It’s the symbolic final weekend of summer, with students in the region headed back to campus. Whether you’re figuring out how to find your way around or if that third film elective in one semester was a good idea, Rock Music Menu is here to help ease back into studies by focusing on everything but.
We’ve been spotlighting some ways to make the learning environment less stressful in recent weeks with items to help see the return to school as more ergonomically inclined, fun and interesting. This week’s theme will have you looking sharp and classing up the kitchen.
Let’s have a look at the second part of our “Back to Campus Essentials” series for 2022.
MOONSHOT T-SHIRTS
It’s happened to all of us. You’re out with your friends, one of them references a film or television show you all love and another says, “That should be a shirt.” Well guess what? Chances are, it already is, and Moonshot is the place where you’ll find it.
Powered by independent artists, Moonshot makes apparel that often skirts the edges and other times dives headfirst into the deep end of pop culture with snappy, hilarious designs that stand out in a crowd and make other people look twice. Many are inspired by television and films, both cult classics and blockbusters.
There’s a “Don’t Mess with Texas” design with Leatherface from ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ overlaid on an outline of the state. Another advertises “Miyagi’s Wax On Wax Off Auto Detailing,” a nod to the original ‘Karate Kid’ film, even adding in a “Since 1984” – the year the movie hit theaters – to drive the point home. An “Amity Island Swim Team” design with a shark fin on it is an obvious nod to the ‘Jaws’ film series, while “Relax with Friends: Camp Crystal Lake” pulls from the horror franchise ‘Friday the 13th,’ where most of the onscreen murders by the hockey mask clad Jason Voorhees took place at the fictious summer camp.
It’s not just movies or tongue in cheek hilarity either – though there is a bevy of that. Moonshot also specializes in vintage t-shirts for places that once existed. They have entire lines of tiki bar establishments, bowling alleys, restaurants and even a series dedicated to Old Las Vegas locales like the Stardust, the Pussycat a’ Go Go and Showboat Hotel and Casino. There’s a certain level of kitsch, quirkiness and cool to all of them.
And it wouldn’t be perfect for college students without some adolescent wit that will be looked at as a headscratcher once you’re older. Witness the “Ben Drankin” play on Ben Franklin holding a red Solo cup under Fourth of July designs or the “Let’s Get Sheet Faced” – featuring a ghost on the shirt – mixed into the Halloween section of the site.
Most designs come in multiple color options, can be ordered on a deluxe or luxury t-shirt, ¾ sleeve, tank top or even hoodie. If you can’t find anything entertaining or humorous from Moonshot, then there was an operation to remove your funny bone at an early age and nobody told you about it.
To see all the fashion fun, head to m00nshot.com – but fair warning, it’s a heck of a rabbit hole to fall down.
CUTCO CUTLERY
To be completely transparent, as a starving college student, I used to hawk Cutco products. And before that, my grandfather did the same. It didn’t make for anything but an odd summer job on the resume since the paycheck came via commission on direct sales, and I personally couldn’t sell my way out of a wet paper bag – even with high-end cutlery.
All that aside, I found the actual product to be pretty incredible. See, back then you had to purchase your own sample set of Cutco cutlery for in-home demonstrations. Realizing recently that my items had not only held up, but thrived after what amounts to decades worth of abuse, I decided to revisit the brand for this article.
It turns out Cutco is still going strong. This time around, there wasn’t a direct sales situation to deal with as I got ahold of a trimmer and mini-cheese knife. The former features the company’s patented Double-D edge, a series of three distinct small, recessed cutting edges that run along the length of the blade. The standout feature on the majority of Cutco’s products creates points along the blade that prevent the sharp, cutting edges from coming in contact with surfaces that can dull knives. The cheese knife has a smaller version, dubbed the Micro Double-D.
Both knives feature a nickel silver riveted full tang, the part of the blade that extends into the handle, making certain it will never snap off when slicing into that frozen mystery meat from the freezer. The handle itself is angled to fit comfortably in the palm, designed to avoid fatigue while providing a tight grip.
These aren’t just selling points either; you’ll be hard pressed to find another brand of cutlery that just feels right the moment you pick it up. Stylistically, the aforementioned handles come in either classic – a blackish brown – or pearl. Some are available in red.
I’ve been using the trimmer as a utility knife. It’s good for slicing tomatoes, trimming chicken and other meats, sectioning and peeling fruits and vegetables. Come to think of it, there isn’t anything I haven’t used it for lately. Except slicing cheese – the mini-cheese knife handles that job deftly. There are holes on the surface of that blade to prevent sticking, and it’s also been a go to for trimming the skin from kiwis and to slice up smaller edibles like cherry tomatoes.
Cutco doesn’t come cheap; the mini-cheese knife is $88, and the trimmer will run you $81. But clichéd as it may be, it’s an investment which will last well beyond the nights of cramming for tests. And if the marked durability of them ever wanes, there’s a “forever guarantee” that includes free sharpening and zero hoops to jump through to make it happen. As I write this, I’m awaiting a couple pieces from my selling days that are out for sharpening, and all I had to do was pay shipping.
Grab a cutting board and go to cutco.com to see the full line of cutlery.
VINYL OF THE WEEK
Keep an eye on this spot as each week we’ll be looking at new or soon-to-be-released vinyl from a variety of artists. It might be a re-pressing of a landmark recording, special edition or new collection from a legendary act. This week, it’s the 25th anniversary of the sophomore album from the most recognizable hip-hop collective in history.
WU-TANG CLAN: ‘WU-TANG FOREVER: 25TH ANNIVERSARY’
Following the release of their stunning landmark 1993 debut, ‘Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers),’ it was obvious that Wu-Tang Clan was going to be around for a while. The only question was how long it would be before hip hops fans got another taste, because all the members of the New York City collective had their own solo and ancillary projects going at the same time.
It took nearly four years, but in early June 1997, the double-LP ‘Wu-Tang Forever’ was released and shot straight to No. 1 on the Billboard charts with 612,000 copies sold in its first week. Now, for the 25-year anniversary, the boutique record label Get On Down – in conjunction with Legacy Recordings – has released the album as a 4LP set with a bonus 28 page lyric booklet. Eventually certified 4x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, ‘Forever’ has sold more than two-million copies in the United States alone and remains highest-selling Wu-Tang release to date.
Emerging in 1992, the Staten Island, NY-based outfit proved to be the most revolutionary rap group of the mid-’90s – and that was only partially because of their music. Turning the standard concept of a hip-hop crew inside out, the loose congregation of nine MCs soon forked off into clothing lines and video games and their “W” logo became ubiquitous with street then mainstream culture. But it was ‘Wu-Tang Forever’ that showed the unit was a true sonic force with which to be reckoned.
Taken as a whole, the record is a celebration of being in Wu-Tang Clan, having the ability to pull off another record and the musical partnerships that gelled so effortlessly. Lead single “Triumph,” five and a half minutes with no chorus, is the perfect example as it sees RZA, GZA, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Raekwon, Masta Killah and Ghostface Killah each taking a verse along with future member Cappadonna. A silver vinyl 7-inch single of “Triumph” with “Heaterz” on the B-side in a picture sleeve and a reissue of the double cassette in a slipcase is also available separately or to bundle with the ‘Wu-Tang Forever.’
The 25th anniversary edition of Wu-Tang Clan’s ‘Wu-Tang Forever’ can be found online and from all respectable retailers who carry vinyl.
To contact music columnist Michael Christopher, send an email to rockmusicmenu@gmail.com. Also, check out his website at thechroniclesofmc.com.
Source: Berkshire mont
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