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At a time when sales of vinyl records have hit a 25-year high, and analog technologies are providing the kind of extraordinary audio experiences that our increasingly digital world has started to remove, Hi-Fi is essential reading. This unique book explores just how, when, and why the world fell in love with the look, feel, and sound of top-of-the-line audio equipment. Hi-Fi traces this fascinating evolution from the 1950s to today (and tomorrow), taking readers right up to the current renaissance of all things analog and the emergence of cutting-edge designs for die-hard audiophiles.

From Crooked Grinds to Kickflips and Ollies to Wallies, the Skateboard ABC Collection is a fun way to teach the next generation about skateboarding – and who knows, maybe even mommy and daddy will learn a trick or two.

Made in Europe with non-toxic inks and finishes, so you can be sure your little one's first taste of skateboarding is a safe one.

A unique record of hip-hop history from the late 1990s through to the present, captured through informal Polaroid portraiture.

Just as Andy Warhol: Red Books defined a generation of artists, Big Shots offers a collection of photos that captures the energy of the world of hip-hop and the greater worlds of music and fashion alike. Started as snaps of friends and visitors, this unprecedented volume shot by Phillip Leeds, former tour manager of Kelis and N.E.R.D., is a compilation of previously unpublished work documenting some of the biggest names in hip-hop and fashion. His collection of Polaroid portraits has effectively grown to capture an important moment in music and fashion.

With more than 250 Polaroids of artists and figures including Mos Def, Jay Z, Tyler the Creator, Quest-love, and Rita Ora, Big Shots gives readers a unique and oftentimes impromptu look into an era of music and fashion shared through the ever-nostalgic format of the Polaroid.

At the outset of summer in 1990, a Houston gangsta rap group called the Geto Boys was poised to debut its self-titled third album under the guidance of hip-hop guru Rick Rubin. What might have been a low-profile remix release from a little-known corner of the rap universe began to make headlines when the album's distributor refused to work with the group, citing its violent and depraved lyrics. When The Geto Boys was finally released, chain stores refused to stock it, concert promoters canceled the group's performances, and veteran rock critic Robert Christgau declared the group "sick motherfuckers."
One quarter of a century later the album is considered a hardcore classic, having left an immutable influence on gangsta rap, horrorcore, and the rise of Southern hip-hop.
Charting the rise of the Geto Boys from the earliest days of Houston's rap scene, Rolf Potts documents a moment in music history when hip-hop was beginning to replace rock as the transgressive sound of American youth. In creating an album that was both sonically innovative and unprecedentedly vulgar, the Geto Boys were accomplishing something that went beyond music. To paraphrase a sentiment from Don DeLillo, this group of young men from Houston's Fifth Ward ghetto had figured out the "language of being noticed" - which is, in the end, the only language America understands.

As immediately believable as they were cartoonish, as much an inner city cipher as a suburban boys gang, the foursome that made up the Pharcyde were the most relatable MCs to ever pass the mic. On their debut and magnum opus Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde, they created a record almost overstuffed with possibility, the sound of four restless man-children fresh out of their teens, finding a perfect outlet in a form of music that was just as young and fertile.

And like the product of any adolescent, Bizarre Ride wears its contrarianism and contradictions on its sleeve. It's a party album about shyness and unrequited love. A swirl of jubilant L.A. psychedelia recorded in the midst of the Rodney King trial. A blast of black consciousness that still makes room to poke fun at Public Enemy and reference the Pixies. A dense, sophisticated sonic stew punctuated by yo mama jokes and prank calls. While hip-hop was already calcifying its tropes of steely machismo and aspirational fantasy, Bizarre Ride was a pure distillation of the average hip-hop listener's actual lifestyle-the joys and sorrows of four guys who were young, broke, sexually frustrated, and way too clever for their own good. A touchstone for Kanye West, Drake, Lil B and a whole generation of off-center MCs, Bizarre Ride sketched out a whole strata of emotions that other rappers hadn't yet dared to tackle, and to a certain extent, still haven't.

The Suburbs is an incredibly sentimental and nostalgic album, which generally moved critics but was jarring to others. But it also made a heavy impact on fans and – to the surprise of many – won Album of the Year at the 2011 Grammy Awards. This immensely visceral album triggers a sincere celebration of not formative years spent in a cookie-cutter development, but of feeling self-important, immortal, and desperate to escape. It examines youth and amplifies an innate sense of longing and remembrance.
Eric Eidelstein's The Suburbs explores this weird, utopic recollection of youth by comparing the album to suburban scenes in film and television, such as Blue Velvet, Mad Men, The Americans, and Spike Jonze's Scenes from the Suburbs. Through the close examination of film and televised depictions of the suburbs, both past and present, Eidelstein delves into the societal factors and artistic depictions that make the suburbs such a fascinating cultural construct, and uncovers why the album creates such a relatable and universal sense of reminiscence.

By June 1993, when Washington, D.C.'s Fugazi released their third full-length album In on the Kill Taker, the quartet was reaching a thunderous peak in popularity and influence. With two EPs (combined into the classic CD 13 songs) and two albums (1990's genre-defining Repeater and 1991's impressionistic follow-up Steady Diet of Nothing) inside of five years, Fugazi was on creative roll, astounding increasingly large audiences as they toured, blasting fist-pumping anthems and jammy noise-workouts that roared into every open underground heart. When the album debuted on the now-SoundScan-driven charts, Fugazi had never been more in the public eye.

Few knew how difficult it had been to make this popular breakthrough. Disappointed with the sound of the self-produced Steady Diet, the band recorded with legendary engineer Steve Albini, only to scrap the sessions and record at home in D.C. with Ted Niceley, their brilliant, under-known producer. Inadvertently, Fugazi chose an unsure moment to make In on the Kill Taker: as Nirvana and Sonic Youth were yanking the American rock underground into the media glare, and “breaking” punk in every possible meaning of the word. Despite all of this, Kill Taker became an alt-rock classic in spite of itself, even as its defiant, muscular sound stood in stark contrast to everything represented by the mainstreaming of a culture and worldview they held dear.

This book features new interviews with all four members of Fugazi and members of their creative community.

Mechanical Fantasy Box is Cowley’s homoerotic journal, or as he called it, “graphic accounts of one man’s sex life.” The journal begins in 1974 and ends in 1980 on his 30th birthday. It chronicles his slow rise to fame from lighting technician at The City Disco to crafting a ground-breaking 16-minute remix of Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love” to performing with Sylvester at the SF Opera House. Vivid descriptions are told of cruising in ‘70s SoMA sex venues to primal highs in Buena Vista Park and composing pornophonics in his Castro apartment. The entries are introspective and show a very out-front, alive person going through the throes of gay liberation post-Stonewall.

French-born artist and Berlin resident Gwenaël Rattke works in collage, silkscreen, photography and Xerox graphics. Rattke's collage works borrow from the visual codes of the 60s and 70s. Intricate, ornamental and excessive, they present "an imagined past fired with beauty and sexual freedom." For this book Rattke created 25 original illustrations inspired by selected entries, 3 street maps documenting locations mentioned herein and 4 collages of photos, ephemera and notes Patrick stuffed inside the journal. We’ve included Patrick’s doodles too, as well as introductory essays by Josh Cheon, Theresa McGinley and Jorge Socarrás.

An official licensed The Sex Pistols standard patch featuring the 'Anarchy in the Pre-UK' design motif. Iron On Patch.

The Rolling Stones iron-on embroidered large patch features a Classic Tongue motif. It's approximate size is 95mm high x 85mm wide. Red (PMS 185c), black and white.

An officially licensed Standard Patch featuring The Beatles 'Drop T Logo' design motif. This is an iron-on woven patch, made from polyester, with standard backing and an overlocked edge. Size Guide for standard patches... Rectangular 100mm x 50mm.

An officially licensed Standard Patch featuring The Beatles 'Sgt Pepper Drum' design motif. This is an iron-on woven patch, made from polyester, with standard backing and an overlocked edge. Size Guide for standard patches... Circular 90mm diameter.

From Alice Cooper to ZZ Top, the Rock ABC is a fun way to teach the next generation of rockers about the legends that paved the way.

The Rock ABC is dedicated to the future of rock, that is why a portion of each sale will be donated to youth music programs.

Made in Europe with 100% non-toxic inks, 158 mm x 158 mm x 26 mm, 56 pages of premium glossy card stock.

Catalog for Arunski's exhibition Clash Of The Machines.

Rapper’s Delight: The Hip Hop Cookbook features thirty recipes inspired by your favourite hip hop artists of today and yesteryear. Split into three categories of Starters, Mains and Desserts, the book includes a wide range of delights such as Wu-Tang Clam Chowder, Public Enemi-so Soup, Run DM Sea Bass and Busta Key Lime Pie.

Each of the recipes is accompanied by a bespoke piece of artwork, created by one of thirty of the best upcoming illustrators. Rapper’s Delight celebrates the many humorous parallels between food and hip hop, making it a must-have for anyone with a love for cooking, music or illustration, or indeed all three.

Thomas Sweertvaegher’s photographs celebrate the unbreakable family of skaters and the thrills, spills and freedom of skating life.

At the age of twenty-nine, Sweertvaegher has spent most of his life on the road with friends, indulging his dual passions of photography and skating. Years of travelling the world – always on the move and often carrying nothing more than a camera and a skateboard – have yielded the photographs collected in this volume, where the skateboard remains a constant symbol of freedom, an extension of one’s identity and an enduring bond between friends.

Rolling on the margins of society, exploring the limits of life and his own young adulthood, Sweertvaegher captures whatever is happening around him during his travels. His shots take the reader on a journey, showing the highs and lows, bruises and stitches of skating and street life, and ultimately celebrating the beauty such a life can bring. While it captures Sweertvaegher’s odyssey from a highly personal perspective, The Journal of a Skateboarder is also a visual documentary of the skating world, and features key figures such as Axel Cruysberghs, Arto Saari, Dylan Rieder and Rodney Mullen.

Motown: The Sound of Young America is the definitive, beautifully produced visual history of Motown, the most successful independent record company in the world.

Motown became a prolific and hugely successful production line of suave, sassy and sophisticated music through the 60s, 70s and 80s. This exceptional book features extensive specially commissioned photography of treasures gathered from the archives. It also captures the graphic and design iconography that underpinned Motown’s extraordinary creativity.

Packed with fresh insights gleaned from scores of interviews with key players, this revealing book delves into the workings of the Motown machine and details how a dedicated team of backroom believers, white and black, turned a small family business into a popular music powerhouse. This was the home of Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Diana Ross & the Supremes, Marvin Gaye, The Jackson 5, The Temptations and many more.

Motown: The Sound of Young America is a spectacular labour of love befitting an incredible story.

Awarded a Certificate of Merit in the category of Best Historical Research in Record Labels, from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections Awards for Excellence 2017

The Wes Anderson Collection: Isle Of Dogs takes readers behind the scenes of the beloved auteur’s newest animated film. Set in Japan and centered on a young boy’s search for his missing dog, Isle Of Dogs features the voices of Anderson regulars Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Jeff Goldblum, F. Murray Abraham, Tilda Swinton, Kunichi Nomura, Bob Balaban, Harvey Keitel, and Edward Norton. Also lending their voices to this star-studded production are Bryan Cranston, Liev Schreiber, Scarlett Johansson, Yoko Ono, Greta Gerwig, and Courtney B. Vance. In the newest addition to the Wes Anderson Collection,
the story of Isle Of Dogs’S conception and production unfolds over the course of several in-depth interviews with Wes Anderson, all conducted by film critic Lauren Wilford . Wes reveals entertaining anecdotes about
the making of the film, his sources of inspiration, his relationships with his actors, the ins and outs of stop-motion animation, and many other insights into his moviemaking process. In keeping with Anderson’s signature aesthetic vision, The Wes Anderson Collection: Isle Of Dogs is meticulously designed and rife with colourful behind-the-scenes images, photographs, concept artwork, and ephemera.

Every letter a legend: The Rap ABC is a board book with stylized art of 26 iconic hip-hop artists for each letter of the alphabet.

Made in Europe with 100% non-toxic inks
158 x 158 mm x 26 mm
56 pages of premium card stock.

Published by Patagonia, Closer to the Ground is the deeply personal story of a father learning to share his love of nature with his children, not through the indoor lens of words or pictures, but directly, palpably, by exploring the natural world as they forage, cook and eat from the woods and sea. Closer to the Ground captures the beauty and surprise of the world – and the ways it teaches us how to live – with humor, gratitude and a nose for adventure as keen as a child’s. It is a book filled with weather, natural history, and many delicious meals. Dylan Tomine, formerly a fly-fishing guide, is now a writer, conservation advocate, blueberry farmer and father, not necessarily in that order. His work has appeared in The Flyfish Journal, the Drake, Golfweek, the New York Times and numerous other publications. He lives with his family on an island in Puget Sound.

Patagonie Closer to the Ground (Hardcover) - features:

• 264 pages, including original black-and-white illustrations by Nikki McClure
• dimensions: 6 x 9 inch (15 x 23 cm)
• published by Patagonia
• printed on FSC all-recycled paper
• hardcover book
• English
• 482 g (17 oz)
• printed in USA

Not only do scripts and alphabets form bridges between cultures, but their history and the stories they tell are the perfect springboard for calligraphic experimentation.

From India to Ethiopia, Tibet and beyond, Denise Lach has travelled widely in the world of script. Here, she documents complex and simple characters, playful shapes and vibrant colours, which she then translates into her own visual art. She demonstrates the exciting design possibilities offered by script: you can repeat, turn, mirror and rotate letters; you can also experiment with rhythms, contrasts, colours and line widths.

In addition to calligraphic techniques, Lach introduces examples from printmaking, fabric printing, collage making and digital techniques.

Brimming with beautifully photographed works of art – on paper, stone, fabric or ceramic material – Journeys in Calligraphy will take you to many surprising destinations.

Contents:

Early Writing
Ethiopia
Swahili
Kannada
Tibet
Burma
Runes
Malay
Other Journeys

192 pages, 26 x 23,5 cm, hardcover.

Classic A1-sized poster (59,4 x 84,1 cm) with 300 well selected record sleeves from the 90's of Hip Hop.

Wes Anderson’s eighth feature film, The Grand Budapest Hotel, is the fullest expression to date of Anderson’s varied thematic and stylistic idiosyncrasies and influences—a meticulously crafted, visually resplendent matryoshka-doll caper set primarily in an alternate-history version of 1930s Europe. This supplementary, one-volume companion to The Wes Anderson Collection (Abrams 2013) is the only book to take readers behind the scenes of The Grand Budapest Hotel, with in-depth interviews between Anderson and cultural critic and New York Times bestselling author Matt Zoller Seitz. Anderson shares the story behind the film’s conception, the wide variety of sources that inspired it—from author Stefan Zweig to filmmaker Ernst Lubitsch to photochrom landscapes from turn-of-the-century Middle Europe—personal anecdotes about the making of the film, and other reflections on his filmmaking process. These interviews are accompanied by behind-the-scenes photos, ephemera, and artwork, as well as exclusive critical essays by Ali Arikan, Steven Boone, David Bordwell, Olivia Collette, and Christopher Laverty; interviews with costume designer Milena Canonero, composer Alexandre Desplat, lead actor Ralph Fiennes, production designer Adam Stockhausen, and cinematographer Robert Yeoman; and an introduction by playwright Anne Washburn.

23,8 cm x 28,6cm, 256 pages, hardcover.

From a Los Angeles hospital bed, equipped with little more than a laptop and a stack of records, James “J Dilla” Yancey crafted a set of tracks that would forever change the way beatmakers viewed their artform. The songs on Donuts are not hip hop music as “hip hop music” is typically defined; they careen and crash into each other, in one moment noisy and abrasive, gorgeous and heartbreaking the next. The samples and melodies tell the story of a man coming to terms with his declining health, a final love letter to the family and friends he was leaving behind. As a prolific producer with a voracious appetite for the history and mechanics of the music he loved, J Dilla knew the records that went into constructing Donuts inside and out. He could have taken them all and made a much different, more accessible album. If the widely accepted view is that his final work is a record about dying, the question becomes why did he make this record about dying?

Drawing from philosophy, critical theory and musicology, as well as Dilla’s own musical catalogue, Jordan Ferguson shows that the contradictory, irascible and confrontational music found on Donuts is as much a result of an artist’s declining health as it is an example of what scholars call “late style,” placing the album in a musical tradition that stretches back centuries.

152 pages.

One of the finest hip-hop albums ever made, A Tribe Called Quest's debut record (featuring stone-cold classics like "Can I Kick It?" and "Bonita Applebum") took the idea of the boasting hip-hop male and turned it on its head. For many listeners, when this non-traditional, surprisingly feminine album was released, it was like hearing an entirely new form of music.

In this book, Shawn Taylor explores the creation of the album as well as the impact it had on him at the time - a 17-year-old high-school geek who was equally into hip-hop, punk, new wave, skateboarding, and Dungeons & Dragons: all of a sudden, with this one album, the world made more sense. He has spent many years investigating this album, from the packaging to the song placement to each and every sample - Shawn Taylor knows this record like he knows his tattoos, and he's finally been able to write a fascinating and highly entertaining book about it.

128 pages.
• See more at: http://www.bloomsbury.com/us/a-tribe-called-quests-peoples-instinctive-travels-and-the-paths-of-rhythm-9780826419231/#sthash.cFZ9YfTa.dpuf

Wes Anderson is one of the most influential voices from the past two decades of American cinema. A true auteur, Anderson is known for the visual artistry, inimitable tone, and idiosyncratic characterizations that make each of his films—Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Darjeeling Limited, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and Moonrise Kingdom—instantly recognizable as “Andersonian.” The Wes Anderson Collection is the first in-depth overview of Anderson’s filmography, guiding readers through his life and career. Previously unpublished photos, artwork, and ephemera complement a book-length conversation between Anderson and award-winning critic Matt Zoller Seitz. The interview and images are woven together in a meticulously designed book that captures the spirit of his films: melancholy and playful, wise and childish—and thoroughly original.

10x 12 inches, 336 pages, hardcover.