When The xx formed, they were about the age Chief Keef is now. On a basic level, they’re not similar musicians; Keef is a rapper, The xx is a rock band. But both have pushed the limits of their form. The xx, whose first album reconsidered the love song and rethought the idea of the drummer, grapple with how to continue evolving with such high pressure and high standards. Keef, still a young artist, is surfing his bravado and—along with a crew of friends, fellow rappers and supporters, and, as the story shows, many of the city of Chicago’s workers—is finding that a lot of loud noise can be an excellent stand-in for something to say.

This is our Fall Fashion issue, so its got a healthy dose of stylish things and people too: an interview with wild Belgian designer Walter Van Beirendonck, a beautiful fashion story shot in Ireland and a rambling interview with Cat Power. We also served up a ton of great back to school content—Kitty Pryde explains how to live with your parents! Riff Raff talks inspiration and Burt Reynolds! Michael Gira of Swans talks extreme LSD! FADER #81 hits stands August 21st. Stay tuned for all of the issue’s stories on TheFADER.com this month, and read two GEN Fs from the issue below.

* GEN F: Le1f
* GEN F: Kilo Kish