and later converting to Catholicism, Nhu became known for generally speaking her mind, harshly speaking out against Buddhist protests, including against her own Buddhist father; therefore, receiving the nickname “Dragon Lady.” Time Magazine quoted her as saying, “You are never going to overthrow this government because you don’t have the guts… And if you do overthrow it, you will never have me because I will claw your throat out first.”

Beyond the controversy that surrounded her, Nhu was also known for her extravagant fashionable attire, hairstyle and popularized wearing a more form-fitted and modern version of the traditional áo dài.

After the death of her husband and President Diem and the eventual fall of South Vietnam, Nhu exiled to Italy where she has been residing with her children.

Written and directed by Stephane Gauger with cinematography support from Bao Nguyen, Saigon Electric (aka Saigon Yo!), portrays the story of old meets new connecting a traditional girl with modern life transitions. Mai, a traditional ribbon dancer from a small village finds herself in a new world of city life, hip-hop culture and a new best friend in Kim.

Gauger and Nguyen focused on maintaining authenticity to the culture and viewpoint of the characters:

In my wish of telling universal stories with a global outlook and a distinctly Vietnamese point of view, the seeds of Saigon Electric were planted. As the population of Vietnam grows younger and younger, youth culture is seeping onto the streets of Vietnam. Hip hop and graffiti artists are alive in today’s rapidly modernized culture. As our production team researched the best underground talent in Vietnam, we found much support from the hip hop community. Hundreds of young dancers came to audition for the chance to be captured on film, and I believe we were very fortunate in the ones selected to showcase their world of expression. My wish is to give the teenagers a voice and present to an international audience a fresh new look at the dreams and struggles of Asian youth.

- Stephane Gauger

We wanted to portray Saigon in a very realist way – not the polished,
sanitized version that many people see in other cinematic depictions of the city. Saigon, to me, is gritty, chaotic, the epitome of urban but at the same very dynamic and energetic. Also since this is a hip-hop film, Stephane, the director and the other director of photography, and I wanted the cinematography to compliment the subject of the film.

- Bao Nguyen

The film has premiered in LA and Saigon and will appear in upcoming festivals in San Diego, Chicago and San Francisco.