Category Archives: inthemix.com.au

inthemix.com.au, Music, Review, Writing

Grandmaster Flash – The Bridge

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Grandmaster Flash is undoubtedly the most influential hiphop DJ of all time, but I must confess being a little hesitant about his new album. Total respect to the man for making some awesome music back in the day, but can he really still do what he did? Is this going to be a ground breaking album which people from all over will respect?

Well, the answer is no. This isn’t a ground breaking album, and there’s nothing here which will live in hiphop history, nothing which will impress people not into hiphop, and nothing which will live much longer than 6 months in peoples playlists. But that’s not to say this is a bad album by any means. There are some amazing songs on here and unfortunately there’s a lot of filler, too.

Disappointingly, Shine All Day with Q-Tip, Jumz and Kel Spenser isn’t one of the better tunes. It’s got those annoying vocoder lyrics and just doesn’t really go anywhere. Most of the other filler comes from the tracks with the girls. Swagger, which features Snoop Dogg, Red Café and Lynda Carter is one of those typical rap songs by someone like Snoop. Over produced RnB crap with some really lame lyrics like “Show you how I feel, Howie Mandell, deal or no deal”. Big Daddy Kane and Hedonis Da Amazon can’t do any better on When I Get There, nor can Kane provide anything worth listening to with Syndee on Unpredictable, which is ironically rather predictable. Oh Man with Syndee and Natacha Atlus is probably the worst of the lot, being the ultimate in cheesy tripe.

However, I Got Sumthin’ To Say Featuring Lordikim, Jay-Flo & Almighty Thor although cheesy is pretty damn cool, with nice flow by the MCs. The album continues to redeem itself with the addition of DJ Kool & DJ Demo on Here Comes My DJ, a bass-shaking dancefloor slammer, however reminiscent of every other DJ Kool track. Tribute to the Breakdancer is a great old school jam with Supernatural, using the Apache beat for that authentic oldschool vibe.

But the best tracks are those featuring KRS One. He’s still got an amazing flow and incredible command of the English language, and this is very apparent on What If, which questions the state of the world if hiphop was never around. We Speak Hip Hop features Afasi, Kase.O., Maccho, Abass rapping in their own languages, bookmarked by KRS rhyming that whilst he doesn’t speak Swedish, Spanish, Japanese or French, hiphop is a universal language that everyone can understand.

Event, inthemix.com.au, Review, Writing

Jungle Run 7 @ Roxanne’s Parlour

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9/4/09

I’m an ex-Adelaide boy, and whilst I absolutely love Melbourne town, there’s something I must confess. I’ve not been too impressed with Melbourne dnb DJs. Don’t get me wrong, I think they’re technical wizkids on the turntables, but at events where I’ve seen them support internationals I’ve never felt adequately warmed up and excited by them like I was by Adelaide dnb DJs. There’s just not the same vibe from them, and I was worried that an all local line up would be lacking in the awesome vibe I’ve so long associated with dnb music.

However, the moment I walked into Roxanne’s for Jungle Run I was impressed and my opinion has definitely been changed. I’m not quite sure who the first DJ was, but they were playing a fantastic set of tunes, and had the dance floor pumping with oldschool greats like Everyman, R.I.P and more from the 92-94 era. There were a fair few heads in the venue even at that early stage, and most of them were on the dance floor.

I must admit I only checked out the side room once, and liked the set up, but they were playing dubstep – admittedly not my most favourite kind of music – so I didn’t hang around. I mean, why listen to that tripe when the best of drum and bass music was in the very next room? But each to their own I guess.

Trooper, who’ve I’ve seen numerous times in Adelaide, stepped up to the decks, and I was keen to hear him in his hometown. And of course I was not disappointed. He played even more banging tunes, and whilst I don’t know the names of most of them I’m sure there was a fair whack of Congo Natty with the phat bassline and rasta stylings just mashing up the dance floor. I know he played Original Nutter by Shy FX, and I was stoked to hear Limb By Limb by Cutty Ranks and One Blood by Junior Reid. But I completely lost my shit when I heard the original rudeboy style of Inbound (Yes that was me screaming out “Yellow Record!” and calling for the rewind…)

I’m not sure who was next, but have a sneaking suspicion it was Finna, and he continued the great tunes, featuring Randal and a few other tracks from the AWOL compilation, and other great hits like Fire and Ruffneck. And a note to the trainspotters out there – these may not be the actual song titles, but everyone knows them as this so put your pencils away, stop stroking your chins and go dance! Unfortunately I had to leave deep into Finna’s set, but I was well impressed with the whole night.

Something I’ve come to love about Melbourne is the friendliness of the punters, and at Jungle Run this was no different. From chatting to people in the line, to finding myself dancing with people on the floor, receiving friendly smiles from all over the place, and having funny chats to randoms in the toilets, I felt almost the same vibe I got in Adelaide. So thank you, Jungle Run 7! You’ve finally made me feel at home.

inthemix.com.au, Review, Writing

Lily Allen – It’s Not Me It’s You

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Well, hasn’t our little Lily Allen grown up a bit over the past few years? Whilst her second album contains all of her venomous working class wit, and vociferous understanding of modern culture, yet it also reveals a softer, kinder Lily who’s no longer completely immature and angry about absolutely everything.

The first song is Everyone’s At It, where Allen rips into everyone for not paying attention to the drug culture we’ve created, and everyone from users to parents to politicians refusing to accept responsibility. The Fear is all about our obsession with celebrity, and mostly Allen’s celebrity. Back to the Start is about mending relationships, as is He’s Not There, where Allen forgives her absent father, saying such stuff as “I’m so pleased I never gave up on him, oh you wouldn’t believe some of the things he did”.

22 is about a girl who parties through the 20s and finds her future unpromising unless she gets a man and settles down. Who’d Have Known and Chinese are actual love songs, insomuch as she’s singing about enjoying being with an individual. She’s even singing about God with the song Him, wondering what he thinks of all this. All of these songs contain deep lyrics and motives suitable to a Bob Dylan type song, but are wrapped up in such amazing bubblegum pop, and I’m just not sure if it’s sublime or ridiculous.

But then Allen drops her smarts with Not Fair, a whiney number about her man not being good in bed, and Never Gonna Happen about dumping a guy who just keeps hanging on. Yeah yeah, we get it; all men are pricks, whatever. And Fuck You is a happy little sing-along aimed at George Bush, who she calls evil, racist, homophobic and dumb. And whilst that may be true, she could have sung it a little more intelligently.

It’s Not Me It’s You is a great second album, showing however unlikely, Lily Allen has staying power. If you’ve never liked her accent and overall vibe you’re not going to really get into this either, but the music is poppy and fun, her voice still melodic yet brash, and it’s just an enjoyable album.

inthemix.com.au, Music, Review, Writing

The BPA – I Think We’re Gonna Need A Bigger Boat

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Norman Cook drops the Fatboy Slim moniker and presents a varied album of not-quite dance but still catchy and often fun tracks, in the guise of The BPA (Brighton Port Authority) – I Think We’re Gonna Need A Bigger Boat. Some of the quality dips below that of the best of Palookaville, whereas others are shining examples of Norman Cook at his best.

Without a doubt the stand out track is Toe Jam with David Byrne and Dizzee Rascal. This calypso inspired load of nonsense is Cook channelling Talking Heads incredibly well, with Dizzee’s brief cameo being brilliantly placed. Other tracks which really pleased my ear were the jangly guitars on He’s Frank with Iggy Pop, and the very Bloc Party sounding Local Town with Jamie T on guest vocals.

One unexpected highlight is So It Goes, a 70s inspired soul jam with gospel organs and Olly Hite’s quite impressive voice belting out. Another is Seattle, an incredibly catchy pop number featuring the modestly named Emmy The Great. It’s one of those songs that just gets stuck in your head for days. Jumps The Fence is the oddest song next to Toe Jam, with Connan Mockasin’s strong New Zealand accent lending a further amount of surrealism to the track.

The middling songs come from Pete York on Dirty Sheets and dance DJ turned singer Ashley Beedle on Should I Stay Or Should I Blow. They’re not terrible songs, but just don’t have the impact of the other songs. However, Superman and Superlover are both slower tracks, and to my mind some of the weakest songs. Then again, I’ve never been able to get into Cagedbaby.

One of the biggest disappointments of the album is it has in clear writing on the cover the word “Lateef”, yet he’s not to be found anywhere on the album. Lateef saved Palookaville from complete condemnation, and his absence despite the advertising is sorely missed.

inthemix.com.au, Music, Review, Writing

Belleruche – The Express

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My first experience with Belleruche was earlier this year in Melbourne when I managed to catch them live. My initial thought was they were a poor man’s Portishead, but it’s an injustice to dismiss them simply as a copycat. Yes, Kathrin DeBoer’s soulful voice has the same smoky sexiness as Beth Gibbons, and the tracks combine turntables, samples and bass guitar, but Belleruche are a lot more positive in both the lyrics and general sound of the music itself, with the music being a little less complex and informed as Portishead.

Their first album was called Turntable Soul Music, and this album continues in the same vein, but is perhaps a little bluesier than before. Anything You Want (Not That) is a jazzy little upbeat number. Backyard is swinging backyards blues, with steel guitar over the simple beat of a drum machine. Idea Three gets a lot more funkier, but the blues returns in Goose Blues.

The record continues in the same vein with Like 4 The Hard Way, then gets a little more pace with Rumble Strip. My favourite track is How Many Times, a short and sweet rocking blues track. Scratch My Soul is the most downbeat on the album, a headnodding blend of echo-y guitar and scratched beats.

Late Train has that awesome blues train feel, accentuated by the horn stabs, and you can imagine an old steam train racing down the tracks as the song plays. The music being simply bass guitar, sampler/turntables and voice mean the music is pretty sparse and simple, unlike the aforementioned Portishead, and the space between sound and silence works especially well on You’re Listening To The World’s, the last track on the album.

I was really impressed with Belleruche’s second album. It’s distinctive and has a sense of cool about it. It’s similar to other music, without being copycat, filling a unique space in the catalogue of modern music.

inthemix.com.au, Music, Review, Writing

Baobinga and ID – Big Monster Dubstep EP

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Baobinga & I.D’s album is one of the best releases of this year – of any genre. If you haven’t got it, go out and get it. Anyway, this ep features dubstep remixes of some of the tunes by ID, Hektagon and DFRNT. All up, it’s not bad, But when the originals are as good as they are, it’s pretty hard to stuff them up.

ID’s remix of South Manchester Weather sounds more breakbeat than dubstep to me. It’s kind of like Freq Nasty’s earlier stuff, just not as full on crazy. The bass is big, but the traditional dubstep vibe isn’t quite there.
Hektagon’s remix of The Water Park is nothing special. It strips back the original, but doesn’t do anything great with it to make it a standout track.

Many dubstep tunes feel as though they’re trying too hard to be different. However, DFRNT’s remix of In the Air is nice and mellow without being too wanky and experimental, and is one of the best remixes on the EP.

Similarly DFRNT’s remix of The Machine is good. It’s almost like old school trance at the start, but gets more dubsteppy in the main meat of the tune. I like this tune the best, but the original is a fucking awesome tune anyway, so it’s not hard to like it so much.

inthemix.com.au, Music, Review, Writing

Balance Presents Electric 04 mixed by Agent 86

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I’m not going to mince words – Agent 86 is one of the finest DJs in the country. The fact he can mix a variety of genres, in tune, as well as scratch up a storm simply blows me away every time I see him, and it is beyond my comprehension why he hasn’t been voted the number 1 DJ in inthemix’s DJ poll as of yet. I guess it’s because he’s a quiet achiever, all about the music rather than the scene.

Overall on the latest Balance Presents Electric, we find a very relaxed, breezy summery kind of vibe, funky, discoy and lots of fun, with tunes that sound like they could be from any era from the 70s to today, which essentially makes them timeless.

Some of the highlights are Aeroplane’s Pacific Air Race, the funky 80s disco vibe of Tease Me by Bermuda, the utterly groovy Fog by LSB, the Jackson’s sounding Shake That Booty by Soundtroopers and the 303 acid flashback of Bermuda’s Galaxy Race.

All throughout Agent 86 drops scratches from 70s disco classics (Dynamite! Outta Sight!) and the first landing of man onto the moon, creating an amazing soundscape that celebrates life and man’s great achievements, including making some funky ass music!

I’m not normally all that much of a fan of the housey disco sound, preferring breaks and hiphop, but it’s really growing on me, and combined with Agent 86s transcendently smooth mixing, this is a CD which will get play on many occasions, from getting ready to go clubbing to relaxing on a sunny Sunday afternoon with good friends and good brews.

inthemix.com.au, Music, Review, Writing

Ice Cube – The Essentials

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Covering Ice Cube’s career since NWA, this compilation shows without a doubt Ice Cube made it well and truly on his own as a rap MC. Although some think he has kind of lost it with his appearance in kiddy movies, his later raps are just as aggressive and confrontational as his early stuff.

The album opens with his 2006 track Go To Church with Lil’ Jon and Snoop Dog, a blistering attack on the prudes of the world. Also from 2006 is the live version of Why We Thugs / Smoke Some Weed, recorded in Perth, so this is an obvious tour tie in, but shouldn’t be dismissed because of that.

Pretty much all his best work is on here. From AmeriKKKa’s Most wanted we have Rollin’ With The Lench Mob and A Gangster’s Fairy Tale. From his best album, Death Certificate, there is Bird In The Hand, Givin’ Up The Nappy Dugout and The Wrong Nigga To Fuck With. From The Predator this compilation contains It Was A Good Day, When Will They Shoot and perhaps his most famous, Check Yo Self.

The album also contains Supreme Hustle, Greed, and War & Peace from War & Peace Vols 1 & 2. Whilst not as well known as his first few albums, these mid 90s tracks show the subject and witticism of his rhymes hasn’t changed much, even though the world did. Even the last track, 2008s Cold Places shows Ice Cube still has strong views on Black politics in the United States.

If you’re not a fan of Ice Cube, you’re not going to like this, and even I got a little bored of all the “fuck”, “bitches” and N*words throughout his rhymes. But I gotta admit, he does swear very well. And if you are already a fan you’ve probably got all his best stuff anyway. But considering the tour, and the fact he’s not had a ‘best of’ before, The Essentials is a great introduction to those who maybe only know some of Ice Cube’s more popular tunes.

inthemix.com.au, Music, Review, Writing

Downsyde – All City

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Western Australia’s Downsyde have come a long way in the 8 years since their debut. Not only have they blown up charts over Australia, they’ve travelled the world and played at places such as India’s Mumbai Festival, and their experience really shows on their 4th album, All City.

Even though they’ve said in the press they’re trying to move away from the hiphop vibe, this album is straight up hiphop. And it’s straight up aussie hiphop, because no one else in the world could rap the piece of lyrical greatness on Calm Before the Storm “I need a pap smear because I’m such a sick cunt” and get away with it. Along with the salsa spiced Takin It Over, old school vibed Master MC and Super Heroes, the boys’ show they’re still the jump up party anthem masters.

There are also some more subtle and thoughtful tracks on All City. Fortune & Fame featuring Howling John Stone, Every City and the Summer in the City sampling Hot Town reflect on life and city living. The boys are brilliantly supported by Guru of Gangstarr / Jazzmatazz fame on Watucamehere 4, a track cautioning against letting success and greed rule your life.

The production by Optamus is top notch, but unlike say Muph and Plutonic’s last album, still primarily uses samples and beats to create a vibe, rather than real instruments. DJ Armee lets you know he’s scratching on turntables, and the beats are positively funky. That’s not to say there’s no instrumentation, as guitarist Cheeky rocks out on Life Speed featuring UK drum and bass MC Stamina. Soulfiend is a more downtempo bluesy track, and again Cheeky’s guitar blends splendidly with the samples and loops.

I half expected this to be ho-hum – not a diss against Downsyde, but rather a mark of respect to the greatness of Aussie Hiphop, which just seems to be going from strength to strength. Downsyde helped homegrown hiphop get the popularity it’s found, and yet still manage to keep hitting all the right buttons.

inthemix.com.au, Music, Review, Writing

The Bamboos – Side Stepper

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Recently I’ve been a bit down on modern music, and the derivative drivel that’s been put out by bands and labels alike. From reading my reviews one might think I’ve got a thing against “retro” music. Funny thing is I love it, but the reason I don’t like a lot of the dance music made in the last 5 years is I can’t understand why people would want to take a pretty average sounding music style and re-create that for their sound or genre without improving on it.

That’s why I dig the Bamboos so much. They have a retro feel, but first of all it’s based on original 70s funk and soul, which in my opinion is the best genre that exists, so there’s one plus, and second of all they do it damn good job improving it. Not only are all the members amazing at their instruments – and listen to drummer Daniel Farrugia on Amen Brother, Bruce Sandell on flute on the title track, or Lance Ferguson on guitar Funky Buttercup, to really appreciate their talents – but the selection of people they choose to work with is equally inspired.

Megan Washington’s take on the Kings of Leon “King of The Rodeo” is sublime, taking the rocking original and making into a 60s styled pop smash. UK hiphopper Ty’s delivery on I Can’t Help Myself is equally superb, the pace suiting the hiphop rhyme. Kylie Audist does an amazing job lamenting over lost love in Tears Cried and praising life for love gained in the next track, Now That You Are Mine.The Swedish sensation that is Paul MacInnes’ smooth vocals on Move On mark it as a timeless soul classic.

In fact, every song on this album is awesome. It really is simple as that. And something that makes it even sweeter is if you buy the vinyl, you get bonus tracks not on the CD, but you get the CD version thrown in! So stop reading this, go out to your record store or fire up itunes and buy this album.