Originally known as DJ Haircut, Mayer Hawthorne was a little side project that he was working on in his spare time. He never took himself as a serious singer, until one day he showed it to Peanut Butter Wolf and the rest is history.
As amazing as his show was the first time I saw him. I did think Mayer Hawthorne was the sort of artist, whose strength was more in the studio than as a super awesome live singer. How things have changed.
Mayer Hawthorne’s voice has really developed, as has his live show. So good.
From Stockholm to Compton, this was a night showcasing some very unique styles of reggae music from two different parts of the globe. Hailing from Compton Los Angeles, of Hawaiian and Samoan heritage, J Boog brings the island vibes with a very laid back Polynesian soul influenced style of roots reggae. In support of J Boog was Million Stylez. Million was born and raised in Stolkholm, Sweden, and is half Japanese and French. Growing up among mostly migrants he learned to respect different cultures and started experimenting with hip hop at a young age. A little later he discovered reggae music and is now one of the number one dancehall artists in Europe. Together they put on an amazing show, highlighting different sides of reggae music.
Listen: Million Stylez & Joey Fever – Young Guns (Come Down Riddim)
Listen: Million Stylez – So Di Ting Set (Costra Nostra Riddim)
I spent like a good day looking for new hip hop to play on this show, and found about two tracks. Maybe you will like anyways. We also had Sydney hip hop brass band, True Vibenation in for an interview and live performance.
Playlist:
N’fa Jones – Wayooy ft Roots Manuva
Foreign Beggars – Break Free
Erykah Badu – Jump Up In The Air And Stay There f. Lil Wayne & Bilal
Blu – N E V E R B E T H E S A M E (F E A T S A – R A & N O L A D A R L I N G )
Common – The Dreamer (Ft. Maya Angelou)
Shabazz Palaces – Swerve… The reeping of all that is worthwhile (Noir not withstanding)
Kalyanji Anandji – Dharmatma Theme Music
Jaylib – Champion Sound
Schoolboy Q – Hands On The Wheel ft A$AP Rocky
Black EL x Durkin – Chutes & Ladders (REMIX) (feat. Theo Martins x Esoteric)
French Montana – Shot Caller
Erick Sermon Ft. Swizz Beatz, Mone & Fred The Godson – Set It Off
The Demigodz – Demigodz Is Back
The Demigodz – Don’t You Even Go There
Freddie Gibbs & Madlib – Thuggin’ (Vocal)
Black Star – Fix Up
True Vibenation – Work Work Work ft Alphamama
True Vibenation – Running (Live)
True Vibenation – No More
The Baroness – Mos Def Yes
ABILITY SET!
Hermitude – Hyperparadise
Listen: Hermitude – Hyperparadise
Listen: True Vibenation ft Raashan Ahmad – No More
I have memories of listening to Paparazzi on rotation on my walkman sharing a headphone with a mate, while we drank in the park. As a long time fan of Xzibit, it totally took me by suprise when he started working with Dre and Eminem and began to blow up on a more commercial level. Now better know for modifying cars than hip hop, Xzibit recently toured Australia hitting every two horse town on the map. Here are some photos from Sydney.
Listen: Xzibit – Plastic Surgery ft Ras Kass & Saafir | Buy Me
Listen: Xzibit – Harder ft Ras Kass & Saafir | Buy Me
Listen: Ras Kass – Wild Pitch ft Xzibit & Jah Skillz | Buy Me
Hollywood Hotel was actually a perfect venue for this. Though it has a rather awkward dance floor, the place was filled with folks dancing around the small pub in Surry Hills.
Owned by former TV and Movie star of the 1950s, Doris Goddard, Hollywood Hotel seemed an appropriate setting for our Rock N Roll and Soul night. At the last one, Ms Goddard sat at the end of the bar for the early part of the night. Her only complaint, that we were a little loud. High praises from a woman who has been known to pull the power on DJs she disapproves of.
So we are doing another one of these before Sonny and Emma leave to Europe. Expect good music, lots of dancing, attractive hipster girls in rockabilly attire, and I promise Sonny won’t be doing any inappropriate scratching.
Listen: Dion & The Belmonts – Runaround Sue | Buy Me
In it’s first year, Musica is a smaller scale festival at Darling Harbour’s Tumbalong Park with a really cool line up. Maybe a little to cool to draw a massive festival crowd, it was a refreshingly, easy going, dickhead free day of good music. Rather than fighting crowds of sweaty muscle bound boofheads, dividing your time between 7 stages of the same old acts, Musica was just one stage of smaller amazing new artists. Perfect sunny weather for enjoying the likes of SBTRKT, Lunice, Ghostpoet, Baths, Electic Wire Hustle, Mitzi, Bon Chat Bon Rat, Tiger & Woods and Simon Caldwell. Brilliant day. Let’s hope it becomes a regular fixture in the festival calendar.
Listen: SBTRKT – Nervous ft Jessie Ware from Nervous EP
Listen: SBTRKT – Something Goes Right ft Sampha from SBTRKT
Listen: Lunice – The Name Dunnit ft Troy Dunnit from Stacker Upper EP
Oi blood! This weeks show was heavy. London Producer/DJ genius, Joker takes time out from hitting the gym with Benga and A-Trak to play a mix for our show. Out here for Parklife, Joker totally killed it in Melbourne and Perth. Tonight he gave us a taste of what you may expect from him in Brisbane, Adelaide and Sydney.
In addition, we are joined by Burn City’s 360. Just ahead of the release of his album ‘Flying & Falling’, we talked a little about the release, battling close friend Anecdote and the rapper tag phenomenon.
Also lots of music… This is a show not to be listened to on shitty laptop speakers. Hook it up to a system and play it loud.
Playlist:
Little Dragon – Recommendation (Toddla T Remix)
360 – Killer (12th Planet Remix)
J. Cole – Mr. Nice Watch (ft. Jay-Z)
SBTRKT – Wildfire (Remix) (Feat. Drake)
B.o.B ft Lil Wayne – Strange Clouds
Bonfire – Childish Gambino
Hudson Mohawke – Pleasure
Joe Simon – Before The Night Is Over
Outkast – So Fresh So Clean
Hermitude – Speaking Of The Devil
advertising
Estelle Ft. Swizz Beatz, Jadakiss & Busta Rhymes – Break My Heart (Remix) Interview with 360
360 – ft Josh Pike Interview with 360
360 – Hammer Head
Klashnekoff – Son of Niya Feat. Sizzla (Drop Leaf Riddim)
Rodney P – Live Up ft The Peoples Army & Mighty Mo (Heartless Crew)
Lotek – Dreader Than Dread ft Jimmy Screech
Gappy Ranks – Put The Stereo On
Kyla & Crazy Cousinz – Do You Mind (Reggae Remix)
Katalyst – Ready To Drop ft Kween G JOKER MIX – PLAYLIST COMING
Five Coffees – Flatline
Listen: Hudson Mohawke – Pleasure (Janet Jackson Remix) | Get Me
Listen: Joker – The Vision (Let Me Breath) ft Jessie Ware | Get Me
Listen: Sub Focus – Could Be Real (Joker Remix) | Get Me
Photos by Aaron Girgis – Click on em to make em bigger!
While a many folks seem to be losing interest in the DMC championships, Redbull Thre3style appears to be a competition which tries to get away from the DJ Nerdery that goes over the average punter’s head. In it’s first year in Australia, this tournament puts more of an emphasis on crowd rocking. These are some pics from the NSW Heats of Sampology (who helped judge and DJed at the end) and myself. The night was won by Typhonic, but our very own Mike Who? was a very close second.
Here’s a Caribbean, Wobble-Hop mix from Sampology on triple j Mix Up…
I had a bit of a love hate relationship with the band. Bombs Over Baghdad for instances – not necessary. I just want to hear that kicking, crisp electronic production rather than a wall of noise through which it was sometimes difficult to make out the song. However, on the other hand, Spottieottiedopalicious played with the help of two horn players in matching green Adidas tracksuits – stooooopid fresh to the power of infinity plus one.
Oh did anybody see that hoochie doing her stripper dance between the horn players? Oh dear! Maybe it would work in a place where folks weren’t so rhythmically challenged, but it just seems awkward when they invite the girls on stage in an attempt to turn the encore into the after party.
Nitpicking aside, Big Boi has hits for days, and delivers them with an amazing energy and flow. He played his part of all the Outkast hits as early as ‘Southernplayalisticcadiallacmusic’ taking us through to his more recent ‘Sir Luscious Left Foot’ solo jams. What more can I say? Dude can really rap, and it is just bumping party music.
In addition, Theophilus London was fun. Bringing a little bit of that Andre 3000 element to the tour.
Oh and big ups to Thundamentals who almost got kicked off the tour for stealing chicken backstage. Apparently Big Boi has two tonnes of chicken wings in his rider in every variety from Buffalo Wings to Honey Mustard Wings.
Anyways, here is a mix we did… Vodpod videos no longer available. Download:Outkast and Dungeon Family Tribute Mix on Stolen Records Playlist:
Outkast – Last Call (Feat. Slimm Calhoun, Lil’ Jon & The Eastside Boyz, & Mello)
Big Boi – Shutterbug
Killer Mike ft Sleepy Brown & Big Boi ADIDAS
Cee-Lo Green & Jack Splash – Right Now
Outkast – Player’s Ball (Original)
Outkast – ATLiens
Big Gipp ft Sleepy Brown – Steppin Out
Cool Breeze ft Sleepy’s Theme – Eastpointin’
Sleepy Brown ft Andre 3000 – I Can’t Wait
Big Boi ft Sleepy Brown & Joi – Turns Me On
Andre 3000 – Roses (Kero One Remix)
Dungeon Family – Follow The Light
Sleepy Brown ft Pharrell & Big Boi – Margarita
Outkast – Way You Move
Big Boi – Shine Blockas ft Bun B & Project Pat (Remix)
Outkast – Southernplaylisticcadillacmusick
Rich Boy – Throw Some D’s feat. Andre 3000
Outkast – Git Up, Git Out ft. Goodie Mob
Outkast – So Fresh, So Clean (Locsmif Mix)
Janelle Monáe – Tightrope ft. B.o.B (Wondamix)
Bubba Sparxxx – Ugly
Outkast – B.O.B.
Outkast – Bombs Over Your House (Locsmif Mix)
Scary Canary on a Wednesday night. It is like a Koh Phangan full moon party in the middle of Sydney’s CBD minus the sand, water and some dude with dredlocks fire twirling. Trashy tourists, trashy music all getting trashy on toxic cocktails served in little buckets with big straws.
Don’t ask how we ended up here at 3 in the morning after Mr Merriweather’s show. But I guess this is how I paid Daniel back for showing me some of the slightly more classy parties that you can find in New York on a weeknight while I was in his town.
From Melbourne originally now living in Harlem for several years, Daniel put on a couple of shows while returning to Australia for a little while. Instead of an over rehearsed show that an artist reproduces in every city, Daniel’s performance at Tone felt more like he was playing to us in the living room of a New York apartment in the wee hours of the morning after the clubs had closed.
Working his way through a bottle of Jameson, Daniel played his songs acoustically, and talked to us openly and honestly in between each track. He spoke about the vices that have inspired some of his songs, joked about making very little progress on the new album, his opinions on the London riots, Amy Winehouse and other friends and fellow artists that have passed away.
While I think some were expecting something more uptempo, instead we experienced a very intimate, at times very somber show, which really showcased his amazing voice as he sung with such feeling and depth.
Janini Panini
STOLEN RECORDS 