Nation

Heavy Rotation Tees

Musicians draw heavy influence from their far-flung travels -- the Beatles picked up the sitar in India, Zeppelin picked up dreamy wailing in Morocco, and Styx picked up a couple of annoying phrases in Japan. Apparently, t-shirt guys do the same, at Heavy Rotation.

Founded by a Midwest DJ whose pops started making tees in the 60s, Heavy's super-soft, vintage-finished, 100% combed-cotton shirts start with a hipster-musical foundation, then're augmented with ideas stumbled upon during the designers' exotic globetrotting. Fall's 20+ India-inspired numbers include "Hi-Definition" (Hindi writing & two elephants atop 25 overlapping records), the black/white/red-striped "Shadow Princess" (centered by vintage Indian vinyl deco'd with a woman's profile), and the tie-dye-styled "Snaked Charmer" & "Lion Powered" (runs on fear?). Still available, summer's South America lineup features the picturesque "Belize Dock", "Aztec Shock" (four pastel lightning bolts over ancient cave drawings), and a "grass green" number w/ three stacked, spidery yellow speakers dubbed "Un Mundo Apathetic" (Menudo's outlook after Ricky Martin left).

To sample future destinations (next up, Scandinavia), join Heavy's discounted t-shirt of the month club: 12 offerings selected by a "specially-trained Heavy Rotation Robot" -- call it "Mr." and find yourself on a mystical journey back to 1983.

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