The reaction to the new line was everything we could have hoped for, including exclusives with Esquire and GQ. After the show ended we stayed on to explore and to be inspired by the city. Some of the best parts of NYC are in the understated buildings and parks that people walk by everyday.
Along the way we managed to get stuck in a shoe box of an elevator, walk Central Park, eat, visit MOMA, shop Soho and LES, eat, get into some trouble, spend time with good friends, and eat. Again.

This trip served many purposes; business, inspiration, and building new relationships. However the main purpose was to unite the team, to build its bonds, to push through this turbulent past year and to further inspire the way we see the world. Special thanks to Leland and the whole team at (A)zione for showing us a good time, to Alexis Gross for always being along for the ride, and to the Derelicte showroom for being the fore front of our brand.

If this doesn't make you want to go enjoy some So Cal slush and Sunny vibes I don't know what will.

Additional cameo shots by COMUNE snowboarder Colton Morgan.

Here's what Kevin had to say about the day:

So... Fresh off the plane I had the luxury of being picked up by my old Midwest brethren and COMUNE snowboarder Cameron Strand accompanied by the illustrious Ryan Wonfor. I jammed Tonya (his car) full with all my luggage and camera bags, with intentions of doing some boarding up at Bear. This is what happened during our two days of being bad with C'ron, Enjoy. - Kevin Castanheira

See more of Cameron and Colton snowboarding here: http://thecomune.com/visuals/psychicsecrets/

Here's what he had to say:

"Recently I took a trip to the Netherlands and ended my vacation in France. I grew up in Holland so it's always nice to be back and visit family. After all the family time, we travelled to Paris to visit friends and do some shopping. On top of all the splendor, we ate and we drank… Chocolate, bread, pork, coffee & Kroneberg 1664. Here are some photos from my trip."

-Mike Selsky

We rolled into town with the windshield wipers on full blast. Portland artist Zack Blei was willing to host the band in his art gallery. The band set up shop and handful of Portland music afficionados, artists, collectors, curators, and friends stopped by to see what PLG\VNDR was all about. Needless to say the boys put on another incredible performance and won over friends and fans alike. The show broke down into a full blown party and a night we wouldn't soon forget. PBR, pizza, Personal Pyramids, and Jim Beam were the guests of honor. In the morning we shook off our hang overs and hit the road back to sunny California to dry our bones of the rain and booze. Thanks to everyone who came out and partied with us and helped us along the way. Special thanks to Zack and Halley Mason at the "Painting is Dead" gallery for letting us cut loose and tear up your gallery. See ya on the road soon!

"My Tongue is so Treacherous" by Plague Vendor PLG\VNDR off the Free to Eat album.

The gallery was packed to the gills and we pulled the RV right up front and loaded in the gear through the crowd. By the time they played the gallery was at maximum capacity and people were hyped! The guys were well rested and put on a show to remember. All the girls were going nuts and the crowd was going off. PLG/VNDR played a full set including a couple new songs that are absolutely unbelievable. Can't wait for the new record to drop! After the show we packed all of our friends from COLOR magazine into the RV and headed over to the Waldorf hotel. The tiki bar at the Waldorf was absolutely going off. It must have been gangsta rap night or something because the place was bumping. Luckily the Plague Vendor guys know every word to every top 40 rap song ever written and were right at home on the dance floor. I'm not really sure what people thought and I'm happy nobody got in any fights. We dominated the dance floor with ridiculous moves that shouldn't go down in public. All in all it was a banner night and we were ready to hit the road and head to Portland for the next show.

See more about the Waldorf Hotel here: www.waldorfhotel.com
Check the first part of the story here: http://thecomune.com/2012/01/plague-vendor-kill-the-game-tour-vancouver-show-1/
See COLOR magazine here: www.colormagazine.ca

PLG\VNDR "Black Sap Scriptures":

The PLG\VNDR guys met me at COMUNE and we packed up the RV and U-Haul trailer. We lucked out with the Redondo Beach “Rollerblade Dad” graphic on the U-Haul. This provided entertainment at every stop. Plague Vendor being a new band didn’t really pack for the trip. Snacks, Source Magazine, one pillow, maybe a tooth brush and the band gear is pretty much all they brought with them. We stopped at a couple truck stop gas stations and picked up some supplies. We got some sleeping bags on sale, some candy, and the mandatory six packs of tall boys. The sixteen hour drive to Portland was relatively uneventful. Beers were terminated, snacks chomped, cigs smoked, and lots of rap music. Brandon was reading a copy of Source magazine and I asked him why he was reading Source if he’s in a rock band? He replied, “Just seeing what’s out there in the game, how are you gonna kill the game if you don’t know what’s out there?”. This saying provided hours of entertainment and became slang for just about everything. Things were going pretty good until I unfortunately realized that I forgot my passport. In the chaos of getting everything ready and making sure all the band guys had their passports, ID’s, money, etc. I realized that I had left my passport on my desk at the COMUNE office. After a brief internalized anxiety attack and meltdown my awesome girlfriend was able to get my passport same day delivered to me in Portland. So we chilled in Puddlesburg for the night and partied down with some old friends.

Once I had my passport in hand the next morning we were off to Canada land and hopefully able to cross the border with no hassle. Upon rolling up to the border we were greeted by a very friendly Canadian border patrol guy. He gave us a quick verbal shake down and then told us he had heard of COMUNE and let us through no problem. We were pretty relieved after hearing some boarder horror stories and since PLG\VNDR frontman Brandon Blaine just recently resolved some legal issues.

The next day we met up with COMUNE Canadian distributors Wickwinder Dist. Brad, Scott, and the whole crew. They are the nicest guys ever and showed us a good time. Vancouver BC is hands down one of the most beautiful cities in the world. It doesn’t even look real. That day we set up the “Throttled” photography exhibit and the PLG\VNDR guys helped out. That night we had a COMUNE/Color Magazine show booked at the historic Astoria Hotel in Vancouver. Apparently the Astoria Hotel has had a bunch of famous acts play there a million years ago. It was pretty seedy to say the least but the bartender was friendly and I ate one of the most delicious grease burgers I’ve ever had.

Check the yelp review on this spot, pure gold: www.yelp.com/biz/astoria-hotel-vancouver

Anyway COLOR Magazine and Wickwinder provided a bottomless amount of free PBR which we graciously took advantage of. We brought some Personal Pyramids with us and let people try them out. Personal Pyramids always weird people out and get people talking and joking around. Once the crowd was good and sauced Vancouver’s own High Drops played the first set. They were really rad guys and played some surfy psychadelic garage rock that really got us in the mood. Hopefully they’ll come visit us in LA and play some shows soon.

Check out the High Drops at: thehighdrops.bandcamp.com

When Plague Vendor finally came on, no one really knew what to expect. The guys had been cooped up in the RV for a day and a half and were ready to shred. Frontman Brandon Blaine quickly captivated the audience with his Jaggeresque swagger and the crowd went nuts. It’s always a pleasure to see an audience receptive of a new band. I just wanna kick the next arms crossed hipster I see at a show mean mugging the band. Anyway the show popped off and everyone was excited. We had great time and headed back to the hotel to chill for the night. First show accomplished…

In true COMUNE/Drop City fashion we shipped one of our refurbished 40 ft containers up to Vancouver’s Know?Show trade show and dropped it right in the convention center. Instant photography exhibit. Ray was too busy photographing old muscle cars in the dessert for an upcoming Dodge campaign to make it to the event. Luckily our Canadian distributors held down the fort and graciously hosted the exhibit.

Ray Gordon’s THROTTLED presents an intimate look at people that build and celebrate traditional hot rods and vintage motorcycles. The twenty-five or so large-scale color images tell stories of hitting the gas and having a laugh. Gordon takes us to the places where he is at home: drag strips, custom bike shops and secret forts where guys with grease under their fingernails seduce beautiful girls that know better but can’t resist the promise of danger. Way more than a peek under the hood, THROTTLED invites one and all to a way of life that’s as simple and fun as a fast ride, good friends and a couple of beers.

See more of Ray Gordon’s photography: raygordon.com