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Nathan Hamill's LAVABEAN

Nathan Hamill's LAVABEAN

Nathan Hamill is coming to Chicago for ReedPop's C2E2 on April 1 & 2! 

Pop-artist set to debut new toys and coffee at events with partners Threadless, Dark Matter Coffee, Fender Guitars, and pop gallery ROTOFUGI.

Nathan will be hosting a number of activities to connect with fans at the Threadless booth on Saturday April 1st. In addition to signing toys and comics, Hamill is celebrating the launch of his own signature Coffee Cold with Chicago based coffee roaster Dark Matter Coffee, based on his Vinyl toy LAVABEAR called 'LAVABEAN.' 

Hamill is also partnering with Fender Guitars to give away an artist edition Malibu Player acoustic guitar. Nathan will customize the guitar with his signature art style and raffle it off for convention attendees at the Threadless booth. Threadless will fulfill the raffle by the end of the convention. The guitar is valued at $500.

Then on Sunday, April 2nd, Nathan will be debuting a new vinyl toy, Drorgs: Ooze Ed at Chicago pop culture gallery ROTOFUGI. Shirts, toys, and coffee based on Hamill’s work will be available for sale.

Nathan Hamill is an artist from Los Angeles with an affinity for large eyed creatures, ranging from cute to macabre, bashful to bellicose. He was raised on a healthy diet of cartoons, comics, movies, and toys, which informed his personality and artistic sensibilities. Nathan worked at Matt Groening's Bongo Entertainment as a colorist and writer from 2005 to 2014, working on titles like Bart Simpson, Futurama, and the Library of Wisdom series. Nathan designed and released his own line of vinyl toys with characters like LAVABEAR, Boris the Raccoon, and Bellicose Bunny, which have been distributed and sold internationally.

Visit http://nathanhamill.com/ for more on Nathan and his art.

March 16, 2023 — Kyle Hodges
Tags: Lavabear Nathan Hamill

Whole Foods Exclusive: Calidad!

Woah! Hey there! You've stumbled onto something rare in this day and age. Something that seeks to not only exceed standards and expectations, but to set the standard and expectation for things to come. 'Calidad' is Spanish for quality: a word that we here at Dark Matter Coffee take to heart. Quality is more than just a finished product, it's a way of life. It's an action, not an idea. Quality is attained through relationships in both prosperity, and - even more so - in struggle.

We strive to build relationships with companies and individuals who share this value. Finding quality partners is what we do. Quality is why we bring you this collaboration with Whole Foods Market. We've enjoyed our relationship with Whole Foods for over a decade, and look forward to the quality work we can continue to do together. You can find our coffee across the country in their fine shops, like our Love Supreme, Unicorn Blood, Starry Eyes, or select single origins. What you'll find inside this bag is nothing less than the gold standard you've come to expect from us, and them. 

The artwork was provided by artist and creator Chris Uphues, known for his works that rekindle the childlike imagination in all of us. From cheery hearts and cosmic rainbows to mushroom and turtle furniture, put some of his art in your home by visiting his shop HERE.
February 03, 2023 — Jake Kryshak

Museum of Post Punk and Industrial Music

 

The outer bag of the collector's edition of this acid-free Museum coffee is screen printed onto sandpaper. What an amazing – abrasive idea! Except it has already been done: The Durutti Column's 1980 release on Factory Records – had sandpaper glued onto the outer cover (it is said by members of Joy Division while Ian Curtis watched porn) The idea was that it would slowly destroy the release to the left and the release to the right. An AMAZING unbelievably original idea! Except that it was itself  "inspired" by Situationist: Guy Debord whose book ‘Mémoires’ was released in 1959 – in a sandpaper cover. 

And there you are, we've stumbled into the most important weapon of all: education, and that's what the museum is all about. Well, that and inspiring people to do stuff and fucking up the basic idea of a museum. 
Ironic, then that, in the act of questioning everything (punk and post-punk) and finding new ways to do things (industrial) from making noise to instruments and communities and tribes and slightly destroying the idea of a museum – I think we have created the beginnings of a very useful one. Perhaps in the same way that Dark Matter Coffee has questioned the machinery of a coffee company, built a new one across continents, and inspired us, giving us a reason to be better to all involved in the process as we drink more coffee and build the next glorious thing together. 


 

Our collaboration with our pal Martin Atkins and the Museum of Post Punk & Industrial Music is a testament to the legacy, tenacity, and sheer fucking audacity of innovators and contrarians everywhere - and especially at the points where their paths inevitably cross. Propped up near 35th and Halsted in Bridgeport, the PPIM chronicles the legacy of industrial music and Martin's time on the road with bands like Public Image Ltd, Pigface, and Nine Inch Nails. Read more about the museum and our friend Martin here, via NPR
January 27, 2023 — Jake Kryshak
Tags: Martin Atkins Music Collaborations
It's A Riot! Dark Matter Coffee 2022 Riot Fest Collaborations

It's A Riot! Dark Matter Coffee 2022 Riot Fest Collaborations

TAKING BACK SUNDAY X DARK MATTER COFFEE

 

COFFEE WITHOUT THE 'E'

Our first collaboration can for Riot Fest is with Long Island's own Taking Back Sunday. Most famous for their incredible run of records Tell All Your Friends (which is celebrating it's 20th anniversary this year), Where You Want To Be, and Louder Now, these guys helped to forge and define the 2000's rock scene. With a number of hits under their belt and 20+ years as a band, you'd think any band would be satisfied with resting on their laurels, but Taking Back Sunday continues to crank out high-quality rock as recently as 2016's Tidal Wave.

The Blend

The blend contains two different Guatemalan beans from our friends at Finca San Jeronimo. A washed Sarchimor makes up the base of this blend with a honey processed Catuai being a bright accent coffee. Together they create a nutty, sweet coffee cold with notes of baking spice. 

 

 

THE WONDER YEARS X DARK MATTER COFFEE

THE BUZZ GOES ON FOREVER

Our collaboration with The Wonder Years shares artwork with their September 2022 album, The Hum Goes On Forever on Hopeless Records. The Hum Goes on Forever is filled with emotional punk fused with pop sensibility, with the a more mature sad-yet-hopeful lyricism than their previous work.

The Coffee

The artwork reminds us of the beautiful beaches and sunsets of El Salvador, inspiring the coffee used for this collaboration. For this coffee cold, there is just one coffee inside, a honey processed Bourbon from Santa Petrona in El Salvador. Federico's attention to detail with processing is showcased in this juicy, complex Bourbon that is shade dried on raised beds to maximize the fermentation of all the sticky, sweet mucilage on the pulped coffee.
September 23, 2022 — Jake Kryshak
Tags: coffee cold Music Music Collaborations Riot fest
The Black Angels x Dark Matter Coffee - A Wilderness of Mirrors

The Black Angels x Dark Matter Coffee - A Wilderness of Mirrors

BLACK ANGELS X DARK MATTER COFFEE

Dark Matter Coffee is proud to announce our collaboration with The Black Angels, and our own limited vinyl variant of their new album, Wilderness of Mirrors. 

THEIR SIXTH ALBUM AND FIRST IN FIVE YEARS, 

Wilderness of Mirrors is The Black Angel's most adventurous and impressive album yet. While their signature fuzzed-out and delirium-inducing brand of psychedelic rock remains intact, Wilderness of Mirrors also sees the band expanding their sonic vision beyond the furthest horizons with the addition of acoustic guitar-driven dirges, string arrangements, keyboards, and PLENTY of Mellotron.  Stuffed to the gills with rich texture and defiant, heavy riffs, Wilderness of Mirrors reflects the tumult, struggle, and chaos of the last five years and weaves them into 15 tracks that force the listener to recognize their place in the new age of wilderness, gnawing at the edges of society and begging a return to primordial instinct. This is a record you can't afford to miss.

FOR THE COFFEE, 

We combined washed Bourbon and Pacas from El Salvador to lay down a sweet-chocolate and nutty foundation, with Yellow Icatu rounding out the mix and adding a playful, mysterious earthy quality reminiscent of freshly-steeped black tea. Much like the record it's paired with, this blend is built on elements familiar to the DMC oeuvre, but with plenty of depth to find delights not experienced before. 

 

 

September 23, 2022 — Jake Kryshak
Tags: Black Angels Music Music Collaborations Vinyl

Dark Matter Coffee Collaborates with Ty Segall

The Collaboration

Ty Segall

Out in Topanga, way down in the canyon,
They've got their own way of getting high. It's called music,
And at Ty Segall's Harmonizer Studios, it's happening day-in and day-out.

 

It's been a year and a half since the doors blew open, and all sorts of records have been cut and some released since then - but now, with the studio's tender maiden recordings, a sun-baked collection of acoustically-rooted gems called "Hello, Hi" seeing the first light of day, it's a special, celebratory moment - resetting the reset, adjusting the lens of the present with some catalytic materials of recent vintage. In other words, it's time to cop a blend! Because, as Ty himself told Uncut about making the record, "It just felt right to pick up the acoustic again, drink some coffee, and just get there." And therein lies the other half of the high - music plus coffee, playing in your mind. Nothing unnatural there, right?

And so Ty, in partnership with the highly-aligned palates in the Dark Matter Coffee Laboratory, is proud to put his brand on this blend of Central American coffees, each one roasted and or toasted to provide an essential coffee drinking experience - balancing chocolate and citrus with sunlight, glinting off the sand and the saltwater pools. 

 

About Ty Segall

Where do we even start with this guy? Ty has been releasing music since 2008 both as a solo musician and in a plethora of bands and has firmly cemented himself at the forefront of the current garage music boom. With over a dozen albums under his own name, 3 more as a part of Fuzz, a couple of Levitation live sessions as the Ty Segall Band, and a couple of collaboration records with White Denim, the sheer body of work he's managed to release is impressively staggering. And if you think that's intimidating, know it's only a fraction of what he's put out. Do yourself a favor and check out a few tracks from across his career below, just prepare to have your face melted beyond repair.

About the Blend

Ty Segall Bag
We wanted to create an easy-drinking coffee, to reflect on the take-it-easy approach Ty applies to his music. So, we got to work, blending together two Guatemalan coffee beans with sweet, fudgy profiles. First to hit the blend was a washed Catuai (a cross between highly productive Mundo Novo and compact Caturra), making up the base. Next up is a washed processed Sarchimor (otherwise known as T5296), bringing in brighter, citrusy notes, perfect for that front-porch jam session. Both coffees from this blend (Sarchimor variety and Catuai variety) have gone through washed processing, a wet process where outer skin and mucilage are removed from the coffee seed, and then patio dried.

Coffee 1
Country: Guatemala
Farm: San Jeronimo Miramar
Cultivar: Catuai
Process: Washed
Coffee 2
Country: Guatemala
Farm: San Jeronimo Miramar
Cultivar: Sarchimor
Process: Washed
Notes: Tangerine, Milk Chocolate, Pecan Pie
Net Weight: 12oz
August 11, 2022 — Jake Kryshak
Tags: Music Music Collaborations Ty Segall

Electrified Brain with Municipal Waste!!!


You've never smelled nothing like this
Forever it will eat you alive
You've never seen nothing like this
Forever from graves you will dive...
"Taste The Waste"


Lighting arcs from an Electrified Brain. Screaming, bloody, reanimated anger incarnate reaches for caffeination to fuel a quest for Vengeance. Armed with thrashing guitar and coffee black as night, render flesh from bone and slay the slayer. Toasted Nuts, Black Tea, and Caramel a backdrop of aroma for the ripper's doom. Drink Deep, Taste the Waste, Go for the Throat. GO FOR THE THROAT!!!


Municipal Waste has been inciting riots since 2000 with its signature brand of hardcorepunkmetal. Listening to Municipal Waste will result in bloody ears, blown speakers, pissed-off parents, black eyes, and a healthy distrust of authority.

Similarly, Dark Matter Coffee has been agitating the coffee industry at large since 2007 with its signature brand of contrarianaudaciousabsurdity. Drinking Dark Matter Coffee will result in steamed faces, skinned knees, quantum disentanglement, confrontational attitude towards the mainstream, and further infatuation with Municipal Waste. Enjoy both with unreserved joy and fury.
 
July 14, 2022 — Jake Kryshak
Tags: Heavy Metal metal municipal waste Music Music Collaborations

Queen! Coffee Cold!

Sunday night: The fit. The make-up. You're looking fierce and those chicken cutlets in your dress are serving eye-popping décolletage. But girl you're all dressed up with nowhere to go! Where can someone see and be seen by the upper echelons of fabulosity like yourself? Baby, you need to sashay that ass to Smart Bar's weekly Sunday service drag party, Queen! Tonight DMC and the Queen! resident party people will save your life.

Smart Bar, for the uninitiated, is the nightclub located under Metro and one of the United States' most important nightclubs featuring cutting-edge DJs from around the world. For the last 10 years, Queen! has been hosted by legendary drag queens Lucy Stoole, Jojo Baby, and Nico serving the looks with music selections by resident DJs Derrick Carter, Michael Serafini, and Garrett David. Consider it your weekly gospel to underground House and Disco.

For the coffee, we wanted to create a juicy, rich coffee cold, strong enough to keep you moving through the 4am crowd. Using a natural processed Pacas from Las Marias as the base with its red fruit notes, we paired this with a honey processed Sarchimor from Finca San Jeronimo Miramar to bring in the sweetness of brown sugar.

Together these create a balanced, smooth coffee cold and phantom disco balls clouding your vision.

Coffee 1
Country: El Salvador
Farm: Las Marias
Cultivar: Pacas
Process: Natural
Coffee 2
Country: Guatemala
Farm: San Jeronimo Miramar
Cultivar: Sarchimor
Process: Honey
Notes: Pomegranate, Milk Duds, Tangerine
May 31, 2022 — Jake Kryshak
Tags: Chicago House coffee cold collaboration Derrick Carter drag House Music Music Collaborations queen smart bar The Metro Chicago

Another Side with Leo Nocentelli

'At just fourteen, LEO NOCENTELLI was backing up Otis Redding. Soon after, he was playing on hits for Lee Dorsey, The Supremes, and The Temptations...

As a young man and original member of legendary funk group The Meters, Leo wrote the Grammy inducted classic "CISSY STRUT” and the Mardi Gras anthem "FIRE ON THE BAYOU,” but his greatest moment on record has gone totally unheard -- shelved and believed to be lost to the ages by all involved, including the artist himself. Until now.


Another Side, the album that inspired this collaboration, is a previously unreleased studio album recorded in New Orleans from 1970-72 and features Allen Toussaint, James Black and both George Porter Jr. & Zigaboo Modeliste of The Meters. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina destroyed much of the archive where the album was stored and all seemed lost forever.
Over a decade later, collector Mike Nishita stumbles across the master tapes from the session at a Southern California swap meet, unearthing a hidden gem waiting to be discovered, and the rest is history...

 

 

For the blend, we've decided to pair two sides of a washed Guatemalan coffee (get it?), roasting one side to our typical light roast parameters and for the other side a bit heavier, caramelizing more of the sugars present in the bean. This darker component also matches the roastiness of the chicory, to further enhance that profile when brewing the two together. 

 

 

As an homage to his hometown of New Orleans and their coffee traditions, we have built this blend to pair well with roasted chicory root, a first for us. During times of economic crisis and coffee shortages, chicory root was roasted and blended with coffee to stretch the supply and has since become a staple in the coffee culture in Nola. 

This blend is a combination of two roast profiles on the following coffee:

Country: Guatemala
Farm: San Jeronimo Miramar
Cultivar: Sarchimor
Process: Washed
Notes: Cocoa, Toasted Almonds, Dried Fig
May 24, 2022 — Jake Kryshak
Tags: Another Side collaboration Funk Guatemala meters Music Music Collaborations New Orleans

Situation Chicago Volume II

Initially put together to support venues during the height of the pandemic, the first Situation Chicago LP successfully raised 35k for more than 25 stages. We're back for round two, and this time around, proceeds from the follow-up record go to the CIVL SAVE Emergency Relief Fund, powered by The Giving Back Fund, giving need-based grants to furloughed staff, local artists, and venues via need-based grants in the Chicagoland area. Volume 2 features tracks from Jeff Parker, Umphrey's McGee, and Fess Grandiose.

For this coffee cold can, we chose to highlight a fun, fruity coffee from El Salvador that went through a unique fermentation process. The Pacamara cultivar is a cross between Pacas and Maragogype, a spontaneous mutation of Typica with especially large cherries. Immediately after the cherries were picked, they were collected in an enclosed vessel using carbon dioxide to purge out any oxygen remaining. The intact cherries were left to ferment in this closed system, allowing the natural microbes and yeasts present to ferment the mucilage on the bean without introducing any outside factors. After a few days, the cherries were removed and dried in their skins on raised beds, further developing the acidity and complexity of the coffee.


Country: El Salvador
Farm: Santa Petrona
Cultivar: Pacamara
Process: Carbonic Maceration
Notes: Mulled Wine, Tangerine, Dried Cranberries
Wanna cop the record? You can either grab it from Quiet Pterodactyl's Bandcamp or swing through our Bodega record shop to snatch it up alongside a copy of the first compilation too!
March 16, 2022 — Jake Kryshak
Tags: coffee cold collaboration Music Collaborations Vinyl