Andy Butler & Sirhan

If you haven’t experienced the magic of Hercules and Love Affair yet, than you’re surely living under a rock and really missing out on something. Combine fresh disco sounds with the almighty genre of classic Chicago house and you have a starting point. The brainchild of Dj Andy Butler, the debut album was released on DFA records and featured tracks with Anthony from Anthony and the Johnsons doing vocals.

It is easily one of the top releases of the summers living up to all the hype around it and squashing the novelty of the gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transsexual membership of the band. Delivering a solid full length record.

Luckily for Trash readers, Mr. Andy Butler granted us with an interview when they rolled through Chicago on a short tour.

Sirhan: How is the tour going?

Andy Butler: Great, we’re also getting ready to do this and then some dates in Europe. Club dates. This is going to be fun because we are actually headlining and not doing some festival with its mix of wacky bands and stuff.

Sirhan: Yeah, everyone always think festivals are great but as a band it must be hard because there’s so much going on and people might miss you or might not remember you.

Andy Butler: Or might not even make it on time.

Sirhan: Festivals, its too much its like coco puffs with chocolate milk and chocolate syrup on top.

Andy Butler: That actually sounds great.

Sirhan: So, whats after Europe? CMJ?

Andy Butler: Actually, We are doing a private event in Central Park for Chanel.

Sirhan: Holy shit! So you are going to get to rub elbows with Karl?

Andy Butler: Yeah. Hopefully. Maybe.

Sirhan: Do you know if he is a fan of the band?

Andy Butler: I don’t know, I would hope so.

Sirhan: He seems to be on the up and up with music and has great taste. Would you ever do what Justice did for Dior or Daft Punk for Louis Vuitton?

Andy Butler: I have already been commissioned to make three pieces of music for Chanel.

Sirhan: What kind of music do you make for Chanel???

Andy Butler: Really beautiful dreamy disco with amazing vocals.

Sirhan: I am so very jealous because it’s so exciting. If someone told you 10 years ago you would be doing this what would you think?

Andy Butler: Oh that question! The truth is I never dreamed of this, I never thought one day I’ll be playing my compositions in front 3000 people. I don’t know I was a simpleton. My thoughts would only extend to friday and saturday. But sometimes I would know I was going to be recording a trumpet player on thursday. In small doses and small bits things were coming together. I was just being creative and making things for the fun of it. Eventually it got to a place where people got involved and to a place where I could take a demo to DFA and they wanted to put it out. It happened fast but in the most pleasant of ways. Everything feels like a blessing instead of me feeling like it was something I was dying for…

Sirhan: Is the band hand picked by you?

Andy Butler: It’s a handful of session players and some friends and the singers. I knew Nomi before the whole thing. It’s kinda of the backing band. Some of them played on the record. But its definatly a community and family. It’s been the same people all year. I am already thinking of next year and thinking that things will change. Maybe in the not so far future a different show will take place. This has been fun though. It’s been a bit of a challenge because its 8 people on the road.

Sirhan: Do you vibe together?

Andy Butler: Totally, we’re all sorta mellow. We are not a hardcore bunch. There’s no extreme partying. And we have all been easy people and there hasn’t been any personal shit. I mean you have 8 people in bus. Maybe because some of them are stoner’s.

Sirhan: Yes. I can imagine you’re playing for and probably get worn out and do you only have this bus?

Andy Butler: Yeah, I mean you see maybe there’d be some agitation or something. The only real thing was Kim Ann would get kinda bummed about the smells. Towards the end of the tour you might have a lot of stinky boy feet and socks and shoes. It was gross.

Sirhan: Speaking of partying, How is it after shows are people wanting to party?

Andy Butler: Thats how we differ, unless I am djing I am not going out. Kim Ann is the same way. We probably end up eating granola or something afterwards. I’ll go out but its to hear music. if there isn’t really stellar music than it’s really hard for me to hang. The other kids are more personable. I tend to be more interested in solitude and trying to get the alone time I can on tour.

Sirhan: So, are than any crazy groupie like fans?

Andy Butler: Sometimes we have some kids coming to the buss wanting autographs. Nomi attracts a fair amount of people. Kimmers too she gets a lot of girls that like to come and hang out.

Sirhan: What does the family think of the music?

Andy Butler: You ask that as a joke but on some level everyone cares what there parents think. My mother is great she knows all the words to the songs and comes to the shows and dances. My dad i dont think he listens to it or gets it because he might still wish I was working in an office. My brother thinks its great. He’s in a band and he’s really excited.

Sirhan: Was music a big part of your upbringing with your family?

Andy Butler: No, I mean the first record i remember dancing around to was Steve Miller Band a track called “Abracadabra”. I actually play a b-side of that now when I dj. My brother and I were obsessed with music.

Sirhan: He’s younger?

Andy Butler: Yeah, so we have the trickle down theory. He listens to the record and gets it. He knows all the references. My parents didn’t play any music at the house at all. There was a piano at the house. I would hear music at school and come home and try to play those songs. Music was a way of me occupying myself and enjoying my time. Music wasn’t present in my house.

Sirhan: All the places you’ve gone so far what’s your favorite?

Andy Butler: Switzerland. Every time, I say that people are surprised. Although the shows we have played there have been lukewarm. I love how it looks. It’s beautiful. Its well kept and a lot of nature and even in the city. I got a nice Swatch there and some great records. I got some chocolate. Its really great.

Sirhan: Do you have time to explore while on tour?

Andy Butler: No, every time we are Scandinavia its always short. But the best show we played was in Ireland. It was called Electric Picnic. The sound was perfect and afterwards Sinead O’connor played. I am a huge fan and to see her play “Nothing Compares 2 U” with the whole crowd singing along, it was magical.

Sirhan: So have you had better reception when you’re not in America?

Andy Butler: I thought it would be like that but however every New York show has been sold out. LA and San Francisco have been crazy. It’s only been coastal though. We’ll see what Cincinnati thinks.

Sirhan: Wait, when are you playing Cincinnati?

Andy Butler: No. But I hope too for now its only coastal.

Sirhan: What’s the crowd break up?

Andy Butler: I don’t know. It’s young and old, gay and straight but it seems to be all cool people. All people in the know.

Sirhan: So, besides Chanel any other corporate things on the way?

Andy Butler: Well, there has been songs licensed.

Sirhan: Do you have control over what gets licensed?

Andy Butler: Yeah definitely, it has to go through us.

At this point in the interview we start trailing off getting personal and talking about Chicago’s Latino punk rock scene and Los Crudos. And how a lot of America’s current dance scene is made up of a lot of kids who grew up in the hardcore scene. We were talking about the rave scene and St. Louis and Superstars of Love. The tape ran out and Andy had to go to another interview. There was a ton of people lined up to interview him and we were very lucky and privileged to have the chance to sit and chat with him for an whole hour.

The show was amazing a full hour of great music that had most the crowd dancing and every enjoying themselves. I had at least 6 other people in attendance with me that were blown away. If you get the chance than you should definitely go!

Hercules And Love Affair - You Belong
Uploaded by macken_entertainment

Hercules and Love Affair - Blind (Frankie Knuckles Dub)

Cut Copy - Far Away (Hercules and Love Affair Remix)

Fan Death and Hercules and Love Affair - Blind Death (Immuzikation Blend)

Brooklyn-based disco stalwarts Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani - otherwise known as Metro Area - are the latest in the line of artists to step up to the plate with London’s Fabric mix series.

Fabric 43, which is due for release in November, showcases the duo’s love of obscure disco, soul, house, and electronic music, spanning from the late 70s to the mid 80s, and reflects the substantial body of music they’ve produced to date. (See the end of the post for the tracklisting - they’re all quality choices.)

Morgan and Darshan’s first joint entry into the music scene was in 1999 with their self-entitled 12″ (featuring “Atmospherique”), and the duo moved swiftly on to the release of debut album Metro Area (Environ Records) in 2002. Although Morgan and Darshan have produced a number of singles since, they have not embarked on a major MA project like this until now.

I had a chance to talk to Darshan earlier this afternoon - unfortunately I talked a load of rubbish but he quite kindly discussed the Fabric mix, their next album, the global economic meltdown, New York nightlife, remixes, re-edits, and um, how to mix original disco records without making a complete mess of it - which neatly came back full circle to the Fabric mix again.

AN INTERVIEW WITH DARSHAN JESRANI, ONE HALF OF METRO AREA (15th October 08)

A: Can you tell me about the mix that you put together for Fabric? Obviously I listened to it and it was really cool. How did they approach you? What was it like - did you scream when you got off the phone? (laughs) I’m just joking! If I get this recording back, I’m just going to go ‘oh why did I say that?’

D: (laughs) We wanted to do a mix CD and Fabric had offered us a chance to do one a while back and we didn’t take it. We were kind of sitting on our hands a little bit - we didn’t know if we wanted to do one and we’d never done one before so we decided to do one with Fabric because they’re great. And because they’d take care of all of the licensing, which was save us a hell of a lot of time. We knew they’d treat the mix right and give it proper press.

D: We just wanted to represent all of the different angles of what we were into musically, which is something we try to do with our productions. They’ll be a little bit of soulful organic disco and then there’ll be some new wave angular synthesizer side to it. And then also there’ll be some contemporary weird tracky stuff going on. It’s what we do, from all different angles. It’s all about contrast. For every soulful element, we try to have something off to counter that. We try not to make anything totally homogeneous.

A: Yeah, I can really feel it. It just forces your brain into something else. I don’t know if people want that continuous three-hour club mix….(laughs), but if you want to listen to music, well….

D: That was another consideration - people taking it into their homes. There’s also a party mix tape feel to it. You’re right - a lot of mix CDs are continuous, which is just like one sound. Which is cool, but we didn’t want to do that.

A: There was loads of stuff I liked. There was this one section where you put a few tracks that had really great bass riffs – “I Can Feel It” and cloud something…. “Cloud Nine” ?

A: Yeah, and it was interesting, right at the end, the tempo sped up - it was like edging up to the diving board - it really builds you up to something else….

D: You mean it ramps up?

A: Yeah.

D: It speeds up because we wanted to include that Devo song “Freedom of Choice” and the tempo is pretty high. We didn’t want to stretch it - we wanted to play it as close to the original tempo so we had to work up to it and gradually increase the tempo. But that would be really cool if we did a sequel but start at the tempo that we left off and then gradually work back down.

A: (laughing) Yeah, fuck with people’s heads.

Album covers from www.environrecords.com

A: I just wanted to ask, because I know it’s a question that’s on a lot of people’s mind - when is your next album going to come out?

D: We’re looking at the second half of next year (2009). We’re going to be finishing new material at the beginning of the new year. So we’re hoping to have it all done by the end of the year.

A: Yeah, it can take a while to gestate.

D: There’ve been a lot of factors since our first album. I relocated to Brooklyn and built a studio from scratch. Morgan had to move also. So it’s logistics and also there’s also the art stuff - gestation, letting all the material (more…)

This is what Trash Menagerie was throwing down during the month of September. Features, interviews, parties, and plenty’a mix and MP3 download. We’re snuggling in for the busy month of October. Have you started thinking about your Halloween costume yet? We’re looking for ideas, so please hit us up and let us know if you’ve got any. Last year we gave you a heads up on how to MAKE YOUR OWN DAFT PUNK COSTUME. Hipster Runoff offered up a bit of inspiration, “WTF SHOULD I B 4 ALL HALLOW’S EVE”, But is it “ok” to be a Justice this year, if you were a Daft last year?

A truly scary option, the United States Vice Presidential Republican
Candidate and current Governor of Alaska - Sarah Palin.

Hmm, I guess she didn’t get understand the memo regarding last year’s Halloween Party. It was a Nordic theme. Looks like she still won anyway, even though she didn’t really come close to qualifying.

Sarah Palin 7 Months Preggers “I can hide my belly in a sexy, yet sophisticated, little black business suit.”

Goodness, her belly is HUGE, she looks like she’s going to pop any day now, right?

This is what Demi Moore looked like when she was seven months preggers . . .

Photo: Vanity Fair

Sarah Palin’s Witch Doctor . . .

Other potential options - “Sarah Palin Mayor of Meth”, “Sarah Palin Miss Alaska”, “Sarah Palin Soccer Mom”. Wow, and to think, the election isn’t even over yet, we’ve still got a few weeks to go . . . goodness, i’m sure we’ll have so many more choices to choose from. Maybe i’ll pull off one of those “couple costumes,” and we can go together as “Foreign Palin Policy“. One of us will be Russia, and the other Alaska, and we’ll stand on opposite sides of the room and say “I can see ya over there, behave yourself!”

“Sarah Palin Miss Alaska”

Anyway, Sarah, this song is dedicated to you . . .

Disco Villains - Move Bitch
Get more Disco Villains

TRASH MENAGERIE SEPTEMBER FEATURES

NEW MIX - TALIESIN “VIRTUAL LIGHT”
2008 End of “Summery”
Division Kent - Gravity in Your Face
Dskotek Emerges From the Rabble of LA
Why Republicans Should Go Down!!!
Bloggers Beware!
Bass Welterweight Kanji Kinetic
Revolver Disco
On A Mission
ROW ROW FIGHT THE POWAH
London Airwaves Festival Line-up Announced!
The BOX is ON
This Juan’s for You
Sarah Palin Beauty Queen
Diesel 30th Anniversary Parties!
Mystery Jets - Half in Love with Elizabeth - Delorean Remix
The Presets & The Aria Awards - They are like . . . GRAMMY’s, YO!
Midnight Juggernauts - Into the Galaxy - DANGER Remix
Charlie Ash
Miss OddKidd - Don’t Be Afraid To Sweat - Remixes - Drop The Lime & Goldielocks
Salem - Dirt Video
Rewind Chicago 1990’s Rave - Hardcore Jungle
Uproot Andy-The Great Migration
Spitzer’s - Rainy winter in Sydney
New Madlib Album & J Rocc Podcast on Stones Throw
Death Set Live at Studio 1087 pt 1 of 2
FOOLS Remixed GOLD
The Rapture !K7 Mix - Unmasterd
Crying Blood Ties in VV Brown, Holland, Weatherall, Death In Vegas, !!!
Little Boots - Meddle - Designer Drugs Remix
Yo Majesty Makes it Clap
Hold On! Hot Chip Touch Too Much
PLAYBACK - Episode 1 - Andy Butler - Hercules and Love Affair
Krudmart-Steve Kream’s Autumn Love Mixtape
Hey! Hey! Its Hey Champ!
MSTRKRFT - Fist of (oh my) God Tour
Micachu live at DURRR
A Black Hole is Opening
Bang! Bang! Eche!

TRASH MENAGERIE SEPTEMBER MIXES

Bite This! Robotic Mix From Montreal’s DJ Spaz
Little Boots - Computer Fairyland Mixtape
A Very Vanilla Mix from London’s Lesser Panda
4AM Jess vs. Proper Villians
Ruffneck DJ Set @ Brockout! Chicago, 1995
DJ Trace w GQ & 5-0 @ Psychosis - Chicago, 1995
Uproot Andy - Guacharaca Migration
The Toxic Avenger Live at Piknik Electronik - Montreal
Jon Hillcock Xfm Mixes

TRASH MENAGERIE SEPTEMBER LISTINGS

NY’s New Favorite Place to be on Friday’s
N.A.M.E. festival 2008 - Edition n° 4 - France
NewPop + Dj Mehdi, Local Hero - Chicago!
MSTRKRFT Fist of God Tour
Somewhere In The Universe There Must Be Something Better Than Man’ 2nd Birthday - Brighton
Sinden at LOVE 9/20/08!
POP MONTREAL 2008 FINAL LINEUP ANNOUNCED
Atmosphere on Tour & on Kimmel
2008 DECIBEL FESTIVAL : FULL LINEUP & PROGRAM ANNOUNCED
Italian Invasion - LA

GET IN TOUCH WITH THE TRASH MENAGERIE CREW - CONTACT@TRASHMENAGERIE.COM

Here’s a great video from Chicago’s, Hey Champ a hot new trio in the scene making some fresh tunes. The video is for the band’s new single “Cold Dust Girl“. This is one of those sneaky songs that you hear at night and wake up in the morning with its melodies still infecting your thoughts. Then you immediately want to hear it again. It’s just that fresh.

The first exposure to the world for the trio was when a blog accidentally posted their remix of Scenario Rock’s “Perfect Love Antidote” as Ed Banger’s distorto super producer Sebastian. When the remix was discovered that it was really Hey Champ, the trio’s take on the song was strong enough to gain plenty of acclaim. It is even available on itunes (Europe only) and was put out by a major label Sony.

Their sound can easily be compared to the likes of Van She, Cut Copy, Fred Falke and Les Rhythmes Digitales. Mixing rock with elements of house all based over an abudant amount of synth action. Sometimes playing out as a full band and sometimes doing dj sets, Hey Champ is paying their dues quickly. Already featured in UR Magazine with an upbeat, good times mix. Gaining bookings more and more and even getting rapper Lupe Fiasco attention enough for him to write about them on his blog. It is also entirely possible that the group will be scooped up at anytime by a record label.

Enjoy the video and the mp3 and check the groups myspace to keep updated.

Hey Champ! - Cold Dust Girl

My favorite band, The Rapture, also DJ. They are soon releasing a mix on K7, and oops, it leaked. This is the un-mastered version. They have two of my favorite tracks back to back - Armand Van Helden “Flowerz” & Cajmere feat. Dajae - “Say U Will.” Paul Johnson’s “Get, Get, Down”, I think this was the tracks where he showed the world, not only could he produce, but also sing. Also included in the mix the unreleased track from the forthcoming - Dances With White Girls EP “Everybody’s Got to Make a Living”, which is soon coming out on their own label - “Throne Of Blood“, the EP is currently “in promo”, expect it to be making the blog rounds soon!

Gabe, cute fan, & Vito - photo credit: Amy Wimmer

Download The Rapture !K7 Tapes

THE RAPTURE !K7 TAPES
01. Earthquake Shake - The Undisputed Truth
02. Daytona 500 - Ghostface Killah
03. The Word - Junkyard Band
04. Holy Ghost - The Bar-Kays
05. Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll - Vaughan Mason & Crew
06. Tee’s Happy - Northend
07. I’m An Indian Too - Don Armando’s Second Avenue Rumble
08. Fantasy Lines - Arcade Lover
09. Disco Circus - Martin Circus
10. Club Soda - Thomas Bangalter
11. The Passion (Phonique Mix Down) - Kiloo
12. Flowerz - Armand van Helden
13. Say U Will - Cajmere feat Dajae
14. Where’s Jason K - Syclops
15. Township Funk - DJ Mujava
16. Cpstyre - Donk Boys
17. Everybody’s Got To Make A Living - Dances With White Girls
18. Why Not?! - Alter Ego
19. Get Get Down (Extended Mix) - Paul Johnson
20. Austin’s Groove - Kid Crème
21. Going Back To My Roots - Richie Havens
22. Afro Arps And Minimoogs (S2) - Galaxy 2 Galaxy

Also download and listen: The Rapture Retro Essential Mix - BBC Radio One

(and yeah, I just realized, this should probably be in our “mixes” section, another “oops”)

If you saw Division Kent’s new album, Gravity, walking down the street it would be the most darkly sensual woman with a cigarette hanging out of her parted lips asking you for a light. Somehow this group manages to pull off breathy female vocals and slithering sounds without sounding like a couple of depressed emo kids.

To give some background, Division Kent is based out of Zurich, Switzerland and currently signed to Sony BMG. Made up of Andrea B. and Sky Antinori, this duo is officially seducing the US in October when Gravity is expected to be released. Listening to the tracks takes you on a musical trip, with ethereal music and vocals that could probably bring tears to your eyes and a smile to your face at the same time. I will say that my particular favorites are “L’heure bleue”, “No Kryptonite” and “In the headlights”.

So in order to show our love for them and you, we’re posting a few tracks illustrating the style and variations that encompass Division Kent and some of the killer remixes that have come out of this album already. Want a literary preview of our remixers?

The Phantom’s Revenge out of Nîmes, France is a disco tap! Listening to their remix makes me wanna boogie nights, sleep never, and bust out the glitter.

From the Netherlands, expect to get Shook‘d up with… some Jane Fonda spandex. This remix is a dream complete with 80s fadeouts, leggings, and a Pretty in Pink attitude.

The intro on this version by L.A.’s Keenhouse, sounds like something you’d hear as the background music on a Discovery Channel show about spiders, when they show the spiders building a web in like 10X speed. Then it quickly gets into the sexy French lyrics.

Not in the US? Well, it’s already been released in Switzerland if you’re over there. In early 2009 it will be released in Germany, Austria, Benelux, and the UK. The Euro edition comes with a bonus CD of nothin’ but remixes. All in all not a bad little package here. Enjoy!!

Division Kent - Offshore (The Phantom’s Revenge)

Division Kent - L’Heure Blue (Shook remix)

Division Kent - L’Heure Bleue (Keenhouse Remix)

Summer is coming to and end, its been a good one, kept me busy, got to do some traveling, made my way across the country and back a few times, ran into old friends, made some new ones, found myself at more day events and festivals than clubs, which was really great. Soon enough its going to be cold here in New York, and ill be taking shelter in a club and paying $8 for cocktails. Since i’ve been slacking in the post department, i’m going to try and make up for lost time with a “summery” of my 2008.

Santogold @ sound check for Radio 1 - Annie Mac show, WMC March 2008

Saw Santogold perform a few times, although unfortunately, I missed her dates with Coldplay. I did however see her just about everywhere else I went, on the side of buses, in the subway, in magazines, TV, on the wall of Terminal 5 when I went to see Brian Jonestown Massacre (Joel performed, it was great, nobody got in a fight, bummer.) Anyway, you get the idea, Santi is everywhere, repping in style for Converse Connectivity. I have to say, the campaign is pretty tight, they did good, no one is trying to shove blatant adverts your way, the micro site is crafty, there’s a lot going on, you can even design your own kicks, and sonically, the artists on board, I genuinely like and listen to. Someone in the marketing department did their homework.

Santogold - L.E.S Artistes - Switch Remix

Want more Santi? Here you go, Santogold - Creator - Chewy Chocolate Cookies Remix And just about everyone I know won’t say no to more cookies - Danger “14H54″ Chewy Chocolate Cookies Remix, exclusively on @ Itunes - get it HERE

Brian Jonestown Massacre, Terminal 5, New York July 25 08

Crowd gathering for Radiohead - Lollapalooza Chicago, Aug 1 08

Lollapalooza in Chicago was definitely one of the highlight’s of my summer, I traveled from NY with Spank Rock and crew - Amanda Blank, Devlin & Darko, and Natalie. Their schedule was as full as it could for the weekend, press, after parties, and of course, their Saturday performance on the Citi Stage. Everyone rolled in Friday night, and headed over to the festival site for Radiohead.

I ran into the Foals, which was a super unexpected and pleasant surprise. I grabbed a piece of lawn and had a few drinks with Yannis and Jack, caught up, talked about the past year, how things have changed since we had last had seen each other in New York, when they were recording their album. They’ve got the typical touring band schedule, traveling constantly, playing tons of great festivals, waking up and not knowing where they are. Yannis and I tried to recall what it was that we were debating a few months back in regard to minimal techno (we are both fans - Minitek!!! ), never did figure it out. Soon more Foals came to graze, a grass fight ensued, and it was truly an “Electric Bloom” moment when they started shoving chunks of earth down each others shirts, it was my “Warning Call” to make an exit, so I galloped away to wait in the mile long line for a Vodka and Vitamin water.

Foals - Electric Bloom - Postmortem -arQon remix

While I was waiting in line, Radiohead took to the stage, all day everyone I ran into was gushing in anticipation of their performance, I was no different. It had been almost 2 years to the day that I had seen them last, also in Chicago, but in a theater setting, this time, it was outside to a sold out crowd of well over 70k, I love festivals. When Radiohead went on, the masses were well into it as expected, I had a side view, so I wasn’t able to see much of the production, that being the massive LCD’s and light show, or even much of the band for that matter, but hearing was good enough. What I was able to see was the woman at the front of the stage signing Radiohead’s lyrics, dancing, and clearly having the time of her life. (Note to self - learn sign language, what a great gig to have.) During their performance I was filled in on the fact that Thom Yorke is in fact a big fan of Spank Rock, and listed the album, Yo, Yo, Yo, Yo, Yo, as one of his top 10 albums of 2007, my eyes bugged out of my head a bit. Really?

Spank Rock is also a big fan of Radiohead and Thom Yorke. For a slight second I wondered if there was anyway for the two of them to meet, considering they had this mutual artist respect thing going on. But I also realized it was probably next to impossible, i’m sure everyone and their mother was probably trying to have a chat with the band that night, plus, it was a massive show. I put to rest the idea trying to make the introduction, got back to reality. The band did a few encore’s everyone was blissed out, it was a very memorable evening. We took off right as they were doing their last song to avoid getting caught up in the mass exodus. 70k people all leaving at once is a bit much. After parties were popping off all over the city, Foals were DJ’ing, Bloc Party, Does It Offend You, Yeah?, all kinds of madness, but I was exhausted, and Saturday was going to be crazy so I called it a night.

Saturday, well, I ended up not hitting after parties, but went to a local bar and tied one on with some old friends. We made a late night run to Rockstar Dog’s, ordered a couple of “Los Lobos”, and “tots” and yeah, we felt like what we ingested. When we woke up the next day we asked ourselves what the hell were we thinking? Oh! We were not thinking, we were drunk.

No time to be hungover, there was stuff to do, no rest for the wicked. I headed over to the Hard Rock Hotel, to meet up with the Spank Rock crew for Spin & Metromix’s gifting suite. They threw down, excellent grub, fancy juices, energy drinks, spa services, and sweet schwag. This was good, I was starting to feel better. Then it was interview time, Ms. Amanda Blank was losing her voice, and was under Dr.’s orders not make a peep until the Lolla performance later that afternoon. She made a clever name tag and attached it to her shirt letting everyone know, hey, I can’t talk, and worked some sign language of her own. The girl is amazing, she still managed to convey what she wanted to say, and charmed everyone.

Spank Rock & Amanda Blank Interview for Metromix @ Lollapalooza, Aug 2 08

Interviews were over, the crew split up, Spank Rock (Naeem, solo) and I jetted off (actually crawled through major traffic) as he was DJ’ing at the Diesel store. It was his first gig outside of Philly, he’s been dj’ing regularly every Monday night at a party he started called The Jang House, it all goes down at the Barbary. I’ve been told by many this night is hot, and hella fun, so it’s on my “to do” in the very near future list. I’ve never heard Naeem DJ before, he plays an eclectic mix of retro, disco, mash-up’s, heard some Prince, said ‘oh yes, I love this too!”, when he threw on a remix of MGMT’s, “Electric Feel”, we both agreed the video was sexy as hell and wish we could have been in it.

It was nearing Spank Rock’s 5:00pm stage time, we high tailed it outta the Diesel store, jumped in a car, and headed to the Lolla site. The first thing that reached our ears when we got on site, MGMT, of course, go figure. We sighed, got over the fact we were missing their performance, and jumped on a golf cart that delivered us to the Citi Stage. Booka Shade was just wrapping up their set. For me, seeing them provided some solace for the MGMT loss, hey were amazing as always. Spank Rock took to the stage and performed to a charged up crowd, Amanda’s voice was in top form, the crew brought the party, Plastic Little jumped on stage and did a guest spot, everyone was caught up in their energy, the stage and the audience may have well been one.

MGMT - Kids - Skyve Reuters Bunkalifony Edit

The Lolla performance was over, but the day was is not, one more interview with Fuse TV, then back over to the Hard Rock for an after party performance with Mark Ronson and Spank Rock. We were starting to feel like we might be hitting the wall, festivals are fun, but they are hot, and have the ability to suck the energy out of you. Besides being tired, everyone was hungry, we had dinner reservations at the China Grill, which thank god, we didn’t have to go far for, as it was adjacent to the hotel. Dinner was excellent, but now we were really tired, time to rest. We made our way out the door mumbling about various things in our food comas, then everyone got really quiet. After we walked outside the door, we looked at each other, and all at once started talking - “hey that guy looked really familiar?”,”do you know that guy?”, “who was that?”, “was that Thom Yorke?”, “That WAS Thom Yorke.” We snapped out of our comas. Damn, It’s Thom Yorke.

All things considered, Thom being a fan of Spank Rock, and vice versa, we should go over and say hello, right? It was kinda too ironic that we were having dinner in the same place at the same time. But everyone agreed, interrupting him, or anyone for that matter, during dinner, who probably already has a hard time in the “peace & quiet” department, we didn’t want to go there. So we continued on to our rooms where we twiddled our thumbs. It was definitely one of those “what would Jesus do?’ moments.

We discussed the irony at hand. I thought Thom & Naeem should meet, it was kind of a no brainer. And I admit, I had my own selfish reasons, I also really wanted to chat with Thom first hand about music industry politics. I think i’ve easily done 20 + posts about Radiohead and/or Thom. When the band released In Rainbows, it was kind of a big deal.

Everyone I know carefully watched how the band’s, name your own price, self release, limited edition box set concept was going to unfold. For weeks it was the hottest topic of conversation. So the release day came, people got online and placed their order, and continued to watch the concept unfold. In my opinion, it was a beautiful. No, Radiohead didn’t fix everything that was wrong with the industry, and what they did, most bands can’t really afford to do. (I discussed this with LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy, read it here). They did kick open the door of the major labels, and sent a very strong message. They gave their fans a choice, they made room for both artists and others in the industry, to do even more inspired and creative things, perhaps even take risks they might not have before. They let people know, that yes, you can release music in a non-traditional way and it can work. Not only that, you can do it on your own, they exact way YOU want to do it, real freedom of expression. And isn’t that what everyone wants? Not only in art, but in life.

If you haven’t picked up on it yet, I live for these kinds of moments, i’m all for pushing the envelope, DIY, thinking outside of the box, stick it to “the man”, all those common cliches. I feel i’ve fallen off course at this point, so let me get back to the story and how it all ends.

I lived in Chicago for 16 years, it just so happens that I know the manager of the China Grill, I figure I might as well take advantage of that, so I head back to the restaurant, tell him the story. He tells me that Thom and his friends were almost done with their meal, and adds that they are really pleasant, he offered to ask them if they would be so inclined to meet us. I agreed this would be appropriate, and so it goes, “Thom would love to meet Spank Rock”.

I made my way back up to our floor, and my heart fluttered a bit when I told Naeem, come on, we’re going to go and say hello to Thom, and so we did. I hung back as they spoke about music, production, the writing process, how it can be difficult and unnerving process. As an artist, you second guess yourself, wonder if what your writing is good enough, you feel pressure to create something and your not always sure where you’re going with it, or what it is you want to create. Thom shared that he most certainly felt like that, and felt most everyone does, its part of the process of creating, and if those moments where you question yourself didn’t happen, that would seem to be a bit odd, and that perhaps was when an artist should worry. So as it turns out, Thom’s just like the rest of us, word. We spoke about their performance the day before, I told him I really only got to see the woman signing, he said she was great, stole the show. I got my politics on, we discussed the interview he and David Byrne did with Wired Magazine, on the real value of music.

Thom said it was an interesting interview, rather quiet, not as much talking between the two of them as one might think. Which kind of surprised me, I would assume they would carry on for hours. However, I’ve seen a few live interviews with Byrne, he’s incredibly intelligent, insightful, (I closely follow his industry politics as well), but I could see why a bit of silence between the two, might be the case. There is a particular interview Byrne did that stands out, with Daniel Levitin (author of This Is Your Brain On Music), you can check it out at Seed Mag online. We also discussed the In Rainbows release, Thom was very humble, when I expressed how I felt about the release, he said the release was just a minor start toward rebuilding an ailing music industry, and that there is still a lot of work to be done, particularly when it comes to radio. We had been carrying on for some time now, espressos were to be had, they were off to a show the next day, and exhausted from a day of boating on Lake Michigan, we had our own show, call time was just an hour away, we said our goodbye’s and floated away.

Radiohead - Ceremony - Thumbs Down - Webcast

Spank Rock hit the stage for the Spin & Metromix after party, the room was packed, but the crowd was a bit lethargic, however, when these guys hit the stage, it doesn’t take long to get a room going. Lindsay Lohan and Sam Ronson were in attendance with their posse, so in honor of the occasion, Spank Rock finished the set with Lindsay Lohan’s Revenge. I think the posse was caught off guard, as they exited the room before the song was over. Funny stuff.

Amanda Blank & Natalie - Hard Rock After Party, Aug 2

Naeem - Hard Rock After Party, Aug 2

I also hit a few Rock The Bells shows - saw Tribe Called Quest, Pharcyde, Mos Def, Nas, even a stellar, surprise performance in Denver from Black Star.

Nas - Rock The Bells, Columbia, MD July 27 08

Black Star - Rock The Bells, Denver, Co Aug 23

All in all, great summer, and as this post is quickly becoming a novella, I shall end it here, and leave you with this entertaining video of what I can only assume are cheerleaders learning new dance routines at summer camp to “Bump”. The dude the runs out to lead them rocks.

Summer is winding down and for some that means the end of great weather and lazy days. That doesn’t stop the enjoyment of some sun soak roller disco tunes that reminisce of the late 70’s era. Fan Death, provides these tunes in an almost eerie sense of authenticity. Perfect for the afterparty, the songs wash over you sense of warmth and romance and leave you wanting more.

Little is known about Fan Death, they are being presented to us shrouded in mystery, hopefully to entice us on their substance more than their style. They already have caught the attention and are being endorsed by superstar tastemaker djs like Diplo and Erol Alkan. With good reason too, they are great and could be easily compared to Glass Candy and The Chromatics as well as Cerrone or Gino Soccio. There great expectations to be had here because Fan Death should do some great things.

Be on the lookout for the “Veronica’s Veil” 12″ and future work, although with a group this exciting its unforeseeable that they will be able to ignore.

Please enjoy the following tracks and when the record comes out purchase it.

First tune “The Son Will Rise” is quickly reaching the top of my itunes most played tracks. It’s the infectious horn line and swagger the track has that keeps me coming back. It also is similar feel to rapper Young Jeezy’s track “Circulate“. Which for legal purposes I cannot post but seek it out for a comparrison.

Fan Death- The Son Will Rise

And “Veronica’s Veil” is the track that the 12″ will be named after was my first encounter with the group but immediately hooked me.

Fan Death- Veronica’s Veil

Rico Tubbs is a name that’s been floating around many of the blogs in 2008. Tracks of his have been popping up here and there and they have been met with great accolades from some of the biggest tastemakers spanning numerous genres and subcultures. Now, a brand new album, Knuckle Sandwich, packed with Grade A bangers, has just been unleashed to further his dance music domination. It seems, though, most people haven’t a clue who Rico Tubbs actually is.

He is by no means a n00b to the scene. He’s been DJing and producing in his native Finland since ‘94 starting in UK Hardcore and Hiphop and leading into Big Beat, Breakbeat and whatever else you can call his music now. In his home country, he is an electronic music legend producing under his real name Riku Pentti and comprising one half of The Skillsters, credited with producing the first Finnish Hiphop album in history. From there, thanks to his avant garde scratching abilities, Rico joined the venerable big beat troupe, The Bombfunk MC’s as their DJ/Producer/whatever else.

Once big beat faded, Riku reinvented himself again, always retaining that funky hardcore/hiphop vibe, and reemerged in the peaking breakbeat scene as Rico Tubbs and the pseudonym Infekto. Releasing records on KissFM DJ Jay Cunning and Atomic Hooligan’s label Menu Music, he immediately became known for making some of the best peaktimers of the heyday of new school funky breaks. Gradually, his unique breaky sound began to infiltrate the blogs and that brings us to the present.

What sets Rico’s sound apart from everyone else is that he clearly embraces every type of music that he’s ever liked and uses it indiscriminately throughout his tunes. It’s not fidget, its not breakbeat, its not hardcore, its not b-more, but it’s an amalgamation of all of those and more used in an unapologetic, bold manner. Rico’s new album exemplifies that fact and was purposefully filled to the brim with club bangers.

To celebrate said album, available now on Juno, iTunes or wherever else you might find proper music, here’s a taste of what Rico’s been putting forth; a VIP mix of his squelchy bass banger, Hot Girls Dope Boys, done especially for TM. And just to further solidify his authenticity and prove that he’s been doing this since many of you were just a glimmer in your fathers eye, here’s an oldschool hardcore mix that he provided us, containing some of the real classics. So sit back, have a listen, read this short interview and then buy the album. It’s sooooooo good!

Rico Tubbs - Hot Girls Dope Boys (VIP)

Rico Tubbs - HardcoreJungleTeknoRave 91-93

01. Altern-8 : Evaporate (1992,Network)
02. Djs Unite : Djs Unite (1992 ,XL)
03. Shut up and Dance : The green man (1992,shut up and dance)
04. A Home boy, A hippie & Funky dread : Now is the future (1992,Rising high )
05. Two Undercover : Unite (1992,De ja vu)
06. Kaotic Kemistry : Space Cakes ( 1993,Moving Shadow)
07. Q Bass : Hardcore Will Never Die /E type version (1991,Suburban Base)
08. Sonz of a loop da loop era : Far Out (1991,Suburban Base)
09. The Prodigy : Full Throttle (XL,1993)
10. Dance Conspiracy : Dub War Chapter 1(XL,1992)
11. Run tings : Fires Burning (Suburban Base 1992)
12. Krome & Time: This Sound is for the Underground (Suburban Base 1992)
13. Acen : Trip 2 the moon part 2 (Production house 1992)
14. Manix : Alright Wid Me (1993,Reinforced)
15. Manix : Hardcore Junglism (1992,Reinforced)
16.Underground Software : Different ting (1992,Reinforced)
17. Cloud 9 : You got Me Burning (1993,Moving Shadow)
18. Soundclash vs Hackney Hardcore : Hear Gunshots (1993,Strictly Underground)
19. Foul Play : Finest illusion (1993,Moving Shadow)
20. Ltj Bukem& Tayla : Bang the drums (1992,Good looking )

Local Hero: Lets kick it off with an easy one. What are you listening to right now?

Rico Tubbs: Italo disco,”Dance Mania” Chicago house stuff , some 60’s psych rock and Bengas album have been on heavy rotation.

LH: You’ve been producing and releasing records since 1995 in your native Finland. Tell us about some of the early Rico Tubbs projects.

RT: When I got my first releases out it was the time of big beat - sample heavy fun party music. Not much different of what I do now - the hip hop samples and rave elements can be heard through all my production from day one.

LH: Not many producers from the breaks scene have been able to crossover to the electro/blog house scene as successfully as you have. Was this crossover success intended? If so what did you put into the music to garner the crossover appeal?

RT: The crossover was not calculated in any way. My production style is based more on chaos than clear vision and I think Ive done tunes in most genres of electronic music. As a producer/dj you should anyway be intrested in new things and it always amazes me how many purists there are who are stuck into their little box. Now I feel that electronic music is in its most exciting phase in many years.The trend now overlaps the most with what I love in dance music : big and quirky basslines,hip hop or rather hip house and rave.

LH: Seems like you’ve kept quite busy djing so far this year. Whats been the awesomest party you’ve played this year?

RT: I have to say Glade.That was the first festival of that magnitude Ive played. Everything was well organized and the atmosphere was great.

LH: What was the musical aim of your new album? What were you trying to accomplish with it?

RT: My aim was to get a coherent album full of club bangers. I tried to make it so tight that you’d want to get the whole thing - not just pick and choose just 1 or 2 tracks as often is the case among dance albums.

LH: You’ve always maintained an aggressive funky sound but without being cheesy. How and from what influences did you derive the Rico Tubbs style?

RT: When Rico Tubbs was born the sound was influenced by stripped down funk of JB’s and sillyness of Parliament - with some heavy fart bass. Its gone a long way from that during past 5 years but the heavy bass groove is still the core. Now you can hear more of the influence of my hardcore favourites : Altern-8, Manix and early Moving Shadow/Suburban Base. There also some speed garage/bassline there of which I’ve always been a fan of.

LH: Now that the albums done and released, what comes next?

RT: Theres been a lot of remix work of which the latest is for Tittsworth 12 Steps album. Theres also an EP coming on Herve’s label later this year and a track on Finnish b-more club label Top Billin’. There might be a remix album of “Knuckle Sandwich” as well if everything goes by the plan - first out will be Tes La Rok and Muffler remixes of “Gangsters”.

Hey guys! New contributor Jesse Mann here, writing all the way from NYC. I’ll be bringing you the bestest of the bestest in the realms of disco old and new, dirty house, and beautiful techno. For my first post I want to tell you all about an upstart duo making waves with their eclectic and organic sound.

The Canyons come from the magical land of Oz (that’s Australia to you and me.) Over down under, the hip and bright-eyed young kids are the ones that rule the musical roost. Canyons are no different in their youthful stature, but musically they are far more mature. Their debut EP on the wonderful Hole in the Sky record label called the “Lovemore EP” is a four-tracker of raw, soulful mid-tempo goodness. Elements of dubbed out disco, classic electro and psychedelic rock mix with pleasant grooves for a wonderful summery sound. I have been spinning “Apples and Pears,” the EP’s lead tune religiously for months now (I’m a DJ here in the apple) and it will instantly get feet moving and mouths smiling. These guys are not trying to fit into any hot trends of the moment, and the diversity on this EP is proof. They do whatever they please, and listeners are all the more rewarded for it.

Thank goodness someone else has taken notice! The boys have now been commissioned to remix a current blog darling from Modular Records. Their latest remix of Ladyhawke’s “Dust Till Dawn” has hit the blogsphere ahead of the self-titled debut album, Ladyhawke (released 22 September) and once again The Canyons show their versatility in spades. Rather than try to describe it, why don’t you just take a listen below? And for a different flavor see what Glasgow’s Linus Loves has done with the Ladyhawke original.

Ladyhawke - Dusk Till Dawn (Canyons Garage Disco Mix)

Ladyhawke - Dusk Till Dawn (Linus Loves Remix)

via ChiefBodega.com

In the last 3 months New York City has felt a quiet roar coming from across the Brooklyn Bridge. Off the JMZ to Myrtle Avenue, deep in the heart of Brooklyn’s Bushwick neighborhood, is a bodega. But this bodega doesn’t sell $1 40’s, $0.50 Twinkies, or cheap cigarettes, but it does sell an affordable time of your life. The Bodega is an up and coming project from the Chief Magazine boys Andy Smith and Ed Zipco, and it’s working. A cheap, out-of-the-way venue, in which lots of people somehow find there way to and go bat-shit crazy.

Arriving at The Bodega was for me as much of a whim as any other music-related gem I discover via the internet or word-of-mouth. Luckily the night I decided to attend, it was one something of a treat for The Bodega. Playing out that night was Morsy of Nanachill.com and a bright young B-More/Bootybass talent, as well as Famous Friends (Finger on the Pulse), and Mr. Andersonic with a live MPC-set. From the moment I arrived and felt the first trickle of sweat along my forehead, there was no doubt that this was the best party I’ve been to so far (exception goes to Diplo @ T&B for obvious reasons). More than even the urgent sounds of throbbing Booty Bass, it was the crowd that was staggering.

Certainly Daft Punk at Coachella 2006 was enough to make people lose their shit, not to mention the occasional Studio B performance by M.I.A., or most often at Death By Audio. But that Thursday night (yes, Thurs.) brought one of the more diverse (skull caps and dolphin floatees) and apeshit crowds I’ve ever witnessed. At even the slightest sound of the Baltimore Club clap and shake, kids were applauding and jumping with praise. At one point in the evening, the invisible and visceral ooze of crowd pleasure has reached a peak and out came a large stuffed horse, probably won by a lucky girl at one of the many Coney Island water-gun games. The horse, in a flurry of passion and impulse was thoroughly molested by a twosome of B-Boys in the middle of the dance floor. Between furious humpings and the occasional launch into the air, there was little if anything anybody could do to justify what was going on.

Arriving at Bodega at 1AM and leaving at 4AM felt short-lived. But walking out the door I made sure to ask a Bodega faithful what the deal was. I was then introduced to the General Manager Steve, who being extremely accommodating agreed to meet with me in the coming week. After a casual walk around Union Square and a few riffs on the current musical scene, Steve put me in touch with the founders/owner Andy Smith and Ed Zipco. And after a few $1 PBR’s at Soundfix, I came to understand the stoppage in time that was my Thursday night.

Much like any young party-throwers, Ed and Andy liked to throw big ones. At their old loft space in Bushwick they threw dozens of police-happy ragers. These weren’t just ragers though, they were concerts. With friends in bands and as DJ’s, they became notorious for their themed parties for events like the Super Bowl and Halloween. Unfortunately some of these ended with blacked out girls peeing on neighbor’s A/C machines and providing a golden rain to those unlucky enough to be nearby. As the ease of party throwing quickly gave way to the forces in blue, they took them to bars and music venues.

But like any established venue here in New York, these events came with large cover fees and $12 drinks. Dissatisfied with the traditional annals of party throwing, it was time for a creation of their own. With Chief Magazine as their original baby, Ed and Andy had already built a DIY space. And when they caught wind of a crooked bodega space going up for lease last April, they went for broke.

Rotted, dying and possibly full of dead, the space they decided would be their new project was more of an adventure than a project. Filled to the brim with junk, rotting walls, and surgical equipment(they don’t hypothesis on this one), they invited their friends and family to camp out inside and begin renovation.

Andy On His Lunch Break

Over a month later and 12-hr days every day, they rebuilt walls, hauled innumerable amounts of trash and filth from the belly of the bodega, and stacked more debt than all of it combined. By the first week of June they had their first party, and people showed up. Despite a broken stage their first night and a few construction errors, they had, for all they knew, the biggest financial mistake of their lives sitting on 1089 Broadway in Bushwick, Brooklyn.

Looking at the Myspace page for The Bodega, you’ll notice a series of dates for the month of August. Particularly though, you’ll notice that this week is booked in its entirety. Ed and Andy when I talked to them said they were willing to try anything at this point. That they haven’t had a “bad night.” (Save for a punk set ending in shattered glass and a bloody lead singer). At Santo’s Party House, Andrew WK’s mixed blessing, they require $8000 at the bar in order for outside booking to come play. Ed and Andy offered me a chance to play out before I left, ya know, just for fun. To the Chief boys, The Bodega is our space, and if you or I think we can throw a great party, they think so too.

Ed and Andy told me they didn’t have a grand vision necessarily, but just wanted to continue the success of their projects (Chief Mag, The Bodega, Chief Records) and see their musician friends garner the success they deserve. But if everything truly works out, the Chief boys have something unprecedented on their hands. With the excpetion of Fader’s rising FADERlabel, there is no other triad of business force like what they have begun.

With plans to have arts installations, a liquor license, and a fully operational basement space, The Bodega is most certainly here to stay. Perhaps next in line should be the Chief Rail, transporting the young and the restless from the Island and to the BK. But no matter, The Bodega location is almost like a filter, as only the dedicated and truly restless (passionate) come to witness what they’ve been itching for here in New York for a long time.

Friday night will mark the 2nd “Night of the Jams” since I’ve been here. DJ Tameil of the infamous Unruly Records. Unruly Records, for those who don’t know or are too lazy to click the aforementioned link, is the very first Baltimore Club label, started by Scottie B and Shawn Caesar. Other notable Bodega artists include, Chief Record’s family Ninjasonik, Japanther, Juiceboxxx, The Death Set, Danger, Spitzer, and The So So Glos.

On Friday night, the evening of Night of the Jams, take a moment in your “face-down-ass-up,” to look around the Bodega walls and around the room at those in attendance. Most likely you’ll see Ed and Andy, beers in fist, smiling and laughing at what they created, still in disbelief, but having the time of their lives for the 4th time that week.

From Right to Left: Ed Zipco, Andy Laumann, Dude

Morsy - Tukka Yoots Riddim

Ninjasonik - Tight Pants

Lil Wayne - A Milli (DJ Tameil Remix)

This Sunday marked the first ever Brooklyn Electronic Music Festival, hosted by Street Attack,