The August issue of the new 360 West magazine is all about being cool, and the editors decided that's best said with a good-lookin', half-naked man on the cover rather than a predictable picture of ice cubes.
"We hadn't had a man on the cover, so we thought it would be a change of pace," editorial director Meda Kessler told NBCDFW. "I didn't want it to look beef cakey but we needed to go for a look - a good upper body, someone who whose hair looks good wet."
Erik Neff with the Kim Dawson Agency got the job, and posed for picture after picture on an afternoon when temperatures soared to 101 degrees. Modeling, he said, helps funds his music career.
"Thank God I'm in a pool. Otherwise, sweat becomes an issue," explained the Dallas native. "This shot is more about the atmosphere not the fashion. And when you're in a pool, you go into easy mode."
The pool used for the shoot is at the west Fort Worth home of Domain XCIV owners Mark Vaughan and Ty Dupont. They're busy getting ready for this month's grand opening of the store's new location next to Eddie V's on West 7th Street but took time to help 360 West with its August issue.
The cool issue features things that are cool figuratively and literally, explained Kessler. "Things that are cool like the City Club has martini glasses made out of ice. People like (saxophonist) Johnny Reno, been around for a while, always cool guy."
This will be 360 West's fifth issue. Kessler said advertising dollars are a challenge, "but editorially, we're getting good reception."
The digital version will be up by the weekend. The print version will be delivered by August 1.
