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We’ve decided to throw a last minute benefit show to help make a financial contribution to the ongoing relief efforts in Haiti. If you’ve followed this at all it is an absolutely harrowing, horrible catastrophe that has befallen a place that was already a very difficult place to live for many people. The show is in only two days so PLEASE email this to your friends in New York, put it on your Facebook, Twitter, etc. and help us get the word out. We as DJs will not be taking any payment from this and the proceeds will be donated to charity. We are currently seeking expert advice on who to donate it to, suggestions are welcome.

DUTTY ARTZ TROPICAL RELIEF FOR HAITI

DJs:

DJ Rupture
Matt Shadetek
Lamin Fofana
Feliz Cumbe
Bingy

THIS Saturday 1/16 10PM

FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE.

Bowery Poetry Club
308 Bowery
$10. More is welcome: All proceeds donated to Haitian relief

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hope is fading fast
[Freshjive Hope Is Fading Fast t shirt | The World’s Got Problems]

[audio:http://nyc.duttyartz.com/mp3s/G-Side-So_Wonderful.mp3]

G-Side – So Wonderful feat. Chrystal Carr, G-Mane, and SupaKing

[audio:http://nyc.duttyartz.com/mp3s/G-Side-Whos_Hood.mp3]

G-Side – Who’s Hood feat. Yelawolf

G-Side‘s latest effort the Huntsville International project was liberated last week, leaked in its entirety and contained some extremely solid moments for those of us who are still into rap music! Slowmotion Soundz, ST 2 Lettaz and Clova, Block Beattaz, and the various producers and guest artists offer strong, and even exceptional performances.  ST 2 Lettaz and Clova delivered moving verses on “So Wonderful,” “In The Rain,” and “This Is Life.” On “So Wonderful,” ST raps about difficult times, not just the current recession– more specifically, the lack of assistance, the extra huddle, and debt young folks incurred while making their way through college, the double-digit unemployment figures and lack of opportunity in black and brown communities, which predates the current financial crisis. ST also echoes the words of Young Jeezy and P. Dukes (my president is black, but we’re still in the same mess– Obama administration maintaining continuity.  By the way, P. Dukes made my favorite recession rap jam with “Make Me A Way,” and I regret not including it on the podcast.)  Clova is on-point also, with an interesting mix of low-key, sharp darts grounded in realism, at times interrupted with “next-level”-swag-so-advance raps (and oftentimes, he’s incredible with those lines.)

Yelawolf offered a crucial performance on “Who’s Hood,” delivering a dense, rapid-fire verse about Cadillacs, pit-fights, and nightlife in the Bible Belt (he sounds like a young Big Boi or something! last week we heard him channeling Bob Dylan for Juelz Santana.) Other highlights here include the solo track by ST “This Is Life,” which I heard in August when Traps N Trunks unleashed the Huntsville Alabama: Rochet City mixtape/compilation and the defiant and unforgettable “In The Rain” featuring Bentley. “This Is Life” and “In The Rain” are those outstanding rap songs you hear every now and again, and they stay with you– emotionally raw and honest lyrics delivered by a smart, ambitious/hungry rappers.  In the era of free music —sounds now move faster than the speed of contex– we are bombarded with ephemeral songs and disposable mixtapes. G-Side is offering music with lasting quality. The majority of tracks on their previous two album, Starshipz and Rocketz and Sumthin 2 Hate have held up well, withstanding countless listens and every now and then certain sounds warranting repeated listening.  The Huntsville International project has that– freshness, durability, rap music for 2010 and beyond.

g-side

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Unrelated Submerged Second Life Picture- but watch for an amazing video coming soon from Sara Taigher

Solar Life Raft- the mix that keeps on giving- has finally made its way to your local record stores. /rupture and Shadetek working together is a serious Voltron force. It’s safe to say that I have listened to SLR over a hundred times since it was recorded- and I’m still finding reasons to go back. Opening with Time-Blind’s abstract tone poetry and closing with a gorgeous re-work from /rupture and Shadetek of Telepathe, it’s easy to miss all the ground the mix has covered.

Tracklists are the weird anathema of the DJ Mix- always reminding us as producers and consumers that for some reason the sounds cant just stand alone. A tracklist can mark a DJ’s access to dub-plates and exclusives or their prodigal digging- but always the tracklist serves as a sort of roadmap for listeners that want to go beyond the mix and gain some traction in it. Often I’ll look to a track list before deciding whether or not to listen to a given mix. Or I will return to the tracklist after hearing something amazing that I want to be up on.

SLR stands alone without the tracklist- and the hype that goes along with it- people read the tracklist and think, “Wow, this sure is eclectic”- but it’s not grab bag by any means- its laser precision etched in bass. It is hard to believe after listening to SLR that you’ve just digested sounds as seemingly diverse as Cardopusher, Paavoharju, and Luc Ferrari. One you get used to these sorts of mixes- where genre-orthodoxy and rigid notions of sonic-geographies are left behind- it gets pretty fucking hard to go back to an hour of any BPM mixed seamlessly at the start of 8, 16 and 32 bar phrases and movements.

/rupture and Shadetek can really cook in the lab. I’ve always rated Matt for his back-from-the-crossroads skills in Logic. I mean- from what I know- he was the first stateside producer to actually be doing production for grime dudes in London. /rupture on the other hand has always been off in a zone that seemed far more experimental- where quantization was frowned upon and standard timing or track development was laughed out the door. Through the last few years they seem to have tempered each others workflows and styles in all the right ways- and SLR should be an announcement that these two can make tracks with the very best of them. The album is almost a third original production and its the home grown tracks that really provided the convincing narrative that holds the mix together.

Effusive praise can ring hallow coming from ones own crew- but I’m not just trying to ramp up sales- Solar Life Raft is remarkable. Do whatever your ethical radar tells you in regard to consuming music and somehow, someway, find yourself a copy. If that happens to be amazon, boomkat, itunes, or beatport….just think of it as investing in more music.

[audio:http://nyc.duttyartz.com/leaky/MattShadetek-Strength_In_Numbers-SOLAR-LIFE-RAFT.mp3]
Matt Shadetek – Strength In Numbers

[audio:http://secretgooglecheatcodes.com/GGD-Bebey-DJ_Rupture+MattShadetek_RMX.mp3]
Gang Gang Dance – Bebey (DJ /rupture and Matt Shadetek Remix)

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festival2009 banner p465 crop

This Saturday I will speak at the New Yorker Festival, as part of a panel on The Music Biz: Remixing the Industry. It ain’t cheap, but with folks like lifelong industry uber-insider Danny Goldberg, Downtown Records boss Josh Deutsch, and bassist Melvin Gibbs in the mix, discussion should be lively.

I mean, there are only a few more years where we can actually sit down and talk about ‘the music biz’ with ‘record executives’ and such, so let’s make the most of it. And/or help the sick patient die faster.

R.I.P. OiNK.

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Later this month I’ll be performing in Copenhagen, and so many things are happening in November that my subconscious mind won’t let me think about it yet.

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[youtube width=”525″ height=”455″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UogeAFYnBo[/youtube]

Pill speaks about coming up in West ATL’s Pink City, the hard, un-glossed reality he deliberately portrayed in his video for “Trap Goin’ Ham” -which ruffled a few feathers, trapping and rapping, other generalities like blunt communication/honest expression thru rap.

(more…)

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[youtube width=”525″ height=”455″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au86wouG5Hk[/youtube]

This is part one of my tour of where I grew up in the Bronx and my process in creating the turntable science. Journalists get it correct, the dawn of Hip Hop was in the 70’s!!! – Grandmaster Flash

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This is probably the craziest rap video you’ll see all year. I saw the preview for it, but slept on the actual video. Thanks to The Times writer Caramanica for the reminder. You might remember Pill from my Recession Rap Jams.  Juvenile’s “Ha” immediately comes to mind, as a point of reference and, to a lesser extent, and so does Goodie Mob’s “Cell Therapy” to a certain extent – using the rap video purposefully, to unmask black poverty and show real human suffering that we rarely see in mainstream American media.  Also, look for the Amnesty International “JUSTICE FOR TROY DAVIS” poster.

[vimeo width=”500″ height=”400″]http://vimeo.com/5282853[/vimeo]

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[youtube width=”525″ height=”455″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWEReAtGJf0[/youtube]

Jahdan on Dollar Van Demos, singing a track titled “Songs of Love,” Leaving Babylon and going to a place where “the birds dance in the trees, singing songs of love” and “the breeze blow so free.” Dollar vans in the outer-boroughs are basically a response to the lack of adequate public transportation in certain parts of Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, and other underserved NYC neighborhood.  I’ve been in the vans a few times, sometimes just keeping it extra-local like Jahdan, riding for only a few stops in Bed-Stuy, uptown in Harlem and BX, but they become extremely valuable during MTA/Transit worker strikes. Anyway, enjoy this one.

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[youtube width=”525″ height=”455″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Q-gx7YGNcE[/youtube]

While Vamanos was busy shutting down Brooklyn with Radioclit/The Very Best, Matt Shadetek, Uproot Andy, etc. this past Saturday, Boima was holding down the other half of the Ghetto Bassquake sound system in Dakar. The video above shows the Chief preparing for a show… Big!

Update – D of Bigger Judgement pointed out the nice tune Boima is playing is by Laden.

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papoose

About two years ago, Papoose was a promising, young rapper with heavy street buzz (countless mixtapes, hot97-radio love, magazine/blog exposure, etc.) and a 1.5 million dollar record deal in the works with Jive Records.  Well, the deal fell through, and Pap bragged on subsequent tapes that he kept the 1.5 million from the label, but plans for his debut album The Nacirema Dream never actually materialized. Pap has been releasing mixtapes (and greatest hits from his previous tapes) and newer bits/leaks surfaced every now and then. On this particular track, he’s disgruntled, disgusted with the whole music industry and he’s letting his feelings known, keeping it one hundred/real (as “real” as rappers can keep it anyway.)

[audio:http://nyc.duttyartz.com/mp3s/papoose-_i_jus_want_the_paper.mp3]

Papoose – I Just Want The Paper

[audio:http://nyc.duttyartz.com/mp3s/PlayazCircle-HoldUp.mp3]

Playaz Circle – Hold Up

I found this one on my desktop. Playaz Circle with (insert big name/famous rapper) is usually pretty good, but this is the first time I’m hearing the group without Lil Wayne, Ludacris, or OJ Da Juiceman and it’s surprisingly nice.

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ayatollah

[audio:http://nyc.duttyartz.com/mp3s/Jackie_Mittoo-Ayatollah.mp3]

Jackie Mittoo – Ayatollah

[audio:http://nyc.duttyartz.com/mp3s/The_Willows-Moses_Version.mp3]

The Willows – Moses Version

[audio:http://nyc.duttyartz.com/mp3s/Barington_Levy-Rock_and_Come_In_Scientist_Extended_Mix.mp3]

Barington Levy – Rock and Come In Scientist Extended Mix

If you like these shattered songs, do come in early tomorrow! I’ve got loads more (rare vinyls in digital format), and I plan to to play a dub-heavy set tomorrow night, 10PM – 11:30-ish.  I might drop in two or three recent favorites/freshness, but I’d like to keep it 97% dusty and mystical! Also, I don’t feel the pressure/anxiousness I felt last/first time I deejayed (although NY Tropical 6 was quite massive!) The nervousness is dissolving, and quickly being replaced by excitement and optimism.  If I lapse into a state of irreverence or just absolute enjoyment… I’m only letting the music take over.  Reality is hard right now, goal is to get lifted and transported. Enjoyment!

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Jahdan in Accra, Ghana

[audio:http://nyc.duttyartz.com/mp3s/Jahdan_Blakkamoore_feat_77Klash-Best_I_Ever_Had_Freestyle.mp3]

Jahdan Blakkamoore featuring 77Klash – Best I Ever Had Freestyle

Jahdan’s album Buzzrock Warrior drops in September. In the meantime, we’re setting the Summer on fire with Jahdan’s Bazooka Shot mixtape, which is coming sooner than you think.  The night this freestyle was done, I think the guys (Jahdan, Klash, and Matt) recorded five other tracks, and this was the last one.  It was pure fun.  I gave the instrumental to Matt, he edited/re-shaped it in less than two minutes, Jahdan & Klash went in.  Jahdan was alredy familiar with the hit song by Toronto’s own Drake, and was singing it the minute he heard the beat. I had never heard this song by choice.  Klash wasn’t familiar with it, so he start singing Radiohead’s “Climbing the Walls,” and I was like yeah! Anyway, the vibe at Casa de la Jones (Geko Jones’ home-studio, where it all goes down) was great, and everyone was having a good time.  We’re doing it again next week, putting the finishing touches on the Bazooka Shot tape.  Jahdan and Klash are going in again, and they might be remixing, freestyling, covering whatever tune they feel like again.