Moshi Moshi

Moshi Moshi is one of the hippest and innovative record labels active in the UK today. Set up in London in 1998, Moshi Moshi specialise in sourcing and nurturing alternative, experimental indie music, with enough humour and lightheartedness to be accessible and enough intelligence and depth to be creative. Much of the label’s focus is on discovering and developing new talent, and then introducing them to major commercial markets. In the past the label have broken Friendly Fires, Bloc Party and Florence and the Machine, releasing their debut singles, and sometimes debut albums, as well as supporting all the preparatory work for such significant artist, including developing image and artwork, supporting tours and such. The label also distribute for a lot of key US indie artists, especially those from the Brooklyn scene, including The Drums and Au Revoir Simone.

Like any good indie label, Moshi Moshi take the presentation of their releases very seriously, and focus a significant amount of effort onto offering high quality, astute artwork with each item, whether single or album. They also work on offering new ways for consumers to buy their music, challenging and innovating the traditional music industry model. Two ways in particular that the label does this is through their AAA Subscriptions Club and their Singles Club concept. The subscriptions club focuses on offering all Moshi Moshi releases in any given year (which usually equates to at least two dozen releases) for the princely sum of £30. They also release a new single each month by a key Moshi Moshi artist, which is available for digital download or as a 7” single. These marketing methods benefit consumers, artists and the label itself, and demonstrate new ways the music industry can work and make a profit.

Moshi Moshi are currently supporting Slow Club, CasioKids, Trophy Wife, The Wave Pictures, Idiot Glee and Hot Club de Paris amongst many other exciting new artists. They really are a veritable sonic gold mine of exciting new music, so if you want any easy way to keep your finger on the emerging music pulse, I suggest you subscribe to their AAA club pretty sharpish.

http://www.moshimoshimusic.com

Beyond the Valley

 Beyond the Valley is an incredibly artistic, high-end boutique and gallery space just off Carnaby Street in the heart of Soho. Heralded as “the space for new designers”, this concept store pushes the boundaries and conventions of art and clothing. In store and online the company offers clothing, jewellery, furniture, fine art and graphic design for sale, but there is also an in store galley space for new and emerging artists.

Beyond the Valley has become renowned for sourcing fresh, new artistic talent and innovative diverse pieces. The boutique was set up by Jo Jackson, Kate Harwood, Kristjana S. Williams, three ex Central St. Martin’s students who set up the store in 2005 after becoming disillusioned and unable to secure permanent, professional design work. The studio/boutique developed as a showcase for emerging artists and designers, and since its inception, the girls, through Beyond the Valley have curated a number of exhibitions, set up guerrilla stores, and at one point created an exclusive collection for Topshop. The brand has since become a favourite of the likes of Roisin Murphy and Lily Cole.

As well as stocking high-end fashion brands such as Anglomania for Vivienne Westwood, Melissa and Fabrica, Beyond the Valley also have an eponymous label. Their own label this season falls into a pre-Raphaelite/neo-classical style, with plenty of rich, deep colours, deep patterns, golds, blacks and embellishments. In general though, Beyond the Valley has a specific aesthetic, filled with whimsical, artistic photo-prints, plenty of chiffon and silk, with a generally grandiose, innovative and unique approach.

Beyond the Valley offer luxurious pieces, which for the most part are not cheap, although you can get some fantastic bargains in the sale. Their pieces are ideal for special occasions, key pieces and treats. I personally bought a dressing gown from them recently in the summer sale for £100, reduced from £250. A large expense, perhaps, but the dressing gown is 100% silk – proper silk too, not synthetic, and it is something I will wear most days for 10 years plus. Most importantly though, it has a beautiful 3D photo print of a forest, and even comes equipped with 3D glasses. If art and aesthetics are important to you, Beyond the Valley offers a wonderful box of treats.

http://www.beyondthevalleystore.com/

The Grand Café

The Grand Café is allegedly the oldest coffee house in England. The establishment is said to have featured in Samuel Pepys’ diary, and records show the oxford site has featured a coffee house since the 1650s. This luxurious teahouse, bar and café has become an Oxford establishment, frequented by tourist and students alike. The café is even said to have been a regular favourite of Chelsea Clinton when she was studying at Oxford, with Bill reputed making the odd appearance.

 The Grand Café specialises in cream tea and high tea, both of which are full of traditional English tea staples such as scones, finger sandwiches, lashings of loose-leaf tea, ground coffee and the odd spot of champagne. They also serve lunch, offering a range of English and Italian inspired sandwiches, salads, seafood dishes and free-range meat pies. In the evening the café makes a final transformation into an opulent cocktail bar, with good quality cocktails, liqueurs, beers and fine wines.

 The food at The Grand Café is not extravagantly upmarket, but it does offer a nice snippet of luxury, and is certainly nice when you fancy a posh little treat. The prices might be a little over the odds, but the whole point of visiting The Grand Café is that it is an occasion. The café itself is beautifully laid out, with marbled pillars, filigree and gold leaf adorning every surface. There is a grandiose art deco feel about the place, which is ultimately what make it a stylish, lavish, and coolly aloof independent treasure, and a nice stop-off on a day trip to Oxford.

http://www.thegrandcafe.co.uk/

Love From Hetty and Dave

Love from Hetty and Dave are purveyors of handcrafted jewellery and accessories. Founded by Zoe Larkins in 2003, Hetty and Dave create hand-stitched pieces from leather and textiles, which have a very cute, very kitsch 1950s vibe. Hetty and Dave jewellery has featured in a number of craft books, as well as The Guardian, The Observer, and The Metro, and were at one time a personal favourite of the late, great Amy Winehouse. 

 

Hetty and Dave are perhaps most famous for their love heart broaches. As well as being available in a variety of patterns and with a variety of slogans for both the romantic and cynically inclined, Hetty and Dave also offer a personalisation service where they will tailor the heart to be emblazoned with the words or name of your choosing. Other items available are typically focused around very sentimental English themes - of nature and of eccentric, old school emblems. The likes of mice, acorns, owls, and strawberries, as well as horseshoes, medals and crowns are regular sources of inspiration, as well as guest appearances from more alternative themes, such as a recent headband featuring day-glo skulls in celebration of Mexico’s day of the dead.

Hetty and Dave create wonderfully craft-based jewellery with true a pleasant homemade vibe. The company also focus on a lovely collective approach to creativity, offering advice via the company blog on how to make your own apron, or how to make a skirt from an old vintage tablecloth. Larkins has recently set up the official Hetty and Dave shop/workshop in sunny Bournemouth, but the range can also be found online via their website.

http://www.lovefromhettyanddave.co.uk/

Laduree

Whilst Laduree are not strictly a UK based company, they are independent, and have a number of outlets across London for us British to access. The company have three patisseries/tea salons in the capital, one based in the Burlington Arcade just off Piccadilly, one in Harrods, and of course their newly opened premises in Covent Garden. Laduree are starting to take pockets of the UK by storm, and it’s easy to understand why, with their intricate, luxurious and very, very French style of desserts and patisseries.

Laduree was established in 1862 in a prestigious area of Paris, and quickly attracted the custom of Parisian high-society. Initially purely a patisserie, Laduree evolved into a tea salon, which offered a sit-down, restaurant-type feel to afternoon tea and cakes. Laduree salons now feature in each of their outlets, which are luxuriously adorned with plush velvets, opulent silks, golden brocades and gilding, all in a classically Parisian palette of rich navys, pale pinks, absinth greens and deep blacks. This aesthetic theme has continued on from the literal walls of each Laduree location to the packaging of their cakes, available in gorgeous boxes and cases you’ll be desperate to find a use for long after you have scoffed all your cakes away.

Laduree take traditional French cake and pastry recipes and elaborates on them greatly, to create diverse, extravagant, exciting and experimental new culinary inventions. Typical concoctions include pain au chocolat with chocolate and pistachio cream, a chocolate mini-gateaux with morello cherry jam and gold leaf whisps, rose raspberry, violet and caramel-mango profiteroles, and Laduree Saint-Honores – towers of puff pastry with fruit, cream, chocolate, nuts and a flavoured sugar-glaze.

Laduree are best known however for their sandwich macaroons, which were actually invented by the company back in the 1800s. The simple base macaroon recipe of ground almonds, eggs and sugar with a ganache filling is livened-up by their huge diversity of flavours. As a simple taster, they currently have flavours of cherry kirsch and chocolate, mint and strawberry, lily of the valley, orange blossom, rose and orange and granny smith apple, amongst numerous others on their shelves. What was a simple treat is instantly made into a rich indulgence.

Laduree’s X-factor is found in the combination of excellent, quality baking, a huge variety of innovative flavour combinations, the literal beauty of the cakes and the sumptuous surrounding you can eat them in. A Laduree take away is the perfect treat for yourself, or a special person/special occasion. A box of macaroons starts from £11, and you can buy individual patisseries from £3.95. A trip to the tea salon is a guaranteed winner for a special date, especially for a lady you want to spoil, or really make a real impression on. 

http://www.laduree.fr/

Tatty Devine

Tatty Devine make bold, artistic jewellery with lashing of wit and whimsy. Their signature items are typically made out of brightly coloured acrylic plastic, but many of collections also feature pieces made out of textile, wood, leather, metals and veneers. All Tatty Devine jewellery is handmade in the UK, and their full collection is available online, as well as at their two shops in Covent Garden and Brick Lane. They make a whole host of broaches, earrings, necklaces, rings, belts and hair accessories.

Rosie Wolfenden and Harriet Vine created Tatty Devine in 1999, and since then their brand has developed a huge cult following in both the art and fashion worlds. As well as having collections developed specifically for the Tate Modern and the V&A museum, the company has featured in Vogue, and TD also get involved in London Fashion Week every year. The girls also develop special projects with artists and bands, from Camera Obscura and Belle & Sebastian to Antony Gormley (the artist behind The Angel of the North).

Tatty Devine release two seasonal collections a year, and their Autumn/Winter range has just been released. Entitled “Come Foraging”, this season is very nature based, and is full of acorns, berries, leaves, foxes and owls, with reds, ambers, mustards, golds and deep ivy greens as the colour palette. TD also have a permanent collection available, which features more general themes such as bows, anchors, plectrums, dinosaurs and various birds such a magpies and swallows. The brand are also famous for their “Name Necklaces” – bespoke items which can be tailored exactly for the name or words you want, with five different font choices, 28 different colours, four attachable charms, and chains available in gold, black or silver. The name necklaces have become very popular with celebrities, with Jamilia, Girls Aloud and Kelly Osborne all seen sporting their own in the past.

Tatty Devine’s jewellery offers a beautiful slice of art and luxury, with special and everyday piece so cool they will always stay in fashion. As well as jewellery, the company also offer clothing from time to time, and often have crafts from other independents, including cards, magazines and badges. Tatty Devine also have the release of their first book coming up, which focuses on how to make your own jewellery. The book is due for release on 6^th October 2011, and will certainly be going on my wish list, along with a whole host of their new season’s collection.

http://www.tattydevine.com/

Rough Trade East

The Rough Trade story should be fairly familiar to those even vaguely interested by the independent music industry, but as a quick recap: the first Rough Trade shop was opened in Notting Hill in 1976 by Geoff Travis selling imported US music. The shop quickly became the home of Rough Trade Records, established in 1978, signing the likes of The Smiths, The Slits, and Scritti Politti amongst many others. Although the label and the store spilt into separate entities in 1982, both Rough Trade incarnations have remained closely linked, and the Rough Trade name has now become synonymous with all that is good in UK indie music culture.

My first experience of Rough Trade was in the spring of 2007 at Rough Trade West, just off Portobello Road a few months before Rough Trade East first opened for business, and I must say, I was initially not particularly impressed with the experience. I was obviously familiar with the Rough Trade name, but found the experience of this cramped, tiny store, filled with vinyl and aging music snobs a bit of a turn off. A few months later however I checked out the newly opened Rough Trade East and fell in love. For me, RTE is the perfect music shop experience, bar none.

This 5000 square foot haven of independent sounds has quite literally everything any music lover could ask for and more, creating a marvellous vibe which encourages graze and unearth new things. This is a more personal, more idiosyncratic form of organic musical experience, rather than overt, simplistic consumerism. Whilst the store still stocks DVDs and chart CDs, it also offers obscure imports, and fantastically innovative new concepts, such as the album badge (a badge based picture of the album cover, with a chip inside that contains the whole album to listen to in MP3 form).

Inside the shop there is a plethora of services to nurture and encourage musical exploration and a pleasant general experience. Rough Trade East contains a fair-trade café, a snug seating area, a tech booth and electronics store filled with interesting desks and effects units, listening stands with Rough Trade in store information on each release, a book and magazine section, an old fashioned photo booth which gives you four unique picture for only £3, and a huge section of vinyl and CDs. They even have in-store gigs on a regular basis, with a well set-up stage, dedicated techie and 200 person capacity.

A visit to Rough Trade East is always an enjoyable experience, which for me can last hours. There are so many levels to RTE that make it work so well – the sheer amount of services on offer, the knowledgeable and friendly staff, the hippest of locations and the history of the company. The shop does have a bias toward post-punk, alternative and underground music, so it might not cater as well for urban music junkies, though there is a moderately good collection of all music genres to be found within its four walls. The music is cheap as well – when I last visited the store during their sale a month ago I came away with four CDs for under a tenner! I purchased music I would have never stumbled across on i-tunes, and paid a lot less than what I would if I had. 

You can buy or download items from Rough Trade online, but it is the experience of visiting Rough Trade East that is key here. If you consider yourself any type of muso whatsoever then get yourself down to Dray Walk, Old Truman Brewery, 91 Brick Lane, London. E1 6QL., and discover how good a music shop can be.

http://www.roughtrade.com/site/