Rediscovering Laibach-Naughty Subversive 80's Gaybar style.

I came across Laibach on Youtube the other day while hunting down old videos. I was flooded with memories of the late 1980's. I had just moved to chicago right from school at MSU. I had just turned 21 and my BF had found an apartment on Addison in Wrigleyville, an amazing neighborhood that like boystown was rapidly turning gay as the gay migration was heading north. My boyfriend had basically scoped out all the gaybars that guys like us would and could hang out at, slighty dingy dark, new wavey, hipster-y styled bars. His favorite was Berlin. We would hang out there smoking and drinking(no drugs), we discovered that later in NYC. Berlin was truly an amazing bar, hot guys, great music, cute bartenders and seriously hip. Videos were big at the time and as people drank and smoked, we would shout at each other over the loud music and sneak glimpses of the insanely well directed videos of Rita Mitsouko, New Order, Depeche Mode, and so on, the heavy hitters of the fusion of art, fashion and music. I was in heaven. Then there was Laibach, fusing together the imagery of nationalistic eastern european propganda films of the 30's and 40's with the pomp and circumstance of a Wagner Opera, in a word, incredible. At first, I was afraid of obvious Nazi look and feel of the video, then, and I have to admit it, became sexually excited by it. Take a look and tell me how you feel. Considering this is from 88-89 I think it has aged very well...and I still get turned on by the imagery. BTW, I have researched Laibach and the group hated Nazi and Nazi germany but liked the feel of their propoganda and classic art composition that they felt preceded the nazi's and felt the art of that era cant be dismissed as Nazi. Russians and Americans used such classic art and concepts in their work as well.

Here is the video on You tube of Laibachs Geburt einer nation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YE_j0xIsJA&NR=1

Ajaxx63 in Fine literature! Every Frat boy wants it.

I love reading gay books before I fall asleep. I devour them. I have gone through about 8-10 books alone this year. Read 'em by the pool, read 'em in bed...just love em. I have this fascination with gay stories from the past, especially the gay scene in the 1970's in books like "Faggots" or "Dancer from the Dance". After the 70's gay books, I started reading books about the 80's then the 90's (when I came out), and now I have moved into present day. The latest book I was reading was "Every Frat Boy Wants It." I was worried it was going to be too trashy of a read, and not really all the fun, but I love it(I'm still reading it as of 11/24/08) and it's funny, sexy, and well written. I highly recommend it. However, I'm reading it and the lead character is checking out this guy and describes his outfit in vivid detail, " we was wearing a light blue tight shirt that had red graphics that said "Stiff Competition Wrestling" with two guys throwing down on a mat in the middle of it...I was so excited, and showed my boyfriend, "Look honey! We have been imortalized in print." It exciting to know, that we have made an impact on the gay world to the point of where we are being used as a literary foreshadowing device. The reader if in the know, we recognize the shirt and know the other character is gay! So cool. So now we have been in movies, TV shows, a comic book, have SIM characters, and now a book...Check the book out, I found it on overstock.com...and its also on Amazon.com as well. Look for "every frat boy want's it" by Todd Gregory.

This weeks Ajaxx63 sighting!

So, doing what I do, looking at porn in my free time when I'm not at the gym or at work or whatever, and found the always handsome Pierre Fitch and trick in ajaxx63's morningwood basketball shirt. An oldy but a goodie!

This weeks random ajaxx63 sightings!

Just another disjointed grouping of ajaxx63 gear out and about. As if surfing porn on the internet isn't a chore in itself, I have complicated it with saving any ajaxx63 pics I find. Offered for your consideration...I give you random ajaxx63 sightings.

Ajaxx63 sneak preview-New Designs!

This is a short sneak preview and the new designs will be up on the site this week!
We have new colors, new shirts, and new designs. Finally Ajaxx63 is back on track after all the wrinkles were ironed out switching to our new manufacturer.

Revisiting the 1980's w/Kim Wilde

I thought I have seen everything and heard everything from the 80's....I was wrong. I have never heard "the touch". It was as if Ken Russell made a fake music video. It is everything from the 80's rolled into one song and one video. Mind you this was the "other" 80's "the gay bar 80's". I was too wrapped up in English Music with its black and white video's of guys with short hair singing in front of old Scottish ruins in black trench coats and a crucifix flapping in the wind to have noticed the song "the touch". I would assume this video and song are part of the high energy pop 80's .I was too young to go out, so I would never have seen this. That being said, I love this too much and I got chills. Its beyond tacky, and by tacky I mean perfection.

Please note the dance moves at the end of the video, I recommend you do it in your spare time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1tzDxGYADg&feature=related


Kim Wilde's look is pure 80's genius. I think it is time we brought this look back, the clothes are already in but the hair needs to make a comeback as well. I, for the most part, do not like 80's hairstyles, but I liked this devil may care-Euro disco look she has going on. I can imagine her smoking a cigarette in a cafe in Brussels, shielded from the rain by a big green awning, while thumbing through a copy of Face or Manipulator, (if the table was big enough) thinking about what shoulder to wear her shirt off of, or what shoe boot to buy next with all the money she is making on her hit songs.

Randy Blue and ajaxx63 collaboration?

This past week we were contacted by Randy Blue(via Gabriel Goldberg-our favorite and super talented fashion photographer "Rick Summer 2008 campaign") to work on a cross promotional campaign with our t-shirts and various products and Randy Blue models. At this point, its all just talk to see if we are interested. Interested? We LOVE randy blue.....the guys are too hot, and the site randyblue.com is the perfect match for our image, (Clean cut guys get dirty!). So I will keep you posted on any developments with this deal. As a side note: Its postings like this that made one of our web designers quit on us-he said and I quote "your content matter is inconsistent with my belief system-my wife took a look at your site and want's me to quit." Yeah buddy... I'll show you inconsistent with your belief system...Randy bring on the boys! This will get them all hot and bothered at church next week!

ajaxx63 Party-Stuttgart-Germany!

Our favorite guys, Carsten Hugin and Peter Breitling of Gay-industries.com in Stuttgart, Germany threw a huge party for ajaxx63.de. Of course, like everything these two do, it was a huge success! Over 3000 people packed the club. Large screens displayed pictures of various ad campaigns we have run over the years. I can't wait to tell my buddy Frank, one of our ajaxx63 models- and a good friend of mine, (We usually use our friends as models, we run a tight ship around here, and our friends are good looking and fairly vain!) that his picture was towering over the dance floor as thousands of hot gay Germans partied. We seriously need to get bars here in the US to do nites like this...we do have a party at R-place in Seattle, which is a big hit, but I want to package a party nite concept and sell it to clubs across the US as a way to cross promote our brand and partake in a little gorilla style anti marketing campaign. With the economy being what it is these days, creative solutions and out of the box thinking is going to have to be the way to survive and thrive during all this economic hub bub.
Thanks again to my favorite German boys for showing ajaxx63 off in such a great and big way!

Quitting Smoking at ajaxx63! Beware!

We are all about good health at ajaxx63...okay well maybe we are all about looking like we are healthy. And right now, all of us smoke and we are all going to quit 9/11/08. I know dramatic, but that is what we all all into right now, being dramatic and reclaiming our good looks...and our lungs good lucks. Sure we have all had a good run with smoking, hanging out in front of the Cuff, sitting in cafes pretending to read books,(Dez!) chilling by the company pool and so on. But no we are all hagged out wheezy booze bags and need to reel in the smoking and find another thing to occupy our time. The only thing I'w concerned about is my BF who last time he quit smoking he kicked a hole in the door to the bathroom at work. This time I hope he can do some on the fly anger management and chill before he destroys our ware house.

This is what ajaxx63 is into RIGHT NOW!

Seems like all the cool shit is coming from Seattle again. The kids are flipping out and creating some truly amazing sounds. Check out our favorite Seattle Bands, very different styles from each other but both cool in the same way. So the kids are alright!

Team Gina, with their new CD "Product of the 80's" is hot. Starting with its homage to Duran Duran's inimatiable Patrick Nagel album cover to its great simple lesbian chic rap beats coupled with simple stripped down casio styled music. Check out their video here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfQ_ptzFv7M
We love the leotards with baggy purple shirts off the shoulder...its what we are all into right now.

My other favorite Seattle band is Natalie Portman's Shaved Head or NPSH. These kids are hip, plugged in and very talented. Love their simple retro electronic style, their lyrics are pure hipster Seattle smarty pants. This might be the next logical step in the handing over of the old school B-52's crown to the next generation. We love them if only because these songs are fast and furious, like old school punk, but full of not ready for mainstream lyrics about guns, killing JT and loves of whales and beating kids up. Check out our favorite song "Sophisticated Side Ponytail" at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-gQL03u7mc
Update:
I just found out two weeks ago that NPSH use to practice in my buddy Jim's garage. How cool would that be to have these damn kids banging away in your garage. I wonder if he put on an apron and walked out there with a pitcher of Kool-Aid....and said"Hey you damn kids, take a break from all your music...I made you some refreshments!" Of course, I'm jealous of Jim for a number of reasons, #1.) I love NPSH. #2.) I wish sometimes my husband and I had kool kids of our own that would have musicians as friends that would need a place to play. and lastly, #3.) I wish I had a garage big enough for kids to be able to practice in....we can barely fit our lawn mower and one little tiny car in our miniscule Seattle garage!

Berlin Photo Shoot-Part 2

This post explains the murder aspect of the last post.

Berlin Photo Shoot-ajaxx63.de

From our buddies Carsten and Peter in Stuttgart at ajaxx63.de (The German offices of ajaxx63.)
Im not sure, exactly, what the concept was for this shoot, Im thinking hot boys in cool old bar, and then murder????
The boys in germany are naughty,fun,hung and a whole lot of nasty, not that is matters in the slightest, we are stuck here in the US not being able to run around around with these good natured perverts! I think a trip to Germany is deffinately on the company roster for Fall 2008!

KC Mendez Part 2