2014 Videos #5: Shane O'Neill

Now there's not very much to go on here, but according to Twitter and directly from the man himself, Shane O'Neill will be dropping a full part through Thrasher soon. I don't remember/can't find exactly where, but I'm pretty sure there was word that the part would be out in 2014 as well, which really makes sense the way pros can come out with parts every year if they really worked for it. I also heard rumor that a good portion of Shane's Chronicles part (above) was "filler" footage, which is also understandable since we know what Shane is capable of. Again, that was just rumor and there's no official trailer or footage for the video part, but nonetheless this is Shane O'Neill. Filler or not, his Chronicles part was insane. Anytime there are ridiculously tech and beautiful NBDs in a part it's gonna mark its place in skateboarding history. All things considered, I cannot wait for whatever Shane's cooking up for his next part.

Here's a few of his mind-boggling and super steezy parts from earlier years:
Not Another Transworld Video
Going Pro Berrics Part
Debacle (with Theotis Beasley)
Am Chowder

Video of the Week: Eric Thomas - Paradise in the Plains

This might be the first week in a while without some huge name video part release, but it was still full of really solid skating. Last Sunday, Paradise Wheels welcomed Eric Thomas to their team with this super fun video above. Probably flying under the radar for most people, this video really stuck out to me for the spot selection. From some of the coolest looking ditches to literally middle of nowhere spots to some pretty tall rooftop drops, Eric covers a wide variety of aesthetically pleasing and unique locations. The other thing that stuck out was that for the most part, the skating was rather slow. Now usually slow skating is a big turnoff and boring to watch, but Eric used it cleverly with the spots and creative tricks to keep me wanting more. It's definitely not your typical video part by these days' standards in any way, but it was thoroughly entertaining.

In other news:
-European legend Florentin Marfaing had a quick interview over at Red Bull and reminded us that he's still super sick.
-Brandon Taylor mixes really gnarly tricks with creativity for one of the better Mag Minutes in recent memory. The huge caveman is nuts!
-The Ollie Crew rolls deep and is featured skating some rad street spots in Vancouver and San Francisco (2/3 of San Vanelona...)
-Nate Lacoste came out with a new video part, shared with a few friends, for Roger Skateboards and it's definitely worth the watch.
-The Tilt Mode crew is stacked and this Archives video is full of sweet footage from the likes of Daryl Angel, Jon Nguyen, Zack Wallin, and Peter Raffin.
-Manolos Tapes is probably the best source for remixed videos in skateboarding. Once again it doesn't disappoint on remixing Parental Advisory with less acting and more street shredding.
-I've been a fan of James Espinoza and his buttery style, surprising amount of pop, crazy manual tricks, and fakie inward heelflips for a while, so it was great to see a short VX part from him.
-The latest Tum Yeto recruit, Tre Williams, silently destroys a bunch of California spots as if he was sleeping.
-Though it came out a little more than a week ago, I cannot neglect the latest part from Italo Romano. It's not only inspiring but it's full of really crazy tricks too!
-After Shane O'Neill's part in Chronicles 2 was released last week, more parts from the ripping video were released this week: Donovan Piscopo, Theotis Beasley, Luan Oliveira, and Ishod Wair.

Along with this, I have to give credit to the Berrics for coming out with the Populist. It's cool to get another source of major recognition in the skate industry on top of the big mags, such as Thrasher's SOTY or the TWS Awards. And my favorite part is that they basically compiled the best skaters' video parts from 2013 all on one page for a good day's worth of awesome skate video watching.

Euro/Ditch Frontside Flips #5: Justin Brock

As seen in Nike SB's latest offering, Chronicles 2, Justin Brock opens up his part with a music-less but gnarly nonetheless frontside flip over a sweet parking lot Euro Gap. That moment from the car tow-in to the lowering arms in relief for landing the sick trick all build up perfectly as the music and Justin's rugged part begin to play. Check out the frontside flip and the rest of the video here at 17:15 (while it lasts anyway).

Video of the Week: Chronicles Vol. 2

Lots of great stuff from this past week, but what clearly takes the cake is the latest Nike video: Chronicles Vol. 2. Awesome to see new parts from all the dudes and there was definitely some top notch skating. Donovan Piscopo comes out swinging with the first part I've ever seen from him with speed, style, and power. Theotis Beasley seems to pack in loads of fliptricks and those good vibes you feel watching him skate, only to have you realize just how skilled he really is when you think of what he's doing. Daryl Angel also comes through with smooth, powerful skating and a really fresh approach; no one's coming close to his ender no matter how relatively basic it may seem. Luan Oliveira shows his ninja flick with some great moves, though I must say I felt a tad disappointed with his part, I was expecting something more... Justin Brock skates the roughest spots and shows his all-terrain destruction. Shane O'Neill unveils some shocking ledge NBD's while reminding everyone of his near perfect style. And Ishod Wair somehow pulls out another huge load of footage, topping  his other footage this year in a laid-back yet super gnarly part. Congrats to all these dudes on a sick video!
You can see Ishod's part here, with the 4 other remaining SOTY contenders. At this point, with the amount of quality footage Ishod has produced this year, he better win SOTY. I'm a big proponent of awarding SOTY to someone with more than just a single outstanding part; nothing against Westgate or Nyjah whatsoever as I'd be perfectly satisfied with either of them winning too, but Ishod has been simply relentless. Which is why I wish Thrasher didn't cut down the SOTY contenders to 5 so soon, when Mark Suciu has his first pro part coming out in just a couple weeks or so, still in 2013 too! Anyway, my vote is now with Ishod!
Now Nike, why can't you just create a physical DVD of this video? You definitely have the money to satisfy the appreciative skate nerds out there and at least hold on to some sense of skateboarding's documented history. I'd say to everyone to go buy the video but when Nike's feeding the insatiable appetite of the internet mongers by forcing them to buy it online, I'd suggest just finding some way around it for now.

And with that, my ranting is over.

In other news from this past week's videos:
-Riley Hawk is now pro for Baker! No video for now but there's no doubt a footage machine like him will have something gnarly out in no time.
-Nick Matthews came out with a Mag Minute filled with a sweet trick selection and stylish skating.
-Daniel Lebron shows that he's got one of the best heelflips in the game with this feel-good part.
-Powell-Peralta welcomes Brendon Villanueva with some gnarly clips in his intro part.
-This clip of Antoine Asselin shows two things: that skateboarding is fun and that he is very very good.
-Jurgen Horrwarth released a part combining some serious skill with vert and on the streets.
-Vagrant Skateboards definitely seals their name on the map with this raw promo.
-Nick Boserio's part from Cold War was released via Thrasher.
-Congrats to Peter Raffin for joining the Creature fiends and still skating super well.
-It may be just a single [totally awesome] trick, but any Tyler Bledsoe footage is great.
-Unreleased Dane Vaughn footage is always great; I've been enjoying his skating a lot since Parental Advisory.
-Gou Miyagi redefines creative skateboarding with this part from Heroin's Video Nasty.
-Can't overlook totally naked girls skating and pumping through the corners of a bowl. Well done Playboy, well done.
-And finally, the prequel to the destruction in Chronicles 2 from Ishod Wair. The quality of this part alone says something about just how good Ishod really is.