Archive for October, 2011

I know I’m posting this on Halloween, but this is still very much an all-time favorite!

I stayed home last night with Katrina, instead of heading out to the Zombie Walk in Downtown Long Beach, so we decided to watch some Halloween flicks.  I suggested we watch “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein,” and went off on how the classic scary characters were present in the film, including Bela Lugosi as Dracula.  Such a unique time in film history.

After that, I made her listen to one of my favorite songs of ALL time, “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” by Bauhaus.  I don’t even know much about Bauhaus, but I know this song came out around 1979, so I’m assuming they are a kind of pre-industrial band.  I should probably do more research about them.  Never-the-less, I LOVE this track.  Not only is it an extended 9 minutes long, there are these open moments in the track with amazing echo effects.  It’s one of those “get lost” tracks, where you just zone out in it.

I was reading that there were only 5,000 copies of the 12″ made, so now I’m on the hunt!

Played this for breakfast this morning…One of the first Blue Note LP’s I bought quite a while back.  Found this at Aron’s Records, an amazing used record store in Hollywood that ended up closing due to, in my opinion, Amoeba coming to town.  This was one of those spots where you could find some amazing gems in the dollar bins!

Be here.

I’m proud to announce another edition of Forward Listening, available now on The Noise Academy’s website and iTunes.  2 hours of goodness from Ocote Soul Sounds, Thievery Corporation, Mia Doi Todd, Bob & Gene, Garfield Adams, and more…

I’m really diggin the Chrissy Murderbot “Women’s Studies” album on Planet Mu.  It came out in April and it took me a few months to get to it, but I’m all over it as of late.  Chrissy Murderbot is a DJ/Producer from Chicago, combining UK Bass scene and Juke/Footwork styles.  I was trolling the internet and found out they made a video for one of my favorite tracks from the album, “Bussin Down.”  Love the Dayton sample!

I was fortunate enough to catch a pre-screening of this movie at Matt’s Movies before the Los Angeles release later this month.  Really cool movie about a man absorbed in the culture of the Bayaka pygmies of Yandombe.  A musical people, this film had my ears smiling the entire time.  One of my favorite moments was the main character witnessing the women creating rhythms by splashing and slapping water in a river.  “OKA!” will premiere in Los Angeles at the Laemmele Sunset 5 on October 28th.

I help Chris Douridas on his show every other Saturday at KCRW.  Chris hosts a weekly event called “It’s a School Night,” every Monday at Bardot on the second floor of Avalon in Hollywood.  When I saw that this week they were welcoming Chico Mann to the stage, I had to make an exception and go out on a Monday night.  He streamlined his live show to two people for this performance, and it made me think back to when I saw him get down in Fullerton with Ticklah, DJ Obah, and Vinia Mojica.  That was a legendary night, now that I think about it.

This performance was setup almost completely through Ableton, and the results were absolutely amazing.  One of the things that really stands out when using production software for live performances is the bass that stands out in comparison to a standard band’s drum kit.  The 808 was bumpin for Chico Mann’s performance tonight!  He definitely pushed the sound system in this small, 200 person room.  It was an afro-electric night of fresh dance music, and I’m glad I got to see it.

Before I praise this track, let me say that this might be the worst ending to a song I’ve heard in a long time.  That said, I’ve been simmering on this one for a minute.  Really listening to it as much as possible.  Extremely strong beginning, with heavy drums and compelling guitar.  It’s to the point where I’m waking up with this in my head.  Hannibal has been making serious waves in the past two years, especially with the success of Quadron.  He is working with numerous artists on multiple projects, but this is from an EP that is 100% Robin Hannibal.  Production, vocals, everything.  I get a feeling that this is more of an example of demos that Plug Research decided to release, which is why you have certain moments such as the end of this song that make you ask, “what was he thinking?!”  Either way, I love this track…

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/20783891″]

This is jazz for 2011…Some real, nitty gritty, space funk, jazzadelic, herbie vs. george duke type of goodness.  Thundercat is a bassist out of Los Angeles.  His debut solo record is produced by Flying Lotus and is out now on Brainfeeder.  Enjoy this one in the car at the beginning or end of your day.

1/3 of the now defunct Little Brother.  From his new solo debut album, Phonte does what he does best, rhymes.  He’s honest, he’s brutal, and he’s consistent.  His humor isn’t too over the top and I relate to everything he says with ease.  This one stuck to me, especially after listening to a new Drake track where Drake’s complaining about people saying he fell off (c’mon son).

Buy it and enjoy it.  It’s good hip hop.