ESKMO (Lorn Rmx)

 I posted a video for a new ESKMO track a week or two ago that was pretty awesome, and I really enjoyed Lorn's LP, so when I saw Lorn remixing ESKMO, I didn't have a doubt that this was going to be off the chain.
Check out "Come Back" (Lorn remix)
ESKMO's album eponymous album is out on Ninja Tune 10/19. Mark your calendar.

A3C Mixtape

If you like hip hop and you live in the Southeast, there's a good chance you're considering a trip to Atlanta next week for A3C. These guys put in work and its paid off. I remember a few years ago seeing fliers and stuff for this, and while there were some hot underground heads, it didn't have nearly the clout it's got now. Still plenty of underground heads, but on a way bigger scale. 200+ artists from Oct. 6-8. A handful are on the first installment of the A3C Mixtape presented by production/management team SMKA.
 Download a copy.
Here's the tracklist:

1)      1982 (Statik Selektah & Termanology) ft. Bun B & Masspike Miles  - You Should Go Home

2)      Chaundon – Yall Don’t Want It

3)      Diamond District – I Mean Business

4)      Aleon Craft – Yoga Flame

5)      Mistah FAB ft. Lil Boosie & Yo Gotti - Done It All

6)      Sha Stimuli – Am I Different pt. 2

7)      Soul Khan ft. Akie Bermiss – Fahrenheit

8)      Crooked I – Everythang Dirty

9)      Cymarshall Law & Skit Slam (Everliven Sound) ft. El da Sensei  - Elements

10)   Punchline ft. Wordsworth – Don’t Get Married

11)   Jean Grae ft. Styles P & Talib Kweli – R.I.P.

12)   Killer Mike & T.I.P – Ready Set Go

13)   RE ft. Short Dawg – Feelin Some Kinda Way

14)   The Jacka ft. Andre Nickatina – Glamorous Lifestyle

15)   Spectac & Amiri – As If

16)   Senor Kaos ft. Fresh Daily – You Couldn’t Relate

17)   Young Scolla – Stare

18)   Thee Tom Hardy – I’m Grinnin

19)   Joe Scudda – Open For Business

20)   Cloudeater - Decade

The second installment comes out 10/4...over and out.  

Cusses at the Jinx

This is a photo of Angel from Cusses' show at the Jinx a week or two ago. It was packed. They are undoubtedly the most beloved local band at the moment. Awesome live show.

"Oh Yeah!"

Just in, some footage of KidSyc@Brandywine jamming at Sweetwater's stage in Indiana. The trip was part of the prize for winning the gear website's song contest over the summer. KidSyc@Brandywine will be at Tantra for a show (10/1) with the ever-charismatic Floco Torres (Macon). It will be an evening of hip hop with live bands, and it will be good for your soul.

Oh Yeah! from Brandywine on Vimeo.

Mark Ronson

A new video off Mark Ronson's new album. If this isn't the catchiest song you've heard this week, please leave a comment where to find what you claim is catchier because this is the infectious, feel good jam of the moment.

S.A.M. - Swag Shop

Maf and Smooth collab as S.A.M. and this track "Swag Shop" is just about the most Cadillac-ready piece of slickness I've heard in a while...Go ahead and drive slow to this. Creases so sharp you'll cut yourself.
   S.A.M. - Swag Shop ft/ Lonnie Coppock by Maf aka Carlitobaby

Tom Van de Ven set (8/29/10)

Tom spun this quick set at Vinyl Appreciation in August. I finally got around to uploading it, and I'm glad I did, because it's awesome. Great selection of hard to find electronic and industrial tunes. The opening song is a live cut from Yello, who is most well-known in pop culture ranks as the group who did that song in Ferris Bueller's Day Off - the song that goes "mmmowh mmmowh chikachikaah" aka "Oh Yeah" - if you're ever in Hang Fire ask Wes to tell you the story about when he worked at a record store around the time that record hit the billboard charts and people would call asking for it.

Tom Van De Ven 08/29/10 by Vinylappreciationsav on Mixcloud

80 Blocks from Tiffany's

I found out about this movie a year or two ago after Alchemist tweeted about it. It's a really amazing documentary about New York gangs in the late 70s. The Savage Skulls, the Nomads, this is the real life version of The Warriors and the social climate that founded hip hop. I'm happy to say it's getting re-released on DVD.

DeSoto Strut #5

This monthly art block party took the summer off (good thing too with how its been the hottest summer in recent memory, which puts it above what have been several fairly hot summers in a row). It's back now that things are slightly less humid. Group shows in the Starland and Desotorow galleries, live work going on outside, open studios with Hebermehl and Kellie Walker, a new coffee company, cupcake happy hour with Back in the Day, and usually some crazy stuff hanging in Maldoror's. All in all, it's an early evening of eclectic art, nice people and, in this case, fire twirling.

Here's an article I wrote for Connect about the debut of Strut earlier this year. 

Sub Swara

If you're on a laptop, do yourself a favor a plug it into speakers worthy of tune this epic. Massive dubstep banger with a soft ambient accent that makes me nostalgic for Aphex Twin during the late 90s.
Check out "Bend You"
Get more info on them and their new album Triggers.

Girl Talk NYE

Girl Talk built a house inside a theater in Chicago for a huge NYE house party to kick off the year. There's a short film (3 parts on YouTube) documenting what looks to have been a kickass show. He'll be closing Friday night at MoogFest over Halloween weekend this year in Asheville and this video just got me even more amped to see his live show.

Surfrider Foundation Benefit

Group art exhibit and loads of live music. Proceeds benefit Surfrider's Gulf clean up efforts.

Human Orchestra

This is awesome. A well choreographed pairing of electronic music and striking visuals.

Human Orchestra from OHASHI_Takashi on Vimeo.

Vinyl Appreciation #7

It's that time again. This Sunday, Sept. 26, 5-10pm at Muse Arts Warehouse.The coolest, weirdest listening party you ever heard. DJs, record collectors, aficionados, etc. Live screen printing from Wabco Industries, giveaways from Primary Arts and Civvies, visual treats from the Psychotronic Film Society. Buy/Sell/Trade records.

Piero Umiliani

One of Italy's finest...and most sample-ready...

Hell Razah is killing it

Hell Razah is among the most slept on, but he's absolutely one of the best rapping right now in my humble opinion. Maybe it's the fact that his style remains true to the Wu-Tang formula and 5 Percenter street logic; or maybe it's that his beats are so raw...I don't know...maybe it's just that there's so few cats who can make hip hop like this, it seems even more attention grabbing these days. On this new track, which features a beast of a verse from R.A. the Rugged Man, the whole style is only improving with age.
Check out the new track "Return of the Renaissance" ft. R.A. the Rugged Man. You can also get the new album Heaven Razah starting Sept. 28. 
Check out the cut "Project Jazz" off his album The Renaissance Child if you need something to hold you over until then. 

Al Pete "Get Up" ft. The iGive

Duuvvvaaalllll. Al Pete reps Jacksonville all day. He and The iGive both came up to kick it during the Savannah Urban Arts Festival this spring, and both rocked the stage. They just dropped this joint earlier today and it's premium grade. Intelligent smooth shit that positive cats move with / play it at night, they'll wanna act right.
The South has a movement of real ill true school hip hop that doesn't get enough shine.
 
Get Up feat. The IGive | Upload Music

Hidden Persuaders

Check out this blog post from Adam Curtis, who made the best documentary you'll never see in the US, called Century of Self, which more clearly outlined the development of the Neo-Con vs. Muslim extremism conflict than anything I've ever seen. The blog post is actually about advertising, psychology and an interesting perspective on Mad Men.

Redneck Borealis

Awesome.

Coffy

If you don't understand the cultural phenomenon that is Pam Grier, then this is will get you started. Badass. Soundtrack by the talented Roy Ayers. All the plot you need to know is: A nurse turns vigilante when someone gets her 11-year old sister strung out. She kicks ass in seedy spots around town. It features the skills of the great Jack Hill, an exploitation flick pioneer who got his start with Roger Corman back in the early 60s.

"You can sell anything"

Das Racist dropped a funny little jam a few months back called "Fake Patois" that made me chuckle. Apparently, that mixtape caught some folks attention because their new mixtape has the Mad Decent stamp on it, and this track "You Can Sell Anything" was produced by Diplo. It's minimal but light-hearted. The DR guys take themselves a little more seriously lyrically, but still keep it fun. This isn't your little round glasses and frappucino coffee house rap, this is some cruising around slapping asses blazed out type tune.
 
Grab a copy of the mixtape, "Sit Down, Man".  Be sure to check out the Scoop DeVille produced joint on there featuring El-P.

"Castles" (Lucky Dragons rmx)

Oh man, this song and video are crazy. I don't even know where to begin to describe this, so you're just gonna have to press play and take the ride.

railcars Castles (Lucky Dragons Remix) from Imaginary Animal on Vimeo.
It's from a railcars remix album that features interpretations by No Age and Xiu Xiu among others. More info + download.

Les Sins

Les Sins is a new side project by Toro Y Moi, who I like not only because he makes cool music, but additionally is from South Carolina, and it's always nice to see cool shit from the durrty Souf succeed, particularly when it comes from an area other than Atlanta. (I don't say that because I'm mad at Atlanta. It's simply nice to see forward thinking artists from the South succeed who aren't from cities with an established music industry component. It means that artist had to work a little harder to get to where they are. But I digress...)
 The Toro Y Moi stuff I posted last year was sort of spacey, psychedelic electronic pop. Pretty low key overall, if I remember correctly. The Les Sins material is a totally different deal - filters and heavy disco influence are being worn on Les Sins creative sleeve. The effects give make it slightly reminiscent of Justice aesthetically, but the minimal looping horn and pulsing bass probably make it more appealing to dance DJs than the casual listener. The track is hot though, so if you're playing for any dance floors this season, definitely give this a play.
  Les Sins "Youth Gone" by carparkrecords

ESKMO

I've been a bass quest lately (shout out to DJ Landline). There's just so much good stuff coming out right now that it's hard to ignore. Esteemed electronic label Ninja Tune's addition to the bumper crop of young talent is ESKMO. Check out this track and it'll be no surprise that he's collabed with the likes of Amon Tobin (who I don't think gets enough credit for pioneering a whole other sound that heads are really just now catching up with)...


Download "Cloudlight"

UNKLE ft. Lupe Fiasco

Wow. This track is a monster. UNKLE puts some sweat into the dubstep/wonk/bass movement (which really needs to figure out what its name is asap) and ices the cake with a cameo from Lupe, who's running lyrical laps around your favorite rapper right now.

Download a copy from RCRDLBL.

Dibiase "Skullcrack"

The bass is so hard it'll make your teeth chatter.

Dibiase "Skullcrack" from Alpha Pup on Vimeo.

Made by this guy, not this guy, on his new album Machines Hate Me.

The internet is old people

The internet is changing. It's no longer about the future (even if Arcade Fire's new video brings people to tears) because it's about to be conquered by old people searching for nostalgia amidst the cultural repository the internet has become over the past decade and a half (I know the internet has been around longer than that, but the cultural nostalgia was a more recent development.)

Facebook's race to 500 million users had the scales tipped by the over 50 crowd. 

Where the elder boom is perhaps most evident is YouTube though, where plugged in seniors are jamming out to golden oldies and thinking about how they used to squeeze into that poodle skirt and saddle shoes.

XXXXXX

1 year ago 19

What do you know? A pair of wholesome clean cut kids singing great music without all the noise and riffraff. Today, they'll probably be laughed off stage for not being controversial or participating in that drug induced sexual garbage that plagues most young adult entertainers of today.

Not only are seniors using the internet more, they are causing younger people to think like septuagenarians, as evidenced here in a comment left on Percy Faith's "Theme From a Summer Place."

XXXXXX

4 days ago

@OperaPhantom1909-You're so right-It was at my grandfather's funeral when it really hit me that these days and such simpler times are gone forever!!!

It's well documented that once people see their parents doing something - slang, fashion, whatever - it's no longer cool. So how much less cool is the internet now that people's grandparents are messing with it, vlogging about early bird specials or posting unflattering party photos of rival retirement home clique leaders.

What's next?