If not Aronofsky, who should direct The Wolverine?

Posted on March 17, 2011 | 5 comments

Well, that was quick: the dream of a Wolverine prequel helmed by Darren Aronofsky appears to be over, as the visionary director drops out for what appear to be personal reasons. I’m assuming that the Christopher McQuarrie (The Usual Suspects, but also The Tourist) script, based on the 1982 Frank Miller & Chris Claremont miniseries Wolverine, is still on the table. Disappointing, especially after Aronofsky promised such great things, but salvageable. So, if not Aronofsky, who should direct The Wolverine?

The quintessential Wolverine miniseries details Logan’s exploits in Japan. It’s a tale of honor, with a realistic love triangle and plenty of berzerker action; it established the character of Wolverine that the world knows and loves. The pie-in-the-sky director would be Quentin Tarantino, but you can safely put that on the “fan boy wishlist.” Same goes for body-gore master David Cronenberg. And while Robert Rodriguez has adapted Frank Miller before, his style may be too bombastic for this one.

Bryan Singer saved the superhero genre with his X-Men films, but he is stuck in pre-production for three films (Battlestar Galactica, Excalibur, and Jack the Giant Killer) and probably can’t save this one. The same goes for Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen), who takes over the Superman franchise from Singer next year. I’m not sure that Matthew Vaughn would do another comic film after directing three in three years.

Last summer, rumored directors included Matt Reeves, Tony Scott, Kathryn Bigelow, and Timur Bekmambetov. Reeves showed promise on his remake Let Me In, and Bigelow would represent Fox thinking outside of the box; both would be good choices. Bekmambetov would work as well, but he’s tied up with the sequel to Wanted and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Pray it’s not Scott; Ridley’s brother hasn’t made a good film in over decade.

One name I’ll totally pull out of nowhere is Edward Zwick, director of The Last Samurai, Blood Diamond, Defiance, and Love and Other Drugs; his diverse body of work demonstrates the range required to bring nuance to a comic book movie.

Luckily, Wolverine will return to the screen after the disastrous Origins flick. But without the right director, this prequel might stumble down the same path.

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Future Grooves: xxxy

Posted on March 17, 2011 | Leave a comment

I changed the name of this column from Dubstep Dossier to Future Grooves when the old moniker simply didn’t do justice to the evolving underground electronic music scene. Similar name changes and re-branding lets artists establish new identities and foray into new sounds.

xxxy is Rupert Taylor, who previously released straight-forward dubstep as Forensix(mcr). Early buzz for singles “Reflections” and “Science Fiction” earned him a spot on last year’s essential Elevator Music. The compilation, by quintessential club/label Fabric, curates the strand of mutated dubstep (future garage?) that xxxy and his peers excel at. His contribution to the mix, “Sing With Us,” is deep and funky, with blasts of jazzy live drums.

[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/xxxy_sing.mp3″ text=”XXXY – Sing With Us” dl=0]

The title of his Every Step Forward EP was instructive; with every step into this developing sound, xxxy becomes stronger, with his productions more staggering and immersive. Each additional layer is a new adventure, without weighing down the groove. “This Much” and “Just For Me” tweak vocal samples into percussion, a tactic he has perfected on his new single, the sweltering “You Always Start It.”

The flipside to “You Always Start It” is “Ordinary Things,” a rhythm and bass tune powered by a four-on-the-floor house beat and arpeggiated synth chords. It’s no surprise that Pitchfork tagged the relentless track as Best New Music.


As dubstep gives way to future garage, we’ll need new ways to name and describe it. Along the way, we’re sure to encounter new names for old faces. xxxy is definitely one to look for.

Download: Exclusive mix for Urb.com

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The Verge: Cubic Zirconia

Posted on March 16, 2011 | 2 comments

Despite their name, there is nothing fake about Cubic Zirconia (I couldn’t resist the wordplay). Comprised of veterans Tiombe Lockhart, Nick Hook, Daud Sturdivant, and Justin Tyson, Cubic Zirconia calls their music “ethnic disco.” Think acid house rhythms, R&B melodies, booty bass and electroclash lyrics.

Everything the band has released so far is a hypnotic mix of sex and swagger. Tiombe croons with the sultry warble of Erykah Badu, Andre 3000 and Blaqstarr, and fans of all three will find something to like in these left-field club tracks. The title of “Hoes Come Out at Night” tells you everything you need to know, and the breakdown of “Josephine” is confrontational yet catchy: “I’m leaving the club / stayed away from the yay’ / I don’t need any sleep / because my man’s not gay.” The videos for both mix hip-hop imagery with equal doses of Goddess worship and exploitation flair.

Cubic Zirconia exists in their own dark disco universe, and remixes of their tracks (which outnumber original numbers) are with like-minded beatmakers: Egyptrixx, Bok Bok, Dam-Funk, and DJ Sega (among others) all offer remixes that cross-pollinate their own styles with the originals. Ikonika tightens up the funky low-end on her version of “Hoes Come Out At Night.”

[wpaudio url=”wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Hoes Come Out at Night (Ikonika Remix).mp3″ text=”Cubic Zirconia – Hoes Come Out At Night (Ikonika Remix)”]

I was one of the lucky few to catch the band’s Sunday night gig at U Hall. If disappointed at the small crowd, the band didn’t reveal it: they banged through almost an hour of material, building a groove only hinted at on record. Tyson’s drumming is unmatched, and Hook and Sturdivant play a range of instruments with skill. And Lockhart is a frontwoman in the purest sense (not even letting a little wardrobe malfunction throw her off).

The band is readying a debut album and inking a deal with a similarly named record label (just think about it). In the meantime, download their free “Ready to Slide EP,” which features a cover of Kid Cudi’s “Maker Her Say” and a flip of “Moments in Love” by Art of Noise. This band is the real thing; the next time they play DC, it won’t be for a dozen of us.

Download: Cubic Zirconia – Ready to Slide EP

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The new R&B: Rhythm and bass

Posted on March 15, 2011 | Leave a comment

Each successive generation of musicians brings its own group of influences to the table. For a rising group of electronic music producers, this means mining the catalog of turn-of-the-century R&B in the service of soulful, hook-laden dubstep, funky and bass tracks. Producers like Timbaland and Magoo loom as large as Burial and Joker for these twentysomething DJs, and for good reason: their groundbreaking R&B dominated the charts for the better part of these producers’ formative years.

Last year, I profiled Deadboy, whose limited catalog is already filled with reworkings of familiar R&B tracks. Along with takes on songs by Cassie and Ashanti, his latest is a “slo-mo house edit” of the downtempo Drake / Alicia Keys jam “Fireworks.” Deadboy’s is an improvement on the original, as he pitches up Keys’ chorus and drops Drake’s pedestrian verses. His remix of the Burial-produced “Night Air,” by UK crooner Jamie Woon, adds a funky beat and soaring synths; he also can’t resist chopping up Woon’s vocals in the chorus.

[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/fireworks.mp3″ text=”Drake – Fireworks (Deadboy Slo-mo House Edit)” dl=0]
[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/night_air.mp3″ text=”Jamie Woon – Night Air (Deadboy Remix)”]

Meanwhile, Future Grooves featuree Kavsrave has been dabbling with the soulful side luvstep. His Numbers EP Quotes features the surging bass of the dubstep derivative, with samples similar to those utilized by Deadboy. His as-of-yet unreleased “Deluded” flips the chorus of “Replacement Girl,” pitchshifting the vocals and seemingly changing the gender of singer Trey Songz.

[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/deluded.mp3″ text=”Kavsrave – Deluded” dl=0]

For fans of the critically-acclaimed James Blake, the R&B underpinnings of his self-titled debut are more obscured than on his earlier work. The dizzying “CMYK” relied on processed samples of Kelis and Aaliyah: hints of nostalgia in an otherwise forward-thinking song. It should be no surprise that Harmonimix, who crafted a jazzy, chiptune remix of “Bills Bills Bills,” was eventually revealed to be Blake: the 1999 hit would have been ubiquitous for the 22-year-old.

[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/CMYK.mp3″ text=”James Blake – CMYK” dl=0]

The latest Luvstep mix by Flufftronix and Dirty South Joe shined a spotlight on many of these producers, including Submerse and Psychonaught. Psychonaught’s “super tweaked RnB resteps” of tunes like “Nasty Girl” and “Birthday Sex” are available for free.

The greatest discovery off Luvstep 2, however, is Two Inch Punch. TIP is a self-described “frustrated Soul / RnB singer” who produces grooves with influences that go even deeper than his contemporaries. The shimmering “Love You Up” and “Luv Luv” will be self-released on April 4 in the UK.



The largely UK-driven explosion of bass music has been a Godsend for an electronic music scene at the tail of the electro movement. For EDM fans who came of age when R&B dominated the airwaves, this new form of R&B – rhythm and bass – is a welcome mix of nostalgia and modernism.

Bonus: When they’re not putting out tropical bass, Nguzunguzu has gotten into the R&B fun, as well. They turned Ciara’s “Deuces” into Baltimore club, and their recent “Perfect Lullaby” mix for DIS Magazine launches with a remix of the classic “The Boy is Mine.” The entire mix is worth a listen:

MP3: NGUZUNGUZU – The Perfect Lullaby Mixtape (via DIS Magazine)

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TV theme song classics (90s edition)

Posted on March 14, 2011 | 1 comment

With the news that Nickelodeon will be re-airing classic 90s shows like Clarissa Explains It All and The Adventures of Pete and Pete, I’ve decided to take another look/listen at some of the television theme songs that defined Millennial childhoods.

Polaris – Hey Sandy (The Adventures of Pete and Pete)

Polaris, a side-project of college rock band Miracle Legion, were basically the house band for the surreal Nickelodeon dramedy, performing much of the show’s original music. “Hey Sandy” is a jangly, pre-grunge tune that may actually be about the Kent State shootings (what!). Pete and Pete is also notable for its famous guest stars, most of whom were not so notable to your 10-year-old self, like Iggy Pop, Debbie Harry, LL Cool J, and Michael Stipe.

The Presidents of the USA – Cleveland Rocks (The Drew Carey Show)

In the third season, the Drew Carey Show featured a new theme song: a cover of Ian Hunter’s 1979 “Cleveland Rocks.” While more famous for songs like “Peaches,” “Lump,” and their cover of “Video Killed the Radio Star,” the PUSA bring their usual post-grunge spin to the anthemic classic.

Rachel Sweet – Theme to Clarissa Explains It All (Clarissa Explains It All)

Rachel Sweet had a bit of a pop career in the 80s before retiring from the music business, and she also composed this totally 90s theme song classic. The nonsense vocal samples – “na na na,” “way cool,” “all right all right,” “just do it” – sound like Casio keyboard samples. That didn’t stop it from defining the early 90s for most of our cohort.

Splendora – You’re Standing on My Neck (Daria)

As Nickelodeon fans grew up, they found a welcoming home at MTV. If Clarissa was more sarcastic, she’d be Daria. The show, originally a spin-off from Beavis and Butthead, far surpassed its sophomoric origins and became the biting high school satire that still holds up today. Splendora might have peaked with this song, but they’ll live on in the hearts of Generation Y cynics forever.

[wpaudio url=”/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Splendora-Youre-Standing-On-My-Neck.mp3″ text=”Splendora – You’re Standing On My Neck” dl=”0″]

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Ready for the weekend #4

Posted on March 11, 2011 | Leave a comment

I’d rather be at Bloc (this awe-inspiring lineup at a beach resort in Bristol), but DC will have to do. C’est la vie.

The Plan

  • Friday: Come to Clockwork, okay? But don’t forget to stop by Little Miss Whiskey’s and see Starks, Nacey, Meistro, and Deep Sang get down to Bizness.
  • Saturday: Nouveau Riche is five years old (which means some of the kids there were 13 when it started *shudder*), so remember the times at DC9 and get crazy at U Hall.
  • Sunday: Future booty bass artists Cubic Zirconia take the small stage at U Hall for a spin. Here’s hoping it’s anything like their video for “Hoes Come Out At Night.” Alternatively, Verge artists True Womanhood play the new-and-improved Red Palace.

The Soundtrack

LOL Boys (who released the mutated tropical jam “123” last year) did a mix for Kick Out the Jam that gets real deep into tropical bass and house hybrids. It includes loads of exclusives off the Boys’ forthcoming releases, along with their take on some Heartbreak and Munchi favorites.

Tracklist:
01. Boyfriend – Baltoji Varnele Edit (CDR)
02. Munchi – Hope (T&A Records)
03. LOL Boys – Sweet Cinnamon (CDR)
04. Heartbreak – My Grown Man Shit (M4 EP)
05. LOL Boys – Aisle Seat (Forthcoming Discobelle Records)
06. LOL Boys – Runaways (Forthcoming Discobelle Records)
07. LOL Boys ft. Teki Latex – Modern (Forthcoming Truants Records)
08. Destiny’s Child – For Da Girls (K2 Re-Edit) (K2 Edits)
09. Gucci Vump – Shashtilism (Erick Rincon Remix) (CDR)
10. DJ Javier Estrada – Eclipse (CDR)
11. Julius Sylvest – Djemba (CDR)
12. Munchi – Hope (LOL Boys Remix) (Forthcoming T&A Records)
13. 702 – Steelo (LOL Boys & Sinjin Hawke Remix) (CDR)
14. Mackpaye – Fragrance (12-3 Recordings)
15. Waya Waya – Nomada (Self-Release)
16. XXXY – Ordinary Things (Ten Thousand Yen)
17. Deborah Cox – It’s Over (Dubbel Dutch Refix) (CDR)
18. Art Nouveau & LOL Boys – Air France II (Demento Mori)
19. LOL Boys – Nomads (Forthcoming Cool Records)

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Clockwork celebrates one year anniversary

Posted on March 11, 2011 | 1 comment

Last fall, Will Eastman’s Bliss Dance Party hit the decade mark. Tomorrow night, the Nouveau Riche crew celebrates their fifth anniversary, at U Hall. And tonight, a burgeoning DC dance night turns one year old.

Clockwork, the monthly dance party thrown by DJs Ratt Moze, Chris Nitti and Philip Goyette at the Rock and Roll Hotel, hosts an all-star cast of DJs, including Brick Bandits DJ Sega and Tim Dolla. Rounding out the line-up are DJs Blastercase (Baltimore), Will Power (LA), and Cold Case (DC) for what should be a great night at the H Street anchor. I’ve been to quite a few Clockworks (including a false start at the Red & Black), so I took this opportunity to speak with Ratt Moze (government name Matt Rose) about tonight’s party.

Clockwork has a symbiotic relationship with the Rock and Roll Hotel’s growth as a weekend dance party destination. Rose credits this, in part, to the Hotel’s upstairs renovations, including a more accessible and visible DJ booth: “I think any DJ would agree seeing your crowd face to face makes a huge difference in how you play out your set.” The party has also benefited from its hosts settling into their musical grooves, putting a premium on diversity of songs and styles. Still, while the H Street explosion has been a net positive, he’s weary of it turning into Adams Morgan: “There are only so many times I can handle being asked to play Rihanna in one night.”

While a live performance from Libby of Baltimore’s Lazerbitch was stellar, Rock and Roll is moving away from live performances upstairs. The Clockwork boys will have to settle for guest DJs, including the Dirty Sweaty Nasty kids from Virginia (in April) and Jerome Baker III & Stereofaith (in May). Rose would love to see Scottie B on the bill, as well.

Tonight’s club music centric bill is a step towards that goal, but the lack of Baltimore club nights in DC is a sore subject for Rose: “I love Baltimore Club music so much, and to see the way it has been tossed to the side locally is disappointing.” He thinks it will take more than club music masters like Dave Nada and DJ Sega to keep it alive; the return of Low Budget and Jonny Blaze are bright signs on the landscape. But Rose puts the genre on the back of one man: “The beating heart of Baltimore Club music’s survival is James Nasty,” says Rose, who finds Nasty’s production and touring “unmatched” by his peers.

There is a lot going on tonight (and every Friday night), but meme-fanatic Rose has an elevator pitch for tonight’s Clockwork: “the atmosphere and music will make you feel like this.”

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Future Grooves: Cedaa

Posted on March 10, 2011 | Leave a comment

The emergence of footwork and juke is giving a new generation of producers a different sonic palette to play with, much like Baltimore club has for the past decade. Chicago can no longer contain the hypnotic, staccato sounds of juke, and it’s infiltrating dance music worldwide.

Cedaa, a twenty-year-old producer from Washington state, fuses juke to the seductive hybrid of funky-house-bass made by the Night Slugs crew (think Girl Unit). His tunes mix the frenetic, unpredictable energy of juke with the syrupy melody of the London scene.

Cedaa’s Old Growth EP is straight-forward juke, with it’s paranoia-inducing loops and samples; “Escalade” is a standout. His first single, “Tiffany,” features Miami bass shout-outs, while the B-side “Simba” cascades melody over a two-step beat.

Like other emerging producers his age (ahem, James Blake), Cedaa’s fondness for turn-of-the-century R&B shows. He flipped Justin Timberlake’s “Cry Me A River” into a white label called “Justine,” which makes an appearance in Girl Unit’s XL8R mix. Similarly, his remix of “Are You That Somebody” updates the Aaliyah-Timbaland classic into a pulsing, grooving dance track.

Cedaa is prepping an EP for French label B.YRSLF division, along with working on a collaboration with Brenmar called Amber. Grab a free track from his collaboration with Barrius, and keep an eye on this young producer.

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The Verge: Childish Gambino

Posted on March 9, 2011 | 1 comment

Hip-hop artists are constantly preoccupied with respect, with being taken seriously. In the case of Childish Gambino, this drive is even more prominent, thanks to his day job.

Childish Gambino is 27-year-old Donald Glover, currently of NBC’s Community and formerly a 30 Rock writer. While he chose his pseudonym (with the help of a Wu Tang name generator) to distinguish his rap game from his comedy one, his “childish” moniker has the opposite effect: I assumed it was a comedy-rap hybrid. Especially since this is all I had seen of his rapping:


But while Childish Gambino uses his considerable writing skill on behalf of sharp ad-libs and funny punchlines, this isn’t joke rap. With a staccato flow that owes much to Lil’ Wayne and Kanye, his closest comparison is Drake: there’s the TV background, obviously, and he sings his own hooks. The complete package, he also is pretty skilled behind the boards.

After a series of gimmick-based tapes, Gambino released the two-part I Am Just A Rapper tape, which found him rapping over indie tracks a la Chiddy Bang. The talent was evident, but rapping over Yeasayer and The Very Best worked better on paper: it seemed like a ploy to establish indie cred.

Gambino found his voice on last year’s Culdesac tape. His frequent topics, like Drake, are dealing with preternatural fame and wealth, separating real friends from hangers-on, and (of course) girls. While the limited scope of his lyrics gets a little tedious at 15 songs, the varied production and styles redeems the tape.

Like Kanye, his self-awareness is charming. Of his audience, he raps, “Crowd at my shows more mixed than Rashida Jones,” on “Difference.” He opens his new EP with a similar refrain, about his positioning between two separate but converging scenes: “Hard for a Pitchfork, soft for a Roc-a-fella.” “Freaks and Geeks” is the stand-out, with a “Power”-like beat and energetic verses that are brimming with references (“In the back of the bush, like Gavin Rossdale’s drummer”).

http://vimeo.com/20374589

What does the future hold for Childish Gambino? The path forged by multi-talented artists like Jamie Foxx and Drake is very real, even if establishing legitimacy in different arenas is difficult. Glover will host the MTVu Woodie Awards on March 16, and tickets are selling fast for his “I Am Donald” tour (his May 8th gig at the Black Cat is already sold-out). Childish Gambino is ready to be taken seriously.

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Introducing the Uncanny X-Force, in all their g(l)ory

Posted on March 8, 2011 | 4 comments

If you read comics in the 90s, you’ve seen the work of Rob Liefeld, who penned a number of record-selling comics at Marvel before founding Image Comics in 1992. While only at Marvel for a few years, his trademark (and often maligned) style dominated for quite some time. Liefeld is basically the Michael Bay of the comics world: his work is typified by big-guns-and-bigger-tits art that has no basis in reality (featuring an abundance of pouches and a lack of visible feet).

At Marvel, he created X-Force, a team of mutant mercenaries that was more aggressive and “extreme” than the X-Men. Initially popular, interest in the series waned throughout the decade. In 2008, rising writers Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost re-vamped the X-Force brand, with a team of popular characters that included Wolverine, X-23 and Warpath. In the books, the new X-Force was tasked with doing the X-Men’s dirty work – by any means necessary. Stylistically, it was a throwback to the over-the-top drama and violence of Liefeld’s original work – but with tongue planted firmly in cheek.

Kyle and Yost ended their run after 28 crossover-filled issues. In their last book, Cyclops disbanded X-Force after finally confronting the group’s body count. This lead to Wolverine to assemble his own black-ops team, with a very Fight Club motto: “This is X-Force. There’s only one rule . . . no one can know.”

uncanny-x-force-001-2010-premiere-edition-variant-back-cover-raw

Uncanny X-Force (featuring Wolverine, Psylocke, Archangel, Deadpool, and Fantomex) launched last fall with Rick Rememder and Jerome Opena at the helm. This is a team of anti-heroes, all with checkered pasts that are soaked in blood. But there’s also a sense of humor to them, between Deadpool’s fourth-wall-breaking antics and Fantomex’s Eurotrash affectations. They might be dispensing with truckloads of enemies, but they do it with a smile. The romantic undertones to the interplay between Psylocke and Archangel is also interesting, as Warren attempts to harness his inner demons with Betsy’s help. And it doesn’t hurt that the book looks fantastic, with vibrant colors and exquisite pencils that capture the team in all their gory detail.

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The first storyline in Uncanny X-Force pitted the team against a frequent foe: Apocalypse. But unlike the towering behemoth they’ve come to know and love, ‘Poc was reincarnated as a young boy. It’s a favorite paradox of the time traveler: would you kill a baby Hitler? How do you reconcile the murder of an innocent, if that innocent will grow into pure evil? It’s a philosophical conundrum, that haunts X-Force even after they solve the problem, in their own way.

x-force_team

The current storyline, “Deathlok Nation,” focuses on Fantomex and The World, the pocket universe from which he was forged. As Grant Morrison proved during his run on New X-Men, Fantomex is an intriguing character with a rich backstory. Rememder is more than capable telling his story and much more, especially considering the ignominious beginnings of the X-Force.

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