highlights of the internet

After spending almost two weeks in my room procrastinating revision, and venturing out only for food and to meet with one of my tutors, I've had a lot of time to play on the internet. This means that I've found new photographers, new music, new articles, new blogs and, of course, I've done a whole load of online window shopping. Alongside messing up my sleeping pattern (study leave provides no real structure to my days), I've faked an interest in about forty events on Facebook which I’ll receive notifications for but never go to, I’ve sent a zillion text messages, and I've watched a fair bit of TV that I missed when I was in Paris. This vegetation will only have been productive if I relay my findings with the outside world, so buckle up for a round up of my internet highlights.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Through browsing i-D, VICE and the articles they promote on my Facebook feed, I’ve found a new photographer who I really like. Her name’s Olivia Bee and I’m an instant fan. I’m not going to sit here and write I really like the colours she creates or the angles she shoots from, but I do want to talk about a couple of photos in particular. One of the images I really like is called Neon Headache (New York), 2015 and its your typical skyline shot but she’s able to capture the very tops of the buildings in New York with the background of this gorgeous dark purple and orange sunset, and the fact that the picture focuses strictly on the skyline appeals to me greatly. Us Against The World, 2014 drew my in initially by the two fringed jackets which I am a total sucker for recently. But I also like how patchy the sky looks in the background and the figures that the girls’ defined calves create against it. Kids in Love is my favourite of her stories – Baller, 2011 and Max Jumped Off a Train, 2012 are my favourite pictures form this collection, too. Featuring her friends, Vans, tasteful nudity, and more fringed jackets, Bee has captured that grunge feel revolutionised by Kate Moss in the 90s which made me fall in love with photography. It is fundamentally opposed to all the phoney photo shoots for clothing lines like Kylie Jenner’s recent Puma campaign in which she turns around and holds a ball to promote sportswear.

As much as I’m opposed to Facebook and toy with deleting my account at least once a week, it is useful for talking to coursemates who you wouldn’t strictly swap numbers with, finding events in your city, and having a stream of good articles dropped directly infront of you. I’ve liked the VICE UK and i-D pages of course, but sometimes it’s an album by a middle aged man that’s gone viral which really captures your interest. THE TUBE by Bob Mazzer was one of those. He captured some incredible photos of the tube and the people it carries in the last forty years and he’s been good enough to plonk them on his profile for us all to see. I love anything relating to youth cultures from the last hundred years, and it is so cool to see dozens of pictures of contemporary scenes which I’ve read about in books and seen in galleries, blend into scenes which I’d be familiar with from when I took the tube in 2010. They show images which are so quintessentially British it makes me want to move to London immediately.

By trawling through all these great photos, I am endlessly inspired to buy a fancy Nikon camera.

MUSIC

Remember Rizzle Kicks? Well Jordan Stephens (the rapper one) has just launched his own side project called Wildhood and he has a debut album out to go alongside it. Vert is the album title and, although there's only eight songs, there's a very different sound to the pop undertones that featured on Rizzle Kicks’ albums. This is the first time that Jordan has strayed from rapping in favour for singing and it really works. You can tell he’s spent hours in studios perfecting the music he’s written in his room or on a train, but there’s still the originality and dirt that you’d expect from one of his albums. He talks about drugs and sex, but there's also messy relationships and regrets which appear and its that honesty which makes this collection of songs another great piece of music which the UK does so brilliantly.

You can listen to Vert in full on Spotify here

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Whilst in Paris, I became hooked on Hamilton – the factually accurate, hip-hop, Broadway recount of Alexander Hamilton’s life. In just two and a half hours you follow his migration to New York, and his political career. Also featured is his much talked about affair and his role in the War of Independence. Already a huge hit in The States, its been performed in the White House and made over twenty million dollars in pre-sales before opening night. Its pretty much impossible to choose the top three songs that I would recommend because there are forty-six songs and they're all so different and exciting. The tag line of the play, if you like, is the story of the origins of America told by America today, which is the over elaborate way of saying that the cast is truly diverse and the playlist isn’t your usual theatrical music. I think that the popularity of this musical could honestly change the face of theatre as it would appeal to the typical audience, but it also has the potential to draw in a whole new demographic of people who wouldn’t normally spend their evenings at the theatre. I’m bursting with excitement for Hamilton to come to the West End.

You can listen to the full album on Spotify here (and I highly recommend you do).
I would draw your attention to Alexander Hamilton, The Schuyler Sisters, You'll Be Back, Satisfied, Yorktown, Say No To This, The Room Where It Happens, and Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story - there are a lot of highlights.

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I’ve been a fan of Tyler, The Creator for a while now and I was so stoked when Cherry Bomb dropped last year. What The Fuck Right Now came out at the beginning of last month and I saw it within the first twenty-four hours [sunglasses emoji]. Although loads of people have probably already heard this song on the Golf Media app or since its been put up on YouTube, I wanted to include it in this list because its just a fucking great record. I've spent so long watching videos on YouTube today of interviews with Tyler and loads of things he says just make so much sense. Take slurs for example – if you use and reuse them unapologetically you sort of take the meaning out of the word and therefore remove the insult, no longer allowing the racist and homophobic slurs to even exist, never mind them being directed at people. On top of that, his ethos of just doing what makes you happy and having ambition that doesn’t revolve around Instagram gratification – also discussed in this record – really makes sense and inspired me to delete three-quarters of the fucking apps on my phone months ago.

On a musical note (pun unintended), it’s cool to see Tyler use his musical abilities to nick a backbeat from Kanye on The Life of Pablo and turn it into a song which is so typically Tyler. It feels like this music and the production on the original record was made for Tyler in the first place – Freestyle 4  now feels like its been taken from Tyler rather than the other way around. It’s also nice to see A$AP Rocky rear his head on this record musically as I’m excited to see what WANG$AP has in store.

READING

In addition to my regular i-D reading and re-reading, I’ve been checking out a couple of new books from the university library and I’ve found some good reads online. In terms of books, I’ve finally finished The Catcher in The Rye which I was trying to read for ages but I hardly found the time to pick it up whilst I was in Paris. Its definitely not a book that everyone would enjoy because it’s mostly narrative, but I enjoyed it. Following Holden Caulfield around 1940s New York as he talks about his distaste for school and annoyance with the stagnancy of life was a good read, not always the most optimistic, but a good read none the less. I think that’s what’s given the book its reputation as being one of those essential reads because it discusses those very real and honest feelings which would’ve been controversial in the fifties when it was released. Personally, I like books, films, photos, and music which deal with that vulnerability and rawness because I feel like it gives me some sort of superficial ties to the content – that sounds pretentious but either way I liked this book and Holden’s hunting hat. It felt like lots of mini stories which you could pick up at any point and read five pages and then put it down and come back in an hour which made the book easy to read. Would recommend.

Now I'm on study leave (although I have done no actual studying), I have caught the bug for reading for leisure which is nice because I can’t remember the last time I looked at my desk and saw three books that weren’t for school and that I actually looked forward to reading. I’ve just started reading The Sun Also Rises by Hemmingway and I like going through the pages and seeing the names of places in Paris which I've been. I look forward to reading the rest of the book.

As usual, I was browsing the Think Pieces section on i-D when I came across this article called defining the f word: why we need to be more radical with feminism. It was an excellently written article which helped me more articulately explain my views on feminism and why I don’t think Miley Cyrus running around with a dildo strapped to her hips was particularly feminist. It highlights some good points about the popularisation of feminism and how, although increased awareness is a good thing, making it a thing that every celebrity is asked about (including politicians as well as musicians and actors) sort of drains the meaning out of the word rather than to use the word for good. Maisie Williams was recently quoted saying that we should stop using the words ‘feminist’ and ‘feminism’ because, if you're not a feminist, you're sexist. Although it was quite a bold statement, I feel like she has a point and her argument also supports the argument that this article makes about how the widespread use of the term ‘feminist’ is sort of counterproductive to the movement in the first place.

On a less academic note, I read a hilarious article on BuzzFeed. 21 Tumblr Posts About Masturbation That Will Get You Every Time was a classic BuzzFeed list-article which had me laughing from start to finish. I don’t really have a lot to say about this article but it made my ribs sore because I was laughing so hard – “breaking my ribs was not festive.”

FASHION

First of all, a moment of silence needs to be held because Hedi Slimane has left Saint Laurent and my heart is broken. Slimane brought sleekness and sharpness to the Parisian house and, in just three years, rebranded the whole label turning it from something distinctly elitist into something which was new and fresh and ultimately cool. He created line after line of clothes which were well made and clean cut which is what appealed to me the most. I'm sure many people will agree with me when I say that there's nothing better than a sharp suit and LBD; but Slimane was able to turn these wardrobe basics into something with artistic design and a voice. They appeal to many with their originality by being distorted versions of things everyone owns which made any Saint Laurent piece stand out. Vetements took Saint Laurent and made it more wearable and dirty with their long sleeves, misshaped heels, and frayed denim – but without Slimane I wonder where their brand would be. By creating lines which were so distinctly different to other fashion houses, it only seems appropriate that he would rename the house altogether. Vaccarello has big, gold, cowboy boots to fill.

MISCELLANEOUS

Amongst the five hundred pink post-its I have on my wall reminding me of impending deadlines and to wash my bath towels, I have a note with shows I mean to watch and what episode I'm already up to. I’ve recently gotten into Plebs since I saw the advert for series three on the TV and the inner historian in me is chuckling along whenever I watch. I was sceptical about the show before, but it turns out I thoroughly enjoy watching people blunder through Roman life. It brings a sort of familiarity and humility to Ancient life which I think people often miss, and I find it not only intriguing but also quite funny. Season three is up on itv player at the moment.

I’ve also binge watched loads of old episodes of Celebrity Juice, the most recent Geordie Shore episodes, and marathoned Adventure Time. Where would we be without Watch Series?

Another thing I’m itching to go and see is the Rolling Stones exhibition which is on at the Saatchi gallery at the moment. Exhibitionism is the biggest collection of hand-written notes, jazzy jumpsuits, and guitars and amps from the last fifty to sixty years that The Rolling Stones have collected and decided to put on display for all of us mega fans to geek out at. Luckily its on from April to September so I’ll definitely go down to the capital at some point this summer.