Doc Martens by Davidelfin

The wild Spanish designer Davidelfin has created a special Doc Martens model in wood pattern, both shoes and boots. This designer is apparently very fond of this brand: in October he had his models wearing white Docs on the catwalk at the Cibeles Madrid Fashion Week where he showed his Summer collection "Katharsis". Should you wish to buy these special wood patterned Docs, please refer to Davidelfin's site http://www.davidelfin.com/ where you can also buy items from his predominantly blue and yellow Winter collection, and pre-orde items from the colourful Summer Collection.

Dramatis - For future reference

The final days of the year are ripe in past recollections. But this time Trendenz did not want to go back just a couple of months and recall some of music highlights of this year. We decided to go back 30 years and bring back to life one of the best songs dating back to 1981. "On reflection" is probably the best track from Dramatis' album "For Future Reference". This band relied with the collaboration of Gary Numan, but here they've proved they could do a fine Pop song on their own. Here's for you to listen and to keep for future reference. For further enjoyment an pleasure check also the songs recorded by this band with Gary Numan on vocals, such as "Ex Luna Scientia" or "Love Needs no Disguise".

Dr Martens Pen Drive

Trendenz is a big fan of Dr Martens, hence we could not resist and suggest this USB Drive as a great idea for a Xmas present.

"Movement" by New Order - 30th Anniversary

November 2011 marked the 30th anniversary of "Movement" the first album by New Order, the band that was born after the death of Ian Curtis and the split of Joy Division. Here we can still spot the influences of Joy Division. Listening to this track "Denial" one can sense undeniably melodies that bring us back to Joy Division's "Atmosphere", like a dance version of that track.
With this record, New Order steered in a new direction and became a more dance oriented which would become more apparent after the release of "Blue Monday", the record Daft Punk would have loved to make. And this transition into a dance band has never been peaceful among the fans. Some claim they should have stick to this sound and it was closer to the essence, the inheritance of Joy Division. Others claim they were right to part ways.
Anyway, "Movement" will remain as the best record by New Order for us. A record that brings us back to Joy Division but which does not fail to point to new directions.

The fabulous sound of Sensible Soccers

They do not like to state where they're from, but we suspect they are from north of Portugal. But that doesn't matter.
Listening to their sound, one could say they have engaged in serious binge drinking at the 4AD label or at WARP, as their sound ressonates the sounds from bands signing to these two British labels.
Listening to their track "Fernanda" it feels as if Robin Guthrie from Cocteau Twins had been invited to play along.
They claim they are influenced by names such as Steve Reich and Frank Zappa. But I would rather point to names such as Brian Eno/David Byrne or Jansen/Barbieri/Karn with pints of Beanfield, Seefeel, Lali Puna or even Future Sound of London. But then again Trendenz could be entirely wrong and they probably do not even listen to such names.
What matters is that we will have the possibility of seeing them live on the 9th of December at Plano B in Oporto and on the 10th at Lounge, in Lisbon. After that they will take to Spain for gigs at Underground in Barcelona on the 14th and at the Wurlitzer in Madrid on the 15th.
It doesn't matter where they come from. Trendenz just love this bunch of people "who play a very cute football with great affection".

David Sylvian on tour in 2012

"Implausible Beauty" is the name of the tour that will bring David Sylvian to the European stages as of March 2012. According to the musician's website, he has found a group of musicians with whom he is more than happy to play with.
Trendenz still recalls the fabulous concert in Lisbon and does hope this city will be included in this new tour. This would another great opportunity to see master Sylvian live on stage again.
And we do hope he plays some of the best songs from his careers, as it is the case of this track "Wave" on the video featured in "Gone to Earth", a true zen therapy record, a monument to beauty and sensibility.

Dr. Marten's Boots by Alexei Sayle

Trendenz is a big fan of Doc Martens as you probably have realised by now, hence it did not resist posting this funny video by the British stand-up comedian Alexei Sayle. Enjoy!!

Depeche Mode founders Vince Clarke and Martin Gore together in a new project

VCMG is the name of a brand new project formed by old techno pop masters Vince Clark and Martin Gore and which is there to rock the dancefloors worldwide. Both musicians have parted their ways 30 years ago after the first album "Speak and Spell" by Depeche Mode, the band they created together with Andy Fletcher and Dave Gaham. The album will be released in 2012 but there already an EP outhere. The sound is hypnotic by two of the fathers of electonic dance music.
Vince, who would be replaced in Depeche Mode by Alan Wilder, engaged in a career of his own forming bands such as Yazoo, Assembly or Erasure. Along with these bands he was also involved in further projects as it is the case of the brilliant "Pretentious", an experimental album he recorded especially with Heaven 17's Martyn Ware for the National Centre for Popular Music in Sheffield.~
As for Martin, he became the band's main composer, the leading man in the band, having composed one of DM's best tracks, "Enjoy the Silence". In 2003 he released a solo album under the name "Counterfeit", 4 years after receiving the "International Achievement" award from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors.

Durutti Column - Friends in Portugal

Every now and then a band manages to put in a track the sound and the feel of a city. In "Menina ao pé de uma piscina" Vini Reily's guitar weeps like the gentle weeping of a fado guitar in a dark alley of Lisbon. The album was recorded in one night in a studio outside Lisbon and released in 1983 by the label Fundação Atlântica and has been reissued every now and then.
Vini Reily and Bruce Mitchel are the Durutti Column, an english band formed in 1978. and extremely famous in Portugal. The name of the band comes from Buenaventura Durriti, the men who led a column of anarchists fighters during the Spanish Civil War. Their first album received the name of "The Return of Durutti column" and was inspired by a poster from Situationist International featuring that phrase. Friends of Tony Wilson and of a number of people who contributed for the big revolution in modern musich in the eighties, from Ian Curtis to Morrisey, their's has been a quiet revolution through sound. For more insight on this band check also the albums "LC" or "The guitar and other machines".

Dkode shoes

Looking forward to the coming Spring to get the hand on these remarkable shoes by the Portuguese brand Dkode. And should you live outside Portugal do not worry. This brand is presrnt in most European countrirs.

Duran Duran - Girl Panic!

They've always liked girls on film... and on video. Thirty years after hitting the Tops, Duran Duran are now back with a smashing song that brings you back to their eighties sound always blinking at the fashion world and with this video featuring supermodels such as Yasmin le Bon, Eva Herzigova, Naomi Campbel and Helena Christensen. The boys that started the videoclip age with "Rio", the most expensive production at the time now come back with this smashing video directed by Jonas Ackerlund, conducted in collaboration with Harper's Bazar.

Buraka Som Sistema - Restless

They're the coolest act from Portugal and they are bringing their sounds to the dancefloors around the world. Here's "Restless", a tune which brings you back to the best electtonic sounds made in the past two decades. After hitting us hard with their hardass (kuduro) inspired sound they brought us to another dimension with their album Black Diamond and are now closer to some of biggest names in dance music. Some claim they are close to M.I.A.. After listening to this single I rather file them in the same record shelf right next to the second album of Leftfield, Rythm & Stealth.

Spanish footwear that rocks

You probably don't know but most of the footwear you see in the major rock events, both on stage and in the audience, comes for the Spanish brand New Rock which has been around since 1978. Trendenz came across this brand in one of the editions of The Brandery in Barcelona and had the opportunity to see the vast selection of footwear that delights rocks, punks and goths alike all over the world. The demand is so big that they now have exclusice stores and corners from Las Vegas to Madrid, Moscow and Santiafo de Chile, Sydeny or Vienna.
Besides their design catering for a whole generaltion of indie, alternative, punk and hard rock bands they are proud to use the latest technology and good manufacturing from comfort plus systems to 360º stitching or multipoint shock absorption.
Remember Angelina playing Lara Croft. Well, the boots she was wearing are from new rock.

The gorgeous voice of Marta Hugon

She's gorgeous, Portuguese and has a great voice. This Lisbon singer will be presenting her new album "A different time" tonight in Lisbon. Do not expect something completely diffferent from what she as done before, but rather a reinvention in this song album with her usual band. Marta had been swimming slow in the music scene and is here to stay.

"THE GREEKS" - Best Animation Video

award

The Video "The Greeks" by the band Is Tropical was awarded best animation video and best indie rock video at the recent music video awards in the United Kingdom. The video was shot in a french suburb and according to the band members quoted in Kitsuné's page, they have been wanting "to make such a video since the age of 6".

The beautiful world of Elisa Palomino

Trendenz was fascinated once again by the work of Elisa Palomino shown at Cibeles Madrid Fashion Week. This Spanish designer is a true world citizen who calls Marid, London and New York her home. Check out her gorgeous outfits for this Winter season.

New talents from Spain at Cibeles Madrid Fashion Week

After a full year of fashion shows it is now time to look back and remember some of the most striking examples of creativity. This mental journey takes me to Spain and Madrid where Trendenz attended Cibeles and saw the work by  the most renowned Spanish designers. Designers such as Amaya Arzuaga, Davidelfin, the late Jesus del Pozo, Agatha Ruiz de la Prada, Juan Duyos and Roberto Verino, just to name a few, have left their mark in Spanish fashion and are more than ripe for exports and it is always a pleasure to see what they have to show every season.
But one of the biggest advantages of attending 5 full days of fashion shows was the possibility to appreciate the work of upcoming names and their proposals for this Autumn/Winter. Some have just made it to the major runways, as is the case of El Comillo de Morsa or Lluis Corujo, others, despite working for some time now in fashion have just recently made it to this major runway: that's the case of Teresa Helbig and Martin Lamothe. These four names were for us the most striking examples of creative designers whose work we will follow in the near future. We hereby promise you in-depth texts on their work. But for now, the intention is just to draw the attention to these names and to show you some of their best designs.

El Comillo de Morsa

 Lluis Corujo

Martin Lamothe

Teresa Helbig

Music of Quality and Distinction in London

The British Electric Foundation was one of the biggest achievements by the boys from Heaven 17, a band formed when The Human League split and began making easy pop songs that would become major hits. Heaven 17 in turn went for a more electronic and danceable sound, using sinthesizers and following a path started by the Sheffield punks. Penthouse and Pavement is their best record so far. But the rise to success would come with The Luxury Gap, the album featuring the mega hit Temptation.
30 years after Martin Ware and Glenn Gregory have decided to play The Luxury Gap in 3D sound at The Rounhouse in London on October 14. More than a revival it was the living proof that the Heaven 17 songs are still here to stay.
But for those who were not up for grabs and wanted the full cake Heaven 17 would provide another occasion to show one of their biggest achievements - the cretation of the British Electric Foundation. Under the name Music of Quality and Distinction they released major songs from soul to white funk by the likes of Billie McKenzie, Green Garthside or.... Tina Turner. The BEF played indeed a major role in relaunching Tina Turner's career back in 1981.
Three decades after we had the opportunity to see some iconic singers play live songs under the same moto of Music of Quality and Distinction. Boy George surprised us with a cool version of Nancy Sinatra's These Boots are Made for Walking, while Midge Ure sang Billie McKenzies version of Bowie's The Secret Life of Arabia. Kim Wilde, Sandy Shaw and Green Garhside took also to the stage in a great night that ended with nearly all the guests on stage singing Temptation.

The art of Suede's Brett Anderson

He is one of the best voices of the so called brit pop movement which invaded the planet in the 90's. As the frontman from the Suede his voice sang some of the best songs ever. "Still Life", "Saturday Night", "The Beautiful Ones" or "Trash" still echoe in our minds. He then launched a solo career and on the 26 of September "Black Rainbows" will be out in the shops. Here's a great theme from that album. We just love it.

Heaven 17 - Music of Quality and Distinction Live in London

Heaven 17 are back in form performing their 80's album The Luxury Gap in 3D sound in London on October the 14th at The Roundhouse. The day after the band will perform songs from Music of Quality and Distinction, the album released by the band in their label BEF (British Electric Foundation). This show will feature guest guest singers such as Glenn Gregory, Green Gartside, Boy George, Midge Ure and Sandie Shaw, among others. A great opportunity to listen to two of the best albums from the 80's and to testify the energy of Heaven 17, a band formed after the split of Human League and one of the best electronic projects back then. And get ready to see the band playing also tunes from bands iconic bands such as Blancmange, Human League and, hopefully, The Associates. I am buying my ticket and booking my flight. What are you waiting for?

Benetton Vintage

Opening Soon was the name of an exhibition on the best shop designs commissioned by Benetton. The event took place in Milan on February 21st 2009 and was the opening event of the Trienale de Arquitectura. Here you could see the best projects laid out by architects from all over the world for Benetton shops. And to decorate the room Benetton searched the archives and came up of with some of the brand's most iconic models. And the astonishing result was this: Dozens of models hanging from the roof, a marvellous display of colour and design.

Post Created 26/06/2011 00:41:40

landing in lisbon

Locked in Ana Locking's use of colour

One of the things that locked me in during the February 2011 presentation of Spanish Fall / Winter collections at Cibeles  Madrid Fashion Week was the use of colour by the Spanish designer Ana Locking. Aside from the colours, Trendenz was fascinated by the great proposals as far as menswear is concerned e.g, the long coats with interestig details or the daring rocks for men. Fashion with a sense of purpose and clean style. 

The most beautiful band in town

Think of Arcade Fire or I'm From Barcelona, mix it with tropical melodies and lyrics and rock anthems and you will get the perfect mix by this bunch of cool modern Brazilians. Formed two years ago A Banda Mais Bonita Da Cidade (The Most Beautiful Band In Town) began researching the work by some popular Brazilian composeres, mixing brazilian lyrics and melodies with recent rock sounds. The result is this astonishing song for the cool days of Summer. After discovering recent acts such as Cansei de Ser Sexy, A Banda Mais Bonita da Cidade could be a sure bet to ignite the audiences in the coming summer open air festivals. File under cool modern Brazlians, next to the sounds of Mangue Beat, Fernanda Abreu or the great Brazilian Dj Camilo Rocha, the man who launched the compilation "Música Electrônica do Brasil" for the magazine Trip do Brazil in the mid-90's and who changed then completely my perception on Brazilian music.

Creation The love and dance and groove corporation - Palatial

May the 9th is the release date both in selected movie theatres and on DVD for the movie on one of the greatest British labels, Creation. "Upside Down" features statements on this label by renowned musicians. But should you wish to know more about this label, check this record. "Keeping the Faith" is probably one of the best dance compilations ever and features a number of versions remixed by renowned DJs such as Danny Rampling or Andrew Weatherall. The most amazing track is this one featured on the video above, Palatial, by the Love Corporation. Fluke, Primal Scream or My Bloody Valentine are some of the bands whose work is remixed with an astonishing end result. After listening to this you will realise why Creation is considered one of the grooviest lables in the history of modern music.

'Upside Down' - The Story of Creation Records

"Upside Down", named after a song by the Jesus and Mary Chain is the most recent movie about a british record label. After seeing the wonderful story of yet another indie laberl, Rough Trade, music fans now have the possibility to discover the stories behing Creation. Headed by a true talentspotter, Alan McGee, this label was home to some of the most influential bands in british pop, from Primal Scream to House of Love, from My Bloody Valentine to Oasis. The movie features statements and stories about what seemed to be one of the most chaotic labels, a true nest of party animals, hedonists and substance lovers. But amidst the chaos, some of the best records were produced here. Just listen to the first record by Jesus and Mary Chain, the mindblowing records by the Primal Scream of the superb compilation "Keepinh the Faith - A Creatiom Dance Compilation".

Superb fish dishes in Lisbon

Should you be in LIsbon up until the 17th of April make the most of your stay and do not miss a great food event under the name Peixe em Lisboa. Take to the main square by the river, Praça do Comércio, and try the best fish dishes prepared by the most renowned chefs in Portugal All of this with great Portuguese wines and a gourmet market.

Surfwear designed by Kenzo

Kenzo, one of the most renowned japanese fashion designers has just design a new collection of designs for the surf brand Longboard. The collection will be available as of April 2011 and will feature more than a dozen models, for men, woman and children. And if you are not an affluent person, fear not, as these designs will be available in major retail outlets. T-shirts, shorts and sarongs are just some of the designs available so that you can surf with style.

Kiss Kiss Kiss - Broken Hearts

They're called Kiss Kiss Kiss and are a refreshing band from Denmark. Some may thing Prince when seeing this name. But Kiss Kiss Kiss brings me rather to Kiss me Kiss me Kiss me, the great album by The Cure. This band of five will be playing at the Lounge, a club in Lisbon where you can come across great surprises from Portugal and abroad every week. On the first day of the Lisbon Fashion Week here's a nice suggestion to end the night listening to this band which brings us back to the sound of the magnificient band The Associates.

José António Tenente exhibits his Summer collection

José António Tenente is one of the best Portuguese fashion designers. He has been around for 24 years doing clothes, accessories and wondeful outfits for both theatre plays and dance shows. In the last quarter of 2010 MUDE (the Lisbon museum for fashion and design) invited him to curate an exhibition. It was up to him to select some iconic designs from the museum's collection and display them in a exhibition. On the ground floor of this museum we were therefore able to admire some of the best dresses and outfits by some of the wold's best fashion designers, from Balenciaga to Yamamoto, from Chanel to Vivienne Westwood. And on the 1st floor we had the opportunity to admire some of the best creations by Tenente himself. This exhibition ended on January 30 2011 and, one week after, this very same museum hosted a rather unusual fashion show where Tenente showed his Spring/Summer Collection. Guests were invited to see his creations and walk the room as if they were in an exhibition. The setting was the same as the exhibition and you could see the designs from up close and chat with Tenente himself who wandered through the room being  interviewed, greeted and giving directions to the male and female models.
It was a excellent opportunity to see the work by this fashion designer who opened recently an online store (http://www.lojatenente.com/) where you can buy different items from stationary to shades, cups and dishes, shirts and a lot more signed Tenente).

Front Row and Around - Paris Fashion Week

Fashion shows are there to see the latest creations by the world's top designers. But on the front row and around there is always an interesting array of people dressed up for the occasion. Here's some pics taken at the Autumn/Winter 2011/12 in March at the Paris Fashion Week

He was the boy with the coolest look and attitude at the Manish Arora fashion show and he was nice enough to let me have his picture taken.

 This Japanese had the perfect shoes by Prada, the must have of this spring/summer and a great snake skin coat with a great texture. The picture was taken outside the fashion show by Felipe Oliveira Baptista, a Portuguese designer living in Paris and the new creative director of Lacote.

 Loved this haircut seen at the backstage of Portuguese Fashion Designer Fátima Lopes.

 Dandies are back in force, particularly in London. Don't know whether this was the case but it was nice to see this gentleman in full attire. Photo taken at the fashion show by the Portuguese designer Luis Buchinho.

 Great look, with hat and everything. I would perhaps replace the All Star sneakers by something cooler, like a pair of Walker hightops by Marc Jacons or some cherry velvet Doc Martens. Front row at the fashion show by the Portuguese designer Luis Buchinho.

 He is someone famous in France, but I forgot his name. But the look was cool. Photo taken at the fashion show by the Portuguese designer Fátima Lopes.

 This transvertite hasn't missed the last two fashion shows by Luis Buchinho in Paris. This time without wig.

 The Japanese are everywhere with their cameras and never miss a bit. Photo taken at the fashion show by the Portuguese designer Felipe Oliveira Baptista

After the fashion show by Manish Arora these two will probably take to the The Face parties, new romantic revival parties hosted by Visage's Steve Strange in London,

I came across this lady for four days and I was always astonished by her daring looks. Photo taken at the fashion show by the Indian designer Manish Arora, the new creative director of Paco Rabane. After his show some claimed Manish could be the new Galliano.

 She's probably American, and once again I would probably dump the boring All Stars.

 No, as in No Comments. I forgot to ask what statement did he intend to make with that oufit.

Great shoes with gold aaplications and great fur coat. Front row at the Manish Arora fashion show.

 The always elegant Jivi, from India and a fabulous fashion photographer from Bulgaria. Outside the show by Manish  Arora.

The cool crowd outside the show by Spanish designer Amaya Arzuaga at the Grand Palais. Loved this girl's coat.

Sita Murt shop in Paris

She's one of the best fashion designers from Catalonia and is famous for the exceptional knitwear. She now has three shops in Barcelona and is considering doing a pop up store event in Lisbon at some point. After seeing her collection at the Madrid Fashion Week I was happy to see her store at the Marais, one of the coolest neighbourhoods in Paris. I like designers with a thoughtfull comercial strategy. 

Prada shoes were all over at Paris Fashion Week

They were probably the most common item to be seen in Paris this week at the Fall/Winter 2011/2012 fashion shows. I mean the new Spring/Summer Prada shoes. The renowned shop owner and trend setter Maria Luisa was using a pair in black with blue on the sole at the fashion show from Manish Arora at Rue Turenne. And at the show from Amaya Arzuaga today at the Grand Palais, black was also the preferred model. But my favourites were definitely these ones worn by a Japanese outside the fashion show from the new creative director Felipe Oliveira Baptista at the Palais de Tokyo.

The return of platform shoes

Italian shoes, though wonderfully crafted, can be boring, and going through the classic Italian shoe collections in the major hight street shops is often a loss of time, as what you get is just small variations of classic leather brogues. The same goes for the fashion editorials in most men's magazines depicting boring suits and shirts ans shoes. Hence, it was with a great sigh of relief that I came across this news shoes by Prada for the Spring Summer collection 2011. Nice job! It does bring me back to the days when the cities where full of people with attitude and when creepers were the hipest thing to put on and which are now back and were used in the latest Sping Summer collection by the Portuguese designer Maria Gambina at the Lisbon Fashion Week as pictured below. 

  

 

Cherry Docs

After a beautiful pair of silver Doc Martens which I saw in New York and was stupid enough not to buy them I was astonished by this pair of great Docs in cherry velvet. This 50-year old brand continues to surprise us with new models. Upon entering the site of Madrid Fashion Week this morning I was fascinated by a pair of black docs with red soles. But moments later I felt like stealing someone these fabulous shoes -should you see someone running barefoot in the streets of Madrid in the cold Winter days, well that's because I stole the poor bugger his shoes.