We're over that whole embarrassing "We hate the French, pass the Freedom Fries" phase, correct? Splendid. Moving on.
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The French chanteuse and film star, who got her start in the early 1960s, was one of the first female artists to sing and record mostly her own material. A mod fashion icon in her heyday, Hardy and her voice have aged magnificently. (Check out her 1999 guest vocal appearance on Air's "Jeanne" for evidence of her voice's timeless quality.
) This expansive 50-song anthology covers Hardy's recordings with Vogue records from 1962-67. The tracks have been digitally remastered and packaged with rare artwork and represent the broad range of production styles used to record her material. I particularly like the style on tunes like "Je n'attends Plus Personne" and "Et Meme.
" Hardy's voice isn't a force to be reckoned with, but rather a soothing, breathy affair. The music oozes with the type of breezy sensuality and non-plussed attitude that seems second nature the ever-chic French. The songs are well-arranged, negating the need to understand the lyrics (which are in French).
This is pure pop, simple and straight forward, but with a grace and beauty seldom found with today's female vocalists. All the Britneys and the Shakiras could stand to take a note or two from Hardy about what it means to be sexy. Fellow Francophiles will delight in this exhaustive collection, which makes you long to sit back with a glass of wine at a sidewalk cafe and soak up the spring.
Elegant and enjoyable to the last drop. The fashion blogosphere is abuzz with word of Sarah Jessica Parker's -- of Carrie Bradshaw, "Sex in the City" fame -- forthcoming fashion line, Bitten, which launches June 7. Yup, that's right.
The place in the mall that sells all the U-M sweatshirts and glittery "Huge Flirt" T-shirts. The one where everything is $20 or less. And while the discount sporting apparel store and modern fashion icon may appear to make strange bedfellows, Parker -- who used to shill for Gap and has her own perfume, Lovely, and who rose to fame portraying a woman who owned dozens of $400 shoes -- said she and the store are a perfect fit.
According to a :
"In a statement, the company said Parker decided to partner with Steve Barry's after learning of the company's philosophy to offer high-quality merchandise at the lowest possible prices. 'Women should be able to wear great clothes and not lie in bed at night feeling guilty about how much money they've spent,' Parker said in a statement."True enough.
Images of the fashion label -- said to contain about 500 pieces -- are harder to come by than of the newborn Suri Cruise. Fashion blog had to yank early images (pulled from Parker's promotional appearance on "Oprah" earlier this spring) after threats from Steve Barry's PR department. Either way, here's hoping the line doesn't include any of those silly, oversized flower label pins Carrie was so fond of wearing.
Parker's move to clothing designer comes on the heels of British supermodel Kate Moss' much-touted partnership with the U.K.'s and fake-Brit Madonna's pairing with H M (a store that I absolutely adore).
All three stores offer "high fashion" at discount prices, though H M and Topshop's wares are considerably more stylish. Late morning -- I'm not an early riser -- visits to the Fulton Street Farmer's Market near Fuller Avenue and Fulton Street are one of the highlights of my summer weekends. The bustling open-air market is a big draw for the quaint Fulton shopping district, easily within walking distance of the farmer's wares.
I'm happy to add another stop on my Saturday morning(ish) Fulton Street circuit, by way of 954 East. The resale shop, which opened several weeks ago, is housed in the leased space formerly occupied by East/West Futon (a cool, if somewhat niche shop). The two-story store still is coming together, but already is filled with tons of clothes, shoes and furniture.
Early this week, I noticed the store's sign, "Resale with Attitude," and made it a point to stop by Tuesday after work to scope things out. Though not filled to the brim with kitchy vintage knickknacks and retro clothes as I'd hoped, I was impressed with the quality of the items offered and the reasonable prices. I snagged a cute black-and-white polka dot pencil skirt for $10, and admired several pairs of designer shoes (none of which were large enough to accommodate my Sasquatch feet).
The owner said she has plenty more shoes and stock to unveil as she gets the store into order. In the meantime, I'm just happy to have another fun vintage store to peruse. The shop is open 11 a.
m.-6 p.m.
Monday-Friday and 9 a.m.-4 p.
m. Saturday. It's located at .
..just as the name would indicate.
Press photographer Katy Batdorff and I recently popped into the Flute Boutique, which now occupies Daddy O's former digs at 154 E. Fulton St. In addition to musical instruments and paraphernalia, the store carries lots of cute, casual dresses and jewelry.
A great place to check out if you're looking for something dress-casual to wear to a summer wedding. Unfortunately, there were no Elvis belt buckles -- a la Daddy O's -- to be found, but you take what you can get. stop 'stealing' all the 'good ideas'?
Thnx. :) Human interaction isn't easy. Contentious human interaction -- say with a roommate, co-worker or complete stranger -- even less so.
cgi/cache=3000;/mtlogs/mlive_thenewblack/images/postit.jpg align=right>That's why you should always "air your grievances" via Post-It notes. Or so goes the logic of the "authors" of Passive Aggressive Notes.
These unintentionally hilarious snippets of thinly veiled hostility are fodder for a that I wish I had created. A sort of specialized version of , these notes range from the coolly polite "Please wipe the seat when you're done" variety, to a vividly hateful three-part letter that goes into gruesome detail over the cleanliness of a public women's restroom. Makes me wish I had saved the smiley-face adorned "Please don't park on my a** again.
Thanks!" note which some passive-aggressive jerk left on the windshield of my car several years ago. The equally amusing "'blog' of " highlights the common "misuse" of the popular punctuation.
Common examples include, a sign for a business that touts "quality" service, or medicine that promises a "speedy" recovery. Scroll down to find a funny photo that purports to have been "taken" in "Muskegon." There is not much locally for indie rock fans, so I'm expecting to hit the road to catch good tunes (i.
e. Spoon and Yo La Tengo in early July in Detroit; Dinosaur Jr. in June in Ann Arbor).
Unfortunately, conflicting plans mean I'll once again miss music nerd-fests Lollapalooza and Pitchfork Festival. Speaking of summer and music, fellow blogger and I have put together yet another list. With the sun a-shining and the birds a-chirpin' (and waking me up every * %$ mornin'), we decided to turn our attention to summertime tunes.
These are songs or albums that are perfectly suited to warm weather and long, leisurely days of drinking on the beach with friends. They must convey a summery mood, but don't necessarily have to make specific mention of the season.
)
Send 'em my way, . We've all made fashion mistakes that are painful to reflect upon, or for others to look at. That grunge period in junior high?
Not pretty. (An aside: I have to imagine anyone sporting the garish Prada turbans featured so prominently in May's Vogue magazine soon will scrunch their noses when reflecting on that practically impossible-to-pull-off fashion stunt). But what about the fashion choices that inflict physical harm as opposed to emotional distress?
A buzzing around the Internet gives a list of the biggest health hazards in fashion. Naturally, stiletto heels are counted as the top offenders. This really should come as no surprise, as it's pretty well documented that those high heels wreck havoc on your back, legs and feet.
If you ask me, stilettos are the modern-day corset; a device designed to make women look more "desirable," while all the while compromising her health and comfort. Also on the list: oversized handbags, heavy earrings and necklaces, thong underwear and constrictive clothing. Ladies, keep those tips in mind when hitting those Memorial Day sales at the mall.
-- save, maybe for tattoos -- is worth causing permanent, or even temporary, damage to your body. Especially when you'll probably just wind up regretting the look anyhow. Ask any local band and they'll likely tell ya it's not easy making a go of it.
Few local venues pay a decent cut and audiences typically only want to hear material that is familiar. Younger (read: underage) bands have the additional challenge of trying to find suitable venues for themselves and their audiences. Enter The Outer Vibe and their Big Gig.
The Outer Vibe -- winners of the 2005 Aris' Hometown Rock Music Search -- are a fun Grand Rapids seven-piece who've found a cool way to give back to the musical community that has shown them such support. The band's inaugural Big Gig gives young bands the opportunity to play on-stage with professional lights and sound. The all-ages event is Saturday night at Grandville High School, 4700 Canal Ave.
SW. The show is at 4:40 p.m.
Doors open at 4 p.m. Cover is $7.
Advance tickets are $5; available from the bands or at Purple East or the Corner Record Shop. UnAltered, Tobogganing for California, Minor Adjustment, The Flowbs, Blind Groove, Nate Hopkins and The Curious will perform, as will show curators, The Outer Vibe. Things are sounding kind of somber on my end of the island.
Probably time to liven things up a bit. You know, give the people something to dance to. Sly and the Family Stone, "Greatest Hits" (1970) The band had a strong voice musically and politically, changing the literal face of rock music.
In the midst of one of the nation's most embattled time periods -- the height of violence in the Vietnam War, the civil rights movement and lingering segregation -- Sly and the Family Stone gave the proverbial middle finger to the Man and became one of the first integrated mainstream bands of its time. Additionally, the band was one of the first mixed-gender acts in which the women served as more than backing voices and/or set-dressing. All this would have been a rather mute point had the music not been so phenomenal, innovative and enduring.
While inclined toward "proper albums," such as the 1969 breakout album "Stand!" or 1973's funk essential, "Fresh" (which includes, "If You Want Me to Stay," hands-down one of the coolest songs ever recorded), "Greatest Hits" is the Sly record closest to my heart. And though not an album in the traditional sense, it stands on its own merits.
Loaded with great tracks such as the hip-shaking "Dance to the Music," optimistic peace-pledge "Everyday People" and the pessimistic, up-yours social commentary of "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)," "Greatest Hits" lives up to its name. On a more personal note, the record was my first exposure to funk and served as a music history lesson each time I danced to it in my parent's yellow shag carpeted living room. (Don't worry, the hideously offending carpet has since been removed.
) It led to an interest in the Woodstock recordings and "Hair: The Musical," and prompted me to seek my parent's first-hand descriptions of what life was like in the tumultuous Vietnam era. The music not only spoke to its times, but to those who weren't alive at its creation. (Yes, I know.
I'm young.) Makes one wonder what, if any, modern protest/politically-charged/war music from my generation will carry any meaning for future listeners. With no sign of a rescue in sight, we carry on with our desert island listening .
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