Thursday, November 18, 2010

Dont Want No - Midnight Republic ft LOTEK

Dont Want No - Midnight Republic ft LOTEK
Very fresh, back to the roots dubstep here from Lotek from Melbourne, Australia. This guys been doing big things for awhile, he even produced "Speech Therapy" by Speech Debelle and won the UK Mercury Prize. Whatever the credentials, it's nice to hear a true dub inspired dubstep tune, which is surprisingly rare these days.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Bassnectar - BBC Radio 1 Mix



Bassnectar dropped this on Annie Nightingale's show before playing Fabric check it : Bassnectar- BBC Radio 1 Mix

It's hype mix of all the styles Bassnectar is know for dabbling in: dubstep, glitch hop, and even some dnb. Basically an all-out bass heavy assault. No track list unfortunately but it's banging all the way thru, and ends rather poetically. Do not miss.

Possibly even more interesting than this mix is a recent post Lorin mades on the Bassnectar blog regarding health and safety. Apparently someone died at the gig at the Aragon Ball room here in Chicago.
"I do not have all the details, but I am told he had ingested some kind of drug (potentially mdma?) and today his mother wrote into the site. I responded to her privately, out of respect. But I felt an even more pressing need to address this issue of ‘healthy & safety” with the rest of you."


I think that it's pretty cool for someone in the dance community to talk about being clear and present and encouraging others to do so or at very least "dance safe". Which to me equates at least with proper hydration, testing pills, and having knowledge of the drugs effects. As Lorin puts it
"Getting sidetracked by the specifics (MDMA, molly, hydration) or even by the question of what classifies as “Drugs” and what does not, all of this detracts from how important it is to cherish your life, to take care of yourself and those around you. There are so many ways to do this (educating yourself, discussing with others, making safe and wise decisions) but here is another reminder of how fragile life is, and how important it is to treat your body with extreme care. I have seen many people’s lives destroyed by drug abuse. For me personally, life is just too short and precious to take unnecessary risks, plus I have learned to love and prefer a strong, clear mind over anything else.
You can read the whole bog post here: http://www.bassnectar.net/2010/11/health-and-safety/

It's something I can get behind as I've lost several friends and acquaintances to drugs and depression from chemical abuse. To me there's not enough talk about it in the scene. It all tends to get glossed over fairly quickly, or even worse glamorized. Whether it's bad for business or people are afraid that they will come off as judgemental or preachy, it's not topic that's openly and calmly discussed enough. What I like about Lorin's post is that it is conversational and also addresses other aspects of general health. Give it a read.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

AZZXSSS



Got some tunes from AZZXSSS (pronounced like the sinister "Axis" as in Axis vs. Allies) from Japan the other day. Here's a few of the sound cloud tunes one is a bit more on the tribal side (it's even called "Tribe"), like something The Others would drop in their Rinse FM set : Tribe - Azzxsss and the other is more on the garage/ 4/4 tip, I could see D-Bridge or N-type rinsing this : Ishikari - AZZXSSS. I always find it interesting how different countries will interpret the dubstep sound. Anything from Japan of course will bring to mind Goth Trad who blazed trails in the early days, taking complex ideas and presenting them in a simple and hypnotic format. I think Azzxsss carries on this tradition, but leans towards DJ friendly "tracks", while Goth Trad is more a "song"/ soundscape kind of guy. You can hear similarities in their sound palette but the approach is completely different. I found both tracks to be moody enough to take my mind off the day to day grind, and could really work well to take a set deeper into that escapist journey we all crave.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Sukh Knight Ft. P.Money – Slang Like This (Official Video)



This tune is pure murder, and it's really cool to see a proper video for it. This what happens when the best of grime and dubstep collab with each other's strengths instead of mashing contrasting styles. Suhk Knight hits you with a murky riddim, and P. Money spits an anthem. It's got a flow and energy that can't be beat, each verse ripping your head off like a jackhammer. BTW, I love the intro, the drop really knocks you with an unexpected upper cut. There's plenty of humor mixed with the serious demeanor of the shots, that gives added interest to this, so it's not just another badman stance video. The randoms, cameos and extras, spitting along side P Money, who is wearing a shoe-laced hat on journey through the 'jects, is done in a pretty clever way. Well done all around I say. Shouts to YouDunKnow for the scoop. Safe bredrin.

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

B Live feat. Skepta, Newham Generals & Spyda - Modern Warfare 2



Copped this one offa Hyperfrank. You may have first heard this scorcher on this years Plastician's May mix. It's really cool to hear the full track and see a vid with it. What is it about Spyda's vocals that just turns every tune epic in scope? That guy is just the perfect polish to any grime tune, giving it just a proper rude edge. Anyway's this one's a no-scope killer, so rendezvous at Bravo checkpoint and keep your head down.