411 Volume 3 Issue 3

Words by ATMurrell

Random 411 Stuff

The new 411 is the "Unofficial Popwar Issue." It reminds me of the Ipath Preview DVD for the one reason that they both focus on style and having fun with skateboarding. It's very good - much better than last issue (even though that issue was nothing to scoff at).

It starts out with the openers section and it's pretty much just bits and pieces from the following skaters: Alex Carolino, Kenny Reed, Mike Barker, and Guru Khalsa all had pretty cool stuff.

The first 'real' section is "Popwar Wigs Out," which is just a montage of the Popwar team. Holy crap, their video is going to be PHENOMANAL if this is just throwaway footage. Some main things I noticed is that Justin Strubing's skating will never bore me. Most of John Newport's footage was already in the Ipath DVD. Cairo Foster definitely lacked here - he had a line and three tricks. Aaron Johnson was definitely the ATV of the group - he skated just about everything. The other ams (Adam Crew, Nick Lister, and Jody Smith) had some good stuff, but overall, they didn't stand out much. And Kenny Reed is full of both style and originality.

A short commercial break comes next, and you should watch it just for Mike Rusczyk's footage in the Duffs ad - it's sick. After that is "What About Rob?" which documents Rob Gonzalez's world travels, including places like Mexico, Russia, and Europe. There are lots of ledges and wallrides and he does A LOT of lines. This part also includes guest appearances by the Listen team. I don't know why, but this section sort of bores me. Who knows - maybe it'll grow on me.

Following Rob is "Meet the Barker." Mike Barker, that is. This is his debut part and a damn good one at that. I really like his lines, his style, and his choice in spots. Check the gap bs 5-0 gap out on the scaffolding, the switch varial flip manual to drop, and the alley-oop bs kickflip off the bump. He's one to watch out for.

"Don't Mess with Guru" is another debut part from an upcoming am, this one from Texas native Guru Khalsa. Like Aaron Johnson, his part has a little bit of everything in it. He has a bit of a 'rasta' style, but he doesn't overdo it. My favorite tricks were the gap nollie varial flip to manny and the switch blunt on the Tranquility rail in Houston. His bs flips are really good, also. Like Mike, he's definitely one to watch for.

"Good Times Gone Chad" was Chad Tim Tim's footage and it was definitely my favorite part. He is as good (if not better) switch as he is regular. The nollie shove nose manual to nosegrind was really original and the bs wallride off the bump was AMAZING. His music choice was pretty cool, too.

The second commercial break was next. This is where you're reeeeal grateful for the skip button on the DVD remote. The final section is "Flo n' Alex," which is Florentin Marfaing's and Alex Carolino's shared part. They skate a lot of new Euro spots that aren't blown out (yet). Both of them have AMAZING pop and AMAZING style. Flo's 360 flip noselide down the Le Dome hubba was sick and Alex's switch pop-shove revert over a bench off flat was perfect...and a PERFECT way to end the video.

Overall, the new 411 is a fun vid to watch and a great bargain for your money. It still comes with the 32 page zine, music sampler, and poster, just like last issue. Also included is Round 1 of 411 Versus. However, I'm not feeling the box set-up. Putting holes in the box is just stupid since it allows the DVD to get damaged. But with that one thing aside, this is a great video, and definitely worth your money.

Click here to get 411 Volume 3 Issue 3

Andrew