The Find

This week, on The Find, we're giving you, dear reader, a preview of the new fall line from vegan shoe-makers extraordinaire, Novacas.

Novacas is an NYC-based company that's completely vegan-run and—as opposed to *some* manufacturers out there—run with environmental-sustainability and fair compensation for workers in mind. As they put it:

Novacas is committed to providing animal-friendly, environmentally-friendly, and worker-friendly products. Novacas—taken from Spanish and Portuguese for "no cow"—produces products that are made from the highest quality synthetic microfibers available and are 100% PVC-free. Shoes are ethically manufactured in Portugal at worker-friendly factories according to labor standards set forth by the European Union.

So suck it, Payless! We recently concluded a full brand re-development with Novacas, establishing a new logo for them (above), new shoe boxes, and totally retooling their Web site. We created the new site design—with Minima Designs managing site development and back-end—to give the company a rather intense facelift that would match Novacas' new fall line—its largest and, we have to say, most impressive to date. And we're not just saying that because they're a client. They're totally our favorite vegan shoe line, providing continually-evolving and improving footwear that doesn't sacrifice the ethical values that many of us share and still managing to keep their products reasonably-priced. Plus they're real nice people.

Visiting their site at the time of writing (last week in July), you'll actually still see the old design we created for them a few years back. It has a cute cat on it. They'll be unveiling the new site and identity next week. In the meantime, take a look at some highlights from the photo shoot we did for their fall 2010 line. Styles are beginning to trickle in now, and are available at MooShoes, among other stores (you'll be able to see a complete, up-t0-date list of stockists on their new site next week). The full fall line will be available mid-September. You can also shop their previous lines at MooShoes here. And yes. I am cheap. The little chick says so.

Logo, photos, and fancy ribbons by us, yo.

Music Monday

....was yesterday. Regardless of our broken e-timepiece, check out this week's Song of the Week from Brooklyn's own Twin Shadow. Essentially a solo project from Bushwick's George Lewis Jr. for the time being, Lewis' music can easily be filed in the new-80's drawer of your musical card catalog, but don't dis and dismiss. It's got a great, smoothed out flow reminiscent of the best of Bowie. Not anything to be sneezed at. Or gagged with a spoon?

If you like, visit his site. He's got another song from his upcoming record—out soon on Chris Taylor's (Grizzly Bear) Terrible Records—available for free download. And Lewis will be playing live with fellow Music Monday alumni, Sean Bones, August 17th at Mercury Lounge. And, on an unrelated note, Time Out New York evidently considers Lewis to be quite stylish. Cotton plimsolls, thumbs up! Rabbit foot necklace, thumbs down!

Thumbs up on the tunes still though. Check 'em.

Journal of the Movement of the World

Double-post! After watching the skate competition at this year's Brooklyn Bastille Day celebration, this AWESOME video continues to stimulate that nostalgic, old-school soft spot we've still got for the sport. SKATEBOARDING IS NOT A CRIME! Our favorite moments—Birds on a wire and sparklers for truck sparks. From Tiles Singer aus Deutschland.

Journal of the Movement of the World

Alex Vernon hand-cutting old-school silhouettes while you wait outside the Brooklyn Flea this past weekend.

Music Monday

Last November, Katie and I walked into the Bellhouse to see Bishop Allen and Throw Me the Statue, sure we would be welcomed by some top-quality indie-pop. We instead immediately found ourselves watching what seemed to be a loosely choreographed dance number to some pre-recorded 80's-style-Caribbean dance music which then morphed into Beyoncé's 'Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It).' No, I'm not exaggerating. That's pretty much exactly what happened. Don't believe me?

I think we were standing right behind the videographer here. Clearly some very high dudes (invoking the genderless meaning of the word) with oddly-sober A/V skills had stormed the stage just before we walked in. Feel free to watch all 2 minutes and 24 seconds of that video. It doesn't get any less weird. Weirder still the moment when these very high stage-stormers about-faced, picked up their respective musical instruments, and launched into an undeniably catchy, awesomely-written and -performed song. What the hell?

Thus our introduction to the NYC band, Darwin Deez. After an increasingly enjoyable set—and the two bands we actually came to see that night—I left the show determined to look the Deezes up as soon as I got home. Well, you know how that works out sometimes. Fast forward to...ah...last week when we immediately recognize this week's Song of the Week, 'Radar Detector,' in a Volkswagon ad. Needless to say, the ad re-sparked my interest in the band and I now must deliver a well-deserved 'danke' to the automobile manufacturers. The total weirdos write some of the most simply-addictive pop songs I've heard in a while. 'Radar Detector' serves as a pretty good example of what these guys (again, genderless version of the word...sorry bassist, Michelle Dorrance, AKA Mash Deez) do well—build an uncomplicated (in a good way), catchy song structure, add a stick-in-your-head-for-hours melody, throw in some guitar-as-tone and drum-machine-as-rhythm, and then have a hell of a lotta fun with it all. Despite his penchant for headbands, tie-die, the word 'nugs,' and rather thin mustaches—or maybe due in part TO IT—frontman Darwin Smith has got it going on. And I promise not to judge next time. I'll even sing along.

I got gloss on my lips
A man on my hips
Hold me tighter than my Dereon jeans

Check out their Song of the Week and, if you likey, order some records, real or e-style. Darwin Deez's. Not Beyoncé's. Though, you know...

Not Just a Phase

Today, we give you another installment of our continuing series, Not Just a Phase, where we've asked friends, colleagues, and total strangers to talk about how they came to be vegetarian/vegan. You can read more about it here. And if you're vegetarian or vegan and want to tell your story, send us an email! But first, check out lauren's story.

I first went vegetarian when I was really young and I feel like there wasn’t one thing that happened to bring it on, though I am told that when my mom told me what chicken was, I didn’t want to eat it anymore. I think my decision may have actually come about more from seeing cows in the fields and not wanting to break up their families. I don’t think I consciously recognized how much my parent’s divorce impacted me, so I don’t know that I saw the cows and made a connection, but something sunk in that, by eating meat, I would be breaking up a family, and that would be painful and I just didn’t want to do that. As I was the only veg person I knew—and I didn’t even know at the time that a term existed for people who didn’t want to eat animals—I would try to not want to eat meat by picturing a cow not coming home because someone decided to eat him or her. So I stopped eating cows and eventually stopped eating all animals. Eventually, I went vegan in high school when I started learning more about the egg and dairy industry.

lauren Ornelas

lauren runs an all volunteer non-profit, Food Empowerment Project, volunteers with a local animal rights group, and works full time with the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition.

Find out more about Food Empowerment Project here and, a project of FEP, veganmexicanfood.com here. And have a great weekend everyone.

Journal of the Movement of the World

Inexplicable creepy girl painting in our shared office bathroom.

Music Monday

Last year, we experienced one of those crazy, only-in-New-York moments. And when I say 'experienced,' I mean more that we heard about it happening and then totally regretted not attending in person. That's how we roll. I think there was a Mad Men marathon on or something. That Don Draper...

Back to the point, last April—a little over a year after they compiled their tribute to Björk, Enjoyed (which you can still and should download ASAP)— Stereogum's own Brandon Stosuy brought together Björk and the Dirty Projectors (who were featured on the tribute) to put on a benefit for NYC's Housing Works. For those who don't know, Housing Works is a noble organization dedicated to "ending the twin crises of AIDS and homelessness." Stosuy happens to be a board member at Housing Works and, after hearing of the mutual admiration Björk and the Projectors had for each other, he worked to put together the one-night event to raise awareness, raise funds, and...excuse the easy out...raise the roof. I know. I know. What can you do? It's a blog, not The New Yorker. Read more about the event here. (Haley Joel Osment was there!)

Fast forward a little over a year, which brings us to the end of last month and the release of Mount Wittenberg Orca, the seven-songs written by DP's David Longstreth for the benefit. When they originally performed the songs, Longstreth introduced them with this:

“We’ve never played it in front of anyone before, and we are just incredibly honored to sing this music with Björk....It is about a day three weeks ago that Amber Coffman (of the Projectors) was in Northern California watching whales from a mountain called Mount Wittenberg. The...songs are imagining the moment Amber saw this whale, and the whale saw her. I think it is called Mount Wittenberg Orca.”

That it is. And, following on the original concept, the EP is being sold electronically to benefit another noble organization—this time, the National Geographic Society. Again, as they put it:

"We've decided to give away all the money that Wittenberg generates to the project of creating international marine protected areas. Only 1% of the oceans are protected in any way and this is a huge problem. We're working with the National Geographic Society to create areas of sustainability, so the oceans don't end up like a giant poisonous corpse hugging the continents."

If you know the artists involved at all, the EP is about what you would expect—lush, glimmering, glitchily beautiful, and featuring near-acrobatic harmonies. We crazy-highly recommend you DOWNLOAD THE SONGS NOW at whatever donation level you feel appropriate. The music's excellent, as is the tradition of philanthropy that follows it. Take a listen to "When the World Comes to an End", this week's Song of the Week, and then promptly give the waters that surround us all (and your ears) a much-deserved gift.

Photo: From Stereogum's coverage of the benefit.

Journal of the Movement of the World

BAM's kicking off their second Cary Grant retrospective—aptly dubbed Cary Grant 2. As they state on their site, "This sequel to last year’s series presents more films starring the inimitable leading man, whose iconic blend of elegance, comic timing, and flawless physique led Howard Hawks to declare him 'by so far the best that there isn’t anybody to be compared to him.'" So dapper it up, Dan.

Movie still from Grant + Hepburn's hit, Bringing up Baby, showing Tuesday.

Music Monday

—from NYC's Francis and the Lights. Go to their site to hear some more excerpts from their forthcoming full-length debut, It'll Be Better, out later this month.

Friday Fave Five Fah

Trying something new again today with Friday Fave Five Fah, bringing you five of our favorite tracks bound together by a common theme. In this case, we're celebrating the birth of America with five of our favorite covers of—what else?—Bruce Springsteen songs. Nothing's more American than the boss, and why not celebrate the fourth with some of the best interpretations of the music he's given us over the many, many years.

First up, a superbly intimate version of "Dancing in the Dark" by Scotland's unfortunately-named Beerjacket (AKA-Peter Kelly). Somehow pulled of beautifully and rockingly at the same time.

Next, Portland's Chromatics give us a smoothed over, blissed out "I'm On Fire," replacing some of the original's edge with their trademark sultry vocals and easy-flowing guitar-keyboard interplay.

John McCauley's Deer Tick gives us a healthy dose of Americana grit covering Springsteen's "Nebraska" during their Daytrotter session last year.

Next we have Brooklyn's finest—The National—and their live cover of Bruce's "Mansion on the Hill." If you haven't already, definitely check out their new album, High Violet. Truly superb.

And, finally, another one of our favorite artists, Dan Black, from Paris by way of London, brings us a crazy-cool mash up of a Nick Drake song and "Dancing in the Dark." You'll excuse the duplicity once you hear how awesome this one is.

Alright, so get out there this weekend and start a tofu dog America dance party!