Mark Lyndersay - one of my old Media colleagues from Trinidad - does unassuming, but poignant work in the press. His latest project with the Trinidad Guardian is a photo-essay on the costume construction process that took place with the popular Carnival band, Tribe.
The shots take you from conception to completion, and through the many stages of building, reassessing, planning and such - a rare 'behind-the-scenes' glimpse of the Mas' camp happenings in Trinidad.
He's great at getting those action shots where he captures people doing their thing, without drawing attention to himself; if you look sharp at the bottom right hand corner of the pic above, you'll see that he's even caught me on the job, with my dreadlocks and blue bandeau top!
Look out for the splash in the pages of the Guardian today, or get more shots here.
Beyond the fact that I am no Sir Richard Branson or Oprah Winfrey, just looking at stacks of money and wondering what to do next, I am perplexed about which expensive Carnival Costume I should choose, and which band I should play with, if I do. There are just too many bands around this year -at least 4 are strong possibilities - and all are overpriced in my opinion.
Here's the scene. So Island People Mas with their presentation of 'Heaven on Earth' is already sort of a no-no for me, because of their multitude of issues: they just treat their masqueraders too poorly, their costumes ain't all that, and they're always nursing some behind-the-scenes bacchanal that somehow manages to seep out into the whole band.
Tribe with 'Birds of a Feather' is really a strong possibility for 2009, but all of their uber-expensive sections are booking up so damn fast, that I'm hoping my last few options don't go off the shelf by the time I've gathered up my pennies.
Then there are the others. Spice mas' 'The Missing Ingredient' is very, very appealing for a newbie, but their designs don't warrant the prices of the costumes in all instances, and I feel as if it's going to be a huge gamble, putting my aforementioned pennies on them.
The other newbies, such as Elements (portraying Casino), Evolution (Temptations), Kaotic (Can't recall), and whichever other band, don't move me enough to even put the links to their sites.
Another relative newbie who's a dark horse in the race is Ronnie & Caro with 'Bakkanal'; their launch is on August 29th and their designs are simple but pack a serious punch! Brian MacFarlane - whose band has not officially launched, and whom we shall no longer refer to as a pseudo Peter Minshall, as he is attempting to do his own design thing these days - is a sure bet. But in reality, I can only wholeheartedly devote myself to playing mas' in yardage upon yardage of cloth and theatrics, if it is with Peter Minshall!
So what shall I do? I've put up the pics of my possibilities thus far. Kindly peruse and tell me what you think...
I am not a 'Triber' as some people who identify with the super Trinidadian Carnival band, Tribe, call themselves. But I became one in spirit last night, when I attended their private media and band launch at Pier 1, Trinidad, as they revealed their c2k9 presentation 'Birds of a Feather.'
One word: FIERCE! Lets say it again, folks: F-I-E-R-C-E!!! As was expected, the Tribe designers made all the plume distributors and merchants very happy people with bulging wallets, as the costumes fluttered and flounced with a multiplicity of feathers, just as the very birds who inspired the designs.
One costume out of the lot stood out to me - that fantastic pink feathered creation called 'The Caged Canary'. Look out for it amongst my favourites above. Fierceness, indeed people; that pink is going to be absolutely radiant under the Carnival Monday & Tuesday sun, like a perpetual blush!
Now, I'm not one for flights of fancy in my posts - pardon the semi pun - but if you'd like a more detailed, albeit subjective view of the launch, check outSaucy Trini's blogfor the scoop. I will tell you this, however, the launch displayed exactly why 'Tribers' gladly give up the lion's share of, or their entire salary in some instances to play with the band - the Tribe team has a finesse about how they do what they do.
Let me elaborate a bit: as patrons entered the grounds that was transformed to resemble an aviary of sorts, there was either an actual parrot or a recording that cackled "Welcome to Tribe! Welcome to Tribe!" There were various exotic birds in cages amongst the foliage, peeking out at patrons, and the decor was all about keeping that 'winged' vibe alive.
Indeed, I have to agree with the dynamic duo - Blaze & Jason of Red 96.7fm - hosts of the media launch, when they observed that a few of Trinidad's most beloved and revered birds were missing from the Tribe band launch.
Where was the 'Yard Fowl'?! And what about the Wet, Game or Frizzle Fowl,the Duck, the Pigeon, the Parrot, the Egret, and the Corbeaux, or as we tend to say 'De Cobo'?! It's almost as if the Tribe folks are indicating that the 'Birds of a Feather' are only a select set, and not the usual fare that hangs around POS. Hmmm... Something to think about, people?
Anyways, I'll be posting a more detailed review with some choice pics across on My Caribbean Gateway , so look out for that. In the meantime, check out the pics and links, and enjoy!
Well... Can you? This is going to be one of the blazing hot looks on the roads for Carnival 2k9 in Trinidad. I dunno if I can pull this off - I feel as if I take one jump my boobs will be flying all over the place!
Designed by the Spice Carnival team for their debut presentation "The Missing Ingredient", the costume above, Paprika, is an unforgiving one. If you've got to ask yourself if you could possibly fit all your 'stuff' into that bra, Paprika is not for you.
I checked out the official launch and private viewing party last Saturday at the Zen nightclub in Trinidad - thanks to the Kearline, Anya and the entire Spice Team - and it was well produced and tightly organized to say the least.
I'll be putting up an official review on www.MyCaribbeanGateway.compretty soon - I'm waiting to compare and contrast with the much anticipated Tribe band launch of 'Birds of a Feather' that's carded for this comming saturday, so look out for that.
