Intro by Farran Golding
Still from Cottonopolis by Sean Lomax
My introduction to Dom Henry’s skating was through a Live Skateboard Media part in 2015, but to the uninitiated, his parts in Cottonopolis, Afterbang and NEXT are all good places to start.
Dom’s technicality stems from a youth spent learning to skate in Reading, England, where there were car parks and not much else. After moving to Manchester later in life, Dom’s ledge abilities thrived on the black marble of Urbis plaza (Northern England’s answer to Love Park.) He possesses the ability to make intricate skateboarding exude a “less is more” quality due to his unmistakable shapes and flick. Graceful, stretched out and sharp — it’s one of those nuances to which description won’t do justice. Here are five sections that inspired him along the way.
Richard Angelides – Rhythm Skateboards: Genesis (1997)
Angelides has one of my favorite styles ever. His trick selection has always been superb, and everything he does is so toe-y and proper that any footage of him gets me stupidly keen to go skateboarding. If you’ll forgive me for using the most rinsed cliché since “great guy on and off the board,” this part truly could come out today and still be deemed amazing.
Bobby Puleo – INFMS (2000)
This video fell into my teenage lap completely by chance and left a massive impression on me. It introduced me both to Bobby Puleo and KRS-One in one fell swoop. I was about 15, and a friend of mine who lived down the street had taken a punt on this VHS that had somehow floated into the skate shop in Reading. Neither of us knew what INFMS was and, having watched it, he told me it was shit and resold it to me for about £5 or something just to get it out of his house. I think he just had no frame of reference for a video coming from a small New York brand and would have been comparing it to the likes of Sorry and Menikmati.
I was entranced by the look of the spots and Bobby’s smooth, fast skating, which is perfectly complemented by the track. To this day, “I like to study, I like money, I like eating wheat bread with honey,” is seared into my memory and floats to the forefront of my mind at the most unexpected times.
Paul Shier – Blueprint Skateboards: Waiting for the World (2000)
Waiting for the World probably made a bigger impression on me than any other video. Having mainly only seen a few American videos and 411s when this fell into my hands, the sights and sounds of the recognizable grey skies and click-clack of British high street tiles made me feel connected to something and opened my eyes to how unique skateboarding could look on these shores. From that moment on, I would track down any U.K. scene or company videos that came out. For me, Shier’s is the stand-out part; the bounce and flow is unparalleled and the seeing-to that Fairfield Halls in Croydon receives is nothing short of legendary.
James Wright – 4 Aves (2006)
For those unfamiliar with James Wright, he is, in my opinion, a skateboarding prodigy out of Christchurch, New Zealand — whose style, trick choice and ability deserves global acclaim. It took me a while to decide which of his numerous parts I enjoy the most, but in the end, I went with his 4 Aves part.
[The part is] full of beautiful lines, rare ledge moves, unreal transition lines, and tech tricks on concrete ramps that would be unjust to describe as “mini,” with a second song by Crowded House that fits perfectly. When I met James, he told me that his favorite skater was U.K. ledge tech pioneer, Rob Selley. It kind of blew my mind that a copy of the early Blueprint Skateboards video, Anthems, had even made it to the South Island of New Zealand — but when you see the ledge prowess, it starts to make a lot of sense.
Luka Pinto – Eleventh Hour (2013)
The energy in this part is contagious. Luka opens Jacob Harris’ Eleventh Hour with flowing lines and a Quim-like rawness. It’s impossible not be stoked on it. I love a part that ends on a line and the last line here is joyous whilst covering some serious distance, as he tears through London streets. The icing on the cake is the flawless nollie back heel and switch 360 no-comply he ends with — seemingly making it up as he goes along.
Previously [with U.K. skaters]: Jacob Harris, Tom Knox, Danny Brady
Previously: Bing Liu, Andrew Reynolds, Cyrus Bennett, Jamal Smith, Paul Rodriguez, Gilbertt Crockett, Ben Chadourne, Louie Lopez, The Chrome Ball Incident, The Bunt, Lacey Baker, Andrew Allen, GX1000, Brian Anderson, Gino Iannucci, Josh Kalis, Sean Pablo, Wade Desarmo, Chris Milic, Chad Muska, Hjalte Halberg, Bill Strobeck, Aaron Herrington, Jerry Hsu, Brad Cromer, Brandon Westgate, Jim Greco, Jake Johnson, Scott Johnston, Josh Stewart, Eric Koston, Karl Watson, Josh Friedberg, John Cardiel, Pontus Alv, Alex Olson, Jahmal Williams