”Since I am from California I’m addicted to them. Living in Copenhagen, I miss them, and whenever I go to California I get an OD. Everyone gets tired of me and my burritos”

Meet one of the nicest guys in town, Steven Borth II. He fell in love with a danish girl, married her in fall 2010 and moved to Copenhagen few months after. Together they have a 6 months old daughter.

On stage, he goes by the name ”Chllngr”. Pronounced correctly it’s ”Challenger”, but due to Googles searchresult (showing the spaceship-crash in ’86), he removed the vowels. Now people call him Chillinger, which is a perfect match for his music-genre. Last summer he released his first album, Haven, packed with chilled dub-tracks, and he’s following up with an EP dropping 6′th of february.

I came across him last summer where he played at Bakken with South-African Spoek Mathambo. Steven played a bit of his own music, jamming on the saxophone that he’s been playing since 4′th grade, playing around with voice-delays and what have you.

A great example on Chllngrs music is ”Change”. With help from two graphic-heads who made a rad movie, Change was all over my Facebook a few weeks ago. Last sunday he played at Rub’a'Dub at Stengade, and after that gig I just had to drag him in for a chat.

Comfort zones and Copenhagen
A lot of Chllngrs tracks are filled with melancholia which fits very neat with his source of inspiration.

”My latest inspiration has been having a baby. A lot of the last EP I wrote is a about growing up. The reason why kids start to cry so much at certain points is because they get out of their comfort zone, but you’re going trough that all your life. Whenever you feel super shitty or really depressed it’s probably because you’re stepping out of your comfort zone, which is a point you have to get past.”

Steven is, musically speaking, getting settled in Copenhagen. Steven has known Raske Penge since he arrived, and he met Pato Siebenhaar trough his wife. The three guys used to get together doing swimlaps at the swimhall, ’cause they were getting out of shape. Since then they’ve helped each other in their productions – latest Chllngr made a remix of Raske Penge and Klumbens ”Rundt”.

But it ain’t all local stuff Chllngr is about to face. He’s playing live at well-known american TV-show in march and doing South by Southwest aswell, on top of this, he’s hoping to do a Europe-tour in the summer.

The EP, Datter, is out on monday. Also check out the video for “Change”. And keep an eye on him, eh?

Pic and words by Lasse.

Here’s a quick follow up from the last few days of madness in Berlin. Thanks to Bright for having us and we’re looking forward to breakfast in the hotel next time.

We took half of these on our phones after several G&T’s so don’t hate on the quality. Next time, we promise to bring a real photog, instead of a couple of old dogs.

Above: Steven / Soletech Europe.

Above: Best ever minigolf course. Seriously. We sucked at it though. Claus from Obey got 3 hole in ones.

Above: Jo & Gunnar from Shins & Cheeks, a series of portraits which we ran in Bitchslap issue 14.

Above: Bright Girls Are Awesome #1 / Filis, 21, Student (left) & Tina, 28, Student. Thanks for the Vans window scraper glove Filis – you’re awesome!

Above: Bright Girls Are Awesome #2 / Bela-Tess, 20, Fashion Writer (left) & Anne-Katrin, 19, Student.

Above: Bright Girls Are Awesome #3 / Johanna, 26, Law Graduate.
Johanna was pretty awesome because she had no idea why anyone would want to take her photo and made her boyfriend face the wall because she was so embarrassed. Cute.

Above: Bright Girls Are Awesome #4 / Annelise, 24, PR intern at Element Europe

Above: Bright Girls Are Awesome #5 / Gabriele, 17, Student and am skater. Gabriele is awesome because she was at Bright scouting for new sponsors with a portfolio showing her doing mean tricks like kickflipping stairs. We would sponsor her just for that smile!

Above: Bright Girls Are Awesome #6 / Camille, 28, Designer for RVCA Women
Camille is awesome and holding 2 small girls in her belly. Double trouble.

Above: Bright Girls Are Awesome #7 / Crista, 28, Photographer. Crista was awesome because she put up with our shit over the whole weekend, and takes brilliant photos on real film. She’s a bit fucked now that Kodak had gone bust though.

Above: Chris Haslam & Fluff Magazine’s Marcel Veldman. Wicked skateboarder and wicked photographer.

Above: A blurry Ray Barbee giving a solo performance at the first ever European Skateboard Awards – which, by the way, were hilarious and tightly landed.

Above: Transit in Berlin had yummy food and lots of bird cages.

Above: Girls are Awesome #9 / Mali – our second favourite girl in Berlin. What a pleasure to hang out for the evening and thanks for the presents!

Above: Odessa. Thank you for existing.

Above: Breakfast at YamYam at around 3pm Sunday.

Above: Nike skaters Danijel & Wieger. Wieger couldn’t get in – anywhere.

Back in issue 11 we did a feature called Fuck the kids where we briefly showcased a bunch of up and coming talents who were more or less well on their way to doing great things – if not already doing them – but greater things were definitely on the horizon. One of these kids was August Fenger, aka, ELOQ. As the producer behind most of Kidd’s hugely successful tracks on Cheff Records, he’s a young tech wizz with an eye for talent and skills on the decks.
Here’s his first video release. Obviously no longer a kid, we can’t fuck with that. 

One of the greatest artists of our time reaches a milestone today, turning a crisp 65. Here’s one of my favourite moments from his incredible career.
Happy birthday David Bowie 

Danish design and music engineers AiAiAi just released the newest addition to their headphone line-up named “Capital”, or as I would like to call them “The One Man Party Starter”. As always the AiAiAi-team have been working on combining great music and innovative design, this time making a headphone where durability seems to be the keyword. The different aspects and features of these headphones make them the ultimate one man party starter and you might even end up like the guy in the video above. Now there’s no excuse for not shaking your booty like a polaroid picture

Posted by Thomas / Themeat.dk

Here’s the third of maybe four Christmas music inspiration teasers from us. This time from Captain Hifly - Klaus B.

Pinch ‘Retribution’ Swamp 81
Bristol Bass stalwart, DJ Pinch throws his second bomb on Swamp 81 and what a nuclear blast it is. Lead title ‘Retribution’ comes out more mental than a batshit Bachmann gagging on a corn dog.

Pinch – Retribution [SWAMP016] Swamp81 by Surus

Anstam ‘Handsome Talks The Talk’ 50 Weapons
This album literally came out of the blue and me, like many others were taken by storm.
Handsome indeed talks the talk, so walk the walk, grab your deep blue drink and dance to this.

02. Handsome Talks The Talk – Anstam by Republic of Music

Salty Ft. Armani DePaul, Laz Tha Boy & Mac – Swaggin In Dat Pu**y
From hitting the Granny to bootylicious action courtesy of Richmond’s finest, Salty. Bay Area Hip Hop for life!

TKO Capone Ft. Riff Raff – Ballin like a Foo
Riff Raff is the latest Houston goon sensation – check his rad verse on this beauty of daftness.

Janek Schaefer ‘Inner Space Memorial [for JG Ballard]‘ CrÛnica
Schaefer is a London based gent, who strives for nothing but sonic supremacy.
This stellar piece is his acknowledgement to English novelist, the late JG Ballard, who lived nearby Schaefer.

Bitchslap founding member and musical encyclopaedia Fergus Murphy drops us some fine tunes here for Christmas between freaking out about what to get for all his kids while holding donw the day job… like the rest of us.

Always with fine taste, get into it.

Com Truise – Galactic Melt – Ghostly International
An album that came during the summer and is still going strong doing the rounds – one of the repeat listens of the year.

Mosaic Vol 1 – Various – Exit Recordings
Drum and Bass but not as you know it. Soulful Music that was a soundtrack for winter 2011 and also for 2012 as we await the promised Volume 2.

Mike Slott & Martyn – All Nights – All City
Tune of the year in so many ways still… round these parts at least – All City stretched out again, Mike Slott stepped up and Martyn kept setting sights high.

Nostalgia 77 – Simmer Down (feat. Josa Peit) – Tru Thoughts Records
A lullaby for adults in weighty times – Josa Peit came through huge on this – an anthem for soul soothing and the live version and dexter remix are nice too.

Hi Hat Club (Vol 6) Haus & Garten – DJ Adlib – Melting Pot Music
Very fitting to look to the future and this lands squarely between now and next year. The super talented DJ Adlib delivers on all fronts here…don’t sleep.

Get the goodness here

Jingle Bells, Shotgun Shells!

Ah yes, that glorious season is upon us again! And frankly, it wouldn’t be Christmas without a touch of good ol’ fashioned Mojo Nixon bad taste; shotgun shells indeed. Welcome to a Yum Yum Saint Hamilton Christmas extravaganza, where all the dusty hits are dug up for some Jultide listening pleasure.

So here it is: not 10 Christmas songs as they asked for, but five. And a merry Christmas to you all and may you live in a state of solid excess till January and spend the next three months worrying about the size of your fat arse!

1. Mojo Nixon: Christmas Christmas
Possibly the most redneck Christmas song ever made and glorious it is.

2. The Pogues: Fairytale Of New York
A classic of the season. The most beautiful of the punk bones laid bare in all their poetic savage glory.

3. The Stiff Little Fingers: White Christmas
Yeah! Stick it up your jacksie, Frank Sinatra! Where’s the eggnog, you little legend?

4. The Ramones: Merry Christmas, I Don’t Wanna Fight Tonight
Asked my mother to a 12 year old Yum Yum. “What do you want from Santa this year?” “I want the Ramones!”

5. The Ronettes: I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
Rock and Roll’s first sex kitten couldn’t have put it any better. The ultimate Christmas song off the greatest Christmas record ever made.

A cool audio app called AirCassette, that makes your iPhone look like a classic cassette player playing cassette tapes. So oldschool and you don’t even need a pencil to rewind the tape …

Yip, last week Bitchslap Magazine dropped the teaser for the full length interview with Toby and Scott from Fat Freddy’s Drop from before their sell-out show at Vega . Here’s the in-depth side of things where we talk about the balance between the live show, which is no doubt what’s carried Freddy’s thus far, and time in the studio building those addictive beats and ballads. We dig into dub and what it means and take a full run through of who does what and why. Not for those without 10 minutes to kill, we’re aiming this one at the geeks.

While in Copenhagen as the last stop on their European tour, Fat Freddy’s boys Tony Chang and Chopper Reedz take half an hour out of their sound check to fill us in on the nitty gritty of the band, the tunes and the legendary live show.
Here’s a taste of the interview.

Saturday 12th November
Studenterhuset
Købmagergade 52, Kbh K

DJ collective Den Sorte Skole present:
- Cohnny Jazz
- Ras Money
- Jan Sneum
- Stacks
- Mighty Mala m. venner
- LeBon & Aage
- Exampler (LIVE)
- Rangleklods (LIVE)

One of the most slept on flows in Hip Hop history is no more.The Jamaican-born American actor, rapper, record producer, singer and former leader of Heavy D & the Boyz is dead, at the tender age of 44.

Thanks for the music D, you will be missed.

Danish rap-duder Per Vers released his album “Ego” in april. After one hell of a show at Roskilde, he’s now touring Denmark. Yesterday he played at Stengade, a concert that lasted 2 sweaty hours. Make shure you pop by on his tour.

Support from DJ Static, Aoye Angelica, Nappion, Pede B and Brass Monkeys.

Pics by Lasse Kofod

As you might noticed last monday, Exampler released his new album. Saturday he held a release party at Kødboderne 18 with two keyboard-something-something duders, Barbara Moleko, Copenhagen-based rapper Nappion and his producer with a freestyle rap, Per Vers.

Here’s some black and white grain by Lasse Kofod.

The Stone Roses are going back on the road!. WTF!….., er… BOOM.

I’m pretty stunned by this news.., so much so I couldn’t be bothered to rearrange the text I copied off Wikipedia to introduce the band to those bitchslappers who’ve never heard of them.

In 2004 an Observer Music Monthly poll consisting of musicians and critics voted the album the greatest of all time, as did the writers of NME in 2006, declaring it to be the greatest British album of all time. It is widely considered as the seminal record of the Madchester movement that was active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and as being highly responsible for the mid 1990s resurrection of British guitar music that came to be known as Britpop.

It remains to be seen how it will all turn out, as they admit ‘it could all go tits up’, but I know I’ll be at least one of the gigs to find out.

Signed by Per Vers. Partly responsible in bringing some West African rappers to Denmark, and touring West Africa with them, resident DJ at Ideal Bars former thursday-club, Hip Hop Kontoret.

DJ Exampler finally put the last dip of tunes on his album. Featuring danish artists like Barbara Moleko and Negash Ali, Exampler will introduce you to genres known as glitch, nu-funk and wonky – whatever that is. All I know is that my ears have never witnessed anything like this. And they love it.

So – take a listen at the splendidmonday-tunes.

Photo and words by Kofod.

Fantastic video from Mayer Hawthorne for his new single The Walk from How Do You Do.

In the run up to Bitchslap Magazine’s (almost) world famous dance competition at Issue 14′s November release party….. it seems the right time to start tapping one foot in time…. or out of time….,

in preparation for the “languorous and insinuating movements” we’ll all be hoping to achieve in a few weeks time.

Welcome to Copenhagen …… 

Mr. Jeroen Smeets.

We hope you enjoy changeable weather.

You may know his face from earlier this year @ BSmag Distortion party…., where he, Donnie Mand and Anders Dixen ripped Vesterbro a new hole.

If you weren’t there, these photos capture approximately 1% of how BOOM a night we all had.

We kind of slept on this one but this is possibly the best music video ever made. Sick combo with Beastie Boys teaming up with Spike Jonze and totally awesome GI Joe / James Bond storyline. True though – you can’t kill the Beastie Boys. 

Last tuesday, Red Hot Chili Peppers played in Köln, Germany. The concert was broadcastet to a selection of cinemas all over the world, amongst Palads in Copenhagen. The 2 hour long gig both brought some material from their new album, I’m With You (released monday 29′th of august), and good oldies like Killing in the name of and Give it away.

I shot a couple of photos for Politiken, and since they’ve been released I’ll let you see some shit aswell. Great concert – but people needed more beers.

By Lasse Kofod

I love the Muppets and I’m a great big fan of the video work from OK GO so this colab smash up is right up my alley.

I’m not Danish, but it’s refreshing to see that Pato is proud to be. Here’s his new video off the coming EP – his first tunes in Danish. 

There really is nothing better than to press the flesh and get out and visit those adventurous souls who help us distribute Bitchslap Mag around the world.

Dublin is a great city and I can gladly report that All City Records walk the walk. Lots of paint, fresh selection of vinyl and friendly staff…, what more could you want?.

Remember to check out the basement of AllCity (4 Crow street, Temple Bar) as the clothing label FucknFilthy, brainchild of Josh Gordon, is taking it’s first steps. Bon chance with that.

And I lie in my bed with an ambivalent feeling of destroying my flat, and cuddle with a deer. The reason? Vivian Girls’ concert at Bakken. These three Brooklyn-based girls sings a bit like angels – and then tear the heavenly beauty down with guitar riffs, smashing drums and a heavy bass. Think of Giana Factory combined with a tad of Sonic Youth and a pinch of Pixies.
I’m not a music-journalist, but a photographer – so you should check them out yourself – and catch them in Malmø this saturday.

Pics by Lasse Kofod.

I think it was after the third number that I couldn’t hold it in any more. My sunglasses were so steamed up that I couldn’t see a damn thing and tears were running unstoppably down my face. The only man to mend a broken heart, Charles Bradley, Ladies and gentlemen! CHARLES BRADLEY!

I think I had long given up the quest to hear that kind of voice, I just assumed that I had been born too late. The soul men I grew up listening to as a kid have all faded away, time taking them as it generally does. James Brown: gone. Otis Redding: gone. Wilson Picket? Forget about it.

But then the gods of soul, those ancient beings who bring the hot lovin’ to the party, they gave us a solid piece of black magic in the shape of Charles Bradley’s sweet voice.

“I love you all!” the soaring eagle of soul roared, and Christ we loved him back! That was, quite truthfully, one of the most amazing things I have ever seen: it put all those half arsed contemporary R n B singers to shame. And when he kicked that microphone over, landing in a perfect split, I was done. I was finished. Even the Neil Young cover couldn’t bring me back. I had passed into another realm.

This is what Roskilde is all about, moments like these when an artist turns up that few have heard of and blows our brains apart and moves our world a tiny inch to the side.

Charles Bradley, ladies and gentlemen! CHARLES BRADLEY!

6/6

Yum Yum Went to Roskilde and the Strokes May Have Saved Him.

I think it was the final storm clouds late Saturday night that did it. I couldn’t take any more. I was done. Roskilde had sapped me dry and I had nothing left to give. I have a suspicion that it might be age, but then again I have never really been a festival kind of dude. The sight of a wet tent fills me with dread and hoards of sweaty kids covered in mud makes me feel uneasy. Too many people drunk and hammered in one place can be a worrying thing to see. Yes, I must be getting old. My buddies call me a princess and they are probably right. Poor Yum Yum.

But sometimes the fury is hard to escape, sucking me backing at every turn. I tried to go home unsuccessfully at least three times and on the last attempt it became plain that the Gods had other plans for me. As the storm clouds gathered, the heavens opened on us all in possibly the wettest day in living memory. The savagery was something to behold.

“It isn’t going to rain! It’ll never rain, I promise” my colleague told me. At the end of those fateful words the thunder started, and then the lightening, and then the torrential rain. I spent the next few hours standing under a tree up to my shins in mud talking to a Dutch girl about dolphins and tuna.

Some people are made for this shit. I can saw them everywhere, stripping off to their soaked underpants, running around and throwing each other into the mud, marinating in it; kids waiting for hours in long lines, braving the God-awful weather, sitting in the slime, and they look like they are having the time of their lives.

There was only one reason for this irrational behavior, and the reason was the Strokes who put that smile on their faces and admittedly on my own.

This was the moment we were saved, dragged back up again to the party spirit. I didn’t think anything could pull me up again, that anything could convince me to keep on fighting through. I thought Roskilde had killed me: I was beyond redemption, I just wanted out. Then the Strokes hit it. “Come on boys, let’s do it!”, Julian Casablancas muttered in that low growl he has tuned to perfection and at that moment I felt like he was talking to me. “Suck it, up you pussy!” were the words that I heard.

A wet Roskilde is a terrible thing, The Strokes were my redemption. 5/6

As one of the most exciting recent bands to come out of the DIY garage rock movement that is exploding in the US right now, in this interview with Bitchslap, Screaming Females talk about making their own records, booking their own tours and why America produces such great rock and roll. We grabbed a few minutes of their time at this years Roskilde Festival.

Interview: Yum Yum
Camera: Anton Kjær
Edit: Peter Skov Nielsen
Produced by Bitchslap Magazine

Iron Maiden: They didn’t play the hit.

The Roskilde line up this year was a young one. The Arctic Monkeys, the Strokes, Kings of Leon: they are all the new generation of rock and roll bands, tomorrow’s legends to be. Iron Maiden on the other hand are the elder statesmen, the old men in the company of boys. As the last band in the world to still have their own private jumbo jet, it is safe to assume that Iron Maiden know how to put on a show. They are legendary: the only Metal band to have an enduring hit.

It was a good show. For six wrinkly old buggers, Maiden are surprisingly agile. I took note of the rather homo-erotic display of flexibility, the David Lee Roth spandex stretches. Hell, David Lee Roth probably pilfered his moves from them in the first place. God knows what these Olympic feats of stretchy leg work had to do with rock and roll, but they do look very impressive. From a distance it was easy to forget that Iron Maiden have been around for so long: they attacked that stage like teenagers. Still, they didn’t play the hit.

The thing that really pulls Iron Maiden together is Bruce Dickensen. Rumor has it that the rest of the band don’t get along with him which is why they keep him up front flying the plane so they don’t have to talk to him. After thirty odd years, who wants to hang out on a long haul flight with a guy you can’t stand? That’s the word on the street anyway. Maybe it isn’t true and they get along together like a big happy family. But if Bruce is unlikeable, the one ace up his sleeve is the sheer power of that incredible voice. If Iron Maiden are a pack of old geezers, Bruce sounds like he is in his prime. Get rid of Bruce, and the age would catch up to Iron Maiden pretty damn fast. Still, he didn’t sing the hit.

In the end, Iron Maiden cancelled their interviews. What would we ask them anyway that they haven’t been asked before? But I do have a question and I want it answered. I am not alone either. Why, oh why, did you not play Run To The Hills? Seriously?! That is probably the only song that everyone knows! It’s a seminal rock classic. Frankly, playing a recoding of the Life of Brian soundtrack might have been funny in 1988 but it is just bloody frustrating now. I am of the opinion that if a band has a hit then it is bad bloody manners not to play it. The fans have paid for that jet, perhaps a hundred times over: Iron Maiden owe them the hits.

3.5/6