Around a month ago, the west end of Pearl Street was crawling with tight-panted/drastically banged girls and boys. It was scene in full force, something I’m admittedly and totally comfortable with- - but rarely confronted with in such throngs this side of Denver. Turns out, the root of the buzz was (commence “Jaws” soundtrack) Urban Outfitters, who had sent out a select number of invites to see ManMan play their Boulder store. The event was only one of a series of in-store concerts taking place around the country that were arranged to support the Free Yr Radio campaign, a collaborative effort between Urban Outfitters and Yaris to give back to college radio stations. As much as I hate saying good stuff about UO anywhere other than in my diary, I’m going relax my guard just long enough to throw some very serious support their way — because Lord knows indie-radio deserves some credit, and Urban/Yaris deserve credit for actually giving it to them. Free Yr Radio, which was officially kicked off at this year’s SXSW, helps to support indie radio through a series of events that generate funds and awareness for a handful of stations. Well-loved bands (like Klaxons, Tapes N’ Tapes, and Dinosaur Jr.) are putting on free shows at UO locations through the end of July. After the shows, the bands huddle up to customize a Yaris, then hand the Yaris off to a local station (who can then use the car to generate some funds). Even though this is a blatant marketing tactic (between two brands obviously in the market for hipster recognition), I still love it, because it once again demonstrates how big companies can do really, really good things. You can read up on the details of the campaign here, and see a full concert line-up after the jump… READ MORE…

Josh Kenyon, whose designs for clothing company Substratum some of our readers may be familiar with, just relaunched his personal portfolio site. Featuring examples from his areas of well-developed expertise (illustration, print, apparel and identity), Kenyon’s new site nicely highlights some of his best work to date, including some amazingly beautiful apparel and the custom wedding invitations pictured here. Josh is currently relocating to Chicago with his new wife (wait…I think those are HIS wedding invitations) where he’ll be starting a new job at Lakonic. We wish you the best of luck, Josh, and we’re looking forward to seeing what you come up with next!

It’s officially a happy Thursday, because today is the day we introduce Mike Luce, our new Chicago-based contributor that’s been filling the pages of Spearland with the kind of wit and wisdom one can only attribute to years of sometimes questionable, other times admirable choices.

Mr. Luce, a Kentucky native with an alluring background in English, Political Science, and Shenanigans, is an avid reader with a passion for dive-bars and Puma Sneakers. The spectacular series of events that have contributed to the formation of Mr. Luce as we currently know him include: a brief stint at Kenyon College in Ohio (ahem, Mike likes to party); a wise relocation to Chicago to attend Loyola University; a grown-up job working in client development within Fortune 500 companies; and a recently developing distaste for “The Man,” resulting in his most recent position in educational technology as he explores other “options.” When not exploring the “option” of problogging, Mike enjoys dabbling in art/design, skiing (even though he’s currently laid up with a busted knee), and offsetting existential angst by volunteering for non-profits. We’re incredibly thankful for Mike’s increasing contributions to JoshSpear.com (and are consistently impressed by his ability to pack 3 pages of information into one paragraph — seriously, dude, you’re making us look bad). Welcome to the team, Mike.

For years, you’ve supported your favorite indie bands; you’ve helped them grow in popularity by spreading rave reviews to friends, acquaintances and anyone in ear shot who will listen to you obsess over their must-listen-now status. You’ve also supported them financially, bolstering their bottom line by buying their albums and attending concerts. And because you have sweet, unselfish hearts you have done all this for free. But you’re Americans, so get with the program and get something out of it. Tagged as “Capitalism Done Right,” GoodStorm’s Mixtape connects bands and fans together and spreads the wealth. Users are able to create a play list of up to 100 songs from over 2.7 million tracks and then place it as a widget on a personal web site, blog, MySpace or Facebook page where visitors can purchase a track for a shade under a buck. Artists, who need to have signed up and uploaded their work for it to be used — so get uploading, kids — receive 65 cents. GoodStorm takes 29 cents, giving a portion of the profits to various charities and social initiatives like the Save Darfur campaign, proving philanthropically that capitalism, when done right, can be used for the greater good. You get to pocket the remaining 5 cents, which may sound like a meager commission but can add up quickly if your playlist rocks. Just think: If you had a nickel for every time…

–Mara Siegler

So much for hiding your cables: Britta Böhne’s Cable Carpet integrates them into a plush white pile to display them prominently on your floor, saving you not only from pitching face first over those pesky whatever-gaming-device-makes-you-gooey-this-week cords, but also from silent ridicule of your generic-slash-ugly-Ikea-rug from people who are both design snobs and also mean. Like me.

via GeekSugar