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1.03.01

These four cuts are among my favourite modernist cuts in Second Life. Left to right they are: UncelWebb Nick-Hair, the GL Menace,  KMADD Hair Design Jude and finally AC* [aka CheerNo] Hair Emotional seamist. Each of these cuts has serious modernist credentials. The UncelWebb is my latest modernist hair style discovery and it has classic mod looks, tight cut with a sharp fringe, its a a very sixties mod look. The GL Menace is an old virtual cut, and a modernist staple for Second Life. Very reminiscent of Paul Weller's modernist cuts its been adopted by several sharp virtual mods. The KMADD cut is more of a NeoMod cut than the first two, its slightly longer styling is more of the length favoured by the casuals of the eighties but its still a fine modernist cut. Finally, the AC* cut is more of a generic mid sixties cut but it is still a great mod cut and worth wearing ... if you can find it, the latter three being quite old cuts. Despite these difficulties they are well worth seeking out to enhance your overall mod look.

Alternative cuts are available, and there are current options at this year's Hairfest. Bryce has three great mod stylings available for FREE in their stall at the Hairfest.There is a cut similar to the KMADD cut, but slightly shorter a more classically sixties. Next to that is the longer more NeoMod cut and underneath UncelWebb but in a different colour, the final cut is a lengthy crew cut a very mod revivalists style, often favoured by the 2-Tone ska mods of the eighties. The three free cuts from Bryce should be grabbed immediately by anyone looking to expand their folder of hair styles, anything for FREE should be appreciated and gleefully shovelled away for future use. I possess allseven of these cuts and quite happily swap between them convinced that each is a credible mod styling and helps to sustain the virtual NeoMod look that I strive to achieve in my Second Life avatar. I am sure other cuts exist, the grid is flooded with hair designers and I guess I will find others as I continue my virtual journey; but for now, these suffice.

There are few avatars wandering the streets of Second Life who do not possess a cool pair of shades stuffed away somewhere in there inventory. I have several pairs in mine but that's not prevented me from locating and purchasing more. Therefore when I saw a cool pair on a fashion blog post I immediately clicked the SURL and got myself over to the store to gab a pair for myself.

Iconic sixties styling the round lenses glasses with flip over shades are a classic design and I have often wished for a pair so when I saw this pair from Kumaki it took no time at all to decide I wanted a pair. The glasses are scripted for frame and lense colours, with all the other script function that has become the norm for sunglasses. Additionally it is scripted to raise or lower the flip lense, left and right flipping independently of the other. I love them they remind me of one of my favourite films Withnail and I, where I flips his lenses before revving off in the beaten up jag on their way to the Lake District. Well made, classically sixties, although I concede late sixties rather than the early sixties of the true mod. But, for NeoMods absorbing fashion to recreate modernist styling in the virtual world they could be viewed as an essential piece of eye wear.

While I was in the store I also noted they had a great selection of suits; however as I am being frugal with the lindens I opted just to snap the sales board rather than purchase some more suits. A feeble excuse but hey this ain't GQ is it? Anyway they had an avatar modelling the suits which have a degree of prim wear to give the suits a feeling of depth and fabric movement. They look cool and come in the sombre muted colours of the early mods. I may buy one at some point but if you are looking to get yourself a classy looking modernist suit or just feel the need to expand your mod fashion folder I encourage you to take a look.

Some of you may have noticed there has been a drop off in the regularity of posting on this blog, lots of blogs do this before eventually dropping off into the wilderness. However, I have no intention of taking this route its merely circumstances hat have dictated that less than daily posts get blogged nowadays. Primarily the scene has quietened down a little with only two clubs providing constant sixties and mod inspired tunes; secondly, I am not interested in spending thousands of lindens to flatter my ego and parade myself as a pseudo fashion writer. Lets face facts this is a tiny little blog read by about a dozen great people and I'm just a geezer who like sixties stylings and occasionally likes to have a laugh writing about it and point those with similar interested in the direction of some cool items. I also grab ideas from the cool chaps who frequent the clubs, its a game and I enjoy playing it, I'm not the fashion glossy reporter some hope to be. Finally, I have joked about it a couple of times in world but middle age is playing havoc with my eyes so sometimes I find it a struggle to stare at the screen, which obviously makes blogging quite difficult, its also why I often go quite in club chatting, resting the old peepers. So I have no intention of ending my blogging career but it may enter a period of dramatic slow down, although I will probably do a dozen posts now and render this musing post irrelevant, such is life. See you at the AAi tonight or Soul Mods Thursday.

So I figured I would upload a trio of current sounds from his blog, enjoy and who knows we might hear them at a virtual club some night soon.

Hope this triumvirate of cool put a smile on your face on a dull Monday morning, chill and stay cool.

ciao

The single biggest issue I have in my virtual life is that it is wholly reliant upon reliable technology and lets be frank technology is about as reliable as your local bus route. So tonight I'm already late at Soul Mods due to my rather foolhardy allegiance to the National football team but I log on teleport in with a rather sharp paisley shirt, to be met by Slate looking equally smooth in his paisley, great minds an' all that. Tabby is on the decks and playing some awesome tunes, I've set in a grooving dance animation and having fun chatting with everyone. Its the usual daft jokes mixed with appreciative yells to enthuse about the music. We're having fun. Lupo, cool modernism in motion turns up and the chat gets better as the tunes follow. I opt to tip, head up to the little cash icon to replenish my funds [15 lindens doesn't go far these days y'know] when bingo the screen goes black. I have a little message top left Second Life: Not Responding. But hey its still streaming so all isn't lost its like a radio station I can hear the tunes but cannot participate. I'll live with that there's only 10 minutes to go anyway, by the time I reboot everyone will have logged out and then virtuality delivers its coupe de grace and informs me I have been logged out but I can check my IMs. I hope there's one from technology saying sorry we fecked up. Catch you all on the flip side.

Other things happening this week. Thursday saw the Baron return in blistering form to Soul Mods and deliver a thunderous set full of Northern Soul gems. A great night for all in attendance as the Baron plucked some sweet tunes from his vast catalogue of records. A great night and you'd all do well to get your dancing feet along to the next Soul Mods Baron extravaganza. Tuesday night saw Graz takes the decks at the AAi to deliver a two hour modfest and the boy done good. Some great tunes played a real fun atmosphere that had the floor bouncing. Another great night of virtual entertainment. Sadly my time at both these gigs was cut short by real life stuff but the hour or so I spent at each of them illustrated there is still fantastic mod sets out there if you teleport yourself along to the correct venues.

Whilst wandering around the Moonletters hang out I stumbled upon Shauna's store, its got a few concession items in there for sale and amongst them was this very cool black denim jacket from UM. It has very nice texturing and a sharp well fitting prim collar. Matched with some uber modernist white jeans from the Unknown Boutique and a cool T-Shirt from Micio's Ready Steady Go shop, and the sharp mod bowling shoes which are iconic mod fashion items.

Perhaps not a strictly modernist look this is archetypal sixties fashionwear, strong bold monochrome coloured clothing is typical of this period of casualisation in sixties fashion.

What drew me initially to this shot was the hair, very Weller circa '79/'80 combined with the excellent poses it screamed sixties cool. The all black clothing adds to the feeling of relaxed confidence typical of the scene. I could have gathered all these items and fumbled about trying to recreate it; but I felt it was cooler in its original format so thanks to Beelly Blanco for allowing me full use of his work. Armidi are one of my favourite designers, Italian classic design the foundation of sixties modernism. These sharp black pants matched to the simple but well textured sweater give a very cool style and the plain black loafers from Kalins adds to the beatnik modernist cross over. However for me the item that propels the image into mod stardom is the hair from UncelWebb. It is one of the classiest pieces of modernist hair styling on the grid, right up there with the legendary GL Menace, as worn by virtual mod face Lupo Lexington. Both share Welleresque stylings and this new discovery now firmly sits in my mod folder, what a find!

Again thanks to Beelly for letting me use this shot, an excellent slice of uber cool mod fashion, get on your scooters and get collecting.

So here I was sat in the back room surrounded by "the boy's" junk in what used to be my study but now seems like a refuge from Toys R Us and I keep getting little messages pop up on the e-mail on the crappy steam powered laptop the school supplies the missus with. These little notelets are flyers from Soul Mods telling me what a great set Lupo is playing in the club. Great, I cant get on the PC so I'm left tormented by these little fragments of virtual life that are inaccessible to me. Then, finally I get back in world chat to Dugi he tells me Lupo's sets have been amazing, I clap with glee tell him I'll be there Thursday and ... yeah my modem goes fizz no Soul Mods for me. Then the wife has the cheek to expect a real life holiday, I mean doesn't she realise I'm having a virtual crisis. Anyway all this was finally laid to rest as I got all tech issues resolved, and headed off to Soul Mods to catch the Spanish superstar in action, no not Nando in Turkey but Lupo in Second Life!

I was a tad late so lots of familiar and  some unfamiliar faces had already arrived and were already hot to the groove. Lupo plays and eclectic set very different to the other DJs, which is fantastic be very dull if they all sounded the same, with several tunes that were way off my register and so it was brilliant to get an opportunity to hear them, a thought echoed by the crowd strutting their stuff on a crowded dance floor. The music swung from mellow chillaxin to heart wrenching, foot stomping dance you bollocks off soul. And I am confident to say that many of us did, I annoyed the wife by singing and I didn't care less it was a sublime set of tunes and I loved it.

With so many familiar faces, including scooter maestro Slate, an impromptu scooter rally seemed highly appropriate and the club is big enough to accommodate a little scooter dodgems. There were many fine machines on display Dugi and Lupo's custom builds modelled on real scooters, Slate was on a chilled black machine and I was on my trusty Union Jack model, same as Boone. It was funny watching a huddle of scooters trundle across the dance floor. They looked great and reminded me I must talk to Slate about a Scooter with a Mods Second Life logo theme for a paint job, my middle aged memory isn't what it was so I'll forget this later so Slate if you are reading this, which your not bad lad, there's a project for you.

As the room was full of virtual faces there was obviously so superbly chilled outfits on display and despite the presence of uber mod Lupo and legend in a tea cup Albion I have to give the best dressed man award to Slate. Even sharper he designed and made the suit himself, a talented lad eh? I know what you're think .. what a twat! Ha ha ha ha. It was a sharp brown number with what looked like a sculpted lapel complete with a neat little badge, sharp spotted red shirt similar to the blue one he sold with his Weller inspired suit and then complimented this with the ice cool FKNY loafers in dark brown to set the standards high for the next Lupo gig. Eyes hidden by shades, as usual, even the goatee couldn't detract from a very sharp mod look. For once the guys were on a par with the super cool modettes dressed in their union flag fabrics and monochrome chic. Yeah lads we struck a blow for virtual masculinity now lets revert back to type. Fashion waffle warning means the Guinness jar is empty and I need a refill; therefore there shall be a slight journalistic repose whilst I nip out to the shed and grab a couple more cans ... talk amongst yourselves.

In order to save this from becoming the life and times of Slate Mcleod we will now move on.

What made this night so great was being surrounded by so many friends from the virtual world all having a laugh and enjoying each others company. Lupo entertained us royally and his sultry Mediterranean tones had the girls wibbling, its similar to wobbling only more graceful. There were some fantastic one liners hurled out in chat, Boone calling Slate a "light bulb" had me laughing for ages, still am smirking just a little. Stand out tunes, a version of The Snake I had never heard before, The Who Can't Explain, a much underrated track which I prefer to My Generation, there were plenty more but remember them after several Stellas can prove quite a challenge. All in all undoubtedly one of the best virtual nights I have had a quite some time and to cap it all the baron is hitting the decks next week so the king of virtual Northern Soul is taking us for a spin. Come on admit it, virtual life is great. See you all at the next mods meeting... its gonna be monster*.

*Feck me I sound like that barmy show biz agent I forget his name, Dugi will know it. Oh Ive decided I might call Dugi ... Mr Dugi Eight Track Cortina Rubble, for a laugh.

ciao