Tag Archives: deck

Bring Your Own Vinyl Night #5

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Bring Your Own Vinyl Night

Queen’s Head, Mold

Friday 4th December 2015

Unlike the last event, I didn’t have a theme for Bring Your Own Vinyl Night this time around.  Just some tunes I fancied playing.  I hadn’t even decided exactly what they would be till the show was on.

For anyone still uninitiated, the night is hosted in the Queen’s Head pub in Mold, North Wales.  There are two turntables and each participant gets to play 15 minutes of whatever music they want, vinyl only.

I had myself a couple of beers and rattled out this selection:

Motorhead – Ace of Spades

When you buy your first Motorhead album, you know you’ve entered the world of grown up music.  Big, nasty unapologetic rocking grown up music.  A song that never gets old, I was introduced to “Ace of Spades” when the band performed it on the classic “University Challenge” episode of The Young Ones.  It’s just a non-stop, joyous racket that simply will not stop or slow down for anyone.  Absolute perfection.  I played this in memory of drummer Phil “Philthy Animal” Taylor, who sadly passed away recently.

The Vapors – Turning Japanese

A New Wave/Punk Rock classic, I was donated the brilliant “Turning Japanese” by a friend.  Thank you, Simon.  It was supposed to be part of a tribute set that I’m still working on.  It was going to be hard to follow up the adrenaline rush of the previous song, The Vapors pulled it off here though.  A great power pop song that kept the pace of the set nicely.

Dinosaur Jr. – Freak Scene

A slight fast forward to the late 1980’s for this next track.  The first track on Dinosaur Jr.’s album “Bug”, this track nicely covers the appeal of early American alternative rock.  Born out of punk and hardcore, with one foot in old Black Sabbath and one in jangly pop; Dinosaur Jr. constantly delight.  Reminds me of my skateboarding youth.

Beastie Boys – Sabotage

I couldn’t decide which track to play last, so I let the audience choose the album.  The Beastie Boys “Ill Communication” won hands down, and I chose “Sabotage” as the track to play.  Another unrelenting monster of a song, “Sabotage” has a funky groove delivered with a rocking style.  Again, a song I never tire of.  Plus the Spike Jonze video, with it’s 70’s cop show homage, is a work of genius.  It’s been over twenty years and I still want to dress up and play Sabotage Cops for a day.

My buddy Adam strode up to the decks next, and delivered another fine set.  It went something like this:

  • Queen & David Bowie – Under Pressure
  • The Blasters – I’m Shakin’
  • Mark Ronson/Bruno Mars – Uptown Funk
  • DJ Kool – Let Me Clear My Throat

Four top songs from Adam there, the Queen track was a load of fun and had me doing my world renowned Freddie Mercury impression.  It was nice to hear a modern song on vinyl too, with the Ronson/Mars number.

Great night, great songs – well done all on another fine evening’s entertainment.  I’m currently stumped what to play next time.  I’ll work on it.

The Halcyon Dreams blog is here, where you can find listed (very helpfully) all of the songs played on the night.

The Halcyon Dreams Facebook page is here.

Skateboard Museum Update: My First Skateboard Photos

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IMG_4251My first skate board – new photos

The very first skateboard related post I wrote for the Virtual Hot Tub concerned, quite appropriately, my very first skateboard.  There was only one photo to accompany the article however, and that wasn’t much good.  So, as per the update I did regarding the Variflex Joker, here are a few additional shots of this classic board.

Now in my collection for over thirty five years, this skateboard is the one I learned to skate on.  It was a gift from my Gran; but was neglected for a few years.  Eventually I was bitten by the skateboarding bug, and it was this board that gave me that first taste.

This is a very old, and now faded, plastic board from the 1970’s heyday of skateboarding.  The deck is plastic, like many of the skateboards of the time that served to introduce us to the sport/art.  We called these plastic boards “polyprops” back in the day – as in polypropylene, which the boards were supposedly made out of.  I’m not sure if polyprop is a local term or not.

Plastic skateboards have been given a whole new life recently, with the popularity of Penny skateboards.  The development of this retro trend certainly puts a smile on this old skate dog’s face.

Top view showing brand name
Wheels

On the nose of the deck is what I assume to be the brand name – Albert.  I’ve not seen this company anywhere else – if you know anyhting about them, please leave a comment and let me know.

The trucks are metal, though I have no idea what the wheels are made of.  The wheels are hard, and are sealed with a protector over the bearings.  The wheels have always been like this as far as I remember, so I assume they’re not a softer plastic that’s decayed over time.

Once red, now faded to pink, I still love this old board.  I’m very glad I still have it.

You can read the original blog about My First Skateboard here.

Creature Skateboards – My New Deck

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Today is 21st June 2015, which is Go Skateboarding Day!  To celebrate, here’s a few photos of my latest set up.

This is my new Creature skateboards Sam Hitz pro model.  It’s a huge 8.75″ wide, which is the widest regular street deck I’ve skated in a long time.  I figured that I needed a bigger, fatter deck so it was easier to stay on.  Apparently it’s the way forward for us older guys.  And anyway, it’s still not as wide as the decks I learned to kick flip on in 1989.

Creature are a cool company, I love their graphics and style.

I also needed wider trucks to got with the larger deck.  So I picked up some Independent trucks (of course) from the great Lost Art skateshop in Liverpool.  Thanks guys.

Now I need the rain to stop so I can go outside and skate it…

The Creature Skateboards website is here.

The Independent Trucks website is here.

The Lost Art website is here.

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Bring Your Own Vinyl Night

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Halcyon Dreams

Bring Your Own Vinyl Night

Queen’s Head pub, Mold

Now here’s a fantastic idea: take along any vinyl records of your choice, and you get a fifteen minute slot to play whatever you like.  There’s a regular such evening at the end of every month at the Queen’s Head pub in Mold, North Wales.  It’s a great night’s entertainment combining music and, of course, beer.

I spent a little time raiding my vinyl collection and putting a playlist together.  Then my buddies and me travelled up to Mold.  The Queen’s Head is a pub like any other, but on these Bring Your Own Vinyl nights there’s a set up in the corner with two turntables, mixers etc, and people take turns to spin their wax.  No CDs, cassettes or any other funny business – just beautiful vinyl.

The variety of music to be heard is reassuringly eclectic, with examples from across various genres and ages.  It’s great fun, whether you take a turn on the decks or not – and you’re guaranteed to hear some old favourites or (even better) some new aural treats to research.

I’ve never used DJ equipment before, but no need to worry – the guys were very helpful in using the tech.  It’s quite fun, selecting your track and fading between decks, though I could do with more practice…

Here are the tunes I selected for my turn on the decks:

Ramones – I Just Want to Have Something to do

The lead track of the Ramones’ fourth album, Road to Ruin, this song features a great riff and lyrics of teenage boredom.  Though not considered their best record, I have a real soft spot for Road to Ruin and this song was a no-brainer.

Johnny Cash – Ring of Fire

An obvious Cash song to choose, but there was no way I wasn’t going to play something by this guy and Ring of Fire is always a popular choice.  The song that made me a fan of Johnny Cash.  This is off a random Best Of album that I picked up from a charity shop, and has a wild cover.

The Damned – Stranger on the Town

More punk rock, not that you’d know it – this song from their Strawberries album is some kind of 60’s psychedelic homage complete with brass section.  Possibly my favourite Damned song, the version I played was from The Light at the End of the Tunnel compilation (because it’s the first song on side 2, and easy to find…).

Beastie Boys – Sabrosa

I wanted some more variety for the last track, so went for this jazz funk masterpiece from the Hip Hop masters.  This funky instrumental is off Ill Communication, which I am very glad I have on vinyl!

Despite a few shaky moments with my DJ skills, the set seemed to go well and I really enjoyed it!

Dig out those vinyl albums kids – vinyl is back big time.  The Bring Your Own Vinyl night is an excellent concept – where can you go wrong with classic tunes and some beer?

The next night is on Friday 27th February 2015.

The Halcyon Dreams blog is here, where you can find listed (very helpfully) all the songs played on the night.

The Halcyon Dreams Facebook page is here.

The Greatest Skateboard Graphic Ever

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Santa Cruz Rob Roskopp “Face”

Everyone has their own personal choice.  Over the years I’ve seen many amazing skateboard graphics – some intricate, some clever, some stupid, some risque.  Back in the 80’s it was mostly skulls and gore.  At the end of the decade, these themes became extinct, replaced by ironic cartoons and brand logo appropriation.  You name it, it’s probably been featured on a deck somewhere.  There are great examples of art of all styles.

The two giants of skateboard graphics in the 80’s, at least in my eyes, were Vernon Courtland Johnson and Jim Phillips.  VCJ created the many iconic designs for Powell Peralta such as the Ripper and Skull and Sword.  Awesome graphics that made my eyeballs pop, as a kid nurtured on comic book art and monsters.

The art of Jim Phillips featured on many Santa Cruz decks, including classic pro decks for Jeff Kendall, Jeff Grosso and Jason Jessee.  My absolute favourite though was the Rob Roskopp street model, with a huge ugly face on it.

I first saw the Roskopp graphic in my sisters Smash Hits magazine, of all places.  They did one of those lame “introduction to skateboarding” type of features, with things like “how to talk like a skateboarder”.  It did feature UK hardcore band The Stupids however, and a model holding the deck in question.

As soon as I saw it, I loved that graphic.  It was big, bold and over the top – but beautifully detailed.

A couple of years later, I eventually acquired a Santa Cruz Roskopp Face of my own.  The deck itself was white, with the graphic in black screaming out from the bottom of the board.  I was very happy that regardless of the fantastic art, it was a great shape and well made board.  So the decision wasn’t made purely on the artwork. IMG_2797

I don’t remember what happened to that particular deck, I probably wore it out and swapped it with someone.  There’s a photo of it somewhere.

A few years ago, I picked up a reissue of the Roskopp deck.  It’s yellow, with the same great graphic as I had all those years ago.  It’s never been skated – I keep this one on the wall, right above my desk (I have other boards for actually skating).  It hangs there as a proud reminder, and an example of great skateboard art.  That’s what this skateboard is to me – pure art.

In my opinion, the Santa Cruz Rob Roskopp “face” is the best skateboard graphic ever.

Check out the latest reissue here.

The Santa Cruz website is here.

Death Skateboards – My Current Set Up

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Death deck, Independent trucks, Death wheels 

Recently I set up my new skateboard.  This new set up is, again, primarily Death skateboards.

The new deck is a Lee Dainton pro model – yes, he of Dirty Sanchez fame.  I’ve actually had this deck for a while, I just hadn’t got round to setting it up.  Truth be told, I’ve not done much skating for a while, due to factors like becoming a  Dad; the bastard recession killing my employment; and being busy getting fat.

I’ve kept my previous set of good old reliable Indy trucks, but invested in a new set of Death wheels (52mm).  I picked the wheels up from the very nice people at Note skate shop in Manchester on a recent visit. IMG_3168

Death are a great company, I’ve owned (and skated) many of their decks and wheels.  They’re British, and make really good products that you can depend on.

Back when I used to own a skate shop, I spoke on the phone to Death boss man Nick Zorlac a few times.  He’s a sound guy with an obvious enthusiasm and love for skateboarding. IMG_3170

I also had a brief meeting with Dainton a couple of years ago, when he and Matt Pritchard did a Dirty Sanchez show at the Tivoli in Buckley.  The conversation basically consisted of hollering “Independent for life!” at each other.

Anyway, I’ve now skated this deck and I am extremely happy with it.  No techy nerd ramblings in this blog post, this is a quality skateboard and we’ll leave it at that.  Well done Death on another fine product!

Deck only, before trucks were mounted.

Deck only, before trucks were mounted.

Skateboard Museum Update: Variflex Joker Photos

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Variflex Joker – new photos

You may remember recently that my post about my Variflex Joker skateboard was the fifth most read article of the year.  All well and good, but the photo used to accompany that blog post wasn’t the best.

So I have attempted to make up for that earlier oversight here, with some more pics of the board in question.

Remember this skateboard isn’t the original one I rode in the 80’s – I found this on a site selling old boards and snapped it up.  It was brand new, complete – sealed in plastic and everything.  Nice bit of kit for my collection.

Please take a look at the original post about the Variflex Joker here.

Full view – bottom
Full view – top
Close up of nose/front truck/wheel
Close up of graphic

Santa Cruz Snowskate

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Well we’ve not had any snow round these parts (so far).  And the Winter Olympics are over.  So my timing with this post is pretty off.  Never the less, I thought I’d share this item from my board collection with you.

This here board is a Santa Cruz snowskate.  Slightly bigger than a typical double kick skateboard, the snowskate is made of solid, tough plastic.  It’s designed to be ridden in the snow like you would a skateboard – ideally on the sort of urban obstacles (rails, walls etc) that you would ordinarily skate in the summer. IMG_2763

Where there would be grip tape on the top of a wooden skate deck, this board has a rubber surface.  It’s slightly spongy to provide grip, and nicely waterproof.  You wouldn’t want your grip tape getting all messy now, would you?  This makes much more sense.  Underneath the plastic is ridged, to help provide some control and a better riding surface.

Control is certainly crucial here – remember, unlike a snowboard, there are no bindings to keep your feet strapped in and attached.  Instead, you ride the snowskate exactly like a skateboard.  This requires balance, self confidence and fair old bit of craziness.  The result is a fun board that can easily be carted around the hills or local spots when the snow falls.

I’ve had some cool times riding this snowskate – the best thing about it is that it feels slightly different from both skateboarding and snowboarding – so you’re learning a new skill.  That said, the snowskate is similar enough to both disciplines to mean that fans of either will appreciate it.  Personally I’ve not mastered any tricks on this board, though I can ride it pretty well.  The problem is the snow usually disappears too quick around here…

A snowskate is worth picking up for those days when you’re snowed in and the local park is calling.  It makes a nice change from a sledge.  All I need now is some snow.

Snowskate: bottom view
Snowskate: top view

Admittedly, this isn’t a skateboard as such – though I’m publishing this in the skateboard section of the Virtual Hot tub anyway.  There’s enough common ground here for me to get away with that.  Don’t like it?  Write your own blog.

Technical Specifications:

  • Length: 35.5″
  • Width (widest): 92
  • Width (slimmest): 8.5″

Soundtrack: some frozen Scandinavian metal, like Kvelertak.

Check out Santa Cruz snowskates here.  Nowadays they’re being made with some cool graphics, if that helps convince you.  I like the sugar skull best!

Mindless Skateboards: “Hunter” Longboard

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The skate shop in Chester closed down recently.  Bad news.  They had some pretty cool stuff.  As chance would have it, I turned up on the very last day, and managed to pick up a couple of bargains.

The big bargain of the day was this Mindless Skateboards Hunter model, which I picked up for under half price.  I had been hoping to pick up a new longboard for the collection for a while, and it had been my birthday not too long before – so I actually had a bit of cash to spend.  This board was perfect.

Mindless "Hunter" longboard

Mindless “Hunter” longboard

The Hunter is the ideal shape that I was looking for, pin tail (with a nice concave) so it offered a different ride to my other longboards.  At 44 inches long, it’s a little shorter than my Sector 9 board.  It’s solid but not too heavy, with a very stylish striped graphic that is reflected on the grip tape cut away.

Soft (80A) wheels provide a slick yet comfortable ride – ideal for cruising.  I’ve taken this longboard out and found that it glides very nicely and was easy to get used to.  With winter well on it’s way, further rides will probably have to wait a while – which is not a good thing!  Come spring, this board will be excellent to carve the local area.

The only down side with this board is that, as a complete, the deck comes ready shrink wrapped.  Great for keeping the graphic in nice condition, but annoying when trying to remove the deck from it’s plastic prison.

As my Sector 9 board had been around for a while, this Mindless longboard has made a fine addition.  Not exactly a replacement, but it will fare well as my day to day standard board.  The price was excellent for a man on a budget (like me) without compromising on quality.  Overall, I’m very impressed.IMG_2576

Technical Specifications:

  • Length: 44″
  • Width: 9 “
  • 100% Canadian maple deck with concave, complete with di-cut grip tape
  • 6″ Six Star Raw trucks
  • 95A SHR cushion & 14 x 8mm rubber wedge riser
  • 70 x 42mm 80A SHR wheels
  • ABEC-5 chrome bearings

Soundtrack: Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath

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