Steam & Rye Launch

Last night I went to check out the new venue Steam & Rye on Leadenhall Street opened by Kelly Brook & Nick House. Situated within the old converted New York Bank the venue features a large open main space dressed to look like Grand Central Station during the 1920s complete with train carriages containing booths as well as a basement and loft space. With a fun, friendly music policy and some brilliantly eccentric cocktails, not to mention a very well done American food menu I'm sure this will be a hit.

http://steamandrye.com/

Mischa Barton London Store Opening

Last night Mischa Barton threw a little pre-launch party sponsored by Johnny Walker Gold Label at her new boutique in Spitalfields London and I went along to say hi and check it out. The boutique is located in the heart of East London and will be selling Mischa's range of clothing, makeup and handbags (which are already into their ninth season). I know she's a big fan of East London so this is the perfect place for the store, and the garments are all affordably priced and the store sits nicely alongside the surrounding boutiques that Spitalfields has become known for. Check out some pictures below of Mischa & I and Conan Mockasin performing, with some special guest vocals... (click to see full size)

The Mischa Barton boutique opens tomorrow, but will have an official launch day on Saturday 11 August - during which customers will have the chance to meet Mischa, and enjoy 10 per cent off all purchases along with a glass of celebratory champagne.

Ping Launch Party

Last night saw the official launch party of the new concept venue in Earl's Court from Alex Potter, Fraser Shipsides, Johnny Boud and Stevie Thomas. Ping pong, pizza and cocktails come together in a grand space mixing boho chic with underground cool. The pizzas are hand made, delicious and surprisingly competitive in price. £7 will get you a pizza or a cocktail and the choices are varied and unique. We love it and are already looking forward to going back! The license is until 2am so we expect some kicking parties coming up too.

Rankin x Ayami Nishimura

Yesterday Rankin celebrated the release of his second book in his beauty trilogy which sees him collaborating with different makeup artists, previously Alex Box and now Japanese born Ayami Nishimura. The book was a labour of love and precision, taking two and a half years to complete and the images are striking, with bold use of colour and a futurist tone. You can order the book from Amazon for £34.99 and it's available now. A selection of photographs were on display at the Annroy gallery last night for the launch party and will stay on display until the 31st of August, check out some of my pics below (click to view full size):

Dash Magazine

Wednesday saw the launch of Dash Magazine, with a gallery event on Vyner Street showcasing and selling artwork and an afterparty sponsored by Pernod Absinthe that I hosted and DJ'd as part of my weekly Wednesday nights at the W Hotel London. The magazine itself is a fashion and culture magazine with a very artistic eye. Interviews in the launch issue include Francois Berthoud, Kate Moss, Junior Boys and myself. I highly recommend you check it out!

DSTRKT London Opening

I attended the opening of new London club DSTRKT on Thursday located on Rupert Street in Leicester Square and from the folks that brought us Whisky Mist & Mahiki. It's a huge space with a club/lounge area, a bar and a restaurant serving a European fusion menu, which guests were able to sample for free at the launch, created by American chef George Yanaff of SLS Hotels. Oh and it apparently cost £25million to create. I have to say I love the vibe inside and I'm looking forward to coming back very soon.

To find out more about DSTRKT head over to their OFFICIAL WEBSITE and check out a few photos I took below:

OnePiece UK Launch Party at Shoreditch House

OnePiece had their official UK launch party at Shoreditch House on Monday, with my friends Natt Weller, Jesse Burgess & Fin Munro DJing. I went along for some rooftop fun and to pick up a free OnePiece of my own! The UK store has opened across the street as part of BoxPark, the world's first pop-up mall. At £120 these OnePieces certainly ain't cheap but according to their press pack, which I had a little flick through, everyone's wearing them! And by everyone I mean Justin Beiber and an endless array of minor celebrities. If you want to see what Perez Hilton looks like wearing a Onesy then click HERE to see the press pack for yourself.

Thanks for the gift OnePiece, it's been keeping us snug and lazy. Here are some photos I took at the party:

OnePiece Official Website

BoxPark Official Website

Le Baron London

One of Paris' hottest clubs, Le Baron, has just touched down in London and last night they threw a little party ahead of their official opening tonight. We certainly had fun. Having DJ'd for Le Baron already in Paris I knew this place would be great and it is. Tucked away on Old Burlington Street I have no doubt this will be a hot spot for those in the know.

A New iPhone Cometh

Yesterday Apple sent out some private invites to their London Covent Garden Store & their US California Headquarters saying "Let's Talk iPhone". At 6pm GMT press gathered at Apple Covent Garden to see Phil Schiller, Apple's senior vice president, unveil the new iPhone 4S via videolink.

The new iPhone 4S looks identical to the iPhone 4 but runs on the same 1GHz A5 dual core processor as the iPad 2, with increased WiFi speeds and an hour more talk time with the battery. It also comes with both GSM and CDMA radio capability, making it a world phone device. It also utilizes the new iOS 5 operating system with a unified notifications section that lets you view your notifications across e-mail, text, calender & social networking sites in one place, a new messaging service called iMessage, Twitter integrated deep into the OS so that using Twitter is a lot quicker and easier and iCloud, which syncs all of your information and preferences, including your files & music, across your devices as you wish through a wireless connection. The camera has also been upgraded to 8 megapixels instead of 5 and the video recorder now records in full HD at 1080p and 30fps.

The biggest new addition is Siri, a voice-recognition software integrated into the new phone across the entire operating system which answers questions, carries out commands and even dictates anywhere where text can be input. Siri was first unveiled by independent software company D7 back in 2009, after which Apple snapped it up and bought it and now it's being directly implemented into the iPhone. Siri was previously available for free download as a stand-alone app that has now been removed, making it exclusive to the iPhone 4S at the moment.

iOS 5 is due for release on October 12th while the iPhone 4S is scheduled for release two days later on October 14th in the US and UK, as well as Canada, Australia, France, Germany & Japan, and available for pre-order from the 7th of October. It will come in 16, 32 and 64 GB models priced from $199 to $399 on contract.

Here is a side-by-side comparison between the iPhone 4S, the iPhone 4 and another leading smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy S II:

Forever 21 Launch Party

Last night saw the pre-launch of the new Forever 21 store opening in London, with a big carnival-themed party at the Old Sorting Office. I headed over to say hello to the face of the UK branch and rising star Bip Ling who I found spinning records to a colorful crowd of party-goers. Fun! The store opens next Thursday and you can find the official UK website HERE.

Bip Ling & myself behind the decks

Strike a pose!

Peace

No party is complete without girls on rollerskates

Working carousel

Queuing at the burger van

Stormtroopers in Stilettos

Last week I was invited to the launch of an exhibition called Stormtroopers in Stilettos at the Old Truman Brewery on London's Brick Lane where guests included Brian May, Foo Fighters and Jessie J; the exhibition charts the formation and rise of the band Queen, taking an in-depth behind-the-scenes look into the band's activity. Featuring extensive information including background history, facts and quotes, interactive audio/visual pieces and plenty of memorabilia including original costumes by Zandra Rhodes and the studio set-up from the first John Peel sessions, the exhibit features plenty to see.

Stormtroopers in Stilettos begins a year long celebration marking the 40th anniversary of Queen's formation in 1971 and will be followed by a new BBC documentary featuring rare interviews with Roger Taylor and Brian May as well as the filming and production of a Hollywood film starring Sacha Baron Cohen as Freddie Mercury, scripted by acclaimed screenwriter Peter Morgan (The Queen, Frost/Nixon). Entry to Stormtroopers in Stilettos at Old Truman Brewery on Brick Lane, London, E1, is free of charge and open from 11.00AM until 8.00PM daily until the 12th of March. I highly recommend you check it out!