About // Contact

• Home
• Interviews
• Music
• Podcast
• Reviews

Off to Da Beach House

SUMMER STARTS NOW PEOPLE!!!

I’m out for the rest of the week and early next week at da Beach House in South Carolina. I’m begrudgingly taking the laptop, but you must be insane if you think I’m gonna be posting to this site.

So yeah, I’m not going to be checking emails regularly and there is going to be a delay in approving comments, MySpace friend requests, and pretty much everything else. Rome will be holding it down with more bangers and hopefully YouTube vids as well. And as always, check the always fly sites on the Blogroll as well as catch up on those Podcasts and Interviews that y’all love.

Also, for all y’all who got stuck in the rain and missed the Radiohead Concert on Sunday, here’s the full thing.

Bonus:

---

FREE Buses to from DC to NYC!!!!!!!

Forget BoltBus and their $1 buses to NYC. MegaBus, is setting up in DC and is offering FREE bus trips from DC (Union Station) to NYC. You know this isn’t going to last long, so get on THIS!! You have no excuse to hit up NY now. I just booked a free ticket, just in case. (Screenshot above)

Megabus Web Site

Tags: Chinatown Busses, Megabus, NYC

---

Good Look: The Other Side of LA….

Most of y’all know that I’m not the biggest fan of LA. Okay, LA is a decent city, but I think its a tad overrated. Nothing breaks a tourist’s heart to learn that those places that you saw in TV and movies aren’t that cool in person, but I digress. Having that said, I wish I got my hands on something like Time Out Presents: The Other Side of Los Angeles when I was out there, cause its the flyest travel guide that I’ve laid my hands on.

The like the title says, the DVD focuses on the areas of LA that are pretty much “off the beaten path.” The guide is definitely focused on the hipster or the hip-hop head–the shopping section focuses heavily on kicks stores, art galleries, record shops, and trendy boutiques. The dining section (video preview here) features spots like Earlies grill and Senior Fish–not the trendiest spots but probably more rewarding. Unfortunately, the the nightlife chapter is lacking, and it seems like they basically just gave up on the sightseeing section. It’s all edited in a quick “Travel Channel meets MTV” style, but just like a travel guide, they give store names, addresses, and websites. It also comes with a booklet with maps and a directory guide of all the spots featured in the video.

The only downside to the DVD is that its hosted by Peanut Butter Wolf. I know the dude is founder of Stone’s Throw Records, nurtured Dilla, etc, but the dude doesn’t have an once of personality. I would’ve rather seen Madlib or Aloe Blac host DVD because Wolf’s lack of enthusiasm was getting to me towards the end. It’s not as annoying as the dumb blondes they put on the Travel Channel, but still…

They do make up for it though, including an interview with PBW about the history of Stone’s Throw Records, including how he hooked up with Madlib, Dilla, and pretty frank questions about downloading. Also, included are video’s from Stone’s Throw artists Roc C (excellent video), Aloe Blac (which is not really a video), and Oh No.

The CD is a collection of tracks mixed by Madlib. Although there were some Madlib and Quasimoto tracks thrown in, most of the tracks were strictly underground basement material (think the Stone’s Throw Podcast). The mix is all over the place, ranging from Quasimoto and Jaylib to other artists that have you scratching your head. (Sun Ra Arkestra?)

All in all, this package is a good look. The other Time Out DVD’s in this series cost about $20, so bet on this one costing the same.(Update: It’s $13.97 at Amazon. Yes, it’s definitely worth it.) Is it worth it? I would be hesitant about dropping my cash on the DVD. A visual travel guide is good idea, but it’s honestly a hipper version of the Travel Channel. Having that said, the addition of the Peanut Butter Wolf Interview, the Stones Throw videos and the Madlib CD more than makes this CD+DVD combination a superior value.

Time Out Presents: The Other Side of Los Angeles drops on April 10th, 2007.

CD Tracklisting after the jump.
Read the rest of this entry »

---

London 2007

Coming To America…

So my two week stint in the UK/Northern Ireland/Europe is over, and honestly, I don’t even wanna be home right now. The UK is one of my favorite countries in the world, and England never fails to impress me. And the people are still the flyest around. Big shouts go out to: Miss Hipstah, Marsha of Soul Culture, my sister, Niamh for the 4 Hero party, Rocky and Floppy (?) from Casa Blue (if you’re in London, hit them up), Jo’Le (sorry we didn’t get up mate), and my dawg Robin in Belfast.

More shouts to all the people I met: Vicki, Kira, Sam, Everstina, Mike, Dave and Richard in Belfast, the Mercante Palace Hotel in Rome (a quality hotel, highly suggested), Jen from the Popcast, and all the other people that I’m forgetting to name.

And yes, I brought back about 4 pounds of English tea, so I’m gonna be drinking that like its goin’ outta style (with milk of course), and I picked up the terms proper, fit, uber fit, knackered, and ending all of my conversation with the word cheers.

And, since I just got back and my jetlagged ass has to work a full 8 10 hour day yesterday and today, so its going to take me a few days to sort through the my emails, MySpace, snail mail, etc. Please be patient.

---

London 2007, Music News

London Day 3 - London Graf Tour

One thing that amazes me about London is how American this place actually is. Its even more evident since I’ve lived here. They have Wal-Mart people. That’s bad.

But there are still areas of the LDN that haven’t been taken over by Starbucks. The Brick Lane area of the city, a former Jewish hood is becoming a haven for street art, most notably Banksy, who got his start here.

Anyway, here’s just a taste of some of the Graf and street art that’s around Brick Lane. I’ll put up more pics soon. Repect to Miss Hipstah for the find.

Related: Venice Beach Graffiti (from 2005)

---

London 2007, UK Sounds

London Day 2 - 4 Hero Album Release @ The Big Chill House

First off, much thanks to my new friend and frequent podcast listener Niamh for hooking me up with this party. It was off the chain.

And what party was this? It was the album release party for London drum and bass/broken beat collective 4 Hero. The group recently released their new album Play With the Changes this year however, these dudes have been around for years. Most Americans know the group for their remixes of Nuyorcian Soul’s “Black Gold of the Sun,” and their collaborations with New York artist Ursula Rucker.

To keep it real, I was a little intoixcated, so I can’t tell you what DJ’s were where. BBC 1Xtra’s Benji B was rumored to make an appearance but I gave up the search to find him after a few too many glasses of Jack and Cokes plus red wine. The downstairs DJ was off the chain, mixing a classic J Dilla Donuts medley along with the Roots and Pharcyde, while images of LA Krumping, James Brown, and scenes from Wild Style played on massive projectors.

However, the higlight of the evening for me was upstairs. The DJ’s spun a medley of recent and classic 4 Hero along with broken beat and drum and bass. The party was live as hell, and the best part…it was all British. Seriously, as much as I love American music, why would I drop tons of money to get over here (this exchange rate is killing me people) to hear stuff I that’s readily available in New York or DC?

Having that said, the one thing that I do admire about the UK underground culture is the respect they give to the music. Even when they played American tunes they flipped the script on it. I’m trying to find the house remix of John Legend’s “Ordinary People,” as I type.

---

LA 2005

LA, Day 1: Jody Watley and Chaka Kahn

My first day in LA started off with a trip to the The 25th Annual Sunset Junction Street Fair in Silverlake, North Hollywood.

First off, Silverlake is one of those places that makes Dupont Circle look like….Alabama. I’m not going to say more than that. Anyway, this festival benefits the Sunset Junction Community Neighborhood Alliance.

In most cities, the typical neighborhood festival consists of some local bands and a few vendors. But this is LA, so in addition to the glorious food (the Hawaiian BBQ was off da hook), we get Jody Watley and Chaka Kahn. All for $10.

I'm not the biggest Jody Watley (or Chaka) fan. Jody has got the looks of Sade with the attitude of Janet Jackson, yet she still dosn’t make the cut. As for Chaka…well, I'm not in the “grown and sexy” stage of my life yet, so I can't really appreciate her for what she is.

Jody's performance was so-so. Actually she faces a bind that many old school artists: you have a new album that you want to promote, yet people only want to hear your old songs. Chaka brought down the house as usual. However, the night belonged to Sharon Jones &
The Dap Kings.

Who?

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing, but seriously, this chick outstaged Jody AND Chaka with her renditions of James Brown and Janet Jackson classics. The girl tore up the stage and could seriously be called the “Female James Brown.”

---

Connect

Podcast

Features

Reviews

Events

Quick Hits

Last.FM

Popular Tags