In conjunction with ROBOTlove, OX-OP is hosting a one night exhibit, LIMITED ADDICTION: The Art Toy Movement a retrospective exhibit of key pieces from 1999-2006. Basically a one night showing of the early, and hard to find pieces from this movement. Compiled from the personal collections of ROBOTlove, Haze-XXL & several others, the toys on display are pieces you’re likely only to ever see books like Delicious Vinyl, and seldom in person. Read the rest of this entry »

Prior to the release of Dunnys Series 2, there’s a good chance you never heard the name UPSO or Dustin Amery Hostetler, but you probably have seen his work. Designing portraits with digital media and a cartoony, yet life-like style, UPSO has received paydays from some major magazines, including Wired and Flaunt. And, thanks to a little day-glow yellow Dunny and near sell-out shows in New York City, UPSO is ready to take the lowbrow into the mainstream.

It’s hard not to notice that your tattoos are based on the world of graffiti art. How did you become part of the culture and can you give us a history of how UPSO came to be?
My tattoos are all designed and done by Mike Giant. I’ve been a big fan of his work since I was in high school, and through my art magazine Faesthetic, I’ve had the pleasure to get to know him and connect with him not only through his prints and drawings but also now his tattoos. I’ve been working on my sleeves for eight years with him. The tattoos are all different kinds of arrows, and are a constant reminder that I need to keep moving. Read the rest of this entry »

Liquor and Poker Music Present
“Girls Got Rhythm”
Liquor and Poker

It’s hard enough to be a tribute band at a time when all the retro bands are rushing to cash in on a reunion tour, but now this breed of rocker has to pull out a gimmick to stand out from the pack. Fine, so being a chick isn’t exactly a gimmick, but it must suck having to stand in front of old drunk dudes at a biker bar and rock out tunes by their masculine heroes.

Fret not, Liquor and Poker has taken the guess work out of deciding who rocks and who sucks by showcasing the best of the best in female tribute bands on “Girls Got Rhythm.” Take the Iron Maidens. These fiery harlots have been shredding for years. Search YouTube and you’ll find them. They tackle “Run to the Hills” with so much ruthlessness that they make the Blaze Bailey-era Maiden look like a bunch of pussies. Read the rest of this entry »

Copro/Nason is gearing up for what looks to be a hell of a show featuring Luke Chueh and his bloody bears. The show, “Facing the Facade,” is running from July 15 to August 12 and many of the paintings have already been bought buy locals and fans on the gallery’s waiting list. Join the site’s mailing list and find out how to buy the remaining paintings. Copro/Nason will also have prints available at the show of the image on the side “Bear in mind” 24″x36″ giclee on canvas varnished and 16″x20″ giclee on canvas varnished and framed, as well as “Deathwish” which is giclee mounted on archival board hand varnished and framed.

Osaka Popstar
“and the American Legend of Punk”
Rykodisc

For years, people have been bitching that the current Misfits line-up (Jerry Only, Marky Ramone, and Dez Cadena) is a train wreck and shouldn’t be disgracing the legacy of one of the greatest punk bands of all time. Hell, this incarnation made the Graves, Doyle, Chudd years look awesome.

So what does Jerry Only do? He hires the director of such cinema classics as Big Money Hustlas to sing and forms a Japanese cartoon pop-punk act–Osaka Popstar. It’s actually The Miscraps with Ivan Julian from the Voidoids along for the ride, but don’t tell them that. Read the rest of this entry »

Greg Graffin
“Cold as the Clay”
Anti

Released rather quietly in 1997, Greg Graffin’s first solo record, “American Lesion” featured raw folk and piano ballads loaded with misery and depression. He chose the moniker American Lesion to keep fans of his full-time band, Bad Religion, from crying sell-out, and with the exception of a few hush-hush shows at Knitting Factories on both coasts, the album was not reproduced live.

Graffin pulled a 180 with his second solo record, “Cold as the Clay.” Hyped as a full-on Americana record, Graffin grabbed the Weakerthans and a few other friends and penned a full-length album in a week. This time, the sorrow has been replace with fun and a sense of hope. Sure, songs like “Don’t be Afraid to Run” recall Bruce Springsteen’s “The River” and sound just as haunting, but most of the tunes on here are traditional folk ditties featuring (for better or worse) tons of banjo. Jolie Holland lends her voice on “One More Hill,” which is quite a change of pace from his usual oohs and ahs two-part harmonies. Read the rest of this entry »

Life In A Bungalo just received a crazy e-mail from customizer Dr. Bao and the NVC crew. Looks like there was a lack of WuTang toys, so they decided to make their own. Rather then try to explain what they are doing, we figured it would be best if we just let Dr. Bao describe it. He also really likes to use ellipses…

“You probably know by now that we’re a lot in the Asian theme for our customs….. and you probably know that we like to mix the Asian style warriors with hip hop and stuff like that…..Well combine these 2 elements together and you’ve got our new project…… Shaolin vs Wu Tang!!!! I want to make shaolin monks customs for a while but simply don’t really know exactly what I want to do…. and one day, well I simply had this crazy idea….” Read the rest of this entry »