Andreya Triana, one of Ninja Tune’s most recent signings, has a Bonobo produced LP, entitled Lost Where I Belong, coming out in August. She’s already provided vocals for Mr Scruff, Bonobo and Flying Lotus, and the latter has returned the favour remixing the lead single (also called) Lost Where I Belong, that has been made available for the down lo. Cop it here.
Warming to the theme, it’s also worth checking the Music Weekly podcast over at the Guardian. While it lacks the chaotic genius of the James Richardson led Football Weekly, this series of podcasts provides a solid overview on the music scene in general and the recent piece with Big Dada founder Will Ashton is well nifty. While your on the Guardian site check the affable Paul Morley utlising his laid back charm with Giggs, Dan Le Sac and Scroobius Pip. Excellent work.
After the stunning Neurosonics Audiomedical Lab video, director Chris Cairns has pushed the envelope further with the Neurosonics Live using beatboxer Beardyman, JFB on the ones and twos and Will Clark banging the drums (or Beardyman’s head depending on how you look at it). Crazy good sums it up.
Greymatter’s Mind Over Matteralbum has just fallen to earth and there is an intense Illum Sphere remix of the track Too Much floating around for free. Well Bladerunner.
The Vauxhall Beatbox Championships are back, offering you the chance to win a brand new Vauxhall Corsa SXi. Beatboxer, to give the car urban bumps, presumably not included as part of the soundsystem.
Beatboxing is blossoming at the moment - something we explored in issue 03 with an exclusive interview Shlomo - and is hotbed of imaginative talent.
If you think you can follow previous winners including Beardyman and MC Zani, then pick-up-the-mic, if you can’t then go along and get a ringside seat at a set of nights than are guaranteed to go booooom.
Kidkanevil has been a busy boy since we last spoke to him, check out the dope new video for Minjo by Ricky Kershaw, from his dope new album Basho Basho. Ever evolving, Kidk has flipped it yet again for his third long player and this one is truly epic. An abstract landscape of sonic sound textures played via a Boombox hooked up to a Commodore 64, which is hooked up to a satellite on the other side of Mars, which beams the sounds back to Tokyorkshire, recording over itself in a resounding auricular paradox. This is some next level future shit. You can check the album out and download it here.
In fact he’s been knocking out the mixtapes for fun recently, you can check his recent mix for knowledge mag here. and a mix he describes as “aggy bass music” for Data Transmission here.
And while we’re on the subject, you may have missed the video for his debut single Kranium Rock ft. Testament the first time round (also by Ricky Kershaw) way back in ‘05 – A Bonafide favourite recently re-upped on Youtube.
This week sees two musical heavyweights step into the ring looking to find their form and titles again.
First up Massive Attack look to expunge the dissappointment of 100th Window with Heligoland. With the pressure solely on 3D to deliver the goods I found 100th Window creak under the weight of expectation. The sound was stripped too far back, with the vocals masked by the bleeping electronica. Horace Andy, father of gawd knows how many kids, has never sounded so impotent.
Heligoland, like 100th Window, contains a few eye-brow raising guest vocalists but, with Daddy G back in the fold, initial hype suggests that Massive are back on track and nearing Mezzanine’s heights again. Fingers crossed this is the case for one of the UK’s most original and influential groups.
Meanwhile across the pond and sitting in the red corner is Gil Scott-Heron. The grandfather of rap, Scott-Heron has spent years in the wilderness slipping into a hedonistic lifestyle at an age when most artists are going clean. Indeed he’s has been in a strange position where the tales of despair, loss and alienation he was documenting in his songs in the 70s, were actually foretelling his own recent troubles.
Gil Scott-Heron is where it all started in many people’s eyes and, like the Massive Attack album, I will be purchasing I’m New Here with a mixture of excitement, hey they could be starting a revolution again, and apprehension that maybe…
Coming out late this February, a slab of pure UK hip-hop. Produced by East London rapper Cyclonious this manages to be both tuneful and send out a social message. Props.
From old-school hip-hop to hip-hop on the outer reaches.Kidkanevil’s love affair with all things Japanese continues apace with the release of his new LP Basho Basho. Listening to the tracks it sounds like hip-hop through an ancient East Asian filter. Check it out and take advantage of bagging one of his previous albums, Problems & Solutions or Back Off Man, I’m A Scientist, for free when you purchase the CD.
What I also really like about KidK’s releases are the artwork. Produced by Matt ‘Monkey Boxer’ Bailey, Matt’s work has great flexibility and the illustrations for Basho Basho and the single Megajoy/Minjo are really suggestive of woodblock prints, feudal Japan, Rashoman and things of that ilk. Now that’s what I call proper record cover artwork.
BTW anyone not aware of KidK should check out our interview in issue 02 and his ill Public Service Announcement mix on Groovement. Both are straight outta Tokyorkshire.
What started as a post inspired by a piece on Certified Banger snowballed into something that probably requires several posts. Time is precious at the moment so to hell with it. First up is the Scor-zay-zee The Starterdownload, an offering that re-affirms the confident delivery and wit and perceptive lyrics evident when he released Great Britain. Its great to hear his Nottingham burr back on the mic and the highlights of The Starter are his ability to poke fun at mainstream rap and his imaginative re-working of The Message. Hopefully the attention he’s been receiving over the past six months will provide the motivation to release the great album that lurks within him.
When investigating The Starter I didn’t expect was to click through to a site that houses lots of free Nottingham based music. Not only is Scorz featured but compadres Tempa, Lee Ramsey and C-Mone et al are all on board. Anyone who used to buy the superb Big Daddy/Grand Slam magazine will be aware of their talent. For more information it’s worth checking the Son Records label too.
BTW Certified Banger is also promoting the latest installment of his On The Radar series and also helped make Bonafide issue 03, providing an excellent interview with Farma G from Task Force. Props.
We’ve got an exclusive and rather good interview with Mr T in the new edition of Bonafide and with this in mind we thought we’d post a heads up about the excellent downloads currently available on his site. The Annie Mac Five Minute Mini-Mix is a great introduction to his jaunty Sheffield soundsystem and deserves to be played loud! Also worth checking is the video for the brilliant ‘Fill Up Mi Portion‘ that archly references both Little Shop of Horrors and Pac Man and the great promotional photography art directed by fellow Steel City creatives Peter and Paul.
