perfect gift

sparklehorse & dangerous mouse genius blank cd


after radiohead giving away its album for any donation, the greatest move against the musical industry comes from sparklehorse (mark linkous) and nyc producer dangermouse. after recording “dark night of the soul” (featuring david lynch, iggy pop, suzanne vega, julian casablancas from the strokes, wayne coyne from the flaming lips…) EMI decided that they wouldn’t release the record as they’re still pissed off at danger mouse for the grey album that he gave away for free download on his website. the grey album was a record that mixed the beatles’ white album with jay-z’s black album (jay-z’s label was ok, EMI representing the beatles was not). whatever, sparklehorse are selling a blank cd in a book designed by david lynch, and you can download for free the music on their website to burn it on your blank cd! just great! by pp’

CATEGORIES: music, perfect gift

review of the nixon masterblaster headphones


first off we went after this particular nixon headset for its fabulous looks. we received our advance copy in its considerable box last week and have been putting it to the test. a few observations: the exterior of the box reflects the unit and is simple and clean, a mix of a clock work orange meets ipod. we like the name nixon but the unit name and slogans “master blaster” and “bring the noise” seem off target and pretty lame! they belong to pioneer not nixon! inside you’ll find a modern darth vader helmet case which again is at odds with the retro inspired audiophile cans, but one can see why they tried to avoid a fully retro kit.

the unit itself is rather beautiful and well made. designed by yves behar they sport premium leather ear cups, large volume knob, aluminum cans with a ball/pivot that is ingeniously engineered to fit, at least my head perfectly. like all high-end headphones the cord is detachable and i simply love the choice of this particular cable. it makes the whole piece come together, yet unlike the retro fabric cords the 3.5mm stereo plug at the end is delicate avoiding the cumbersome look of the old cans. the pivot joint and the cable where truly the first two details i noticed. one disappointing detail is the logo/pajama style printed fabric used inside the ear cups. who made that decission? gladly noone will see it but you.

the sound on the nixon master blaster is not as high end as its great looks, but the sound is ‘good’ and well above average for its price range of just under $200 (vs. say $450 for the AKG 701 that we reviewed). the headphones at 95 db are not super sensitive and will probably sound their best using headphone amps like headroom or other brands. but on its own the sound is rather neutral with a leniency towards a heaviness in the bass. i would have liked to see more detail in the mid range, and easier on the bass, but i always say that no matter what i listen to unless they are magnapan speakers (which i once owned, but with those you then loose the bass! the MG20.1 seem to have addressed the issue at $4,000/pair). all in all the nixons are great fun, good looks, decent sound, quite affordable, with details to awe over. we used the nixons at a recent event and we had 2 people asking us about them and where to buy them, now no one ever asked me about my AKGs… so they do indeed turn a few heads. by dd

CATEGORIES: audio-electronics, design, perfect gift

made by eugene



i particularly like the leather ware… made by eugene. the ultimate unisex cool, forever. various straps and clasps can be used as jewelry, key ring, belt, or however you prefer 😉 now i need to get for myself! by kl

CATEGORIES: objects, perfect gift

nagra: Analog candy

the nagra IV-S portable audio/sound recorder

call me crazy but I always wanted to get one of these units for my home use for playback of music ever since the film industry went digital on me. where is cassavetes? the professional audio field recorders by nagra where simply too expensive in the day, but now… used ones can be fetched up for a measly $2,000.

these audio recorder/playback decks are simply amazing not only in how they sound but also in how they are made. originally designed by a polish inventor by the name of stefan kudelski and built in cheseaux-sur-lausanne, in switzerland, their built and finish are to die for. they remind me of my old minox spy camera that my father gave me except they are swiss made. silver. slick. and rugged. of course there is a cool little story to the name… the name nagra is actually based on the polish slang meaning “it’ll record”. well, it did more than that indeed.

the swiss manufacturer of course has recently come up with a whole line of consumer audio equipment but the marketing reeks badly and the desperate jump to audiophile markets is simply not in style with old nagra. i have a strong feeling either the company was sold or took over by people who are looking to make a fast swiss frank. by dd

CATEGORIES: audio-electronics, design, perfect gift

Nixon headphones: listening in style


nixon’s first addition to the world of personal acoustics. the line of three models; the wire, the nomadic and the master blaster wont be easy to find. as far as we know these are just prototypes. still, with this kind of well designed beauty it would be a sin not to produce it for the masses and end the white cable trend of the ipod. by kv

CATEGORIES: audio-electronics, eye candy, perfect gift

Swiss love: Claudia Knoepfel and Stefan Indlekofer for doodah

Claudia and Stefan get into the pool.

swiss skate/snow shop doodah has released a collaboration with photographer claudia knoepfel and stefan indlekofer on some naked model skateboards. the duodidn’t take any shortcuts for this project, portraying the world’s top models lara stone, isabeli fontana, toni garrn, and edita to cover the seven plys of wood available as a limited one-time series. good thing doodah is from switzerland… utah would have been up in arms. by dd

CATEGORIES: fashion, perfect gift