Recent No Complys #2: Kevin Tierney

No complys have been done in quite a few ways: spinning 180, big heelflipping, and a decent amount of shove-it variations have also gone down. But leave it to the non-spinning, non-flipping variation of the no comply to completely blow you away. I'm talking about Kevin Tierney's fakie no comply at 0:35 in the Zoo York Australia tour vid that came out just about a month ago. That's right. Fakie no comply. The thought alone feels beyond awkward, so I can't even imagine what it must've felt like to do it over the popular wooden wedge gap in Australia. I could be wrong, but after some brief research I don't know of any other instance where the no comply has been done straight fakie like this. Leave it to Kevin Tierney to dazzle us.

Recent No Complys #3: Vince Duran

I've been becoming a fan of Surprise Skateboards lately and it's because of guys like Vince Duran. When he released this Spring Cleaning only a few weeks ago, I knew it was "throwaway" footage, but for some wild reason, I've watched this quite a few times since then. His last pair of clips are two big reasons why I keep coming back for more (starting at . Vince takes the no comply to new heights with a barrier step hop (sidenote props to Dane Brady for also working his magic with this realm of trickery). Not only does that push help get him up there, but he powers the board up and over a fence! If that's not enough, doing it switch better be. Sure he throws a grab in there but that just adds some flair, the cherry on top to an already astonishing treat. (After already forcing the board up switch, being able to control it on the way down with no grab would be a pretty remarkable feat. Challenge anyone?) The dedication to the passersby is also priceless. Between the finger point and the cascading golden hair, the Austyn Gillette resemblance is undeniable.

Recent No Complys #4: Clint Walker

Clint Walker is one of the gnarliest dudes, bar none. His Modern Art part, that I will forever reference, proves just that.  So it's no surprise that he filled up the whole minute of his recent Real Street part with nothing but bangers, among which he had 3 killer no comply moves. The first at 0:16 is taken frontside off a significant drop into a bank, showing how Clint manages to keep his feet on the grip even though that's probably the weirdest-feeling trick to take down a drop. The second at 0:41 is also taken frontside, but this time to fakie 50-50 down a handrail, something I don't remember ever seeing like that (though Albert Nyberg cannot be forgotten). And finally, at 0:54, Clint demonstrates his ability to pop a no comply straight up and over a wall, perfectly guiding the board with his feet as he glides down.  It's rare to see the no comply taken to such gnarly levels, but who else than Clint to do it.

Recent No Complys #5: Lem Villemin

Starting things off for the Recent No Complys is a clip from the beginning of May with the man of steeze himself: Lem Villemin. Torsten Frank shot a wonderful cruising piece called "Owl Eyes on Lem Villemin", showcasing Lem and his homies taking a casual (I use that somewhat loosely) stroll through the streets of Stuttgart. While some pretty solid tricks and street gaps go down in this awesome night session, the one trick that caught my eye is Lem's no comply backside 360 at 1:44. Now David Gravette still wears the crown for this trick, but Lem's version is noteworthy for two main reasons: the pop, and the nonchalance. It may be Cliche to say it, but the deck certainly may have helped with the pop. The nonchalance on the other hand, you can only attribute that to Lem.

Next Week: Recent No Complys

After a while of silence, I'm happy to say that the time has come to add a new High Five to the blog! I've noticed a lot of videos lately included different variations of the no comply. Now it's definitely one of those fun tricks to have and throw in a line, and honestly it's not really the most uncommon. Even the Video of Last Week had some rad no complies thrown out there. But a few eye-catching instances have popped up (pun intended) in videos released within the last 4 weeks, sticking in my head as a strong trend. These no comply variations are worth mentioning now as a group before they're forgotten. Besides the gnarly-as-usual skating that's gone down, May 2014 should be remembered as the month of the no comply.

Now there are some individuals that do not comply on a regular and outstanding basis, whom I will eventually dedicate a High Five to down the line, but right now is meant for just that: those working their magic with the trick right now. With that said, I'll give some early shoutouts to Cory Kennedy for a couple fun and impressive variations (at 1:09 and 2:20) in his Rat Poison part and to Victor Garibay for a really sick switch one at 0:39 in his Mag Minute. Stay tuned throughout the week for 5 of the most recent memorable no comply variations!

Video of the Week: From the Borders - Steve and Dave Mull

From the Borders is a relatively new take on the skate video. Two brothers, Steve and Dave Mull, rip apart what appears to be a bunch of hometown, woodsy-area spots with a gnarliness and skill set you don't usually see from your typical local backwoods brothers. Besides that, the assortment of spots are a fresh breath among the many online videos with standard downtown or park footage. Mix that with some great editing that also breaks the mold of most videos and the fast-paced excitement makes you feel like a kid again learning about your own town's spots. There are some pretty scary (in an impressive, ballsy way) spots out there, like Steve nosegrinding a rushing waterfall's bridge at 1:56 or Dave literally grinding a roof at the end, but the aesthetics of the whole video are what make it memorable.

In other skate news from last week:
It's great to see another all-terrain part from the underground Frecks, one that most definitely is not Wasting your Time.
Billy Roper is introduced to Surprise Skateboards with a quick-paced hopping around of many SF spots, maintaining those GX1000 vibes and keeping the really tight team at Surprise going strong.
Two parts (sort of) from It's a Secret were released via The Skateboard Mag: Will Blaty, coming through with awesomely trippy vibes and crazy body varials and footplant variations (2:51 is nuts!), and then Chris "Mango" Milic, with a bonus footage part full of fun creativity.
Joey Digital has a stacked montage featuring Brian Anderson, Shane O'Neill, Nick Boserio, Mark Suciu, Daryl Angel, and many more.
Alec Majerus is recruited at the Berrics with some heavy bangers. I loved the fakie tre back lip!
Kyle Camarillo presents his REDirect project Gold and Grey, featuring Miles Silvas and Jack Curtin, and puts out one of my favorite mixes of easy-on-the-eyes shots and proper skating from the contest so far.
Christopher Middlebrook's part from The Cinematographer Project was released on Transworld, reminding everyone at the freakish abilities and fearlessness of the Aussies.

Video of the Week: David Loy is Pro for Birdhouse

David Loy has been off the radar for a minute and I don't recall any definitive part that I associated him to. Even though I've heard much more about his brother lately, David's gradual off-stage destruction eventually culminated with this going pro part. The part reminds everyone that he is one of the gnarliest dudes out there, with a well-used height advantage too. The wallrides, drop-ins, and tall drops he takes are deadly. Mix in some huge rails and hubbas and this part will be in the spotlight for quite some time. Congrats David! I'm not alone when I admit to sleeping on this guy for a while, but this part was like 10 shots of espresso and a few Monsters to wake everyone up to his lunatic skating.

After everything that's been happening over the past few months, it's really not surprising that Alien Workshop has called it quits. Manolo's Tapes pays tribute to the iconic company with a bittersweet compilation of almost every rider to have ever ridden for AWS. Where the remaining riders will go is now the big question on everyone's mind [field].


In other skate news from the last week:
Peanut Head's part in Footage Party is filled with wild ripping and some startling clips. (Switch big flip came out of nowhere!)
Spencer Pratti is really good and shows it in this ironically-named Straight Skating clip.
Adidas took some of its team to the Skate Copa contest in NYC and ended up with some rad street clips from its stylish squad.
Melbourne is showcased in this edit full of awesome skating, including one of the gnarliest gap to 50-50s I've ever seen from Tim Williams.
Beagle's part in The Cinematographer Project is released and packed as expected with fun homie vibes.