Moombahton keeps growing, with new sounds, new DJs, and even new countries of origin. So it was clear that Culipandeo, DJ A-Mac’s TGRI exclusive mixtape, needed a sequel. After covering the Munbreakton and Barack Moombahma EPs, we knew Charlotte’s David Heartbreak had to man the tables for the next one.
Throughout Culipandeo Volumen Dos, Heartbreak effortlessly blends his own productions with those of frequent collaborators Munchi and DJ Melo. Notably, the half hour mix is better suited for sipping tequila than slamming body shots, with its chilled out moombahton versions of “Hey Lover,” “Ready of Not,” and “Single.” Things get a little harder about halfway through, when the grimey bass of “Barbie Weed” before closing with Heartbreak and Munchi’s “Boneknuckles.”
More than anything, Culipandeo Volumen Dos leaves you wanting more, and Heartbreak promises just that. Later this month, he’ll be appearing on a moombahton compilation with moombahton masters Dave Nada, A-Mac, Munchi, and Melo, among others. Then comes a moombahton meets club music mix entitled Moombahmore, and another volume of Munbreakton. Apparently, when you’re part of the moombahton revolution, there’s no rest for the weary.
Dubstep is a fascinating ouroboros, constantly re-creating itself in the image of its forebears. One of those ancestors is grime, the similarly bass-heavy, dancehall and hip-hop influenced genre that was sound of the streets of early 2000s London. While Dizzee Rascal, Wiley, Lady Sovereign and the Streets became familiar names in and out of the scene, producer Terror Danjah has forged a path from grime into dubstep.
Stateside, a Terror Danjah production is literally the first grime track we heard. Kicking off the seminal Run the Road compilation, “Cock Back” – in true grime style – is a handgun-sampling banger with West Indian flavored rhyming over a shuffling, two-step beat.
Since then, Danjah has stayed busy, with an ever-evolving sound that is now firmly in the dubstep camp. He has released material on Hyperdub, Butterz and Planet Mu, including last week’s double EP Power Grid. Power Grid is a striking achievement, mixing Danjah’s grime roots with funky, minimal and future bass to create orchestral dubstep. Imagine Joker’s purple dubstep with Hudson Mohawke’s sprawling aquacrunk: music that moves and attacks with both force and precision.
Power Grid is instrumental, but like Danjah’s grime tracks, there is a great opportunity for rappers to utilize these beats. Dot Rotten did just that over album closer “Ride 4 Me,” using the pulsing banger for grimey rapping and an R & B hook.
Similarly, Danjah’s remix of Rox’s “My Baby Left Me” is a bubbling cross-over ballad. Leaving the Ronson-esque melody intact, he adds a gurgle of bass during the verses that goes to full jump-up mode during the chorus. It’s getting play on BBC Radio 1, and for good reason.
Before there was dubstep there was grime, and if it’s up to Terror Danjah, there will be grime after dubstep.
Tri Angle Records, along with Disaro Records, is at the forefront of drag and witch house, with a line-up that includes Balam Acab and oOoOO. So while we wait for a VHS-versus-Beta resolution in regards to the genre name, Tri Angle has released a few mixes that stake out new territory for the developing scene.
In recognition (honor?) of Lindsay Lohan’s recent incarceration, Tri Angle has assembled Let Me Shine For You, six reworkings of Lohan’s regrettable dance pop “hits.” The mix includes tracks by oOoOO, Babe Rainbow, and Stalker and offers a very meta look at the downward spiral of Lohan’s life and career.
Tri Angle also compiled a mix for the French magazine Wow. In similar fashion to Let Me Shine For You, the mix abuses and mangles songs by Justin Bieber, Alicia Keys and Ciara, including a dark gabber edit of “Empire State of Mind.”
Welcome to The Verge: a column dedicated to music on the edge of a breakthrough. The DC scene isn’t just about electronic dance music and hip-hop – it’s also increasingly about rock music. Here’s one band leading the way on that front.
Whatever you expect of Noon:30, you’re probably wrong. The DC power trio of bassist/vocalist Blue S. Moon, drummer Vivianne A. Njoku and guitarist Aissa Arroyo-Hill confounds expectations based on their age, sex, race, and place. Their music combines elements of punk, shoegaze, noise and art rock into a powerful concoction. On their EP and so it is, the band shifts between the melancholy, swirling “Stop-loss” to the garage-punk of “French Song” and to points in-between.
But no matter what I say here, Noon:30’s music needs to be experienced live. The band plays the U Street Music Hall tonight as part of “Get Your Pants On” collaborative arts project / dance party. I had the chance to speak with the band in advance of the show.
What are your main influences, musical or otherwise? Life, each other, musicians who infuse their music with consciousness.
What’s your songwriting process like? It varies, depending on nothing other than the mood in the air. At times we jam out, other times someone has an emotion they need to express musically and we come together to flush out what’s missing, still other times we’re collectively inspired to put something out there that represents our life at that moment (i.e ‘Who Let The World Go’).
A recent show included a projected art piece. How did that come about? Anyone in the band have that type of multimedia art background? From the get-go we’ve known that we want our shows to be as much of an experience as possible. We’re still expanding on that concept, but a good starting point for us has definitely been video projections. Vivianne is a filmmaker hobbyist and so she does some editing magic with video she finds from different sources. She’s really anal about making the images match our songs emotionally and logistically. Aissa also has mad skills as a multimedia designer, so she’s done some of our more badass fliers as well.
Best and worst show memories? Best show – in Detroit on tour last year: The audience was 100 percent into our music. They came mostly to see their hometown hero, Blue, but regardless we could feel that they were glad that she was a part of something so phenomenal.
Worst show – a venue that will remain nameless. . . the house kit was missing just about EVERYTHING, the sound system was on perma-fritz, the audience was only interested in the bar, things kept breaking (Aissa’s strings, the drum kit even more, someone’s belt . . .) UGH!!!
You’ve said a lot about combating stereotyping and pigeonholing in the scene. What do you think needs to happen to make in-roads against that? Folks need to branch out and discover the awesomeness already existing in DC – not in some other town, but really right up the street from you, most likely. Hyping the same handful of bands/artists continuously does nothing to foster the kind of thriving cultural mecca that DC has the potential to be – imagine if DC became the kind of city everyone CLAIMS they want it to be.
Venues need to do away with the genre/racial lines they’re creating with their booking practices, as do promoters and organizers, and people in general need to acknowledge that there is a place FOR EVERYONE IN MUSIC.
What’s next for the band? Any tour/record/etc plans? World Domination.
(I can’t agree more. Don’t miss Noon:30 tonight at U Hall!) <br
“Remember, kid, there’s heroes and there’s legends. Heroes get remembered, but legends never die. Follow your heart, kid, and you’ll never go wrong.” -The Babe, “The Sandlot”
Legends never die, and neither do lazers, apparently. Major Lazer, the dancehall collaborative spearheaded by Diplo and Switch, was not content to rest on its (their?) laurels after last month’s genre-bending Lazerproof mixtape. In an effort to placate fans until another proper album, Major Lazer dropped Lazers Never Die today, an EP consisting of two new songs and a few remixes.
“Sound of Siren” is a sparse dancehall grinder. The track features Busy Signal on verses (doing an impersonation of what Tupac would sound like as a toaster) and an autotuned M.I.A. on the hook. The track removes some of the nasty aftertaste you get when listening to MAYA. Their romantic relationship may be history, but Diplo and M.I.A. still bring out the best of each other musically.
The other new track, “Good Enuff,” is a reworked dub of “Cash Flow” off Guns Don’t Kill People: a piece of smooth reggae with reverb-heavy drums, upstroking guitars and jazzy pianos. Collie Buddz and Lindi Ortega take turns on the mic, with contrasting reggae and folk styles. It’s not just good enough – it’s the standout offering.
As for the remixes, Burkaka Som Sistema give their patented kuduro treatment to “Bruk Out,” cranking up the beat to dance-floor levels. Kicks Like A Mule adds a breakbeat to “Can’t Stop Now,” but unfortunately, the effort falls short. Luckily, the EP closes strong with Thom Yorke’s mellow take on “Jump Up,” with pulsing, gurgling synths and drum machines slowing down the feel of the track.
It may be short and sweet, but Lazers Never Die is another piece of the Major Lazer legend.
Amanda Palmer writes and performs a sublimely entertaining brand of music she flippantly calls “Brechtian punk cabaret,” but she may go down in history for another feat: figuring out how to make money off music in the 21st century.
With a dedicated army of fans, Palmer has successfully monetized her life. From secret ninja gigs to #LOFNOTC (Losers of Friday Night on Their Computer) webchats, she gives her fans what they want. The latest is a pay-what-you-can EP of Radiohead covers, performed on her “magical” ukulele.
Stripping down Radiohead hits from Pablo Honey, The Bends, OK Computer, and Kid A, Palmer finds a common thread of melancholy melodies which remain haunting, even on the ukulele. The compositions range from the barebones “Fake Plastic Trees” to the more densely layered “Idioteque.” Fan-favorite (and suicide theme music) “Creep” shows up twice, both a hungover soundcheck version and an audience-participating live version.
Palmer recently orchestrated a release from Roadrunner Records (a poor fit if there ever was one). She’s releasing music sans record label, sans marketing machine, and relying on her fans to spread the word. Some “WEBCAST RELASE PARTY LUAU MADNESS” is planned for today at 6pm, and you can watch it live. An $0.84 purchase ensures that Radiohead are paid royalties, so anything more will help her continue to be one of the most innovative performers alive. So don’t be a creep, don’t be a weirdo, and do the right thing.
It’s a Moombahton Monday, which means two things: Dave Nada’s summer weekly is ready to go off, and TGRIOnline has new tropical tunes for you.
Since teaming up for the Munbreakton EP, we’ve been eagerly awaiting new songs from Munchi and David Heartbreak. Their collaborative material combined the best of the US and the Netherlands, with a syrupy Dutch house take on some American R&B and hip-hop classics.
First up is a very DC-friendly concept from Heartbreak, the Barack Moombahma EP. “The Moombahma” is a very chilled-out, house-influenced form of moombahton; like much of the Munbreakton EP, it builds on classic samples (“Gypsy Woman” by Crystal Waters) and forgoes some of the more abrasive sound elements of the genre. “Whistle Blower” is a more of a party starter, with its sample of Juelz Santana’s “The Whistle Song.” The rest of the EP is not to be missed, from the vocoder and sirens of “Quires Culiar” to the appropriately-titled “Banger.”
If Dave Nada is the maestro of moombahton, Toy Selectah is the cumbia commander – but clearly, they’re not alone in their mastery of tropical stylings. Munchi tries his hand at the Colombian style on Cumbia XXX, where the beats are as dirty as the subject matter. Munchi’s barebones tracks combine cumbia, baile funk, moombahton, and even a little Bmore club. To keep it grimey, Munchi sampled everything from Nokia ringtones to Brazilian porn. And if that’s not enough reason to download, check out the entirely NSWF cover.
It turns out Magnetic Man is not the only triumvirate making waves in dubstep. Dark Sky, comprised of three South Londoners, is short on biographical information and tracks. However, the little they have released proves – to paraphrase the adage – that three heads are better than one.
As the Boogaloo Crew, Matt Benyayer and Tom Edwards released a few wobbly bangers for Trouble and Bass, including a stellar flip of Stevie Nick’s “Edge of Seventeen” entitled “Days Go By,” on which that familiar, bittersweet hook melts into pulses of serious bass.
Now, Matt and Tom have teamed up with Carlo Anderson to form Dark Sky, an outfit whose music continues to get deeper and more complex with each new release. First up was a 7″ on Black Acre Records. On the B-side, chiptune keys play out like the titular “Ghost Notes” before darker waves of synth push into the mix, while the A-side, “Something to Lose,” is a lone ray of light shining through ominous clouds, building into a breakbeat fueled jump-up track.
The recently released Frames EP builds on the sparse post-dubstep of “Ghost Notes.” The beats owe more to UK funky and two-step, with the sirens and bass blasts of dubstep. The tracks groove with the steady propulsion of a Joker or Ramadanman beat. The stand-out track, “Drowned City,” features bursts of airy synths and a jagged upbeat sound that is given plenty of room to breath.
Their Dark001 mixtape features originals by the group and contemporaries Panagea and Untold, as well as a killer remix of “Crystalised” by the XX, before closing on the Luvstep-approved remix of Little Dragon’s “Twice” by Aaron Jerome. For Dark Sky, it looks like bright days ahead.
Welcome to The Verge: a column dedicated to music on the edge of a breakthrough. Last week, I profiled an up-and-comer in the DMV hip hop scene. Now it’s time for a Brooklyn buzz band.
Brooklyn is and will continue to be the center of the universe for indie culture. There are probably more musicians, artists and writers in the area between Park Slope and Williamsburg than any where in the United States. So while the Internet has democratized culture to a degree, you can be sure that any band that makes its bones in Brooklyn will soon be on global radars.
Meet Body Language, an electronic pop outfit from the Zoo that specializes in soulful, chill-out jams. The band’s debut EP, Speaks, was released last year on Moodgadget Records. Over just 5 tracks, Body Language finds its own way forward, crafting pop songs that aren’t as precious as Passion Pit’s and aren’t as atmospheric as chill wave.
Speaks kicks off with a stuttering, frenetic sample on “New Day” and doesn’t look back. Male and female vocals duel over an increasingly complex tableau. On tracks like “Work This City,” the band gets a little funky, with syncopated rhythms and soft-serve keys. (Sammy Bananas, the DJ-half of Telephoned, gave the track a disco feel on his remix.)
“At a Glance” starts with a grinding squeal of bass, and it’s the EP’s only minor-key ballad. The EP closes with “Sandwiches,” with it’s once-in-a-career hook: “We’ll make it hot like butter / easy to spread / and we can sandwiches.” I don’t think they’re talking about deli meats on this seductive joint.
Like any electronic band worth it’s weight in PBR, Body Language have contributed their remix skills to similarly-minded acts like Toro y Moi. Their finest effort, however, is the 80s new wave/R&B twist they gave to “Obsessions” by Marina and the Diamonds. These Casio synths and Linn drum samples haven’t sounded as good since the Reagan administration.
Love it or hate it, but bands from Brooklyn will always get more attention. Thankfully, Body Lanaguage aren’t content to ride on the coattails of their neighborhood. Body Language speaks: listen up.
After covering Pariah in the Dubstep Dossier back in April, we’ve eagerly been awaiting more material from the UK producer. His debut EP for R&S Records, Safehouses, drops soon and builds on the promise of his first single.
The EP finds Pariah experimenting with the full complement of future grooves. Most of Safehouses plays in the house / UK funky end of the pool: two-step beats and swirling synths drive the about half of the tracks. Vocals appear as clips and phrases, heavily-processed hooks that hint at the records they’re sampled from. “Crossed Out” follows in the footsteps of “Orpheus:” a soothing dance-floor jam that is somewhat chaotic despite it’s mellow sheen.
As for more of the glitch hop hinted at in the Dilla-esque “Detroit Falls,” Pariah comes through on “C-Beams.” As if emerging from the fog, “C-Beams” is all polyrhythms and bass blasts, before disappearing into the atmospheric soundscape of the title track.
If you need another reason to check him out, Pariah has been co-signed by dubstep’s preeminent radio DJ, Mary Anne Hobbs, and he contributed this guest mix for her BBC Radio 1 program last month. Not bad for a 22-year-old university student who makes beats in his spare time.
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