Cool people like cool things, which is why we asked cool person Rafastinks to come on Perfectly Imperfect & spread the hot rec wealth.

How does begin to one answer the question: who is Rafa? Well, to start, he’s trailblazing the way for a new form of cinema: long form memes. But he’s also an enigmatic & hilarious living meme himself who is best understood by the distinct style of his IG captions & stories, his iconic full-page ad in the Drunken Canal, his katana that was eventually sold to Azealia Banks, or most recently his Andrew Yang takedown subway posters. Rafa also happens to have great taste and lucky for us, he’s here to talk about what he’s been into.

Without further ado

Rafastinks (instagram, twitter)

👟 🎵 The Pumpkin Fairies - Love Me (1989)

Despite my tough guy persona, I am an avid shoegaze enjoyer. My favorites are the typical surface level first “wave” of shoegaze i.e. Slowdive, MBV, Lush, Chapterhouse, Swirlie, Drop Nineteens, etc. I could go on… but there’s other things to discuss.

For Slowdive fans, such as myself, I was delighted to find their demos prior to their formation as Slowdive, when they went by “The Pumpkin Fairies”. The tape consists of six songs, most of which have a strong Velvet Underground influence prevalent within the songs (especially considering one of the tracks is a cover of “Stephanie Says” amongst other more contemporary acts such as The Jesus And Mary Chain, early MBV etc. 

This tape holds a special place in my heart as the energy and sound of the band was almost entirely different than their well known records such as Souvlaki, Just For A Day, Pygmalion etc. I have an affinity towards demos in general, however this one in particular, I find the unpolished rendering sends me into a realm where I’m surrounded by a beautiful wave of noise. I recommend the documentary, seriously, titled “Beautiful Noise” by Eric Green. The film retrospectively examines three fundamental  rock bands—Cocteau Twins, The Jesus and Mary Chain, and My Bloody Valentine—and their influence on shoegazing and other alternative rock genres. Another great documentary on Slowdive in particular, is Pitchfork Classic’s: Slowdive - Souvlaki, which covers the history of the band prior to their biggest record, the negative reception from critics, and their legacy.  

🐕 Capybaras

To the readers:  I highly recommend Capybaras: The giant cavy rodent native to my home continent of South America, and extremely prevalent in my birth country of Brazil.

I came to discover Capybaras a few years ago. I was perplexed, the babies were tiny and very cute. The adults were also cute but larger. They look extremely soft and I would love to pet them one day. They are extremely popular in Japan and on the internet. I recommend the video “Capybara balances orange on head”, which can be found on Youtube. The first time I saw a Capy, I thought to myself, “What the fuck is that?”. They’re giant guinea pigs but also look like my friend’s dog. Their stoic faces look like they are extremely intelligent. I have a firm belief, given the right resources they could be the first to colonize Mars. They are also very relaxed and friends with many animals you would think they wouldn’t get along with, such as crocodiles and giraffes.

🦍 Momotaro Family: The Gorillas of Kyoto Zoo

I could be considered a Gorilla enjoyer, but that would be an understatement. I adore Gorillas. I adore Japanese Macaques. This family in particular however, stole my heart from the beginning. 

It was April 2019. I discovered the Instagram account @genki_no_takaramono. Since I first laid eyes on Momotaro, 21, with his fluffy ass spread out on the floor, chilling in a very cool manner, I was sold. Later I found out, he has two sons. Gentaro, now 10 years old, and Kintaro, now 2 years old. Their mother is Genki, 36, and is an amazing mother. My friend Timmy and I have sent each other videos of them literally every single day since 2019, and have watched Kintaro grow from a useless baby into a little rascal who can hold his own against his big brother Gentaro. Momotaro grew up without a father, and watching him  learn the ropes of fatherhood with Kintaro was one of the most beautiful character arc’s I’ve ever seen. I strongly urge you tp follow accounts related to the Momotaro family and watch videos of them on Youtube. Please be nice as this is a subject dear to my heart.

👕 🦍 X-Large

My love for Gorillas is not only displayed by my following of the Momotaro family’s adventures, as of three weeks ago, I now proudly wear silverbacks on my chest almost everyday. I was put onto X-Large by my good friend Max, a streetwear expert and sourcing god. He knew I love X-Girl by Kim Gordon, and since X-Large is an adjacent brand it was a no brainer. I was aware of the brand's existence but had never really seen pieces being worn out and about and only recently came back in the market for clothing. My epiphany occured when I realized the logo was a Gorilla, and this particular Gorilla is featured on almost every piece in different renderings, I was immediately sold. I think Josh Madden, the creative director of X-Girl and X-Large is a certified genius in my book and look forward to continue repping the GOAT brand of streetwear for years to come.

🏪 🥪 Bodegas

Listen, I love food, right? You know what I don’t love though? Paying a lot of money for it and waiting 45 minutes for it to be cooked. Why do people obsess over restaurants? Why pay $200 tabs for food you could get for $10 next to your apartment in New York and have it ready within 5 minutes? I simply don’t understand this phenomenon. Is it to reaffirm your social status and financial comfort to those around you? I don’t know, I won’t do personal attacks, but listen, next time you have to wait an hour just to be seated at a restaurant? Just remember who told you about the Bodega meta, an extremely viable and cost effective way of eating.

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