VIDEOS
We’re mixing it up this week for Weekend Warmup. Rather than having one person curate a list, we decided to have each of our editors pick one video each. As with regular WW, the videos do not have to be about riding (and as you’ll see below, just about everyone took that to heart). But if you squint, each of these selections is at least related to that editor’s relationship to riding.
There were a lot of different ways I almost went with this, but then I stumbled upon this one, which is actually a PSA from the Norwegian government! Enshitification is invading everything, including, unfortunately, some parts of the bike and outdoor sports world. Anyway, both the marketer and consumer in me really enjoyed this, and thought some of you would as well. Good on the Norwegian Consumer Council for opting for humour to get their message across, and doing it well. Almost 2M views in 6 days is a huge success.
-Pete Roggeman
video embed code here
It’s not an unheard-of scenario: four friends who are into mountain biking and filming decide to make something together for the first time. What is fresh is how well this is done. The breathtaking opening scene, as the rider trudges through rain (or is it snow?) to drop one more time, is sprinkled with well-timed flashes of what is to come. From there, it builds steadily with stylish riding and a calm, smooth style juxtaposed with big airs, rough terrain and ferocious speed. This is an audacious first mountain biking edit from four North Shore 20 and 21-year-olds.
I was planning to showcase something from another sphere – but this was just too fucking good. And how about Mobb Deep!
Call it a banger. I hope we see more from these four lads.
Ethan Brauner @oh_look_its_ethan
Elias De La Vega @elias_dlv
Teige Esler @teige_esler
Johnathan Hinton @johnathan.hinton
MUSIC Survival of the Fittest & Shook Ones, Pt. II by Mobb Deep
-Cam McRae
Angine De Poitrine – Live on KEXP
I can barely get my head around this duo enough to describe what I am seeing and hearing, so I will let Wikipedia do the heavy lifting: Formed in 2019, the group consists of two members performing under the pseudonyms Khn de Poitrine (guitar, bass and microtonal instruments) and Klek de Poitrine (drums). The Poitrine brothers describe themselves as a “Mantra-Rock Dada Pythago-Cubist Orchestra”.
I don’t know if I love them or hate them, but ever since this KEXP performance randomly popped up on my instagram feed, I cannot get them out of my head.
-Mike Ferrentino
The Mountain, the Moon Cave, and the Sad God | Gorillaz
Gorillaz is one of those artists that I like the idea of more than I necessarily like the music itself. I find myself consuming their music more from a place of interest than enjoyment. But, they’ve got a new album, with all sorts of high-minded themes and ideas, and a new eight minute, traditionally animated music video to go with it. The video draws heavily on the visual language of one of my favorite animated movies, Disney’s The Jungle Book, and I’ve found myself coming back to it a few times this week for second, third, and fourth watches.
I think what attracts me to it the most is its commitment to the bit. It’s a cohesive experience, with the music, the visuals, and the story all sharing a flavor. No, it’s not my favorite flavor, but I can’t help respecting the coherent vision. It reminds me of the Nimbus Independent days when that crew was designing the art on their skis, packs, and goggles, animating the titles to the film, and doing all the editing themselves to create a singular consistent piece of art.
And, in a world of AI slop and phoned in “art” it’s satisfying to see something like this video hit the zeitgeist.
As a bonus I’m always interested in learning more about the context around projects like this, and this video gives a little peek from an acclaimed animator.
-Cy Whitling
Best Worst Coffee in the World
The venerable Moka Pot. Quietly making decent coffee around the world with less-than-ideal beans for millions of people. I was first introduced to the Moka pot in Montreal in 2009. Quite late for this coffee fanatic. It came in many different shapes and forms, and I enjoyed making decently horrible coffee out of it multiple times a day until I found an espresso machine on the side of the road in Old Port. I’ll tell you that story some other time.
While I am currently working on an all-encompassing coffee article, this will serve as a tie-over for a quick guide from the most loved and hated man on the coffeesphere.
James Hoffmann knows what he is talking about when it comes to explaining coffee. I have since started employing this method of making coffee in our van on roadtrips, and the improvement in taste has been quite significant. Sit back and enjoy James’ soothing voice as the moka pot gurgles away on the stove top…
-Deniz Merdano