Archive for October, 2011
I’m always a sucker for a great posse cut. Anytime you can get upwards of five or six solo artists on one song shouting out a particular cause, and said song is actually good, I’m all for it.
Think “Self Destruction,” “Out Here Grinding,” “The Symphony,” “Swagga Like Us” or A Tribe Called Quest’s “Scenario.”
With that said, a whopping 15 cats just jumped on the slappingest track of autumn so far and recorded the posse cut of all posse cuts, “1 Vallejo.” Anybody in the Bay and West Coast in general should knock this song on principle. It’s good to see E-40 isn’t the only one shouting out Vallejo to anyone that’ll listen.
Artists For Artists is a budding nonprofit dedicated to giving current and up-and-coming artists opportunities to showcase their work, through hosting events that they contribute to and in the future developing programs that they can attain paid residencies at, and creating opportunities to foster and develop future artists (currently through contributions to established youth art programs, and in the future by developing their own).
The Kickoff will showcase seven visual artists, photography from the kids of Youth In Focus (one of the organizations benefiting from AFA’s fundraising efforts), trailers from eight local film projects, and music late into the night from myself and Seattle beatsmith and bona fide party rocker OCnotes. It’s gonna be a party!
The Kick-Off is this Saturday, 10/15 from 8pm-2am at Sodo Pop. There is a $25 minimum donation at the door. But don’t worry,because the open bar (which means you don’t pay for liquor once you’re in the door) will more than make up for it. Find more information and RSVP here.
All proceeds from this event will go to Youth in Focus and Arts Corps. Two organizations that are dedicated to bringing art to the kids that need and want it most.
We don’t tend to write about a lot of pop music on this blog. We aim for the hidden gems that we think you need in your life and trust that you’re already tired of what’s on the surface anyway. But when you think about it, that’s merely an assumption and some of the music that proliferates in the pop world is good.
Gotta admit, I’m feeling this Kelly Rowland and Big Sean track “Lay It On Me” based on the audio alone and the video, which was released this afternoon, is fresh as well. I’m not sure if I understand the slinky bit (double reference?) but it’s poppy in the right ways and does the song justice. This is probably the most sexual video and record in general that Kelly Rowland has put out. I reckon she’s getting it good in her personal life. #justsaying.
One of LxNxM’s favorite selectors is Blondtron, aka one of Vancouver’s turntable stalwarts, and the brains behind such delights as the Bouncing Bush Stew mixtape with Prince Zimboo, and moombahton selections for days.
Word on the street (or email, whatever) is that Blondtron’s got a new crew these days, combining forces with Aussie/Vancouver arrivee Ned Kelly to become Star Xrossed Lovers. I’m getting an image of Romeo and Juliet crossed with Toadly Crossed Out, which is kind of blowing my mind.
Given their mutual pedigree, it’s anybody’s guess what they might end up doing (wearing frog masks and drinking poison in Verona is hopefully not on the list), but if their first mix, “Sprechen Sie Douche” is any indication, it’ll involve a whole lot of body rocking.
At nearly two hours, “Sprechen Sie Douche” is a solid solid run of edits, refixes and various touch-ups that range from big names like Crookers, The Rapture, and the Audio Bullys (yes, those Audio Bullys) to up and comers like official LxNxM homie (and Soundsystem guest rocker) Astronomar.
Get it, enjoy it, and make sure you look up Blondtron, Ned Kelly, and the Star Xrossed Lovers next time you’re in the Van.
Star Xrossed Lovers – Sprechen Sie Douche by blondtron
Full tracklist after the jump.
whether or not you tracked down that jacques greene ep/vinyl release, greene01, from a couple months back (you can at least listen to each of the pretty great tracks on youtube), but i’d definitely recommend streaming this mix the man did for mary anne hobbs’s XFM radio show. it’s entirely worth it just for the untitled track featuring ango. stream it below.
Lamin Fofana – maker of music, Dutty Artz stalwart, and DJ to the stars (yes, the Stars) – just did a rare thing: he uploaded some free music for YOU to his Soundcloud page. WOAH.
Now, you may be thinking to yourself, ‘self, this seems like pretty standard happenings for a prolific music maker/blogger/DJ (to the Stars, no less) in 2011.’ Fair, fair, but you should still be excited: not only does it increase the amount of music on said page by 300%, but both mixes are also fantastic.
Both tracks take two already vibed-out tracks – “Rock the flock” by London’s Visionist and “City Staccs” by Lyon, France’s Jay Weed – and flips them into seriously heady territory. Resequenced synths and drums that range from glitched to organic float together to become something more than.
Good showing by Lamin – hopefully he’ll continue to grace us with more!
Disingenuous Remixes by Lamin Fofana
Check below the jump for the original choons.
Of the many bubbling genres of music in this wild world of ours, one that has gotten barely any mention by this here blog is Chicago’s very own footwork/juke.
Why is this? Hard to say – DJ Nate has been a favorite in the headphones around these parts, but for some reason it never translated across to the writings, aside from sneaking in on a few mixtapes. Damn.
So here comes a free mini-collection of footwork tracks from Baltimore-bred/DC-based DJ and producer Jon Kwest, and it only makes sense to get it out to you.
Clocking in with three tracks, Footwork Volume 1 s a short sampler from an artist whose Soundcloud has consistently been one of my favorite to browse (shout out all my Soundcloud Surfers). It’s a playful series of songs, dripping in samples from Robocop and Twin Peaks, and maintaining the footwork formula of deep bass, active kick drums, and a strict belief in the power of 160 beats per minute. Git it!
“(We Stay) Up All Night” is the first single off Buraka Som Sistema‘s upcoming sophmore album, Komba, which drops November 8th in the US, and it’s a massive party track if I’ve ever heard one. The video is muito sexy too. If you’re offended by ass and titties, you might wanna skip the video and go straight for the stream over at p4k.
Munich’s masters of bass have just released a four-track EP that combines the relatively obscure sounds of North Brazilian Carimbo and Nola Bounce with the more universal dancehall, calypso, cumbia and house rhythms that put Schlachthofbronx on the map. I realize that listing all those genres out like that makes it look like this project is gonna sound like a hot mess, but nothing could be further from the truth. Every track kills. Listen to the preview below and check for yourself.
Bonus: Hit the jump to watch the video for “Coolie Fruit,” a fresh, upbeat party track about hitting up the corner store with your crew for some juice, sweat tea and soup, featuring Sweden’s Gnucci Banana.
