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syndRoMe
luke cho and adam rajcevich have the cure for what ails your wardrobe.
Words: morgan harris
I’ve spent more weekends than I’d like to admit aimlessly wandering city
streets, searching for the item that will both affirm my connection to and
set me apart from the masses. It’s part of the culture of the urban hunter/
gatherer; it’s as significant, in its own way, as whittling fertility figurines of
soapstone may have once been.
Certain brands, once discovered, can keep you forever one-upping your
friends in the cool clothing department–Syndrome is one of them. Since
2001, the Chicago-based line has been making inroads in an industry
dominated by the two coasts, shocking underground fashion heads with
eye-catching graphics and close attention to fit and cut. The finished products
subtly speak of a commitment to keeping tongue firmly in cheek, be it
through smirking slogans (tees have read “I Love You In A Real Bad Way”
and “Air. Help Yourself ”) or color palettes chosen according to instincts
rather than trend reports.
Syndrome founder Luke Cho and his right-hand man Adam Rajcevich
have a full-on, vertically integrated studio set up in the River West neigh-
borhood; they’re able to do everything from custom mixing screenprint colors
to cutting and sewing garments from scratch. “It seems like we import
everything these days,” says Cho, a staunch believer in doing it yourself. “I
think it’s time to look for the ‘Made in the USA’ label and help our domestic
economy.” To that end, Syndrome’s recent collections have used world-class
Chicago designers including Creative Rescue Organization’s Ray Noland,
Kelly Marie Breslin (Melk) and Cody Hudson.
Even with distribution in more than 100 stores worldwide and a women’s
line on the way, Syndrome is still somewhat under the radar. But Rajcevich
says he prefers a slow build to a meteoric rise: “We’ve been able to do really
well [that way], whereas some brands come in real fast and die out real
hard,” he explains.
www.syndrome.us
What’s youR favoRite ChiCago institution? Luke Cho: Untitled clothing store (I’m a part-owner) and Gramaphone Records.
dante CaRfagna
a 45 collector keeps funk alive with a magic touch.
Words: patrick sisson photo: mireya acierto
Dante Carfagna (right) with Sheer Magic’s Courtland Green
A dimly lit bar tucked into a Chicago side street,
Danny’s Tavern normally draws a laid-back bohemian
crowd. But on the first Wednesday of each
month, Dante Carfagna and the Sheer Magic
crew dust off some old vinyl and create a bassheavy,
funk-fueled ruckus.
“I’ve never considered myself a DJ,” says the
modest-to-a-fault Carfagna. “I have some interesting
records that people want to hear, so I’m
a DJ by default.” Yet his sets aren’t your average
musical history lessons. Carfagna could be called
the Indiana Jones of vinyl archeology due to the
amount of rare funk and soul records he’s rescued
from obscurity.
The Sheer Magic nights–started in Kansas City
by Carfagna’s friend Courtland Green before
both of them moved up to Chicago–provide the
public with a chance to sample some of the gems
of Carfagna’s massive collection. Though many
may boast it, Sheer Magic really does play stuff
that won’t be heard anywhere else.
In addition to the typical record collector
m.o. of scouting record fairs and gabbing with
other music fans, Carfagna’s passion has gotten
him involved in almost every aspect of recorded
music–he’s a guest editor for collecting bible Wax
Poetics, he’s released instrumental hip-hop under
the Express Rising moniker and he’s helped
put together reissue albums for labels like the
Quannum-affiliated Cali-Tex. Currently, he’s in
the process of assembling a massive book about
funk 45s with fellow record fetishist Josh Davis,
better known as DJ Shadow. “Josh and I discussed
the fact that some would consider this task a
What is youR favoRite ChiCago institution? Dante Carfagna: Steve Batinich, owner of the Record Dugout.
lifetime’s work,” said Carfagna, “and here we are
trying to fit it into our normal schedules.”
Born in 1974 in Columbus, Ohio, Carfagna
started feeding his crate-digging habit as a kid
with money he made delivering newspapers. By
the time he was a teenager and living in Miami,
he was spinning obscure, rarified records. One
day, Public Enemy’s Professor Griff happened to
be walking by the apartment building Carfagna
was living in, and Griff was so intrigued by the
music Carfagna was playing that he had to knock
on the door to discover what they were (two Ruth
Copeland LPs).
“It was not a snake charmer moment, though
I’d like to think of it that way,” says Carfagna.
www.ohiosoulrecordings.com
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