Peeping through windows? Peering into shopping trolleys? Fear not! The SLAMXHYPERS are here to feed our voyeuristic needs with I AM PACKED.
Having set up online menswear mecca SLAMXHYPE eight years back, Adam Bryce has long been at the virtual forefront. Establishing a fine-tasted, well-heeled gang of collaborators along the way, Adam and his team consistently dish out an impeccable curation of what’s topping the style stakes in the right here and right now. To call SLAMXHYPE a blog would be bullish, to brand it a fashion news site would be misguided, it’s a visceral, virtual publication for the sartorially savvy, modern man.
But enough about the newish, time for the newer. Spreading his slamming wings, Adam has hit the road, sea and sky with his latest venture, ‘I AM PACKED’. Flipping the focus onto you and I, I AM PACKED invites users to submit snapshots of their travel must-haves. With SLAM’s well-established, cosmopolitan following the submissions are pouring through cyber-space thick and fast. What are you waiting for? Unzip you napsacks and get snapping. But first join i-D online on our jolly journey with Adam Bryce…
Describe SLAMXHYPE… A curation of NOW stuff.
Describe I AM PACKED… A voyeuristic look at Travel.
Tell us a bit about where the idea for the new site came from? It really came from an obsession with travel. Whilst I’ve lived in London and NYC, I grew up in New Zealand which is essentially the end of the world. I aspired to be in amongst what I thought was the real world, have access to real things, so much so that I became obsessed with the notion of those consumer goods. It meant something more than just what they were – but a symbol of making it. I AM PACKED is really a combination of those things – a look at travel and all the consumerism we love and NEED. SLAMXHYPE came from the obsession with the goods themselves, I AM PACKED comes from the obsession with getting there to get the goods and experience the culture.
What did you learn from starting SLAMXHYPE that you’ve done differently with I AM PACKED? I’ve learnt so much over the past eight years of SLAMXHYPE but going into I AM PACKED, the biggest change is the community engagement aspect of the site. If I was to be honest with myself, the biggest mistake I’ve made with SLAMXHYPE is being too curatorial – I AM PACKED is purely for the reader in every sense. With SLAMXHYPE we’re very careful to post only what we as an editorial crew respect – I AM PACKED isn’t about us, it’s about the reader and content that’s really valuable to people.
What’s been your proudest moment from running SLAMXHYPE? I’m proud of the whole thing – especially the fact that in 2003 the idea was unique and exciting but we’ve managed to grow and develop and still be relevant and exciting today. For me personally, seeing high traffic numbers early on in the site’s life was pretty exciting and sitting back and thinking about how many people all over the world were reading was a real eye-opener. It’s like anything, the things you are most proud of change with growth, I was pretty excited being interviewed by The Wall Street Journal years ago, these days I’m probably more excited to have new guys coming through as contributors on the site and seeing them find their way.
If you were stranded on a desert island what record, book and luxury item could you not live without? Record – probably UNKLE, War Stories. Book – any of Matthew Barney’s Cremaster Cycles. Luxury item – does my iPhone count?
Whose suitcase would you most like to peek inside? Malcolm McLaren.
Tell us about your dream holiday destination? I probably should say some amazing lavish place, but I’ve just moved back to NZ from NYC and miss it, so I’d say NYC, and my dream travel companions would be Marina Abramovic, Joseph Beuys and Stella Schnabel.
Could you list your top three most coveted items right now? The older I get the less I geek out on clothes and things – but it will always be there…
1. Pretty much any Banks Violette piece.
2. Richardson A3 T-Shirt (Andrew..?)
3. Damir Doma crepe sole boots.
What’s next? I’ve been working on a new project for some time now which we hope to launch in the next few weeks. An online magazine which in a way is an extension of SLAMXHYPE and works towards that constant gap between the perception of print and digital media. I’ve been really interested in this gap over the years and having worked in both fields am really hoping to find ways to lessen the disconnect. POST-NEW.COM will do that through having production, brand and editorial qualities of print delivered in a digital world, but in a digital way. Fingers crossed.
Pack up your troubles and pop over to I AM PACKED to send your suitcase shots.
Text: Sean Baker
This is what Adam Bryce, Online Maestro, is packing.
This is what 