Print & Design 7 Items

Although rap music is famous for its ingenuity, double entendres and clever turns of phrase, until now no one has attempted to collect rap lyrics into an organised compendium. Enter UNDERSTAND RAP, a very funny pop-cultural reference book based on the website of the same name, which precisely explains all the confusing terms and lyrics used in rap songs in a language even the most un-hip person can understand. The result is a book with breakout potential that's both entertaining and highly informative. The juxtaposition of dry, academic manner with Hip Hop terminology in UNDERSTAND RAP frequently lends itself to ironic comedy gold. For example: Lyric: "been servin' since you was doin' the runnin' man" Explanation: My experience selling drugs began long ago, while you were still concerning yourself with immature things like doing goofy dances where you look like you're running in place. (From Song: Rubberband Man on Album: Trap Muzik by Artist: T.I.) Understand Rap features hip hop artists of all names, colours, and creeds and organise their lyrics into the following categories: Cars, Money, Drugs/Alcohol, People, Places, Fashion, Crime/Weapons, Insults, Skills/Pride and Sex/Relationships.

An album which distilled a genre from the musical, cultural, and social ether, Portishead's Dummy was such a complete artistic achievement that its ubiquitous successes threatened to exhaust its own potential. RJ Wheaton offers an impressionistic investigation of Dummy that imitates the cumulative structure of the album itself, piecing together interviews, impressions of time and place, cultural criticism, and a thorough exploration of the music itself.

The approach focuses as much on the reception and response that Dummy engendered as it does on the original production of the album. How is that so many people have, collectively, made a quintessential headphone album into a nightclub album? How have they made the product of a niche local scene into an international success? This is the story of how an innovative, experimental album became the iconic sound for the better part of a decade; and an aesthetic template for the experience of music in the digital age.

248 pages.

Redefining cool for a new generation, Pharrell Williams is a creative force, using music, fashion, and design to express his distinctive style. Originating at the crossroads of art, design, popular culture, and street savvy, Pharrell Williams’s output is unique. By playing off different disciplines—namely music, fashion, street art, and design—and using each as an element in the other, Pharrell has redefined the role of the contemporary recording artist, blazing a trail for other musicians and prominent cultural figures. Illustrated with lavish photography, this book also explores his musical career in depth, charting his many projects from his production team The Neptunes, to the band N.E.R.D., and his collaborations with friends Kanye West, Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg, and other hip-hop royalty.
This unprecedented volume documents Pharrell’s prolific body of work and his contribution to contemporary culture. In his own unique graphic language, he details his extensive creative pursuits, including clothing lines, jewelry, and accessories designs for Louis Vuitton, furniture and other product design, limited-edition toys, graphic designs, skate graphics, and collaborations with Moncler, Marc Jacobs, the artist KAWS, and with architects Zaha Hadid and Masamichi Katayama/Wonderwall.

The third coloring book in the popular Graffiti Coloring Book series from Dokument Press is filled to the brim with the world's top graffiti styles. Over 60 images of the same number of writers from around the world are crowded on the sides. Color the wild, playful and cocky characters and imaginative shapes. A play with color and design for both grown-ups and kids, and a chance to learn from some of the world's best graffiti artists. With letters and figures of Bus 126, Diko, Does, Fati, Hews, How & Nosm, Izzy, Kacao 77, Ket, Kid Kash, Rubin, Semor, SP One, Tones, Zeus 40 and many more.

Will Sheff of Okkervil River has long been recognized for his writing: a contributor to McSweeney's, Sheff was nominated for a GRAMMY for his liner notes for Roky Erickson's 2010 album True Love Cast Out All Evil, and The New York Times declared that "Sheff writes like a novelist". It is with great pleasure that Jagjaguwar presents I Am Very Far: The Lyrics, a hard bound lyric book containing the full scope of Sheff 's vision for his latest and most refined album to date, Okkervil River's I Am Very Far. Meant to function as a distinct entrance point into the content of the music, "I Am Very Far: The Lyrics" is set for release in advance of the album. Functioning as much more than a complement to the albums themselves, Sheff 's prose weaves tales both subtle and dynamic, and enriches the content of his songs. Including the lyrics for the single "Mermaid" and other songs recorded during the "I Am Very Far" sessions, "I AmVery Far: The Lyrics" is a complete work in its own right.

The three-dimensional look of today’s visual culture is being shaped by techniques and styles from fine art and handicraft.

High Touch is a powerful collection of cutting-edge tactile design. This choice selection of three-dimensional work defines a new visual language for presentation and storytelling. The handicraft and artisanship necessary for the creation of these works appeal to the interdisciplinary mindset of our time and activate more of our senses than standard two-dimensional images ever could. High Touch documents an inspiring range of material objects and spatial orchestrations that meld crafts including crochet, papercraft, and the design of costumes and masks with the techniques of more traditional art forms such as installation, sculpture, collage, photography, and illustration. The examples featured in the book prove that the scope for this trailblazing work is enormous. Applications include advertising, brand presentations, editorial design, photography, product design, stage design, and scenography, as well as related fields that either exist already or that their creators have yet to invent. Today’s visual culture is shaped by a vast wealth of influences from diverse styles, cultures, and eras. Handcrafts including crochet, papercraft, and the design of costumes and masks are being melded with the techniques of more traditional art forms such as installation, sculpture, collage, photography, and illustration. A new visual language is currently being formed out of the skillful and unusual combination of creative styles, as well as the use of an expanded range of materials and techniques. One of the most striking aspects of today’s visual culture is its handcrafted quality. The recent work of many creatives is characterized by craftsmanship and an intensive, even laborious exploration of the featured techniques, materials, or styles. High touch is a term used in design theory to describe an accessible, human visuality. The book High Touch is a compilation of current work that is broadening and enriching this definition in a contemporary way. It presents a rich selection of innovative, often handmade design created with the full spectrum of materials and stylistic devices in existence today—all of which also strive to expand this palette of visual possibilities in a meaningful way. The examples featured in High Touch prove that the scope of application for this trailblazing work is enormous. It includes advertising, brand presentations, photography, product design, stage design, and scenography, as well as related fields that either exist already or that their creators have yet to invent.

Format: 24 x 28 cm Features: 224 pages, full color, hardcover Isbn: 978-3-89955-444-1