Pirkka Hartikainen (pirkka.hartikainen@pp.htv.fi)
Sat, 22 Jan 2000 13:47:53 +0200
Here's my 2 cents on last 2 digest's topics...
Music writing - here's 3 CRUCIAL books for a black music enthusiast:
LAST NIGHT A DJ SAVED MY LIFE
A new UK book documenting the DJ phenomenom, featuring very informative
sections on legendary US dj's like Levan, Mancuso and Africa Bambataa,
complete with playlists from their clubs. If you're seriously into classic
house/dance/garage vibe or hip hop roots, you need this book.
EGO TRIP's BOOK OF RAP LISTS
Perhaps the best book written about hip hop for the hip hop fanatic.
Beautiful collection of trivia, quotes, pictures, lists written in the same
humorous style as the Ego Trip magazine.
ROUGH GUIDE TO REGGAE
If you're looking for a manual for jamaican music, this is a very nice one.
It's so full of information that the first read will just leave you baffled
if you're a newcomer to Jamaican music. Anyway, this is very worthy book and
so much better than Virgin's reggae guide.
All these should be available at amazon.(uk.)com
There was also some talk about the music journo SIMON REYNOLDS..
I've been pretty impressed by mr. Reynold's writing, especially back in my
jungle conversion days when I read his 'Ardcore article in the Wire over
and over again.. I decided to check out his site for 98-99 best of /
overrated lists, and i was again captivated by the writings..
But then again, reading about "intelligent big beat releases" and hip hop
top lists with juvenile battling master p makes a true member of the
"indie/underground cognoscenti" like me wonder what's up with hyping all
this cheap-ass sell-out crap... ;)
The answer is not far away: as Reynolds explains his two-way division of the
non-mainstream music field, I can clearly see myself (and the whole
acid-jazz list) as a part of the stale and retro-fixated
"cognoscenti-orientated scenes" as opposed "hardcore street scenes where the
vibe is" (= jump up jungle, no limit/cash money/timbaland).
I think that his theories at http://members.aol.com/blissout/front.htm make
pretty interesting reading. I'm not saying it will make me swwap Aceyalone
for Juvenile though..
HOUSENOTHOUSE/NUJAZZ/...
Being involved in a record store, i've also been wondering where to file all
these new london ting's. From all the corny names i've heard this new
"genre" called, "fusion" somehow sounds most fitting yet.. ,)
peace,
pirkka
http://lifesaver.net/motw
onnow - I-Roy: Hospital Trolley
Basement Jaxx: Remedy ("Stop" rocks!)
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