Thrill Side!

I arrived at the meet up destination a few minutes before him. I was sitting in my car in a parking lot in deep east Oakland, In a space where normally a woman sells Pupusas and a few spaces aways from where a man sells BBQ. There were lots of activity was going on as it was about 3:30 P.M.  You could hear the  ice cream truck music in the backround. People were walking around, including a woman who was speed walking across the street, holding up an AC Transit bus along with other cars as she had a conversation on her cell phone and a cigarette in her mouth. A Harley Davidson motorcycle sped by and out of my sight.

Then I saw him, he had seen me too. He walked over, clean cut, wearing work clothes with a humble and almost nervous smile on his face.

I waved em over, he opened the door and I told him to maneuver his way in the truck through the mess I have. We exchanged a few words, I explained to him how the interview process worked and we got started.

TS: What’s up man ? introduce yourself.

Aceso: Aceso, A.C.E.S.O. basically stands for Always Crushing East Side Oakland,

TS: ahhhhh…..ok that’s wassup… I didn’t know that

TS:  Last time I checked with you you weren’t in any crews, you were solo, is that still the situation?

Aceso: Yeah I still put it down for myself but I fuck with Art Meets Crime, I fuck with it.

TS: How did you get into graffiti? What inspired you?

Aceso: It was mainly traveling, when I was younger , going down south, even Mexico , and I’d see stuff in Mexico City. It was popping everywhere. Growing up here in the East Bay. The Oakland O.gs.

TS: Before we get any further. I remember years ago driving down E.14th, before the graffiti explosion of throw-ups in Oakland, and you had like a million tags down E.14th. props on that man.

Aceso: Yea that’s how I started off, I didn’t have no letters or nothing but I had my name and was willing to put it out there. I still do that, I love just tagging, just tags that’s it.

TS: Do you like to paint alone or with someone?

Aceso: For the most part I do like to paint by myself. You don’t have to worry about anyone making shit hot. Plus it boosts my ego you know, like ” yeah I did this shit by myself”. But yeah I paint with a few heads too, for the most part people that help me with my letter structure, that put me up on game.

TS: Who would that be?

Aceso: Recently my boy Erax from the East Coast, and Ceks with the C. They helped me out a lot with my letters, colors, they pushed me to do better.

TS: ok ok… Now let’s picture this- you’re walking by an elementary school, and ALLLLL the kids are fucking zombies! Kindergartners to 5th graders. 5 year olds to like 11-12 year olds, ALL Zombies.

How many of them you think you can take out?  before they take your ass out, or before it get’s too crazy and you gotta cut.

Aceso: (laughs) damn……, that sounds realistic, now a days these youngsters are zombies

TS: Yeah I’ve been watching too much of that Walking Dead.

Aceso:(laughs) Ummmm I don’t know, if I have a weapon or something, I don’t know, I’ll put a few down man,

that sounds like some crazy shit

TS:(laugh) give me a number, five ? ten?

Aceso: (laughs) out of a whole school….I’ll take a dozen with me bruhhh (laughs).

TS: What’s one thing you really like about graffiti?

Aceso: I really like using stock caps, climbing shit, catching tags in general, I like doing rollers for some reason. House paint with the roller, fucking extendo and shit. That shit’s tight. I really enjoy it.

TS: What’s one thing you hate?

Aceso: I wouldn’t say I hate it but now days everyone knows each other. It’s hard to be low key.

TS: Ass or titties?

Aceso: I  gotta say….ass…gotta have some booty.

TS: Favorite taco truck?

Aceso: oh definitely.. gotta be the one on 44th and E.14 by High st. you know that one?

TS: Naw I be at the one on Fruitvale and San Leandro

Aceso: oh yeah that’s my second choice. But the one on 44th by High street, on E.14th, that’s the one.

TS: What’s your favorite color combination you like to paint with?

 

Aceso: I’m usually on these dollar black cans, so I’m always using a black fill with a white outline and just a nice color for the background. But I like that fire color like  yellow, orange, red and black together.

TS: Let’s say you’re at a party. CRANKING!!! you suddenly gotta take a dump hella bad. So you do it, that’s when you realize there’s no toilet paper. Only a towel. What do you do?

Aceso: (laughs) damn…. I’d use the towel, fuck it. But I’d take it though, I wouldn’t be disrespectful and leave it there (laughs)

TS: Damn, I’d just hop in the shower and dry myself with the towel bruh .

TS: ok ok…. anyone or any place you’d like to paint with or paint?

Aceso: I pretty much painted with the people I looked up to so I’m straight right now, but I’d love to go to Mexico or some all other country and paint.

TS: What do you think about legal walls?

Aceso: I think it’s a good idea. To get some stable art. I like it, I admire it, most of the shit looks good anyways. I like to see the Bay area people hitting legals over out of towners. It does kind of grind my gears when out of towners do it, people we aint heard of. But it’s cool, I’m not a hater.

TS: Where do you see yourself in five years?

Aceso: Probably chilling, owning a house. Still in the Bay Area probably still doing graff all day.

 

TS: Ok any last words? any shout outs?

Aceso: shout out to my people locked up fighting cases, passed away, ummm my boy Erax, Ceks and S-dub ,Ceaver and the 640 crew.

TS: Thank you all for reading. Stay tuned for more interviews and travel posts, also check out our Traveling Shirts section and follow us on Instagram @Beastoakland

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*Some of these photos were provided to me and shot were shot by myself.