NO2 VOL ONE SPRING

SHOOK 002 VOL ONE SPRING THE BEAT GENERATION

£3.80
 NO2
VOL ONE SPRING

20. BEAT FREAQ BADU 40. IN THE LIGHT

Building New Amerykah. Go Bang with Arthur Russell.
28. THE BEAT GENERATION 44. ANGELO BADALAMENTI
CONTENTS Beats international. David Lynch’s secret weapon.
36. ENGLAND STORY 46. PILOOSKI
Fast-chat inna dancehall. Never done cosmic.
38.ELITE SQUAD 50. SPIRITUALLY SPEAKING
Law & order in the favelas. A joyful noise unto the creator.

INTRO... May ‘68 Posters, Joe Gibbs RIP, Vocodertron, Very Be Careful, Kis-
sey Asplund, PAPER CUTS: Things Fall Apart, SPOTLIGHT: TrebleO
DREAM TEAM: Tawiah, Eric, Jodi & friends; HOT STEPPAZ: head, heart &
soul. Tata Guines, MIXTAPE: N’dambi, Apples & Snakes, Arthur Lipsett,
Zen Badizm, HEATWAVE, THE ESSENCE: Martyn, WE ARE..., Welcome to
Stokes Croft 54-55, DESTINATION: Buenos Aires 56-59, SHOOK TEK: boutique
synths 60-61, NOW THEN (with Welson Creep), REVIEWS 64-73

EDITOR: Jez Smadja

ART DIRECTOR: Matt MonkeyBoxer myspace.com/monkeyboxer

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Sarah Marshall, Al Burton, Andy Thomas

ASSOCIATE EDITORS: Ben Verghese, MIchael Krasser, Helene Dancer, Andres Reyes

CONTRIBUTORS: Vince Vella, Simon Creasey, Cal Jader, Mr. Beatnick, Alex Stevenson, Sanjiv Ahulwalia,
Helene Dancer, Chris Robinson, Sarah Bentley, Gabriel Middleton, Gervase de Wilde, Benji B, Snoopy, Hugo
Mendez, J’M Irie, Welson Creep, Gwen Webber, Dee Science, Adeola Johnson, Phiona Okumu, Lady B, Orin
Walters, Paul Camo, Alasdair Purves, Samera Owusu Tutu, Roger Robinson, Kyoko Ishima, Nicky Dracoulis,
Tamar Nussbacher, Matt Crossick, Benji Lehmann, Maga Bo, Mitchy Bwoy, Lewis Robinson, Johnny Pitts,
Keith Baker, Charles Waring, Will Page, Dan Susman, Adam Green, Richard ‘The Hobbit’ Bamford, Ryan
Proctor, Raggy, Garth Cartwright, Amar Patel, Max Cole, Kay Suzuki and Sunil Chauhan.

SPECIAL THANKS TO Da Boss Paul Bradshaw, Mr BI & to everyone for supporting we thus far...

SHOOK
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0044+ 208 441 2020
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3
www.parismai68.net
JOE GIBBS R.I.P.
words: SNOOPY
1 9 6 9 :
Saturday afternoon.
The market stall in Basildon
(Essex) is called The Pop Inn. It
mostly sells ex-jukebox records. I usually
have a flick through the boxes just before I
head for the local Mecca Locarno. Myself and my
junior-school friends regularly attend the afternoon
disco there. You can buy bottles of fizzy and a sixpenny-
bit mix-up. We love the 45s and dance to them all – current
‘Top Of The Pops’ favourites, Tamla treats, ‘bubblegum’ and
soul music. Lately there have been teenage skinheads attending
– who can be a bit ‘bovversome’ if you don’t steer clear – so the DJ
has been dropping in some reggae records to keep them sweet. We
love dancing to reggae – and even have a dance routine for ‘Return Of
Django’ by The Upsetters. But my favourite song is ‘Long Shot Kick The
Bucket’ by The Pioneers. A Joe Gibbs production. I am thrilled I picked it
up earlier at the Pop Inn. A bargain at a couple of bob.
1975: Sunday morning. The Chapel Market stall at the Angel, Islington
has all of its records laid out in piles on tables. There are US
imports. And Jamaican pre-releases. I desperately need to
buy a record I heard Tommy Vance play on his Saturday
night Capital Radio show ‘TV On Reggae’. It’s called ‘Burn
Babylon’ by Silford Walker. A Joe Gibbs production. I am
overjoyed to get it for 60p on a UK release. I celebrate
with the pre-requisite bag of apple fritters.
1979: Thursday morning. April 5th. I am flying to Jamaica
at the invitation of reggae producer Joe Gibbs – with a
view to spending two weeks at his Beverley Hills home,
ostensibly to write about Dennis Brown who is soon
UK-bound for some concerts which will capitalize on the
pop-chart success of ‘Money In My Pocket – a Joe Gibbs
production.
During 1978 I’d worked for Dennis Brown’s record company
DEB Music based in Battersea, and had known Dennis since I was
18 – so writing about him would be great as we were already good friends.
Joe Gibbs met me at the airport in Jamaica...eventually. This was my first
taste of the Jamaican lick of ‘soon come’ timing. I’d been apprehensive
about meeting Joe as he was such a big shot on the reggae scene
– but he made me feel completely welcome. The ride to his home
in Beverley Hills in the dark is something I’ll never forget. All the
twinkling lights of Jamaica! And the heat. Dogs barking. Distant
gun-shots.
The next day was my 20th birthday. It was a real thrill to
wake up in a foreign land, having never set foot outside the
UK before. They’d let me sleep in – and it was my guy
Dennis Brown who woke me up and took me out for
a drive. The following weeks were a succession
of visits to record shops, recording studios
and places of interest that were
specifically relevant to the man
we called D. Brown.
May 68: Street Post
SNOOPY’S JOE GIBBS SLAMDOWN SELEKSHAN:
JUNIOR MURVIN – Cool Out Son - (cool is definitely the word)
BOBBY MELODY – Jah Bring I Joy – (a UK No.1 reggae smash)
JACOB MILLER – Keep On Knockin’ (12” of BLISS)
SNUFFY & WALLY – Dreader Mafia (BIG version)
PRINCE FAR I – Under Heavy Manners (still sounds incredible)
4 5
Surprisingly, I
wasn’t able to spend
much time with Joe Gibbs
himself as he was busy going about
his business and whizzing off to Miami
– but I was well looked after by everybody. I
made good friends with the legendary Errol T.
(with whom Joe produced tunes as ‘The Mighty Two’),
Ruddy Thomas, my hero Junior Delgado, – and Gregory
Isaacs I already knew from the UK, as I’d promoted his first
British tour for DEB Music the previous year.
I hung about a lot at Joe Gibbs’ recording studio at
Retirement Crescent where Errol T. asked me to do some voice-
overs and sound-effects. I also liked to go to Joe Gibbs’ record shop
on North Parade – which was near a hang-out called Idlers Rest.
Joe would drive us there after breakfast. He said I could help myself to
whatever I wanted. He had a HUGE stash of old 45s out the back. I had to
get Dennis to take me to buy some bags to carry my stash of 45s and LPs
and 12”s back to the UK. I had tons of them. Never look a gift horse in
the mouth? You’re damn right!
There was a memorable trip with ‘Gado and Dennis to
the Red Hills to buy weed. It was just a wooden hut hidden in
the trees but it was chock-a-block with puff – like a Tesco’s
for ganja. That trip particularly sticks in my memory as
when it got dark out came these fireflies - in Jamaica
they call them peenywallys. I was terrified. It was so
disconcerting to have these flying insects that lit up all
about you. Jux thought it was hilarious.
I also recall going to the court in Kingston with Joe Gibbs’
wife and son (Rocky). There had been an inquest over the
death of Joe’s young daughter, who had accidentally fallen
in the swimming pool at their home and drowned. There
was some paperwork to be signed or something. That was
quite a sad day.
When I eventually came back from Jamaica and resumed my writing,
I did a short serial on the life and times of Dennis Brown, so hopefully Joe
Gibbs’ hospitality was well spent. Joe Gibbs himself was a generous, kind-
hearted guy but one who didn’t suffer fools and was obviously a clued-up
businessman. He was more of an ‘executive’ producer on many of his
tracks but he certainly had a good commercial ear. He was always
astute enough to have the best people work with him – in Errol T.,
he certainly found a reggae genius, someone who during my stay
taught me a lot about sounds and feeling and ridims and dub.
Sadly, Errol passed away just four years ago from a
stroke. He was one of the finest people I’ve ever met.
So, with Joe Gibbs now gone from us, the Mighty
Two are no more - I am sure they will be making
some heavyweight dubwise bizznizz in Paradise
in any case. R.I.P. Joe Gibbs – a man who
one way and another has made
such a difference to my life.
Your music will live on.
CULTURE – This Time (a RAVERS delite)
DENNIS BROWN – How Can I Leave (my favourite of all)
MARCIA AITKEN – I’m Still In Love With You (TOTAL ravers party classic)
TRINITY – John Saw Them Coming (what a tune)
DENNIS BROWN – Love Will Find Its Way (PURE class)
RUDDY THOMAS & TRINITY – Every Day Is Just A Holiday (a 100 Club classic)
 words: MICHAEL KRASSER

Pic: Dante Ruiz

Words: CAL JADER

Sweeping back onto Latin dancefloors, the Spanish-speaking people and the strong Latino musical export, but Vallenato was a music of the
folkloric music from the northern coast of scene there, anyone playing danceable Latin people. As Guzman explains, “Cumbia was bigger
Colombia has made something of a resurgence music stands a chance of developing a following.” internationally and became the tropical music
of late. Whether it’s the scratchy original The birth of Vallenato as a musical that other countries adopted, but Vallenato was
records getting plays at underground tropical form came about roughly during 1950s. Its always very locally specific and the music does
parties, or new Latin producers mashing up instrumentation tells you all about the history of not necessarily translate to an international
Cumbia and Vallenato with Reggaeton and the music, with the rhythm section consisting of audience. With Vallenato the lyrics are simple,
electronic beats, the rhythms of Colombia are the Caja drums that originated with the slaves similar to the blues and with folky themes.”
irresistible. arriving from Africa, and the Guacharaca, an Like the Pogues before them, the band have
But from downtown L.A., Very Be Careful indigenous instrument that makes a scraping refreshed a very traditional form of music with
offer a very different proposition. Instead of noise. As a way of leading the melodies the their raucous style and energy. After last year’s
Brother Stevie and Herbie were at it. a riot in underground black music, inspiring hip-hop and G-funk. In fact, try to think of an act
trying to update the songbook, they’ve gone European Accordion has replaced the Colombian successful tour it’s clear that the European
Kraftwerk spoke of a technocratic utopia with Afrika Bambaataa and Arthur Baker to create in the ’90s that didn’t use one: Ginuwine on ‘My
back to the roots, playing Colombian Vallenato Flute, while the vocal melodies are specifically audiences warm to the music quickly, despite
it. Egyptian Lover would have sworn it was ‘Planet Rock’. With its vocoderised chorus: Pony’ (with Timbaland at the controls), Dr Dre,
in its original and purest form, but somehow Colombian with the troubadour, the lead singer, the potential language barrier. “In the U.S. we’d
handed down by some “freaky” Pharaohs, and “Rock, Rock, Planet Rock”, it was a defining 2pac, Blackstreet and Teddy Riley, DJ Quik... the
managing to make it instantly accessible with adding a storytelling element to the songs. only play in major cities with Latino populations.
rappas-ternt-sangas T-Pain and Akon couldn’t moment in hip hop. This was the ‘80s, the era of list goes on. Since then, the humble Talkbox has
their visceral live performances. During the 1960s in Valledupare, the city But perhaps part of our universal appeal is that
live without it. The magnificent Vocoder and all things high-tech and futuristic: NASA launched become a staple of R&B production, spawning
“We don’t fit into the L.A. music scene where Vallenato originated, they began a festival we have an amazing Caja player (Rich) who gives
its lo-fi brethren, the Talkbox, have been the Challenger missions, youths bashed away a countless drove of robotic porno smash hit
really”, explains Arturo Guzman, bass player in that knighted the “accordion king of the year”. us a great booty shaking groove”. It’s a deeply
responsible for a range of robotic vocal effects at Pac-Man, dodging ghosties and gobbling singles. Snoop Dogg’s recent foray into the land
the band who, along with his accordion-playing It’s a tradition that still lives on to this day with addictive groove, so be careful. Very Be Careful.
from sci-fi tv series to ‘80s synth funk and up pills to repetitive electronic music, dancers of digi-funk with ‘Sensual Seduction’ brilliantly
brother Ricardo, grew up listening to his parent’s the writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez as one of
sleazy R&B slow jamz and still refuses to die. flexed like C-3PO and Herbie Hancock’s ‘Rockit’ satirizes the glitz and glamour of the ’80s,
collection of Vallenato records. “Because we play the festival’s judges. Initally seen as working VBC’S top 5 Vallenato tunes
sounded anything but from this planet. Staples with Snoop brandishing a keytar, Talkbox and
this classic form of music, we probably wouldn’t class music, Vallenato was later embraced by 1 PEDAZO DE ACORDEON - Alejandro Durán
The Vocoder, the undisputed ‘Mr Roboto’ of vocal of the electro scene Cybotron, Mantronix and ridiculous Soul Glo perm that would have had
even fit into the Miami Florida scene. There the middle class and in the 1970s became 2 LA CAJA NEGRA - Rafael Ralencia
processing, started life as a speech coder in the Man Parrish would also dabble with the world Rick James saying “Cocaine is one helluva drug.”
you’ll find other Vallenato bands, but most of the soundtrack to the daily life of Colombia’s 3 LA MUERTE DE ABEL ANTONIO - Abel Antonio
‘30s and was used during WWII for encrypting of vocoder processing, until another toy would In the ’00s pitch-correcting software like
them play a post-’70s style. And while there are population. 4 LA MISERIA HUMANA - Lisandro Meza
secret communications. However it wasn’t until come along and steal its crown, the Vocoder’s Antares Auto-Tune can now be pushed to
no Vallenato bands in L.A., with the amount of Cumbia has always been Colombia’s main 5 EL PLEITO - Abel Antonio
savvy synth nerds Wendy Carlos and Bob Moog slightly rougher, ghettoer cousin – the Talkbox. produce vocoder-like effects. Take a listen to any
tweaked the primitive vocoder that its musical The Talkbox could manipulate an instrument, Akon and T-Pain release and you’ll hear more
application became apparent. From there it was like a guitar or keyboard, with the artist singing then a liberal dash of it. Tone deaf pop stars
featured on a number of heavyweight recordings, directly into a plastic tube to produce vocoder- can also depend on these nifty little plugins to
including the soundtrack to Stanley Kubrick’s A like effects. If Moog realised the vocoder’s do the actual work for them, elevating the worst In the little town of Funkadelicville, just a few Kissey was now prepared for battle. So when she
Clockwork Orange. musical application, then it was Roger Troutman of piss poor vocal tracks to the heights of pitch degrees south of the Arctic Circle, Kissey Asplund encountered the Lord Darkness, the destroyer of
Vocoders saw a lot of work in the sound of Zapp, inspired by Stevie, who realised the perfect perfection. Kraftwerk too have ditched packed just her pink bird earring and her Kissey- worlds, in the dusty Texas desert, all Kissey had to
effects labs of kitsch sci-fi TV programs. The tin- Talkbox’s potential for pleasuring ladies and the vocoders in favour of speech synthesis like coloured pumps and set off on her SomeWhatStrange do was use her new powers. Wearing silver-metallic
foil robots of Battlestar Gallactica famously had pocket calculators alike. ‘Computer Love’ would Stephen Hawkings. ‘Numbers’ doesn’t sound adventures. Riding in her funk-buggy, the first port leggings, silver-metallic jacket and a motorcycle helmet
their vocals processed through a ring modulator pack enough Talkbox sleaze to make a TOMY nearly as kool these days, but at least they can of call was Amsterdam where she connected with on her head, when Kissey opened her mouth and
and an EMS Vocoder 5000. Elsewhere, the omnibot cum in its bakelite panties. Outfits like tour the former USSR without setting off tactical soundscientists O Boogie, Sotu and Nalden. Like a began to sing, the music was too sweet for the ears
BBC Radiophonic Workshop transformed metal Egyptian Lover also have to be credited for taking nukes and power plants. So does the future of 21st century Jason and his Argonauts, Kissey was of Lord Darkness who transubstantiated into a beetle
dustbins into terrifying Daleks in Doctor Who. the asexual vocoders of Kraftwerk to the seedy the ‘robot voice’ look bleak like the opening scene collecting the most swarthy and hench beatmakers for and scuttled away.
But German electronic pioneers Kraftwerk were realm of synthetic porno-land on top a bed of of a Terminator film? Hardly. Whether artists her funky space mission – to slay Lord Darkness and Some of Kissey’s sonic experiments have already
the first to pick up the vocoder baton in pop pounding 808’s. The added processed heavy use the OG analog gear of the past or updated repopulate the galaxy with soul flowers. landed their way onto vinyl, and now with the arrival
music and run with it, utilizing it to great effect on panting and xxx-rated antics only made it the digital formats , the legacy of robotic vocal In France she stayed with the Papa Jazz of her Plethora long-player, like a meeting between Sy
their techo-utopian: ‘The Robots’, ‘The Numbers’ more obvious: “Egyptian lover baabaayy.” processing can still deliver shocks to the core of swordsmen and slung down ‘I Would Do’ and Smith’s Syberspace Social and the lost beat tapes of
and ‘Trans Europe Express’. These slick ’80s synth funk productions Planet Rock. Rock, rock on. ‘Entrapped’ onto tape; in the UK it was the turn A Touch of Jazz, the first chapter in the Kissey saga is
These Teutonic futurists would in turn cause would influence the development of West Coast of the Kid Kanevil and Andreya Triana who taught drawing to a close. The battle may be won for now, but
Kissey a lesson in time manipulation; in California the road ahead is long and peppered with obstacles.
SUMMER BOUNCE she chilled with the hooded Blackmonk in Pasadena,
and impressed people like Take and Ras G when she
Where will she be called next? Will Lord Darkness be
so easily defeated next time around? And will she be
Public Enemy performs It Takes A Nation of Millions Brixton (May 23), Manchester (May 26), Glasgow (May 27) Movement : Detroit’s Electronic grabbed the mic and started casting powerful spells able to harness the powers of the pink bird earring?
Music Festival, 24-26 May, Newcleus, Egyptian Lover, Carl Craig, PBW, The Cool Kids, Pete Rock Venn Festival, Bristol, 5 – 8 June, Matmos, Afrikan over a SIDplayer beat. Find out in the next episode of the Somewhat Strange
Boy, Fly Lo, Heliocentrics, Murcof, JVC Jazz Festival, New York, 15 – 28 June, A Tribute to Alice Coltrane, Jill Scott, Cecil Taylor, Sergio Mendes, the “It’s addictive to sing on a beat and feel that you Life of Kissey Asplund.
Mos Def Big Band (with Gil Scott-Heron) MCs for Life Conference, Birmingham, UK, 28-29 June, with Black Thought, Lord Finesse, Ursula Rucker, nail it. It makes your chest all warm and your body
Tumi, Rototom Sunsplash, Udine, Italy, 3-12 July, Ken Boothe, Queen Ifrica, Cocoa T, Jah Cure, Collie Buddz and Beres Hammond; Worldwide Festival, vibrate as if your body’s extended and melting into somewhatstrangelife.blogspot.com
Sète, France, 3-5 July, Cinematic Orchestra, Henrik Schwarz, Pilooski, Benga, Little Dragon, Simbad & Gillesy P. Lollapalooza, Chicago, US, 1-3 August, floors and oxygen. It’s sick I tell you… it’s like standing
Radiohead, Battles, Sharon Jones, Kid Sister, Cat Power Flow Festival, Helsinki, 5- 17 August, Martha Reeves, MGMT, Five Corners 5tet, Ame, CSS on a hill and screaming ...imagine all the energy but PLETHORA LP (R2 Records)
Kemp Festival, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic 22-24 August, The Roots, Pharoahe Monch, eMC, Mr. Lif & Akrobatik Electric Elephant, Croatia, 22-24 none of the exhaustion,” says Kissey. MOVE ME/99Bottles 7” (Recordbreakin’)
August, Radioslave, Zed Bias, Adem, Quiet Village Tokyo Crossover Festival 22 September, Kyoto Jazz Massive, Jazzy Sport & surprises. Having completed her intensive training, BLACKMONK 7” (Poo-Bah records)
7
6
 TREBLE
WORD POWER MAKERS
DOM SERVINI heads to Bedfordshire, once the home of underground BEN MI DUCK
jazz band leader Glen Miller and anti-establishment Christian author
John Bunyan, to catch up with two of its less racy celebrity residents Most legendary club
night i’ve attended was....
– record label bosses Dave ‘Shifty’ Farlam and Dom ‘Domu’ Stanton.
Union 1 on a Friday in
Derby – 1998. Booze,
girls and a few hundred
SHK: Bedfordshire. Reasons to visit? Shift: Speaking for Leighton Buzzard, we have some great fake IDs all under one
charity shops, the countryside is pretty impressive, and we probably have the tastiest kebab in the roof!
country. Dom: It’s cheaper than London! We also recently acquired a Primark so I can buy all the Working with Dom and
“I feel that I did not so much write this book as same cheap designer jumpers as anyone in a big city – although I have to go to Milton Keynes to Shift is.... a genuine pleasure. Top blokes
that this book wrote me.” (Chinua Achebe) shop at H&M. If I wasn’t making music, I’d be... rich. I’d go
straight back in the Forces I reckon. The money’s
It’s unusual for a book to be honoured with a SHK: Where did the TrebleO name come from? Shift: The idea came whilst waiting for a bag of pretty good n you get to ‘go on tour’ loads
tribute 50 years after its publication, but Things chips from my local takeaway. SHK: I’m starting to worry about your diet Dave! Shift: Like when Favourite ever t-shirt.. I used to live in a
Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe’s first novel, is no Prince changed his name to that symbol. It was as much to do with the three circles as it was to Jamiroquai one (when they were good). It was dark
ordinary novel. Retelling the colonial experience do with the name. blue with light blue writing on. Nigella Lawson wears
through Ibo eyes, the parable of Okonkwo broke a nice one too on her cookery programmes.
new ground in African literature and continues to SHK: The Ben Mi Duck single seemed to come out of nowhere? From which musical pond did you One thing that astounds me... is how people can
inspire; if you don’t like someone’s story, why not fish out this talent? Shift: I read about it on the 4hero message board and found Ben swimming even listen to chart stuff, when there’s so much
tell your own? about on MySpace. I sent him a message about the song and he told me that he was blown away quality jazz about.
Achebe was in his late twenties when he by our support as no one had approached him about it. There are all these people out there
wrote Things Fall Apart, taking its title from a making amazing music but there’s a real apathy to putting anything out from unestablished AD BOURKE
Yeats poem, ‘The Second Coming’ (“Turning and artists.
turning in the widening gyre, The falcon cannot Most legendary club
hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the centre nite I’ve attended
SHK: What’s coming up for TrebleO this year? Shift: We have releases from The Sub Ensemble
cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the was… 24carat where I
and Halflife who are two wicked live jazz bands from Birmingham, hip hop beat-tapes from JJ
world”). Now approaching 80, humbled by the played with Daniele Baldelli
Suave, AD Bourke and Varan, plus a straight up mad take on hip hop from Domu and myself under
outpouring of admiration, Achebe spoke this Working with Dom &
the name Spartial Jefferson. Then there’s our compilation of new bits called Here Comes Treble.
February to a packed auditorium at Town Hall Shift is… fast, simple.
in midtown Manhattan of his gratitude at the Make a track, send it over
SHK: As an independent label in a rapidly changing market place, how do you feel the
book’s impact, and reminisced how close he and see if they like
technological revolution has affected your imprint? Dom: There’s the speed and ease and relative
came to losing the manuscript after sending it ...that’s it. I haven’t met them yet but they seem
cost free element to a digital release, using message boards to hype up a release, and the digital
the only handwritten copy to a typist in the UK. good guys.
and internet radio stations. It has made us think twice this year about physical output. Shift:
Acknowledging its timelessness, Colum McCann If I wasn’t making music I’d be… a real parrot
Another big change now is that kids don’t have to save for months or years to get themselves
explained its endurance, “The best books are the recreating all the possible sounds from Louis and
a little studio together as they can get hold of music software and do it all on their computer in
ones which speak with voices which we’ve been Bebe Barron’s Forbidden Planet film score.
their bedroom. Quite often it’s these people, making the music at home without any plans to get
hearing our whole lives.” (Chris Robinson) Favourite ever t-shirt… Totti’s AS Roma shirt
it released, who are making the most exciting stuff. The accessibility that people have now to new
One thing that astounds me… Parrots and MPCs
and old music is incredible.
can do crazy things together.

SHK: Give us your top musical and comedic influences. Shift: Comedy-wise, Simon Pegg and Nick JJ SUAVE
Frost and The Mighty Boosh – anyone who can make a joke out of a reference to an obscure jazz-
SHORTLIST fusion record is worthy of respect. And musically, I’m gonna say DJ’s such as LTJ Bukem, James
Lavelle and Coldcut for creating their own movement. Dom: I’m slightly obsessed with all surreal
Most legendary club nite
I’ve attended was… I’ve
ALEX WHEATLE – Dirty South (Serpent’s Tail) or satirical comedy from the ‘50s onwards – The Goons, Monty Python, Beyond The Fringe, The only been 18 for a matter
Similar to Menelik Shabazz’s film ‘Burning An Illusion’, this story of innocence lost follows weed-shot- Goodies, The Young Ones, The Fast Show, Spaced or The Day Today. To me the people behind of months. I’m aware that
ta Dennis Huggins as he puts everything on the line for the memory of his best friend. Wheatle’s these shows are genuine geniuses. Music – 4hero, massively. Portishead, because I spent the Electric Chair (RIP) was
prose is sometimes messy, but the tempo stays high till the very last. whole of 1994 listening to Dummy. Lastly, but rather obviously, Stevie Wonder. a bit of a local legend but
I’m not really qualified to
ARNALDO CRUZ MALAVE - Gay Latin Testimonio (newdirections) www.trebleo.co.uk get carried away about it.
The story of Keith Haring’s lover, Juanito Xtravaganza, the handsome street kid who enters a life of Working with Dom & Shift is… A pretty bad career
first-class flights to Japan and nights at the Mondrian with Grace Jones and Princess Caroline. But move.
his world dissolves when Haring contracts HIV and he’s forced to contend with his own illness. If I wasn’t making music, I’d be… Addicted to
something equally draining on my finances. like Shift
ED PAVLIC – Winners Have Yet To Be Announced (Georgia University Press) and his ciggies.
Subtitled ‘A Song For Donny Hathaway’, this collection of prose poems charts the dissolution of Mr Favourite ever t-shirt… 2003/2004 Deportivo
Hathaway, plagued by mental illness and committing suicide aged 33. A profound meditation on the Wanka (Peru) away shirt. It says “WANKA” across
fate of the artist, misunderstood by the public, the media and the industry, like D’Angelo, Lauryn Hill the middle in huge lettering.
and many more besides. One thing that astounds me… Blimps.

8
9
 SOUL ATHLETIC
Photography MATT CROSSICK

Super striker Bev Tawiah (main) and the tactical

mastermind Eric Lau (bottom row) have been
getting props from all corners, but in the shadows

big thanks to Acyde at Nike and Lisa at Puma for the kits.
lies Jodi Milliner (middle row, right) who produced
Tawiah’s EP In Jodi’s Bedroom and supplied
guitar licks for Eric Lau’s classy debut album, New
Territories. Then there’s Rahel (top right), who
just the previous evening performed an unplugged
set of new material. Also coming through the
ranks is Tawiah’s lil sis, Annabel (centre), and
partner in crime, Meshach Brown (top left), who
sounds like a cockney Eric Roberson. And let’s
not forget Toisin who’s penned ‘Don’t Let Them’
(it’s a classic); Sarina Leah (middle left) who steps
out with ‘Time Will Tell’; and the magnificent
Layla Rutherford (top row, middle] bringing all the
pieces together. On their current form, the team
are looking unbeatable. Are there any challengers
to the title?
Eric Lau’s New Territories (Ubiquity) and
Tawiah’s In Jodi’s Bedroom (Bush Girl) out now.

10 11
 HEAD HEART & SOUL

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Straw 08 Fedora & Stussy x Hirofumi Kiyonaga Usual Suspect by Grotesk Nike Sb Blazer Pine Green / White
www.stussystore.co.uk www.soph.net/OSAKA/ www.sixpack.fr www.flatspot.com

Skoolin Da Jazz New York Yankees Isosceles Green In Living The True Gods DVD
www.addict.co.uk www.neweracap.co.uk www.stonesthrow.com/102/
Dj Qbert’s Scratchlopedia Breaktannica Tableturns Watch
Street Thing Method by Michael Leon
www.thudrumble.com www.fludwatches.com
www.2kbygingham.com

Move on up: The Music and Message

Clarks Wallabee x Futura Old Skool Board of Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions Jazz Shiki Helvetica DVD Onitsuka Tiger - Fabre 74.
www.clarksorignals.com www.crailtap.com www.play.com www.twelvebar.com www.helveticafilm.com www.onitsukatiger.co.uk
12 13
TATA GUINES, ORIGINAL RUMBERO

Over the past three years, VINCE VELLA paid regular visits to Tata in his
house in the quiet area of Vedado, Havana. “We always used to have
a bit of rum and a long chat before my lessons. Tata was such a sharp
thinker, an incredible teacher, and we always had a good laugh. He was
always so passionate in showing his technique and percussion tricks to his
students. ‘Respect the tradition first, la marcha!’ he always used to say. It’s
something most percussionists seem to overlook these days. It was very
sad to hear news of his passing earlier this year.”
Before the days of Cuban music, congas and bata drums were only
used for religious ceremonies. Tata was a santero, whose saint was
Chango and whose name in his religion was Calunga Site Rayo. He says
that the street was his first teacher. He’d listen to stuff on the radio and
try to emulate it. No wonder he had such a unique style. After Chano Pozo,
Tata was one of the first congueros to really understand the concept of
fusion. According to Anga Diaz, “Tata Guines invented a brilliantly orthodox
style – one of the pioneers of tumbadora (conga) and percussions in
general.”
VV: Let’s talk about your roots.
Tata: Mine was a really traditional Barrio where people always had an
excuse to have a party – fiesta, rumba… We always had so much fun. In the
‘40s and ‘50s, dancers really knew how to follow the rhythms of the quinto.
At the time, I remember there was this dancer called Champa. He was
the best rumba dancer I ever saw. He’d do these really dangerous moves
with a knife between his teeth. He was a real dangerous dude. At that time
there was so much poverty, musicians used to make music with anything
in the streets…pots, wooden spoons. I used to make my own instruments
– a bongo drum out of a milk carton and a salami tin. The first commercial
congas produced by LP (Latin Percussion) were actually copies of the
drums that I originally designed.
VV: There were lots of nightclubs in Havana in the 1950s. Cuban and
American jazz musicians used to play together and you were jamming
a lot with Cachao and his band in 1957 when you recorded the first
Descarga ever in Cuba – Cachao y su ritmo caliente.
Tata: That album was a real musical statement. I believe you always have
to give a message through your music, otherwise there’s no point. Me,
Cachao, N. Rivera , Rolito met up one day and in five hours from 4am
until 9am recorded the whole thing without writing a single music note
on paper. We were all virtuosos and it happened so naturally. Descarga
for me is pure improvisation, thoughts evolve in your mind, it’s a musical
journey where every musician in order to be on board must be able to
express all he knows at the right time. It’s a musical competition where all
your weakness and strengths show up.
VV: After your move to NYC, you played in venues like the Metropolitan,
Palladium, Birdland with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Frank
Sinatra… What impact did your new conga techniques have on the
American jazz world.
Tata: People used to call me El Fifty. I started to modernize the way of
playing drums, people were pretty amazed by how I was playing and
everyone started copying my style, the range of sounds, the way I used my
fingernails as well as my hands. America was musically a great experience
but at that time racism was still a big problem and in many ways I felt
uncomfortable about it all, so in 1959 after the Cuban revolution I came
back home. Things were relatively quiet for a few years, I was teaching
a lot at that time and among my students were Anga Diaz, Nino Alfonso,
Giovanni Hidalgo, Changuito. Then I got involved in the recordings of the
Latin masterpiece Estrellas de Areito which was the Cuban answer to the
Fania All Stars in the USA. After that I recorded stuff with other musicians
including Anga Diaz, Orlando Valle and Maracas, pianist Hernan Lopez
Nussa of Habana Report and my last adventure was Lagrimas Negra (with
flamenco star Diego Cigala, piano legend Bebo Valdes and Changuito on
timbales).
Tata died at the age of 77 from a kidney infection. Rest in peace.
TWENTY FIFTH BIRTHDAY
words: SAMERA OWUSU TUTU
Against the backdrop of the Falklands War and unemployment levels
reaching their highest point since the 1930s, 1982 managed to be an
important year for art in Britain. We’re not just talking about Ben Kingsley
winning an Oscar for his great turn at Gandhi, nor are we raising glass to
the opening of the Barbican Centre. On the tide of London’s ever undulating
undercurrent, this was the year that a movement was founded, giving a
voice to the disenfranchised and promoting the urban avant-garde. This
was the year that Apples & Snakes was born.
Apples & Snakes is Britain’s premiere performance poetry
organisation. Through its events and workshops, the organisation has
provided a platform for emerging artists, whether it be the girl next
door with a story to tell and looking for an outlet, or a group of more
established performers looking for a forum to test out new work. In fact,
it’s the contributions from the most unlikely candidates that have been
the earmark of Apples & Snakes’ success and the key to London’s poetry
renaissance.
Over the past 25 years, Apples & Snakes has seen collaborations
with some serious literary heavyweights. At the Adam’s Arms, where the
organisation held residency for 10 years from ‘82, it showcased the likes of
Benjamin Zephaniah, John Agard and Linton Kwesi Johnson.
Moving to the Battersea Arts Centre in 1994, A&S gave the stage a
new generation of London talents, like the prolific author Courttia Newland,
actress Meera Syal and the ever talented Lemn Sissay. Even internationals
wanted a piece, and the likes of Saul Williams have enjoyed airtime on the
A&S stage. Poetry was recognised in all forms, and hip hop artists like Ty
and Jonzi D also became an integral part of the organization.
With the help of the creatives they champion, the Apples & Snakes
collective have been a part of pioneering directions in performance poetry.
Take Roger Robinson’s Shadow Boxer for example. Until this project in
2000, the one-man show was a pretty much unheard of. The bottom line
is A&S has proved a true ambassador for London’s poetry scene, always
open to new ideas, forever pushing boundaries.
But A&S is more than just about the nights. The collective have given
various groups in different communities a voice through poetry and hence
a presence where there was traditionally none. They’ve spearheaded social
initiatives, including their youth offenders scheme, Respect, and they host
workshops to help newcomers develop their own voices. Apples & Snakes
continues to make moves at its new home of the Albany, where it has a full
calendar of events lined up for the summer.
To celebrate their 25th birthday, the collective have made moves yet
again by producing their first CD. This almanac of poetry features legends
like Jean ‘Binta’ Breeze, modern griot Malika Booker and spiritual verbalist
El Crisis, alongside the freshest talent London has to offer – Inua Ellams
and Yemisi Blake. For that touch of edge, Roger Robinson and Charlie Dark
also hit us with a collabo. In their 25th year, it’s time to pay attention to
Apples and Snakes and the creatives they represent. If you can’t catch a
show, make sure cop the CD.
www.applesandsnakes.org

Arthur Lipsett was an enigma in 1961 when his

first film was released and remains so today. While
My favorite moments that I committed to tape were shaped around a local employed at the National Film Board of Canada,
Dallas DJ by the name of Ushy (R.I.P). Ushy hosted a radio show on the the Canadian filmmaker produced experimental
weekends and he’d play countless hours of funk-driven tunes with the day’s short films, directing both the cinematography and
the sound. His films provided a social commentary
hip-hop thrown in. I’d wait for what seemed like hours for him to play two
through an unsettling editing technique of splicing
songs in particular. My tape deck would be ready and set to record. The discarded sequences and soundbites with his own
second I felt the songs creep into his masterful funk mix, my hands couldn’t footage. Influencing the likes of Stanley Kubrick and
push the buttons down fast enough. The songs were LTD’s Cuttin’ It Up and George Lucas, his legendary montage style also has
echoes in latter day socio-political documentary-
Stick It In by Junie Morrison (formerly of the Ohio Players). After I made maker, Adam Curtis and cut-and-paste musician,
my cassette, mind you with all the pops in between (with chopped endings Cassetteboy. Remastered and released on vinyl by
because it was a mixed music show and none of the songs played all the way Global A Records, Soundtracks is a reproduction of
the full audio recordings of some of his key films. In
through), I spent countless hours popping, flailing, and jumping around until his seminal work 21-87, for example, found sounds,
my neck was sore and I was ringing with sweat! Oh how good music can be... music excerpts, live recordings and news stories are
ecstasy in its purest form. inter-cut with imagery of contradictory scenes. More

N’DAMBI
than a retrospective, however, the album retains the
energy and shifting narratives that weave through
See N’dambi live this summer & watch out for a forthcoming album on Stax. Lipsett‘s work. (Gwen Webber)
www.arthurlipsett.com
14 15
 MARTYN’S INSPIRATIONS
WORDS: Alex Stevenson

SPECIAL DELIVERY FROM THE
CARIBBEAN AND BEYOND
The JAY-Z remix of MAVADO’s massive ‘On The Rock’ on the MISSION RIDDIM looks
set to be this year’s big dancehall crossover tune. Since being premiered on
New York’s Hot 97 radio station in March it’s been getting rinsed everywhere
and ROC-A-FELLA is apparently planning to license it and shoot a video.
“Martyn is dealing with dubstep’s groove deficiency by making some of the slinkiest, lushest
productions around.” So says Kode9, Hyperdub overseer and dubstep visionary who has championed
this Dutch producer’s recent “downtempo” output on Marcus Intalex’s Revolve:r label and his own
3024 imprint.
Initially garnering props in the DnB scene, Martyn Deykers seems keen to demonstrate both his
versatility and indeed his ample production steez, inadvertently giving the dubstep fraternity a well-
aimed boot up the arse with a series of immaculately crafted, widescreen, cyclical grooves all of which
bump, thump and snap in all the right places, but also glow with a warmth reminiscent of vintage Carl
Craig jams.
Content to hover on the fringes of the burgeoning dubstep movement, Martyn’s adventures in

photo: M. Freeling
bruk science continue with much anticipated remixes for Black Pocket, TRG, Ican (of Los Hermanos/
The controversial website AUDIOMAXXX, which sold dancehall and reggae CDs UR fame) and Shut Up & Dance. By way of introduction, here’s a little mixtape compiled by Martyn,
and DVDs, was raided and closed down recently by the Canadian Recording highlighting the roots of his inspirations and influences.
Industry Association (CRIA). Many people in the reggae industry seem to be
happy about this development, given Audiomaxxx’s reputation for not always www.myspace.com/martyndnb www.3024world.blogspot.com
being entirely open and honest in their dealings. However, in the absence of a
IG CULTURE傑作！グレイトブラックミュージックアルバム！ comprehensive, legal download service for new dancehall music and the fact
that many new riddims never see a vinyl or official CD release, Audiomaxxx was
90年代初頭から活躍するプロデューサーにして，
西ロンのビートカル for many fans often the only way to buy latest the tunes.
チャー，
ブロークンビーツのイノヴェーターIGCULTUREによるコンセ
Somewhat bizarrely, dancehall star MACKA DIAMOND recently took to the pulpit 1. Carl Craig: ‘At Les’ [Planet E] 5. Cesaria Evora: ‘Angola’ (Get Down Dub by
プチュアルなニューアルバム。
ブラックネスをキーワードに彼の才能の I could’ve named many C2 tracks but this one Pepe Bradock) [Lusafrica]
at a Christian conference called Angel by Day, Monster by Night, to give a
ルーツを紐解いていくかの様にヒップホップ，
アフロ，
ソウル，
ファンク， talk on bedroom behaviour. The event, at Jamaica’s City of Praise church, was is just a classic in all respects: great melodies, Pepe Bradock is another one of those producers
organised by the pastor at the request of his congregation, who according to great beats, wonderful developing arrangement. moving on the outskirts of different genres, doing
ブロークン・ビーツ，
ジャズが入り混じり，
まるでDJミックスの如くIGワ A perfect track for any environment, be it a small what he does best: making great Pepe music!
Macka Diamond’s publicist, “are losing their husbands because they are too
ールドが展開されてます。
アルバムは3部構成になっていて，
いきなり timid in the bedroom”! Macka Diamond has also just recorded a track with
1 5 intimate club or a huge arena. A key tune from Beautiful remix for continuous repeat playing
my early clubbing days in small, dark clubs in on Sunday afternoons. Always a bit quirky, very
濃厚な第1セクションではシカゴの前衛ジャズ集団AACMのメンバー STEPHEN MARLEY, which is bound to be big.
Eindhoven, Holland. soulful and rugged and noisy too – just the way
が参加，DOUG CARN
「Revelation」
のカヴァー、
第三幕では，Bilal I like it.
In other Marley family news, recent reports indicate that LAURYN HILL, mother
Salaamが驚きのファルセットで歌い上げたEDDIE KENDRICKS
「 to several Marley grandchildren through her marriage to Rohan, will play RITA 2. Ricardo Villalobos: ‘Que Belle Epoque 2006’
MARLEY in a forthcoming film based on Rita’s 2004 autobiography No Woman [Frisbee Tracks] 6. The Other People Place: ‘Eye Contact’
Girl You Need A Change Of Mind」
など，
彼の音楽愛を感じさせ I discovered the German techno/minimal [Warp]
No Cry: My Life With Bob Marley.
る名カヴァーも素晴らしいです！カルチャー，
ヒストリーと共に連続し movement quite late, but when I did I was blown Another one for the continuous repeat days,
away by some of the Villalobos tracks. I love his produced by one half of Drexciya. This track has
ていくブラックミュージックの今と，彼を取り巻く環境の新しい動きを Look out for the first release on DJ /RUPTURE and MATT SHADETEK’s new DUTTY
ARTZ label coming soon on 12” vinyl. It features the dubstep influenced work of very intuitive arrangements and when I heard such an uneasy vibe, yet I can’t stop listening to
ひしひしと感じさせるグレイトブラックミュージックアルバム！
（アナロ 6 him play I completely understood. In ‘Que Belle it. Very easy to lose yourself in it and completely
CAUTO from Barcelona, whose half-stepping Original Nuttah remix is certain 2
グのリリースは少し先の予定です。）(中村) to shake numerous speaker boxes in the next few months, and NYC’s Matt Epoque’ he brings this kinda French chanson forget in what century you are. I discovered this
Shadetek, who drops a couple of grimey dancehall numbers. One is a remix with theme to the table which feels a bit out of place only recently but it deserves its spot in this mix.
vox from Heatwave favourite TANYA STEPHENS, a track guaranteed to do heavy at first, but it proves that you can make any
damage on the dancefloor type of sound work on a 4x4 beat if you’re good 7. Model 500: ‘Starlight’ [Metroplex]
enough! Very inspiring music. Classic track by (for me) Detroit’s most forward-
ESTELLE has conquered the pop charts with American Boy’s disco flavour, but thinking producer – Juan Atkins. Brilliant tracks
SY SMITH‘s new album’s called Conflict (PSYKO). SAMIYAM’s the Rap there are some dancehall gems buried on her long player ‘Shine’. The MARK 3. Burial: ‘Archangel’ [Hyperdub] have very few elements but are executed
Beats Vol. 1 is half-man half-amazing. Detroit’s INVINCIBLE hits us RONSON produced ‘Magnificent’ bumps nicely and features a killer verse from My favourite Burial track. I loved his first album perfectly and this one is a great example. It still
with Sledge Hammer (BIG.). HOUSE SHOES comes with Lounging 2: Canadian KARDINAL OFFISHALL. But the real reggae vibes on the album come but the second one topped it for me. Much has gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. I do
The King James Version. THE HERBALISER move from NINJA to !K7, from the one drop number ‘Come Over’, voiced in Miami with SUPER DUPS of been said about Burial but this is a track that want to mention ‘Wanna Be There’ by Model
3 became a song rising far above the genre it 500 as my all-time favourite highway track
while Ninja hit us with a Daedalus album (soon come), 2562 is on Black Chiney, who have also put it out on 7” on their own label. It’s got a similar 7
some Dutch heavy bass artcore. GASLAMP KILLER’s EP on Shepard feel to their recent ‘Doctor Bird’ riddim and seems sure to be a dancehall hit. spawned from. though!
Fairey’s label: sitar skankin. Replife sounding good. On the Japanese
electronic tip, check AOKI TAKAMASA. Dusty Groove reissue some RIDDIM UP 4. Roy Davis Jr.: ‘Gabrielle’ [Large] 8. Kenny Larkin: ‘Catatonic’ (Stacey Pullen Mix)
classic material including DAVID AXELROD and JORGE BEN. Heavy Bit of an odd one out in this list, but being a DJ [R&S]
rotation: the AFEFE IKU album on Yoruba. Can’t wait for albums from this really influenced me as it’s such a soulful A great piece of futuristic Detroit funk, 14 years
RIKO DAN Mind How You A Talk (The Heatwave 7”)
LALAH HATHAWAY and AL GREEN. On Far Out THE IPANEMAS drop a tune yet with a huge bassline and proper beats. old (yep, 14). If it came out next month I’d still
BLAK TWANG & BLACKOUT JA Long Time (Mr Benn 12”)
heavy set from Wilson and da Boyz. THE INVISIBLE brings together One of the instrumental tunes for the 2-step be all over it. For me this really captures the
MAVADO & JAY-Z On The Rock (VP Records)
Dave Okumu, Leo Taylor & Tom Herbert (www.myspace.com/thein- movement back in the day. Always a special essence of Detroit techno, that soundtrack to
ASSASSIN Pum Pum Surveillance (Daseca)
visiblethree). Cop the DARU mixtapes (big respek 2 Marc Mac), David moment when I’m able to slip this into a DJ set. driving on the highway when you see the first big
Rodigan celebrates 30 years of radio with Real Authentic Reggae ZOMBY Spliff Dub [Rustie Remix] (Hyperdub)
STEPHEN AND DAMIAN MARLEY The Mission (Baby G) skyscrapers and bright lights of a metropolis in
for BBE & ESKA’s LP is on its way via Matthew Herbert’s ACCIDENTAL. 4 8
the distance slowly emerging from the darkness.
16 17
For more good vibes from The Heatwave log on to www.theheatwave.co.uk/blog

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 words: AL BURTON Illustrations EMEK

BEAT
FREAQ
BADU
Her 1997 debut Baduizm, not only breathed new life into a
stale and fading genre, but it marked the arrival of a musical
maverick, holstering poetic tales of reality and romance in
one chamber and the mystical imagery of metaphysics in the
other. She frowned on the industry-imposed standards of
beauty, choosing dreadlocked extensions and colorful head
wraps over a more popular weave. She spoke of chakras
and divinity and she rarely made an appearance without first
baptizing the venue with candles and incense. Erykah Badu
was not to be overlooked, and more importantly she was not
to be forgotten.
With the release of New Amerykah Part I (4th World
War), her fourth studio album, Badu does what she does
best—she goes against the grain. Rather than re-hashing
a timeless and already proven formula, she enlisted the
services of an elite group of underground producers and set
her sights on new and uncharted territory. The result is a
collection of urban classics that blurs musical boundaries.
By choosing to highlight the producer rather than herself,
Badu demonstrates complexity by subtraction. And keeping
with the spirit of the album, we chose to do the same.

20 21
James Poyser When browsing the list of credited producers on New Amerykah, James
Poyser’s name appears only once—alongside co-producer, and fellow
Soulquarian, Amir ‘?Luv’ Thompson. As a musician, he also appears on ‘Me’,
Sa-Ra Their sound could best be described as mysterious, sonically pairing elements more likely
to create dissonance than music, with peculiarly placed chords and off-time beats all key
components of their sound. And if you found their music challenging, chances are you wouldn’t fare

Telephone ‘That Hump’, and ‘Master Teacher’—taking the helm midway through the track,
giving the song a vintage Badu spin. Still, on the surface, his contribution seems
minimal. But if you’re even the slightest bit familiar with the celebrated career
of Erykah Badu, then you will also know that perhaps no single producer is more
responsible for her success than James Poyser.
Master Teacher
much better with their conversation. Even their name, Sa-Ra Creative Partners, required further
explanation.
Four years after they burst onto the scene, with a major label deal and a full-length behind them,
though Sa-Ra’s visibility has increased significantly, their music remains a mystery to many. But with
the release of Erykah Badu’s New Amerykah Pt.1, they fully expect that to change. Of the album’s
Prior to New Amerykah, James Poyser has been heavily involved, both as
10 tracks, half were produced by Sa-Ra, and they are listed as writers on at least one other. Further
a producer and a musician, in every Badu release dating back to her 1997
qualifying their role on the project, Shafiq Husayn, one third of the group, is credited as one of the
debut Baduizm. Not only did he help shape the sound so commonly associated
albums Associate Producers. It’s fair to say that New Amerykah is as much an inauguration for Sa-
with Badu, but he produced the album’s lead single ‘On & On’, which practically
Ra as it is a re-emergence for Erykah Badu.
catapulted Badu to stardom. He also picked up a Grammy in 2003 for co-writing
To some it may seem odd that a recording artist of Badu’s stature would bank so much on a group
the Erykah and Common duet ‘Love Of My Life (An Ode to Hip Hop)’, Yet, in the
of producers who, until now, are most known for their work on the underground. To those more
midst of a beat-driven, minimalist New Amerykah, Poyser’s reduced role is,
familiar with the group, however, the collaboration is long overdue. Beyond the music, both share
at least, understandable. “On this album she wanted a dirtier, more organic
an apparent affinity for kemetic principles and alternative lifestyles. “We really all like each other,”
underground hip hop sound,” he explains. “So she dealt with cats that brought
explains Om’mas Keith, before elaborating in the usual Sa-Ra manner, “the metaphysics and the
that sound to the table.”
energies that are surrounding the earth right now—what we’re creating right now and what she’s
His lone contribution, ‘Telephone’, an important one at that, adds
creating right now—that’s the reason we work so well together. It’s so rare in the industry for you to
a certain calmness to an otherwise aggressive album. In conversation,
work with people you really like. She even sleeps in the same bedroom with our kids when she comes
Poyser’s demeanour seems slightly at odds with that of the other producers
to our house.”
on New Amerykah. Where others share, or in some cases admire, Badu’s
Although rumored to have been recorded largely on just two tracks, a fair amount of the initial
unique recording process, Poyser’s disposition resembles a sort of earned
recording for New Amerykah took place at Sa-Ra’s Cosmic Dust Studio. As the name might suggest,
appreciation. “Working with Erykah is a process,” laughs Poyser. “Erykah’s
they employ a similarly esoteric approach to recording to that of Badu, working with few restrictions
always going to be an individual and she’s going to work the way she’s going
and adhering to no specific schedule. “It’s like opening gifts on Christmas morning,” describes Shafiq
to work. There’s a certain type of artists that gets really, really bad demo-itus.
Husayn. “Your cousins are there because they spent the night and they brought their gifts over too.
Meaning that whatever it is that they hear, they’re stuck on it. Erykah is that
Everybody opens up their presents only in this case everybody got musical instruments. After you eat
type of artist. She knows what she wants to hear. She wears the producer hat
and talk for 12 hours about theories, holistic health, bitches and hoes, then you get in the lab with this
along with the producer. I personally prefer it that way because I like to work
understanding and universal agreement amongst everybody that we’re all on the same page. Then
with the artist to develop their sound, but a lot of producers like to develop their
we can get to some music. It’s those initial stages that lead up to the great music.”
own sound. If you’re not used to working like that it can definitely jar you.”
A self-professed control freak, Badu prefers to be involved in all aspects of her music. Though
One change that Poyser did notice in her process was how Badu had
she wasn’t always involved in the initial programming, her presence was felt throughout the entire
become more self-reliant in the studio “She used a laptop and she did a lot of
process. “Sometimes she’d come through and pick a skeletal and other times the beats would get
the demos for the vocals right into Garage Band which wasn’t done before.”
made right then and there,” recalls Keith. “It’s like money,” adds Husayn. “It’s just a physical piece
Appearing just before ‘Honey’, ‘Telephone’ is in many ways a perfect ending to
of paper that doesn’t have any intrinsic value until people collectively participate in using it. That’s
the album. For the waning fan who may have been caught off guard (assuming
why they call it currency, because they put the energy behind it. Badu is the vehicle that produces the
that such a thing is even possible for a Badu fan) by the edgier musical direction
energy so she’s always in the fabric or inner workings when we’re getting stuff done.”
taken on most of the album, ‘Telephone’ delivers the soft melodies and acoustic
While most of the Sa-Ra produced tracks on New Amerykah were created through a more “organic”
feel synonymous with her distinctive live sound. But the most compelling
approach, others were the result of an unofficial coalition of artists affiliated with the group. “Sa-
argument for choosing this track to close the album can be found in the song
Ra has always been a harbor of creativity so to speak,” explains Keith. “A lot of the talent in LA
itself.
has flowed through us. We had Georgia at the house one day and it just so happened that Badu
“We were in the studio right after Dilla’s funeral and we were working
came through. Georgia was sitting at the Rhodes and it was one of those crazy Sa-Ra nights where
on stuff for the Edith Funker album,” he recalls. “The focus there was more
everyone was just enjoying the universe and the instruments and Erykah heard Georgia’s song
emotional than sonic. It was just feeling Dilla. It was something that wasn’t
and was loving it. Eventually Badu left town and we kept building on the song with Georgia. It was
thought out, it just naturally took place. We were sitting there and we just
originally supposed to be on our upcoming Black Fuzz album. Badu kept asking about Georgia and
started jamming and the song just happened instantly.”
then we were like we got this song ‘Master Teacher’. There are joints that Badu hears and she’s
Just as Dilla’s passing inspired the music for ‘Telephone’, his words served
like ‘I like that song’ and there are joints that she hears and she’s like ‘I love this song.’ She loved that
as the inspiration for the song’s lyrics as well. The song was based on a story
song then she was like ‘I want that song.’”
told to Erykah on the day of Dilla’s passing. “Dilla’s mom told Erykah about one
Perhaps the strongest indicator of Badu’s confidence in Sa-Ra is her willingness even to share
day when he was telling her about this dream he had where Ol’Dirty was telling
songwriting responsibilities with them. A prolific songwriter in her own right, Badu isn’t known for
him to get on a different color bus and giving him directions home,” explains
using others to express her thoughts. “She’s never written with anyone on any of her previous
Poyser to the best of his recollection.
releases,” states Husayn. “She had to go through some personal things to come to the point where
Though his participation was minimal on this first edition, Poyser anticipates
she’d let somebody write for her in the manner that we did. It was spontaneous but at the same time
that things will be different on Part 2. Though unable to confirm his exact
there was structure to it. It might not have the right expression, or the right enunciation. Writing is
contributions for New Amerykah Part 2, he admits that he was heavily involved.
so personal. That was a big thing.”
“Over the years we cut a lot of other songs that weren’t on this album but will
In addition to ‘Master Teacher’, Sa-Ra made lyrical contributions on ‘Me’, ‘The Cell’, ‘Twinkle’ and
likely appear on the Part 2.” Besides, there’s also the Edith Funker side-project
‘That Hump’. Husayn also wrote additional lyrics on the Karriem Riggins produced ‘Soldier’. Though
which unites him with ?uestlove, Erykah, Nikka Costa, Mike Elizondo and Wendy
they can’t say for sure what songs will appear on the album’s sequel, they are confident they will have
Melvoin for the greatest funk band you’ve never heard... And Poyser is also co-
at least one contribution—‘Corners’—a song that was previously recorded by the group minus Badu.
producing with ?uesto on the forthcoming Al Green album so you’ll be hearing a
What they seem absolutely certain of is the quality of Part 2. “Part 2 is the one,” they insist. “It’s like
lot more from this man in the forthcoming months, trust us.
Mama’s Gun on steroids.”

22 23
 “She wrote that song fast,” recalls Karriem Riggins, the
Karriem Riggins
RAMP
Sometime during 1976, the year of America’s Bicentennial,
Detroit-born producer/musician referring to ‘Soldier’, his
Edwin Birdsong and Roy Ayers penned a song called ‘The
lone contribution (as a producer) to the first installment of
American Promise’ for RAMP’s 1977 album, Come into

Soldier
New Amerykah. “She was really in a zone. She went in the
Knowledge. It was a finger-popping firecracker, a pick-up line
studio, wrote it, then I just went in and did some ad-libs... I
and a pledge. A coy lyric, “You give it to me, I’ll give it to you”
thought it was a rough,” he adds laughing. “But that’s the American Promise was a suggestion of synergy between the sheets, but there was
way it is. I can understand that though. Sometimes you go
a deeper meaning to the track, inspired by Lyndon Johnson’s
in the studio and you do one thing and you feel like you’re
1965 speech of the same name that called for equal rights
married to it. Sometimes less is more. What you do right
and justice in America.
there, what happens in the moment, that’s what comes off
To this day, ‘Daylight’ ‘Come Into Knowledge’ and their
best. That’s the type of artist she is. If it ain’t broke…”
remake of Ayers’ ‘Everybody Loves the Sunshine’ have become
Riggins describes their in studio vibe as “peaceful,”
definitive classics for a generation of Soul babies, with Erykah
pointing to Badu’s use of candles and incense to induce
becoming the latest in a long line of artists to champion
a creative vibe during her recording sessions. For this
their sound. “Erykah told Roy Ayers that we were her favorite
collaboration, however, much of the process took place
group,” says RAMP’s drummer and bandleader, John Manuel.
outside of the studio. “I would see her on iChat a couple of
“He called to say that she was interested in ‘The American
times a day and I may send her something. “[On ‘Soldier’] I
Promise’ and I was just on standby to hear the next steps in
sent her a one-off beat and she came back with the joint for
the process. It was conceivable at the time that we may be
it.”
doing something with her on that, but he did indicate clearly
On an album where much of the production highlights
that she was interested in using the song.”
Badu’s recent foray into a more beat-oriented production,
Although RAMP doesn’t collaborate literally, their music
‘Soldier’ manages to deliver without sacrificing her poignant
is definitely part of Badu’s backdrop. Having sampled them
lyrical musings. Strangely, ‘Soldier’ is the first complete
before, Badu amps her boombox up several notches not by
collaboration between the two. “I met Erykah in 1996,”
sampling, but bumping ‘American Promise’ in its entirety as
Riggins explains. “I met her through Roy Hargove. I was in
the intro and reprise on New Amerykah Part One. On the track,
his quintet at the time. She didn’t know I produced until I
she’s like Radio Raheem incarnate, saying nothing, but allowing
met her again in 1998, through Common. He told her I
RAMP’s snappy, upbeat track do most of the talking. Snippets
made beats and so she came to my crib and listened to a lot
of Lyndon B. Johnson’s presidential speech, the voice of a robot
of my stuff. Since then we’ve been working periodically off
that says, “We love to suck you dry,” and the sound of RAMP
and on, going back and forth. She’d send me dope melodies
vocalists Sibel Thrasher and Sharon Matthews bellowing, “I
and we finally just started coming together and finishing
promise to you, baby, to love you tooth for tooth and eye for
songs in the past couple of years.”
eye,” provide the opening for Badu’s passages that rail against
The track’s familiarity goes beyond any references
the deferral of the American dream.
to previous Badu classics. The workman-like drums, the
Interestingly, Manuel remembers thinking in 1977 that
cleverly chopped sample—both conjure memories of the late
their song would make a good theme for Promise Margarine.
J Dilla. Where Dilla’s collaborations with the songstress
But after hearing Badu’s CD, he is impressed with how she
on Mama’s Gun were distinctly Badu, ‘Soldier’ is distinctly
made their song an anthem in its own right. “With the very last
Detroit. “I learned a lot from Dilla,” Riggins admits. “We
song, song number 11, you hear ‘American Promise’ again,
shared a lot of the same ideas and I was really inspired by
playing a little more softly,” Manuel says. “The announcer is
his sound. A lot of producers from Detroit have a certain
saying, ‘We hope you enjoyed your journey and now we’re
sound, and I think it just comes from being in the city. Erykah
putting control of you back to you,’ and there’s a countdown
definitely connects to that and she wanted that sound.”
and then ‘Honey’ kicks in. It’s interesting the way she did that.”
Though he’s unaware of the final tracklisting for New
“I’m interested to talk more with her about her concept,”
Amerykah Part 2, Riggins expects to appear on at least one
Manuel says, referring to New Amerykah’s next three
track. “I did a song called ‘Your Place or Mine,’” he reveals.
installments on which, from his point of view, a new RAMP/
Without making comparisons he considers the track a
Badu collaboration is a distinct possibility. (Mildred Fallen)
return to the Mama’s Gun sound. “It’s really soulful. It puts
you in the mindset of that classic Badu.”
In addition to New Amerykah Part 2, Riggins also hopes
to wrestle an appearance from Badu for the upcoming
Supreme Team album which pairs himself with fellow New
Amerykah producer Madlib. They’ve certainly gotten off to
an excellent start.

respek 2 EMEK for the grafix. 1love. www.emek.net

24 25
THE
BEAT
GENERATION
The beat don’t stop. From the marching drums
that pounded out a rhythmic backdrop to the
American Civil War, to the call-and-response
of the African griots, trading life stories over
the beat, to the drum battles of Gene Krupa
and Buddy Rich, the sizzling triplet hi-hats of
Elvin Jones, the intricate ghost notes of Clyde
Stubblefield and Jabo Starks underlying James
Brown’s messages of black consciousness
and radical super heavy funk, as looped and
juggled by Kool Herc, then sliced and diced on an
SP1200 by Marley Marl...
Onwards and upwards, the big beat pounds
through the pioneering works of visionaries
such as the Bomb Squad, Jam Master Jay,
DJ Premier, the RZA, Prince Paul, Pete Rock,
Diamond D, Madlib, Jay Dilla… The beat is lost
and reclaimed from one generation to the
next, passed down from the forefathers to
the grandchildren, disappearing from living
consciousness and then reclaimed, revived,
dug from the crate and spun out to a fresh
audience… The beat is as old as time itself, and
still as fresh as the birth of a new day.
26
To belong to the beat is to take the beat and
make it your own, twisting the kicks, snares and
hi-hats, the life blood of the groove, into your own
patterns, your own feeling. From skin-stretched
toms to rubber MPC pads, the tools of the beat
have evolved, but the contact between body, soul
and the beat, remains the same.
A new beat generation finds new tools to
communicate across borders, in defiance of
traditional physical and linguistic barriers. Close
your eyes and imagine Jack Kerouac texting
Allen Ginsberg a haiku. Tony Allen sending
Clyde Stubblefield an MP3 of his latest afro-
beat creation over AIM. And then consider
the possibilities that our era of lightning-speed
electronic advancement has brought to the beat
and its many disciples.
In a world where peer-to-peer
communication over vast distances is something
we take for granted, where interaction and
creative exchange with other artists is only a
few clicks of the mouse away, a beat-driven
revolution has been fomenting over the last
few years, a revolution now in the hands of
words: MR BEATNICK
“It’s the beat generation. It’s be-at.
It’s music with a beat.”
Jack Kerouac, “The Beat Generation”, 1948.
dynamic rhythm-mad youngsters the world
over, trading bars over Skype and rhythms
over iChat. A global, polycultural movement
that confirms Rakim’s assertion that “It’s not
where you’re from, it’s where you’re at”. From
Tokyo to Glasgow, from Amsterdam to San
Fran, beatmakers who can barely say “hello” in
the language of their peers, tap out a universal
rhythm on their beat boxes, the Morse code
of the computer generation, logging in to their
myspace page seconds later to be greeted with
mesage from a distant friend – “feeling your
beats.”
But the beat itself says more than words
ever could. Lost in a loop, snare cracking over-
head, deep sub bass emphasising the weight
of the floor beneath the feet, off-beat hi-hats
confusing the ear, shrugging the shoulders,
whilst the head nods on in silent appreciation…
The beat is nothing but a sacrament of the
living moment, a moment suspended in time, a
personal meditation. The beat is eternal.
27
words: ANDRES REYES
pixels: STEPHEN SERRATO and ALEJANDRO COHEN
LA BEATS
Los Angeles is one of the newest world cities
– it’s the home of Hollywood’s bubble-gum
movies, the genetically-enhanced actresses
and the unlikely politicial figures. Yet across
the downtown skyline, the million-dollar beaches
and the run-down neighborhoods there runs a
streak of brilliance that probably misses most
natives. I’m talking about the dope shit.
Andrew Lojero (ArtDontSleep): There’s such
a heavy, heavy movement of beautiful art of all
fashions taking place. It’s like…I don’t even have
a word, it’s not even in its prime yet because it’s
still young out here. There are so many people,
it’s so spread out, so many different folks and
it’s hard to really know about all of them unless
you can really, really travel around this town. It’s
a beautiful thing out here.
On any given day you can walk into Poo Bah
Records in Pasadena and find Ras G nestled
behind the counter, going through records that
came in that day, playing his Beat Soup mixes
over the shop’s soundsystem. The Rastafarian
DJ and producer always keeps an up-to-date mix
of beats and compositions by finest beatsmiths
on deck (as well as a blunt) and it’s not rare
to find those same cats he’s playing digging
through the bins at Poo Bah. Cats like Samiyam,
Flying Lotus, Take, Ta’Raach and Ras himself
are just a few of the many creative heads that
are running around the city creating wonderfully
banging records and places like Poo Bah are at
the forefront of this movement, pushing beats
out to the masses. This quaint shop in Pasadena
is the only store in the States that stocks stuff
from Japanese powerhouse Jazzy Sport, Beat
Dimensions, All City and other progressive and
innovative record labels. Poo Bah, besides being
a record shop, is actually a label too, and it has a
series of 12”, 10” and 7” vinyl releases with the
likes of Ta’Raach, Ras G, DJ Sacred, Black Monk,
Kutmah, Samiyam and more.
Ras G: I push this beat music to the world. I’ve
sold stuff to all kinds of people. Dr. Who Dat?
aka Jneiro Jarel’s The Beat Journey, I done sold
that to old-ass white ladies. Flying Lotus, I’m
selling his shit to old-ass truck driver dudes, Ge-
ology to teachers, just spreading the music. They
don’t usually get to hear it, so when do hear
it, it really fucks they head up. That’s the duty
of the record store, which is kinda why a lot of
record stores are closed. You gotta be breakin
new music to people to have them coming back.
Every time they get that fresh feeling, like ‘I ain’t
ever heard that. Who is that?’ That’s what the
record store is about.
Elsewhere, in the Valley of Los Angeles, in a little
28
apartment building, some of the most hard-
hitting beats and sounds are being engineered.
The outside façade of the building is pretty
plain, but once you go inside , you’re greeted
by a sizeable courtyard with a built-in stage, a
glass cage that houses a 12-foot snake, and
eclectic, out-there artwork that adorns the
walls, ceilings and other fixtures. Still, nothing
is as bugged out as what’s coming out of a
barely furnished apartment on the second floor.
Samiyam is there, in his room, drinking green
tea and playing me beats off his Macbook and
he’s cracking my fucking head. Sam nonchalantly
accepts my compliments and tells me a little
bit more about the community around him: “It’s
a lot of people out here all out at the shows.
It’s dope, everybody’s kind of on the same side,
there might be a little competition but people
are supportive of someone like me who doesn’t
have shit out.”
Considering he still hasn’t released his
material, Sam is one extremely talented guy. You
can just ask one of his neighbors, Flying Lotus,
another key player in the Los Angeles beat
scene. But Sam and Lotus are just two out of so
many. Naming names doesn’t do justice to the
array of artists around the city, but cats like The
Gaslamp Killer, Oh No, Blu, Ta’raach, Dibiase,
Exile, Nobody, Cashusking, Daedelus and Georgia
Anne Muldrow are a taste of what’s making L.A.
a music haven at the moment.
There are many influences in the music
coming out of the city, but one theory is that
part of what is making L.A. thrive is that it’s
greatly influenced by Dilla and Detroit. James
Yancey spent the last years of his life in Los
Angeles and associated and worked with many
cats in the L.A. community. The presence
of Detroit transplants like DJ House Shoes,
Ta’Raach, Illa Jay, Samiyam (from Ann Arbor),
Snowman and DJ Haircut are only helping to
solidify that L.A. to the D connection.
Flying Lotus : There’s not any kind of party I go
to where you can’t hear one Dilla track. Stones
Throw is also situated here, so that also has
something to do with it, but the way Dilla sounds
goes with L.A.; real diverse, but still kind of funky
and laid-back. That is the kind of music we like.
Though Detroit has had its influence, L.A. is
still unmistakably L.A.. The city is bubbling.
The creative output as a collective is pushing
envelopes and shattering standards. There
is a world of DJ’s, producers, MC’s, artists
and other creative individuals that seem to be
meshing and colliding with each other, creating
fantastic results. Collectives like Mochilla,
Dublab and ArtDontSleep are key figures in
the community that have been keeping the
creative cogs moving. Mochilla was behind
the Brasilintime and Keepintime experiences
that brought together Brasillian and American
drumming legends to collaborate with the likes
of Madlib, J. Rocc and Cut Chemist. Dublab, a
radio collective that dates back to the birth of
internet radio, is keeping the concept of the
DJ as a selector of sounds alive through their
online radio broadcasts and weekly DJ sets all
around the city. ArtDontSleep, meanwhile, plays
the curious role of being somewhat of a free
entity in that is not bound to any single medium.
The collective headed by Andrew Lojero has
hosted parties, organized concerts and released
a superb compilation created entirely by L.A.
artists entitled From L.A. With Love featuring
contributions from Gaslamp Killer, Flying Lotus,
Yesterday’s New Quintet, Carlos Niño and
(from top left) : Ras G, Poo Bah 12”, Carlos Nino... mo’ Poo Bah vinyl, FlyAmSam at Dublab, SoulExploration flyers... Reset EP,
Miguel Atwood Ferguson and Georgia Anne
Muldrow.
Andrew Lojero (ArtDontSleep): When we first
started it was just, illegal art shows and when
I say illegal that’s because we were running
them like they were parties. From there I kind
of went on my own and started doing parties
unidentified wax, Nobody & Hoseh... Kutmah & Frosty, Stop the War, From LA With Love, Brasilintime
all around town, warehouses, rooftops, under
bridge passes and under mansions. Then last
year, it took a brand new route. doing nothing
but institutional functions. I partnered with
Mochilla and Dublab, and we wanted to make
ArtDontSleep something legal and tangible for
folks. It’s just trying to really make an explosion,
or an implosion, happen in Los Angeles in the
music community.
For every individual mentioned here there are
a dozen more that are putting in work trying to
create that next sound rather than regurgitating
the moment. “The music has been brewing for
some time now,” explains Mike the PoeT in his
liner notes to From L.A. With Love. “The 21st
century movement in L.A. is a culmination of
mojo dating back to the 50’s on Central Avenue
and avant garde artists like Ornette Coleman,
Eric Dolphy & Horace Tapscott’s Pan African
People’s Arkestra. Central Avenue was once
the archipelago of after-hours jazz jam sessions
from Pico to Slauson. Now after-hours rooftop
parties go off below skyscrapers. In these days
of war, rising gas prices, inflation and gridlock,
nothing is more healing than good music. The
search for something more is driving L.A.
musicians and artists.”
www.poobah.com
www.mochilla.com
www.dublab.com
29
words: JEZ SMADJA
AMSTERDAM BEATS
Just five stops on the Metro from Centraal
Station and you get to Wibautstraat, which is
where the new studios of some of the key Dutch
beatmakers are currently under construction.
When we arrive there late on a cold Monday
night, we see Steven de Peven, one half of
Rednose Distrikt, in the lobby, loaded with planks
of wood on his shoulders. We lend him a hand,
up six long flights of stairs, to the new studio
space where the planks will be laid out to make
a second-floor which should, in theory, keep the
noise out. In Abbey Road studios, it’s said that
the Beatles put seaweed between the separating
walls as sound insulation, but the Rednose crew
are determined not to be outdone. “Seaweed?
Doesn’t that smell after a while? Maybe we’d be
better off using muffins? Or pancakes? Or how
about Stroopwafflen (Dutch caramel waffles)?”
wonders Steven. “At least they’ll be more tasty
than foam.”
Located in the former headquarters of the
daily newspaper De Volkskrant, the Wibautstraat
studio space has quickly filled up, and has a
current waiting list of 3000 hopefuls. You might
peep designers painting cartoons in one office,
architects behind their drafting tables in another,
or dance-troupes practicing in the studios on the
ground floor; but on the 5th and 6th floors, the
space has been taken over by red hot & Dutch
musical talent. Directly below Rednose’s studio is
Tom Trago (“the Dutch answer to Flying Lotus,”
we’re told), a beatmaker whose 08Bar nights
have brought a fresh crop of artists together,
making live beats on the MPC, or bringing their
CD-Rs directly from the studio to play out on the
night. Then at the end of the corridor, where
smell of the sweet herb wafts, is Dutch hip hop
veteran INT rehearsing in the studio with emcee
Melodee; while in the basement there’s Kid
Sublime burning the candle all day and night.
The Dutch love of beats can be traced back
to the seminal Fat Beats store, which closed in
2006 but was where many of the key players
used to work. Melodee used to work there, as
did Steven from Rednose, and Gee who has now
set up Patta, a store selling high-end sneakers.
But these days, a whole new generation of
artists and labels have emerged, in tandem with
the Kindred Spirits label and the Rush Hour
30
store and distribution network. From Wouda’s
Dopeness Galore label responsible for the Frank
N’ Dank EP, to Faces Records which is about
to release their Metro Sampler compliation, to
Appletree records with SOTU the Traveller and
Louis Bordeaux LPs, to the KS offshoot Nod
Navigators, a series that’s featured INT, Tom
Trago, Mweslee and has just dropped the hotly
-awaited Javanse Jongens… the list goes on.
While in the Dutch pop charts, hip hop
outfits such as Pete Philly & Perquisite and
Opgezwolle have found national acclaim, on the
instrumental tip there’s been a groundswell
of popularity, prompted by releases like the
Nod Navigators series, the 08Bar 12”s from
Tom Trago and the heavy Beat Dimensions
compilation, put together by Jay Scarlett and
Yuri aka Cinnaman.
“I met up with Jay three or four years ago,”
explains Yuri, sitting in a cosy café along the
Singel canal. “He came out to Amsterdam for
a couple of days along with Morgan Spacek.
It was then that we came up with the idea of
doing something with this stuff we were playing,
because not a lot of the music was coming out.
There was the Raw Fusion compilation, The
Sound of LA had just come out… and obviously
now we’re getting more releases and the sound
is growing. This music that was mostly on
myspace, the idea was to bring it out to people
who are not on myspace. That’s how Beat
Dimensions was born.”
Featuring contributions from across the
world – Super Smoky Soul from Japan, Up Hygh
from Sweden, Hudson Mohawke from Glasgow,
Mweslee from Spain, Black Pocket aka Steve
Spacek – the compilation confirmed that this
music had brought together people with the
same interests and the same vision across the
planet. “That’s what I really liked about Beat
Dimensions. Whereas The Sound of LA had just
focussed on Los Angeles, we wanted to show
that it was an international hook up. There’s so
many people born in ‘82 or ‘83, born around the
time that hip hop started, doing almost the same
thing in 2008. All from the same generation, into
the same things, but from all around the world.”
Besides the compilation, Yuri has been
promoting a regular Beat Dimensions night,
where Hudson Mohawke and Mike Slott flew out
for one event, while Flying Lotus and Samiyam
(from top left and moving on): Beat Dimensions vinyl, what does this button do?, Beat Dimensions flyer,... 08Bar’s O Boogie, BD 12”, Rush Hour peeps
represented at another. “The first time Lotus
and Samiyam made beats together was in my
studio when we invited them to play at the Beat
Dimensions party,” Yuri adds. “They’d met two
days earlier in L.A. but to see them in my studio
working together for the first time... there was
such a chemistry. They’d been smoking blunts all
day, and I was there, passed out in the corner!”
Just the previous Friday, Tom Trago and
Yuri had their first live show up at Club 11.
Located on the 11th floor of this high-rise former
at 08Bar & xxxx... 08Bar flyer, FlyLo at 08Bar, Nod Navigators... BD flyer, Lucky Strikes endorsement, 08Bar 12”s.
post office building, to access the club have to
pass through a long corridor blasted in spray
grafix and fly-posters, and up the goods-lift where
sweaty ravers continually stream in and out
from. With massive projections hanging down
from the high ceilings, and breath-taking views
over the glimmering city, the place was tight with
anticipation as Yuro & Trago took the stage with
a set that was an interstellar nightflight into the
Detroit sound. Suffice to say, the spot was extra
hot.
But it’s not just in Amsterdam where you’ll
find any number of parties to check out on a
weekly basis or freestyle jams such as 08Bar at
the Duivel, or deHop, a night where an emcee, a
vocalist and a grafik artist get together to create
a finished 12” over the course of the evening.
From the town of Deventer hail Javaanse
Jongens, a group of producers featuring Louis
Bordeaux, and lest we forget Nicolay who
comes from the south of the Netherlands and
has created hands-down some of the finest
hip hop instrumentals in recent years. See, the
Netherlands is a country where Madlib is just as
popular as Lil’ Wayne, and it’s reflected in the
music that comes out of the country, whether in
the popular Dutch hip hop groups or the more
underground beatmakers we’ll be hearing more
about in months to come. Keep your ears to the
ground.
www.rushhour.nl
www.kindred-spirits.nl
www.08bar.nl
www.teampatta.nl
31
words: BEN VERGHESE
GLASGOW BEATS
Rolling into Glasgow for the first time, I
wondered how I’d recognise the man from
online record store Nuff Stylee who I’d
arranged to meet at the station. A quick text
message resolved the matter: “I’m holding a
box of records with your name on it”. A warm
embrace and swift tour of the city followed,
but no time to go rummaging in Glasgow’s
record shops… we had to get ourselves over
to Glasgow School of Art for the Baller’s Social
Club. Besides, I was already armed with the
box of vinyl delights Frank Dubya had handed
over – a selection of the cream of the current
beats scene, including releases from the
Musique Large label in France and Circulations
in Japan. Frank’s taste for beats makes him
a sterling supporter of a crop of artists, DJs
and producers local to him, moving under the
umbrella of LuckyMe, a crew based in Scotland
but with international appeal.
The LuckyMe story began when Edinburgh
residents, Martyn Flyn (aka FineArt) and Dominic
Flanigan (known as Summel) studied together
at Glasgow School of Art. Sharing a desire to
get more from the music scene, they started
an open-mic night at Stereo. Here they met
with Ross Birchard (aka Hudson Mohawke) who
began DJing there for free, despite having been
a DMC finalist at the tender age of 15. Together,
Summel and Hudson Mo started Surface
Empire, one of the many LuckyMe collabs,
releasing an EP back in 2005 and since gaining
a rep as the “go-to” guys on the Scottish hip-hop
circuit, getting the crowds hyped for everyone
from Roots Manuva to Methodman.
The first time my path crossed with Hudson
and Summel was at the immense Black Pocket
album launch party at London’s Plastic People
in June ‘07. On that occasion Hudson Mohawke
left Steve Spacek and peers clamouring for
reloads, as he worked his way through a firing
32
live show, pummelling pads and tweaking Ableton
and Serato. Just a week earlier, he was part of
the Beat Dimensions family at the Big Chill Bar
alongside fellow Heralds of Change member
Mike Slott. Contact over the inter-waves with
Cinnaman and Jay Scarlett had seen Hudson
Mo’s ‘Trace’ included on Beat Dimensions Vol.1,
whilst across the Atlantic further connections
with Andrew Meza and his BTS radio show
meant Heralds of Change records were getting
broadcast to beatheads across the globe.
In person, despite his imposing frame,
Hudson Mo shows none of the boisterousness
his beats contain, and he’s a reluctant star,
shunning the limelight as much as possible.
Standing outside the Ballers Social Club after
his set, he’s in a playful mood, joking about the
“dubstep” crowd (i.e. the low male-to-female
ratio), and winding up Summel by trying to
borrow money. The Ballers nights have provided
a base for this extended family to flex their skills
in front of a local crowd. Past guests include
Musique Large’s Fulgeance and BTS Radio
host Andrew Meza on his flyby visit to Scotland.
Tonight, though, it’s Warp’s Vex’d and Clark
headlining.
The Ballers seems much like any other
student night, until you hear the sound that
rumbles out of a monstrous rig, a tower of
homemade speakers reaching up to the
ceiling. “It belongs to one of the local reggae
soundsystems,” Summel tells us. Alongside
Hudson Mohawke on the bill tonight is another
LuckyMe member, Rustie, whose askew blend
of electronics and dubstep has caused a stir
following his Jagz the Smack EP. Clad in camo-
patterned neon, Rustie has the crowed super-
charged, dropping his latest gem, a rework of
Zomby’s ‘Spliff Dub’, out on Kode9’s Hyperdub:
“P-p-put da evil away!”
By the end of the night, as the crowd filters
out of the Arts School, it’s the LuckyMe inner-
circle left standing on the pavement under the
(left and right and up and down): Hudsom, Lucky middle, All City 7x7... Lucky Me billboard, Heralds of Change 12”, Summel...
glow of the streetlights – Hudson, Summel,
Rusty, FineArt and the Ballers promoter Joe
Coghill. As we pile into Summel’s car, overloaded
with DJs, girlfriends and record boxes, we chat
about forthcoming projects from the crew.
Like the Heralds of Change album, due later in
the year on Dublin label, All City. And the 7x7”
Beatstrumentals series also to be released
on All City, a project where seven beatmakers
across the globe have each been commissioned
to release a 7”, with the whole series designed
by Summel. “For my own 7” I’m placing two
Mike Slott, Secrets 12”. Medusa... Puzzles sleeve, LuckyMe red-I, Joe from Ballers.
tracks which are essentially like some deep
techno/acidy stuff but on 33. The whole project
is shaping up to be a nice little collectable
package,” says Hudson as we make our way
through the silent streets of Glasgow.
So 2008 looks bright, with numerous live
shows, a monthly Samurai FM show, Hudson’s
debut album due to be released by Warp, and
LuckyMe’s first vinyl release, Oops, heralding
the collective’s transition to a label. With a
disdain for following trends, these mostly twenty-
somethings have maximised their resources
rather than relying on expensive software, plug-
ins or interfaces. Summel sums it up: “Purist
about anti-purist equipment – that’s our attitude.
Our music is underpinned more by a style or idea
than real trickery of equipment”.
Gazing out on the train back to London, past
the stark Scottish coastline, I started planning
my next trip north of the border for LuckyMe
fun... maybe the next Ballers Social Club with
Milanese v. Landstrumm or Mweslee at the
Triptych festival?
www.thisisluckyme.com
www.odditiesclothing.com
www.all-cityrecords.com
33
LONDON BEATS
The vogue for beatstrumentalism has a long history in UK club
culture. In the late 80s, Soul II Soul delivered a thumping bass to
a smiling race. Then came the hydro skank of Massive Attack and
Tricky, the rare groove of Young Disciples, the hip hop of Pogo and
MC Mell’o, the sample-heavy records of Reinforced, then labels
like Mo’ Wax and Ninja Tune.
In the ‘08, these artists have become mentors. Tricky set up
his Brown Punk label in Bristol, and over in London Attica Blues
frontmen Tony Nwachukwu and Charlie Dark have schooled a new
generation in the art of the MPC. In East London, catch nights like
CD-R, House Party, Shhhhh and Deviation where you can this next
generation live n direct.
Hot on the heels of PAUL WHITE’s 7”, the next material Alex
Chase’s label ONE HANDED MUSIC comes from BULLION whose Pet
Sounds: In the Key of Dee mixtape was one of the unreleased
finds of 2007, getting repped by DJs across the globe. Out of
Acton, Bullion featured for a beats-focused night at Cafe 1001
off Brick Lane run by ARCHITEQ (aka Sam Annand), Architeq
moved down from Dundee to London and now has his first EP
available from TIRK RECORDS. Tom Giles aka CLAUSE FOUR was
spinning records on the same bill and his Blue on Blue EP is out
on DC RECORDINGS. Reflecting on the London scene Clause Four
adds “there are quite a few of us ploughing the same furrow
- some people have called the music post-Dilla, but though we
all like his music, it’s not the driving force, just a shining example
of how good instrumental hip-hop can sound”. DC RECORDINGS
on Portobello Road also house KELPE, whose second album Ex-
Aquarium includes ‘Shipwreck Glue’ flirting with a sound similar
to Architeq. For the most part, though, Kelpe leans toward
the ambient works of Fourtet, Brian Eno or Boards of Canada,
influences that have also shaped LUKID’s music. A Londoner from
Archway, Lukid’s debut album and EPs (all on WERK RECORDS) have
received much deserved praise and are filled with frequencies
flickering in and out at a leisurely pace.
One of the capital’s most colourful nights Lookout! hosted
the UK visit of Maryland ‘Low Budget’ cats --Kev Brown, Oddisee
& OlivierDaySoul -- alongside London beatmaker & MC, TRANQILL.
Lookout! features the DJ skills of ALEXANDER NUT, who moved
down from Wolverhampton six years ago and has established
a key show on Saturday afternoons on Rinse FM. Dabbling in
production as well as holding down the Mixed Nutz show and
residencies around town, Alex Nut was the first to give UK airplay
to FLOATINGPOINTS, a man with a classical background and
involvement in “non-beats” projects which adds to the breadth
of his sound. Look out for his Little Dragon remix. Nut’s flatmate
FATIMA has also been making waves. Originally from Stockholm,
Fatima stepped up to the mic on the same night where Hudson
Mohawke wowed the crowd at the Black Pocket party. Vocally
equipped to flip her skills in whatever style she pleases, Fatima
recently went to Cameroon for the British Council’s Bring The
Noise concert, invited by IG Culture, a man who has always
delivered sumptuous sounds at what ever style or tempo he
messes with.
As is the way internationally, all these artists support each
other, sharing tracks and swapping remix and voicing duties to
further spread their sounds. (Ben Verghese)
www.myspace.com/tranqill
www.myspace.com/lookoutevenings
www.myspace.com/alexander_nut
34
READ THE LABEL
FRANK DUBYA (NUFF STYLEE) RUNS DOWN
HIS FAVOURITE LABELS OF THE MOMENT.
MUSIQUE LARGE
Bordello-digi-funk from Paris featuring the
ghetto slap of Ghislain Poirier (‘La Ronde EP’),
Fulgeance’s electro-funk-makossa (‘Chico EP’)
and Debruit‘s genre booby-trap/minefield
(‘Coupe Decale’)…One size fits all!
CIRCULATIONS
Tokyo ‘onjin’ Dai San spreads love by CIRCULATIONS.
Interstellar p-funk fractures (Reggie B - Go),
afro cosmic sonnets (Muhsinah – Pre.lude),
broke soul excursions for organ & mpc (Onra &
Byron - The Big Payback) and post ‘Golden Era’
atmospherics for widescreen (Super Smoky Soul
- Cycling)… Breathe in & let it Circulate.
www.nuffstylee.co.uk
THE BEATNICKS
FROM BOURNEMOUTH TO BULGARIA
Dorset doesn’t have a reputation for being on
the pulse of 21st Century sounds however
JACKHIGH is doing his darnedest to amend that,
making melodies twirl amongst crunching beats.
From a Bournemouth base he has scattered
his sounds across the Net, notably 14 tracks of
mixed-BPM unreleased pleasure, for those quick
enough to bag it, in his Interplanetary Thoughts
offering. Jackhigh was pressed onto vinyl last
year, featuring on both volumes of German
label UP MY ALLEY’s Beatnicks EPs, along with
Deutschmen HUBERT DAVIZ and fLako. Vol.1
of the said series also contained ‘Melonball
bounce’ a playful tune packed with dopeness by
Sofian starlets 1000names. These Bulgarian
beatmakers take things further dropping their
own heat with six tracks on Worth Making A
Noise About (EKLEKTIK RECORDS) including ‘Ice is
the Silent Language’ co-produced with Jackhigh.
Comprised of a two-man team--drum maestro
Casio Blaster & 99 Mistakes--1000names’ DJ
sets and mixes are another source of musical
delight, tRUEradio have been beneficiaries and
their Phono Doowop mixtape can be found on
Monotape, the web space of Istanbul’s champion
of the beats, ONUR ENGIN. (Ben Verghese)
www.myspace.com/jackhighmusic
www.myspace.com/1000names
www.myspace.com/upmyalley
www.monotape.com
BTS & PIECES
Andrew Meza’s BTS Radio has set the international standard, always showcasing the hot
talent long before others start jumping on the bandwagon. With the radio show a focal point
for listeners from Tokyo to Tashkent, Mez has become the undisputed champion of the beats.
Who’s your musical family? Who do you move
with? Ques aka The Illlord of LCP United. That’s
my partner in crime and the other half of BTS. As
far as musical family – man, it’s worldwide!
A few songs that mean a lot to me are…
Anything by The Beatles. Lennon/McCartney are
the greatest song writing duo ever. Dilla’s work
has always been a huge inspiration for me. And
those East LA jams – growing up and listening
to my dad play stuff like Santana, Azteca, William
Devaughn, Al Green, James & Bobby Purify...
A few films that mean a lot to me are… Star
Wars for shaping my childhood. The films of
Alfred Hitchcock. Tarkovsky’s Solaris. De Sica’s
Umberto D. Alien. Scorsese, Kubrick, Wilder,
Spielberg, Burton. Anything with Barbara
Stanwyck. Film inspires nearly as much as music
does. I find a strong connection between what’s
going on in music now and the movements that
happened in France during the New Wave and in
America with New Hollywood. It was a separation
from the standard and an embrace for the
experimental and independent. I see people like
Flying Lotus, Samiyam, Mike Slott, Rustie, Hudson
Mohawke, Ras G and Jneiro Jarel as the Kubrick,
Scorsese, Coppola, Truffaut, Goddard of our time
– creating that signature unique to the things
that surround us and define who we are.
Is there such thing as a new beat generation?
There’s definitely a new generation of music
makers. But it has surpassed anything that can
be described as just a ‘beat’. It’s more than that.
Nothing that I can describe just yet.
Did you have any moment of revelation at any
time, a feeling of “Wow – it all connects”?
Perhaps the clearest revelation was when
Samiyam and Lotus were on BTS. Towards the
end of the interview Lotus told me the show was
really important to “what was going on” and that
he was “glad to be apart of this”. I thought about
what he meant, and it just all seemed to gel.
What role did your radio show play & how did
the idea come around? The show started in my
freshman year in college. As a DJ, I just wanted
to test the waters in radio. Because I listen to
so much music in my week, I wanted my show to
be a representation of that. I’m not sure when
I started to notice this new generation. Had to
have been early 2005 when I was introduced
to Lotus and Samiyam. After that, everyone
seemed to come out of the fog. I feel like there
was a point where my show was the home for
this particular sound. No one had been talking
about it yet. No compilations, no deals, no media.
I think people were anticipating something new
and kept tuning in to hear this out-there kind of
shit. The show really took off around then.
What’s interesting is the international angle
of all these beat heads, hooked up via the
internet… Same people, different places. Yea,
exactly – MySpace. We owe it all to Tom. He’s
the head of it all.
People seem to be talking a lot about a mid-
’80s mentailty. Do you ascribe to that? It just
seems to be that a lot of the people that are
the major contributors or designers to this
new sound happen to all be around the same
age. Children of the ‘80s. I think our generation
more than any other is the most familiar with
technology and the effect it has on our lives.
Many of us were already in front of a computer
screen in elementary school. Technology is just
our nature now. It really separates us from the
previous folks... and to think of the next group...
those ‘90s and ‘00s kids. Those are the ones
that are going to be making music with their
minds, or something.
The role of the DJ is… To play whatever they
want. But please, get the ladies on the floor.
One thing people think about Meza, but is
untrue, is… That I got time to listen to bullshit.
One thing nobody knows about Meza is… I’m a
bit OCD– but my place is a mess right now, so I
don’t know what that means.
What’s the vibe in L.A.? I wouldn’t know. I’m
always stuck in traffic trying to get there.
www.btsradio.net
www.myspace.com/btsradio
35

London Posse
Gervase de Wilde and Gabriel Myddelton of The Heatwave chat with
Tippa Irie about his role in the development of dancehall in the UK.
Tippa Irie
Black music in Britain has always struggled to
carve out a niche away from the sounds of the
WORDS: GERVASE DE WILDE
USA and Jamaica. Where soul and reggae were
MIC
once influential on these shores, their modern
equivalents hip hop and dancehall dominate in
the 21st century. When we compiled An England
Story , we hoped to follow the development of a
unique MC culture in this country with a Jamai-
can heritage, showing how contemporary styles
like jungle, grime and UK hip hop can be traced
back to the evolution of a distinctive British brand
of dancehall music and culture in the 1980s.
During our research, it emerged that there
was a specific moment during the 1980s when
a black British, as opposed to Caribbean or
Jamaican, approach to MCing came to the fore.
Artists from that era like Tippa Irie and Smiley
CHECK
Culture had an enormous impact on the UK
reggae scene and even went on to appear in the
pop charts with hits like ‘Hello Darling’ and ‘Po-
lice Officer’ respectively. They did so with a new
‘fast style’ of MCing which bubbled at double-time
over the slow and skanking dancehall music of
the time.
There had been a well developed Caribbean
music scene in Britain from the late 1950s on-
wards, with djs playing the latest island hits. As
deejay culture developed in Jamaica in the ‘70s
and ‘80s through the work of people like U Roy,
and then stars like Brigadier Gerry or General
Echo, so entertainers in Britain would seize the
mic at dances to chat over popular rhythms.
When they did so they generally imitated their
Jamaican counterparts, appropriating or ‘pirat-
ing’ the most popular artists’ styles.
In his landmark chronicle of dancehall
culture in the UK ‘What the Deejay Said’, William
‘Lez’ Henry (himself a renowned dancehall deejay
at the time under the name ‘Lezlee Lyrics’)
suggests that the dancehall audience in Britain
expected to hear deejays who sounded like their
favourite Jamaican artists. He even recalls how
he was criticised in clashes for sounding too
English.
But the tide turned in 1983, when a British
deejay called Peterkin (or Peter King) came up
Papa Levy with a revolutionary new style which was to have
36
Tenor Fly
an impact throughout the reggae world. Tippa
Irie, whose ‘Complain Neighbour’ is featured on
An England Story, recalls its far-reaching reper-
cussions.
“There was this guy called Peter King
– most of the [MCing] styles at the time were
kind of laid back, and he created a fast style,”
he explains. “Anybody that created something,
whether it be me, or Levi, or Peter King, or
whoever it may be – we’d all nick it and make our
own style off that. So when he came up with this
fast style, he chatted it, and everybody there was
like, ‘Yeah that’s it!’, and so we all just pinched it.
There was me, Papa Levi, Daddy Colonel, Smiley
Culture. Everybody wrote their thing – from
that time we kind of changed the face of reggae
music in England.”
Where British deejays had once taken all
their inspiration from Jamaica, the tide of influ-
ence had turned and artists back on the island
were looking to crews like the notorious Saxon
Posse from South London, of which Tippa Irie
and those he mentions were members. “That
was definitely the first recognisable UK dancehall
style,” he says. “You had Yellowman, Peter Metro
and all these people hearing our sound tapes
[recordings of clashes and dances] and chatting
our lyrics back in Jamaica. So we changed it
around and they were influenced by us for a
change.”
This influence even extended to Papa Levi
having a number one hit both in the UK and Ja-
maica with his ‘My God My King’ (also featured),
where he engages in some dizzying fast chat,
referencing reggae singer Sugar Minott and Brit-
ish comedian Kenny Everett in the same breath.
With the increasing celebrity of UK artists back
on the island, the impact of what was happening
in London on developments in Jamaica grew
even further.
“You’d hear Johnny Osbourne and Junior
Reid and people like that singing our styles and
using our terminology,” Tippa Irie recalls. “So
that was unique because everybody was focused
on Jamaica at the time. We came and changed
it and sped it up a little and then we kind of
inspired people like Papa San, Lieutenant Stitchie
General Levy
and Professor Nuts and all these people. Then
when we went to Jamaica, them guys would
come and be like yeah man, it’s you guys that
made us write these long lyrics.”
The fast chat MCs in Britain changed the
flow of ideas and influences from ‘Yard’ to ‘For-
eign’. The sound tapes which circulated amongst
reggae fans at home and abroad had tradition-
ally come from the top Jamaican outfits but now
recordings of the likes of the Saxon Posse were
in demand.
“We created our style and our own identity
and people from the Caribbean couldn’t believe
that we were from England,” Tippa Irie remem-
bers. “They couldn’t believe that this was hap-
pening or that these guys come from England,
because some people that live in the back of
beyond in Jamaica, to them there ain’t people
like us in England!”
The influence of fast chat is audible in UK
music today. It is there in the hyperactive styles
of jungle MCs like Skibadee hyping raves over
180 bpm beats or the distinctive double-time
flow of UK garage and grime MCs, often tinged
with Jamaican patois and references that would
be as familiar in Kingston as they are in Bow.
But the legacy of the ‘80s pioneers, as Tippa Irie
points out, has gone far beyond this country’s
borders, or even the Caribbean:
“People like Twista and Bone-Thugs-N-Har-
mony have had big hits influenced by the fast
chat style. If you think about it, when we were
about, who else was really doing it? Who was
chatting fast at that time? A lot of these guys
now look up to us for what we’ve done to the
music. When I meet people like Busta Rhymes
and KRS One, who are big artists, they shake my
hand, and they shake my hand for a long time.
They know. So, I know what we’ve achieved.”
An England Story is
out now on CD and
quadruple vinyl on Soul
Jazz Records.
37
ELITE
SQUAD
In Rio, the violence of drug gangs is matched only by the antics of a gung ho special police
unit, BOPE, who are the subject of The Elite Squad, a film that’s been courting controversy
in Brazil and beyond.
Brazil is a nation of contrasts. While the filthy rich get filthy richer and top up their
WORDS: SIMON CREASEY

Where did you first come across the story?
tans on the country’s famous sun-kissed beaches, the poor are left to rot in squalid I came across the Elite Squad story - or should
conditions in the millions of makeshift homes that make up Brazil’s rapidly expanding I say subject matter - as I was shooting my
favelas. These contrasts are no more apparent than in Rio where the glamour of previous film, Bus 174. Bus 174 led me to
Copacabana beach is overshadowed by the favelas that pockmark the nearby hillside. realise that the police are a big part of the
In these shanty towns rival gangs control the streets and there are constant disputes violence problems we have in Brazil, and that
for some reason it had been utterly ignored
over turf, which usually leads to violent confrontations and inevitably bloodshed. The plight
by Brazilian filmmakers. Luiz Eduardo Soares’
of the favelas’ residents was brought to the attention of a global audience thanks to the book Elite da Tropa [from which the film takes
2002 film City of God. However, its success looks set to be usurped by a new film called its title] came to being much latter. In fact, it
Tropa de Elite - or The Elite Squad - which Screen magazine recently described as “so was inspired by an earlier treatment of our
hard-boiled it’s practically cast in iron”. screenplay, which I read for Luiz.
It’s the first feature film by José Padilha, who previously directed the acclaimed
documentary Bus 174. Padilha’s gritty new crime drama, which recently landed the What compelled you to make a film about this
Golden Bear at the annual Berlin Film Festival, depicts the antics of the elite Brazilian story? Was there something in it that you
police unit BOPE, who shoot first and ask questions later (if there’s anyone left alive to could relate to, something that resonated with
torture). you?
In Brazil, people generally equate the high level
On its release the film sparked widespread controversy in Brazil due to its portrayal of
of urban violence with misery. There is a lot of
a brutal, corrupt police force - it also managed to grab the headlines prior to its release misery, so there is a lot of violence. But this is
after bootleg copies of the film began circulating, resulting in millions of people seeing it not accurate if you read the statistics of other
before its official theatrical release. This bumpy introduction didn’t stop it from breaking all countries. Indeed, there are many cities that
box office records and causing a national debate about corruption that continues to rage. have more misery than Rio or São Paulo, but
Elite Squad director José Padilha spoke to SHOOK about the film’s origins and its lower levels of violence. So there is something
impact on his country. peculiar to Brazilian cities that turn misery into
38
violence. Elite Squad aims to explain why so
many Brazilian policemen become corrupted
and violent, and the answer is centred in the
behaviour of the state. By paying very low wages
to cops, by giving them very little training, by
forcing them to do very risky jobs, the state
creates an environment that generates
corrupted and violent cops. And the police force,
by being what it is, turns misery into violence very
“efficiently”. Making this point is what compelled
me to do the film.
It’s been described as the most talked about in
Brazil’s history and given the coverage that it
has attracted in Brazilian tabloid newspapers,
that’s probably not an exaggeration. Have you
felt comfortable with the attention that the
film has attracted?
I have read many fantastic things in the press,
and some of them were not very accurate. For
instance, not so long ago a famous newspaper
called me stating that a cop was arrested
torturing a criminal, and that he had a video
of the film in his mobile phone. I was asked if I
cared to comment on how my film was breeding
violence, but it turned out that the cop’s mobile
phone provider was paid by the film’s distributor
to send a low definition copy of the movie’s
trailer to all its clients. So the guy had the trailer
but didn’t even know he had it. So you see, it is
very easy to point fingers and make claims like
this. The same thing happened with City of God,
which was accused of causing kids to become
drug dealers due to the popularity of the Zé
Pequeno character [Li’l Ze]. Most of the time,
those charges are simply ridiculous. It’s true that
we have a big violence problem in Rio and São
Paulo, and I guess it’s pretty clear to everyone
that this violence problem is not being caused by
filmmakers!
Did the police cooperate with you during the
making of the film?
Some helped us as they thought the film was
important, but not the police as an organisation.
The police opposed our film from the beginning
and then later tried to prevent us from releasing
the movie. When the film came out, the
policemen who helped us with the research and
training of actors were persecuted by the police.
How tricky was it to film in the favelas? I guess
there are certain times of the day and certain
parts of the favelas that it is advisable not to
visit?
It’s very complicated to film in a favela, especially
those controlled by drug dealers. One simply
cannot go there without the drug dealers’
approval. Also, one must make sure that the
police will not raid the favela on a shooting date.
So one must deal with both sides: the drug
dealers and the cops, in order to have some
safety.
What will you be working on next? Is there
another feature film in the pipeline or do you
think that you will make another documentary?
We are in negotiations about making a TV series
based on the film but the details have not been
finalised yet. I also have two documentaries in
the editing room, and I am working on a new
script about Brazilian politics and why it is so
corrupt
The Elite Squad will be on general release this
summer. www.tropadeeliteofilme.com.br
39
ARTHUR RUSSELL: FROM THE CORNBELT TO THE OCEAN
INTHE LIGHT
A disco visionary and experimental composer who passed away in 1992, Arthur Russell is
now the subject of a new documentary ‘Wild Combination’ and a forthcoming book by TIm
Lawrence. Andy Thomas spoke to his long–time friend and associate, Steve D’Acquisto,
shortly before his death in 2000, and uncovers the lesser–known Arthur, this enigmatic
journeyman in the light of the miracle.
As the end of the ‘70s approached, the whole
disco scene had reached an important junction.
Music that had previously spoken for the
marginalized in society - whether you were black,
Hispanic or gay - was rapidly being sanitised and
sanctioned for a mainstream audience. In order
to reclaim what was essentially the soundtrack
to their lives, the original disco fraternity started
to experiment with new musical forms.
As well as being an entertainer, the
Paradise Garage’s eulogised DJ Larry Levan
was also an educator who revelled in this new
experimentation; where influences from jazz
to dub reggae, and punk to electro, took disco
music to a new level. When the West End label
owner, Mel Cheren, handed him a uniquely
chaotic record to remix, with a weird off key
vocal, Larry’s eyes must have lit up.
The record proved to be ‘Is It All Over My
Face?’ by Loose Joints, a tune that epitomised
the chemical fuelled New York dancefloors of the
late seventies and early eighties, and the man
behind the madness was one Arthur Russell.
Along with other pioneers like Levan, Walter
Gibbons, and Francois Kevorkian, this unique and
eccentric musician helped redefine dance music;
influencing and inspiring everyone from Talking
Heads to Roger Sanchez.
Arthur Russell was born in Oskaloosa, Iowa,
in 1951. In the early seventies he moved to
California and studied the cello at the renowned
Ali Akbar Khan Indian music school in San
Francisco, before moving to New York where he
joined The Flying Hearts avant garde ensemble.
However, Arthur soon became interested in
disco music following a visit to Nicky Siano’s
club, the Gallery. Here he met other like-minded
visionaries such as Walter Gibbons, and long-
time friend and associate Steve D’Acquisto.
“When I first met Arthur at the Gallery, he
was this crazy beautiful guy with long hair, who
smoked a lot of pot,” recalls D’Acquisto fondly.
“He was also, very very gay,” he laughs.
40
Arthur’s first 12” was a collaboration with
Nicky Siano entitled ‘Kiss Me Again’, released
in 1979 on the Sire label, under the name
Dinosaur. “I played the extended 12 minute
version at Studio 54,” remembers D’Acquisto,
who also used to spin at The Loft. “It was early
on in the evening, but it was such a different
tune, the whole crowd just went crazy.” The track
featured a young David Byrne on guitar and
around this time Russell was actually invited to
join label mates Talking Heads. However, he had
his own ideas of where he wanted to take dance
music. “Arthur wanted to produce a Beethoven
symphony for the dancefloor,” D’Acquisto
enthuses.
With a vision of making “the White Album
of disco”, Arthur Russell and Steve D’Acquisto
formed the Loose Joints in 1978, and began
work on their strangely twisted dance music.
“Working with Arthur was a real freeing
experience,” his musical partner explains. “He
was just very open minded. If you went to him
with a crazy idea, he would never say you were
mad. To him everything was just ,’Wow!’”
West End’s Mel Cheren, who sadly passed
in December 2007, recalled the moment he
first heard Steve and Arthur’s demo of ‘Is It
All Over My Face?’. “With that vocal, I thought
to myself, ‘Are they kidding?’” However, in the
hands of remixer Larry Levan, the tripped out
vocal hook of “you got me love dancin” would be
turned into a huge sample from the disco period,
being used to great effect by Roger Sanchez
on Underground Solution’s ‘Luv Dancin’ (Strictly
Rhythm, 1990). “The Loose Joints record was
always one of my favourite tunes,” Sanchez
explains. “I used play it out all the time, and when
it got to the chorus, all the dancers would sing
that line. That was an incredible feeling and it
gave me the inspiration to sample it for my own
Strictly Rhythm release.”
While Larry was mixing this classic West
End 12”, Arthur Russell was busy taking his
STORY ANDY THOMAS
voyage into sound to the next stage, with his
newly formed band Dinosaur L. “Arthur had
this great desire to create big disco jazz epics,”
D’Acquisto explains. This hunger led to the
groundbreaking 1981 LP 24-24 Music on the
Sleeping Bag label, which Arthur had co-founded.
The album blended disco and funky Hammond
rock, with freeform jazz, Latin and dub reggae.
Their raw hybrid sound placed them alongside
other ‘no wave’ groups from the New York
underground, such as ESG and Liquid Liquid.
When ‘Go Bang!’ off the album was given to
remixer Francois Kevorkian it would be turned
into a massive dub disco classic, and another
influential record amongst house producers.
“That record definitely moved things along,”
Roger Sanchez says. “Not only was it very very
funky, it also had this incredible dark energy.”
Meanwhile, Arthur continued working with
Steve D’Acquisto and Loose Joints, releasing
the classic ‘Tell You Today’ in 1983 on 4th &
Broadway, as well as producing Lola’s ‘Wax
The Van’ in 1985. In the mid eighties, he
began recording some of his most bizarre yet
funky music of all with the 12” singles ‘Let’s
Go Swimming’, released on Logarhythm, and
‘Treehouse/School Bell’, released on Sleeping
Bag and under the name Indian Ocean. These
were futuristic records that mirrored the sounds
of early house music, with hypnotic rhythms,
sparse percussive beats, and distorted melodies.
“Those records were so progressive,” D’Acquisto
proclaims. “Although they were stark and offkey,
they were also incredibly beautiful - like Yin and
Yang.”
To add to this ‘uneasy listening’ came
Arthur’s strange warped vocals that perfectly
complemented the spacey dub techniques
used by producer Walter Gibbons. The spacial
distortion provided by Walter’s mix made the
whole sound reverberate into what Russell
called, on his 1986 solo LP, A World of Echo.
Arthur’s long standing interest in dub, reached
41
its zenith with this incredible album. It also saw
the composer at his most experimental; with
haunting melodies and a discordant cello swirling
around in a great sea of reverb.
For Arthur Russell, recording had become a
spiritual experience, as Steve D’Acquisto recalls:
“With Arthur everything revolved around Zen.
It was just a matter of going with the moment
and letting people create. He only recorded at
certain moon times. All the mixing was done on a
full moon, overdubs were done on a new moon.”
His spaced out sounds also had another source.
“Not only was Arthur a total clubber, he was
also a total pot head,” D’Acquisto laughs. “I loved
Arthur and he was great fun, but he was also
a paranoid crazy man,” his friend continues. In
the rare interviews he did, Arthur was becoming
more and more obscure with statements such
as this one with writer David Toop in 1986: “In
outer space, you can’t take your drums - you take
your mind.”
Always the innovator, Arthur often confused
and upset people, including an audience at a
live performance at The Kitchen in Manhattan.
He explained to David Toop how his use of a
drum kit was met with some derision: “A lot of
people turned off. They thought that was a sign
of some new unsophistication... of increasing
commercialisation,” he began. “Then, if you try
to do something different in dance music you
just get branded an eccentric.” This resistance
to innovation also came from DJ’s, with many
of them telling him that no one would ever play
‘Let’s Go Swimming’. Arthur replied by simply
saying: “I think eventually that kind of thing will be
commonplace.”
How right he was. But he would not see
the true extent of his prophecies, as like many
of his friends from the New York underground,
including Larry Levan and Walter Gibbons,
Arthur Russell died far too young, aged 40,
in 1992 of an AIDS related illness. He leaves
behind a legacy of musical experimentation and
innovation that cannot be overstated. “The beats
and arrangements of Arthur Russell led the
way for a lot of dance productions that followed,
especially the darker ones,” Roger Sanchez
summarises. “He definitely had a big influence on
the sounds of today.”
“People just didn’t appreciate the creativity
at the time. Like with Van Gogh, perhaps great
artists are only fully appreciated after their
lifetime,” his friend Steve D’Acquisto concludes
emotionally. “Arthur was the seminal, most
influential and far reaching person in dance
music. It wasn’t just disco it was way beyond
that, something much deeper. It was jazz, it was
classical, it was house, and it was Cole Porter.
Arthur Russell was one of the great song writers
of the 20th Century.”

WILD COMBINATION
On our return from the premiere of Wild Combination: A Portrait of
Arthur Rusell at the Berlin Film Festival, we talked to director Matt
Wolf about this moving tribute, featuring interviews with critic
David Toop, studio engineer Bob Blank and beat poet Allan Ginsburg,
tracing Arthur’s journey from the cornbelt to NY, in the swirl of the
disco explosion and the ensuing AIDS epidemic.
SHK: What did you think when you first heard Arthur’s music?
Matt Wolf (MW): I got obsessed pretty immediately. But I was planning on
getting obsessed, you could say. I was so compelled by an initial description
of Arthur—gay Buddhist-cellist from Oskaloosa runs away to New York to
become disco auteur. The music fulfilled those wild expectations.
SHK: Who were the documentary makers who inspired you
MW: This kind of stylized, reconstructive documentary filmmaking is most
clearly related to Errol Morris. I’m also inspired by the filmmaker Issac
Julien, who was showing a film about a filmmaker named Derek Jarman
at the Berlinale, but became known for an experimental portrait of the
poet Langston Hughes. I’m also enormously inspired by experimental and
narrative filmmakers like Todd Haynes, Charlie Atlas, the list is endless!
SHK: We loved footage of The Gallery. Where did this come from?
MW: The footage is really precious and was shot by a film student at the
Gallery in the 1970s. Now the disco pioneer and founder of The Gallery, DJ
Nicky Siano, has it.
SHK: What do you think Arthur found in clubs like the Gallery and the
Loft. How did they inspire him?
MW: I think it was the social experience of people coming together and
dancing that intrigued Arthur. The way people responded to music and
what made them dance preoccupied Arthur. At these early clubs, the
quality of sound was also extremely refined. I think Arthur saw clubs as
incredible listening environments and social laboratories.
SHK: We really enjoyed the section with Bob Blank and Lola reminiscing
about the recording of ‘Go Bang’. What do you think made Arthur want
to record music like that?
MW: There’s an incredible playfulness to Arthur. In the film, I tried to overtly
bring out this childlike quality to Arthur and his music. He’d sing songs like
“Calling all kids, calling all kids... Grownups are crazy!” A song like ‘Go Bang’
has a similar message, “I want to see all my friends at once, I want to GO
BANG!” It’s like a little kid’s birthday party when they’re spinning on a sugar
42
high. I think Arthur wanted to access the kind of joy of childhood.
SHK: One of those interviewed seemed to be making the point that his
avant garde productions (those recordings reissued on Audika) were
of a higher art than his dance music. Do you agree or would you say his
dance music was equally as experimental?
MW: Quite the contrary, I think Peter Zummo speaks about Arthur’s
insistence on blurring the distinctions between “serious art” and
“pop”. I think anybody who collaborated with Arthur or knew his work
intimately would agree that there’s a similar intensity, accomplishment,
and sophistication to his pop or dance work and his most esoteric
compositions. Personally, I don’t see a distinction between the two-- I think
there were common concerns and preoccupations in both the dance and
avant-garde music that Arthur was making.
SHK: The footage of Iowa and the cornfields was beautiful. You believe
those wide open spaces influenced his music?
MW: I got the sense that he was captivated by that landscape. He asked
his father to drive him around, photographing him in front of tractors.
There were numerous songs called ‘Corn.’ There was some sort of
significant connection Arthur felt to Iowa.
SHK: The film includes some very personal interviews with his family and
his lover. Were they hard to film and why do you think they were needed?
MW: Yes, I think those interviews were really necessary to help a viewer
find an emotional connection to Arthur and his music. Because Arthur isn’t
around to speak for himself and isn’t recorded speaking extensively, we rely
upon the people who knew him or loved him most to bring him to life and
to tell his story. The interviews were emotional, but I think also cathartic for
his lover Tom, and his parents Chuck, and Emily.
SHK: At the end of the day what do you want the film to achieve?
MW: I’d like for people to go to the film and to have unexpected responses
to Arthur’s music. I hope viewers have an emotional experience that
deepens their experience of Arthur’s music.
 Angelo
Badalamenti.
Skream may have sampled John WIlliams’ theme to ‘Catch Me If You
Can’ for ‘Request Line’, but it was Angelo Badalamenti’s scores
for David Lynch that first captivated electronic musicians.
A century ago, the first
performance of Stravinsky’s ‘Rite
of Spring’ famously provoked a riot
amongst the audience who objected
to its new interpretation of the rules
governing composition. Today, far from
being avant-garde, orchestral music has
become the mainstay of ageing concert-
goers, associated more with displays of
pomp and circumstance. In the meantime,
traditional arrangement and composition
has found another habitat, subsisting in the
background of films and television shows, in the
theatres or as a part of progressive visual art
installations. Composers such as Hans Zimmer
and James Newton Howard, who might have
found themselves composing religious music
in previous lives, have made hugely successful
careers writing music to accompany Hollywood
films. The music of other soundtrack composers,
such as Vangelis and Ennio Morricone, has
achieved cult status. Few, though, have matched
the impact on popular culture of Angelo
Badalamenti.
Badalamenti, who’s celebrating his 70th
birthday this year, is a classically trained
musician who studied at the Manhattan School
of Music, just across the Hudson from his native
Brooklyn. After graduating, he worked as a music
teacher while arranging and writing songs for a
number of popular performers. He worked with
Roberta Flack, Melba Moore and Shirley Bassey
in this capacity and wrote three songs for Nina
44
Simone, including
‘He Ain’t Coming Home No More’ and ‘Another
Spring’, a song which showed early signs of
his unique understanding of jazz. Badalamenti
reportedly turned up at Nina Simone’s offices
unannounced one day, and asked her if she
would record his songs by singing them for her
acapella. When finally Ms. Simone acquiesced
and listened to him sing, she agreed to use the
songs on the spot.
In time, though, it wouldn’t be R&B singers
but Hollywood director David Lynch would best
employ Badalamenti’s ability to assimilate his
unique voice into a variety of musical styles.
Badalamenti began working on films in 1973,
scoring the raw and funky blaxploitation
soundtrack Gordon’s War under the name Andy
Badale, a record that featured Barbara Mason
on vocals.
WORDS: BENJI LEHMANN
Badalamenti
scored the
raw and funky
blaxploitation
soundtrack
Gordon’s War and
one day turned up
at Nina Simone’s
unannounced...
In 1986, Badalamenti was hired as Isabella
Rosselini’s vocal coach for Lynch’s psycho-
sexual thriller Blue Velvet. Rossellini was having
trouble nailing the title track, and Badalamenti
was called in to help out. Within an hour and a
half, Rossellini and Badalamenti returned with
a cassette of the finished result. Even though
he was impressed, Lynch was nevertheless
reluctant when his friend suggested that they
offer Badalamenti the ‘Mysteries of Love’
commission – a song which which was intended
as a placeholder while they tried to license This
Mortal Coil’s ‘Song to the Siren’.
Speaking to the Gavin Report, David Lynch
remembers, “We wanted to get this certain
song that was real hard to get. It was tied up
in litigation. Our producer Fred Caruso had
anticipated trouble and suggested we write
something with Angelo. He suggested we tell him
what we wanted in terms of feel. I said, ‘Fred,
you’ve
got to
be kidding me! We
lucked out with him and Isabella. This is
different. This is a one song out of ten million and
I’m supposed to hand something over to this guy
Angelo and (snapping his fingers) like that, I’m
gonna get what I want? You’re nuts!”
Angelo’s rose to the challenge and his
version of ‘Mysteries of Love’, enlisting the vocals
of Julee Cruise, would end up part of a key scene
of Blue Velvet. Lynch was so impressed that he
made Badalamenti score the rest of the film,
and even gave him a cameo appearance as
the piano player under his nom de plume, Andy
Badale. It would launch a partnership between
Badalamenti and Lynch which would remain a
integral part of all Lynch’s future work.
“It all happened kinda conventionally,” explains
a genial Badalamenti over the phone from his
New Jersey home. “As happens with 95% of
filmmakers, he gave me very precise directions
for how he wanted my music sound, and he told
me that it had to stick to the images that he’d
already created. But we got on so well that we
started to spend more and more time together.
I started to compose scenes simply by his
descriptions of the scenes, and the atmosphere
he was trying to create.”
“For instance, when we were coming up
with the music for Twin Peaks, I was sat at my
synthesizer and David was telling me stuff like:
‘Imagine a beautiful young girl in the distance,
who comes out of the forest and seems to be
very distressed. Try to find a melody to illustrate
how she comes across, and how she feels.’ A
quarter of an hour later, David was close to
tears with the result,” explains Angelo.
It was with this soundtrack to the TV
series Twin Peaks that Badalamenti achieved
mainstream recognition in 1992, winning him
a Grammy Award and going on to become the
best selling soundtrack of all time. “Nothing in
Twin Peaks is really straight on,
and that includes the music,”
adds Angelo. “Even the love
scenes start off with a dark,
moody melody. David told me
he need five parts. A dark
mysterious thing with an
anticipatory line that builds
very slowly into a climax that
should tear people’s hearts
out. But in a minimal way. After
the climax, the music needed
to fall very slowly, going back to
that somber, serious melody line.
Then the love theme climbs again
with off-setting notes.”
Although it was the soundtrack
to Twin Peaks that shifted the most units,
the creative partnership between Lynch and
Badalamenti really peaked on the soundtrack to
Mulholland Drive. The theme is reminiscent of
the work of Bernard Hermann on Taxi Driver, a
brooding orchestral swell which is emblematic
in its simplicity of basic human functions:
breathing, walking, trembling. But in my mind
it is Badalamenti’s ‘Jitter Bug’, that appears in
the opening sequence of the film, which really
describes the evanescent world that we enter.
Like in his earlier composition ‘Another Spring’,
Badalamenti’s tense and disturbing voice speaks
through the traditionally upbeat be-bop form.
“David Lynch took
these layers of sound,
would slow them down
to maybe half their
speed, even a quarter
of their speed, or
would play them
backwards.”
“Mulholland Drive was a film in which music
is omnipresent, and works in tandem with a
great deal of sound design, and both work
autonomously and together. There’s lots of
muffled tonalities , dissonance – the opposite of
a traditional melodic line. I used a a lot of strings,
cellos and violas and I made them play very slow,
dissonant pieces. Our approach was really very
experimental: David took these layers of sound,
would slow them down to maybe half their speed,
even a quarter of their speed, or would play
them backwards. Then he would take one track
with one mix and another with one another mix
and superimpose these things. All of a sudden,
you’ve got some very unusual sound design going
right from there.”
It is undoubtedly the same tension for
which he has a unique talent that has seen
him work more recently on films such as
Steven Shainberg’s Secretary or Dark Water,
from the creators of Japanese horror flick
The Ring. There are a number of soundtrack
composers whose work has found its way into
popular culture. The most obvious, perhaps
is Vangelis. The soundtrack to Blade Runner
has been sampled in a host of seminal drum
n’ bass tracks. Dillinja’s ‘The Angels Fell’ is the
most obvious, but also Ed Rush and Trace’s
‘Technology’. Crucially it is both the subject
matter of the film and the soundtrack to it
which are cited by producers like Doc Scott as
formative influences. Likewise, Trent Reznor’s
soundtrack to Requiem for a Dream, much of
which might be described also as sound design,
was as much influence for as it was influenced
by the experminental Clicks and Cuts album on
German label Mille Plateaux, which featured Alva
Noto amongst others. Both appeared in 2000.
It is the music of Badalamenti, though which
has subtly and most completely penetrated
popular culture. Most famous is the sample from
‘Falling’ which is effectively the total substance
of Moby’s acid house classic ‘Go’. But more
significant is the number of DJs who have
featured Badalamenti’s tracks in their original
form on their mixes. Optimo featured ‘Mulholland
Drive Theme’ on their Kill the DJ mix, and Alex
Patterson of The Orb has featured ‘Falling’ on
his Late Night Tales mix. ‘Little Fluffy Clouds’
appeared in the same year in which ‘Twin Peaks’
first aired, and it is tempting to suggest that one
was inspired by the other. However it is more
significant that the single only entered the top
ten in 1993 on its re-release. After the 1992
success of the Twin Peaks soundtrack, is it
possible that the public was now ready for the
ethereal, enigmatic sound of American Blues
singer Rickie Lee Jones on the Orb’s ‘Little Fluffy
Clouds’?
Since 1990 the musical landscape has
changed. Composers like Alva Noto, Tim Hecker
and Stars of the Lid are putting out music
without regular rhythm or tempo, music which
has no obvious role – it is not there to dance
to, to sing along to. In the ‘80s their work would
have been the sole preserve of academia. Now
it occupies a new and more accessible niche
which was largely established by Badalamenti
- music that suggests drama, narrative, time
and place, which can exist in the foreground
as well as the background of creativity.
Badalamenti emphasizes that music is as much
an impetus to the stories of Lynch’s films as
it is an accompaniment. The music describes
the set, the costume and the story of a film
even before it has been written. It is in this way
that Badalamenti has changed the role of the
soundtrack, and moreover, our appreciation of
music in general.
45
 “music by nerds
for non nerds”

& D I R T Y SO UND SYSTEM

46
INTERVIEW J’M IRIE PHOTO ELISA GOMEZ

47
Pilooski is a guy who “Outside France we find much more
enthusiasm: people less snobby, less
keeps it mellow, living worried about how they look and
and working at home, whether they’re gonna get into the
club. When we travel and play abroad,
somewhere near the
first and foremost we look to enjoy
gothic cemetary of Pere ourselves, so everything aspect of the
Lachaise in the north rider is negociable,” Pilooski tell us over
of Paris. Very few DJs an aperitif in Belleville in the north of
Paris. “Good food and good wine can
and artists in Paris are make the difference between accepting
making it big in 2008 a booking or not. And if we feel good
without compromising with the promoter, we might spend
three days on their couch eating magret
their souls but Pilooski, de canard like we do whenever we go to
alongside his DIRTY SOUND Porto, Istambul or Athens.”
SYSTEM crew of Clovis,
So how did music come in your life?
Guillaume and Benjamin, From a very tender age, as young as eight
somehow manage years old, I was a very curious and diverse
record collector of many genres of sounds and
the impossible: rock especially pop and OST (original soundtracks).
headz as well as soul
connoisseurs, they’re You declared that “God works for Ennio
Morricone.”
comfortable playing Right! I’m fascinated by the talent of artists such
out at the champagne- as Ennio Morricone who can appeal to everyone:
from your average 18 year old kids to 60-year-
sipping, Versace- old Ircam scientists!
wearing nights like Paris
Paris, or catering to the And which other main artists made a mark on
you?
sophisticated tastes of I love Mr Oizo’s sound because it can be dark
the cognoscenti with their and ludic at the same time, also I appreciate the
talented works of Smith n Hack…
limited-editon, vinyl-only
‘Dirty Edits’ series and OK but who else? I mean who else from the
their most-rated Dirty past?
So many. For disco I love Patrick Adams. And
Space Disco compilation people like Quincy Jones who are polymaths, who
for Tigersushi. With can achieve just about anything from jazz to pop
to electronic to funk to rock etc. Also I enjoy the
a wide and discerning way the Mizzell Brothers can create jazz with a
taste in music and more very pop appeal. Or The Sylvers… their producer
besides, Pilooski and was very much into sound research while making
soul music. But I don’t want to mention just
his DIRTY acolytes are jazz and soul cats here. I’m influenced equally
not just the critically by rock too, if you look at my edits. For example
Krautrockers Can …
acclaimed “kings of edits”
but here to bring back So your aim is to spread love, to share “music
quality control to the made by nerds for non nerds” as you described
it once summing up D I R T Y sound-system
dancefloor. ethos …
Exactly.
Cinema plays a big part in your life too…
I love it. It’s a matter of moods… Every night
I watch at least two movies. And I’ve always
been heavily into sampling dialogues in DJ sets
to create a certain atmosphere. My favorite
filmmaker must be William Friedkin, the man
who did The French Connection. I love the
48
intensity that reigns in his movies. Also Sam
Peckinpah, Martin Scorsese (in particular the
violence, the realness you can find in his ‘70s
movies), Terence Malick for his poetic vision
and even some of Dario Argento’s stuff. Also
I’ve started doing short movies with friends of
mine I met in England who work in advertising.
But even though I’m passionnate about films,
I won’t go to study it at school. I’d rather try
to rely on new ideas… experiment with cheap
equipement. I guess that what I like the most
in art, be it movies or music, is the DIY ethic :
those who dare to be original. Those who keep
it ruff but fresh at the same time, who can be
spontaneous… iconoclasts like Lee Perry or Mr
Oizo. Musicians and generally individuals with
ideas, like Michel Gondry in cinema too.
You made your first moves in the studio
producing hip hop. In fact, your name first
emerged in most connoisseurs discussions
about five years ago with the elusive
‘Beatshopper’ 12”, in praise of the joy of
diggin’ dusty records… an activity you’ve
become well known and respected for.
I was living in Toulouse in the south of France
and I made my first records with a friend for
Quantic and also Tongue & Groove around 1994
(before they changed their name to Hospital
records). I was very much into jazz and soul
– from De La Soul to Pharoah Sanders – and
also noisy pop stuff which got me more and
more into sound textures. And then of course
there was Detroit and Chicago, original minds
like Anthony Shakir. Again I’ve always been
stimulated by “bricolage”: being able to create
something emotive by just using a drum machine
with feeling. So at one point I stopped making hip
hop because copying DJ Premier didn’t interest
me anymore.
It must have been about the same time you
hooked up with the D I R T Y crew…
We were working on the same label,
Diamondtraxx. They released their first
compilation Dirty Diamonds and I invited them to
play in Toulouse a few times. We got along and
went on from there.
You’ve since gained a great reputation for
pulling out an amazingly vast selection of
sounds…
What I like with them, what we all share in
common, is that we might talk about obscure
stuff for hours but we’re also very much into
obvious productions of here and now, from the
likes of Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Janet
Jackson or Snoop. What I hate are stereotypes,
people whose musical abilities are pigeon-holed.
For example I started listening again to some
hip-hop recently, a lot of Madlib stuff, and I
realized that the dude is a victim of this digger
reputation. The fact is that he’s much more than
that. We’ve actually had dinner with Madlib and
his Stones Throw team the other night and when
you talk with him you see that he’s really a great
musician. They’ve asked me to do a few edits and
maybe some remixes. They’ve given me some
modern soul tracks to work on. My aim is to try
to make techno from the originals – not just do
some cut & paste edit, but to attempt to to go
somewhere else with it.
Tell me about your next project Discodeine…
With my pal Benjamin Morando we’re doing an
album with a lot of vocal harmonies layered in a
Beach Boys vein, with a techno feel underneath
and a dark Morricone edge. I want to make
pop music, not some unknown stuff just for ten
DJ’s to wank over. I want make pop with an
experimental approach.
And to follow up on the glowing success of
your Dirty Space Disco compilation, you plan
to release a second selection on Tigersushi
records, this time focusing on French pop…
I’m very fond of the works of past artists
– famous or not – in the same vein as Serge
Gainsbourg, particulary in a psychedelic context.
Sadly the majority of the chanson française
scene today is horrible, with the exception of
rare individuals like Sebastien Tellier who is
doing a fantastic job. As Discodeine, we want to
express something personal, and we’re looking
to use people we feel close to – Jamie Liddell,
Herman Düne’s singer or even Midnight Mike.
What’s this fascination for Turkish baths
you seem to cultivate in the artwork for
Discodeine?
At first we wanted to entitled the album Sauna
‘cause one day we were asking ourselves: “Who
buys records these days? Who knows their
music? It’s only gays!” (laughs). They have the
cultural curiosity, the hedonistic vibe and the
purchasing power. We’re not gay but many of
our friends are, so as a joke we’ve been playing
around with the idea of big moustaches and
Turkish baths.
Codeine is a drug that slows down the tempo…
Is the project a nod to the slow-motion comic
disco craze?
We did think about it at first but we’ve tried
to dissociate ourselves from that limiting
connotation because let’s face it, Nu Disco is
wack (with the exception of a few tracks here
and there by Todd Terge and Prins Thomas or
Cosmo Vitelli with a freaky twist). If I want to play
slow grooves, I’d rather hear soul, real stuff,
rather than what they do. Nu Disco shows no
intensity, no ideas. They stick too much to the
same old rules and they look too much for rarity
rather than quality! That’s also why I stopped
diggin’ a bit. I got fed up.
With your edits and remixes you like to explore
many genres. Who is king of the edits in your
opinion?
In my humble opinion there are too many cheap
edits out there these days. I like the Moxie edits.
Also Todd Terje… although I got sent a cd of his
with about 60 edits and I only really liked three
out of the whole lot.
I meant from the past? Like Tom Moulton or
Larry Levan or even Lee Perry ?
Yes, Lee Perry and all those who dare to
push the envellope. Someone like Ron Hardy
whose work seems oddly off, with long hypnotic
sequences – Ron Hardy did what every artist
does today, he did it twenty years before
everyone else! Again, talking about disco edits
I seem to go more for experimentation. I love
Arthur Russell’s audacious work, with very little
means but a lot of inventivity – more than just
big string arrangements like Larry Levan (even
though he’s great too.) Yeah, I like it ruff… Harvey
fits in the same category.
How do you approach an edit?
First off I look for a mood that moves me. I
usually like psychedelic stuff with a melodic and
melancholic feel. Then I don’t just want to cut
and paste. I look for intensity and I want to add
even more deepness to the original track by
insisting on certain parts. For instance, right now
I’m working on a Kid Creole edit. The original is
quite pouet pouet (dull) so I kept very few original
elements and I’ve tried to take it somewhere
else. Same thing when I spin with DIRTY: I’ll mix
obscure and mainstream stuff too. I don’t care
for reference contests. I leave that to record
conventions goers! I play classics because I’ve
got nothing to prove, or I can select very well-
known artists but rare tracks (like ‘Beggin’ by
Frankie Valli…the guy who was responsible for
‘Grease’). I don’t feel the need to have everything
in my collection, even though I’ll listen to anything.
Oizo for example is a total genius in my opinion,
the best french producer now without a doubt!
Also Jackson is great. I’m not a passéist, I’m not
stuck in the past . I don’t stop after 82 ! That’s
just plain ridiculous.
You are very buzy in your studio right now…
Oh yes. I’ve done remixes for Chromatix, Cosmo
Vitelli, Photons (a new Portuguese band we’ve
just signed to DIRTY). Also some very interesting
edits like the Kid Creole for Strut… and some
not so artistically motivating edits in order to
buy equipment and feed my son (for disposable
pop groups and Amy Winehouse-wannabes on
Rough Trade and Warner etc.). And even some
productions for a Texas singer too..
www.d-i-r-t-y.com
www.alainfinkielkrautrock.com
49
words HUGO MENDEZ
SPIRITUALLY
SPEAKING
Spiritual jazz. It can be applied to Albert Ayler, Don Cherry and the ‘New Thing’, to
the religious works of Duke Ellington, Herbie Hancock, Canonball Adderley and Mary
Lou Williams, as well as the cosmic jazz of Sun Ra and the politicized work of Phil
Ranelin and Wendell Harrison. Stylistically disparate, does it begin and end with ‘A
Love Supreme’, or can it mean more than Coltrane? Hugo Mendez asks the questions.
It’s a fact that ’Trane’s spiritual conversion
was inspired by Sun Ra and, more importantly,
the saxophonist Jon Gilmore. Gilmore came
close to leaving Ra’s Arkestra, and even
recorded an album for Blue Note on Coltrane’s
recommendation. But the higher purpose of the
Arkestra, coupled with a stern warning from
Ra himself, persuaded Gilmore to stay. The
work ethic of Ra’s ‘prison’ (otherwise known as
his rehearsal schedule) appealed to Coltrane’s
obsessive, almost monastical approach to
practice - and while we think of spirituality being
the message in the music, it was also a guide
and a way of life, leading band leaders and their
players through the wilderness and temptations
of life on the road.
We also know that some of Ra’s pamphlets
on numbers and cosmic theory found its way to
Trane, and he almost certainly translated these
into his changes and harmonic approaches. In
an infinite universe, he understood that juggling
numbers around is all we got.
So you have to understand that spiritual
jazz, more than anything else, is a state of
consciousness. The idea of spiritual music
is not restricted to a particular style – it is a
natural by-product of free expression. It can be
vocal, instrumental, fast, slow, religious, secular,
conceived as nothing more than a simple melody
for musicians to improvise and re-interpret
or can be as rigorously scored as a classical
composition. The one important thing that
makes something spiritual is the way in which it
was created – and of course how it is received.
In the wake of Trane’s music, it was a time
when musicians and artists were consciously
trying to break down the barriers between
music, poetry, art and dance – a time of
renewed interest in African heritage, the study of
Eastern religion and mysticism in the immediate
aftermath of de-segregation and in the midst of
the Vietnam War.
The urban centres of Chicago and Detroit,
50
of New York and Philadelphia were buzzing with
the alternative world views and revisionist ideas
flying around Black Arts centres and musical
collectives. Many musicians were engaged in
overtly political causes (Philip Cohran’s tribute to
Malcolm X, the legendary Black Mass from Amiri
Baraka and Sun Ra’s Myth Science Orchestra)
that give urgency and drive to their work beyond
the basic creative impulse.
The flipside to the political and critical stance
taken by many musicians was a desire to escape
– escape into religion, or a re-claimed past, or
exotic and imagined cultures, or just escape into
the emotional power of music.
James Tatum
James Tatum is a pianist and composer,
originally from Texas but based in Detroit. His
1973 Contemporary Jazz Mass album has
become a cult record amongst Jazz lovers and
diggers – a legendarily tough record to find
that was only ever sold at churches where the
piece was being performed. The LP is one of
the pinnacles of religious jazz. James still lives
and works in the Detroit area.
What was the inspiration for your Jazz Mass?
At the time, in 1973, there had been a revolution
in church music and all sorts of masses being
composed – folk masses, rock masses and stuff
like that. Father Raymond Ellis suggested that
I come up with a Jazz Mass for the St. Cecilia
Church, which was my parish. I was deeply
influenced by the great Duke Ellington, who had
premiered his own religious suite in New York a
few years earlier.
Apart from Ellington, what else was influencing
you at the time?
Well, my main influences apart from Duke
Ellington were Art Tatum – the greatest, fastest
jazz pianist in this universe – Billy Taylor and
John Lewis, the pianist from the Modern Jazz
Quartet. I learnt a lot about jazz and composition
through the work of John Lewis. Aside from that
of course, and in the Jazz Mass specifically, the
Gospel tradition informed a lot of the piece. I
tried to score the voices of the choir as music,
using the tone and colour of the instruments to
evoke the gospel choir.
What was your intention with the piece?
I wanted to use jazz expression to acknowledge
the Supreme Being as the Foundation of the
Foundation – in a simple way that the average
joe could understand and relate to.
How was the Mass received?
The premiere of the mass was a special moment
– more than 500 people were in the church
to hear it! We recorded it at the church and
sold the LP at different concerts and church
appearances. The Mass has been performed at
churches of all denominations, not just Catholic.
I still perform the mass to this day – most
recently three years ago, when I performed a
revised version as a tribute to Rosa Parks.
Ed Nelson –
The Hastings Street
Jazz Experience
Detroit’s Hastings Street Jazz Experience
encapsulates the communal nature of many
underground jazz collectives of the ‘70s – a
fiercely independent endeavor that sought
to enrich the community as well as bringing
the music to a wider audience. Alongside the
work of better known Detroit figures such
as Wendell Harrison and Tribe Records, the
Hastings Street Jazz Experience deserves
its place in the history of underground and
spiritual jazz.
51
James Tatum / Mor Thiam / Ronnie Boykins
What was the impetus for forming the
Hastings Street Jazz Experience?
The Group grew out of The Other Katz quartet,
a group I was involved with in the early ’70s.
Through my teaching work I saw a lot of talent
in the young pupils but realized that there was
no outlet for them to play live. The idea behind
the Hastings Street Experience was to put
young players alongside seasoned veterans, to
teach them about playing in a big band – a kind
of community training that also included dance,
poetry and performance.
Why did you call the group the Hastings Street
Jazz Experience?
Hastings Street was the most famous Afro-
American area in Detroit prior to the ’60s – the
end point for any Southern migrants ending up in
Detroit. It was where all the jazz and blues clubs
were– there were many black-owned businesses
and a very strong community. The City of
Detroit moved the inhabitants out in the early
’60s to make way for the interstate, destroying
the community and relocating them to housing
projects on the outskirts of town. I wanted to
commemorate the area and to maintain the
history of Afro-American Detroit.
What kind of support for the project did you
get – did any municipal bodies get involved to
help?
The entire project was completely self-funded–
we used fees from gigs and appearances to
finance the album. It was a collective effort– we
pressed the record ourselves, a kid I taught
designed the cover, and none of the musicians
were allowed more than one composition on the
LP to make sure everyone got a fair go.
Do you remember any special concerts at the
time?
It was difficult to get gigs of any scale in Detroit
in the’70s, after the riots and with the wind-
down from the industrial closures. Our most
memorable gig was probably at the Detroit
Symphony Hall in 1978. We put two shows on
with Donald Byrd, both sold out, and even the
Mayor came. The building had been scheduled
52
for demolition and Detroit would have lost
another important part of its musical heritage,
but after our gig and the actions of some others
it was saved and is still the home of the Detroit
Symphony Orchestra today.
Jazzman Gerald
Jazzman Records’ Spritual Jazz compilation
is out in April, covering lost, forgotten and
rare tracks from the’60s and ’70s. Many of
the records were unearthed from Gerald’s
hallowed vaults.
What does the term spiritual jazz mean to
you?
Obviously there are many, many forms of jazz,
and spiritual jazz is a form that’s only really
become exposed and given a name in recent
years. Primarily it’s the music made by jazz
musicians in the ‘60s and ‘70s, recorded on
small independent labels and is of a style that’s
progressive yet still has a earthy sound that the
casual listener can latch on to. I say ‘progressive’
in that unusual time signatures, ethnic rhythms
or modal scales are often used, and I say the
casual listener can enjoy it as there
isn’t much of a free or avante-garde element to
the music. In other words, it’s jazz music that’s
more interesting than the usual dum-dum-dum-
dum walking bass 4/4 beat, yet not a step so
far that the listener is challenged too hard.
Are there any particular famous artists that
sparked your interest in the music?
There are many, but John Coltrane has to be
the father of the music, he was way ahead of
everyone else, mainly from his Atlantic albums of
the early ‘60s though he came into his element
with Impulse! a few years later. If I can mention
just a few I should point out the under-rated
genius that is Sahib Shihab, also Sun Ra, Jef
Gilson, Nathan Davis and not forgetting Don
Rendell and Ian Carr from the UK.
Why did you decide to release a compilation of
this music, and why now?
I love the music and I think that if I love it so
much then other people will too. I have the
records, why not share them? The musicians
who originally made the music wanted as many
people to enjoy it as possible, and because
much of it was recorded so long ago it’s been
forgotten. Many of the independently pressed
records never even made their way out of the
town they were recorded in, such were the
difficulties and expenses involved in distribution.
So this is my way of getting what I see is
important and overlooked music out there so it
can be properly appreciated.
Ben Lamdin –
Nostalgia 77
The Nostalgia 77 Octet have been producing
forward-thinking jazz music for several years.
Head-honcho Ben Lamdin runs down his
interest in spiritual jazz.
Who would you say are your main influences,
and what is it about them that has inspired
you?
I really love the music of the Coltranes and a
lot of the Impulse! artists of that time as well
as Mingus, Ayler etc. I also have an interest
in artists or groups who where perhaps less
exceptional and who worked more locally than
nationally, but whose music was rooted in their
community which was made regardless of profit
motive. Music made out of the necessity to say
something. In England composers like Michael
Garrick and Neil Ardley both wrote music which
drew inspiration from religious traditions.
Are there any other artists working today that
you feel a musical connection with?
I think for this kind of music the New York
groups affiliated with William Parker are making
outstanding music. I’d also give special mention
to a group called the Twelves Trio run by Riaan
Vosloo and fronted by the British sax player,
Mark Hanslip.
53
WALL
FLOWERS
Take a stroll up Cheltenham Road, peopled by
the the dispossessed, the down-on-their-luck
and the downright desperate, where amidst
the derelict buildings and the blank-looking
ghosts of the city, a new chapter in Bristol’s
story is being written.
A profoundly neglected quarter of Bristol,
a place where all the scum of the city has
been washed-up, where the shady bordellos,
drugs projects and homeless shelters have
accumulated, it’s an unofficial ‘red-light’ zone
of tolerance towards drugs. But over the past
few months, it’s also a place where a certain
rebel faction of artists has declared a state of
aesthetic anarchy. Wresting it from the grip
of Bristol City Council, the zone has now been
declared The People’s Republic Of Stokes Croft.
The brain-child of local artist-turned-activist
Chris Chalkley, the PRSC is an initiative that has
been pioneered by the people, for the people, to
redecorate the streets and bring about some
much needed civic beautification. In the autumn
of 2007 the PRSC project really began to gather
momentum and Stokes Croft, it became the
urban backdrop to the scene of a quiet war
fought with silent weapons, as much an art
renaissance as a political revolution.
Designating Stokes Croft as Bristol’s
“Cultural Quarter”, Chalkley has roused a
collective of discontented street artists and
writers and after carefully mapping out every
available section of wall space in the vicinity, has
set about revamping it into an urban art gallery
that is steady proliferating across every vacant
vertical surface. With his no-nonsense approach,
54
Chalkley has bypassed any potential delays,
sticking two fingers up at uncomprehending
arts bodies and local development funds, and
steamed ahead with his project. So in spite
of the apathy and indifference of the council
and local government, who have done virtually
nothing to renew the environs between St. Pauls,
Montpelier and Cotham, the PRSC have taken it
upon themselves to give the area a facelift with
their own special brand of urban planning.
Take a tour around these streets and
you will see a mind-boggling array of graffiti
pieces, loud socio-political stencils, and cunning
trompe l’oeils, chalkboards scrawled with the
antiestablishment ravings, as well as quaint and
beautiful murals from a list of artist that includes
SickBoy, True, Haka, Syan, TCF Crew, PM Crew,
AcerOne and BTM Crew. The area also boasts
‘The Mild, Mild West’ by Banksy, Bristol’s most
notorious exi-stencilist, although legend has it
that the landlord nearly painted over the mural
before he discovered how much it was worth.
Just a stone’s throw away from Stokes
Croft, the Broadmead shopping precinct
is broadening out – a multimillion pound
development that is extending the existing
shopping area even further out from the
city centre towards St.Pauls and St. Judes.
The more it encroaches on the surrounding
communities, the more its effects can be felt
reverberating throughout the vicinity. In St. Pauls,
police activity has reached oppressive levels and
several local pubs have been shut down in this
long-suffering, ethnically diverse community. All
the time, available housing in the community is
From 3D to
Banksy,Bristol has
a strong history of
graf writers. But
now a new breed
of artists is helping
to regeneratate the
city’s no-go zone.
Welcome to Stokes
Croft.
Words:ALASDAIR PURVES
Photos: WALT JABSCO
being snapped up by outside investors, raising
the cost of rent and increasing the pressure on
younger and less privileged families.
By contrast, the edification of Stokes Croft
is bringing about a community spirit and self-
esteem that was previously non-existent – there
are vintage shops and record stores, cafes, art
galleries, an independent cinema, and numerous
pubs and clubs all flourishing like never before.
Where not so long ago there were only vagrants
and crack addicts, now you can find people
from a kaleidoscope of ethnic backgrounds and
social standings, all freely intermingling in these
bustling and visually upbeat surroundings.
Through careful lobbying and petitioning of
the council and the submission of a well thought
out action plan it seems the PRSC are here
to stay and are at liberty to proceed with their
creative deeds without prosecution. All of the
PRSC activities are entirely self-funded, with
audacity, determination and willpower proving to
be more essential resources than money. Whilst
undergoing what seems to be a very radical
overhaul, the new Stokes Croft is also in keeping
with how it has been historically, with busy shops,
painted facades and a real sense of community.
So if you find yourself in Bristol, I encourage
you to explore Stokes Croft and admire the
metamorphosis of these once grungy and
decrepit walls. Perhaps it will restore your faith
in humanity. For now at least nothing seems
to be standing in the way of the PRSC from
achieving their goal of turning Stokes Croft into
The World’s Biggest Outdoor Art Gallery.
www.prsc.org.uk
55
DESTINATION: BUENOS AIRES
BOUNTY
HUNTERS
Buenos Aires is a city which resonates to a 24 hour culture yet still offers
laidback charm and impossible beauty. Surely here, in the home of tango, it
can’t be this difficult to find records? words: SANJIV AHLUWALIA
Sat on a local bus as it weaves an out-of-
control mission through Chacubuco to San
Telmo, my face pressed up against the inside
of the window, I’m trying to assess the outside
scene for clues, while suppressing the groans
coming from my stomach. My Time Out travel
guide helpfully says of Buenos Aires’ buses, “hold
on tight”. It should read, “hold on for dear life “.
As we tear through the streets, a crest of local
bars and restaurants have begun to ply the early
evening aperitif crowd. But I have other concerns
on my mind – namely that my record mission
in BA, a city which brings a cocktail of late-night
hedonism and fiery football, has so far yielded no
finds. I’ve drawn a big Zero. Nothing. Nada. In the
streets, the residents of the villas miseria rifle
through rubbish bags and recycle anything they
can find - clothes, cardboard, cans. And in my
mind, their sullen faces begin to resemble mine.
A crate-digger never truly rests in his
search for the perfect beat (a journey inspired
by hip-hop pioneer Afrika Bambaata’s 1983
classic of the same name). A crate-digger is
like the bodhissatva, as described in Buddhist
teachings – he’s on a personal mission, a quest
for perfection. In his never-ending search for the
perfect beat, the perpetually elusive mother lode
of all breaks (even if Bobby Hutcherson’s Waiting
does come close) he will be a richer record
collector (richer in terms of his collection, if not
in terms of his bank balance). Within hours of
arriving in a city, the vinyl addict will already be on
the trail – like a true junky – following the smell
of records to the most unlikely of places. But in
Buenos Aires the trail had definitely gone cold.
I’d boarded the bus at the main train station
Retiro which like most principal city stations has
56
an air of excitement – food kiosks, alluring
foreign newspapers and magazines, train
departures to mystical destinations and
seediness. But does it boast, like Grand Central
Station in New York, a small but busy booth
for commuters to purchase the latest salsa
sounds? No it doesn’t.
Getting off the bus at the Chacubuco district,
it’s a slightly rougher mix of characters and
what seems like endless streets of working men
cafes, petrol stations and patisseries. Surely
here, if anywhere, will be home to a little-known
gem of a record store? Sadly, the only thing I find
here is more disappointment. What about San
Telmo, home of the much-famed market, where
there are apparently endless rows of record
stalls? When I eventually make it there, besides
the overpriced crafts and jewellery, all I can find
is MOR rock records. So much for my dream of
discovering some rare, never officially released
Astor Piazzolla and Miles Davis album!
Still refusing to give up, I battle with
commuters and tourists on endless subtes
(underground trains), hitting up various
destinations on the map. The oldest line dates
back to 1912 and has wooden carriages which
groan when they rattle on the lines. But like the
song, I am on a road to nowhere. Then, just
when things couldn’t get any worse, there’s a
glimmer of hope. Across from the stately Hotel
Castelar (see details) is a little tiny CD shop. In
the window, posters of Alberto Castillo, Carlos
Garcia and other popular tango artists cover
the glass frontage. Inside is a treasure trove of
music new and old. A great place to browse, the
owners are extremely helpful, pointing out some
unknown classics and politely dismissing the
Gotan Project as “not proper tango.” But though
the shop is a great discovery, there’s something
missing… vinyl.
A friend suggests that if I like tango, proper
tango, we meet at the Homero Manzi cafe
(see details). We innocently walk into an early-
evening wedding rehearsal, two tango dancers
nod a welcome and the waiter brings, without
asking, strong mate tea. My eyes gorge on the
improvised dancing feast. Afterwards, our spirits
lifted by the music, we take a little walk around
the area and stray into a musty local indoor
market in San Telmo district of Buenos Aires,
where the fresh fruit, veg and fish sit next to
interesting bric-a-brac and homewares gathering
dust.
It was Rakim who said that to really
appreciate hip-hop you have to listen to it in a
totally different environment from where it was
made. So Mos Def, Rza and Guilty Simpson
sound just as good in Fort Greene, Brooklyn as
they do in Jaipur, India. And similarly when I finally
spot the record oasis of Elena de San Telmo,
I hear not the sweet refrain of Astor Piazzolla,
or some modal/tango moments from Nestor
Marconi but the happy, skippy trance-like music
of ‘Fuselage Part II’ by Monk Montgomery.
The psychedelic jazz refrain soundtracks my
approach to the small stall where boxes of dusty
records huddle next to a small portable record
player propped up on a box. The shop’s small
interior is brightened with bold paintings of old
Argentine tango. Armed with some broken
Spanish, a phrase book and a bag full of charm,
I finger through hundreds of records with the
helpful advice and guidance of the owner. How
do you say in Spanish, “I’ve found heaven”?
57
DESTINATION: BUENOS AIRES
FUTBOL
If tango is the soul of Buenos Aires, then
football is its heartbeart.
The residents of Buenos Aires, the Porteños
live, breathe and die (sometimes literally) for
the beautiful game. The city has over thirty
clubs, six in the top flight, and each has their
own stadium, with blanket coverage on television
(live games are televised five or six times a
week). Every taxi driver’s radio is locked onto
the football commentary, football posters are
draped across every newsagent’s stands, while
in most cafes and bars, with football often the
centre of attraction, there’s no escaping the
beautiful game.
My second visit to a football game in BA
was something else. Even getting a ticket had
been an adventure. Of course, if you wanted, you
could get your reserved seat, with a coach ticket
and a tour of the stadium thrown in. But that
would have been no more exciting than watching
Chelsea play. My friends, their families, their
extended families and even their neighbours had
tried all week to dissuade me from going to the
Bombenero. The taxi driver insisted on waiting
outside of the stadium (his meter was off, he
was worried about my safety) and acted as a
look-out as I thrust a couple of pesos in a hole in
the wall and procured my golden ticket .
The game came during a wave of social
unrest. With mass strikes and hooligan incidents
the previous week resulting in the death of some
supporters, tension was high. We had walked
through airport-style ticket barriers and were
told to take off belts and shoelaces. Against the
opposite wall there was a parade of burly youths
being frisked by officers – not quite what I had
expected.
A plain clothes police officer armed with
that thug stare so beloved of certain persons in
uniform, was standing by a stationary, unmarked,
ArteBA
Buenos Aires is the centre of a burgeoning
visual art scene, making it a worthwhile
destination for anyone who has wandering eyes
as well as ears. For an introduction, first visit the
Costantini Collection at MALBA (Museo de Arte
Latinamericano de Buenos Aires, Av. Figueroa
Alcorta 3415), which gives the brief background
on developments during the last century. The
city’s many cultural centres are also well worth
a look, including Centro Cultural Recoleta (Junín
1930) which shows interesting new work by
Argentinian artists.
But the best way to take the pulse of the
local scene is to visit the commercial galleries.
58
police van. As we advanced with the crowd,
the officer came towards us and, touching his
holster, began pushing my friend into the van as
his girlfriend pleaded and I looked on in horror.
And then, with the best operatic turn, the
three of us were suddenly let off. Before we
knew it we were fifty feet up in the Gods at the
famous Bombenero stadium for the derby to
end all derbies, the superclassico between Boca
Jnrs and River Plate.
We all linked arms, the three of us and the
strangers on either side, and literally thousands
of people jumped in unison. Up and down to an
almighty roar, so hard that I felt a rush coming
on, such was the excitement, anticipation and
overwhelming joy, mixed with more than a
little fear. And the whole floor rocked, literally
moving underneath our feet. The safety rails
were few and far between and it was a sheer
drop down. But the volume of crowd noise,
the singing and chanting and the firecrackers
almost overrode all doubts and fear – and yes
there were cascades of ticker tape streaming
from the terraces. Such a picture of a carnival
of colour, noise and emotional exuberance, and
all the while a subtext of fear and violence that
threatened to mar the proceedings.
The game was quite good, River easily beat
a poor Boca team 3-0. And the rain bucketed
down as the Gods of La Boca mourned their
defeat. My friends and I joined in with the tens of
thousands through the streets of BA, caring little
for the score and singing merrily abusive songs
about the River Plate supporters’ mothers.
[Sanjiv Ahluwalia)
Established spaces include Ruth Benzacar
(Florida 1000) and Braga Menéndez (Humboldt
1574), where the quality of the work tends to
be assured. Other spots include Daniel Abate
(Pasaje Bollini 2170) and, for a pop-punk edge,
Appetite (Chacabuco 551). If you’re touching
down in BA at the end of May, no need to pace
around town: just visit ArteBA, the city’s annual
contemporary art fair (May 29 to June 2, La
Rural, Sarmiento 2704), a one-stop shop with
the continent’s key galleries on show in a space
twice the size of Wembley football pitch.
Sam Phillips
BEATS
Sanjiv’s picks some of his essential tango licks
so you don’t have to.
Astor Piazzolla – Libertango
From the most famous and celebrated tango
musician of all time, Libertango is a work
of genius. Piazzolla rides the Miles Davis
comparisons with some stunning playing and a
beautiful orchestra.
7 Tangos de Ayer y 7 Tangos de Hoy / Los 14
de Julio de Caro
Not quite sure who this is by, it is conducted by
Luis Stazo on Fermata records. Enchanting
strings over engaging bandoneon . Hard to find
but worth the effort. Excellent.
Orquestra del Tango de Buenos Aires
– Libertango Supreme album of orchestrated
tango works with a superb title track - one of my
favourite ‘battle weapons’.
Nestor Marconi – Bien de Arriba
If Piazzolla was the Miles Davis of tango then
Marconi is the Herbie (Hancock). I have many
of his albums and this is the best. The closest
tango gets to modal jazz – brilliant.
Fedirico Leopoldo – De’ Antologia
A great album and in Tango del Angel – with its
dramatic pauses, sweeping strings and melodic
bandoneon - one of my favourite ever tango
tracks
REST OF ARGENTINA
Pack your sleek Argentinian-leather suitcase, get out of BA’s
concrete jungle and into Argentina’s extraordinary landscape – the
ultimate lesson in geography. Your guide for today is Sam Phillips.
1. Perito Moreno
Glacier
This vast ice-field
in Patagonia is the
SPOTS most famous of
Argentina’s natural
Catch a vibe in Buenos Aires. From cafes to
wonders and it definitely deserves the hype. The
tango halls, welcome to the good life.
glacier’s appearance is outerworldly, an infinite
number of blues and whites spreading out into
Castelar Hotel, in
the distance. Compared to the country’s other
the historic, 1152
glaciers, it is also very accessible– visitors can
Avenida de Mayo
strap on crampons and get the rush of trekking
- The hotel has old
on the ice.
fashioned charm,
history (the writer
2. Lake District
Lorca resided here)) with waist-coated, super
Argentina’s Lake
friendly staff and a lobby with marble floors and
District is the
pillars and comes complete with an ‘old school
perfect destination
plumbing system’ – get ready for the gurgling
for those who like
noises. Despite the busy location the hotel is
the great outdoors.
remarkably quiet and with huge rooms and
Snowcapped volcanoes, verdant forests and
bathrooms. Around £50 for a double luxurious
– as you would expect – stunning freshwater
room plus free, fast wi-fi.
lakes stretching down from the Andes, allowing
hikers weeks of adventure. Bariloche is the most
Cafe Tortoni
popular base for visitors, but the hippy enclave
- (Avenida de Mayo
of little El Bolson is one of the more charming
829) resplendent
mid-nineteenth
century cafe steeped
alternatives.
3. Ushuaia
in history and an air of
At the toe of Argentina
tango (the back room has tango sessions). The
lies the southern-
place may be toursity but you would be doing an
most city in the
injustice to yourself by not spending a morning
world. A comparative
in the cafe reading La Nacion or The Buenos
stone’s throw from
Herald, over a cappucino and sticky croissant.
Antarctica, Ushuaia receives plenty of tourists
looking for a notch on their belts. But there’s so
Don Julio
much more to this busy port city than its ‘End of
– (Gurruchaga
the World’ slogan, not least the mesmerically-
2100) – located in
beautiful Tierra del Fuego national park nearby.
a quieter spot on a
cobblestoned street
4. Igazu Falls
corner in the trendy
These spectacular waterfalls plunge down amid
Palermo Viejo area, the restaurant serves
sub-tropical jungle at the border of Argentina,
fantastic steak, a very decent bottle of Malbec
Brazil and Paraguay. Igaz� is a true sensory
and has attentive, friendly staff – it can get
experience, spanning across a massive 2km
impossibly busy in the evening.
La Esquina Homero Manzi
and including fearsome cascades such as the
Garguanta del Diablo (The Devil’s Throat). “Poor
Niagra,” famously remarked Eleanor Roosevelt
– (Avenida San Juan 3601,
on a visit from the US.
Bodeo) I fear this may have
gone the way of many of BA’s
5. Puerto Madryn
tango institutions and charge
The real draw of this resort on the Atlantic Coast
sky high prices for coach
is Peninsula Valdes, an unparalleled aquatic
hoarding tourists. But one of
reserve. Sea-lions, seals and dolphins are on view
my favourite ever BA moments
year-round, but come September and October
was sneaking into this café/
(Argentinian spring-time) you’ll be seeing the
restaurant at the tail end of
Southern Right Whale emerge from the depths.
a wedding rehearsal and spying breathtaking
The continent’s largest penguin colony Punta
tango.
Tombo, chalking up to massive 800,000 birds, is
also just a day trip down the coast.
59
 SHOOK
TEK
E D I T O R : BENJI LEHMANN
1 2
1 be added to a subsequent iteration of their Melodyne
3 5
1 A D A C H I T U PPER-WA RE S YN TH S
Adachi Tomori is a performer, composer, sound
poet, installation artist, occasional theater
director. His creations exemplify the DIY ethic
BOUTIQUE that so many are adopting. One of the major
barriers to creating analogue synthedsizers
SYNTH SPECIAL for the hobbyist has traditionally been the cost
of casing. Adachi Tomori has overcome this
by using Tupperware PVC boxes into which
A look at the little-known world of analogue, he places oscillators, filters and amplifiers
modular and other cottage-industry synth as appropriate. He has made Theremins,
manufacturers, featuring LL Electronics percussion sources, and even a fully-blown
(Rozzbox), MFB Synth, Schneides Buro and analogue substractive synth with LFO, oscillator,
Custom Synth UK (synth mods). filter and amplifier sections.
www.adachitomomi.com
YouMedia was the talk of the town in 2006.
2 F L O W E R E LECT RO N ICS
Sites like YouTube featuring homegrown
footage garnered huge coverage and
Flower-Electronics are a Massachusets USA-
generated a new interest in DIY content. Now
based firm who manufacture boutique modular
this trend for DIY innovation has spread into
synth units. Their synths are fully analogue, and
hardware. We take a look at some of the
do not offer midi control. Instead they substitute
individuals making musical instruments out of input-tracking oscillators and full rotary control
their basements in the tradition of the early of oscillator pitch. Not a choice for quantized
artisans, and the companies that have grown electro basslines then, but more appropriate
out of such humble origins in recent years.
ARNE W E I NB E R G
( A W R EC ORD IN GS)
Arne Wienberg is a producer and DJ at the
forefront of the new deep techno sound. He has
released on seminal label Styrax, and on his
own eponymous imprint AW-Recordings. Here
he discusses how synthesizers have played a
part in his music, and how they will change in
the future.
“It was in 1984 when I bought my first record
ever, Depeche Mode’s ‘Some Great Reward’.
That was the first time I realised I was listening
60
for adding side-bands and other sweeping
modulations to an audio source, which might be
anything from synth to a full track.
www.flowerelectronics.com
3 LL E LE CT RO NIC S
LL electronics’ first market synth is the Rozzbox,
a polyphonic desktop unit. The synth offers five
digitally controlled oscillators, such as those
found in the Roland JX3P and the MFB Synth
Lite II. The rest of the architecture, though, is fully
analogue. In addition they add a distortion which
offers analogue, digital and real tube (!) gain
stages, and a tube filter. The oscillators can be
forced into aliasing, which should give you some
idea of the potential this unit has for unique and
violent pad sounds.
www.rozzbox.de
4 MF B
Manfred Fricke manufactures a range of highly
affordable analogue and digital synth modules.
The MFB Synth 2 and Synth Lite 2 offer a full
subtractive architecture with analogue filters
to a synthesizer. To me it sounded like something
completely new and it was just so unpredictable
in comparison to a guitar. My first synth was a
Korg Poly 800. I loved it, even though it’s probably
not the best synth. Shortly after that I bought a
Roland Juno 106 which is just amazing.”
Although the available types of synthesis
have not fundamentally changed in the past 25
years – subtractive, FM, wavetable, additive and
physical modelling are still the basis of most
instruments – the interfaces have gone through
numerous revisions. “After a period of knobless
digital synths like the DX7 the designers luckily
4
and amplifiers, but full midi and digital control
over presets. In addition he offers a Drum
Machine (the MFB-503) with analogue kick
and snare, and an integrated step-sequencer,
amongst other more functional units. MFB
products are light, and not the choice of
those looking for maple-finishes and heavy
metal rotary knobs, but well-built and reliable.
www.mfberlin.de
5 CUST OM SYNT H UK
Custom Synth are a one-man operation
based in the UK who will provide a DIY finish
to your vintage gear, and make any necessary
repairs in the process. Popular mods include
adding wooden end-panels in your choice of
material, replacing cases with nicely-finished
wood or PVC, and even integrating vintage
control units into their sister-synthesizers.
See their white SH-101 and the integrated
JX3P + controller for examples of just how
much difference they can make.
www.customsynth.co.uk
got back to lots of knobs and on hand
user interfaces of the synths. I think it’s
very important to have a knob dedicated
to every parameter if possible”. Clearly
only the most skilled instrumentalists
have come close to exploiting the
full potential of synthesizers. “Herbie
Hancock comes to mind as the most
interesting synth player even today.
He uses synths in a very musical way.
He combines sound architecture with
programming which is the real art. If I
could only have some sort of interface
between the machine and my brain, that
NEWS
T RA D E S H OW SP E C I AL
In the past few months the audio industry has shown
at the two most important tradeshows of the year,
NAMM and Musikmesse.We bring you the pick of the
news.
DSI have launched their analogue poly-synth as a
rackmount edition. The Prophet 08 rackmount features
the same voice architecture as the keyboard Prophet.
Although the keyboard has gone, the module still boasts a
sequencer and all the rotary controls of the original.
CELEMONY have announced a huge breakthrough
in sampling technology. Direct Note Access, which will
software, detects the pitch and duration of notes
within polyphonic material. The resulting information is
presented as multiple single editable notes, which can be
moved in terms of pitch and place in time. Expect to hear
some interesting bootlegs when this is released.
KORG have announced a fully-endorsed virtual analogue
synth environment for the Nintendo DS. The synth is
called the DS-10, and includes a sequencer, virtual drum
machine, and patchable virtual analogue synthesizer. No
doubt full use will be made of the DS’ stylus. Watch this
space for a number of developments of this nature soon
to be announced.
FIVE WAYS TO KEEP YOUR
GEAR NICE
1 Back it up. There are now numerous applications which
will allow you to keep regular backups of your system.
Some are bundled with your OS, some are shareware.
SuperDuper for Mac and x for PC both work well.
www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper
2 Insure it. For a manageable annual amount there
are a number of insurance firms who will cover your
gear both in and out of the studio. You’ll need to provide
serial numbers for your equipment but not much else.
Musicguard offer a number of options tailored for
producers, djs and instrumentalists respectively.
www.musicguard.co.uk
3 Dust it. The most common cause of problems
in analogue equipment is dust. Studio Spares sell
compressed air which can be used to blast the dust and
grime out of mixing desks and the like.
would be interesting. I think there will be
some sort of new ways regarding the
www.studiospares.com
mixture between a musical instrument
4 Maintain it. Old and vintage equipment can depreciate
and some sort of toy, like the Yamaha
quickly if it isn’t looked after. Any equipment which uses
Tenori-On for example. Also, I think the
tape, such as Tape Delays and Reel to Reel recorders,
synths and musical gear will become
needs regular care. Studio Spares provide tape heads and
much smaller, like a mobile phone or the
other accessories.
iPod, which scares me a little bit.”
www.studiospares.com
Various Artists – Viewpoints Chapter
5 Test it. Are your old synths in tune? Do their knobs
One / AW-010LP & AW-010CD
crackle? Are the power supplies working properly. Ground
(Double-LP & CD) is out on AW
loop hum and a number of other problems can be sorted
Recordings in April.
out very easily if you can identify their source. A multi-
meter can be a useful tool for testing vintage power
supplies. 61
62

63
REVIEWS
Quiet Village “Silent Movie” (Studio !K7)
This has to be one of the most anticipated
albums of late, with rumours about its release
doing the rounds for more than a year. Art
sampling and genius collage of the unlikeliest
sources are some of the ingredients that
make listening to QV such a fresh, unique and
rewarding experience.
The earliest QV records (most included on
the album) came out on the culter-than-thou
Whatever We Want label (home to DJ Harvey’s
Map of Africa project) and a bunch of fantastic
remixes of the likes of Cosmo Vitelli, Toby
Tobias or Francois K cemented their sound and
reputation.
The QV style can’t be described using the
usual headings. This is “sophisticated adult
exotica” as described by Joel Martin, one half
of the team. Good music is everywhere and the
duo’s influences defy notions of genre. The heads
out there will surely play the spot-that-sample
game, but this might turn out to be an endless
quest. Alan Parsons (on the aptly named ‘Pillow
Talk’) and Andreas Vollenweider (on the majestic
‘Utopia’) are in there, as well as some proper
obscure library/soundtrack sources, always
used in a very creative and unexpected way.
Most importantly, what makes this album
a real treat is its coherence, the flow that
grabs you while listening to it from beginning
to end. The music floats like a cinematic mind
trip, hypnotic (great use of reverb and echo),
decidedly balearic (waves, seabirds, whistles,
guitar), laid back yet classy, constantly evolving
and surprising. Mind you, given the right context,
you can also dance to it – ‘Can’t Be Beat’ and
‘Too High To Move’ (with its Georgio Moroder
and Captain & Tenille samples) both sound huge
in a club – fact!
(Cedric Woo)
Cedric & John from the Voices Collective
interviewed Joel Martin, the fairer half of Quiet
Village.
John: Who or what beyond yourselves has
been pivotal in the development of Quiet
Village? Dennis Hopper and Lewis Collins?
Joel: Funnily enough I just happened across a
Lewis Collins ‘Bovril’ commercial on YouTube.
Personally I have to thank my parents for
exposing me to such a broad spectrum of
sounds whilst growing up. My Dad, being a
die hard movie fan, instilled in me a love of
soundtracks from a very early age, and I have
fond memories of hearing the ‘Harry Lime’
theme from The Third Man, John Barry’s
emotive score to On Her Majesty’s Secret
Service and Morricone’s ‘For a Few Dollars
More’ on 8-track tape as a passenger in my
parents Citroen. The first ‘Voyage’ LP was
another record played to death, as was Mick
Ronson’s Play Don’t Worry, so there was a
pretty eclectic mix in our household.
Cedric: Your sound is already very distinctive.
How would you describe it and do you have any
conscious aim of what you want to achieve?
Joel: Our only conscious aim is to try and
approach the music from an alternative angle.
I’d like to think we had our own sound, but we
want it to keep evolving. I suppose it’s Balearic
in the traditional sense of the word i.e. spiritual,
unusual, warm, but we like to describe it as
sophisticated adult exotica. We definitely
incorporate the dub aesthetic as it can really
take you on a trip. That’s why things like the
Basic Channel stuff are so effective – so simple
yet so much going on in the subconscious
background.
Cedric: World-of-mouth has grown
exponentially in the last couple years, with
each and every one of your releases reaching
‘cult’ status. How do you explain this ‘cool’
factor?
Joel: With the initial release I’m positive that it
was purely down to the fact that DJ Harvey was
on the same label with his Map of Africa project
and everything he touches turns to gold. When
the subsequent singles sold out even faster, it
was evident that the underground music buyers
rated our music on its own merit and that was
very flattering. I think we had the biggest selling
12” of 2006 in ‘Sounds of the Universe’ so that
was a pleasant surprise.
Cedric: I know you as one of the one-man music
institutions; if I wanna find out about a record
played at a party, I’ll ask you and you’ll tell me.
Give us some of the most amazing (digging)
spots you’ve stumbled upon?
Joel: I’m lucky to have been able to travel a lot
to fuel my addiction for the black plastic and
subsequently I’ve encountered many odd people
and places like every seasoned ‘digger’ has.
There was a huge secret Swiss warehouse that
I got the chance to delve through, albeit under
duress from the owner, and came across some
killer rarities like the mythical Unidisc 12” of
Babe Ruth’s ‘The Mexican’. Elsewhere I’ve got
my fingers dirty in the flea markets of Peru and
Mexico, a nuclear bunker in Canada that was full
of vintage adult magazines, and the basement of
a West Indian Beauty store in the USA to name
but a few.
John: Aside from exposing older music via Owl
Service Records and other outlets, what role
does digging have for your studio work as
Quiet Village?
Joel: The never-ending quest for vinyl is essential
to our Quiet Village productions. It’s not easy
trying to find suitable samples that have the
right sound for our purpose and are hopefully
unknown to the spotters, so as you would
imagine we literally flip through hundreds of
records on a regular basis searching for that
elusive jam.
Cedric: How do you work together? Who does
what?
Joel: Matt is really fast on the PC and a dab hand
at programming so he generally takes care of
the technicalities, while I root out samples and
effects. We get the parts sounding as hot as
possible then begin arranging the track, which
usually takes the longest. Both of us ‘wing it’ on
the vertical keyboard when a bass-line or chord
is required and we’ve also started incorporating
more live manipulation of certain sounds which
we alternate between the two of us. I’m happy to
say that it’s pretty stress free and a real positive
collaboration that I hope will continue for a long
time.
For the full interview, www.voicescollective.com.
REVIEWS 65
REVIEWS
Quentin Harris ‘No Politics’ (Strictly Rhythm) ‘Mix The Vibe’ (King Street)
Raised in Detroit, he name checks Slum
Village and Cybotron in the same breath even
though his productions have brought him
into the fold at Shelter, NYC’s early-morning
sanctuary. Like Blaze, his vocally-led tracks
lend themselves perfectly to the album format,
and with his 2005 debut No Politcs, a Japan-
only release, about to be reissued on Strictly
Rhythm, as well as a mix CD out on King
Street, it’s high time everyone showed Quentin
Harris some love.
Tune into any number of London’s pirate radio
stations – whether it’s House FM, Deja Vu or
Unknown – and you can bet you’ll hear a Quentin
Harris track within the first hour. His remix of
Donnie’s ‘Cloud 9’ first alterted people to his
talent, ‘Let’s Be Young’ stuck a chord with the
more electronic-minded audiences, ‘Traveling’
(feat. Cordell McLary) became one of the
keystones of the funky house movement, and
his remix of Leela James’ ‘My Joy’ is still getting
caned some three years after it first surfaced.
What sets Quentin’s records apart from
those of so many house producers is his
ear for a hit, and even if his combination of
analogue synths with Hammond organ and live
percussion takes its cue from the first wave of
Detroit techno producers, Quentin’s repertoire
of remixes of Alicia Keys, Donnie, Jill Scott or
Jagged Edge and well as his work with vocalists
like Cordell McLary, Monique Bingham and Byron
Stingly means that the songwriting is always at
the forefront on his records.
“In my house, growing up was a very musical
household and I heard a lot of things. Even as a
kid, I could listen to albums and pick the singles.
So, for example, when I got the Justin Timberlake
album, I knew all of singles before they were
singles. I was like – this is going to be the first
66
single, this is gonna be the second single,”
explains Quentin, speaking down the line from
NYC on his return from the Miami Winter Music
Conference.
Major labels have caught onto Quentin’s
magic touch and he’s been commissioned to do
remixes for Nelly Furtado and Timbaland, but
you can rest assured that Quentin also likes to
keep things underground as well. His album No
Politics, for instance, surfaced on the Japanese
label Pony Canyon after Quentin fell out with his
record label. “I told them, ‘You want me to make
an album, but you wanna tell me how to make it,
so which one is it?’” Hence the title No Politics.
The 2005 release of that album passed
under many people’s radar, but with a new
version about to be release via Strictly Rhythm,
albeit in a significantly altered form, Quentin’s
work should hopefully reach the audience it
deserves. Quentin’s apprehensive about the
release, however, and especially about the
label’s decision to include tracks which were
never there on the original album. On ‘My Joy’,
for example, they’ve re-recorded the vocals
with Margaret Grace instead of Leela James,
presumably because they couldn’t license the
original.
“I wish was that the album could have stayed
the way it way, because when you start removing
things from the album and putting things in that
were never there – it breaks up the story that
I was trying to convey. I guess they know better
than I do,” says Quentin, unconvincingly. Pace
Erykah Badu, he adds, “But I’m an artist and I’m
sensitive about my shit.”
For those of you who already know all about
No Politics, there’s also Quentin’s outing on the
excellent Mix the Vibe series for King Street
where he’s decided to show off his nastier side.
“I just wanted to do something dark. Everyone’s
Philip Cohran and The Artistic Heritage
Ensemble “The Malcolm X Memorial (A
Tribute in Music)” (Mississippi Records)
“Today we have music in abundance that lacks purpose,” proclaims
Kelan Philip Cohran. “We lost respect and the power of our ancestors
in these spiritual sciences… It is time for enlightened artists to step
forward to share their light.” Alongside Sun Ra in Chicago between
1956-61 this musician, composer, community activist, instrument
designer and holistic health advocate created vibrations to submit to
his ancestors. Working with Ra on outsider jazz classics like ‘We Travel
The Spaceways’ and ‘Angels and Demons At Play’, he learned the love
and dedication needed to reach the higher ground, as well as “music’s
effect on the body, and the ancient tuning systems and how ancient
people were aware of these”. When Ra took his Arkestra to Montreal
and beyond in 1961, Cohran stayed In Chicago to perfect his art and
what he would mystically call ‘Sphereology’, or the harmonies of all CRAC Knuckles “The Piece Talks” (Tres Records)
matter and music’s power in creating cosmic order. You see, it was
more than just space music he had learned with Sun Ra. Bubbling out of the Los Angeles hip hop scene, CRAC Knuckles is coming
During this period Cohran formed the AACM alongside Richard out swinging. Like their name suggests, the duo comprising Los Angeles
Muhal Abrams after playing with his Experimental Big Band. Out of this native Blu and Detroit transplant Ta’Raach, is a tad aggressive, but their
creative environment burst forth the Artistic Heritage Ensemble and no-nonsense approach makes for damn good music. Their debut LP, The
soon after Cohran left the AACM to continue his studies and create Piece Talks, is arriving via Tres Records and with it the duo plans to let it be
always too happy. I always feel like I’m an after-
his free yet trance-like music. And this is where most of us would known: they’re here to collect respect and a check.
hours DJ – I like it when you can play pretty
have picked up on Cohran’s spiritually and politically charged music, Ta’Raach and Blu first linked up a few years ago in Los Angeles
much whatever you want, when you’re not
following the re-issue of On The Beach, the session that included the through mutual friend Aloe Blacc. After discovering they were family once-
confined to a certain sound or genre. People are
mighty ‘Unity’. This track was recorded at the Affro Arts Theatre, the removed, the pair decided to get together to work on music that had a
open at that moment.”
educational and performance space established in by Cohran in 1967. different feel than their solo material, and ended up with a mini-album.
“I want people who listen to it to think they’re
One year on and Cohran returned to the Theatre to pay this tribute to “Actually, in one week we did the entire first version of the CRAC record.
in a clubbing environment. That’s why I always
his friend and guide Malcolm X. The album was based on Malcolm’s Afterwards, we got evicted, I went to Europe and came back, we became
do mix CDs live. I don’t use Pro Tools. Labels
four stages of development and the transition from his hustling days great friends after which we began to be lunatics together,” says Blu. In
say, ‘Don’t you wanna clean up the vocals?’ and
as ‘Detroit Red’ (“many black Americans are still in the stage of dope, the two years since the recording of that first draft the pair has released
I reply ‘No. In a live setting that happens, nobody
alcohol, self abuse” state the sleevenotes) to his pilgrimage to Mecca albums, Ta’Raach’s The Fevers LP and Blu and Exile’s Below The Heavens,
mixes perfect.’ Besides, it’s more about what
as portrayed on ‘El Hajj Malik El Shabazz’ (“the pinnacle of Malcolm’s and they have just now finished what is the official debut CRAC record.
you play than about striving for the perfect mix.”
development”). From the hypnotic horns (check Cohran’s searching With Ta’Raach handling the entirety of the production on the album, the
Listen to any Ron Hardy mix and you’ll know what
cornet) and percussive pulse of the title track as the group chant down record is very much a rollercoaster ride. In a few tracks the sound can
he’s talking about.
slavery, to the Arabic scales of the closing track, it’s a fiery yet at times range from the lighthearted and bouncy ‘Buy Me Lunch’ to the aggressive
But does that same philosophy extend to his
meditative recording that documents both the passion and anger of ‘Pop Dem Boys’ to what’s quite possibly the best voicemail rap recorded in
production too? “There’s always imperfections
the leader that led him to demand justice for his people, and define his recent memory with ‘Hello!?’. Blu expands on the idea that CRAC music is
in my productions,” he says. “Most people don’t
own search for inner peace. (Andy Thomas) definitely high-voltage when he says, “The music is much more focused on
know that they’re there, but they’re there. It’s
the energy rather than getting a particular message across. I would say we
because I’m always so in the moment. Because
both focus more on our lyricism more separately. When we’re together we
I’ve always played in bands, I like the nuances you
focus more on the chemistry and having fun and creating great songs that
get when you’re in the moment. For example, I
amuse each other.”
don’t like to sequence things – I guess that’s just
“We wanted to bring a record that sounded like a Public Enemy or X
the musician in me.” So how about the Quentin
Clan or The Firm or Digital Underground. We got accused of being a little
Harris Rock Band – surely the logical next step?
abrasive in our approach. We decided to exploit that whole idea of being
“You know what? That’s what I’ve been feeling
assholes and being aggressive for what we want. That’s how we came
recently. On the dancefloor, people are scared of
up with CRAC, and then we flipped it into an acronym,” explains Ta’Raach.
guitars, but there’s a whole period of music that
Indeed the concept behind the duo’s acronym, Collect Respect Anna Check,
hasn’t been explored – Rolling Stones ‘Missing
is a pretty good way to explain what they’re about. The idea is to get the
You’ and Pink Floyd and ‘Walk The Valley’ by The
respect and attention of heads everywhere, all the while making sure that
Scat Brothers… I mean they’ve beaten the disco
their fair share of monetary compensation is collected. Still, more than
thing to death.”
the literal meaning of the acronym, CRAC represents doing things on your
Quentin’s hoping with his next material to
own terms without compromising content for recognition. In an age of an
stir things up again. He’s already got the name
outdated, decaying music industry and an uncertain future, it’s refreshing
for the next album – Politically Correct. “The
to find artists sticking to their guns, especially ones as entertaining and
concept behind everything I do has a message,”
original as CRAC. For all my analysis, Blu probably explains the group’s
he says. “Carl Jackson who took the photos of
mindset best in classic CRAC fashion, “They try to give us that fat dick
me for the King Street CD said ‘Quentin, there’s
everywhere we go and we say fuck that. That’s basically how we approach
always a message with you.’ I wouldn’t want it
the music.” (Andres Reyes)
any other way.” (Jez Smadja)
REVIEWS 67
REVIEWS
Geiom “Island Noise”
(Berkane Sol)
While Nottingham-based producer
Geiom’s dubstep 12”s are aimed
at the dancefloor, Island Noise
offers a calmer radiophonic ride,
and like Burial he eases through
the transition from singles to an
album. Geiom excels with his ability
to splice futuristic glitches with
rumbling sub bass, the whipping
drums and synthesised flute in
‘Farski’ offer an emotive edge whilst
he doesn’t shy away from being
sinister in ‘Safety Patterns’. The final
song, ‘Pheli Nazir’ is the only vocal
track and a majestic fusion of styles,
with Pakistani singer Khalid offering
a glimpse of how Nusrat Fateh Ali
Khan or Sain Zahoor could sound
if performing live at FWD>>. But
my highlight is ‘Hydropine’, where
the melody is established at various
low frequencies, before a rapid
response of the same riff arrives at
a higher pitch. With the exception of
Burial, Appleblim or Martyn, Geiom
paints with a palette of sounds
that ventures way beyond most
dubstep producers. A distinctive,
culturally-diverse richness can
perhaps be traced to the breadth of
his influences, as acknowledged in
an interview on the Blackdown blog
in which he references Raymond
Scott, Sun-Ra, Bjork, Joy Division
and Fela Kuti. The quality of differing
sonics and melodies prevents
tracks from losing their individuality,
and the eerie soundscapes are
where he excels with an intricate
choice and placement of scattered
beats. (Ben Verghese)
Portishead “Third” (Island)
Don’t call it a comeback – even
in their absence Portishead have
still been dominating the musical
psyche of a trip-hop nation they
helped design. Third, their latest
offering, doesn’t come equipped
with major turns and twists. Rather,
68
it’s a welcome return to their
complex and mysterious form. The
enchanting vocals of Beth Gibbons
once again beam brightly, while
the atmospheric sounds remain.
However, Third does though rely
more on synths, piano and guitars,
rather than the hip-hop samples
and chops of before. Listen up
and out for ‘We Carry On’ which
is a weird but joyful mescla of
new romanticism meets techno
and ‘Magic Doors’, produced by way
of an old ‘one, two’ method, taking
a funk beat, pitching it right down
to half-speed, before introducing
the vocalist. Third is a welcome
member to the Portishead family
though it is far from perfect, but as
with Dummy and Portishead a lot of
patience and tolerance is required
with this one. (Ade Bankole)
Triple Darkness “Anathema”
(Higher Heights)
Delivering one of the best hip hop
albums of 2008 so far, London’s
Triple Darkness definitely appear to
be on a mission to prove that the
art of true lyricism is alive and well
amongst the next generation of
MCs to rep for the UK rap scene. A
captivating combination of grimy
street imagery, social commentary
and intriguing historical references,
the unapologetically hardcore
Anathema finds Cyrus Malachi,
Nasheron and Melanin9 filtering
their experiences of inner-city
British life through a shared
intelligence and wisdom that
reaches far beyond the trio’s
relatively youthful years. The
haunting ‘Machinations’ strikes
a powerful balance between the
harsh realities of urban strife and
the crew’s quest for knowledge
and spiritual salvation, whilst
‘Snakes & Ladders’ features an
incredible performance from Cyrus,
with the gruff microphone fiend
touching on subjects as diverse
as slavery, Egyptology and gun
crime. Elsewhere, the pounding
‘Pyramid Wars’ and ‘Thousand Cut
Torture’ each display the group’s
superior battle rap abilities, taunting
the competition with seemingly
effortless examples of vivid and
intricate wordplay. Backed by the
atmospheric production of Chemo
and Beat Butcha (all heavy drums,
sweeping strings and nimble
piano loops), Triple Darkness have
succeeded in creating a poignant
soundtrack for today’s troubled
times. The revolution starts
here. (Ryan Proctor)
Jackson Conti “Sunjinho”
(Kindred Spirits)
Jakson Conti is a hook up between
Madlib the bad kid and Mamao,
the drummer from Azymuth.
Their short collaboration in Rio
for Brasilintime has evolved into
this LP – consisting of classic
Brazilian covers from the ‘60s and
‘70s and some tasty new joints.
Madlib’s characteristic, slightly
spaced, production is there as
always – instantly identifiable and
utterly compelling. But the drums
on this LP are the focal point: most
tracks start with tuff drum licks,
and Madlib just dances round them
doing what he does best. ‘Brasilian
Sugar’ is a an up-tempo Saturday
night type of track with some heavy
breakbeats that drives you along to
a far better place in your head. It
gets gritty on ‘Xibaba’ (originally an
Airto Moreira track, also coverd by
Donald Byrd) with the feeling of a
back street jam session – the vibes
on this track they are ridiculous.
Throughout the whole record, the
respect Madlib feels for Mamao
is obvious and it makes you want
to hit the stalls and pick up some
Azymuth. With too many good
tracks on this wax to mention
them all, if you are checkin’ this at
your local record shop but you’re
on your lunchbreak and in a hurry,
just dive into ‘Seguera esta Onda’.
Then hand over your money. (Barry
Smyth)
Muhsinah “Pre.lude”(Circulations)
Touted as the ‘next big thing’
newcomer Muhsinah bangs out
a soulful and self-produced debut,
inspired by the sounds of Alice
Coltrane, Georgia Ann Muldrow
and Dilla. Backward psychedelic
loops clash with hand-clapped
off-beat rhythms, multi-layered
vocals and straight up soul music.
Muhsinah might not have the quality
of a traditional soul singer like an
Angie Stone but the album proves
to be brilliantly addictive and off-
kilter, earning nuff brownie points
for pushing the boundaries of a
saccharine and currently stagnant
sound. Tracks like ‘Wonder’,
‘Gogh’ and ‘Only and Always’ will
get constant rotations on your
chosen music player. Closing with a
poignant quotation from Dr Martin
Luther King, Muhsinah’s Pre.lude,
which happens to be the Japanese
release of the album, is more than
a valuable addition to the wonky
beat tribe. If this is only the Pre.
lude, surely bigger things are on the
horizon? (Michael Krasser)
James T. Cotton “Like No One”
(Spectral)
James T. Cotton is one of the
aliases adopted by Ann Arbor born
producer Tadd Mullinix, better
known for his off-kilter hip hop
productions as Dabrye. As James
T. Cotton, it’s more on a house and
techno journey with four-to-the-floor
material that takes an old-school
approach of drum machines,
synthesizers and samplers. His
sound has evolved from the jacking
tech house of 2001’s ‘Mind
Your Manners’ EP (Spectral) to a
slower and more grinding groove
on this LP. Although he is still
very much Detroit-influenced, his
sound borrows much more from
Underground Resistance than it
does from Transmat, the flavor
adopted by more recent media
favourites Convextion and Deep
Chord. On ‘Like No One’, head
straight for his collaboration with
Melvin Oliphant as Saturn V entitled
‘Come Into My Life’ for Chicago-style
vocal chops and guaranteed floor
reaction. Meanwhile numbers like
‘The Second Night Cycle’ featuring
Ellis Monk show a deeper and more
colorful side to his production. Fans
of the trademark Spectral sound
(Ann Arbor MI’s best known export)
won’t be disappointed.
(Benjamin Lehmann)
Kerri Chandler “Computer Games”
(Deeply Rooted)
Aside from making classic New
Jersey deep house music (a job
he still does with such freshness
and originality more than two
decades after his first anthems
pretty much defined the genre),
guess what? Ever since he was a
kid Kerri Chandler has been in love
with computers and programming
games too. Which logicaly leads us
to his new album project, Computer
Games on DJ Deep’s Deeply
Rooted House records. You can
rest assured that this record has
nothing to do with those pseudo-
arty, retro video game sounds
that you may hear in electronic
music on fashion blogs or ringtone
adverts. Kerri here really succeeds
in fusing original video game sounds
and real underground early house
tracks, genuinely creating a subtle
alchemy between the two elements.
He’s gone for an economy of his
style on his productions which find
an echo in the simple track titles
– such as ‘Pong’ and ‘Kong’ – that
pay hommage to some truly iconic
cultural landmarks (and for the
total nerds out there, you even get
a gear list written on the sleeve
– including the Commodore pet
2001, Sega Dreamcast, Challenger
2P, Odyssey, X-box, Atari just to
name a few). Enjoy getting deeper
inside the heart and mind of the
machine. Insert coin… (J’M Irie)
V/A “Funky Nassau: The Compass
Point Story, 1980-86” (Strut)
“I wanted a new progressive
sounding band...a Jamaican rhythm
section with an edgy mid-range
and a brilliant synth player,” recalls
Island Record’s Chris Blackwell in
the sleevenotes to this collection
from these legendary studios in the
Bahamas where everyone from the
Rolling Stones to Marianne Faithful
to AC/DC recorded. Blackwell got
what he wanted when he recruited
as the house band Sly and Robbie
fresh from their tour with Peter
Tosh, and keyboardist Wally
Badarou who had just worked on
M’s ‘Pop Muzik’. But the dubdisco
that became the Compass Point
––sound and peaked on albums
such as Grace Jones’ ‘Warm
Leatherette’ and Talking Heads’
‘Remain In Light’, owed as much to
the studio/engineer pairing of Alex
Sadkin and Steven Stanley as it did
to the band. Compass Point’s sound
also benefitted from the connection
to the No Wave scene, sealed by its
association with Ze Records who
came through with albums from
the likes of Lizzy Mercier Descloux
and Cristina whose ‘You Rented a
Space’ is one of the more leftfield
cuts here. With Ian Dury’s Garage
classic ‘Spasticus Autisticus’
nestling seedily next to FK’s hens
teeth remix of ‘Dance Sucker’ from
Scottish post punkers Set The Tone,
this is great both as an introduction
and for those wanting to dig a little
deeper into the Compass Point
archives. (Andy Thomas)
Umalali “The Garifuna Women’s
project” (Stonetree Records)
With the tragic passing of musician
and leader of the Garifuna Collective
Andy Palacio, this collection of
songs recorded by Garifuna women
in his home town of Hopkins, acts
as something of a eulogy to the
man who did so much to promote
and protect his people’s music
and culture. While it was Andy who
received most attention during last
year’s media flirtation with this little
known music out of the Caribbean
Coast of Central America, it was
the depth of the folkloric traditions
that made the story so interesting.
And as label owner Ivan Duran
explains in the notes it is the
women who are the caretakers of
the Garifuna traditions while the
men go off to sea or increasingly to
work abroad. So in 2002, following
years of research, Duran set off
to bring together some of those
voices until then only heard around
the homes and villages or at the
Garifuna ceremonies. Travelling the
region he found incredible singers
like 54-year-old Guatemalan mother
of four Sofia Blanco whose raw
soulful voice opens this wonderful
collection, and the Honduran
Marcela ‘Chela’ Torres one of
the singers who will hopefully be
bringing her deep bluesy vocals
to London later in the year as a
tribute to Andy Palacio. With subtle
contemporary production and
ambience from Ivan Duran helping
this music to translate onto CD, this
is another example of the power
and the glory of this little known
music. (Andy Thomas)
Dorothy Ashby “The Rubaiyat Of
Dorothy Ashby” (Dusty Groove)
Long before she became a member
REVIEWS
of the LA session mafia playing
on key ’70s albums by the likes of
Stevie Wonder, Earth, Wind & Fire,
and even Barry Manilow, harpist
Dorothy Ashby was making waves in
jazz circles with a series of albums
recorded under her own name for
Savoy, Prestige, Argo and Atlantic.
This particular title - a concept
album which comes to CD for the
first time - was recorded in 1970
for Chess Records’ subsidiary
imprint, Cadet. Along with the
collectable ‘Afro Harping’ LP it’s
one of Ashby’s most sought-after
albums and based on the writings of
the 12th century Persian poet and
philosopher, Omar Khayyam. The
title and source of inspiration might
seem esoteric but Ashby’s music
here is eminently accessible – an
attractive synthesis of jazz, soul,
funk, and oriental music featuring
vibes player, Stu Katz, and inventive
arrangements and production from
Richard Evans. As well as playing
lush arpeggios and cascading
glissandi on her electric harp,
Ashby provides soulful vocals and
tries her hand – very successfully
– at the koto, a Japanese stringed
instrument. Highlights include Wine,
with its shimmering vibes/harp
interplay, and an addictive slice of
lysergic jazz-funk called, The Moving
Finger. Transcendent grooves
galore. (Charles Waring)
Flying Lotus “Los Angeles” (Warp)
Flying Lotus continues to refine all
things deliriously low-end and tribal
on this ode to his hometown of
Los Angeles. Borrowing influences
from all corners, Los Angeles flirts
effectively with early electronic
music, Transformers samples, the
advent-space jazz of Sun Ra on
‘Orbit 405’, the rhythms of south
east asia and the middle east on
‘Camel’ and ‘Melt’, the heavy Detroit
Tech sounding ‘Parisian Goldfish’,
69
REVIEWS
‘GNG BNG’ which bounces along like
some futuristic Hare Krishna music
before morphing into a distorted
synth and break freakout while
‘Auntie’s Harp’ pays homage to the
beautiful music of Alice Coltrane,
all with a tasteful amount of hissing
tape delays and record static.
Instantly gratifying, Los Angeles is
the perfect blend of abstract beat
science and big booty bounce.
(Michael Krasser)
Lizz Wright “The Orchard” (Verve
Forecast)
Although she was originally
presented as a jazz chanteuse by
her record company on 2003’s
promising debut, Salt, it became
clearly apparent two years later
on her sophomore set ‘Dreaming
Wide Awake’ that Georgia singer,
Lizz Wright, was moving into
the same kind of nebulous and
indefinable musical territory
inhabited by Cassandra Wilson.
Like Wilson, Wright seemingly
had no aspirations to emulate
jazz divas Ella and Billie – instead,
she took an unexpected left turn
and married jazz with elements
from soul, folk, gospel, blues and
country to create a style that
defied genres. Here, on her third
and most impressive opus to date,
Wright follows a similar route to
her previous album but goes one
step further, omitting jazz from the
equation altogether. Significantly,
she also stakes her claim as a
singer-songwriter by co-authoring
eight of the album’s twelve
tunes. Craig Street’s organic and
predominantly acoustic production
style suits Wright’s gorgeous alto
voice to a ‘T’. The killer cut is a
gentle, folk-infused original called
‘Speak Your Heart’ in which the
beauty of the melody is brought
out by Wright’s achingly plaintive,
melancholy voice. Alongside a
clutch of captivating originals, there
are some memorable covers,
70
including an inspired gospel-hued
reworking of Led Zeppelin’s ‘Thank
You.’ Sublime stuff – but it certainly
ain’t jazz. (Charles Waring)
Toumani Diabate “Mande
Variations” (World Circuit)
Where others are hearing everyone
from Miles Davis to Toumani’s
great mentor Ali Farka Toure in this
return to the great kora players
acoustic roots, there is something
about the space and meditative
flow here that brings to my mind
both Sun Ra and Alice Coltrane. It
was only after reading the sleeve
notes that I discovered that for
this album this kora innovator
had come up with a new way of
tuning his kora that he refers to as
his Egyptian method. On his solo
return following his outing with the
Symmetric Orchestra, Toumani sits
alone with his kora, and weaves one
of his most beautiful and evocative
tracks yet. Full of lyrical beauty and
stretched out over 10 minutes
‘Si Naani’ is simply stunning in
terms of musicianship (with those
trademark intertwining bass
lines and melody in full force) and
justifies Lucy Duran’s views that
Toumani is once again breaking
new ground for the kora. This
is clear in the way he plays with
conventions without losing sight of
the ancestral traditions; creating
a piece of Malian beauty out of
UB40’s Kingston Town melody on
‘Elyne Road’ or improvising with
both flamenco and Mauritanian
music on ‘El Nabiyouna’. Another
essential World Circuit trip to Mali.
(Andy Thomas)
V/A “Black Stars – Ghana’s
Hiplife Generation” (Out Here
Records)
.It’s 1957, Ghana the first African
nation to gain independence
is captivated by the ideas and
leadership of Kwame Nkrumah (its
first elected leader) and Jamaican
black activist Marcus Garvey
(founder of the Black Star shipping
line taking African Americans back
to the motherland). The rhythm of
the street is a very African blend
of lead guitars and jazzy horns
called Highlife. Early exponents
of this genre were E.T. Mensah,
Osibisa and Fela Kuti’s first band
Koola Lobitos. Over 50 years later
the streets still bubble, but to the
reborn sound of hip-hop, highlife
and dancehall known locally as
Hiplife. Compiled by Munich-based
label Out Here, ‘Black Stars’ is the
announcement of arrival for local
stars such as Reggie Rockstone,
Tic Tac and Batman Samini on the
world music stage. Despite being
a musically tight, enjoyable and
up-to-date reflection of dancefloors
in Ghana, it sometimes feels too
Americanised with scattered “N
and F-word” profanities making it
pack less punch than its Highlife
predecessors. The Black Star
shines brightly on tunes such as
‘Kangaroo’, ‘Pidgen Allstars’ ‘Toto
Mechanic’, (toto being pidgin
English for the female genitalia), and
tunes delivered in native Twi and
Ga which feel more organic. Still
well worth a listen for the Ghanaian
diaspora and curious Highlife
followers. Black star shine on! (Ade
Bankole)
Funkanala “Be There Tomorrow”
(Here & Now)
African inspired UK independent
Here & Now have heavily impressed
with their 12”s notably ‘Jobu’,
which united Impossible Ark horn
blowers, Max Grunhard and Scott
Baylis, with Reel People vocalist
Hannah Kemoh over a steaming
hard funk groove played out by
Manu Dibango’s rhythm-men.
The label’s debut album lives up
to the expectations. Opening with
‘Economy Class’ a Restless Soul
feel ensues in an Afro-Jazz-house
number with excellent saxophone
from Dave Lewis. ‘Amul Solo’ builds
superbly as each element is given
time to get going, leading to sterling
trades between flute and keys.
Mornington Lockett’s sax stands
tall on top of the terrific repeating
melodic groove of ‘Bamoko’, which
develops a Carl Craig feel with the
rising high-end. Excellent production
throughout, Be There Tomorrow is
stacked with percussive treats to
move the body led by Senegalese
multi instrumentalist, Omar Diop.
The level of musicianship and
energy matches the wealth of
strong Afrobeat bands around,
whilst the assorted dancefloor-
friendly tempos, innumerable
grooves and delightfully cheerful
mood should please all those who
listen. (Ben Verghese)
Kelley Polar “I Need You To Hold
On While The Sky Is Falling”
(Environ)
What with Hercules & Love
Affair recruiting Antony Hegarty
for the much hyped ‘Blind’, and
this Croation-born and Juilliard-
educated producer creating tracks
with titles like ‘Love Songs Of The
Hanging Gardens’ there is a quiet
little movement of producers
looking for some drama with their
disco, taking their cue from the
likes of Marc Almond and The
Associates. Kelley Polar and his
viola appeared on some of Metro
Area’s finest works including the
classic ‘Miura’ and this partnership
continues with Polar’s debut on
Morgan Geist’s label, with Darshan
Jesrani at the mixing desk. With
Polar’s ears tuned to everything
from Kraftwerk and Schubert to
Thomas Dolby and Dvorak this
was never going to be an everyday
dance record, and the album
might take a couple of listens; but
once the yearning leftfield pop of
‘Satellites’, the sinister disco of
‘Entropy Reigns’, and the cascading
synth licks of ‘Chrysanthemum’
get inside your head, the romantic
yet dark Polar sound won’t let you
go. In the same way as a group
like Dr Buzzard’s Savannah Band
went left of the disco mainstream,
Kelley Polar is eschewing the
Bandelli fixations of many of his
contemporaries to create highly
individual music that brings some
drama and character to electronic
music. A brave and infectious
record. (Andy Thomas)
Gerd Jansen “Computer
Incarnations For World Peace 2”
(Sonar Kollectiv)
For some, it never went away.
But for others, Balearic went the
same way as summer holidays
in Ibiza and pop songs by Robert
Miles. Luckily, Gerd Jansen’s put
together a compilation that once
again restores faith in the genre,
melding its lazy four-four beats
with some cosmic disco flavours
that ooze sunshine. Jansen knows
what he’s doing; the German music
journalist heads up Running Back
Records, and an insatiable love for
all things dance led him to compile
the original Computer Incarnations,
a voyage into Italo disco, dubby
rock and soulful new wave for the
early ‘80s. His second outing for
Sonar Kollectiv brings the genre up
to date, catching up with some of
the main players on the scene as
it enjoys a second coming. Jansen
sets the temperature perfectly
from the outset with Lexx’s
Mahogany tune. Todd Terje and
Pris Thomas come to the party too,
getting their groove on with the dub
disco sounds of ‘Reinbagan’, before
Maurice Fulton remixes a snappy
Rollmottle’s ‘Take a Break’. Chateau
Flight journey into cosmic territory
with ‘Grn Adventure’ and ‘Shulme’
by Smith + Mudd brings some
dulcet vibes to the proceedings. It’s
compilation that extracts the finest
moments from a journey into the
ocean, to the bar and back onto the
beach again to watch the sun go
down. Perfection. (Helene Dancer)
Gonzalo Rubalcaba “Avatar”
(Blue Note)
Rubalcaba describes Avatar as
his New York album. Avatar is also
the name of the studio in NYC
where Gonzalo and his new quintet
settled for their four-day session,
a quintet that includes four of
New York’s hottest young players:
Yosvany Terry (saxophones), Matt
Brewer (bass), Marcus Gilmore
(drums) and Mike Rodriguez
(trumpet). Starting out with a
‘looking in retrospective’, 9.43
minutes of pure New York City
neo-bop, the piece is one of the
three compositions written by
the incredibly talented rising star
Yosvany Terry. With more twists
and turns than the busy Manhattan
streets, the interaction between
the two horns is sublime. Terry
really sets off sparks with Marcus
Gilmore dropping some serious
heavy funky grooves. Rubalcaba’s
own composition on Avatar is the
funky and lighthearted ‘Infantil’ a
gorgeous playful number dedicated
to his friend John McLaughlin.
There’s also a serene trio-only (no
horns) version of Horace Silver’s
‘Peace.’ As Yosvany Terry told me,
Gonzalo initially wanted to record
a solo or trio album then changed
his mind and decided to do a very
collective project. The album is
simply a joy, full of musical ideas,
extremely rich in implications and
expressiveness. An extraordinarily
rewarding listening experience.
(Vince Vella)
Life Force “Fearless Warriors”
(Sonorama Records)
Life Force’s first LP was originally
a private pressing on the ultra
rare Numu Numu label. Unheard
by many until a copy was found
in a German second-hand shop,
praise Jah someone did because
this material is just too good to
be left gathering dust. Headed by
Atlanta jazz stalwarts Joe Jennings
(alto and soprano) and Howard
Nicholson (tenor and soprano), this
1981 production is a mixture of
spiritual jazz, funk and fusion and it
carries flavours of Black Jazz and
Strata East releases of the ‘70s.
Fearless Warriors has a heavy
soulful vibe especially in the title
track and ‘Atlanta Anna’. A lush
groove snakes through the whole
album. Their homage to the great
Pharoah Saunders ‘To Pharoah
with Love’ has lucious bossa
flavours and needs to be listened
to in the sun with a very large rum
in your fist. One look at this record
with its abstract cover and rare
pedigree and you think it’s going
to be a heavy duty listen – one
you’ll need to take a good half-hour
after to digest. But this wax is so
accessible. Others tracks to check
are ‘Wow’ and ‘Sister Bea’. (Barry
Shears)
Hal Singer / Jeff Gilson “Soul of
Africa” (Kindred Spirits)
If you like your jazz deep and
spiritual then look no further than
this album. Tenor saxophonist
Hal “Cornbread” Singer (who you
may know from the club nugget
‘Malcom X’) and experimental
producer and pianist Jef Gilson
met in Paris in 1965 where Gilson
was playing with his band. The
heavy African influences in Gilson’s
work attracted Singer and soon
the pair teamed up and the result
was this collection of warm afro-
jazz offerings. It’s hard to pick out
a single track on Soul of Africa, but
it is worth pointing out that this
lovingly re-issued CD also includes
two dope cuts from Jef Gilson with
Lloyd Miller on the balaphone (and
apparently a micro-organ he made
himself) that were only previously
available on a rare 10-inch pressing
on Gilson’s own Spirit Jazz imprint.
REVIEWS
Wonderful weirdness from Miller
and affectionate sax work from
Singer make these previously ‘as
obscure as Osama’ recordings an
essential purchase. (Dom Servini)
Examples of Twelves “The Way
Things Are” (Impossible Ark)
After hearing their EP on
Impossible Ark and seeing these
boys live, the ‘science fiction jazz’
that greeted me on this album
came as quite some surprise.
Examples Of Twelves have recently
established themselves, in certain
circles, as purveyors of the modal
and diggers of the deepness.
This trend continues on The Way
Things Are but is multi-layered with
blistering and twitchy electronics
that might put you in mind of Don
Cherry at his more out-there. Riaan
Vosloo’s bass is as modestly played
and subtle as ever, and Fluvio
Sigurta’s trumpet glides in and out
of the textures on this album as
we transcend seamlessly between
movements. Having experienced
The Way Things Were on their
first CD, this progression shouldn’t
have come as such a surprise at all.
(Dom Servini)
V/A “A Night at the Jazz Rooms”
(Mr Bongo)
As a regular guest at The Brighton
Jazz Rooms over the past few
years I may be a touch biased. Mr.
Russ Dewbury has been doing
his thing, regardless of trend, at
this cosmic little basement by the
sea for over twenty years now.
And it’s Russ’ unique musical
vision and enthusiasm that shines
through on this long-overdue
compilation celebrating a South
Coast institution. The opening
track on CD1 sums up The Jazz
Rooms for me. Andy Bey’s spine
tingling vocals on Karl Denson’s
genius ‘Bougainvillea’ is pure Jazz
Rooms magic. Sarah Webster
Fabio’s ‘Sweet Songs’ is another
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REVIEWS
conscious classic, as is The Pipe’s
stunning rendition of ‘Wade In The
Water’. The real new school of jazz
isn’t forgotten either, with North
London’s The Filthy Six sharing disc
space with Scotland’s finest, Ray
Harris & The Fusion Experience.
Like all great Jazz Rooms nights
(of which the vast majority are just
that) things finish on a high, and
after sneakily squeezing in one of
his own productions, Russ brings
things to a close with Bob Azzam’s
samba anthem ‘Batucada Por
Favor’. The perfect end to another
night at The Jazz Rooms – long
may it prosper. (Dom Servini)
Architeq “Birds of Prey EP” (Tirk)
“Have you ever seen Dundee?”
asked Belle & Sebastian on
‘Seymour Stein’. Well I haven’t,
but someone who has is Sam
Annand, a 22-year old known as
Architeq, born in Dundee, and since
first hearing his debut EP, I still
haven’t quite absorbed it all – a
collection of tracks stacked with
highly sophisticated sounds from a
producer relatively inexperienced in
years. The A1 ‘Birds of Prey’ gently
bursts into motion with pattering
drums and numerous obscure
sounds all moulding around a subtle
synth line. Next comes the groove-
laden ‘Sleeping Bear Lament’ that
zips and fizzes at a steady pace in
a style fellow Tirk artist and king
of the edit, Greg Wilson, may call
Electro-Funk. The B-side begins
with ‘Into the Cosmos’, a wonderful
tune that motions forward and
back with expert ease – it’s my
pick from the EP and should delight
many dancefloors. A terrific spread
of percussion to compliment the
melodies ensures ‘Packard’ keeps
the energy going until the end.
Architeq’s self-described “snail-
pace-slug-bass” songs look set
to impress anyone who enjoys
electronic music, an album is due
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later in the year; meanwhile, he
is busy rehearsing with drummer
Scott Donald for some exciting live
shows. (Ben Verghese)
Mlle Caro and Franck Garcia - Pain
Dissapears LP (Buzzin Fly)
Mlle Caro and Franck Garcia initially
surfaced in 2006 on Damian
Lazarus’ Crosstown Rebels imprint
with the plaintive electropop
love song ‘Far Away’. Despite
the inevitable remix from Ewan
Pearson, they vanished seemingly
without trace. In the meantime
they have been preparing their
debut longplayer for Ben Watt’s
Buzzing Fly imprint, a label which
has diversified in recent years away
from the UK deep house sound
it pioneered. Mlle Caro (Caroline
Laher) and Franck Garcia both
provide vocals over some highly
infectious pop backings, which are
based on elements of the French
New Wave and trashy Euro Disco.
‘Always You’, the first single, is
the same Soviet Block love story
as St. Etienne’s ‘Heart Failed’
and Heiko Voss’ ‘ I Think About
You’, so evocative of broken-down
communication in a fragmented
world. ‘Apologies’ is a more musical
and traditionally French song,
whilst on ‘No Name’ they take on
the dancefloor in a Moroder-style
electro-disco assault. The album
doesn’t vary much in tempo or
sound, but don’t let this put you off.
Fans of Les Rhythmes Digitales
and more recent Swedish-Italo
sensation Sally Shapiro should take
note. (Benjamin Lehmann)
Theo Parrish “Sound Scupltures
Vol. 1” (Sound Signature)
With gigantic hymns like ‘Synthetic
Flemm’ or ‘Galactic Ancestors’,
the first triple-vinyl release of
Sound Scupltures Vol. 1 was last
year’s most important record in
my opinion. And with twelve brand
new amazing tracks here, the
upgraded CD version could earn
the title of essential album of this
year too. From the clever use of an
ecstatic Weldon Irvine sample on
‘’Black music (I Love You)’ to the
unique cover of Al Green’s classic
‘Still Love Still Happiness’, Theo is
showing his roots… and also proving
he’s strangely ahead of everyone
right now, with UFOs such as ‘Goin
Downstairs’ – a mad futuristic,
strongly hypnotic and haunting
blues song. Taking jazz and soul as
well as Chicago and Detroit house
and techno influences and really
reinventing it with his very personal,
undeniable style of production,
Mr. Parrish never ceases to
raise the bar. Without a doubt
this man is not only one of the
best dj’s on earth but he’s a true
genius producer in a league of his
own. Timeless music for the true
renegades of sound.
(J’M Irie)
Kail “True Hollywood Squares”
(Big Dada)
Over the years, the likes of Ice-T,
The Pharcyde and Snoop have
all given us their own personal
vision of Los Angeles. However,
while those artists may have
defined the sun-splashed LA of
the ‘80s and ‘90s, in 2008 South
Central’s Kail is here to offer a
new millennium perspective on
the City Of Angels. A satirical take
on the cult American television
show of its title, True Hollywood
Squares mercilessly plays with
Tinseltown’s extremes, from the
star-studded glitz of Beverly Hills
to the gritty streets of Compton.
Kail demonstrates an impressive
writing ability throughout, utilising
a collection of colourful characters
to tell a variety of stories ranging
from the funny and the tragic to
the downright strange. ‘The Realest
Motherfuckin’ Tour Guide Ever’ finds
him introducing wide-eyed visitors
to corrupt police, drive-by shootings
and wannabe porn stars over
creeping, drum-heavy production.
‘Peter Pennyworth’ highlights the
plight of a former casting agent
now homeless on the same streets
he once cruised in flashy cars, while
‘Cola (The Rhapsody)’ offers tongue-
in-cheek ghetto romance over an
old-school soul groove. Combining
street swagger, observational
humour and a leftfield worldview,
Kail provides a unique way of
looking at LA’s many vices and sins.
True Hollywood Squares isn’t an
album that will sit comfortably with
everyone, but it is an entertaining
break from the norm.
(Ryan Proctor)
Jazz Liberatorz “Clin d’Oeil” (Kif)
A trio of beatmakers hailing from
Meaux-town (in the suburbs of
Paris) who showcase a timeless
boom bap full of deepness, in the
vein of Pete Rock, Madlib or 4hero...
A strong nod to jazz is displayed
throughout with the help of bad ass
French musicians Soul Clan, Ky and
not forgetting the two Oliviers,
M’Sellem and Portal. And on the
mic la crème de la crème of soulful
indy US hip hop. Who, you ask?
Their old friend T-Love, Sadat X
(Brand Nubian), Captain Buckshot
(Black Moon) and the gracious Lizz
Fields (who steals the show on the
divine ‘Speak the Langage’). It’s the
climax of this remarkable record,
before the last track kicks in, a
daring cover of Ahmad Jahmal’s
spirit jazz anthem ‘Ishmaël’. As a
whole, this is an elegant yet humble
and personal album which hits hard
in the simple, black & white artwork
paying tribute to the iconic Black
Jazz artwork. (J’M Irie)
Katalyst “What’s
Happening” (BBE)
Hailing from the warm climes of
Australia, producer Katalyst is sure
to leave a mark on the global hip
hop community with his first long-
player for the ever-reliable BBE
imprint. Already a respected name
in his homeland, Katalyst presents
a vibrant mixture of sounds and
styles here, genre-hopping with
ease whilst remaining rooted in the
dusty-fingered tradition of boom-bap
beats. Now residing in Australia,
vocalist Steve Spacek compliments
the smouldering soul vibes of ‘How
Bout Us’, whilst New York
underground mainstay J-Live
critiques the current state of hip
hop culture on ‘Killing Ya Self’, his
intelligent observations given extra
weight thanks to a pounding guitar
break. Elsewhere, Katalyst deftly
turns his production talents to
reggae (‘Over & Over’) and bluesy
funk (‘Say What You Feel’). The
Aussie music man also manages to
address socio-political themes on
instrumental cuts such as the
claustrophobic ‘What Are We
Talking About?’ thanks to some
well-placed dialogue
samples. Although guests such as
Brit rapper Yungun deliver
impressive performances, it’s
Katalyst who remains the star of
What’s Happening, his work behind
the boards providing this
invigorating album with its dynamic
sonic backbone. (Ryan Proctor)
V/A “4hero Mixing…”
(Sonar Kollektiv)
The third in Sonar Kollektiv’s
“Mixing…” compilations sees
4hero’s Dego McFarlane step up to
the plate. As you would expect from
an artist, producer and DJ with
over two decades of experience
behind him, not only is the mixing
top notch, but the selection is none
too shabby either. From the disco,
soul and funk of Bootsy, Face,
Patrice Rushen and Two Sisters, to
more contemporary influences
such as Roy Hargrove, Little
Brother and J Dilla, the North West
Londoner hits plenty of home runs.
There’s also a little dub and reggae
flavour in the mix from Scientist and
the Skatelites, and of course, the
aforementioned Patrice Rushen on
‘Music Of The Earth’ which is
without a doubt one of the most
subtly uplifting soul cuts of all time.
Dego charts his unfolding personal
musical influences with ease, and
this is one of those mixes that will
stand the test of time. (Dom Servini)
V/A “The American Boogie Down”
(BBE / Still Music)
Somewhere at the intersection of
funk and disco, boogie was a slightly
tuffer, slightly slower sound coming
out via lables like West End, NIA,
Sam and Heavenly Star. On this
compilation, Still Music’s minister
of information, Jerome Derradji,
plumps for a selection of known and
lesser known boogie gems. Amidst
the waves of disco compilations
that have hit the record shops in
recent years, only a little space has
been given to boogie– the Midnight
Lovers compilations, Joey Negro’s
Destination Boogie or the Soul
Brother Groove On Down packages,
while you have to go back to 1985
to find the original Boogie Tunes
1 which documented the music
as it surfaced on the airwaves of
London’s Kiss FM. Here, on The
American Boogie Down, you’ll
find Grayship Daviz’ ‘Get Up Get
Down and Let Your Body Pop’, a
song heavily used for Tom Novy’s
‘Your Body’ (caned on Kiss FM 25
years later) and a real groover in
the shape of ‘Get to the Point’ by
Tony Cook that’s reminscent of
Leroy Burgess. But the selection
is solid throughout, with the
voice of Detroit’s Paul Randolph
accompanying you on the your ride
through the original boogie down.
(Jez Smadja)
V/A “Metro Sampler line 2 & 3”
(Faces Recordings)
25 beats: techy beats, psych out
beats, mellow-my-man beats,
nursery-rhyme beats, ding-dong
beats, beats sampling the joyful and
the obscure, the silly and the
straight-up salacious – yes it’s
come around, the return of the
Metro Sampler. These crazy
baldheads out of Strasbourg and
their myspace mates are patching
just about anything through their
MPCs – they’re tying them up in
plastic cords, connecting them to
egg whisks, rewiring their printers,
inserting capacitators and
oscillators … all just to make a funky
fresh beat. And here’s just a
sample of their experiments, from
their friends and family across the
league of nations (ill Dubbio from
Spain, 1000names from Bulgaria,
Super Smoky Soul from the +81
and jackhigh from… does it even
matter in these troubled times?) .
They say that if an infinite number
of monkeys were sat at a
PowerBook, at least one would have
written the autobiography of Steve
Jobs. Well this compilation is more
like an attempt at the human
genome project… translated into
sound. The solution to eternal life at
the bottom end of a bassline. Now
there’s evolution, taking place at
96bpm, before your very eyes.
(Brainz)
Milez Benjamin “Feel Glorious”
(Tru Thoughts)
Enigmatic fabrications are pretty
hip these days. Try Neon Neon, the
Gorillaz or Gnarls Barkley for size...
but now there’s another one on the
block – a Dutch bogeymonster
that’s created what it calls ‘cyborg
funk’, and goes under the name
Milez Benjiman. Is it a bird? Is it a
plane? No, it’s Gerd, Delgui and
Colonel Red getting crunk on a tip
that’s both filthy and sweetly soulful
at the same time. ‘Chop that wood’
probably sums things up the best –
REVIEWS
Colonel Red crooning over a loose-
fitting bassline, and incisive snares
keeping it just on the right side of
tidy. The album fits comfortably in
the future-soul groove – it’s not
doing anything new – but reclines,
cooly, on top of the pile. Bangers
like ‘Crazy ‘Bout Ya’ and ‘Feel
Glorious’ revel in those toffee
basslines that sit just left of centre
– producers Gerd and Delgui have
pieced together some intricate
production work. Colonel Red’s
voice adds the requisite poignancy
dosage. It’s clear there’s a real
chemistry fizzling in Milez
Benjiman’s ethereal form. (Helene
Dancer)
Soul Vigilantes “Background
Noise” (Lovemonk)
From the opening chords of
‘Travelling Together’ which sound
like they could easily have been
plucked from a Steely Dan LP,
you’re on the Soul Vigilantes
bandwagon – and for a band from
the Iberian peninsula, their brand
of soul music is surprisingly strong.
In no small measure helped by the
voice of Xantone Blacq who takes
control on four tracks, this album
recalls the good ole days of Brand
New Heavies and Incognito or the
sound of Dome Records in more
recent years. You can hear quite
clear references to Roy Ayers (the
vibes on ‘Shy’), Roger Troutman (
‘Do It Like Roger’) while the closing
track ‘Close The Door’ is in Omar
territory circa For Pleasure. Album
highlights include ‘The Beat of
Luck’, featuring the voice of Concha
Buika, an uptempo joint that has
definitely got the funk, while the
Roger Troutman tribute has got the
the right quantities of talkbox and
synth bass to deliver more bounce
to the ounce. With their brand new
retro formula, Soul Vigilantes sound
like Spain’s answer to Reel People
– and they’re kicking it up like a bad
bull. (Jez Smadja)
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