Adam Yauch Park, Brooklyn Heights. It’s only right…
The Beastie Boys On Chapelle Show (never aired).
Some Words On Why The Beastie Boys Matter So Much To Me:
This was inspired by an article that came out on my folks site Largeup.com today about the Beastie Boys’ connection to reggae music. I left this comment on their article today:
The Beasties truly represented my musical path more than any other group ever. I came of age (11-13) going to see to hardcore bands like Bad Brains and Murphy’s Law, who obviously both had big reggae/ska influences. At the same time, I was being introduced to “The Harder They Come” soundtrack (which includes the “Stop That Train” sample), Eek A Mouse, Steel Pulse, Yellowman and the like. I remember, my boy had all these reggae artist names scrawled on his book bag, and it just had a HUGE effect on me. I went and found all those artists.
After being raised on classic rock, yacht rock and 80s music, hardcore and punk were the next logical step. Then, all the hardcore kids in Boston (where I grew up) took off their Doc Martens, and put on sneakers, started listening to/going to more reggae, ska and hip-hop shows, and called themselves “sneaker boys”. Precisely at this time, I moved to NYC. I never went to another hardcore show again. I got completely obsessed with listening to Red Alert, Stretch Armstrong, Kid Capri and Silver Dee on the radio, and just got consumed by hip-hop. Later on, I went back and caught back up on all these previous phases, which was great therapy.
The Beasties represent the true nature of hip-hop and dj culture to me. The people that started hip-hop (and dj culture), just loved music. ALL KINDS. But the Beasties also had a musical progression that mirrored mine, which transcends any of that for me. The connection between reggae, punk, hardcore and hip-hop is something that I think many people who call themselves “hip-hop fans” just don’t even understand.
Sunny Bak is a fashion photographer that, by chance, found herself shooting for the Beasties during the “License To Ill” era. The story (as told to Jay-Z’s Life And Times Blog) is that the Beasties used to hang around Sunny’s photo studio with all these models she was shooting, and that’s how she met them. Sunny used to just throw the boys into her photos because she needed someone to test the light out on. Haha. Later on, when they got a deal, they called her up, and asked if they could use the photos, and hire her.
Last Thursday (the day before MCA passed), I attended an opening for Sunny’s show with Cey Adams of rarely seen photos from the Beasties in the early 80s. It’s actually still up at 675 Hudson St/Ivy Brown Gallery. We ended up meeting Sunny through a mutual friend over there, and were pretty amazed at her down-to-earth nature.
I just dug this video up above, that sees Sunny being interviewed about the photos she contributed to the “Kings Of Rock” show at Rush Arts Gallery last month. She’s got some great stories to tell, and this video doesn’t even have 300 hits, so I’m sure they’re stories you haven’t heard.
I still have this tucked away in a book case somewhere. Classic material. Not a lot of people know how influential the Beastie Boys were with regards to the lifestyle publication world.
Grand Royal was not only the Beastie Boys’ label, it was also their (short lived) magazine.
(via 2tuff)
The design giant Eric Haze will be showing new works at Los Angeles’ Known Gallery this month. Haze did many of the iconic logos and lettering for Def Jam and Tommy Boy records, and others. His work includs the EPMD logo, the lettering on Beastie Boys “Check Your Head”, and work for Stussy, G-Shock, Nike and New Balance. His hand-styles are embedded into the fabric and conciousness of our culture, and many don’t even realize it.
Sidebar: One day I ended up over at Haze’s studio in Brooklyn for a barbecue. We were invited into his workspace, where me, wifey and A-Trak (who was also at the BBQ) were given a quick tour through the original sketches that were done for many of the logos below. A-Trak’s jaw immediately dropped to the floor, and me and me and wifey were in full awe as well. It’s a day I’ll always remember.
If you’re in L.A., check the show…
Check some of Haze’s more iconic design work below:
Eric Haze - New Mathematics
September 17 – October 8, 2011-
Known Gallery is proud to present “New Mathematics”, a new collection of paintings and drawing by Eric Haze.
With strong roots in the graphic arts, New York-based artist Haze has crafted a vocabulary of personal symbolism that delivers departures of an abstract and minimalist nature.
Recognized worldwide for more than three decades for his iconic design work and artistic productions – From the Beastie Boys to Casio to Nike – the 21st Century has also seen Haze returning to his fine art roots. His work in acrylic, ink and charcoal culminated in a critically acclaimed solo exhibition in 2008 at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Hong Kong. Now, with New Mathematics, the artist continues to promote a bold new language that reflects a truly unique style and vision.
Building on his commitment to the development of more organic personal work, New Mathematics displays a complex relationship between design, gesture and abstraction, incorporating geometric elements both with and without a basis in typography.
With repetition and the interplay of positive and negative as an underlying theme, New Mathematics reveals the development of a mature signature iconography that epitomizes Haze’s fine art work.
The roots of Haze’s history as a graffiti artist can also be felt in the nature of New Mathematics, with both speed and control as determining factors in the end result. Trading in the perfection of the imperfect, the intuitive confidence of stroke and line quality displayed in this new collection offers a celebration of form and gesture over narrative, presenting a fully realized dialectic that is steeped in the majestic flow of his signature hand style.
With this new body of work consisting of 35 new paintings and 15 new drawings, Haze marks yet another evolution in his commitment to expanding the scope of his creative process.
The Beastie Boys traipse around Tokyo in 1992.
(Source: youtube.com)
