New York, I love you, but you're bringing me down (again).

A few months ago I saw Sarah Morrison post on the Missbehave blog that Topshop was coming to New York. It almost seemed too good to be true-- I wasn't sure if I believed it because it was one sentence, and, having been brainwashed by my school and the neverending use of MLA citations, I have a hard time believing things when sources go uncited. They did. I continued to live. I got to go to Topshop in Tokyo and at it was enough for me.

So I'm subscribed to the Topshop newsletter, of course, and my disbelief was suspended.

Topshop's coming to Broadway and Broome, which happens to be in the proximity of one of my favorite shopping areas in the world. I'm incredibly jealous, not to mention they're throwing a bunch of parties at McCarren Park Pool to celebrate!

Topshop NYC Party Line-Up:

7/20: The Liars, Fuck Buttons, Team Robespierre

7/27: MGMT*, Black Moth Super Rainbow, The Ting Tings

8/3: Black Lips, Deerhunter, King Kahn & His Shrines, Tall Firs

8/10: TBA

8/17: Aesop Rock, Panther, TBA

8/24: TBA

I'm all for MGMT, The Ting Tings and the Black Lips so I'm especially jealous in those parts.

But you know, this is all quite interesting-- one look at the Topshop New York website is enough to tell you that I guess Topshop is really fascinated with Brooklyn hipsters, which is a little disconcerting. I've never even been to Brooklyn and I'm kinda done with Brooklyn hipsters.

P.S. Fifi Chachnil is designing a cheap lingerie line for Topshop. Reeaalllly excited. Must get! Can't let it slide like I did with the Mimi Holliday x Topshop line!

In other news, Pocky is delicious, and I'm glad I have some.

Y Lolita Hazed

*Live the dream, Valentina. Go and seduce Andrew VanWyngarden for me.

I hate New York: A Lolita Hazed Rant

All right, so anyone who knows me knows that the title is a complete and total lie.
But here's what I do hate.

So if you're cool and also indigenous to New York, much my like my girl Valentina, you probably know that Central Park Summerstage is huge, and that next weekend, hipster hip-hop titans like Diplo, A-Trak and Plastic Little are hitting it up.

My other girl Erika was blogging about the Diplo show she hit last night and the comments? Enough to kill me. Why? Because everyone's all talking about the upcoming Summerstage concert...

...and my sister's going.

I want to smack her.

Yeah, yeah, so I did go to Europe without her. Big whoop. Meh meh. I'm still jealous.

But you know, I don't think we're even yet, though. She went to China for three weeks this fall. I've gotta find something to even the score!

Ratatat's coming to my fair city in September, so it might make me feel better about my life in music.

Anyways, I'm done now.

(This has been a Lolita Hazed Rant, stay tuned after these [nonexistent] messages.)

Dahl by Alison Kelly for ALTER

If you're in the Brooklyn area this Thursday, don't hesitate hitting up the unveiling of my girl Alison Kelly (of Project Runway 3-- the cute Alice-in-Wonderland look-alike, pictured below)'s new line for Alter, a brand in Brooklyn.

ALTER
109 Franklin St (at Greenpoint Ave)
Brooklyn, NY 11222
May 8, 2008 @ 7-10 PM

Open champagne bar! Meet Alison Kelly and see her bomb collection before everyone else gets to!

I don't know about you, but I would so go if I could. But, seeing as I'm not in New York, I cannot. Take advantage! Get some free bubbly! Rub elbows with my favorite Project Runway contestant ever!
It'll sure beat my Thursday plans.

Overhyped: Elizabeth Charles NYC

Whenever I've been in New York, I'd always wanted to go into Elizabeth Charles, an Australian boutique, on Horatio. I never did until last week.
I now understand why I never had.
Elizabeth Charles is a horribly done space, completely unorganized, and though it's been around for years, they have no cash register and you can make returns, but you won't get your money back.

Ridiculous.
Don't waste your time here.

Watch out for: Omer Fast @ The Whitney Biennial

You know, modern art has a tendency to be a real drag. With a vast amount of people all across the globe trying to make a name for themselves through art, pieces that truly catch your eye are very rare.

Last Wednesday, as I wandered The Whitney for their biennial exhibition, very few things were truly grabbing at me. I was bored, looking for something that felt note-worthy. I crept into every room I could find, before slipping into one densely-populated screening room tucked away in the corner of the second floor. Walking in, on its own, was a strange experience.
You hear an American man describing two different events while everything and everyone on the screen is frozen-- but you know the camera's still rolling. You'll see lights flashing and people blinking. Walking a little further in, you'll see that there is not one screen, but two, each with their own different frozen piece. There are even two more different "channels" on the other side of each screen, but they are just footage of the man as he speaks.
I sat in here and submersed myself in this, completely captivated.
The story, by film artist Omer Fast called "The Casting", follows the narrator's description of two different events: an evening with a masochistic German girl and the impulsive shooting of an Iraqi. These two events switch interchangeably as the narrator draws parallels throughout the 14-minute piece.
I had to sit there and watch. I was angry for not being able to finish it, as I worried that my mother and sister were probably unaware of my whereabouts, but the few minutes I did see of this mindblowing piece were not ones I'll forget.
Since that day, I've had a growing fascination with this political artist's work. I've seen two short works of his, and now I want to see more from this incredibly promising individual.

I highly recommend those in the New York area to head over to The Whitney and catch this magnificent piece while they still can-- you won't regret it, and you probably won't be able to see it anywhere else, either!
Fantastic work. Certainly want to see more from this one.

Omer Fast: CNN Concentrated (2002)