On the show this week, Koop Kooper broadcasts from the Viceroy hotel in Bali on a weeks vacation. In swank advice Koop talk about being a traveler rather than a tourist and he’ll introduce you to a new player in the Sydney lounge scene and details on a fantastic LA fashion show that you should check out.
By Chris
February 5th, 2012
On the show this week, Koop Kooper replay a 1994 interview with Etta James, swank advice on Bow Ties, news on a lost Ed Wood film that has been rediscovered and new music from Sydney vocalist Angie Hubbard from her brand new album Some Kind Of Daydream.
By Chris
January 29th, 2012
Ultra Swank – Your one stop blog for retro living, style and design
Ultra Swank takes you back in time into the kitsch, chic and swank living of the 50s, 60s and the 70s. We mainly focus on the design, architecture and the lifestyle of the happy-go-lucky and space-age-living mentality of that era – but also on the music and movies that takes you back to happier times. Ultra Swank is run by Chris, a Swede born in the wrong decade that currently resides in Barcelona. Read more
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On the show this week, Koop Kooper checks out the Ohana Luau at the lake, reviews OSS 117 and play some music from the film. Takes a look at the world of swank with some great gigs and parties to attend plus the usual swank advice. Back on the radio for another week as we broadcast from the centre of Sydney in the Hi Fi stereophonically gadgeted up Penthouse.
By Chris
January 22nd, 2012
On the show this week, Koop Kooper introduce you to a man who is going to join us once a month by the name of Kramer to talk about lounging movies. News from author Bill Raetz, swank advice on what to bring to a dinner party, a look at the world of swank with some great gigs to check out and info on a book about When The Mob Ran Vegas.
By Chris
January 15th, 2012
Mid-century retro goes by many names — Retro culture; Atomic culture — and it sometimes overlaps with many other subcultures like kustom kulture (i.e. hot rod & rockabilly fans); tiki culture, and even Goth. My preferred term for this subculture is Lounge Revival.
To the outside observer, it would seem that the only thing your average Lounge Revivalist is interested in is dressing up in old clothes and drinking himself silly in a bar that has seen better days. And while Jeff “Beachbum” Berry’s popular cocktail books would reinforce that idea, in truth not every lush is a Lounge Revivalist. (And not every Lounge Revivalist is a lush.)
No, regardless of their chosen flourishes — rockabilly, tiki, noir, what lies in the heart of a true Lounge Revivalist is a romantic streak and a wistful love of things others have discarded. You can see it in the woman wearing a Jackie Kennedy pill box hat, in the man sporting a pair of leopard creepers, or even in the noirish goth-a-billy guy buying old Esquivel! records at the thrift store for $10 a stack. Australian DJ Koop Kooper would call all these people members of Cocktail Nation.
November 30th, 2011
For some people, the term Burlesque is something that is associated with a exciting, stylish and perhaps also a little more innocent time. But as many things from the past it is being revived and has for the past years made a grand return with lush sets, glamorous costumes, swinging music, cool lighting and of course luscious women moving in rhythm to the crooners’ finger snaps. Meet Gentry de Paris, Burlesque performer, fashionista, entrepreneur and director of the Gentry de Paris Revue in… yes you guessed it, Paris, France. Ultra Swank sits down to talk with her to find out more about how she is bringing back the style of times gone by.
By Chris
March 19th, 2010
FIFTY YEARS AGO, 1958 — the jet age officially makes its mark in history with the launch of the Boeing 707. Jet planes could fly to their destinations non stop, cheaper and faster than before. Air travel was now longer not restricted only to people of wealth. “Fly me friendly”, “coffee, tea or me?” We have all heard it before, stewardesses with big smiles, elegant outfits and long legs making sure that your trip is an unforgettable experience. But what was it really like? Is there any truth behind how air travel was portrayed in its golden days? Ultra Swank travels back to 1970 to talk to former Pan Am stewardess Valerie Waterman.
By Chris
May 28th, 2008
