Archive for October 6th, 2009

New Belgium and Devendra Banhart

If you’ve ever spent some time out west, specifically in Colorado, chances are pretty high that you’ve had a bottle of New Belgium’s Fat Tire before. I’m not sure if it’s the Phish parking lot vibe obsession with Fat Tire or the actual taste I don’t like, but I’ve never been a fan. New Belgium does some good things to help protect the environment in Colorado though, so if you are a fan, keep buying them. Your money is going to a good place and an a eco-conscious company.

But that ain’t the point of this post. I saw Devendra Banhart play last Friday night and it reminded me of two New Belgium/Fat Tire commercials that feature “Noah” and “At The Hop”. They both look more like music videos than commercials – a guy fixes up a vintage bike that resembles the one that adorns the Fat Tire label and takes it for a nighttime ride through the mountains of Colorado. Nothing to do with beer.

The videos are probably over three or four years old, but beautiful and well worth watching if you haven’t already done so. Doesn’t make the beer taste any better unfortunately.

MP3: Devendra Banhart – Baby

Watch them after the jump…

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Aether Apparel

While highly functional, outdoor apparel is not always the most stylish stuff in the world. If you’re living in a town in Colorado where everyone wears to work what they’ll be going hiking or kayaking in later that day, then a Patagonia fleece and a pair of Chacos works just fine. For better or worse, that’s not where most of us live, so finding a functional, good looking coat isn’t always easy.

Started by two filmmakers in Los Angeles, Aether is trying to bridge that gap so we don’t have to look like “teenagers on the ski slopes” anymore. When I was a teenager on the great hills of Wilmot in Wisconsin, people were wearing Starter jackets and jeans to ski, so I suppose that’s a good look to avoid. Aether’s line of clothing is a little on the expensive side, but if it’s as functional as they say it is, then there’s going to be a lot of people who’ll want this stuff. As you can see in the Barrier Eclipse jacket pictured above, they make a handsome coat.

What else do y’all wear that’s stylish and functional for camping? Fjallraven’s clothes always catch my eyes.