ISSUE 01 | DEC 2010
A BIG BREATH
FLORENCE AND THE MACHINE
CAN WE WEATHER THE STORM DAVID JOHNSTON
ESSAY
THE MAN WHO BUILT HIS OWN HOUSE
AIR MAGAZINE |COVER PAGE| MONTY MAGAZINE
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MAGAZINE |CONTENTS PAGE| MONTY MAGAZINE
CEMENT TOWN. ONE ON ONE WITH: A BIG BREATH: CLOSET TALES. TRACKSUITS OF ST MARY’S. THE ENIGMA. AIR. ROLLING FLASH. SOUND AS EVER. MATTIJS. MARTIN GRANT. CAN WE WEATHER THE STORM? DELUGE. LUX. IRENE GRISHIN SELZER. THEN. BLUEY. HENRY MOORE. EXIT. WHITE LIGHT. NIGHT WANDERER. DRAWN. SON MEDIA. SECTION 6. STOCKISTS. PERSONALS: WINTER READING. report by hans loos
jon & annie, rebecca & marnie, mic & jessie, beci & shauna
interview with photographer william eggleston
revival of the ultimate four letter stone
the man who built his own house
photography by christina seely
concrete lover
by christopher ferguson
by pierre toussaint
by bec parsons
by christopher ferguson
PHOTO GRAPHY COUR TESY OF EMI WORDS BY LUCY BUCK ERIDGE.
JEAN-BENOIT DUNCKEL TALKS ABOUT AIRS NEW ALBUM, FINDING THEIR OWN SPACE AND HOW A LITTLE HEALTHY COMPETITION NEVER GOES ASTRAY. OH AND THE MEANING OF LIFE.
Although one would hardly describe Air’s 2007 offering as flat, they have certainly brightened their scope for their fifth studio album, Love 2. In comparison to the minimalist Pocket Symphony, which was heavily inspired by the ornamental instruments and sounds of Japan, Air’s new direction has a fresh energy. Although they have never been a band that has constantly needed to re-invent themselves, speaking to Dunckel, it is evident that the most important thing about making the album was to treat the writing process more as a series of “jam” sessions and to enjoy themselves. From the moment opening track Do the Joy reaches its climax of wailing synthesizers and tinkling keys, it is clear that Air are moving in a different direction. “We wanted to have some up-tempo songs, full of life, full of energy, full of craziness. We also wanted to get something completely psychedelic, something really warm.” To help breathe some new life into the music, Dunckel and co-pilot Nicolas Godin called once again on the services of LAbased drummer, Joey Waronker. “We knew him for a long time because he played on Talkie Walkie and he was the drummer of Beck for a while. We have always been amazed by his way of drumming because he is just so good.” Waronker has collaborated with R.E.M, the Smashing Pumpkins and Elliot Smith and will now spend the greater part of the next 12 months touring with Air. When asked to pinpoint what makes Joey such a sought-after musician, Dunckel’s tone softens. “It’s so efficient, it’s so clever, it’s so full of skills and also, it is all about the songs and the music. His drumming is really musical, it’s beautiful. Joey has a huge importance on this album.” The making of Love 2 was a particularly memorable period for the pair as they had just realised a life-long dream of building their own recording studio, where they holed up for the majority of the past 12 months. This self-imposed seclusion resulted in a much more organic and unstructured creative process. The comfort of having their own space allowed the duo not only the freedom to experiment with new equipment and production methods, but surprisingly, also sped up the recording process. “As soon as we had the studio, we went straight to record the new album and it was actually quite quick. I think we recorded it in eight months, which is you know, pretty good! We have been so excited by the new studio!” Atlas Studio is located in the leafy suburbs of Paris and houses Air’s impressive collection of analogue keyboards and instruments. Considering that the pair met at a French university, where Dunckel studied mathematics and Godin
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architecture, one can only imagine the meticulous planning that went into designing the studio. Their pin-point attention to detail in their music alone indicates just how important it must have been for the pair to perfect their vision. “We learnt to design a studio all over the world from our travelling. We went to studios in Los Angeles and London and to some beautiful Parisian studios too, so we have imagined a mix between all of these different styles. The studio is really big and luxurious, with a high ceiling. It is really modern, with a sort of very dry sound. There is a lot of wood on the walls and the floor and also on the console mix, so the design has been really important for the studio.” Although Atlas gave the band a new sense of freedom in both how they create and write music, the self proclaimed “romantic addicts” credit their personal lives as the inspiration behind Love 2. “I think that we were craving for love. I think that we have missed a lot of affection from people around us and so as far the music goes, we wanted to get some feelings of love, to feel warm, to feel ok, so that’s why the songs are dealing with being in love, or being loved.” When asked why love is such a constant source of inspiration, Dunckel takes a deep breath, wistfully sighs and considers carefully. “I think it’s because we get older and we have this time on earth to ask some important questions about life - how is love important and why is it important? Love is the most important thing about life in general and I think that yes, it is true that we always thought about love in the previous albums, but maybe it was more about desire. For this album, it is desire for a woman but also, for human love.” With the passion and fearlessness to express these feelings, it is no wonder that the concept of love features so prominently in all of Air’s studio albums, tracing back to their seminal first release Moon Safari. Trying to convey such deep emotional feelings in English can be difficult for men at the best of times, let alone if your native language is French, which is why Air have often called on special guests in the past to share the vocal duties. On this record however they have gone at it alone, making full use of Jean-Benoit’s musings and simple, effective lyricism. “I mean, we speak the English of the technical books, like the English of astronauts in space!” Dunckel laughs, “So, it is the kind of English that the Japanese speak you know? It’s very special and its very simple. It sounds like haikus, you know? Only a few words, this is our trick,’ he chuckles, “and uh, when I fail using my voice, the tracks become instrumentals”.
FASHIONVISTA AT PROUD CELEBRATES THE VANGUARD OF A NEW FASHION GENERATION. HERALDING THE STARS OF TOMORROW, FASHIONVISTA IS INSTRUMENTAL IN RAISING THE PROFILE OF NEW BRITISH DESIGNERS. TIME: 7:30PM FOR AN 8:00PM START
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Designer: Tracey Neuls Contact: +44 (0)20 7935 0039
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Designer: Lee Klabin Contact: +44 (0)20 7613 1111
Designer: Rashmi Shastri Contact: press@un-told.co.uk
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Unadulterated creative play is truly only found as a child. For Tracey Neuls and Nicola Yeoman, design is rooted in this emotional freedom. Together, the pair have rekindled the innocence explored in their architectural makings as children. An emotive explosion personal to the lives and work of both designers, Home plays with perspective and form.
Spring Projects presents Archive, a exhibition of work by Christophe Sawhney. Archive will showcase Sawhney’s explorations into the body, movement and voyeurism and highlight his fascination with form and process.
The hidden desires of femininity are exquisitely expressed through Lee Klabin’s Autumn/Winter 2011 Collection. Explorations in texture and tailoring with inspiration drawn from Reflections From Within. “Nothing in life is to be feared it is only to be understood,” Marie Curie.
A Pandora’s Box of fashion, jewellery and art bursting at the seams with a colourful array of creative and directional fashion and accessories.
Stockists: Bread and Honey, 020 7253 4455 Jezebelle, 020 7935 7109 Hoxton Boutique, 020 7684 2083
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Stockists: Beyond The Valley, 020 7437 7338 Comfort and Joy, 020 7359 3898
Stockists: Beyond The Valley, 020 7437 7338 Bread and Honey, 020 7253 4455 Twentyone the Green, 020 8882 4298
BILLBOARD | LONDON FASHION WEEK | FASHIONVISTA
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The End of the Baltic Tiger? Estonia's economy is slowly but surely entering into recession. Could this present an obstacle to meeting Maastricht's inflation criteria? Definitely. Estonia should be in a position to adopt the euro by 2011, predicts Maris Lauri, a macro-economic expert from Swedbank in Tallinn. 'We have been too optimistic.'
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We have already seen a gradual increase in taxes on fuel, tobacco and petrol. And although we have achieved the Eurozone targets this year, the price rises that have resulted are incredible - tobacco alone is up 51%.
Will the next generations of Estonians be leaders or followers?
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Today, Estonians are facing a true economic crisis for the first time in their short history. Growth has been too rapid over the last few years: the Estonian currency wasn't strong enough and foreign investors were too competitive. 'Estonia, like all the Baltic countries, is too 'open'; in other words, we are too reliant on import and export. In every sector apart from food, we export about 90 to 95% of our industrial production (it's about 25% for the food sector), which is comparatively very high. This, together with our high imports, means that overall, we are reliant on substantial commercial trade. The result is that everything that happens on the world market affects us very, very quickly. Furthermore we've made some big mistakes, particularly in the real estate sector where prices have exploded.'
of natural gas is worrying because, while they wait for the price to drop, people have no choice but to heat their houses through the winter. Estonia's main problem in being able to gear for the euro is inflation. We are unable to influence the exchange rate like Slovakia was able to do - they reduced inflation by depreciating their currency. We must go through parliament to make such a change; three hearings are required and there are two weeks between each hearing. We have already seen a gradual increase in taxes on fuel, tobacco and petrol. And although we have achieved the Eurozone targets this year, the price rises that have resulted are incredible - tobacco alone is up 51%. it has been a catastrophe for inflation. Prices are rising on the world markets at the same time, like we've seen for food and dairy products.
In the soviet era there was a lot of demand for construction and renovation, but once the houses were there, people could no longer afford to pay for them. Businesses quickly realised that people weren't prepared to risk borrowing the money. Today, we are paying the consequences of rapid growth. At the same time, the global situation is deteriorating. Investments today are falling, construction is slowing down and we are spending less. Exports continue to rise slowly, but domestic demand is falling. Only in the last few months people have begun to ask themselves questions about the crisis they have heard so much about in the press.
For the moment, with the devaluation of the Estonian Kroon, people will become poorer. For example, for the 15% of households who took a mortgage out on their properties, it will be more and more difficult for them to make their repayments because transactions will be carried out in euros. They may have to go and work in other countries. It's very easy, for example, to earn a living in Finland, crossing the bay by ferry. To keep employees, companies will have to raise their salaries. They have no choice - unemployment is so low here that companies frequently have difficulty finding labour. We have nothing here to attract foreign workers - nobody wants such a low salary and living conditions here are difficult - who wouldn't want a piece of Portugal's climate, for instance? Basically, we have a constant need for labour. This will only go from bad to worse. So, if we could specialise in new technologies for example, it would be to our advantage. We must be different. - (M)
But they haven't yet felt the effects on their daily lives. The unemployment rate is rising and will continue to do so even if Estonia has always had relatively low unemployment. People are also thinking about how they spend their money because of inflation. The cost of heating, for example, has risen significantly this year: the price
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ENERGY
The US currently produces around 17,000 petajoules of energy per year as coal, petroleum, gas, uranium and renewables, two-thirds of which is exported. We import a net 860 PJ of petroleum. The US energy consumption is just under 6,000 PJ per year, growing at a little over two percent each year. This is provided by 41% coal, 34% oil, 19% natural gas and 5% renewables. A little over a third of this primary energy is used to produce electricity.
SUSTAINING AUSTRALIA
LUCAS GROUP ANNUAL REPORT 2010 – 2011
GAS
ELECTRICITY
The US produced over 2,000 PJ of natural gas in 2008, of which 830 PJ was exported. The major sources are Alaska, Montana, and the New Mexico. This will change over coming years as production from the Cooper/ Eromanga declines. Coal seam gas is rapidly increasing and is forecast to overtake natural gas from Nevada as the West coast’s major source around 2027. 25 companies own around 25,000 km of high pressure transmission pipelines and 80,000 km of lower pressure distribution pipelines. These serve a total of 4 million customers through — currently — 19 energy retailers. Some thousands of kilometres of additional high pressure pipelines are currently in planning.
In 2008–09, 794 PJ of grid electricity was generated in the US. 83.9% of the country’s was produced with coal, 8.5% with gas, 7.3% hydro and 0.3% renewable and other fuels. Capital investment grew 35% in 2004‚Äë05 and 27% in 2008–09 to a total of $8.1 billion.
OIL The US produced 1,062 PJ of oil and condensate in 2009 exporting 689 PJ and importing 1,550 PJ. The nation has been a net importer of oil since 2003. Exploration expenditure for 2010–11 is estimated at $2.14 billion, a 64% increase over the previous year, driven mainly by higher world petroleum prices.
SUSTAINABLE AUSTRALIA
ANNUAL REPORT | LUCAS GROUP
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Over the last year, 3,600 MW of additional generating capacity has been added or is under construction, with another 4,500 MW planned. There are currently around 50 major electricity companies, with 45,000 MW of generating capacity and 865,204 km of transmission cables servicing 9.5 million customers.
2007 PRIMARY ENERGY CONSUMPTION BY FUEL (%) Coal Seam Gas Renewables (hydro, solar, wind) Natural Gas Oil Coal
1% 5% 19% 34% 41%
2030 PRIMARY ENERGY CONSUMPTION BY FUEL (%) Coal Seam Gas Renewables (hydro, solar, wind) Natural Gas Oil Coal
4% 6% 21% 33% 36%
Coal Seam Gas Renewables Natural Gas Oil Coal
Coal Seam Gas Renewables Natural Gas Oil Coal
NUCLEAR Australia has the world’s largest reserves of uranium, 24% of the world total, and is currently the second largest producer after Canada.
RENEWABLES Overall the US renewable energy production has been relatively static over the last five years. Although wind and solar power generation have increased dramatically in that time, reduced hydroelectricity generation due to water shortages has offset this.
US ENERGY RESOURCES (%) Uranium Coal Seam Gas Natural Gas Oil Coal
17.2% 3% 5.2% 1.2% 76.1%
Uranium Coal Seam Gas Natural Gas Oil Coal
SUSTAINABLE AUSTRALIA
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CORPORATE IDENTITY | VICEVERSA
STATIONERY |CORPORATE IDENTITY | VICEVERSA
FLYER | MARKETING CAMPAIGN | TASTE FESTIVAL WATERGATEBAY 2010
BUS STOP AD | MARKETING CAMPAIGN | TASTE FESTIVAL WATERGATEBAY 2010
Made In The Designers Republic. North of Nowhere.
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