Beats and pieces

[Woo]

And on a related theme, I've just found this. I think, coming from two of the greatest MCs of all time, it's just about the most exciting thing I could hear anyone say about a forthcoming release; genius never gets old:

 

 

Black Star announce second album | Music | guardian.co.uk

 

Hip-hop duo featuring Mos Def and Talib Kweli to release first LP in 13 years, a mixtape inspired by Aretha Franklin

 

 

Black Star are back. One of the most respected duos in hip-hop have announced their first LP in 13 years, a mixtape inspired by Aretha Franklin. The group are currently on tour, with two new songs (Fix Up and You Already Knew) circulating online.

 

Back in 1998, Black Star released their one and only album, Mos Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star. More than a decade later, Mos Def is no longer called Mos Def – he's now Yasiin Bey – but he and Kweli are making music again. The first new song dropped almost a year ago and didn't reappear until last month, when Black Star performed on US TV show The Colbert Report. The biggest surprise isn't that the track is produced by Madlib, or available on iTunes - but that it's a riff on a line by Dizzee Rascal. Fix Up opens with a quote from the east London rapper, entreating listeners to "Fix up, look sharp!"

 

Black Star released a second song, You Already Knew, last week. With that came the announcement it's "the first song off Black Star Aretha, the group's [forthcoming] tribute to the legendary singer". While there's no release date for the album, Kweli previously promised a Black Star record in 2012. "We are trying to find out the right mediums to get the songs out," he told MTV Hive. "We're really into a Madlib/Dilla thing right now. Anything you hear from us is probably going to be that type of sound."

 

This has made my day. The new tracks are boss, too:

 

[YOUTUBE]ukcpiJd682c[/YOUTUBE]

 

[YOUTUBE]B0jwXAwmy0Q[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

At round about the 2.02 point in You Already Knew, Kweli says, "Rick Parry is a serial killer". He's right - we did already know...

[Jairzinho]

[YOUTUBE]7RVmUQ8qRqg[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

Silly BBC-billies (mind you, as long as he stays on the BBC, who cares which station they put him on):

 

Judge Jules and Gilles Peterson: will you miss them on Radio 1? guardian.co.uk

 

The jury's out on what the station will be like after two of its longest-serving specialist DJs leave – who would you recruit?

 

 

Judge Jules and Gilles Peterson: poles apart musically. Photographs: BBC

As one of his catchphrases went, like toilet paper, Judge Jules was on a roll. But now that roll is over and he's leaving Radio 1 to become, er, a lawyer.

 

Jules's exit after 14 years isn't a tragedy – it feels like the heyday of his high-octane trance sound was half a decade ago. Although Pete Tong clings on to Friday nights at Radio 1, peers such as Seb Fontaine, Danny Rampling and Dave Pearce are long gone, and the Judge has increasingly looked as though he is holding court alone.

 

 

But Gilles Peterson's departure after 13 years is worse news for Radio 1. His eclectic jazzy sound is unique – he plays music you're unlikely to hear elsewhere. Listeners can find Jules's "tried and tested" tracks all over the web, but Peterson's selections are harder to replicate.

 

Some may find Peterson's tunes noodly and his presenting style a bit affected, but the energy he puts into "joining the dots" between different genres of music is infectious. It's not unusual to hear cutting-edge dubstep followed by 1960s British jazz followed by Afro-funk or Latin sounds.

 

Some have hailed Peterson as a successor to John Peel – not strictly accurate in that most of the music he plays is influenced by jazz or soul, but it's true that he's not afraid to pick tunes from any genre and put them in front of a mainstream audience.

 

I remember Peterson playing Josh Wink's acid track Higher State Of Consciousness and Innerzone Orchestra's techno classic Bug in the Bass Bin on his mostly jazzy show on Kiss FM simply because they were nothing like he had ever heard before. Similarly, he pioneered drum & bass from the likes of LTJ Bukem and Roni Size on Kiss, and later Four Tet's twisted electronica on Radio 1. From his three-hour Jazz FM marathons to Kiss FM to Radio 1, his shows have been an education in music from 1960s Blue Note jazz to dubstep and beyond.

 

 

Ironically, it's the Peterson-backed Skream and Benga who are joining Radio 1 as he departs. The station is under pressure to attract younger listeners; it feels a bit like a trendy dad, desperately trying to keep up with the latest musical fashion, but always getting there a few years too late. Peterson has years of experience as a DJ – he started doing radio in his dad's shed in Epsom while at school – and brings boundless energy and knowledge to presenting. Skream and Benga are producers; they may make innovative music but that doesn't necessarily make them natural radio presenters.

 

Also among the new crop of DJs are Toddla T, Charlie Sloth and Friction, while drum'n'bass dons Fabio & Grooverider and electro genre-bender Kissy Sell Out are leaving. And the station is promising to promote fresh talent on a new show, Radio 1 Residency.

 

It's possible Peterson will find a new home at 6 Music or 1Xtra; he could even fit in at Radio 3 alongside Verity Sharp's Late Junction. But it would be a shame for his musical explorations not to continue on a high-profile station.

 

So do you think Radio 1 was right to drop Gilles Peterson and Judge Jules? And which specialist DJs would you like to hear on the station?

[cmuller]

Suprised Jules and that music lasted so long. So is he I'd reckon. The last post on his trumpet?

 

Peterson's Jazz FM days were his best. Across the board music instead of the tunnel vision pure-ism of his recent past. Very, very slowly disappeared up his own arse on Radio 1. I've always listened to his show on iplayer in work - obscure rather than good tracks seemed to dominate for a good while now. And as said his presenting style became cliched.

 

I'd have Rodigan doing a show on BBC, his R2 summer hours were just a taster of what he could do. Exactly what they're missing, someone who's well respected, got years and years of stories to call upon and knows his music inside out and doesn't even partly have to rely on being fashionable.

[stringvest]

Who doesn't like a bit of trumpet before stepping out into the cool Friday night air?

 

Donald Byrd - Think Twice (Blue Note)

 

[YOUTUBE]JTpFpRqGFQg[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

Suprised Jules and that music lasted so long. So is he I'd reckon. The last post on his trumpet?

 

Peterson's Jazz FM days were his best. Across the board music instead of the tunnel vision pure-ism of his recent past. Very, very slowly disappeared up his own arse on Radio 1. I've always listened to his show on iplayer in work - obscure rather than good tracks seemed to dominate for a good while now. And as said his presenting style became cliched.

 

I'd have Rodigan doing a show on BBC, his R2 summer hours were just a taster of what he could do. Exactly what they're missing, someone who's well respected, got years and years of stories to call upon and knows his music inside out and doesn't even partly have to rely on being fashionable.

 

Opinions, eh? I think his taste - and playlist - is as diverse as it's ever been. As for his style, how is being passionate about music and just being yourself cliched?

 

New tune from this week (it sounds like Pharrell's got his mojo back):

 

Gloria Estefan — Heat

 

[YOUTUBE]4iqPZTJjnvk[/YOUTUBE]

[King Gheedorah]

Dam Funk - The Sky is Ours

[YOUTUBE]kD_cGO760gY[/YOUTUBE]

 

11 11 - Tourist Trap (Soul Clap remix)

[YOUTUBE]6fk_IrVNnSc[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

Great free music alert:

 

Two and a half hours of summer soul from Flying Lotus in the mix:

 

LOVERS MELT 2 - Flying Lotus by kronika on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free

 

A more contemporary (and shorter) mix, but in a similar vein, vibes-wise by Tyler The Creator:

 

MixtapeMonkey | Summer Camp Mix - Tyler, The Creator (DJ Stank Daddy)

 

And a psychedelic hp hop mix from Main Attraktionz:

 

 

Main Attrakionz - 808s & Dark Grapes II | MishkaNYC

 

Enjoy.

[Paul]

Groove Chronicles - Stone Cold

 

[YOUTUBE]WoeB82x5yrc[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

Sa-Ra Creative Partners feat Erykah Badu - Fantastic Vampire

 

[YOUTUBE]B6_-dljJ7go[/YOUTUBE]

Edited January 7, 2012 by Paul

[Stu Monty]

Anyone know why I can no longer se Youtube videos on here? Just geta little image in the corner of a big blank square.

 

From my Secret Santa CD. Fucking awesome.

 

G9x_yxABWAo

 

I'll presume that works as I can't see it.

[Paul]

Try updating Flash, Stu.

[Paul]

Henning - Endless Space (Let It Go)

 

[YOUTUBE]KY8R9EDjZ2k[/YOUTUBE]

[King Gheedorah]

Henning - Endless Space (Let It Go)

 

[YOUTUBE]KY8R9EDjZ2k[/YOUTUBE]

 

That's a nice groove. Would like to hear remixes of it also.

 

Probably the best essential mix thrown down last year:

Soul Clap - Essential Mix - 05-03-2011 by R_co on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free

 

Tracklist:

 

[00:00] 01. Essential Mix - Intro (03:06)

[03:06] 02. Jamie Principle - Waiting On My Angel (Dub Mix) (04:10)

[07:16] 03. Kelley Polar - In Time (04:31)

[11:47] 04. Moodymann - Bosconi (04:25)

[16:12] 05. Jay Mitchell - Mustang Sally (Shoes Ready To Ride Mix) (04:29)

[20:41] 06. Double Hill - Wanna Get (04:41)

[25:22] 07. MAM - Can't Live Without Music (04:00)

[29:22] 08. Roy Davis Jr. feat. Peven Everett - About Love (03:52)

[33:14] 09. A Blackman, A Blackman And Another Blackman - I Believe (04:24)

[37:38] 10. Player 1 - Disco Computer (03:33)

[41:11] 11. Giorgio Moroder - Chase (05:41)

[46:52] 12. Depeche Mode - Behind The Wheel (Shep Pettibone Extended Remix) (04:59)

[51:51] 13. Natalie Cole - Tell Me All About It (White Label Mix) (04:20)

[56:11] 14. Warpaint - Undertow (Night Plane Remix) (05:33)

[61:44] 15. Clapz ll Dogz - Can't Stand The Rain (05:35)

[67:19] 16. The Bees - Winter Rose (Nicolas Jaar Remix) (04:26)

[71:45] 17. Grace Jones - My Jamaican Guy (03:31)

[75:16] 18. Glass Candy - Geto Boys (02:42)

[77:58] 19. Lil' Louis & The World - Nyce & Slow (04:23)

[82:21] 20. Voices Of Black - Greenleaf In The Heart (Beatriz Edit) (02:32)

[84:52] 21. Indeep - When Boys Talk (02:22)

[87:14] 22. Madlib - JB & JD (Interlude) (01:26)

[88:40] 23. ...And Now A Little Bit Of Larry Levan - Don't Say Maybe (04:13)

[92:53] 24. NYC Peech Boys - Come On, Come On (Don't Say Maybe) (03:33)

[96:25] 25. Morgan Geist - Probs(02:55)

[99:20] 26. Cloud One - Flying High (Part 2) (02:11)

[101:31] 27. You Dub - Youknow01 (04:11)

[105:42] 28. Roy Davis Jr. - Sonny (04:42)

[110:23] 29. Soul Clap feat. Charles Levine - Lonely C (04:18)

[114:41] 30. It Takes A Muscle - Spectral Display (Get A Room Edit)

(04:39)

[Paul]

Ooh, fuck. Just been messing about on the decks and I stumbled across this which I haven't listened to for literally years. How. fucking. Good?

 

Lenny Fontana Presents Black Sun - Spread Love

 

[YOUTUBE]iGEcfs-x9xk[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

And the original:

 

Al Hudson and The Soul Partners - Spread Love

 

[YOUTUBE]-uAM5OKGQTc[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

And while I'm on about very old tunes, I stumbled across this again on the way to the match in Mrs Paul's car last night. She had an 80s mixtape in her CD player and this was the first tune. How funky? And also, how ace is Tony Hadley's voice in this context? A surprising source of an ace tune, but ace it is nonetheless.

 

Spandau Ballet - Chant No. 1 (I Don't Need this Pressure On)

 

[YOUTUBE]FhcmukDKAEo[/YOUTUBE]

Edited January 7, 2012 by Paul

[Paul]

Bad Bad Not Good - Odd Future Medley

 

[YOUTUBE]Cy8uHfnxQM8[/YOUTUBE]

 

BADBADNOTGOOD x Tyler, The Creator - Seven

 

[YOUTUBE]DBYZIMIhdd0[/YOUTUBE]

Edited January 13, 2012 by Paul

[James]

Hoe Cakes (Monster Rally Remix) by Monster Rally on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free

[dennis tooth]

Jay-Z buys extravagant garden shed

13-01-12

 

RAPPER Jay-Z has purchased a million-dollar garden shed following the birth of his daughter, it has emerged.

 

Sources close to hip hop mogul claim the seven-figure Swarovski shed will be used for a combination of in-law avoidance and general pottering.

 

Situated in the garden of luxurious Hamptons home Jay-Z shares with his wife Beyonce, the super-deluxe shed has many high-end features including a silver Corbusier-style rack for half-empty pots of Humbrol and a half-finished flat pack shelving unit designed by Georgio Armani.

 

It is also believed to contain a solid gold Lorraine Schwartz-designed Old Virginia tobacco tin in which the hip-hop superstar can keep boiled sweets, string and fishing tackle.

 

Jay-Z said in a statement: “Since my crib became an actual crib, Hova be forced to relocate my shit to the bottom of the garden, know wha’m saying?

 

“Yeah. All you fellas know what I’m talking about”.

 

He added: “Actually, I just couldn’t face another conversation about whose eyes she’s got.”

 

“Also folks comparing how various hospitals are now to what they were like at an unspecified earlier point in time, and Beyonce's nan's long-ass unfinished anecdotes about what the weather was like when she was born.

 

“That shit gets real old real quick.”

[Paul]

Thought I'd put this up ages ago, but obviously not. Sounds like some classic oldie, but it isn't; very good:

 

Tell Me A Tale - Michael Kiwanuka

 

[YOUTUBE]xTa28a8QKo4[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

The Internet feat Tay Walker — They Say

 

[YOUTUBE]wvn51HzTXpI[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

BadBadNotGood - Doom

 

[YOUTUBE]jmCytJPqQis[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

Amy Winehouse - Half Time

 

[YOUTUBE]jMxWue6rvNM[/YOUTUBE]