Derek Adams

Orchid Footwear head hancho. Lover of beer, iphones and backflips.

Posts from Derek:

Mother

There is no other so treat her right. Tomorrow is Mother’s Day, don’t forget.

I’m sure there are thousands of great party bands out there, but I thought it would be fun to build a case for why I think Murphy’s Law from NYC is one of the greatest of them all. Murphy’s Law is one of the original NYHC bands from the 1980’s and unlike most bands from that era, these guys weren’t trying to craft socially conscious lyrics about restrictive lifestyle choices and friendships gone awry, they were just trying to party. And that’s completely apparent in their music and lyrics. Maybe that’s why Murphy’s Law has continued to exist for over 25 years, they’re just trying to keep the party going. Here’s some photos I shot in Philly last week, along with some reasons why Murphy’s Law flat out rules.

FUN.
Number one, Murphy’s Law encourages you to have fun. “I don’t care what you say, I’m gonna have fun today.” Words to live by if you ask me.

HORNS.
Nothing makes music more festive than a good horn player. And if your horn player happens to be named Raven, even better.

SING ALONGS.
Murphy’s Law is all about the sing along, as any great party band should. Cavity Creeps is a great example. It’s based on an old Crest toothpaste commercial and the chorus is “We make holes in teeth” over and over. It’s so easy to get into, you gotta love it.

BARBEQUE.
If you’re running for greatest party band of all time, you better have a song about the mother of all parties, the all day BBQ.

BEER.
Every time I’ve seen these guys it’s been in a bar that sells beer, yet the band is handing out free beer to the crowd. Because this makes no business sense, this party atmosphere is immediately amplified. It also helps to have multiple songs about beer.

WEED.
Let’s face it, everybody loves weed. And people who love weed love songs about weed. This one is pretty much a no brainer.

THIS AIN’T NO NAZI PARTY.
So three guys decided to come to the show in full Nazi field uniforms. I showed up too late and missed the whole thing, but apparently they got their asses handed to them and their little Nazi hats stolen. It was a pretty big deal and even made the news. Seriously, Nazis? What year is this?

SMALL VENUES.
Bigger is not always better, especially when it comes to live music venues. There’s nothing better than seeing a band play live right in front of your face. The most memorable shows I’ve seen have always been in the smallest shittiest place. Murphy’s Law knows what it’s all about.

1980’s.
Did I mention Murphy’s Law began in the 80’s, the decade that invented the party?

SITTING AROUND AND DOING NOTHING.
Let’s face it, we can’t party all the time. Murphy’s Law even has a song about that. They have all the bases covered here. I rest my case.

Prototype FBM Dog Sidehack

On second thought, maybe dog sidehacks are the next big thing. They’re definitely cooler than doggie strollers.

Sidehack For Dogs

This is pretty retarded. I bet you can buy one of these at Interbike if you disagree.

London Pirate Frequencies

Here’s one more VBS video while I’m at it. Their documentaries are always put together so well. I really dig this one about pirate radio stations in London. Now that we have the ability to access millions of songs on the internet, it’s crazy to think about how far we’ve come.

More Spike

This may be old news if you check vbs.tv regularly, but this video highlight’s the mind-boggling amount of work that went into Spike Jonze’s “Where The Wild Things Are”. Spike, of course, is everybody’s favorite BMXer turned major movie director. That’s why this comment over on vbs made me laugh, “It was amazing how they made it look so real. He’s a skater by heart and my favorite director.”

Loz Art

UK rider Loz Taylor has a new website for his artwork. Check it out, it’s always cool to see a bmxer with another creative outlet besides riding. Seen on Federal.

Caspian

I went to see these guys the other night. I didn’t bring a good camera, so I wasn’t going to make a post about the show. Then I started to think it was stupid not to make a music post because of a photo. These guys are insane musicians and this is the Youtube age. Turn up the volume and let it rock. Caspian.

Oh yeah… they weren’t playing any keyboards live, even though it sounds like it. Just guitar, bass, drums, and xylophones. Xylophones? Yes Xylophones.

Ginch Rock

I had no idea that Garrett and Adam Guilliams were in a wicked evil scary death metal band called Eternal Plague. Garrett “sings” and Adams plays the shred stick. Check out their myspace and listen for yourself, if you’re not afraid.

Guru R.I.P.

Damn. I’m not trying to become the official obituary blogger over here, but if Peter Steele got a shout out then Guru definitely deserves one. Looks like I’m listening to Gang Starr all day. One of the best yet. Big L and Guru R.I.P.

Exit Through The Gift Shop

This new Banksy street art film is starting to open across the country. It’s already out in NY, LA, & SF, and comes to other major cities next week. I’m definitely going to check it out in Philly. There’s a bit of controversy buzzing that some of the footage is staged, but that should only make it more interesting.

Peter Steele R.I.P.

I can’t claim to be the hugest Type-O-Negative fan on earth, but musical tastes aside, I have to at least respect a guy who made it on Beavis & Butthead, the Jerry Springer Show, and even posed for Playgirl in his lifetime. That right there is more than the rest of us will ever do. RIP dude.