The Blog

The Monday Mixtape #18 by Ruf Dug (Wet Play) 'Ruffy's Sweaty African Basement Mixtape'

Ruf Dug, a DJ / producer and mustachioed impresario from Manchester via Sydney. The founding father of the Ruf Kutz label and promoter of Manchester's roadblock Wet Play parties alongside fellow residents Kickin' Pigeon, Ste Spandex and Randy Marsh.

To celebrate their upcoming party this Friday (more details here) he's contributed to the Oi Polloi Monday Mixtape series with 'Ruffy's Sweaty African Basement Mixtape'. A mix of African vibes old and new, Ruffy encourages you to: "Feel the warm desert breezes… inhale the strange vapours… lose yourself in the midnight sativa dance".

Well, what are you waiting for?

Tracklist

Radio Buzzy Frat High

Coinciding with the shedload of summer vibes we've just got from YMC, here's their latest mixtape of rockin' rhythms and surf sounds.

Pigeon Poaching

It seems Daiki at Engineered Garments has been partaking in a bit of the ol’ NYC pigeon poaching lately and has really upped his game (that’s a hunting pun there) with some rifle-ready wares. But for those of you that aren’t gamekeepers, don’t fret. We’ve got some dapper new takes on the EG classics like the Work Shirt and the BD Popover, and a floral shirt which is best described as a hippy love-in at a village folk fete.

Engineered Garments / Shooting Jacket/ Khaki Cotton Oxford

Engineered Garments / Work Shirt / Natural Cotton Sheeting

Engineered Garments / Tab Collar Shirt / Natural Floral Print

Batten Sportswear

Batten Sportswear's debut collection arrives at Oi Polloi any time now. The brainchild of Shinya Hasegawa, the collection takes influence from Shinya's time spent surfing, his passion for vintage clothing and the four years he spent working as Daiki Suzuki's design assistant at Woolrich Woolen Mills.

In the following interview (an excerpt from the forthcoming issue of Pica~Post) Michael Fordham (Editor-at-Large at The Church of London and self-confessed 'West Ham scum') talks at length with Shinya Hasegawa about these influences, his time spent "majoring in 'how to make clothing' with Professor Daiki" and the contemporary surf scene in his native New York.

The accompanying images are of Shinya — wearing the Batten Sportswear Travel Shell Parka — and his home in Brooklyn, photographed by Englishman in New York and The Rig Out magazine founder, Antony Crook.

Norse Projects

As anyone who's visited will tell you, there is a lot to like about Copenhagen… the ruthlessly enforced civic policy of 'hot girls on bikes'… that open-air 'incense bazaar'… those funny pickled-fish sandwiches. It's a good vibe.

Despite this, but perhaps not surprisingly, our favourite thing about Copenhagen is clothing related. Yes, you guessed it (or looked at the picture below) it's those dependable Danes, Norse Projects.

Norse Projects is here.

Beam Plus

When it comes to the whole 'appropriate-then-improve' thing, the Japanese are world-beaters. Whether it's coffee, custom-build cars or clothing — they nail it. Beams Plus are Tokyo's top boys in the later category, one of the most impressive brands / shops in Japan.

Luckily, for those of you outside of Nihon, Uncle OP's imported the best bits on offer. It's another collection of classic yank-tastic clobber, stuff Captain America himself could only dream of… just how great is it when two super-powers can get along?

View Beams Plus SS12

Oi Polloi Clarks

Q: What’s rarer than rocking horse shit? A: Unicorn skin shoes.
 
There's a rarely seen creature quietly grazing the far flung corners of our collective dreamscape, other-worldly and mythical… You could be forgiven for assuming we're on about the near-extinct Salford Sioux tribe once again, but no, our minds are on an even more outlandish path. Proper Dungeons & Dragons territory this one. Anyone who’s had a ‘poetry girlfriend’ or a mate who plays Games Workshop has probably guessed it’s name. For those of you who haven’t experienced either of those pleasures, we'd better tell you — we're talking about that dainty looking horse with a daft spike attached to its napper, The Unicorn.
 
What’s this got to do with Oi Polloi you say? Stick with us — we’ll try and explain what we're on about…
 
Unless you're the type to go around pretending to be a wizard, putting upturned Cornettos on horses noses, it's a fair bet you've never seen a unicorn. We've never seen one either, we're just as dubious about the whole thing as you are. The Loch Ness monster? Pah, it's a kilted joker messing about. Mermaids? Pretty fit (from the waist up) but nah, not real. Terrible film too. And as for the unicorn? Until recently the only unicorn we knew of was served in pubs and produced by Robinsons brewery, Stockport. This all changed when, during an evening on the aforementioned refreshment, a vision appeared instructing the recreation of an 
Oi Polloi footwear favourite — The Clarks Wallabee. Transcendent of fad or fashion, Wallys can be found on the feet of Jah followers and Geography teachers alike. How could we improve on something so near evolutionary perfection? The vision was clear; source raw materials that defy Darwin's theory of evolution itself, unearthly materials that know no normal cellular or molecular genetics… Unicorn hides.

Ralph Lauren by Ralph Lauren

That title might sound a bit like an expensive perfume or aftershave — but don't worry, we've not expanded into smellies. It's actually a rather ace looking book we've come across. Not content with sewing up the menswear world, Ralph Lauren has gone and written a book too.

The Prep-meister General… The Outdoors Overlord… King of the Cowboys… Ralph manages to represent most of our favourite yankee styles. Really, we don't need to tell you what a huge influence the man has had, in taking Americana to the masses.

Featuring more than 900 colour and black and white images, spread across almost 500 pages, this is the definitive record of the artist formerly known as Ralph Rueben Lifschitz. One for the bookshelf we think.

Published by Rizzoli New York, you can get a copy from the usual places.

Homespun

A new brand for Oi Polloi, Homespun make antique styled men's knit tops, inspired by the designer's collection of depression era undershirts (bit strange, they made us happy). Made in Canada from Japanese milled melange fabric, utilising old-fangled production equipment (they don't make 'em like they used to), Homespun represent enduring style and quality. This kind of considered, craftsmanship only comes from people with passion for what they do. Homespun evidently sit in this category.

Take a closer look at Homespun