KSPACE.TV » k-swiss

Kenny Powers

andrew flanagan — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 13:00:39 +0000

K-motherfucking-swiss! The parent company got innovative on Monday, debuting a promotional campaign starring baseball legend and fictional dickhead Kenny Powers to push their new Tubes shoe, the titular feature being some powerful amalgamation of moon boots and gummy worms that serves the same general function as Shape Ups without being hideous or overpriced. Oh, and push he does; Kenny loves the Tubes! And people love Kenny. And so does the newly renamed K-Powers shoe company, as he seems poised to “sell some fuckin’ shoes” for ‘em.

In the video below Mr. Powers: takes on the suits with his encyclopedic knowledge of the game and summarily blows their minds, calls seasoned MMA fighter Urijah Faber a siss for jumping rope, stares down tight end Jeremy Shockey, and explains the physiology underpinning Secret Muscle Theory:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Classic video series: Billy Reid’s Southern hospitality

Jonathan — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 20:51:30 +0000

It’s def not the norm for designers in fashion to be humble, gracious and sincere ( jus’ sayin) and especially with someone as highly regarded and rated as Billy Reid, top US designer, multi boutique owner and Southern gentleman (recent winner of the GQ/CFDA Best Menswear Designer award). Billy’s the subject of Jake Davis’ in his 3rd installment for the K-Swiss All Things Classic video series and it’s even more apt that Billy happens to be stylin’ his very own and super extra lived in vintage K-Swiss canvas tennies in this vid – enjoy some of Billy’s Southern hospitality a-la Jake and be sure to stop by his 54 Bond Street location when in NYC

Click here to view the embedded video.

Classic video series: eyewear with a Silver Lining

Jonathan — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 20:14:11 +0000

Continuing to highlight classics in our daily style life, Jake Davis celebrates fresh and expressive eyewear through the lenses of Silver Lining Opticians’ Jordan Silver and Erik Sacher, for his second installment of the K-Swiss ‘All Things Classic’ video series. In this vid Jordan takes us deep into all things past present and future of eyewear and you’ll see why the likes of Jay-Z and Daniel Day Lewis are amongst their regulars – when in NYC be sure to drop in.

Next up by Jake, a peek at top US designer and Southern gentleman Billy Reid – classic inspiration

Click here to view the embedded video.

Awesome Challenge: Mt Whitney climb

Jonathan — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 01:10:07 +0000

You’ve most likely noticed an increase in many things ‘awesome’ around here – granted, it’s probably a California symptom but hey there are in fact many shades of awesome-ness on the left coast of the US. The latest being ‘Awesome Challenge’ where ordinary people take on extra-ordinary tasks like um deciding to climb Cali’s highest summit Mt Whitney at 14 505 ft starting April 28th and besides the personal challenge of it all, it’s for a great cause in helping under resourced urban teens make it into the great wild outdoors and beyond.

Gus and Chuck prepare for an Awesome Challenge

So what’s it all about ? Why climb Mt Whitney when it’s oh so cozy at home ? well you know, c’mon an awesome challenge is just that ! our first local heroes Chuck Parker and Gus Valentino (dedicated spirited dads with families) love a good outdoor, physical and mental challenge that would on top of it all raise money for not as fortunate inner city teens to do the same (enter Big City Mountaineers and Summit for Someone ). Clearly this isn’t the Sound of Music where you don’t just ‘climb every mountain’ especially as high as Mt Whitney but with their prior physicality and forays into white water rafting, skiing, hiking, dog sledding, and yikes even a triathlon, Gus and Chuck decided to make this daunting climb their next awesome challenge ! and we’re proud that they came to us as storytellers and as K-Swiss the California Sports Company who love to ‘Have An Awesome Day’ to help support them and tell their story.

Simple right ? not quite – they live on the East Coast, have been training full on in their K-Swiss Tubes with 50lb backpacks since January, whilst still flying around the globe as commercial pilots. Training continued in whatever environ they found themselves in from Tokyo to Anchorage and when we all met a couple days ago, Chuck and Gus were positively beaming and ready for this – we’re all inspired for sure ! and wish them the best of luck …..

In Chuck’s words “we could have any sort of weather on the climb at 14000′ in April! The top of the climb will be above the tree line and snow covered. Slopes will be from 25 to 50 degrees and we will be in mountaineering boots and crampons! We will be wearing a transmitter and our progress can be tracked via the web. We have been documenting out training and will continue to document the climb and entire experience with photos and video.”

Here’s their journey that we’re tracking here and on Facebook, with a full flag waving from the summit report and video of this exciting challenge shortly after their return:

April 26th and 27th
arrive in LAX, and head for Lone Pine, CA. We plan to do a day hike or two on the 26th and 27th in order to fine tune our gear and begin acclimatizing to the altitude.

April 28th
We meet the guides and climbers at the Mt. Whitney Cafe at 0700 for breakfast and head off for the trail. We will begin our trek from about 8,350′ and snow shoe / hike our way to the Lower Boyscout Lake at 10,400′ where we will make camp and spend the night.

April 29th
We leave Lower Boyscout Lake and head for our High Camp at 12,000′. We plan to arrive in the early afternoon and rest there to continue acclimatizing. We will also check over our gear and make final preparations for the summit attempt the following day.

April 30th
Summit Day! Wake up at 0200am – 0500am, depending on the weather conditions and begin out trek to the Summit (about 15,000′) and return to the High Camp (12,000′) for the night.

May 1st
Pack up and head the rest of the way down to arrive in Lone Pine around 1pm.

Welcome back guys !

Intro: You Gotta Know Your Classics

Jonathan — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 20:21:56 +0000

We love telling a good story here at KSPACE, as much as we love playing around with the idea of all things classic – past, present, future and even future primitive (but that’s a whole other story). So we’re delighted at this time to be unrolling a story not previously told, of an iconic brand steeped in ‘the Classic’ and better yet we get to tell it with the help of eight highly credible international designers over the next couple weeks in ‘You Gotta Know Your Classics’

It goes a little something like this – between 1966 and 1986 California sports brand K-Swiss created and sold a single shoe: The Classic. In that short period, The Classic rapidly evolved from being the world’s most advanced shoe on the tennis court to being the first high-performance white leather sneaker. Dare it be said that every other leather tennis shoe that followed was derived from The Classic. Now um after a mere forty-four years after its launch, K-Swiss is finally telling The Classic’s story and sharing some choice secrets along the way about its quietly iconic shoe.

Secrets like why its original owners only produced a single shoe for twenty years and what the ‘K’ in its name actually stands for, all unusually interpreted and told with the help of Amsterdam storytelling agency Lemon Scented Tea and eight top emerging international designers visually narrating the story via a series of collectable and we do mean Limited edition posters.

Each chapter of this classic tale from ‘No Talk Policy’ to ‘K is for Kalifornia’ to ‘Blond on Blond’ and ‘We Killed Canvas. Sorry’ all provide a fresh unique ontext to The Classic, while the designers were given free reign to interpret the stories graphically. Each poster is a stand-alone illustration, underscoring the lack of hierarchy in The Classics’s own story.

Stayed tuned here as the story unfolds and for details on when and how we will be giving away these choice collectables and a chance to win your own Classics.

K-Swiss Limited Edition Classic High P / WIN a pair

tcroberts — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 18:30:15 +0000

High tops for the holidays! K-Swiss does a limited release on a Classic, with a twist (0r two) — a high top in fall colors. My favorite is this pair of true blood red kicks in patent leather. No pun intended: they are pretty killer. It’s not often that you see an old style redone like this, but it looks like the California style may be taking some cold-weather cues. (Interesting note: K-Swiss shoes were originally high top boots modified years ago to be tennis shoes.) There’s also the colorway above, bronze upper with a white sole that according to the fashion blogs are so very now.

Seeing as though the Classic white high tops aren’t being released until 2010, grab a pair of these while you can or test out your luck and enter to WIN a Limited Edition pair of your own by telling us 1 person or thing that represents true classic style to you.

KTV: Aaron Sheidies, Elite Blind Triathlete on NBC

tcroberts — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 04:31:56 +0000

K-Swiss’s Aaron Scheidies and his guide Matt Miller featured on NBC’s WFLA Channel 8 broadcast from Friday Nov 13th.

K-Swiss X Partners & Spade Ping Pong Classic

tcroberts — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 05:42:25 +0000

Table tennis is making a come back in a big way, with the Hard Bat Classic last month and now with the launch of the “August Sweatout Ping Pong Classic” which K-Swiss has teamed up for a special shoe collaboration. Andy Spade and Anthony Sperduti of Partners & Spade, the gallery/retail space, have designed a new shoe in conjunction with the ever innovative shoe brand, which are a sleek, cool version of the timeless Classic just for the occasion. The splash of orange and the subtle stitching are a tasteful update that almost anyone can find space for in their collection.

There’s also a custom ping pong table that the guys will have for sale during the event. Fans of the craze seem to be after items special to the sport like hard bats and even special balls. While this may not be anything close to a heated football match, with kicks like these the competition for August 29 is bound to get fierce. Check linked vids below, and get yer sweat on ! :

Partners and Spade
August Sweatout
40 Great Jones Street
New York, NY 10012
August 29 Noon to 10pm
RSVP here

Countdown to Kona: One Iron Man’s Journey

tcroberts — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 09:12:32 +0000

Ironman’s mystique is in the steps before all the running begins. So, it’s great that this amateur triathlete blogger took the time to document his journey and write a book about it. Countdown to Kona is about the training, the setbacks, the psychology that this amateur Ironman went through. Ranking is seldom what’s important unless you have a teammate named Kobe or a Lebron, but this is a solitary sport and the mental is where you wanna focus. It’s a fair depiction of what it takes just to get your butt in the water. More info here “Countdown to Kona”

Congratulations also to our very own professional triathletes Joe Gambles and Luke McKenzie on respective first place wins in their K•Swiss K-Ona™ footwear at the Ironman 70.3 Lake Stevens and HulaMan triathlon, on Sunday, August 16^th.

For more inspiration to get you in the mood for your very own Ironman, be sure to check out our Triathletes stories.

Tweet Feat: The Top Ten Sports Stars On Twitter

Matt Diehl — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 05:25:45 +0000

Outside Online has done us all a favor, people: they’ve compiled a list of “The Top 10 Athletes On Twitter”! Yes, tweets are the new blogs, and everyone loves it when their favorite jock gets online and reveals what goes on in their rarefied world.

Even better, while Lance Armstrong’s tweeting is understandably popular due to his fame and the fact that Armstrong’s posts are actually revealing and amusing, Outside’s list concentrates largely on those sports figures whose tweets actually deserve more readers. Not surprisingly, the likes of icons Tony Hawk and Kelly Slater makes the cut, but there’s also triathlete supreme (K-Swiss athlete and friend of Kspace) Chris Lieto, due to Lieto’s writing skills sharpened by constant blogging. Dana Torres gets points for her versatility, meanwhile, switching with ease from commenting on her swimming regimen to the ups and down of motherhood; Gretchen Bleiler gets kudos as well for her command of diverse forms of online communication. From this list, it’s clear Twitter isn’t just the new blogging, but the new radio, too: getting fresh posts from, say, street skate legend Bob Burnquist means readers will get the inside take on the X-Games like nowhere else. Also, athlete tweets provide a wellspring of useful information, as this Tony Hawk update makes clear: “travel tip: You can’t carry a skateboard through FRA or LHR, even if you are only making a connection. I’ve tried more than once. No dice.” Hawk’s writing also helps protect his fans from possible electrocution: “Interesting fact: ethernet cables in hotel rooms shock you when you put them in your mouth. Our baby just found out in a not-so-fun way.”

As well, the list conveys that when it comes to twitter, democracy rules: it doesn’t play favorites, moving from kayaking to skiing, sprinting to snowboarding, featuring male and female athletes. That sprawl makes clear that, when it comes to winning at Twitter, with enough practice and dedication, it’s anyone’s game for the taking.

Classic Cover: Joy Division – “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” Again

Matt Diehl — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 20:02:33 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

Some songs are begging to be covered again, then rediscovered for a new audience. Other songs, well, maybe they’re covered too much… Case in point: “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” the absolutely classic by Joy Division – so classic it could be (and maybe is) a standard like, say, “My Funny Valentine.” This song captured a deeply personal romantic melancholy like none other: the circumstances of Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis’ suicide after recording it gave it the frisson of emotional reportage. Curtis’ intense, confessional performance ultimately turns the track into, really, a perfect song in almost every way: in 2002, NME called it “the best single of all time.” Indeed, in its incandescent blur of synthetic textures, martial disco thump and raw passion, “Love Will Tear Us Apart” evokes the spirit of the early-’80s post-punk era it was created in, yet has proven timeless, powerful in any context.

As a result of this appeal, “Love Will Tear Us Apart” has proven one of the most over-covered songs in rock music history. A cursory scan of the song’s Wikipedia page proves it: “‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ was eventually performed by New Order (though not for 18 years after Curtis’ suicide) and has been covered by many artists including, Nerina Pallot, Hawksley Workman, Calexico, The Cure, Swans, Unbroken, Nouvelle Vague, Heavens, Fall Out Boy, Worm is Green, José González, Red Mecca, Yat-Kha, Stanton Miranda, U2, Arcade Fire, Squarepusher, David Trust & The Weathermen, Honeyroot, Chris Edwards, Susanna and the Magical Orchestra, Moonspell, The Blood Divine, Simple Minds, Oysterband with June Tabor, Paul Young, Jamie Cullum, Nick Cave, Michelle Darkness feat. Hanna Pakarinen, Evelyn Evelyn and In the Nursery.”

Many of these are, in fact, excellent:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Many, however, are not so hot. Quantity definitely does not equal quality when it comes to covers of “Love Will Tear Us Apart.” Check out these utterly ersatz versions from Paul Young and PJ Proby, respectively:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Therefore, we understood when influential music site Pitchfork took issue with the umpteenth version of Joy Divison, this time essayed by Broken Social Scene as part of the score for the film version of The Time Traveler’s Wife starring Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana (who, apropos of nothing, was excellent recently as a footie-obsessed Aussie in Funny People). You can read Pitchfork’s review here, or just listen to BSS’s take on the song, and make up your own mind. However, to our ears P’fork’s Mark Richardson was a tad harsh with his “3″ (on a scale of 10) rating: “listening to it on its own is inspires little beyond the desire to give the original a head-clearing spin” is how he puts it.

Now, we are not haters of the Pitchfork; we appreciate that they support obscure music and, you know, go there. But we have to politely agree to disagree this time, much to our actual surprise… We actually found that Broken Social Scene’s version of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” became a whole different, and beautiful, beast. It lumbers beautifully to our ears, lurching like Crazy Horse propped up with a lazy drum-machine, Kevin Drew’s rumbling vocal taking on the gravitas grandeur of, say, a Nick Cave after a few too many PBR’s. And the waltz time singature that Richardson disdains – well, to us the 3/4 rhythm imbues a newly sloping, elegiac feel that other versions haven’t quite approached in the same way (the original included).

All that said, as much as we like this latest take on a vintage classic, we aint’ afraid to say maybe… Enough. Maybe it’s time for a moratorium on covers of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” – perhaps Obama could even slip it into the healthcare reform bill and make it “official,” under the guise of preventing more suicides or whatever. I mean, it would be great if Sinatra or Presley or Jim Morrison (a clear Ian Curtis influence) were around to try it, but… They aren’t. So stop. Please. Thanks to Broken Social Scene, we can end on a high note on one of the greatest low-note songs ever.

Click here to view the embedded video.

After growing out of the embers of post-Curtis Joy Division, New Order went on to write the complete opposite of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” exactly ten years later with the song “World In Motion.” The official anthem for the English national football team’s 1990 attempt on the World Cup, “World In Motion” is as relentlessly upbeat, uplifting and kitschily fun regarding amour as “Love Will Tear Us Apart” is a total downer on the subject. “You know you can win/Don’t give up the chase,” Bernard Sumner intones sincerely, with as much crowd-pumping adrenaline as he’s capable of. “Love’s got the world in motion and I know what we can do/Love’s got the world in motion, and I can’t believe it’s true!” What a difference a decade makes… Then again, Sumner gets it right in “World In Motion” on one particular lyric that seems pertinent regarding “Love Will Tear Us Apart”’s ongoing reign: “When something’s good, it’s never gone.” Yes, indeed – and for that reason alone, we’re probably stuck with more cover versions of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” into eternity that we’ll likely ignore – until Radiohead gets around to covering it, that is…

classic remastered-step into the kspace

Jonathan — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 19:21:48 +0000

There’s a whole lot to be said about CLASSIC for sure ! but most of all it’s kinda that ease comfort and timelessness that probably best expresses the word. We’re very proud of our 1966 Classic original with its sport and cultural heritage, and with that in mind we welcome you to step into our K-Space Classic Remastered platform where our sports icons meet our cultural expression. It’s filled with vids/pics of Adam Green, Ed Westwick, newbies Jackson Swinton, poet performer Kesed I Am, tennis greats Tommy Haas & Ana Kournikova, Ironman athletes Chris Lieto and Katya Meyers and many more with great music by El Guincho , Dobie, Balkan Beat Box, Budos Band. K-Space is rolling out in various stages, so do keep checkin’ back and Before you go, do enter to WIN a pair of Classics of your choice by giving us a 5 line description of what Classic means to you. Winners announced each week.

how to win your booka shade shoe

Jonathan — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 17:03:48 +0000

WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO:
1. send us your email and your myspace name (if you have one) plus what city you are in – this will not be shared with anyone else – together with a PICTURE of yourself/friends at/enjoying one of Booka Shade’s shows around the world and let everyone know where you took it (with any description you would like to share)
2. one person from each city who has submitted the most interesting picture will be picked by our judges and announced online with their picture each 10 days and will WIN a customized extremely limited edition pair of Hort designed K-Swiss Booka Shade trainers to their size and with their initials on them

3. Reminder, this contest requires that you send us a photo taken at one of the Booka Shade shows and let us know which one it was

thanks for supporting Booka Shade and for checking in at KSPACE.TV

Good Luck

LE MARCHE DE K-SWISS A WARM & TASTY AFFAIR

Jonathan — Sat, 22 Dec 2007 10:06:20 +0000

MC Melodee steams it up at the outdoor holiday season le Marche de K-Swiss in Amsterdam – definitely not bothered by the coldest day of the year whilst enjoying deelicious country soup and takin’ a peek at all the latest kicks and new apparel line at our year-end soiree. The ever lovely Melodee has a brand new ‘Vibing High’ album out with I.N.T as La Melodia so pick that one up for your stocking from the KS1 space on the Niewezijds Voorburgwal 262.

Here’s wishing all of you a wondrous and joyful Holiday Season – peace and love.

MOS DEF 1ST LONDON SHOW IN 3 YEARS

Jonathan — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 16:43:50 +0000

DEF -initely it’s on ! as one of Brooklyn’s finest talents returns to London after 3 long years and it’s all happening on the 23rd November at Shepherd’s Bush Empire. Mos will be supported by (and hopefully joined as you see above) by the superb 9 piece Hypnotic Brass Ensemble who always funk up the party. Leaving no doubt to as to the worth of this event, the one and twos are in the 1st rate hands of Benji B whose Deviation BBC 1XTRA show and new monthly Deviation residency clearly put the D in Def.

Tickets on sale now at wegottickets.com and ticketweb.co.uk and goin’ fassst, so get right on it ! Proudly presented by Soundcrash, SinceDay1 and K-Swiss.

GET DIGITAL WITH GET PHYSICAL USB

Jonathan — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 14:08:21 +0000

Get Physical is on a roll, no doubt about that. Six Germans, one label, and somehow it all adds up. For five years the guys from Berlin have maintained a steady flow of mind-blowing releases and instant classics. As you know, the crew is doing a huge club tour at the moment. No time to check out their gigs? No problem, get yourself a Get Physical memory stick, fully loaded with cool stuff: a megamix, a poster, and off course the K-Swiss Nautical range commercial for which Booka Shade provided the music. You are just one e-mail to eric@djbroadcast.nl away from this very exclusive gadget!

Click here to view the embedded video.

GET PHYSICAL 5 YEARS ON TOUR

Jonathan — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 14:47:30 +0000

The five year anniversary of the German guys who caused quite a stir in the global dance scene is not something to go by unnoticed. Therefore, Get Physical has been on the road for several months supported by K-Swiss to rock every venue they come across. Check out M.A.N.D.Y. (Philipp), Lopazz live and Einzelkind in Oslo on August 10 and M.A.N.D.Y., DJ T. and Lopazz live on the isle of Ibiza on August 23. What’s more, you can download an exclusive podkast here. And for all you gadget freaks out there, take a glimpse at the Freedom page to get yourself a very hot Get Physical USB stick.