[SIC] 214: The Greatest of All Time

Volume 5, Number 6

Oct 13, 2022

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Hi all.

I mentioned this briefly in my note on Sunday night for paid subs, but last weekend was really heavy. A longtime colleague from my years (decades) at VICE passed away after a battle with a rare, aggressive cancer.

I can only struggle to capture all of the ways Matt Schoen impacted my world - and even more so, impacted the world, literally. Arriving while still in college, when VICE was a two-room shop in still-industrial Williamsburg, Matt and the teams he built as design director created the look and feel, visual standards, vibe and expression of the company - and doing so ended up influencing the visual vocabulary of an entire category of media (and advertising), from 2005 to the present. This is not an exaggeration.

Setting aside the what, though, it was the way Matt did it all - especially while maintaining the most positive, even-keeled and convivial attitude of anyone I’ve ever worked with. He was completely unflappable, even when presented with the most irrational requests and wildest timelines. Boundary-less in his curiosity and breadth of references. And generous, almost to a fault, with everyone - which means he was constantly surrounded by amazing people, especially his wife Katy, whose work in the last few months keeping Matt’s many friends and admirers posted on his situation has gone above and beyond, including sharing yesterday Matt’s appearance on the Cover Charge podcast, which I listened to while compiling this edition.

It was bittersweet hearing his voice. There are so many things this week I would have liked Matt’s take on, from Peter Saville’s stories of Capturing “Nowness” Through Design and the early Factory Records days on the Time Sensitive Pod, to Yancey Strickler’s post on How Culture is Made, whose pull-quote, “As individuals our powers are limited. But in groups, we become exponentially stronger,” I think Matt would have agreed with and naturally deferred to that idea, instead of ever claiming well-deserved credit for himself.

It’s a tiny thing to dedicate this edition to him, but given that this newsletter exists to try and inspire curiosity and point of view like he had, I’m grateful to be able to do so.

Matt was a true legend and a great friend. May he Rest In Peace. He’ll be sorely missed.

Ben

Matt and me (and Adam and McSwain) at his and Katy’s wedding reception. Thanks to Adam for the shot and (we think) Ben Ritter for shooting it.

======[SIC] 214: The Greatest of All Time======

Zeitgest / Gestalt

Her Majesty's Loyal Pleasuredrome This account of the Queen’s death, from the vantage point of a queer bath house that remained open during her funeral, is a read of the year / Utopian Drivel
Related: American Culture Is Trash Culture / NYT
Corollary: But today the slacker has been replaced almost wholesale by the striver, a character known less by their human flaws and more by their accomplishments. Where are the Losers? / Dirt
Is there too much internet? A good, quick read on the matter / Ed Zitron
Related: how culture went multipolar. The internet has fragmented all types of culture, while simultaneously exposing once localized things to a far more global audience. Once-isolated trends and traditions are now becoming global reference points on a much larger scale / The Economist
Case in point: move over “Lying Flat,” Let It Rot Is Here is the latest buzzword in China, another sign that Gen Z is disillusioned with their lives / Jing Daily
Also: How Media Franchises & Brands Monetize Culture / Nystrom
Situationships: Gen Z is redefining the rules of the road for romantic relationships / Wunderman Thompson
Related? Gen Z Is the Most Pro-Union Generation / Teen Vogue
Corollary: meet the App That Helps Gig Workers Know How Much They Really Make / NYT
Also, have touchscreens led to “tipflation?” / Future Party
Elon Musk sells $1M worth of Burnt Hair perfume / CNET
Which is a clue to why Elon will be miserable in the app economy / Quartz
“I binge-listened to tech podcasts for a week, and what I learned about Silicon Valley is kind of scary” / Business Insider
Also kind of scary, from Celeste Blewitt: “Topical and intriguing, a discussion into the fictionlisation of graphic, horrific crimes and the perpetrators, why Netflix loves them and the fascination with true crime, series and the realities of these. Strong arguments to avoid these storylines. [Abolish True Crime]” / The New Statesman
Apparently, teens love Adam Sandler / Mashable
And the only person in media with a worthwhile take on Kanye (present company included) is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar / Substack
Also unhinged: ‘Thin is in’ is making a return. Implications are dangerous / Glossy
Tho at least Pornhub may have inadvertently ended piracy by introducing mandatory uploader verification in late 2020. The number of DMCA takedown requests the company receives has declined by 98% / Torrent Freak
The Wall Street Journal published an entire piece about the worst two words in finance, "pls fix" / WSJ
The non-linear workdays changing the shape of productivity / BBC
The Benjamin Moore Color of the Year 2023 Is Raspberry Blush / Architectural Digest
‘Sober October’ gains popularity with consumers and opens new doors for zero-ABV brands / The Drum
Young Spyplane broadcasts live from the Auntwave Mecca / Blackbird Spyplane 🔏
A teenager built the known universe in Minecraft / The Future Party
Also wild: This interview between a fake, AI version of Joe Rogan and a fake, AI version of Steve Jobs. A voice synthesis company based in Dubai created the episode as part of a fictional podcast series called “Podcast.ai.” / Transistor.fm
And a dead graphic Novelist creates beyond the grave with digital twin / Good Internet
Related: is design becoming a writer’s medium? Meet the AI creators changing creativity forever / The Drum
Hence, why The Future is Elastic! / The Future Does Not Fit Into the Containers of the Past
And from David Bloom: “Cross ghost kitchens with hype houses and what do you get? Ghost Hotels, themed hotels built around prominent creators. Another step in the conglomeratization of social-media personalities who have built and are monetizing audiences” / Tube Filter

World Order

Why Tehran’s Gen Z will not be silenced / Airmail
Related: Adam Curtis on his new Russia documentary: ‘It’s about the weird stew that created Putin’ / FT
Could a Phillies World Series win really trigger an economic downturn? History says yes / CNBC
A Swatting Spree Is Terrorizing Schools Across the US / Wired’
NYC seems to have a weed store on every corner And none of them are legal/ Vox
Bus ridership is up but trains are still half-empty as public transit systems across the U.S. try to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic / Axios
Hurricane Ian Destroyed Their Homes. Algorithms Sent Them Money / Wired
Wildlife populations have dropped nearly 70% in the past 50 years / France24
And yet somehow New Zealand farmers are irate about the government’s proposed “fart tax” on cows and sheep / FT

The Speculative Future

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced a digital currency last week. Presenting: the e-rupee! /Quartz
And Japan to Invest in Metaverse and NFT Expansion / CoinDesk
Hence, this piece on Web3 around the world: how different countries have been adopting the blockchain / The Drum
nft now's flagship event, "The Gateway," is returning to Miami Basel / nft now [Disclosure: I am an advisor to nft now]
From B.: “This BOF article [Benoit Pagotto: The Nike-Backed Gamer Building the Supreme of the Metaverse] is really good. Manages to locate digital fashion and NFTs in the continuum of streetwear, commerce, art, marketing and production by tracing this dude's trajectory.” / BoF
How the metaverse is coming to TV—NFTs could reinvent fandom / AdAge
Blockchain and creativity—inside [SIC] Talks alum Benjamin Palmer’s plans to ease brands and agencies into Web3. New Computer Corporation has developed an open-source suite of foundational tools for the "new internet." / AdAge
Artificial intelligence is helping political campaigns identify, turn out and extract money from voters / Axios
Meet Cassie, the Usain Bolt of robots / WaPo
Three-dimensional internet: This is life in the Metaverse / NYT
Related, from James Friedman: “An interesting duo paired w that Metaverse article from the Times. [$1.2 Billion Metaverse Horrified by Report It Only Had 38 Active Users]. All in all, painting a deeply alienating picture of our virtual future” / Futurism
AI music generators could be a boon for artists — but also problematic / TechCrunch
Hence: tech and music company Hume raises millions to launch Web3 musicians / Future Party
Oh also: Metaverse stripping is being pushed as a new lucrative side hustle on TikTok (but it’s a low-key NFT scam) / Daily Dot
What Richard Quinn’s NFT Drop teaches us about crypto fashion today / Jing Daily
How “future ready” are fashion, sportswear and luxury’s biggest players? / The Fashion Law
Is there really such a thing as crypto addiction? Crypto has a problem that gambling doesn’t: people often don’t know what they’re getting themselves into / FT
But never mind the winter, investments in NFT startups Remain In The Billions /Jing Culture
Corollary: moving your money to a bank that is committed to ethical investing–for people and the planet–is a powerful way to help fight climate change. Find and compare the sustainable banks in your country and make your money matter / Bank.green

Pop Cultures

Creators ate the culture in 2022-and they're still hungry / Fast Company
So is There a Future for Late-Night Talk Shows? / NYT
Sex, Drugs and IPOs: How Two Former Bankers Created TV’s Must Watch Show / Drakes
Why artists need to collaborate to stay relevant / Trapital
For Frieze Masters 2022, photographer Tyler Mitchell will debut new works including photographs, works on fabric and mirror, and a new installation / Frieze
While hit painter Issy Wood drops pop music career after remix / The Art Newspaper
But exactly when did Lil Yachty take the wock to Poland? / Vulture
Related: what is viral jazz? / WRTI
TikTok Is Breaking New Music — But Artist Development Is Suffering / Billboard
Also suffering: The Young Women Who Make TikTok Weep. Songwriters who have found success on the app via emotional catharsis have expanded its range, and piqued the music industry’s interest / NYT
Corollary: Emily Ratajkowski is launching a podcast that’s “‘Call Her Daddy’ meets ‘Fresh Air’” / Variety
America’s No. 1 Song Is a Truly Improbable Smash. Steve Lacy’s “Bad Habit” is a chart-topping hit that’s queer in every sense of the word / Slate
Corollary: Kilo Kish’s video "American Gurl" Subverts Femininity on digital billboards and on trash receptacles In Times Square and Sunset Strip / Hyperallergic
While a newly introduced bill could help establish the a national museum dedicated to American LGBTQ+ history and culture / Hyperallergic
Taylor Swift is a business genius, and her new album 'Midnights' proves it / Fortune
And Pusha T Finally Hit No. 1 Without Changing His Tune / WSJ
BMI, the biggest performance rights org in the US, is switching to a for-profit model after nearly a century as a not-for-profit business / Billboard
Related: the FT Podcast on Music Publishing. Per Bob Lefsetz: “Listen to this podcast. Insiders know all this. But there are very few insiders” / FT
True bromance: Brad Pitt, Nick Cave and the artist helping them to heal / FT
Also a bromance: 032c in conversation with legendary NY graffiti crew, IRAK / 032c
Elsewhere, Theaster Gates on the Monocle24 Pod / Monocle
And why we’re all seeing green. Designers have adopted the colours of environmentalism — and it’s growing on / FT

Media Happenings

S/o to [SIC] homie Jessica Coen: The News Moverment and its unorthodox vision launch in the US / Adweek
Corollary: even Signal is hopping on the Stories bandwagon / Engadget
“I Think Lachlan’s Trying to Peter Thiel Crikey”: Inside a Scrappy Australian News Site’s War With the Murdochs / Vanity Fair
Also in trouble: from David Bloom: “Triller was kind of a hot commodity a couple of years ago as a TikTok alternative embracing music and some big name musicians. Now it’s mostly just in hot water...Triller aimed to be the next TikTok. But some creators complain of missed or delayed payments” / LATimes
An in-depth look at the BBC’s digital archiving efforts. A fascinating story about the team that helps the BBC digitize and distribute old gems / The Guardian
Maybe I should go into financial advising?! Newsletters don’t stay newsletters / Twitter
A Strong Kids Content Strategy is a Key Streaming Power Move / Variety
And YouTube could come out a winner in the short-form competition, even if it didn't displace TikTok. For YouTube, winning would mean becoming a successful #2 player / Business Insider
BeReal tops 53M installs, but only 9% open the app daily / TechCrunch
Venture capitalist Hunter Walk believes Substack should follow the lead of Shopify / Hunter Walk
Bloomberg News is the latest major publisher to ditch open programmatic ads / AdWeek 🔏
While Semafor announced its the full newsletter line-up / Semafor

Shaker-style box stack at the new Cibone in Greenpoint. Recommend a visit for anyone into design / craft.

Market-ations

Why mass marketing will not work on Gen Z - it's all about subcultures / Digiday
TikTok is building an e-commerce ecosystem / The Future Party
Delta Air Lines takes to the fashion runway with first-ever clothing collection / Ad Age
What is (and isn't) gamification? How brands are building interactive communities / The Drum
Why banks are becoming publishers / Toolkits
‘I Am Not Your Server’: Luxury Brands Will Self-Destruct By Alienating Their Best Clients / Jing Daily
Ad employment fell sharply in September following summer boom / AdAge
How dupes are taking over TikTok — and giving premium beauty brands a run for their money / Modern Retail
Superficial corporate attempts to show LGBTQ solidarity might be doing more harm than good / Fortune
Yuga Labs introduced the Bored Ape Yacht Club Council, a community group “formed with the intention of representing the club at large and providing an avenue for new perspectives /Jing Daily
But the SEC is probing into Yuga to see whether they broke any federal laws with any NFTs or distribution of their token, ApeCoin / Bloomberg
CNN suddenly shutters its NFT marketplace and collectors are calling it a 'rug pull' / Fortune
IKEA Australia is launching, what they are calling, the ‘most exclusive card in the world.’ The IKEA Baller Card—presented to only 250 people—will provide its owner free IKEA meatballs for one year / Ikea
Microsoft is getting into the AI art craze with a new app called Microsoft Designer, which will be part of the classic Office suite of apps / The Future Party
Micromobility could be Apple’s biggest opportunity since the iPhone / Bloomberg
As the trend cycle churns faster, brands are forced to prioritise short-term flexibility in a system that makes doing so difficult / Vogue Business
Five 3D artists making unforgettable work / It’s Nice That
From Iolanda Carvalho: Malnutrition Labels: Nutritional Ink for Dole Sunshine Company. [SIC] homies Bompas & Parr worked with creative agency St Luke's London and one of London's leading Silkscreen print studios K2, to create screen-printed posters using ink derived from real fruit waste / YouTube
Barbie aims to inspire with upcoming NFT series the collection of virtual tokens will showcase the 250 different careers Barbie has occupied over the last 60-plus years /The Drum
Kinda brilliant: Bumble users can now experience Bantr, the fictitious dating app featured on “Ted Lasso” / Variety
Nike announced updates aimed at curbing reselling including cancelling orders placed with automated software, that exceed purchase limits, charge restocking fees or are buying its shoes with the intent to flip them / WSJ
Madhappy launches a psychiatric fund with Vanderbilt / IG

Superficial Interest

At long last, there's an official Ozzy Osbourne makeup line / Rock and Roll Beauty
And you can buy Vacation’s aquarium coffee table / Midwest Tropical
A CD rom containing 22,000 late 90s old-internet animated gifs has been uploaded to Google drive / Google
To Grow Coral Reefs, Get Them Buzzed / Reasons to Be Cheerful
How to solve a murder like Jessica Fletcher / Gossamer
Can sex with the ‘right’ star sign be a fast track to love? / Soho House
Using Distance to Fight Addiction and Estrangement. An Indigenous Canadian’s unlikely journey to becoming an ultramarathoner, in the documentary short “The Runner” / The New Yorker

Food / Drink

We’re at Peak Drinks. So… keep … drinking? / Dirt
There’s a mint chocolate craze going on in South Korea. Everything from burgers to fried chicken is getting the “mint choco” treatment / WSJ
The culinary culture that is Glasgow / Twitter
Which reminds me to ask: “have you ever been to Scotland, Dag?” / YouTube

Friends Section

Street culture content legend David “Shadi” Perez on the Say You Swear pod / Spotify
Tonight: [SIC] Talks alum Gutes hosting a jam in LA / IG
Saturday: [SIC] Talks alum Jian Deleon is unloading 200+ pieces from his wardrobe with See/Know / IG
In Praise of Musical Mistakes. [SIC] homie Piotr Orlov writing on Dilla Time, deforming mastery, and a limitless question: at the level of intention, are errors ever actually errors.
[SIC] Talks alum Brynn Wallner covers the secondary watch market sector’s strong recovery / FT
And speaking of Brynn here’s a big feature on her in Courier Mag / Mailchimp
From [SIC] Talks alums Sam Valenti: “herb shouts!” on his [Herb Sundsays project profiled] / Coolhunting
[SIC] Talks alum Ruba Abu-Nimah made a book and you should hurry to buy one (there are only 400x) / Just An Idea

Useful Diversions

Read: The new issue of Buffalo Zine, centered on the Chelsea Hotel / Publitas
Listen: CREEM’s “Creme De La CREEM” new music Friday playlist / Spotify
Do: Seven New Art Spaces to Visit in Manhattan / Hyperallergic
Tonight : the opening of An Incomplete History of Printed Matter’s Art Book Fairs at Hauser & Wirth / Printed Matter
Tomorrow: Rob Walker, Paola Antonelli and a bunch of others are reading from ‘Lost Objects’ a book about things we miss and why they matter at the closing party of the Steve Keene show I keep hammering on about / Rob Walker
This weekend in LA: the Beyond the Streets print market / IG
In a free online seminar on Oct 25th, Scott Galloway talks The State of Business (And Humanity) in America / Section 4

Secondary Sources this week include:

The Trend Report / Marginal Revolution / Public Announcement / Lean Luxe / Quartz / Music Ally / Morning Consult / Garbage Day / Vogue Business / Forefront / Motive Unknown / Exec Sum / Protocol / Micromobility Newsletter / The Rebooting / Daily Upside / Today in Tabs / Carbon Almanac / Vacation / Howard Lindzon / PSFK

Dried fish bar at Dashi Okume, next to Cibone