Five Year Engagement

Judd Apatow creates films that people <3 to watch. His latest flick, Five Year Engagement is all about soul mates. Press play and pass the tissues.

Cult producer and writer Judd Apatow understands exactly where his audience’s LOL buttons are located. Starring Jason Segel and Emily Blunt, his latest rom-com is the charming and poignant tale of two kindred spirits who can’t live without each other. Ingeniously casting the award-winning actors as an on-screen couple, the chemistry between Blunt and Segal is infectious, perfectly combining the more obvious elements of American comedy with the dry British type of banter. Cheeky and honest, the film’s storyline maintains a steady, exciting pace and watches the characters’ relationship grow.
A perfect date, or a break up movie, Five Year Engagement is the follow up to Judd’s most recent break through movies Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Bridesmaids. i-D online caught up with buddies and pretend love birds Emily and Jason to find out what makes them go googley-eyed.
thefiveyearengagementmovie.com
Five Year Engagement is out now in UK cinemas.
Text: Milly McMahon

i-DJ: Kyle Hall

Kyle Julian Hall’s dance-floor filling vibes are infectious. When experienced live his schizophonic sets bounce speakers.

Raised on a heady diet of roots, reggae, house and gospel, Detroit producer Kyle Hall spent a lot of his childhood knee-high in krumping crowds at his uncle’s club. Regularly accompanying his Ma to choir for gospel practice, a sense of rhythm and melody was instilled deep in Kyle from infancy. Releasing accomplished, ground-breaking mixes and playing extended sets at sell-out venues before he was even old enough to be served at American bars, Hall has been mentored by integral techno heads Mike Huckaby and Omar S and is a firm favourite with trailblazing imprint Hyperdub. Headlining i-D NOW’s Boiler Room Session last year, ahead of his return to London to play the Glass Table showcase tonight, Kyle recorded a 20 minute house cassette mix just for us, drop what your doing, listen to this.
Tell us about some of your favourite nights… Fundametals at Motor City Wine in Detroit, hosted by myself and Jay Daniel once a month. I also like Pudel Club in Hamburg and Plastic People in London. What are you excited about right now? I’m excited about producing music and collaborating with friends. And about Helena Hauff, Jay Daniel, Manuel Gonzales, Scott Grooves and GB. How important is style to you? It’s not, unless it’s a baby bib or Wild Oats t-shirt (you can buy them here!). What tracks do you carry around with you to every set? Harmnear/Konnekt, Manuel Gonzales, NSNT PRJCT and The Provider, GB. What gets you through an extended set? Quality tunes. What’s getting you through to next weekend? Music, good food, and good vibes!
myspace.com/kylehalldetroit

Text Milly McMahon
See our complete i-DJ back catalogue here.

LUNICE - THE GOOD KIDS

i-D June Mixtape

 

Up the tempo: Julio, Eats Everything, Scuba, Disclosure, Soul Clap and Eliphino have prepared some new prime cuts, you dirty animal.

Listen to June’s mixtape live and loud tonight at XO, London. Admission’s free, all your need to know here.
The solid line-up gracing i-D’s June mixtape sticks to the formula we at i-D HQ know and love, hip-hop and house. Side-stepping our well-trodden techno and grime-laden territories, we’re exploring some soul, acid-wave and ambient mini anthems. True to form, tracks that bounce with a deep beat make the cut: Chet Falker, Slime, Baio, Maribou State, Two Inch Punch and Jakwob do their bit for the dub, tropicana and the disco scene, dropping wavy noises alongside rhythm and blues forefathers Bobby Womack and Frank Ocean.
Opening proceedings with the epic Maya Jane Cole and ending with Devlin, everything you hear on this set-list of superlative sounds is designed to inspire you to pump the volume and ignore anything but what’s going into your ears. The almighty Martin Luther King once said “as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead”, so step up and join i-D Online, as we push forward with one ambition i-N mind: let love and music unite y’all. Peace.
The eternally optimistic Philip Smiley is the man behind this month’s mixtape cover art. Inspired by the deep melodies our chosen dance music plays out, the Virgnia born, London based artist created a piece more Armageddon than dance-floor… we’re into it. Typically inspired by his rural American upbringing, Philip’s eye for detail is truly beautiful. Commissioned by the fashionable likes of COMME des GARÇONS, Burberry, Stella McCartney and b store, Philip has exhibited his work in New York, London and Sweden. No wonder he’s such a happy chappy. Cheers for the sweet sketch Philip!
Text and selection: Milly McMahon
Artwork: Philip Smiley

i-D MIX Thursday 14th June XO Bar

 

i-D MIX
Thursday 14th June
XO Bar

Jakwob
Fantastic Mr Fox
Two Inch Punch
Maribou State
Lixo (GETME!)

Facebook event

Whilst most have been chatting about the weather and HM The Queen, i-D online has been busy lining-up another night of top drawer talent for the third instalment of our tip top monthly mix nights at XO Bar, Thursday 14th June.

Proudly announcing the austere Fantastic Mr Foxas the headline act for the night, he’ll be joined at our ever-eclectic music event by prodigal PMR Records signed producer Two Inch Punch is joined by underground London duoMaribou State and GETME!frontman Lixo for this heavy, late evening, weekender warm-up session.

And the secret guest? JAKWOB. Catch James Jacob playing his newly released Mixtape The Prize, live and loud from 10PM. Not to be missed.

xoyo.co.uk

Text and selection:Milly McMahon

Head here to see the full back catalogue of i-D’s monthly mixtapes.

i-N Conversation: The Hip Hop Shakespere Company

Mobo award-winning Kingslee Akala Daley is the politically charged hip hop artist spitting and speaking up for his generation’s right to a decent education.

“There can be a tendency in this country to get arrogant and to try and make Shakespeare into an intellectual God. I don’t think that’s healthy, I think it creates a certain amount of fear in young people, which discourages them from experimenting with his work because it feels blasphemous. In reality Shakespeare should be being taught as just another genius that they should be aiming to be like, whilst using his plays as a basis for understanding the human universe. They should not be leaving his work on a dusty shelf thinking it belongs to only one segment of the population.” Akala Kingslee Daley.

Akala is promoting the importance of education, as the way out for all of the individuals forced into sub-standard levels of living in the UK. Establishing the Hip Hop Shakespeare Company as a reaction to the stereotypical way hip hop lyricists are perceived by older generations, Akala made it his mission to integrate his unorthodox approach to understanding Shakespearean literature into schools. A big fan of lil Will’s writing since he first encountered his works in an English literature class at school, Akala became quickly disenchanted by the stuffy presentations of the beautiful creativity that flowed from his favourite plays, namely Macbeth and Othello. Inspired then and now by the way each captured, presented and challenged human behaviour, colonialism, racism, power and gender politics, today Akala heads up workshops demonstrating how modern hip-hop shares many similarities with the themes, language and rhythm used by The Bard.

i-D online caught up with the fast-chatting gentleman down at Hay Festival to find out what fuels his fire.

hiphopshakespeare.com

Text: Milly McMahon

Hay 2012: i-N Conversation: John Cooper Clarke

“My template for the perfect looking gentleman is very specific. It is Keith Richards on the steps of Chichester Crown Court in 1965… He looked to so patrician.” John Cooper Clarke, i-N Conversation with i-D online at Hay 2012.

If crown prince of punk poetry John Cooper Clarke were to appoint a Queen for a day he would have chosen his Ma. A walking saint with an innate sense of justice, he believes she would have done a good job reigning supreme over Britain’s green and pleasant lands. Miles away from his inner city stomping grounds in the rainy hills of Hay-on-Wye, drain-pipe jean’d, winkle-picking wearing Johnny looks every inch the icon. Sat in the VIP area of the artists’ tent eating a roast dinner before his recital at the prestigious Welsh literary festival, Mr Cooper Clarke is impeccably polite to everyone who approaches him. Laughing easily, chatting candidly and remembering his earlier days spent touring with some of the most legendary rock’n'roll artists of all time, John is now a dedicated father and a loving husband. Continuing to write his comic beat, New Romantic material today, he’s just as inspired by people, irony and subcultures as ever before and his humour and wit are sharper than a razor and more cunning than a city fox. Inviting i-D online to have a sneaky peek at some of his latest works, John recites the Elvis-inspired short ‘Tiki shirts’ whilst rocking some Converse and gold teeth. Standard.

John first appeared in i-D issue number 10, The Out Already Issue, published in December 1992 (pictured below)

johncooperclarke.com

Text and film: Milly McMahon

Stone Island vs. Thristian bPm

Durable, luxurious, masculine menswear, and three decades old this year, Stone Island sorts the men from the boys.

Click images to enlarge.

Crafting tough attire for fashion-conscious, hard-grafting individuals, Stone Island’s aesthetic appeal is universal. Standing alone as one of the most influential and widely worn workwear brands, season after season Stone Island set an agenda that others follow. The thick knit materials and rich textile references the label presents are designed with strong men in mind, men like MC and DJ Thristian bPm (pictured right) and like i-D Fashion Editor,Elgar Johnson(interviewed below).

A firm fan of Stone Island, Thristian got dressed up and modelled some of the brand’s current, 30th birthday season looks just for i-D online (make this an extra sensory experience and lock into Thristian’s sounds here). And to accompany, i-D online took time out Elgar to talk all things S.I.. With exceptional style, Elgar has worn Stone Island since his teenage days hanging out around Peterborough. First discovering the brand in charity shops, he went on to to be the face of the label’s campaigns. Now, as Elgar works behind-the-scenes on the lookbook and casting the next generation of S.I. superheroes, we chat with the buffalo boy about his involvement from the early days to present date.

What is your earliest memory of Stone Island?In the early 90s when I was trying to be a grunger and I found a big blue Stone Island jumper at The Salvation Army charity shop in Peterborough. It was love at first sight but I remember I didn’t like the tag on the arm so I wore it without. I guess it didn’t go with my look.

How has the label evolved over the past few years? Stone Island is a phenomenon. I think its audience is huge now and it has moved with the times unlike a lot of brands.

What kind of a man fronts Stone Island threads? The Stone Island man is confident and strong.

Can you tell us about the campaign you modelled in for Stone Island? The shoot I featured in was shot by Nick Griffith and styled by my best friend [and i-D Consultant Fashion Director] Simon Foxton. I remember feeling quite silly because Simon basically took the mick out of me the whole day. I think he was probably jealous.

What is the most treasured Stone Island item in your wardrobe?Probably my chunky beige cardigan, it’s well good.

Why do you think Stone Island is as popular amongst high fashion crowds as it is on the streets? I dunno really maybe it’s because it can relate to all men, it’s stylish but not exaggerated.

What is the crossover point between Simon’s creative vision and the signature Stone Island aesthetic? I remember when he started working on the label and it was the perfect brand. Simon is a genius, he knows how to make men look good. I think he likes the idea of dressing up masculine men, it’s fun for him. Stone Island is the most masculine brand out there right now.

What qualities do you look for in a future Stone Island face? It’s always interesting faces, not always the most handsome. Stone Island men are tough but not street fighters. It’s the attitude that’s important. You wouldn’t mess with them.

What direction will the label be taking in 2012?I’m expecting them to touch down on the moon any minute now.

All clothes & accessories by Stone Island

stoneisland.co.uk

Text: Milly McMahon
Photography: James White
Styling: Mark McMahon
Photography Assistance: Jeff Yiu
Styling Assistance: Emily Rusby
Grooming: Mari Ohashi

With thanks to Studio Private