JahSonic's Meta Soul traces the history of disco, garage, house and techno, all the way down to the nineties, providing you with useful links, a buying guide, biographies, pictures and discographies.
2002, feb 28; 09:38:
Mastercuts - Bar Social [1CD, Amazon US][more Mastercuts releases]
TRACKLISTING:
1. Sincere (Re-cued) - MJ Cole
2. Alabama blues (Todd Edwards Vocal mix) - St. Germain
3. Finally (DJ Meri Vox mix) - Kings Of Tomorrow
4. Don't stop the music (Original mix) - Yarborough and Peoples
5. Witness (1 hope) (Album version) - Roots Manuva
6. Runnin' (Album mix) - The Pharcyde
7. The Truth (feat. Roisin and J-Live) - Handsome Boy Modelling School
8. Baby I love you so (Original mix) - Colourbox
9. Uptown top rankin (Album version) - Althea & Donna
10. Little samba (Extended version) - Ugly Duckling
11. Roller skating jam named Saturday (Album version) - De La Soul
12. Last night a DJ saved my life (Original mix) - In Deep
Disc: 2
1. I am the black gold of the sun (4 Hero mix) - Nu Yorican Soul
2. Running away - Roy Ayers
3. I'm the baddest bitch (Moodyman Main mix) - Norma Jean
4. It's yours (Original Distant Music mix) - Jon Cutler feat. E-Man
5. Contact (Extended version) - Edwin Starr
6. Release the pressure (Album version) - Leftfield
7. Your love - Frankie Knuckles
8. Mighty hard rocker (Album mix) - Cash Money & Marvellous
9. The message (Full Length version) - Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five
10. Pull up to the bumper (Original mix) - Grace Jones
2002, feb 28; 09:25:
Afrika Underground -- Jazz, Funk, & Fusion Under Apartheid [1CD, Amazon US]
'Afrika Underground' is the first from Counterpoint records to begin to explore the rich heritage of South Africa's underground jazz , funk & fusion scene during 1970's-80's. Tracks from Movement In The City, Dick Khoza, Harari, and others are being released for the first time outside of South Africa.
Straight No Chaser: 'An album that will uplift the soul as well as get those feet and hips swinging'.
DJ : 'Another Quality underground selection.'
IDJ : 'Uniformly Excellent.' [more Counterpoint releases]2002, feb 27; 11:02:
Sonic Boom: Napster, MP3, and the New Pioneers of Music -- John Alderman [1Book, Amazon US] Napster may or may not be a factor in the music scene of the future, but its extraordinary rise--and the attention it focused on the MP3 digital audio format--has ensured its status as a key figure in bringing this new type of sound recording to public consciousness. Sonic Boom, by veteran cyberjournalist John Alderman, cogently recounts the brief but tumultuous story that led up to this upstart song-trading exchange attracting 500,000 users each night--along with the wrath of the traditional recording industry.
2002, feb 23; 12:36:
Babe Ruth - First Base[1CD, Amazon US] 1972 progressive rock classic, which features The Mexican, a track made popular in countless nightclubs around the world, has been sampled numerous times. You can buy the 'the Mexican'- track on the Afrika Bambaata comp on strut records.
2002, feb 23; 11:41:
Victor Davies - Victor Davies [1CD, Amazon US]
Reviewer: Jcohn B. Jackson from Chicago, IL 60601
Victor Davis can be considered the Jon Lucien of the new soul movement. Combining a soulfully pure soul sound with a touch of a Brazilian house and jazz groove. Victor takes you from the dance floor, lounge type groove, to the bedroom (if you are with the right person) without missing a beat. The R&B world need to take notice that there is another artist that is doing his own thing and not following the typical boring rules. If you love Lewis Taylor, Stephen Simmonds or D'Angelo, you have to give this artist a close listen. Jazzanova and Compost have done it again. If he ever gets the love in the states that this cd deserves watch out. It is a must have.
2002, feb 22; 14:53:
The Official Adventures of Grandmaster Flash - Grandmaster Flash [1CD, Amazon US][more on Grandmaster Flash] Strut Records hooked up with Grandmaster Flash and asked him to delve deep and faithfully re-create the original days, to play the tunes that actually were played. Flash has got rhythms you haven't even used yet. The result is a real piece of dance music history for anyone remotely into hip-hop. Flash takes us through different aspects of the block parties from the extended freestyle mixes to the tracks he used to play in their entirety. There are even some snippets of original block party tapes and some exclusive interview footage with Flash himself. The deluxe packaging features cover photography from Vincent MacDonald along with a 28-page booklet featuring original photos and memorabilia. A comprehensive Flash history courtesy of Bill Brewster and Frank Broughton is included.
2002, feb 21; 08:31:
The Poets of Rhythm - Discern / Define [1CD, Amazon US] This is one hell of a great album, you must at all costs get a copy of this or at least try and hear it, it's a cross label recording made by 'Quannum' in San Francisco and 'Ninja tunes' in the United Kingdom. Boy does this album rate. -- Blatnouik on Meta Grooves2002, feb 20; 21:26:
Nathan Haines - Sound Travels [1CD, Amazon US][more on Jazz] Self confessed "jazz punk", Nathan Haines has contributed to recordings of Francois K., Ron Trent and Little Louie Vega. This album is a mixture of jazz, dub, funk and latin.
2002, feb 20; 11:24:
Nova Records and Radio Station from France, Europe I want to put the spotlight on Nova again, not in the least because they have an excellent radio station which broadcasts 24/7 in French with a truely eclectic selection, but also because Matthieu from Nova has sent me their entire back-catalogue of CDs, most of which are only available at Amazon FR. My preferred cds are 'Underground Moderne', to date the best comp of the 21st century and Nova Classics 01 and 02. [more on Radio Nova and Nova Records]2002, feb 19; 23:33:
In the Beginning there Was Rythm - Soul Jazz records[1CD, Amazon US][more on No Wave]
TRACKLISTING:
1. Shack up - Certain Ratio
2. Coup - 23 Skidoo
3. To Hell with poverty - Gang Of Four
4. Being boiled - Human League
5. She is beyond good and evil - Pop Group
6. In the beginning there was rhythm - Slits
7. 20 jazz funk greats - Throbbing Gristle
8. Knife slits water - Certain Ratio
9. 24 track loop - This Heat
10. Sluggin' for Jesus - Cabaret Voltaire
11. Vegas el bandito - 23 Skidoo
2002, feb 18; 23:02:
Metadata, which describes each file and the elements within it, holds the key to self-organization. XML is a good foundation -- but only a foundation, because it just offers a syntax. Building on the XML foundation, schemas hold some promise for structuring both content and users' reactions to the content. One slogan we considered was, "Publish my taste, not just my music files." http://linux.oreillynet.com/pub/a/linux/2000/09/22/p2psummit.html
Disco Forever - Dimitri from Paris[3CDs, Amazon US][more BBE releases] 3CDs, one is mixed and two are the full length tracks.
TRACKLISTING:
1. Were on Our Way Home - Brainstorm
2. My Love Supreme - Hamilton, Milton
3. Barely Breaking Even - Universal Robot Band
4. Chameleon - Pregunta
5. You're So Right for Me - Eastside Connection
6. Ain't No Stopping Us Now - Charanga 76
7. Flight to Jamaica - Crashers
8. Que Tal America - Two Man Sound
9. Corazon - LTG Exchange
10. Love Hangover - Touch
11. Let's Make Love - Napoli, Jeanne
12. Just as Long as I Got You - Love Committee
13. Smile - Skylite
14. I Got a Thing - Silver, Platinum & Go
15. Shout at the Disco - Little Scotty
16. Work Song - Lundy, Pat
Requiem for a Dream [1DVD, Amazon US][more movies] Story of a mother (Ellen Burstyn) and her son. Mother is on uppers to lose weight, son is doing heroin. Starts friendly enough, evolves into a nightmare, excellent movie. Visually stunning. 10/10
2002, feb 18; 14:10:
Snatch- Guy Ritchie [1DVD, Amazon US][more movies] Saw Snatch yesterday evening, this UK heist movie is fast-paced and well acted by a mostly male (apart from Brad Pitt's mom) male cast. I mentioned Brad, but other noticeable appearances are by Benicio Del Toro and Alan Ford (Brick Top Polford). There is one scene (each time Avi flies from New York to London) which reminded me of another favourite: 'Requiem for a Dream'. Soundtrack is top, a mixture of pop and classical music. 8/10
2002, feb 17; 01:30:
Tommy Boy - Greatest Beats Vol. 1 [1CD, Amazon US][more on Hip Hop] Spin
The four CDs of Tommy Boy's Greatest Beats aren't sequenced chronologically, but they tell the undeniable story of a music's growing pains, and they brilliantly trigger the nostalgic impulse. At the time, the fact that this music came from a zip code beginning with 9 just added to its novelty, but in retrospect it was a harbinger of the day when hip-hop would grow large enough to challenge New York chauvinism. --Spin Magazine. The box has liner notes by David Toop2002, feb 15; 09:55:
http://www.discogs.com Discogs.com is rapidly becoming the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) for electronic music. You can contribute to it.
2002, feb 15; 09:46:
Zero 7 - Simple Things[1CD, Amazon US] Longtime North Londoner friends Sam Hardaker and Henry Binns on their debut LP. Zero 7 has been dubbed the British 'Air'.
2002, feb 13; 09:38:
Terry Callier - Lifetime [1CD, Amazon US][more on Terry Callier]
Reflecting a lifetime of experience, Terry Callier squeezes every ounce of emotion from his world-weary voice. Born in Chicago, Callier recorded several albums during the 1960s and was an integral part of both the soul and folk movements of that time. Returning to music in the late 1990s after a decade-long hiatus with this great album. The subsequent album, Timepeace, did not do much for me.
2002, feb 12; 11:23:
Liberatore's Women - Tanino Liberatore [1Book, Amazon US][more on Tanino Liberatore]
Tanino Liberatore is well known in his field. That field would be independent comic, and erotic art. He drew and created Ranx, the anti-hero featured in Heavy Metal magazine. Since this is a book of art, whether you like it or not depends on what art you enjoy. Liberatore's art is lush in color, and his attention to detail is wonderful! He is an Italian artist, and one gets the feeling that he studied the masters, while looking at his work. However, his style is quite unique. His art is very erotic, which is fine, to a certain extent (for my taste). There are some pictures which I simply do not enjoy, while there are others which are wonderful. If you are conservative in your taste, perhaps this is not a book for you! If you enjoy modern science-fiction art that is done bizarre, erotic, and often most beautiful, you might very well love this book (it's not all sci-fi)! I would give this book 5 stars, if some of the images displayed were not so sexual. It's simply a matter of taste. -- Amazon reviewer
Tanino Liberatore is one of my favourite visual artists.
2002, feb 11; 21:19:
Frank Zappa - Freakout[1CD, Amazon US][more on Frank Zappa] "This is the voice of your conscience, baby..." The recording debut of the Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention is a brilliantly wicked counter-strike to the flower power sensibilities prevalent at the time of it's release in 1966. Arguably rock music's first true "concept album," Zappa's aural collage mashes together chunks of psychedelic guitars, outspoken political commentary, cultural satire, and avant-garde musical sensibilities, and then hides it all under cleverly crafted pop melodies. Not diminished in the slightest by the passage of time, Freak Out! remains as vital and relevant today as it was in the 1960's. --Andrew Boscardin
The other day 'It Can't Happen Here' was playing on our local radio station and my 5year old was really amused. It's a very funny song.
2002, feb 11; 20:58:
Computer World
- Kraftwerk [1CD, Amazon US][more on Kraftwerk] Amazon.com Sales Rank: 4,711
This is the album pundits like to point to when they accuse Kraftwerk of being digital-age visionaries; an all-too-easy assessment to make in the face of tracks such as "Home Computer" and "Computer Love" (not an ode to one-hand typing!). But to saddle the band with the reputation of sages is to completely miss the low-key wit and all-too-human playfulness of this album. "Pocket Calculator" and "Numbers" (the lyrics: numbers one to eight--period) could be read as tongue-in-cheek ripostes to too much bad "educational" programming, but that would smack of creeping punditry. Computer World is Kraftwerk's most lovable bundle of contradictions: at once its most technologically obsessed album and its most human. --Jerry McCulley
2002, feb 11; 14:53:
The Story of the Original Hot Mix 5 Article by Rebecca Ortiz tracing the origins of this influential Chicago radio show in the period 1981-1984.
2002, feb 11; 00:32:
Mastercuts Vol. 2-Classic Rare Groove [1CD, Amazon US] More on [more on Mastercuts records] This is a fabulous cd and goes to show how wide the meaning of rare groove can be. To me this is more mellow groove. Anyway, rare grooves just means that they are tracks which are hard to find. More on [more on Rare Groove]
1. Caveman boogie - Wilson, Lesette
2. LA nights - Agawa, Yasuko
3. No 1 girl - Light Of The World
4. You need a change of mind - Brooklyn Express
5. There's a reason - Hi-Tension
6. Work it out - Break Water
7. Barely breaking even - Universal Robot Band
8. I'd like to get into you - Kelly, Denise & Fame
9. Windy city theme - Davis, Carl
10. Bump and hustle music - Stewart, Tommy
11. God made me funky - Headhunters (1)
12. Give me some - LA Boppers
2002 archive: 2001 archive:
[ Larry Levan |
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HOUSE | The Nineties ]