OK Ikumi: Electronic Goodness

I love electronic music. It could be that I grew up in the era of the 8bit beats of the Nintendo, or perhaps that the first CD I ever purchased on my own was KLF's "The White Room". Whatever the reason, I hold a very dear place in my heart for electronic music and electronic music artists like OK Ikumi. Native to the small town of Provo, Utah (just South of Salt Lake City) OK Ikumi's electronic goodness is a rarity in a town that gave birth to the screamo band the Used. With obvious influences taken from similar artists like Figurine, OK Ikumi's monotone vocals and cutesy/blippy sound are sure to make the heart of any electronic music fan skip a beat.

Learn more and Listen

Who is "The Don"?

With his posts over the past week, you may be wondering who this new author is going by the name of "The Don". Donnie "The Don" Millar, also author of Design/Tech blog MassPlastic, is the newest member of TheDopeFiend family and is bringing a lot to the plate. His excellent writing skills and his uncanny ability to soak up and stay up to date on what's going on in this world around us will surely be a useful tool here at TheDopeFiend. We would like to officially welcome Donnie to the family, and thank him for being a part of it.

Sneaker Templates by Pigmag

I never cease to be amazed at the underground, cultish sneaker culture. Sneaker-heads are a strange breed. Elite, passionate and sometimes snobby they will pay $500+ for something you put your smelly foot into. And although sometimes I am amazed by their loyalty to the sneaker, I understand it. It's more than a shoe, it's art. That's why I think Pig Magazine's sneaker templates are such a cool idea. In honor of 30 years of "Air", these templates allow you to download and Photoshop your own Dunks, Air Maxes and Waffle Racers in any color you like. There is an endless amount of possibilities, now only if you could find a way to make Nike produce your style.

[via Mustache, check out his own gallery.]

Alias & Tarsier A Must Listen

Every year there are a certain amount of albums released that are stored away in my library as "all time favorites". Albums that contain tracks that make you wish you were doing something at that moment in your life worthy of such a soundtrack. After one listen I knew Alias & Tarsier's "Brookland/Oaklyn" would be in that category. A follow-up album to the great collaboration project of brothers, Alias & Ehren, "Brookland/Oaklyn" combines the blippy beats of Brendon "Alias" Whitney and the haunting vocals of Rona "Tarsier" Rapadas. Favorite tracks on the album include "Cub", "Last Nail" with Alias' amazing rhyme verse, "Dr. C" and "Luck and Fear" featuring the notorious Dose One.

Read more and listen to Alias & Tarsier.

Carbonmade, Show off Your Work

For all you designers who lack the necessary knowledge to build your own online portfolio, or perhaps simply don't have the time, Carbonmade is the perfect solution. With its very user-friendly interface Carbonmade allows you to upload your work and organize it using your own categories. Customizing the look your portfolio is also easy, and you can even keep track of your traffic.

The Tough Alliance

After Ant's post a few months ago about Service Records I have been checking out some of the other artists on the label I had not heard of. I really dig most of the artists on the label, but one I can't believe I had overlooked before now is The Tough Alliance. Like other artists on Service Records (The Embassy), The Tough Alliance is perfect for summer chillin' on the porch. With their slightly distorted harmonized vocals and bouncy synth beats The Tough Alliance is perfect for lovers of bands like Stars, The Russian Futurists and Architecture In Helsinki.

:: Read more about The Tough Alliance
:: Listen and Purchase

MacBook Love

With the release of the MacBook Pro, the world went crazy. Okay, so maybe just hardcore Mac fans but it still caused quite a stir. Now, the new MacBook in both black and white is starting to make me question things and makes me want to throw my seemingly old 12-inch iBook away. The 13-inch beauty comes equipped with iLife '06, a glossy 13.3 inch screen, and the Front Row feature which allows you to navigate around with a remote among other things. This laptop is also perfect for iPod owners who want to match their iPod's with their laptop. Personally, I think the black MacBook is gorgeous and requires a second look. So all you PC users out there, take the time out and think about getting a Mac. Not only does it function well, it looks damn fine. The MacBook starts at $1099.

Remix Rush: The Loving Sounds Of Static

I can't say that I have been a huge fan of Mobius Band. To me they sound like a slightly cooler version of 311 , but that's just me. However, on the most recent release of Ghostly International's Idol Tryouts there is a remix of Mobius Band's "The Loving Sounds Of Static" that I like a lot more than any of their original works. The remix is done by electro-pop artists Junior Boys who are more known for their 80's New Order influenced sound than remixing music. To tell you the truth I am really not a huge fan of Junior Boys either, but the combination of their blippy production with Mobius Band's dreamy vocals makes for a great song.

Mobius Band :: The Loving Sounds Of Static (Junior Boys Remix)

Apt's Furniture is Funktional

Browsing the pages of magazines like Dwell, Object and Surface makes my mouth water with dreams of how my house will be designed when I make my millions. Apt is a furniture store based in Soho, NY that would definitely not be left out of the equation. Many of their pieces are designed to serve more than one purpose, making it very functional, or as they call "funktional". The furniture at Apt is perfect for studios, lofts and the urban lifestyle, my kind of living.

55DSL - I Can't Resist

I have held of on posting about a favorite label of mine 55DSL for awhile now simply because I thought it was old news. But with the realease of their new line, and the updated wibsite I just couldn't resist. 55DSL is a the more "action sports" minded little brother of fashion giant Diesel. I love the new designs and everything going on at their website. Started in 1994 55DSL has managed to stay comfortably below the radar in the US, with its strongest presence in UK, Japan, Italy, Germany. It's only a matter of time before the US catches up with the others and recognizes how cool this label is.

Read more about 55DSL at the Brink Shop.

Marc Jacobs Is A Stinky Rat!

Yes folks, you read that right. Marc Jacobs is the official stinky rat! It was a playful nickname given by Juergen Teller's daughter to Mr. Jacobs which he loved so much and immortalized it as a clothing brand. The line is for young men that features wardrobe staples such as pique polos, khakis, sweaters, caps, and beanies at very affordable prices. All of the products feature the Stinky Rat logo and can be found on his website.

Travel In Style

This summer has opened an opportunity for me to travel a bit more than usual. With trips planned to Tokyo, San Francisco, Montreal, Shanghai and Hong Kong I found the definite need to start looking for some luggage and travel gear. Upon a few Googles I came across Flight 001, an online shop with some extremely well designed luggage and many other items to help your travels a bit smoother. From huge suitcases to airplane flight blanket kits, Flight 001 is sure to have something to make your next trip more comfortable.

EverywhereWeShoot's Style You Can't Ignore

EverywhereWeShoot's Ryan Vergara and Garovs Garovillo are not afraid to try new things and present them to the still untrained eye of the regular Filipino hoping to open their minds. Both artists graduated from The College of Saint Benilde (School of Design and Arts) in Manila finishing Mulitmedia Arts and Fashion Design and Merchandising respectively. They are deeply rooted in popular culture while at the same time, living the independent lifestyle. Their art is a mix of class and decadence, modernity and nostalgia, completely new yet strangely familiar.

EverywhereWeShoot seeks to change the current trends in fashion photography and graphic design. They take each project to a higher level, which enables them to get ahead of the pack and this is what they promise clients every time. Ryan and Garovs have broken the mold of mediocrity and are now challenging people to embrace their creativity and show it to the world.

ColorWare: Customize Your Ish

When it comes to design everyone knows Apple has their shit together. There are few corporate companies out there that that can match the style and design that Apple products have. However, there are times when the default white or brushed metal just isn't what you were looking for. So if you want to really stand out, check out ColorWare. ColorWare has plenty of ways to customize and color your iPod or MacBook Pro, and for all those not cool enough to use a Mac, they also customize Dell products.

Update :: Just found another site that gives you even more freedom to customize your laptop by allowing you to submit your own design to have printed on your laptop. The site is called (very unoriginal name) Pimp My Laptop.

Jealous of HydroSeventyFour

Upon viewing portfolio sites such as Joshua Smith's (Hydro74) an artist should be overwhelmed completely with two feelings, complete admiration, and complete jealousy. The artist's portfolio is chalk full of some of the most amazing logos, illustrations, clothing designs and print works I have ever seen. With such clients as Nike, Burton, Complex Magazine, You Work For Them, Island/Def Jam and a grip-load more Smith has accomplished a designer's dream. Make sure to check out his online store for goods on sale.

Who's Ready to Uff?

On a recent drunken night of music discussion and banter at my friend Jesse's apartment I managed to recall only a few of the many artists he introduced to me. One artist that made an impact on me was an 18 year old girl from Miami by the name of Uffie. This young cutie who sounds like she could be the little sister of "Electro bad girl" Peaches is on the verge of blowing-up. Don't be surprised if you see her right up there with other female MC's like M.I.A. and Lady Sovereign.

Have a listen to her first single Pop the Glock.

Frankie Magazine

One thing I always have to buy when visiting another country are magazines. Even if the text is written in a language I can't read or understand, I buy it. I figured that these are way better than tacky souvenirs and at the same time, keeps me updated on the current trends and issues in that specific country.

A friend recently came back from Australia and brought with her a copy of Frankie which impressed me to no end! The layout and photographs are superb, articles are humorous and well written (personal favorite would be the one on swearing), and the current fashion/music/art trends happening down under are presented very well. Frankie deserves to be recognized internationally (or maybe it already is) along with edgy magazines such as NYLON, Tokion, Paper, Soma, etc.

Remix Rush: Chewing Gum

Within the past nine months or so my love for dance music has been revived. This new love for dance music is due largely to artists such as Tommie Sunshine, Tiga, MSTRKRFT and Mylo. With the realease of his highly-acclaimed debut album "Destroy Rock & Roll" Mylo gained attention from music lovers everywhere, and in my mind was a large part of the dance music revival. "Chewing Gum" is the track spotlighted in this Remix Rush. It was originally done by electronic pop queen Annie, who also had a huge year in 2005 with her release of "Anniemal". Have a listen, and feel free to dance.

Annie :: Chewing Gum (Mylo Remix)

Honeyee Web Magazine

Honeyee is an online magazine from Japan that updates me with news about art and fashion through the eyes of Japan's cool hunters. For people who love high end street-fashion such as Number (N)ine and Neighborhood, you're in luck (Although you'd have to know how to read Japanese) because these are a few of the favorites.

Honeyee also has personal blogs of people in the know such as FPM's Tomoyuki Tanaka, Hiroshi Fujiwara, VISVIM's Hiroki Nakamura, Undercover's Jun Takahashi, and Hong Kong superstar Edison Chen. Head on over to Honeyee and enjoy the high style Tokyo's coolest denizens has to offer.