Monsters and destruction!

This ain't no feel-good music...



I think we can all agree that a vampire is about the coolest thing you can be, no? You're immortal, you have all sorts of cool powers and, most importantly, you score a lot of babes. I mean, being a vampire is so cool that even Tom Cruise seemed kinda cool when playing one (back off, I said seemed kinda). Anyhoo, the point of this is that any concept album about vampires is gonna get a listen from me, which brings us to Dub master Scientist and this awesomely named record. This is truly the heavy, heavy monster sound...

Scientist - Dance Of The Vampires (ysi)

Extra bonus points awarded for this album being used in one of the best video games ever, Grand Theft Auto III. If there's a better video game moment than getting the tank in GTA III, I don't know about it...



Now, a vampire with a tank? Two words... fuck and yes. Somebody invent that game right now...

Dead Mean Don't Listen To Plaid

I think I'll use this space to once again pimp the new "Hello Summer" mix, because shameless self-promotion is how I roll...



While Plaid certainly could fall under the heading of "pasty British knob-twiddlers #345 & 346", they are certainly not as anonymous as some of the dudes posted around here. I guess that's what happens when you've been recording music together for almost two decades. Plaid started as a side project of The Black Dog, who were big in the early "ambient techno" scene (or whatever you wanna call it), but grew to the status of much more than one-off when it turned out that their music was in fact quite good. All that said though, I can't be arsed to look up their names for you right now, but I'm pretty sure there's an Andy in there somewhere (there's always an Andy). This one falls on the mellow end of their spectrum... we're talkin' acoustic guitar and steel drums, yo!

Plaid - Kortisin (ysi)

And here's a very strange video for a less mellow Plaid tune...



These guys don't seem to be as appreciated as, say, Boards Of Canada, but they deserve to be. Why? 'Cause I said so, that's why...

Afrobeat - keep it in the family

You may have heard we had a little earthquake in L.A. today... it was pretty wild, probably the biggest I've felt since I've lived here. But you know what they say... it's all fun and games 'til you're buried in a pile of rubble...



Just when you think it's safe to fuck with the people of Nigeria, there's another Kuti in town and he's predictably pissed. Yep, Fela's youngest son Seun Kuti has hit the scene, releasing his debut album with Dad's old band, Egypt '80 (which worked out pretty well for them... I heard somewhere that they had been recently seen as the backing band on the Vanilla Ice/Snow "2 White 2 Strong" comeback tour, although I haven't been able to confirm that rumor) Anyhoo, whereas Femi Kuti took Fela's sound and smoothed it out a little (not a lot, but a little), Seun is bringing the serious old-school heat on this record. He's got that deep voice, he's funky as all get-out, the songs are 10 minutes long and the horn charts will melt your face...

Seun Kuti & Egypt '80 - Don't Give That Shit To Me (ysi)

I have no intention of bringing that shit anywhere in Seun Kuti's general direction, because I do not want to end up with a saxophone broken over my head... just sayin', dude sounds like he means business... just like his dad.

It's the Tribe y'all, real live y'all

Good Monday to you all. Hey, did you check out the new "Hello Summer" mix yet? Go ahead and grab that. I'll wait...

...

...

I think you will find it to be magically beat-licious. But what have you got for us today, Tone?



I got a rare joint from A Tribe Called Quest, is what I got! That's not bad, eh? Since they're in the Top 5 Hip-Hop groups of all time all... you wanna know who the others are? Tough! I like to keep an air of mystery about things around here. You don't get to know it all at once. It's the intrigue that keeps you coming back! Anyhoo, this comp has mixes off the first two classic albums, such as...

A Tribe Called Quest - Can I Kick It (Extended Boiler Room Mix) (ysi)

I guess they're getting back together, right? Seems like that one goes back and forth at least a few times a year, so we'll see. It wouldn't suck if they did, though... unless they added Fergie to the group or something. Then it would...

The Return of The "Hello Summer" Mix Series

Well it's about damn time, huh? Anyhoo, accept no other summer mix substitutes, for they are two parts hack and one part wack! You like that one? Just came up with it...

Tonegent presents "Now That's A Fire!"

(Continuous Mix - 65:04 - 89.4Mb @ 192kps)

1) Paul Simon - Late... (Edit De DJ Spin)
2) Spanish Harlem Orchestra - La Musica Es, Mi Vida
3) Nickodemus - Conmigo
4) Featurecast - Some Lovin'
5) A. Skillz vs. Beat Vandals - Sunshine
6) Nostalgia 77 feat. Alice Russell - Seven Nation Army (Grant Phabao Remix)
7) Quantic - Mi Chocolatina
8) Benny Sings - We'll Make Lovesongs
9) Slope feat. Clara Hill - At Least
10) Miguel Migs - Sometime (Crazy P Superfunk Mix)
11) Oreja - Julieta
12) Wahoo - Make 'Em Shake It
13) Roy Ayers - Everybody Loves The Sunshine (White Label D&B Mix)

It's like a party in your ears. Or something...

Funkier than week-old haggis

Haven't had a House Music Friday 'round here in 3 weeks! WTF?!?! Let's fix that...



I've made mention in various posts of a bunch of once-great House music record labels that have bitten the dust, but Glasgow's Soma Quality Recordings ain't one of them. Nope, they've been going strong since 1991, so suck on that! And Mr. Lars Sandberg, aka Funk D'Void has been one of their big guns for a while now. He's a Scot, too, but he operates out of Barcelona, which I'm gonna go ahead and say is an excellent choice, because Barcelona is one of the sweetest cities I've ever been to, and I've been to at least... five. I don't get out much. But I'll take paella over haggis any day...


Yes, that looks delightful...ly puketastic!

Anyhoo, Funk D'Void tracks have always been a little hit or miss for me, but this deep groover here is a big hit... turn it up for this one...

Funk D'Void - Lovin' (Your Body Remix) (ysi)

How 'bout that breakdown, eh? Good stuff. Go up to the DJ this weekend and request this song. If he doesn't have it, tell that mixer monkey he needs to be reading Tonegents...

Have a great one!

Let's get tepid!

Sometimes, you just gotta smooth it out, yo...



Ah, Acid Jazz... ya know, it was what it was. A bit cheesy, a bit wimpy, a bit forgettable... and now it certainly sounds a bit dated. But if you're gonna take one group and say they represented the best of this maligned genre, it would have to be The Brand New Heavies, wouldn't it? With singer N'Dea Davenport, they churned out the biggest hits of the era... and hey, they're still playing today, something I don't think many other Acid Jazz acts can say, and that's gotta mean somethin', right? Right? Yeah, I know... Sugar Ray are still playing today, too, and so are Poison and Counting Crows, so suck on your theory, Tone. Touche...

The Brand New Heavies - Mind Trips (ysi)

That was pleasant enough, no? Oh well, I promise I'll bring you something positively up to it's ass in street cred tomorrow...

Lady sings the blues, and sings 'em right

Changin' it up, as we like to do...



For reasons I'm not even quite sure of, I'm not really big on the Jazz vocals... but of course I have to make an exception for Billie Holliday (and Nina Simone, but this blog isn't about her today, now is it?). She's got the voice that can't be denied... every now and them someone will come along and people might say "oh, she sounds a bit like Billie Holliday". Yeah, a bit. Kind of the same way I look a bit like Moby... kinda sorta not really. And I've already forgotten what my point is... oh yeah, she had a really unique and amazing voice. Like you needed my stupid ass to tell you that...

Billie Holliday - I Don't Want To Cry Anymore (ysi)

And since you know how I love to find the vintage stuff on the YouTubes...



Great proof that being a great singer does not have to involve high-level screeching and ludicrous amounts of notes. Take heed, singers of today! Take lots and lots of heed!

A maelstrom of wankery?

Today I got a piece of Turtablism for you (I can't really classify this as a "song", ya know) from one of the greatest such albums EVAR!!!!



The Future Primitive Sound Sessions, like most good things, came from San Francisco, and their first CD release featured Cut Chemist of Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli fame and Shorkut of Invisbl Skratch Piklz. Now, I don't know much about Shortkut, but I can tell you that Mr. Chemist is a very cool guy. Met him once at a crazy Black Diamond afterhours in SF and had a nice chat. This, of course has nothing to do with anything, except for the fact that you know how I love to name-drop. Anyhoo, the crazy thing about this set is that, according to legend, these guys had never met before that night... so this is all purely off the top of their heads, just like the Jazz cats do it...

Cut Chemist & Shortkut - King Kumoniwanaleia (ysi)

Wowzers... because there's 70 minutes of that madness, and it's all just as bumpin' and just as fun. Actually that's another thing I always liked about Cut Chemist... at his shows, he remembers he's there to rock a party and make people dance and not just disappear up his own arse in a maelstrom of scratch-happy wankery. I can take a little bit of wankery, but not a maelstrom! To wit...



See what I mean there? Go see this guy. That is all.

I have returned!

Good day, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome back to regularly scheduled programming here at Tonegents, as brought to you by Shitto!


Mmm-mmm, that's good Shitto!

And now, your musical selection...



So let's get back to it with another one of those really good tracks from some people you've never heard of... in this case KV5 with guest vocalist Nicky Taylor, off a hot compilation from the seemingly defunct People Records (not James Brown's people records of course, but the London Broken Beat label). Very funky and tech-y, with some great vocals by Miss Taylor (who may or may not be the supermodel. I'm gonna guess no, but remember, I don't know shit)... this one used to be a set-starter for me...

KV5 feat. Nicky Taylor - Church Candles (ysi)

So sit back and enjoy that tune along with a nice steaming bowl of Shitto! See you tomorrow...

Fire up that grill

I'm sorta breaking one of my unwritten rules about how often to post the same artists, but screw it... sometimes it's fun to be able to say "first!"...



... so here's the lead single from Quantic's forthcoming "tropical reggae project". If this track is any indication, it's gonna be the BBQ album of the summer. Yes, I am still obsessed with barbecues. I am nothing if not predictable...

Quantic - Ciudad Del Swing (ysi)

So go pre-order that record pronto... then pre-order some hot dogs... then, um, I dunno... chill out until that shit gets there or something...

If you don't work, you can't eat!

Because sometimes music gives you practical advice...



... I offer this cut from James Brown's Soul Sister #1, Marva Whitney, on the duet with Brother James himself. You got to have a job if you wanna sop that gravy, people!

Marva Whitney - You Got To Have A Job (ysi)

I'ma gonna go sop me some gravy right now. Because I have a job. So I can. It's good to be me..

Miss me?

I'm on vacation for a couple of weeks here, working on other things, but I'll try to fit a few in 'til I get back to a normal schedule...



So, never really heard of this Square One guy, but if you check out his Discogs page you'll see that he has a fine resume, in as far as what labels have released his stuff. And if this Samba-styled number is any indication of his skillz, it's no wonder he rolls with the cool kids...

Square One - Criacao (ysi)

There are 5 releases in this series now. Get 'em.

House Music Thursday?

House Music Friday moves to Thursday this week, what with the 4th being tomorrow and all...



... and here's a chunky little mover from Quality Control, who are this guy here and this other guy here. It samples the old Soul classic "Slipping Into Darkness" to nice effect...

Quality Control - Slippin' (Troydon's Attack The Wack Dub) (ysi)

... and there you have it. Short and sweet today. I'm a busy man, people!

(Yeah, right...)

Everyone loves monkeys!

Or at least they should. Monkeys are funny.



I will always give bonus points to anyone who names their musical project or album after a monkey, so Mr. Simon Green aka Bonobo was in good standing with me before I even took the plastic off his Dial "M" For Monkey CD. Then he got many more bonus points for being really good at music. And while his most recent, Days To Come, is somewhat short on the monkey references, it makes up for it with several appearances by the mysterious and sultry vocalist Bajka. The gal has a smoky voice that makes everything sound dark and sexy. Man, I'm rocking a lot of adjectives today. I'm descriptive as fuck, yo! Anyhoo, take this sample of how this downtempo goodness is no mere monkey business...

Bonobo - Between The Lines (feat. Bajka) (ysi)

Bonobo have been rockin' it as a live band, too... and as you can see in the following clip, the boys are quite the fashion plates...



Okay, okay, so it's not about fashion. But seriously, they look like they went straight from the clearance rack at Ross onto the stage. Good thing they can play.

Old guys can still throw down... sometimes

Okay, here's a question for you. Why is it that when Rock-n-Rollers reach a certain age, they get called out for being too old to continue to rock out on stage, while Jazz musicians are lauded for continuing to perform well into their Metamucil-chugging years? I think this may have to do with the fact that playing Jazz doesn't require one to wear headbands and spandex, but that's just me...



I bring this up because today's tune comes from conguero Francisco Aguabella, who is still performing well into his 230s... but you don't hear anyone giving him any crap about it, do you? You don't hear anyone saying, "Yeah, that was a good show... for an old guy." I don't think that's fair. I think if Kip Winger wants to back away from the Early Bird Buffet and get the band back together when he's in his 70s, then good for him. You go, Kip Winger... just don't slip while shreddin' out the solo on "Seventeen" and bust your hip, bro. It'll totally fuck up my argument. Anyhoo, this cut was reissued by Cu-Bop, a division of Ubiquity Records, and made it onto one of their excellent No Categories comps a few years ago. No wonder I keep pimping this label...

Francisco Aguabella - Quien Eres Tu (ysi)

There's a word for that, and the word is "fi-yah"! Your move, Kip Winger... your move...