SOUNDS: Matt & Kim "Cameras"

Dance punk king and queen Matt & Kim released their latest track today. Album is due November 2nd, according to their website.
Cameras by mattandkim

HIT: Coleman Camping Lantern Lamp

A few years ago, a buddy of mine moved into a new apartment and furnished it with a few items from Uncommon Goods. I had never heard of them at the time, but every once in a while I'll head back to see what's new.

These days, I've been hunting for a small reading lamp. Uncommon Goods didn't have the right animal, but they did have this guy.

A paragon of American-kitsch, it is not beautiful and would look silly in most apartments. But it certainly conjures nostalgia. Plus, imagine the cool bedtime stories you could invent about that bear and his cub as they look down into the valley at that lone, tasty vict- er, I mean, fisherman.

INTEL: Copenhagen Bicycle Rush Hour

Bicycle Rush Hour in Copenhagen from Copenhagenize on Vimeo.

I want my city to live this way.

INTEL: Go Shopping (Alden DC)

In 2005, DC's Alden, located for years on K Street, moved a few blocks nearer the buzz at Gallery Place to 9th and F Streets. Somehow, I'd managed to miss it until last week. As you can see, the place is exactly what you'd hope for - sort of a cross between a library and a high-end locker room.

To be sure, Alden's website is an absolute disaster. Maybe they're trying to add to their classic image or something - "Yeah, um, we don't exactly do the Internet" - but I really can't see myself ever releasing credit card information to that travesty. So I was delighted to check out the real thing and super impressed by the bargains.

They didn't have rack upon rack of clearance items, and thank god for that. Digging for deals sucks. Instead, they had four shoes or so, marked down anywhere from 50 - 75 percent, including a gorgeous pair of cordovan wingtip brogues in oxblood for $200. (They retail for something like $600.)

It was also a treat to talk to the saleswoman. She knew and loved her product, was happy to chat, and did not once push me to open my wallet. Plus, she schooled me; there are only two Alden retailers on the East Coast - one in New York, one in DC. That's it. Despite popular belief, there is not one in Massachusetts. (Only the factory lives there.)

The lesson here is that we need to get off our asses once in a while. Shopping on the net is convenient and fun, but the best deals out there are still, well, out there. Good hunting.

STREETS: Bike Theft Ethics

Posts will be a little thin this week, I'm afraid. Lots of traveling.

Today, I'm back to the real world after an epic weekend in New York. Cycling was de rigueur. I saw a nasty, near-tragedy between an early Saturday-morning coffee toting hipster and a careening bike-dude on Grand between W. Broadway and Wooster, pretty people on prettier bikes, and lots of orphans chained to sign-posts, old meters and stanchions.

Some of the abandoned bikes still looked rideable, though. And they were looking longingly at me. And I want one. "Wouldn't that little fella appreciate a nice home?" "Yeah, but what if he belongs to someone?" Stupid conscience.

My grandfather, who grew up poorer than dirt, was famous for, um, appropriating what he thought were abandoned items he found on his way home from work. He never said this, but his ethic seemed to be something like, "If it's within spitting distance of a trashcan or curb, it's up for grabs."

I'm not that bold, but The Neistat Brothers' Casey Neistat has convinced me that, sometimes, it's ok to steal a bike.

**Heads up - this video features the f-word once-ish and the s-word once-ish. If that offends you or someone who is within earshot, don't watch it.

the ethics of stealing a bike from Casey Neistat on Vimeo.

SOUNDS: Ra Ra Riot "Boy"

Ra Ra Riot - "Boy" from Arts & Crafts México on Vimeo.

New Ra Ra Riot drops next week, but you can buy this EP now from iTunes. Catchy.

HIT: No. 10 Opinel

I had an Opinel when I was a kid, but had completely forgotten about them until a year or so ago when I walked into a small farm supply with family in Chagford, England. Of course, I didn't have my wallet on me. But I promised myself to return later that week to pick one up. I never did and, once again, forgot all about them.

Then GQ featured Psycho Bunny's Robert Godley in this week's installment of their 10 Essentials series. Number 9 for Godley? Sure enough.

Opinel's beauty and utility make it the perfect pocket-knife. It's extremely lightweight, holds a decent edge, and the locking mechanism - if you want to go so far as to call it a mechanism - is infallible. (It's that metal cuff at the top of the handle. Open the knife, rotate the cuff, and the knife is locked.)

So, I've finally placed my order. The No. 10 refers to the length of the blade - 10cm. The little guy cost less than $20, including shipping, from OpiKnife.