Urge

GOODBYE SUMMER... BRING ON WINTER

Wed, 16 May 2012 01:17:00 GMT

After the summer that never really was in Sydney, we're thankful for the sunny autumn days that we've been blessed with lately.

Add to that some top waves and we're loving it.... now bring on winter!

MUM'S THE WORD

Mon, 07 May 2012 03:31:00 GMT

We all know our mum deserves the best for Mother's Day - here's our top 5 picks to spoil your old girl this Sunday....

CONICS SET TO "PARTY WITH A PURPOSE"

Wed, 02 May 2012 21:53:00 GMT

Hailing from Sydney's north shore, ex-Barker College school mates Conics are all set to open the Major Raiser live music gig on Saturday night.

The guys are pumped and ready to rock the Beach Road Hotel in Bondi.

Conics are: Nick - Vocals/Synths, Jamie - guitar, Gus - guitar, Sam - drums/samples, Angus - bass guitar.

The explosive five-piece dance-punk band from Sydney have recently shared the stage with the likes of Gold Fields, Rufus, Millions, Elizabeth Rose, Convaire, Oscar & Martin, Flume, The Getaway Plan and Faker and are set to release their debut EP in mid-2012.

"We're working on our debut EP at the moment - and trying to get girlfriends. Neither is proving to be easy" jokes frontman Nick Vodicka.
Nominating local acts Gold Fields, Rufus and Northeast Party House as influences, Nick says "they're doing really cool stuff. We've been playing different types of music for years and we're now developing a sound we're really keen on."

And the guys are ready to go on Saturday night.

"Major Raiser are putting on fun shows with really good line-ups and putting it towards something worthwhile. We're stoked to be a part of it".

Proceeds from the Major Raiser gig go towards the Outback Music Foundation. Tickets still available through Moshtix.

BALI SURFARI

Tue, 01 May 2012 20:48:00 GMT

The beauty about a place like Bali is the endless supply of waves, entertainment and diverse people. The past couple of weeks for me have ticked all the boxes of an insane Bali experience. Over my past couple of weeks here O'Neill celebrated their 60 years of innovation with a wild art exhibition and party that lead to some sore heads the following day. I travelled with a bunch of sea dogs to another island around the area in search of waves and definitely found them, along with shooting O'Neill Europe's 2013 summer campaign that took us to some of the most beautiful parts of the country that i would never really see on a normal trip. Its been a busy couple of weeks, but jeeeeeeeeeeez i have had an insane time!!!!

Nick Riley

COLOUR CODING "PERFECT" FOR MAJOR RAISER

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 23:00:00 GMT

Chris from Sydney band Colour Coding popped into our offices to chat about the upcoming Major Raiser gig on May 5. The Operator Please members are keeping it in the family with their new venture.

Colour Coding are:

Chris Holland - Vocals / Guitar / Keys / Bass (22)

Tim Commandeur - Drums / Keys / Bass (21)

How'd Colour Coding come about?

We're cousins and we've both played and recorded music together from the age of about 12 or 13. Tim co-founded Gold Coast pop group Operator Please and a few years later I joined on keyboards. We've been wanting to return to making music by ourselves again for sometime and about eight months ago, Colour Coding was born. We released our debut EP 'Proof' and recently did our first film clip for our single 'Perfect'.

Favourite gig? We've only played a few gigs so far as Colour Coding but our first gig at Oxford Art Factory was incredible. Everything fell in to place and we had a heap of mates and family there cheering us on.

Favourite Place to visit? It's hard to go past London, it was the first place I got to play with Operator Please. So many fun times had there!

Funniest moment on tour? We were touring with Operator Please when Tim turned 18 at a music festival in Berlin. We all drank way too much, especially Tim! He tried to jump a fence and somehow managed to tear his jeans. He spent the rest of his 18th birthday walking around the festival with what looked like arse-less chaps without a care in the world.

Musical Influences? We both have pretty broad music influences, but I suppose the main influences for Colour Coding's music are bands like Phoenix, The Wombats, The Killers, Friendly Fires and The Naked and Famous.

Favourite Movie? Definitely Dumb & Dumber.

Favourite Food? All food. It's our favourite past time.

How would you describe your style?

Keep it simple with a pair of skinny jeans a t-shirt.

Favourite Urge style? Charlie is wicked!

Are you excited about Major Raiser? It's an absolute honour and pleasure to be on the line-up for the next Major Raiser party. Dom at Major Raiser is an extremely self-less and inspiring guy. He's worked so hard to build this organisation to where it stands now.

What's next for Colour Coding? We are consistently writing, so we are just building up new material for our next release. But currently, just pushing our debut 'Proof'. We're also keen to play as many shows as possible and just enjoy ourselves.

Tickets for Major Raiser are on sale through Moshtix.

A SHOE MAKER BY DESIGN - MATT BERRY

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 21:03:00 GMT

Self-confessed full-time Lifestyler and part-time Surf Shop Assistant, Matt Berry is also studying to become a shoemaker - a perfect fit for the Northern Beaches surfer who has always had a passion for fashion.

We had a chat to find out how Matt came to be a shoe designer in the making...

"I have always had a mild addiction to shoes, clothing and accessories. I found myself working 9-5 straight after school finished and I had no ambitions. I wasn't the brightest at academic subjects at school, but found out that I have skills in design and drawing. So as I looked around I came across shoe making!!! I was intrigued, paid for the course right then and there and it is the best thing I have done to date.

"I'll finish my studies this year and at first the plan was to start my own company designing and hand making bespoke shoes, but it is the most niche market. I would love to do that when I'm older and have a greater knowledge of the industry. I know that it will be beneficial to start off under a well established company, allowing me to gain knowledge and contacts. I love to design so, a designers job in a company would be so good!

"I feel I have my own style and don't fit into a stereotype…(but I probably do!!!) I pride myself on my sense of fashion and style haha... but seriously, I just dress how I want to. I am frothing on a surfer called Otis Carey. Best surf style around. Same with Ozzy Wright. Amazing. I also love the old James Dean style. He is and will forever be the man when it come to classic 50's style. Leather jackets, white shirt, riding boots. And motorcycles and porches. Oh man. Sick!!!!!

It's a role that seems is a perfect fit for Matt - combining his interests in surfing, travel, music and fashion.

"After I finish my course I want to travel and tick off all the tourist destinations - Dapto, Umina, Darwin & Bondi. Hahaha! I just wanna head to Europe and live it up. Soak up the culture with some wine & cheese tastings, wearing my Beret and driving my Vespa! I also love surfing Hawaii. Not much can beat the Hawaiian Islands, but my home break Suck Rock at Mona is definitely up there.

And his other passions?

"I'm super picky with my music, but I'm lovin some Deep House and lo-fi Surf punk - haha - if that is even a genre? I love the movies. Midnight in Paris, Empire Records, and Tron are my favs. And food - there is nothing better than a Bento Box and Asahi to wash it down.

And what's caught your eye from the Urge range?

"The Charlie. No matter what colour it is, or what you're wearing, they are such a gem and go with everything. And the Sonic backpack. There are just so many little pockets and it seems to fit everything you want in it perfectly! Spot on for my trip at the end of the year!!!

BALI BOUND

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 00:29:00 GMT

There's no better feeling than sitting on that plane, looking down at the runway to one of the best surf destinations in the world!! I am going to be based here for the next three or so weeks, so look out for the next couple of posts during my trip here in BALI!!!

Nick Riley

MITZI GETTING READY TO "RAISE" THE ROOF

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 05:10:00 GMT

Brisbane indie-pop quartet MITZI are getting ready to rock the Beach Road Hotel in Bondi on May 5. The guys have already supported the likes of Darwin Deez and Foster The People and are now headlining the Major Raiser gig with all proceeds going to the Music Outback Foundation. We spoke to the guys to find out a bit more about them... but we're not sure if we're any more the wiser.

Mitzi are:

Dominiqe Bird - Vocals / Guitar (24)

Cale Suesskow - Drums / Vocals (25)

Charlie Murdoch - Bass (21)

Jad Lee -Keys (25)

Musical Influences: Talking Heads, Nile Rogers, Fela Kuti, 808

Favourite Gig: Supporting Whitest Boy Alive in Brisbane and Melbourne

Funniest Moment on Tour: Our first Australia tour involved breaking down in rural Adelaide, leading to us getting a Greyhound Bus to our next gig in Sydney which included a drug search at a petrol stop at 3am in rural Victoria.

Favourite Place to Hang Out: The German Social Club

Favourite Movie: Wild Combination

Favourite Food: Nobby's Goulash

What's your favourite Urge style: The Charlie Shoe & Charlie Desert Boot. They're awesome. We'll be rocking them at the next gig.

Can you describe your fashion sense / style: "The Bert Newton" - (We're picturing dodgy wigs and ill-fitting suits)

How good's the Major Raiser gig going to be: Really, really good. They're really good people with a really good idea & they're doing really good things. Really.

What's next for you guys: If things go to plan we'll have our debut album out sometime in 2012!

We're looking forward to that!

You can get your tickets for the Major Raiser gig at the Beach Road Hotel, Bondi from Mosthtix.

Happy Easter

Sat, 07 Apr 2012 03:17:00 GMT

Although Sydney has been graced with fun waves and awesome weather the past couple of weeks, I felt I needed a change of scenery..... and what better place than the Sunshine Coast. With really good waves and weather forecasted for the Coast, I knew it was going to be a fun week ahead. And it was just that! We scored fun uncrowded waves, shot some photos, ate HEAPS of chocolate and drank some beers. The whole time being surrounded by good friends. Hope you guys shared the same experiences over your Easter break.

Happy Easter!!!

Nick Riley

Urge Supports Major Raiser Gig

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 01:51:00 GMT

Urge is proud to be supporting the next Major Raiser event - a live music gig with a killer line-up. We spoke to 24 year old Dom Greenwood from Sydney about his two great passions - helping others and live music.

What made you want to do something to help out? We saw a need to further connect young people with charity so we went off and explored it. Doing ‘good’ is incredibly rewarding and we all want to feel fulfilled with the work we are doing.

How long have you guys been doing this for? Just over a year

How did you get started? I wrote the idea down on a piece of paper…then called my mates…called some bands…found a venue…held a party and realised….hmmmmmm this could work.

And what’s the response been like? It’s been great. Big crowds that are always on the rise, and aligning ourselves with some great companies highlights the response that we have had and are having.

Best experiences along the way? This would have to be going to South Africa as part of our last project. Being there, on the ground really brought it all home as to why I give time to this kind of work. I mean…what if I could travel to places like that for a job. It’s those kind of experiences that shape who we are.

Any funny experiences? So many funny experiences. I guess seeing all my man friends decked out in makeup out our events is quite humorous. At our last party it was a ball to hang out with the lads from New Navy and Rapids….they brought stacks of laughs for us.

What’s next? Our next party is Major Raiser’s Music Outback Foundation Party on May 5^th at The Beach Road in Bondi. We have put together a killer line-up with Mitzi, Glass Towers, Toucan, Colour Coding, Lancelot, Conics and more. We will be partying our asses off for The Music Outback Foundation who give indigenous youths in remote areas of the country musical and educational opportunities.

Tickets on sale now through Moshtix

Introducing Nick Riley

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 02:01:00 GMT

Name: Nicholas Edward Riley

Age: 23

Born: Hong Kong

Home: Manly Beach, Sydney, Australia

Job: Surfer

Favourite Wave: Canggu, Bali or Queenscliff corner. Can’t beat home!

Favourite Place: Chile and Bali

Favourite Music: Anything and everything!! I love music nearly as much as I love to surf.

Favourite Movie: I just saw 21 Jump Street which was one of the funniest movies I have ever seen. The Rum Diaries would be up there too.

Favourite Food: Can’t go wrong with Japanese.

Dream Girl: I am going to be completely cliche and say Miranda Kerr.... No faults at all with that woman.

Favourite Urge Shoe: Black Sultan. It’s the bomb!! Super comfy and I can wear them wherever/whenever I please.

Urge Bag: The Raging Bull bag is pretty cool.... it fits everything I need in it and isn't too much of a pain the arse to lug around.

Describe Your Style: Wow... Um I would like to think it’s quite relaxed. I usually try to look at everything in life that way and I'm always wanting to be having the most fun out of anyone.

What do you want to achieve this year: Continue to build my profile in the surf scene as well as keep the people paying me happy..... and having an awesome time doing it!

It's great to have Nick on board with the Urge team. Stay tuned for updates on Nick's adventures throughout Australia, Chile and Bali over the next few months.

Welcome to the Real World

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 23:07:00 GMT

Check out this great series put together by French photographer Benjamin Béchet, he has taken our favourite characters and super hero's and put them in real world scenarios.

PRESS: FHM, September 2011

Tue, 09 Aug 2011 03:44:00 GMT

James wears PUNCH - featured in the September ish of FHM mag.

Available now at Glue Store www.gluestore.com.au

PRESS: Shop Til U Drop, August 2011

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 00:47:00 GMT

Shop Til U Drop's super cool latest issue is out now featuring our own super cool SOLDIER. Also in Black - get it now.

PRESS: NW, JUNE 2011

Tue, 28 Jun 2011 01:48:00 GMT

Get your mocs on this season - INKA - as featured in NW's Star Style. Buy it now.