HISTORY "CAPTURED"

Last night MB witnessed an enthusiastic screening of the new documentary film, "Captured" in an event space on the Bowery. The film chronicles the life work of LES artist and consummate man-of-many-hats, Clayton Patterson, who tirelessly etched scenes of pre-gentrified Lower-East-Side life into a vast compendium of photos, films, and art for over 30 years. Like a modern day Herodotus, Patterson labored, often risking life and limb, so that us future generations and revelers of the L.E.S. could witness the blood that was spilled on this ground before our time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxUZSIf5yjQ


Clayton is victorious as a Lower East Side hero and the film does a good job of picking through his vast collection of divisive if not outright disturbing video footage, but the PBR guzzling audience seemed to walk away unaffected by the woes of lower-east-siders of the last generation. At one point rioters raid the lobby of a upscale apartment building on Tompkins square -a mere neanderthal to today's Avalon or Ludlow monstrosities - in a gesture of angst toward upscale gentrification, but how does one expect the current inhabitants to react to this? As you might expect, the tragedy felt by the LES dwellers of the 70's & 80's was lost on more than a few.

The precious footage that Clayton has rescued from anonymity however, is CAPTURED's greatest gift. The LES as ghetto; a lawless, shameless, bubbling miasma of crime, art, newness, fear, and infamy. MB has often wondered what New York might have looked like during the 1863 Draft Riots and the tapes of the Tompkins Square Riot might be just about as clear a window as we can get into what happens when peace in our city takes a holiday.

KINGS OF LEON TEES BY BARKING IRONS!

The brothers Followill, proud sons of Tennessee, may be hitting their stride in 2009 with a breakneck touring schedule, a string of huge singles, and more fan power than ever before.

On Thursday, the Kings of Leon will take on a sold out MSG -their biggest US show to date and the buzz is palpable here in NYC.

In July, the KOL dropped in on the Barking Irons Bowery digs (as reported by MB) to discuss some new art work that Barking Irons had made expressly for the Kings of Leon. After the guys happily approved the work, Barking Irons set out to produce a limited edition run of three ultra-soft, beautifully made t-shirts to be sold on tour with the band. It is MB's distinct pleasure to showcase them here now:

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<<< align="left"> YOUNG LOVERS - ONLY BY THE NIGHT

Each tee was produced on a super soft washed cotton picked by Barking Irons and sported an artful inside neck label for ultimate comfort and an added graphic punch. The KOL by Barking Irons tees are available for $34 at the Kings of Leon webstore and on tour only.

The whole band was super thrilled with the final outcome. Some joker even caught Nathan wearing TRICERATOPS on his day off (alterations his):

In addition to wearing their own gear, every now and then the Followill boys will end up on stage wearing one of the original Barking Irons pieces that they picked up on their visit to the Bowery.

We wish these boys the absolute best. Believe it or not, the KOL were an integral part of the founding of Barking Irons when back in 2003 their album "Youth & Young Manhood" fueled many a late night of screen-printing in the Bowery basements. Funny that...

Stay tuned for more KOL / Barking Irons collaborations to come.

KINGS OF LEON @ BARKING IRONS

Preeminent rock band Kings of Leon dropped in on the Barking Irons Bowery digs last week to pick up some of our latest spring wares and to discuss a potential partnership with the Bowery Boys -more details to come.

As the band rifled through racks of t-shirts, woven shirts, accessories and more they found special interest in the various Civil War relics that populate the Barking Irons showroom. Caleb & Nathan Followill walked away with fistfulls of t-shirts and other Bowery paraphernalia.

Many beers were consumed in a relatively short period of time which eventually led to some unsteady picture taking (above). Occasionally, the band would incidentally drop a hint pertaining to their new album due out in October.

This is the second time that the Kings of Leon have come hunting for those rare Barking Irons goods -not currently available in Tennessee- however, this time was a much more spirited encounter as the band had a few days to kill before jetting off to Europe.

The Kings of Leon will be appearing at the All Points West Festival this August at Liberty State Park, NJ along with Radiohead and many others. The KOL continue to be a leading force in homegrown gritty rock'n'roll and they are proud friends of the Barking Irons gang. Stay tuned for more great things...

BARKING IRONS BLIND TIGER SAMPLE SALE

Last friday, the good old boys at Barking Irons kicked off an entire weekend of amazing deals & steals with an evening of jazz-age pomp at their hauntingly beautiful loft space at 161 Bowery. The news was spread by Thrillist, Urban Daddy, Time Out NY, Daily Candy, and a host of independent bloggers (thanks). Apple-tinged Dark & Stormy cocktails flowed throughout the affair while old time Dixieland jazz quartet brought down the house.

Shoppers were escorted to the 4th floor in a rickety old manuel elevator by a short, disheveled-looking operator called "Mr. Moy" who speaks nary a word of english, but is quite wise beyond his years.

Once safely landed on the fourth floor shoppers were drawn into the jumpy rhythms and flighty clarinet of the jazz players and a lively bunch of lower-east-siders picking through all manner of fine sportswear including copious t-shirt styles, classic hoodies & flannels, and dashing Fireman Pea coats, all laid out like a feast. The smell of rum & ginger hung in the air and the evening rollicked on in the tempo and grandeur of a speakeasy of the roaring twenties.




But there may be no need to speak-easy about this affair. With the resounding success of this sample sale, Barking Irons is considering keeping the retail set-up throughout the holiday season so folks from California to New York Island know exactly which pit on the Bowery to stumble into when in need of some fine threads & a grand ole'time!

visit http://www.barkingirons.com/