Peace
ck smart
The better part of 1995 is behind us and to anyone who says there's not
enough good
music out there, then bollocks! There's more mixing of styles,
criss-crossing of genres and
exciting fusions of ideas than there has been in years both here in San
Francisco, on the
West Coast, in the U.S. and the world over. And as the urban musical
culture expands, the
cracks and crevaces fill up with everything from the dark and
introspective thoughts of San
Francisco's Simone White to the frantic drum and bass that's spilling
over the underground
in London with records like Goldie's debut Timeless. In between we
have new material
from the 1990's version of The Mothership Connection, The Mofessional's
(yes!), the
very credible latin-tinged compilation, Bossa Brava! from Instinct
Records
(Reminiscence Quartet, Night Trains, Eric Hilton's Exodus Quartet) and
hundreds of
more examples of musical talent waiting to be heard. One bit of
advise: keep sifting
through the silly, cheesy crap - there is an abundance of excellent
music all accross the
board!
My recent trip to London was just that....a mental voyage - England is
unique! The British
know their music and enjoy exploring the outter reaches of what's
permissible on wax.
Bar Rhumba on Monday nights proves that. One week it was James Lavelle
and my tour
guide Ben Wilcox, the next it's Gilles Petersen and guests, Kruder and
Dorfmeister.
Anything and everything goes, from some loud jungle tracks and Josh
Wink's "Higher
State of Consciousness" to The Specials, Roberta Flack, Herbie Hancock
and the
Method Man. The best part about That's How It Is - dancing. People go
to shake and
sweat and they trust the resident DJs to take chances. Maybe that's
why L.A.'s Marcus
Wyatt was camping out in London for a month flexing house gigs, on
holiday from Brass.
Another party that represented what's good in urban music today was the
Clean Up
Record's Collide-A-Scope party at the Ormonds. Bongo Record's Kevin
Beadle spun
some intense, wierdo music - on a great sound system in the basement of
some church or
warehouse. Standout DJ selection - Dark Globe! Hi-hop beats weave
techno through a
dub filter. Lovely, loud and fat! Kruder and Dorfmeister came on and
kept the dancefloor
going. Check their new remix for Knowtoryus, "Bomberclad Joint"
(hip-hop in slow
motion) and the latest Multidirections II "A Tune For Us" featuring a
phone message of
UFO DJ Raphael Sebbag.
B&W has come strong out the box lately following up the enchanting
sounds of Flora
Purim's album with the debut "Sound Advise" from one of England's
finest trumpet and
flugal players, Byron Wallen. This is surly another fine anecdote to
all the weak records
on the shelves. "Let Go (and Embrace)" slithers along the back alley
of a rain covered
neon stip, while "Rhythms of Vision" envokes electro beats and
Smif-N-Wesson samples
to the etheral voice of Marcina Arnold who asks,"What shades do you
see?/What sounds
do you hear?/What feelings do you fear?". Richard Ajileye plays the
clay pot and Byron
flexes both horn and keys. Speaking of Flora Purim, check out the Guy
Called Gerald
jungle remixes that I heard in the offices of Dorado Records - a wild
tribute to a wild fan.
And speaking of Dorado Records, how do you top brilliant label talent
like Jhelisa
Anderson (new 12" remixes of "Friendly Pressure"), Matt Cooper ("To
Give But Not
Forget" is classic!) A.P.E. and D*Note? How about Charlie Lexton, a.
k.a. Cool
Breeze? Not only did his Assimilation album receive critical acclaim,
but the new 12" will
surprise. "Can't Deal With This" gets reworked by Kid Loops (remember
this name!)
into a drum and bass frenzy where someone went a little hay-wire with
the drum machine.
Play loud and buckle up! Check out more of Kid loop in the fall on
Dorado's first off-
shoot, Filter Records - being championed by Charlie Lexton and Mr.
Mellow Ross Allen.
Also check Charlie's track "27 years of Solitude" on the up-coming
Mo'Wax venture
"Headz II".
ck's top 11 eggplants in august
1. Spyro Gyra "Ariana" (GRP)
2. Heights of Abraham "Boogie Heights" (Pork)
3. Uriel "Do Androids Dream of Electric Jazz? (Beau Monde)
4. Plug 3 "Versatile Crib Funk" (Rising High)
5. Byron Wallen, "Let Go (and embrace)" (B&W Music)
6. Dudu Tucci "Aruandé" (mix tape)
7. Simone White Quartet "Super Frow" (independent)
8. The Prunes "Not What You Think" (New Breed)
9. Hueman Flavor "Cherry Suite" Up&Down Club Sessions (Prawn Song)
10 Kruder and Dorfmeister "A Tune For Us" (Talkin' Loud)
11. The Bomb Compilation "Return of the DJ" (Bomb Records)
Aceyalone, All Balls Don't Bounce album due out 10/24
Pharcyde, Delicious Vinyl album, The Labcabincalifornia due out 10/24
Group Home, Pay Day Records album - Premier-produced out late Nov.
Primo is working with DJ
Krush on tracks as well as doing some music for Spike Lee's next film,
"Clockers" about
street hustlers. Jeru tha Damaja is in the studio currently working on
his 2nd LP. Pay
Day has also signed production deals with The Roots, Black Moon's Evil
D. and the beat
man of the moment, DJ Buckwild. Fellow Diggin' In The Crates kingpin
Diamond D.
has a new record out on London called Flavortism...The Sophmoric Effort
- a flavor
name for a what will become another classic record.
Large Professor got picked up by Geffen after the greed hounds pulled
the plug on the
original undergrouond hip-hop label, Wild Pitch, which gave birth to
Chill Rob G., Gang
Starr and Main Source. Still looking at the front door are the
uniquely talented O.C. and
Oakland's The Coup.
Recently situated in the Big Apple via DJ Swingsett, the eclectic jazz,
funk trio Slide Five
has finished their debut for Ubiquity Recordings, due out in October.
Guests include
bassist Jonathan Marin of The Groove Collective and Repercussions,
veteran Jacko
Peake on sax and New Breed and Giant Step don DJ Smash providing "live
atmospheric
sounds". Also DJ Andrew Jervis and saxman Paul Scriver are the core of
a new
Ubiquity project called Better Daze, whose EP "First Flight" should hit
by October.
On The One Magazine and Luv 'N Haight have put out Feeling Good, a
dancefloor
jazz, rare groove platter.
Ex-Disposable Hero of Hiphoprisy drummer Simone White is set to put out
his quartet's
independent debut, Day and Night. Wonderfully dark, funky, compelling
jazz with
orchestration for strings, oboe and children's vocals from The San
Francisco Music
Conservatory. Strictly for people who want to hear great music!
Michael Franti has
gone on to Spearhead, Charlie Hunter to his debut on Blue Note, Rono
Tse to a hip-
hop production company in the Bay Area and now Simone's time has come
to shine.
Label heads: wake your tired asses up and sign some real musical
talent!
>From the lab rats at Solesides comes word that Blackalicious has
already recorded 18
tracks for their debut long player, set for December. Expect verbal
dopeness and intense,
meticulous production by DJ Shadow, Asia Born and Chief XCel. A nice
follow up to
the hip-hop medicine of "The Reckoning" from Lateef the Truth Speaker,
out now also
hooked by Shadow. Buy this record today! With every member deep in
studio mode,
expect polific material to emerge throughout '95 and into '96. Musical
madman, Bill
Laswell was caught recently admiring Shadow's studio capabilities.
In San Diego, peep the up-coming independent debut from the addictive
groove of the B-
side Players, as well as more hip-hop hypeness from Chop Shop, whose
Representin'
Lovely LP delivered hype, uncut product to underground turntables the
world over.
>From L.A.'s Moonshine Music comes the American release of Wagon
Christ's
Throbbing Pouch, plus the long-awaited debut from The Cleveland Lounge,
one of the
more talented young soul, jazz outfits in the flourishing S.F. Jazz
Flow. Look for possible
remixes of The Broun Fellinis on Moonshine and a drunken, stoney video.