WARM THIGHS AND SLF TAPES

So who is Warm Thighs and how long have you been producing music?

My name is Warm Thighs. More people possibly know me as _lip. 22 pound cat? I make weird beat instrumentals from

time to time and recently I've run a little digi-label called SLF Tapes.

I've not been doing the Warm Thigh's alias very long... Maybe 3-4 months max. It started when I was visiting my ex-girlfriend in Finland. We were coming up with cheesey ass alias/DJ names when she came up with the name DJ Warm Thighs.

That night I couldn't sleep so I ended up making a bunch of tracks on the SP-404 which started the whole Warm Thighs sound.

It's all because of my ex-girlfriend really... The whole sound and conceptually everything I put into Warm Thighs.

No one totally knows about the meaning/motivation behind the music save a few random ass people on soundcloud hahaha! I think my ex was a bit offended I stole her name actually.

SLF Tapes on the otherhand, started maybe one month ago. 1.5 max! Its actually super newish.

It was a spontanious decision, the whole blog and digi-label, despite wanting to run a site like this for a ages.

I started it off with a few Warm Thighs songs... "Warm Thighs 2". I ended up hating the songs but that isn't relevant. I was quite pleased how people responded to contributing and word got around to some cool people.

I got some weird emails as well.

You say some cool people are involved in slf, who in total contributes?
Do you all have equal input or do you decide if shit gets hosted? Are you a media mogul?

Well in reality, I've been managing everything. My homie Exaveyur I call my "Executive Associate" because we have frequent skype "business meetings" about various ideas or plans for SLF. He's asked a few people to contribute as well.

All the artwork, website crap, organisation and just about everything has been under my supervision and doing. Nothing too complicated though, I've just asked people to make a tape, they send me the mp3, I do all the artwork and put it up under SLF tapes and promote it a bit.

I've told a few people I have the ability to do a cassette release and did already invest in a fair amount of blank flat white cassettes, but no one has done enough tracks to fill it all yet haha! Most the people I know make 1 min tracks max anyways...

So far, a lot of people have agreed to contribute, a few people are maybes and I probably can't say who they are...

There's a long list of names in general... The list on the side of the website actually needs updating... I'll say everyone I'm allowed to that are buddies so to say of SLF.

Exaveyur, Culprit, Dpee, Nippletapes, Chushi, cy18291, Jalen, Parkerstewart, Dil Withers, Wednesday, Wodoo Wolcan, 1618, Vxlam... I think that's it, I might be forgetting someone, NOTHING PERSONAL.

Also there's a 100 percent chance someone will contribute under a different name because of... traditional reasons.

So there is hopefully going to be some physical releases at some point. Its a bit of a world wide affair then, was it through soundcloud you found the others? You've all got a similar feel to your stuff, was this just a meeting of like minds or a planned style?

Yeah, maybe...

I'm not a big fan of soundcloud, but it IS how I met all these people and even got my name out.

As to people thinking SLF was all the same person, I'm really alarmed. I've been listening to all these people so much I can tell everyone apart from each other so precisely. All of us can. Most the people I know, we can just immediately know who is who if some cat is trying to hide behind an alias and shit.

I won't lie, I was really careful who I asked regarding SLF. It was originally supposed to be a genre specific label and all SP dirty lofi. A little cave for random tapes and aliases people wanted to throw away and forget about it without giving their name away.

In present time SLF has kinda come to a stop, all of us are busy with life, I think. I'll have SLF in mind, and unlike all the similar projects we've started and tore down like the MAGIC KAMEN collective, I don't want to kill SLF.

I'm still going to do music as Warm Thighs, but SLF will probably be off and on infrequently.

You can check out all the Warm Thighs and other SLF releases on their website and make sure you go and see Warm Thighs supporting Shlohmo at the Green Door Store, Brighton on Feb 1st 2012

SLF Soundcloud
SLF Blog

Christopher Hall

What is your background in photography? What got you started?

I'm self taught. I started shooting with an old Agfa Optima as a teenager, and continued through my 20's. I was posted in West Berlin during the end of the cold war and shot a lot back then, street scenes and the like. I eventually lost interest in photography for several years, then started again around 2003 when I bought my first digital camera. I found my way back to film again a couple years after that. I found that using film made me slow down and carefully consider my compositions. I also really enjoy the anticipation bit of waiting for the film to come back from the shop, it's almost like Christmas eve, waiting to see what comes out.

What equipment do you use?

I shoot mostly in film, with either a Rolleiflex, or a Voigtländer Bessa III 667. I probably have more cameras than anyone could practically use, but I usually have one or both of those two with me. I keep flirting with various 35 mm cameras, but the 6x6 and 6x7 formats seems to click with me more, it's difficult to get a composition I like with 35 mm.

What is your creative process? Are your shots planned or spontaneous?

I like to get up early in the morning to go shooting. For one, I like the morning light, and I prefer scenes without people. I usually will go out Sunday morning, when most people are still sleeping. Most shots are spontaneous, "as found", but I've also planned some scenes, when I've had proper inspiration. The film all goes to a shop for developing and scanning, and I'll do minimal clean up, if needed. I hope to develop my own some day, maybe if I can retire, but holding down a regular day job means time is precious right now.

You have two book available, could you tell us a bit about how they came together?

I finished the first book, "Home is where the car is" about two years ago. I put it together after many people online had asked if I would do so, and I was pretty pleased with how it came out. It's mostly cars in suburban settings, but, really, they are scenes that remind me of what the world looked like when I was growing up. People tell me that the cars you can find here on the West Coast of the U.S. have largely disappeared from other parts of the country, I think the mild winters here help with that. I think a lot of the scenes I shoot won't be around much longer, so it's important o get out there and photograph them before they all disappear.

The second book is titled "going nowhere", and I was building a bit on the first book. I really like the idea of photographers getting their work out via books, and have been playing with the idea of self-publishing for several months now, I know a few others who have already put a few self-published editions out there. The concept interests me tremendously, but my time is always in such short supply, I'm not sure it will happen anytime soon. Blurb is a happy compromise for the moment. Blurb has been working on their quality issues, upgrading paper and cover choices, so I might work on a new book some time next year.
Both books can be found at Blurb

A lot of your photos are in suburban areas, what is it that draws you to these places?

Having grown up in the suburbs, I think there's a little bit of yearning for those days of childhood which are now long gone. Still, I manage to find little traces of it when I look hard enough. I live in a city now, which seems more "normal" to me. But somehow, the suburbs always pull me back. When I was a teenager, I couldn't wait to get out of the place I was living, so it's strange now to always be pulled back.

Who or what inspires you?

In the online world, there are so many. Patrick Joust and Scott Binkley both provide tremendous inspiration. I've also been lucky enough to go out and shoot and exchange ideas with Scott, I wish that could happen more often, but there are several hundred miles between us. I really love seeing the work of Dave Glass too. There are so many others, I couldn't begin to list them all.

I have a rapidly growing collection of books from more established photographers which also provides inspiration. Stephen Shore, of course, is a huge favorite for me.

Are you working on a project at the moment?

I have an on-going portrait project that I'm working on, and, I also like the idea of self-publishing, as mentioned. I have a small show up this month in Oakland, and hopefully a few more shows in the works. The project I should really work on is creating a 36 hour day, there's just never enough time to do everything that interests me.

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Sun Glitters

For those that don't know you can you sum it up for them?

My name is Victor Ferreira, I live in Luxembourg and I’ve been performing under the Moniker Sun Glitters since March 2011.

You've had a pretty busy year, with releases and live dates, what's been the highlight so far?

The highlight so far is for sure the Buzz I'm having all around the world in several platforms, it is giving me the chance to live my dream and who knows, maybe it might be a full time job one day ;)


You released a split with halls, how did this come about and any plans for future collaborations?

To be honest, I can't remember exactly how this collab started... But what I do know, is that I discovered halls on his Bandcamp and fell in love with his sound from one listen! He’s a great guy! I had the pleasure of talking with him at the Binnacle Festival in London where we both performed.

The artwork for your releases features your own photography. The imagery fits the music really well, is this done along the same time as recording or once the record is completed?

Thanks for your kind words! It depends, I actually have a large stock of pictures... However, I often choose the picture(s) after the songs are finished.

What have been your favorite releases/New artists this year?

There are a lot! But I really like Burial (Street Halo), Holy Other (With U), Balam Acab (Wander/Wonder), Clams Casino (Instrumentals) and many many more!

What have you planned for the next year?

Playing shows and festivals and looking forward for my new album!

Any chance of a Christmas single?

There are still several projects open and still in process like this tribute to Mazzy Star that should come out for Christmas. It's a project curated by Jaxart Records.
There are some remixes and some collaborations also waiting to be released...

The new Sun Glitters remix EP is now available from his bandcamp page, you can pay what you want, so GET IT!

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Patrick Milsom

What is your background as an artist?

I was raised in an environment where art and music was almost always present and my parents encouraged the freedom of creative expression so art was very much part of my everyday life from an early age.

I can remember being taken to see a Gary Hume exhibition at the Whitechapel gallery when I about was fifteen and that being the moment when I realised I wanted to be an artist.

I study fine art at Nottingham Trent and since leaving there I have been exhibiting my work around the UK and doing illustration work for a range of clients.

You work can almost be split in two, in technique they are quite similar, both time consuming and intricate, but have very different outcomes. Could you tell us a little about each of them?

The first style is illustrative based focusing on the perception of the individual, by using ambiguous suggestive narratives, the masking off any direct definition and presenting the work as if it is a frame from a comic or film. I try to encourage the viewer to draw on their own experience to find a personal definition within the images.

The second style is a direct result of my interest in the effects of time, the inter play between simplicity and complexity and the application of systems and patterns running parallel to research into quantum theory, relativity, chaos theory, causality and perceptions of reality. Though inspired by this research it is not exclusively informed by it, instead it acts as spring board for thoughts pertaining to a wider understanding of every level of the world around us.

How long do you spend on a piece? How do you find the process?

The amount of time applied to each piece is ultimately relative to what I am trying to achieve, the effect of time is of great importance to my work. With my new work each mark is representative of a moment in time and is as significant as the whole image, though each mark could be seen as irrelevant the part it plays in the whole is vital; its presence will affect every proceeding mark and in time will affect the whole image.

On a practical note the illustrative drawings and paintings can take weeks and even months to complete but once I start something I find it difficult not to finish it. With the dot images it takes approximately four hours to do ten thousand dots, I am currently working on a piece that has just reached the two hundred thousand mark, feel free to do the maths! Don’t get me started on the seven hundred and fifty thousand one!

When exhibiting work do you like to give an explanation or prefer the viewer to construct their own?

When exhibiting I prefer to keep any text to a minimum though I do appreciate the value of giving some guidance, I carefully consider titles and if necessary accompanying text but I find it incredibly important to allow the viewer to find their own interpretations.

Who or what inspires you?

I find I draw most of the inspiration from the things I read, I enjoy fiction and listen to a lot of audio books whilst I am working but I find the nonfiction I read inspires me more. The most recent books that have had an effect on my current thoughts are “13 Things That Don’t Make Sense.” Michael Brooks, “Why Does E=MC2?” Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw, “The Quark and the Jaguar.” Murray Gell-Mann. “Chaos.” James Gleik and “The Grand Design.” Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow.

I find visually I draw inspiration from a wide range of sources and I collect images from the internet almost obsessively but from the art world I most enjoy the works of Gustav Dore, John Martin, Nigel Cooke, Francisco Goya, Pieter Bruegel and Caspar David Friedrich.

Do you have any new projects on the go at the moment?

I dedicate a lot of time to my work and I am always juggling quite a few pieces at a time, I m not sure I would identify what I do as projects as each piece informs my thinking and therefore informs all the work I create, though I am currently doing some experiments in painting and sculpture and also considering a performance piece.

Patrick is exhibiting at The Contemporary London exhibition Pop Up Art Gallery/Shop in Kensington, London from Thursday 15th December - Saturday 24th December 2011. The address is 12 St Albans Grove, Kensington, London W8 5PN.

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Ryan Hancock

Where are you based?

Brooklyn, New York.

What is your background in photography? How did you get started?

I took a couple of classes in undergrad. I enjoyed them, but didn't really pick up a camera again for ten years. I alternately loved and hated painting, but then when I moved to New York I didn't have a space to paint in, so I started taking pictures instead.

What equipment do you use?

I use various medium and large format cameras.. and a dslr to polaroid with. Mamiya RZ, Hasselblad, Toyo 4x5. Smaller strobes mostly, but occasionally I'll borrow a Profoto kit or something like that.

Do you have a fixed idea of an image you want to create or is it more of a spontaneous process?

Certainly it's both. It's a constant back and forth. I don't carry a camera around everywhere, but I take notes on things I see and want to photograph, and I'll either return and photograph it later, or recreate whatever aspect of a situation I'm interested in out of different elements and photograph that. Other times, in the process of editing I'll realize that I need some certain image, and look for it with a more fixed idea of what I want. Not that it matters, since what I end up with is always something other than what I started out to make. I feel like my intentions are just a starting point.. something to search for with a camera in hand. Usually the image I wind up using was shot as a tangent to the image I had in mind, and during the time it takes to process and scan in the film, hopefully I let go of my idea enough to see what I actually shot with fresh eyes.

What drives you to take photographs?

The world seems to me increasingly incomprehensible, and there are times when I feel there isn't anything that I know for certain. For me, making photographs (or painting, or whatever) is necessary to translate the unintelligible reality of being into a more coherent form. Or at least to illustrate my best guesses. There is vastly more "nothing" in the universe than "something", and I try to create images that recognize the grace by which anything at all exists.

Who or what inspires you?

Books... right now I'm really enjoying the collected stories of Lydia Davis. Also, I've been consistently blown away by Viviane Sassen since I first stumbled on her work in a Chelsea gallery a few years ago. Also, several people I see online.. David Branden Geeting for example.

Are you working on a specific project at the moment?

Right now I'm shooting for a book I'm publishing in 2012, as well as showing some work here and there around NYC. I'm also in production of a documentary film called "Bonebreakers"... It's about street dancers in a part of Brooklyn called East New York who are completely incredible.

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