The Shape of Things to Come

It was only a matter of time until the interesting expression the online medium once yielded were to be torn down by the scramble for advertising and SEO rankings. This has undone creative merit in a insufferable parasitic need for traffic drivers. As the blogroll continues to shift content and expression downwards, the only hope now is that we stem this tide of promo after promo with something worthy of discussing.

Advent of the real time web is killing so many creative arts, no longer do we perceive composition with longevity but continually search for what’s next. Twitter brought us instantaneous communication and with it brand messages and interaction devoid of any real merit. It has forged a race to be first, a grab and push culture without really taking the time to see the wood from the trees.

Wet spitballs of non news have become the evanescence of culture and it’s depriving creative individuals with the foundation in which to say yes, I’m proud of this, stop for a moment and enjoy it. Instead, we’ve lost ourselves in the flurry of dialogue and have been dragged down into the fast lane of quick creation. It no longer matters what we say and express about content, because nobody is taking the time to absorb and read, it’s click and onto the hyperlink, spun away from any opinion of merit to a picture and press release regurgitated by the next Joe Blogs.

Followings and clicks have become the pillars in which we define quality, no longer is a benevolence the epicenter of championing what we like. Now we’re too easily swayed by “tastemakers” and public relation personnel in the hope that Mr. Big Brand will extend his purse to little old me. This is true of all the creative arts, music, fashion, literature et al. Clicks have become the essence of what we do and it doesn’t matter what we write anymore as long as the algorithm pushes you up the search scale.

We have lost stumble culture and individuality has been destroyed by the hype. Fast consuming, fast reading, fast engagement. This has seen niche trends become mainstream and however hard you try to break free of this in a sort of unique individuality, a million bloggers and aggregators have spotted your shirt, your shoes, your tunes and spread a vicious virus of what’s hot to the masses.

Just to stay alive we’re constantly just forcing content creation upon ourselves, be it brands or bands, we need more promo or pictures and less art. If people could take the time to create and not be beholden to the content vultures and cluster fucks leeching off of your every tweet and refreshing every page, the online sphere would be a healthier more creative spectrum of individuality.

Blogs are becoming devoid of points of interest as we no longer critically analyze or convey any kind of sentiment other than the nuance of loves and likes. No one posts negative commentary anymore and that’s fine, but at least express an opinion as to why you like or love something, not simply it’s here in a narcissistic self gratifying ode to why I’m cooler than you.

It’s with great pleasure that I can finally say that The Shape of Things to Come has progressed much further than my personal musings. With an emphasis on quality readership over quantity, the blog has attracted some great readers with their own cutting-edge influence on British street culture. As with most networking opportunities Twitter has opened many doors over the last year or so, and I have found great common ground with like minded individuals. Ph0t0machine is one such chap and having once ran a previous blog of the highest merit, he was firmly on the radar as a purveyor of quality insight and information. He is the new recruit to So Shape It, and as I ramble about music with a fairly uneducated take on things, as one mate said about my technical knowledge; “Nick, you couldn’t mix a drink” it’s fantastic that Ph0t0machine has decided to join the team. He’s a quality DJ and a top notch producer who brings an educated and technically informed knowledge of music to the blog. He’s going to be posting in the near future about a whole manner of things, but music will be at the core.

Follow @Ph0t0machine on Twitter
Check out his Myspace

I have an unhealthy obsession with trawling through LIFE magazine’s photo archives, and last year while in a thrift/knick-knack store in Atlanta I purchased this edition of LIFE from 1955.

It’s with great restraint that I refrain from posting photos of the entire magazine and stick to just the car advertisements. Having recently watched Cadillac Records I think it’s poignant to post these images. The most captivating adverts from the mag, they portray an exciting era in America’s social history. 1955, a time when the States were buoyant with prosperity and the sense of opportunity in a post-war era. Cadillac Records uses the automobile to underpin notions of prosperity, the desire to ride in, own and exude wealth through the Cadillac is at the heart of the desire for success that centers the film.

This same desire for success and wealth during the suburban drive is apparent throughout these images. LIFE magazine is a fantastic chronicler of American society and even within it’s advertisements the sense of an unheralded era of prosperity during the 1950s offers a great social insight.

More images after the jump.

Read more…

An exciting new project from Honda came to light this week with the launch of their Dream Factory.  Very much in it’s infancy but the project is a celebration of innovators and pioneers. Those included within the project have the power and desire to follow their dreams and act with great conviction. This is something that I admire greatly, to have the guts to say, No! I’m going to do it my way, by my rules and selfishly stand up to the masses and carve a niche which can not only be appreciated from the informed and educated underbelly but can also make a crust.

The cultural engineers picked by Honda have been contributing to a limited edition book which is to be launched in May at the Dray Walk Gallery.

So the other week I tweeted about some pretty special blogs out there that probably a lot of people within my circle aren’t aware of. They may well be, but I think that it’s only right to heap even more praise on these places of interest and spread the word further about what’s getting me excited in the blogosphere.  In an extended post recently I commented on those fantastic individuals who are pushing boundaries and creating inspirational content and building brands out of blogs.  These places are pretty well known, but I’ve come across a couple of gems in recent times that I think you’ll dig, so here are the first three with more to follow.

So without any further ado:

Mr. Ryan Acker

Ryan has impeccable taste, an Atlanta native who works (and please correct me if I’m wrong) for Street Local and Standard.  With a penchant for authentic Americana and a knack of finding some great pieces in thrift stores his fashion posts are on point.  With Ryan it’s very much about him, his tastes and experiences, this I like a lot, with many logs, this one included talking quite objectively, it’s refreshing to read personal deliberation about what they’re wearing and into.  Make sure you check it out.

Ozzie Friedman

I do not want to reveal too much about the identity of the chaps behind this place.  They’re pioneers in every sense of the word, and British street culture and fashion wouldn’t be the same without them.  They work for a brand with heritage steeped in London’s history since the 80s and have inspired and mobilized a community in London.  Covering Workwear, E-Bay finds, graphics, history this is the place for the connosiour.  Whenever I go to their office I’m in awe of the bookshelves and the pieces that adorn their walls.  The blog is a digital manifestation of that place.

Bloke and Coke

Anyone who knows me, is fully aware of my devotion to Man City, arguably their isn’t a stronger force in men’s fashion and street culture in the UK than the Football Casual.  Casuals and Football fans have continually reinvented the looks adorned my men on the street, and men look to the terraces for their inspiration.  Now the terrace (as it’s no longer there) doesn’t have the same vigour and cutting edge style demur it once had, but it’s history and impact is still for me, the most importnat part of British men’s fashion of the last twenty-years.  Anthony writes for, edits and is involved with the biggest menswear publications in the UK and has been doing so for many years.  He’s a Liverpool fan (don’t hold that against him) who recounts his experiences on the terraces and the clothes he wore with great zest that take you right back to 1982.  Oh and his latest post on stylish Football managers is a great read!

Shabba Ranks and Siquxsie Sioux cover the same issue? Are you stoopid?

Benny Gold has been a constant inspiration over the last year, continually the streetwear scene springs one or two pioneering individuals that redefine branding, retail experiences, and fashion.  I first came across Benny Gold at Standard in Atlanta, nabbing a few stickers of his iconic airplane logo.  Since then Benny has decided to fling himself in at the deep end and go all out with his brand.  Launching a store in San Francisco soon, he’s chartered the process of setting up alone on his blog, with the help of his wife who has quit her job to handle the business end, the Gold’s deserve significant praise for their courage and inspiring commitment to DIY ethic.  His office and retail space look absolutely stunning, continue to follow his blog to watch it’s progress.

Hypebeast TV caught up with Benny in this short but equally wonderful video:

With the plethora of content online, and the never ending new, I’ve decided to list a few places of interest, points of view, sounds and sick mixes all in one post.  This will be a regular now, with each week (It could be Tuesday, it probably won’t) a new selection of the best bits around.

Martelo is playing at Bounty this week and in preparation for his Neptunes only set, dropped this Mini-Mix via his Twitter – 46 tracks in 15 minutes! Download and Listen HERE

DJ Naughty – Quicktime (Roska Remix) (FACT Magazine)

Southern Hospitality DJ, Rob Pursey drops the second part of his Real Man Music mix series, this is an essential listen. (Southern Hospitality)

Burka Som Sistema – Essential Mix (Discobelle)

Kalbata – Bass Music Mix 13 (Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide Festival)

If Steven Gerrard ran a restaurant (Football 365)

DJ Premier’s Malcolm McLaren Tribute Mix is an incredibly navigation of McLaren’s work, proving why Premier is a wealth of knowledge and an unrivaled talent

DJ MK & Roots Manuva set, taken from French radio station Nova while on the Run Come Save Me promo tour a few years back

Do Rappers need a Social Media strategy? Nextbigsound tracks and charts artist’s social media presence

I’m really liking Chima Anya right now, a talented wordsmith with a sterling ear for production, he’s bringing a fresh style to the UK scene, and alongside the likes of Ty, Mystro, K-Nite and S’Killit, is making it a very vibrant and diverse space.  Fresh off the back of touring with Jay Electronica and Brother Ali, Chima Anya is at Barfly in Camden tomorrow night showcasing his debut album.  Make sure you reach! It’s going to be a big night. Shout out to Charlee.

Creative agencies, no matter whom they be, whether digital or print, brand experience creators or TV ad men they always struggle to get their own communication strategy spot on.  It’s tough, I acknowledge from my experience of working for agencies that own brand work inherently falls to the bottom of the pile.  The client comes first. Of course, that’s a defining principle, that’s how you make money.

I always admire an agencies dedication and bottle to invest in their own creativity, free from the constraints of appeasing clients, fulfilling their own mantra, providing the resource their ethos deserves.  Creativity is at the bedrock of these businesses, but often that’s pretty hard to find as an outsider looking in.  Yes, you see the creds deck, you experience the hip office foyer, the pretty receptionist, the funky Creative Director, and this puts you at ease. You know you’re in the right place.  But what is the differentiating principle which makes agency X better than agency Y?

I am firm believer that the things you own, surrounding yourself with, look at everyday say the most about you.  As Rob Gordan played by John Cusack in High Fidelity bluntly states; “what really matters is what you like, not what you are like… Books, records, films — these things matter. Call me shallow but it’s the damn truth.”

I have to wholeheartedly agree with that statement and so do Manchester based design agency Music.  ‘Stuff We Really Like’ is quite simply, stuff they like.  Now when it comes to creatives I don’t care which Fallon Sony ad they like best, I want to know what their favorite book is, what’s their favorite album this week, what coffee table book they squandered most money on this month, what was the last exhibition they saw, who are their style icons etc etc… It’s nice to know Music feel the same way and appreciate that the stuff we like, says a great deal about what makes us different.

With Good Friday this week and a bank holiday on Monday, we get four whole days to ourselves, no work, no nothing.  I’m embracing this long weekend and filling it with photography, reading, gallery visits, dinner and a quiet relaxing beer or two.  It’s going to be a clean living few days for mind, body and soul.  I can’t wait.

I’ve decided to switch off for this short time.  No blogging, tweeting, emailing, no online activity at all.  The big switch off has been brought about by a number of things, the main one being information overload.  I need a break from work and the extra-curricular activities which focus around the online world in which I earn my crust.

Accompanying me on this relaxing retreat will be Raymond Carver’s short stories for some escapism and Pimpin’ Ken for an unconventional take on self-help.  I haven’t read any of the ‘Where I’m Calling From’ collection since university.  It’s going to be nice to revisit Carver’s world without the literary criticism which disrupts reading for leisure.

So today I decided to write this and get a few things off of my chest. This isn’t a dig at anyone, neither is it an apology. I get this blog culture, I get what it’s about, who it represents, what “our” role collectively is within it, and how we get to where we want to be. I’m going to break down what this blog means to me and how the blogger brand world has become “bland”, how it’s getting on my nerves and how it forces me into a horrible state of flux between the cultural blogozine and the personal musings of life, lunch and style.

The Blogosphere is vast, millions of people post about everything from pencil collections to porn, beauty products to ballistic missiles. I blog about the things I like, but the style of posts tend to lean towards an objective promotion than to personal purchases and what I’ve been up to. Falling into the chasm of “street culture” of which is a varied and eclectic term, I blog and talk to a “small-ish” London community through this medium and on Twitter. The people I engage with are very much at the epicenter of a global phenomenon from music to street art, sneaker collections to stylists.

Many bloggers in this area have carved an exciting niche through the medium, developing personal platforms from which to highlight their endeavors in this world and in turn have helped promote themselves to a position of earning power. Living off and breathing life into this underground world of creativity. Creating their own brands through blog platforms, as consultants, photographers, designers, journalists and everything in between that comprises the creative industries and the arts.

People are building brands out of blogs, Maestro Knows, Decatur Dan, Kevin Lanre, Phillip Annand, these guys are doing some great work and are at the top of their game. It’s interesting to see how hard they’ve worked to develop  their own niche in this voyeuristic world. Blogging is incredibly egotistical and I’m sure all of those mentioned will openly testify to how the medium does inherently evoke this. After all it’s about you, personally and professionally. Now these guys have gone on to do some great work, and I tip my hat to each and every one of them.

Beginning as a blogger, I chose this medium in which to express what I was into, what I was up to and what I felt strongly about in this cultural paradigm. Gaining a personal satisfaction, and also gratifying in the fact that I could “publish” my interests to an unknown audience outside of the pub of which all of this was alien to. Doing so out of a desire to raise my profile within the media and creative industries while still a student, both academically and in terms of “the game”. I can’t lie, I’ve gained a great deal out of my blog and as a result have used the medium as a way in which to network, to reach out to people, to show the world that yes, I know more than most.

As a result of the success of the student, the inherent problems with the world in which I blog may well have inevitable damaged me and my “brand” as they hang by the wayside due to a certain lack of follow-through. It’s incredibly difficult to keep quiet, especially for me. I have Twitter, email and a blog all at my finger tips. I have great ideas, wonderful concepts, some aren’t always very well thought out and others are blurted into the web with a whim. I’ve failed to deliver on occasions be it a phone call, an email, an invite, on others they’ve been a success on some levels, not all.

Now my half-hearted attempt at doing something similar to the aforementioned chaps has also enabled me to gain great exposure and build a personal brand of which large organizations have bought into, seen talent, recognized hard work and given opportunity to. These relationships haven’t stemmed from the blog, but the blog has stemmed out of them and provided a nice place in which to point people to learn more about me. With great admiration for young creatives, I’ve reached out to collaborate and work on projects, or just to “network” in the truest sense and I have opened myself up to dialogue coming the other way from a range of PR’s, promoters and the like. I’ve also made some great friends a long the way.

I would love to have a little spot some where; a large desk and studio with a designer and team in tow, building a brand. E-zine, gigs, garms, consutancy, advertising, music releases. I would love to do it all. I would love to own my own agency, to spin it out of a brand. So Shape It, what I want it to be, how it’s got to where it has, and how potentially it may have gone wrong are the questions which I’m continually mulling over.

It’s been successful on numerous levels, it’s really worked at times. But as my “career” has grown and projects have come to bear fruit, and the 9 to 5 has rapidly become something of real substance in an industry which fascinates me. my ability to build a brand out of the blog has been severely cut short. This isn’t an excuse, I know my short comings. But also what has happened, is that the posts have moved (pun intended), the goals have changed, and the ability to expresses these as they meander into different territories have not been coherently advocated. The lengthy prose of this post and the social media musing last week are a result of this meander. I have lofty ambitions for So Shape It and at the moment these have to be put on the back burner, and I’ve got to get back to why I blogged in the first place, and move back to the original realm.

This is where I am now finding myself torn and I’m shifting back into personal opinion and writing my views, expressing my feelings when I want to write them. Yes, I am still open to collaboration, yes my dream is to run my own creative agency, working in a host of areas with a number of people, but for now, I’m bringing the posts back to me. I’m not going to be reaching out to people for the next few months, I will not be posting up whatever lands in my in box. Time is tight, I have so much more that I want to express right now, if my friends ask me to post something, and it’s dope, I’ll do it.

The Shape of Things to Come started out as a title, a dope title for what I thought my blog was about, cool stuff which Joe Bloggs hasn’t probably seen yet, my url was my name. Wanting to take it to the next stage, during a period of personal flux due to career path changes, I went full steam into what it is you see before you now. Perhaps this was my downfall, it got above it’s station. I have hundreds of ideas on how it could expand, change and shape the outcome of my future, those are jotted away in a moleskin hidden in a very safe place. I’m going back to not fretting about sending that email, chasing that lead, this is my space and I’m going to do with it what I like, just in my own time, at my own pace.