Surfing, Skateboarding, Music, Photography, Travel, Culture and general antics of the youth on the run.

Forced Creativity In a Musty Place Or, the art of throwing empty pint glasses at a laptop and expecting results

what youth dear youth

“Writing is the flip side of sex — it’s only good when it’s over.” —Hunter S. Thompson

 Editor’s note: Here’s something(one) new. James Royce is a young surfer/writer dude from California who’s been submitting and writing a few things here and there for us. Just another one of us trying to navigate all this shit we find ourselves in and make sure there’s a surf or two mixed in. I liked this. Probably because he went into a bar and left with something more than just a good buzz. Anyway, meet James. —Travis

 I’m writing this from a dark spot. Literally. The light above me is flickering. I’m at my local dive bar. A place walking distance from my house. It has all the classic characteristics. Cracked red booths, clientele that could be easily be Beyond Thunderdome stand-ins, a general air of destitute. You’d be forgiven if you mistook it for a truck stop with a liquor license. But the beer’s cold and cheap so I’m happy.

I promised myself I’d have a completed article by now. Five-hundred or something words on something. Anything. A short story perhaps. Maybe a science-fiction drama. Something about a man who invents a time machine just so he can fuck around with the course of history. Give Krotons a bunch of steroids to freak out the Spartans during the first Olympics. Hand Bruce Brown a RED camera then surprise Mike Hynson and Robert August at Cape St. Francis by paddling out on a thruster. Kidnap Joseph Stalin and make him watch Vines Clockwork Orange style. But then I hated that idea as soon as I opened up a word document. There’s no glory sounding like a discount Philip K. Dick.

So I looked elsewhere. Towards surfing. I watched Turtle Bay Resort’s premier awards show. (Hey, Chapter 11 won movie of the year — that’s a bit epic.). But I couldn’t find anything to get fired up about between all the backslapping. Then I remembered Pipe is coming up. But then I realized I barely know who’s in the world title race as I haven’t watched a contest since Lowers (RIP) and apparently a lot has happened since then. Ideas, dead ends, what’s allowed to live and die on the page all meshed into one. Anxiety started creeping in. I was stuck. Frozen. Was it finally time to drive out to the middle of the desert with a suitcase stocked full of various stimulants, hallucinogens, and libations? Do I go for a hard reset?

No. Dramatics never solve a thing.

And that’s how I ended up in the local haunt. This mildew ridden place. Where amenities like color TV, surround sound, and air conditioning are proudly advertised on a sign out front. One man’s daily conveniences are another’s technological triumphs. It’s funny, I’ve lived down the road from here my whole adult life yet have never made a conscious effort to drop in until now. The only reason I decided to saunter in three beers ago was because it seemed like a good idea at the time. Escape the stress. And now I don’t have any desire to leave. There’s no wifi — thus no distractions. The music’s good (new wave hits on heavy rotation) and I have a booth to myself. No one’s shot me a weird look while I pound away on my laptop. I have neither any complaints nor any intentions of leaving anytime soon. Hell, slamming an empty glass onto my keyboard and expecting results might be my soundest plan at this point. Going nuclear on the piss worked for Faulkner, Joyce, Bukowski and a slew of other greats. It’s worth a shot. And once I snap back to reality and realize I’ve failed spectacularly to get a thing done, home is just a short walk away. But I did leave with this in my laptop. It’s just as useful as it is useless. See ya soon. —James Royce    

 

 

what youth parties

Wanna Go Out with Us? We’ve got a lot of parties coming up including sneak peeks of a new vid, Miami cocktails, World Premiere’s and Amsterdam shows

Ok, we’re full on into summer now. We’ve made the calls and now it’s time to really get lathered up and into it. Starting this week, hell starting today, we’re going out. So we hope you’ll join us. Below is just the warm up to get you into early August and having a hell time…

what youth andy irons kut u up

Under the Kut U Up Influence Remember the Andy Irons part in Campaign to their song?

Tonight at the Belly Up Tavern in San Diego may be the final time Kut U Up play together. I remember the first time I saw them I was pretty young and pretty drunk and so were they. It was at an Elks Lodge somewhere in San Diego and featured old bartenders pouring the deepest whiskey…

what youth south swell

Sitting through a south swell California summer is off to a pretty good start

This is the first time I’ve had to sit out a swell because of an injury. And as hard as I’ve tried to be at ease with it, this fucking sucks. So far, the first south of the summer months has brought out the good parts of summer: glassy conditions under gloomy skies, warm water and…

what youth darren ankenman photography paris

The first sunny day in Paris in a month Darren Ankenman photography from Paris

Los Angeles based photographer Darren Ankenman is one of our favorite photographers. His ability to capture both the mundane and the insane and the eclectic faces of a city captivate us more and more with every submission. After the Artist Series we shot with him last year we’ll get random email updates of his travels…

International Surfing Day, Now What? How I feel when we get our own day

So a little background: I’ve been on both sides of this “International Surfing Day” thing. Participant and now personal protester. While working at Surfing Magazine long ago, we were more or less the inventors of it, so I was very involved at one time. It was presented as an ocean awareness, beach cleanup, Surfrider Foundation…

kim and the created tour

On the Road With Kim and The Created Through a week of sold-out shows opening for The Kills

Kim and The Created, LA’s own rock explosion fronted by the Iggy-inspired, space-age jumpsuit wearing Kim House, are pretty seasoned when it comes to playing shows. But opening for The Kills this past April through Nashville, Louisville, Philadelphia and two nights in Brooklyn to sold-out shows might’ve been their biggest splash on the scene yet….

Mitch Coleborn in Bali

Linking up with Mitch Coleborn in Bali Not as easy as this looks

When there is purple all over your screens, sometimes you have to quell the anxiety and let it just come to you. Opt for the path of least stress and avoid the over-hype. We said “fuck it” this day and let’s just stay close to home, sip lattes and kick it with friends. Maybe surf maybe…

Traveling through Norway and Sweden with Chippa Wilson, Keegan Valaika, Jake Blauvelt and Louif Paradis

Scandinavian Wanderlust Getting closer to the Gods with Chippa Wilson, Keegan Valaika, Jake Blauvelt and Louif Paradis in Norway and Sweden

Drinking gets you closer to the Gods in Norway. Or so they say. And we just got up close and personal with them. Because we continue to be like Ozzie and just say yes. And our most recent “yes” led us to Norway and Sweden with Adidas. To surf and skate and even ride snow….

Cosmic Creek, The Allah-Lahs

The Allah-Las at Cosmic Creek Salt Creek turned Cosmic on Saturday and Sunday

Prom was not the coolest thing that happened this Saturday. Every year at Salt Creek Beach, which is nestled in my sleepy hometown of Dana Point, we get blessed with a touch of coolness in the form of rock ‘n’ roll. The 15thth Annual Cosmic Creek surf festival made its way into town with a…

We’re in Norway With Chippa Wilson Adidas brought us to Stockholm and Riksgränsen to hang with Keegan Valaika, Louif Paradis and Jake Blauvelt

We said yes again. And now we’re in Scandinavia. Adidas invited us to join them on a trip to Norway and Sweden with Keegan Valaika, Louif Paradis, Jake Blauvelt and let us bring our friend Chippa Wilson. Cole Barash is shooting photos. We spent a few days in Stockholm skating with Adidas Europe team. The light was…

what youth dear youth travis ferre

Bored to Death by Surfing The Olympics, wave pools, Reef calendar’s and the WSL. Is that all we got? I hope not.

Maybe it’s the antibiotics. A bug bite gone wrong (the venom aimed at my heart and made a bee-line for it via my circulatory system) has forced me to stay on the sand and off the drink this week, which, as you may know, is what I usually use to ignite and direct most my thoughts onto…

Brixton Broadcast, Chicago

Us and the Brixton Broadcast Chicago Blown away in the windy city with Natural Child, The Half Rats — and a city guide of sorts

You’ll remember we achieved the perfect three beer buzz upon arrival in Chicago. But we thought we’d make sure you knew where we took it from there. We marched it down the cold and breezy streets of Chicago and into the front row of The Empty Bottle to see Natural Child, The Half Rats, The…

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