via Grievous Angel:

[My] dj mix of dub-pon-dub riddim excursions, all in a grime / dubstep friendly 140bpm format. In a way it presaged the remix album that’s forthcoming on Keysound, where I remixed the whole of the Blackdown and Dusk album and mixed it together.

Get The Grievous Angel Mix Here

Ninjaman may have changed his “gun pon teeth Don Gorgon” ways, but yesterday Desmond Ballentine was charged with murder + conspiracy in Kingston for a gun slaying that took place on Marl Road on Monday (March 16th). Assistant Police Commissioner and Head of the Major Investigations Task force, Les Green, thinks the police have a “good” case against Ballentine, according to the Jamaica Observer. ([More →])

It seems like only yesterday our little monster was rampaging around the Bay Area like a bass wave on a sugar high. Hard to believe this will be the 5th time the loosely associated autonomous mobile soundsystems of the mutant variety have convened on an undisclosed, secret underground location for maximum sound reinforcement and fun times. That’s right – 2 monstrous walls of sound will be erected, combining the earth-trembling bassbins of 5lowershop & Army of Love with the massive mid-range towers of HAVOCSOUND, crowned by Czech-technology rocket tweeters of the notorious S.P.A.Z. soundsystem for ONE MASSIVE MONSTER OF LOVE 5!!!

Deets: ([More →])

Roy Shirley goes wild for the crowd with his “Rock Steady” show:

Excerpted from the reggae episode of the Aquarius tv show circa 1976. (Imagine the 1980 cult film Babylon if it were a BBC documentary and you’d have the reggae episode of Aquarius.)

Flying Lotus and Remarc have been added to the Bang Face Weekender lineup! They join the ranks of Zomby, Skream, Rustie, Caspa, TODDLA T, 808 State, Luke Vibert, DJ Kentaro, DJ Freak, Deformer, Enduser, Cardopusher, Current Value, Dillinja, DJ Assault, Venetian Snares and MORE!!!!!

Bang Face Weekender 2009 Lineup

In the meantime, be sure to catch DrumCorps aka Aaron Spectre at the next Bang Face party:

Bang Face my$pace

I spoke with Winston Holness aka Niney The Observer just after today’s inauguration ceremonies ended. (Niney was in London and I in California, but we were both aware of what was taking place in D.C..) We got on the topic of today’s youth and generations to come, when Niney compared the positive attitude and message that Obama brings to U.S. government with the attitude and vibe that today’s music should have. He said music changes the world, so it should be positive.

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Those who know reggae’s history, know that Niney the Observer is deeply rooted in the evolution of its sound. Niney came up from the streets with a rebel sound and attitude at a time when recording studios were accessible to the people for the 1st time. (Similar to independent labels sprouting up to reduce dependency on the majors…) Niney launched the Observer label in 1971 with “Blood and Fire” which in turn influenced the music of Big Youth, Burning Spear, The Wailers and more. (I credit Niney for the change in The Wailers’ sound when it became more militant, rebellious and dark – my favorite era of Wailers music.) Niney has worked with many of reggae’s most recognizable names like Lee Perry, Dennis Brown, Beenie Man and Freddie McGregor (father of Steven di Genius McGregor who’s killing it in dancehall today).

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Roots Manuva and Toddla T will be the source of some major heat waves this summer, from spontaneous combustion on the dancefloor to sweltering temperatures in the the streets.

It started with a seemingly innocent video from the Sheffeel producer and the cross-cultured lyricist, called “Sound Tape Killin”. I’ve been MAD about that tune since I first heard it/posted it, moments before it induced an early Spring in the western States. Then, the video for “Buff Nuff” appeared on the web and, despite a truckload of ice cream on the scene, ladies swooned and nearly melted anytime Manuva was in the vicinity. Roots Man handed out the frozen treats as quickly as possible, but was unable to reverse the feverish effects of Toddla T’s smokin dancehall riddim.

Slime & Reason Is IN This Season

Now, the impending release of a new Roots Manuva album and the subsequent rise in body temperatures threatens to warm the globe like a Bikram yoga classroom. A world filled with sizzling hot bodies, buff enuff to bounce a quarter (or quarter OZ) off of and glistening with sugary sweat, all because 2 English lads combined Slime & Reason in 2008. Like PB and J, ice cream and exercise, love, war, sex, drugs, and rock and roll, Slime & Reason represents 2 very different sounds that were meant to be mixed together for the betterment of humankind. But there’s plenty of tunes on the album I haven’t heard yet, so I’m sure Roots and T will enlighten us soon enough. In the meantime, invest in lemonade stands, ice machines and igloo-rich real estate, coz it’s gonna be a wicked hot summer!

More deets from the press release:

Feel like something is missing from your life? Not quite sure what? Is it a new record from Roots Manuva? Or a beautiful body beside you in bed? Either way, all your problems are solved.

Mr Manuva comes blazing back into action with the wonderful “Buff Nuff,” a slice of Sheffield dancehall cooked up by the so-hot-it-hurts Toddla T, mixed by the mighty Ross Orton (M.I.A. etc) and weighed down with lyrical wonderment and silly genius by the one and only Rodney Smith.

Manuva’s own productions range from the skanking carnival anthem “Again & Again,” through the melancholy funk of “C.R.U.F.F.,” the electro-Bach rhythms of “Kick Up Ya Foot,” the lof-fi Gospel of “A Man’s Talk,” the roots stylings of “The Show Must Go On” and the analog-synth attack of “It’s Me Oh Lord.”

But as a vocalist, Roots has also been reinvigorated working with young producers Toddla T and Metronomy. There are three Toddla tracks here (including “Buff Nuff,” the first single taken from the album) and they represent some of the funniest, most loose-limbed music Rodney has produced in years. In addition, Metronomy’s “Let The Spirit” is one of the standouts of the record – a gorgeous piece of “blue-eyed” electro-funk which will be soundtracking our lives for a long time to come.

Links

Roots Manuva Website
Roots Manuva my$pace
Toddla T my$pace
Big Dada
“Sound Tape Killin”

…DJ C + Ripley + Kid Kameleon – Surya Dub in San Francisco – May 24, 2008…

DJ C performed an incredible set – full of treats and surprises – at Surya Dub, San Francisco’s BEST dubstep event. The monthly party, held at Club 6 in SF, is hosted by 2 of DJ C’s long-time pals (almost as far back as his Toneburst days in Boston!) – Ripley and Kid Kameleon. Most of the night, I was too busy dancing to remember my duties as a reporter. The string of Top Rankin Selectahs kept the energy high with a mix of dubstep, ragga, jungle and other bass-loaded sounds.
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I wonder if Koda’s Oakland crib is littered with bruised and battered amen breaks, too chopped and screwed to run away? Perhaps that’s why I’m sneaking them out of the Bay Area for a much-deserved break. The new EP, Keep On Destroying Amens Volume 1, features 15 killer jungle choons in a 112MB zipper – 100% FREE and as legal as jungle gets. ([More →])

South Rakkas Crew – San Francisco, CA – June 7, 2008

The South Rakkas show in San Francisco last Saturday night was HOT! It’s been years since I’ve seen so many hot ladies at a show (I think there were close to 10 ladies for every 1 guy in the house), everyone was having a great time and South Rakkas were BLAZING! They truly brought the spirit of Miami with them, especially the energy of the dancehall. It was a beautiful night, and I don’t really have much of a review coz you really just had to be there! But, here are a few photos anyway and I’ll be adding a short video and more photos soon:
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GREENSLEEVES RELEASES ‘THE JOURNEY – THE VERY BEST OF SIZZLA’ THE ULTIMATE CD/DVD COLLECTION OF THE REGGAE ICON’S MOST PRIZED WORK AVAILABLE JUNE 26, 2008
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RICHIE SPICE’S LATEST ALBUM GIDEON BOOT DEBUTS AT #1 ON REGGAE BILLBOARD CHART
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REGGAE SOUNDS TAKE OVER GRAND THEFT AUTO IV AIRWAVES
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Press release about Etana and the release of her debut album on June 26th:
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