Obama said knock you out!

Well, it certainly is looking good for my man Obama right now, isn't it?

Before we proceed with House Music Friday, be sure and check out yesterday's 500th Post Spectacularrrrr, download the mix and enter the contest!

And now, the House music...



Spiritchaser is (are?) a couple of guys from the town of Chichester (pronounced CHEE-chester, I believe :P ), UK who make really nice, textured Tech House. Just a very warm sound, like a nice sweater... perfect 3 A.M. music...

Spiritchaser - Not Far (ysi)

And I'll dispense with the comedy today and just tell you to watch this...



If you SMELLLLLLLLLLLLLL what BARACK... is cookin!

Have a great weekend, I'll be back on Tuesday.

The Samplers of Santiago

Because sampling never goes out of style...



It seems like the ol' cut-n-paste is back in vogue these days... I've come across a few series of records lately that are breakbeat-heavy sample-ramas. You got the Bomb Strikes series, the Insane Bangers series from Finger Lickin' Records, the stuff on Good Groove and G.A.M.M.... and the latest label to blip on my radar, Austria's Resense, who are, of course, the only ones without a Myspace for me to link to. Cocks. Put down the Vienna sausages and get on that shit already! Well, they may be crap at marketing, but at least the records are good. This one comes from some guys called Matenlo, from Chile of all places, and brings the Latin beats...

Matenlo - Woho (ysi)

If ya like that, they have a nice DJ mix of similar stuff available for free download on that Myspace... if their page doesn't make your eyeballs fall out, that is. Big post tomorrow as Tonegents celebrates a milestone!

Return of the Piano Pimp Daddy

Starting off our big week with a big tune...



... I've already told you what I think about McCoy Tyner. You can go back and read that sparkling piece of writing or I can give you the short version now... he rules. This album was a live recording of his 1973 set at the Montreaux Jazz Festival, and it is an intense set to say the least. These guys are workin' hard for the money... check out the breakneck pace and wild percussion of this little number...

McCoy Tyner - Nebula (ysi)

And here's a Youtubes from a year later... different group, same intensity... just check out McCoy bangin' those keys in the beginning... he's smackin' 'em around like they said somethin' 'bout his mama... It doesn't seem to matter if he's soloing or just playing rhythm, he just dominates any tune he plays on... in a good way...



No "smooth jazz" there. McCoy would probably snap Kenny G's skinny little neck in a second. And I think I'd pay to see it. Anyhoo, I think you should run out and buy all of McCoy Tyner's albums... there's only like 80 of 'em... no problem, right? :P

Does Robin Hood have some Technics?

Here comes House Music Friday to put an end to the rampant randomness...



Ah, Mark Farina... I don't know of any other DJ who has the ability to be so ridiculously awesome sometimes yet suck giant hairy monkey balls at others. One of the best nights ever was this Melodic party he spun at on Cesar Chavez Boulevard (aka "El Barrio") in this Mexican wedding hall. Stood there in front of him for 4 hours without saying a single word, just once in a while glancing at my buddy with the old "point and bob your head" move to indicate "Day-um! That's some good shit right there!" But then the next time I saw him, he sucked. Very odd. He's had a good track record on CD mixes, though, and this one from S.F.'s always reliable Om Records is no exception. Here's a jam from The Littlemen, repping Nottingham. That city's been popping up here a lot lately. They makes some good music in Nottingham...

The Littlemen - What's The Time? (ysi)

Love this kind of track. So in the pocket. Big week coming up next week. Take a rest and be ready... and have a great weekend!

A Random Bonus Post...

... just to make sure this week stays all over the place musically...



I would have to describe my knowledge of the Blues as nascent at best, but it's a genre I'm learning more about thanks to certain dirty, dirty pirates helpful folks on the interwebs. For instance, I had no idea what a big deal Willie Dixon was. Just take a second and check out his Wiki there. I'll wait...

...

...

See? Hall Of Famer, yo! Of course, so is John Cougar Freakin' Mellencamp, so maybe that's not the right thing to hang your hat on... Anyhoo, this is a cool track that mixes the Blues, a nifty New Orleans shuffle beat and some background vocals that obviously set the pattern for early rock...

Willie Dixon - 29 Ways To My Baby's Door (ysi)

Now, I do have one issue with this song... if you listened to the lyrics, you might have noticed they're a bit, shall we say... fuckin' creepy...

"I got 29 ways to make it to my baby's door
I got 29 ways to make it to my baby's door
And if she needs me bad
I can find about two or three more

I got one through the basement
Two down the hall
And when the going gets tough
I got a hole in the wall

I can come through the chimney like Santa Claus
Go through the window and that ain't all
A lot of good ways I don't want you to know
I even got a hole in the bedroom floor

I got a way through the closet behind her clothes
A way through the attic that no one knows
A master key that fits every lock
A hidden door behind the grandfather clock"

Stalk much, Stalky Stalkerson? Yikes. Obviously Willie Dixon not only predated Rock & Roll, but also predated the restraining order...

Ba-dump Bump!

A quick one, like Usain Bolt

This week is shapin' up to be pretty darn random...



... but I like random. I seemingly only listen to my iTunes on random these days, which I know makes me one of those people, but if that's the case, so be it... I like to be surprised, dammit! Anyhoo, today we got the man from Montreal, Deadbeat, and his brand of deep electronic dub. Yep, that's what we got... so... here it is...

Deadbeat - Melbourne Round Midnight (ysi)

Dude's got several albums worth of such goodness that also take it up to a nice Dub Techno bpm on occasion, so look into it...

... oh, and in case you're wondering, it is the official position of Tonegents that Usain Bolt is awesome. But you probably knew that...

In which I rock a little...

Here's some more of that scary Rock music that has the kids all misbehavin' these days...



... because while we all prefer the beats and the jazz and the general funkiness, you gotta stay well rounded. I've always said that if you can't appreciate all kinds of music, then you really don't like music. Deep, huh? Anyhoo, I've never been a huge fan of Queens Of The Stone Age, but more and more they're growing on me a little, and I actually dig this record quite a bit. Got it on the cheap just to check it out after hearing a song I liked on some sampler left under my windshield wiper at Coachella. Yep, that's how I roll. This ain't one of their heavy ones, but you probably coulda figured that...

Queens Of The Stone Age - I Never Came (ysi)

So, is that one of their bigger tunes? I honestly have no idea... that's how little I rock. But a good song is a good song... so suck on that!

Stop being so polite!

Today we dip once more into the "Who The Hell Are They?" files for another sweet tune by some guy...



... this one from a remix compilation on San Francisco's Wide Hive Records, a label specializing in the kind of Hip-Hop you'd expect to be made in S.F.... namely the jazzy and cerebral kind. The producer goes by the name of Dissent, which quite frankly is a pretty lame name if you want to be all political. Way too polite in it's connotation, you know. We're not exactly worked up to a Rage, but we do Disagree With The Methods Or Goals Of The Machine, and would be happy to tell you so. Meh. Anyhoo, this track is one of those Ursula Rucker-style spoken word things, anchored by a nice bassline...

Dissent - Boundary (Underground Science Remix) (ysi)

Not bad, guy... now just toughen up that name a little bit, ya pansy!

Old Skool... and yes, that's spelled right!

Hey, look! It's Monday again already! Ain't that grand?



This week the shuffle picked out an interesting one to start us out with. Interesting in that we don't get a whole lot of Old Skool Rave choons around here. And yeah, Old Skool Rave sounds sooooo dated any more, with some notable exceptions, of course... and here's... well, this one sounds dated, too, but not nearly as much as some. And it's from an unlikely source... Nightmares On Wax! What the fu-heck? Turns out that Ease tried his hand at some warehouse Techno before he started smoking all that weed and producing his famous blunted beats. So yeah, any kind of music can sound good when it's made by folks who are good at music... knawhutimean? So get ready for 1990, bitches! Huge bass on this one and skittering beats that would be similar to some proper 'Ardcore if they were only a bit 'arder...

Nightmares On Wax - Aftermath (ysi)

So there's a bit of an artifact of past days for ya... and you know you were in the warehouse going off to this shit some late night many years ago (well, if you're as ancient as me, you were), so don't even front...

No, not that Fabio...

This House Music Friday was actually inspired by a Drum & Bass DJ, as Fabio dropped the original last week when he filled in on GP's "Worldwide" show... compelling me to post this one, 'cuz it's pretty bad-ass...



David Bendeth was a British blue-eyed soul singer of little to no import except for his one big hit, "Feel The Real". Now he makes a living as a producer of crappy Emo bands. I mean cra-aap-aap-py. I am very willing to hold that against him, but I will give him some slack because his one good song was real, real good. Here it gets a House remix, taken from the first Lazy Dog compilation put out by Ben Watt. You know, the guy who used to be in Everything But The Girl 'til he discovered that a) he was really into being a DJ all of a sudden and b) despite that fact that she sings like a bird, Tracey Thorn is butt-ugly...

David Bendeth - Feel The Real (Jazz 'n' Groove Ultra Classic Mix) (ysi)

How 'bout that bass playin', eh? Fancy. Well, 'bout time to retire to my 'Lympics cave for the weekend. Can't wait for that Team Handball final. Have a great one, folks!

I got nothin'...

It's been a while since I've posted a proper Jazz track...



... so here's some very proper Soul Jazz from keyboardist Doug Carn...

Doug Carn - Trance Dance (ysi)

See you tomorrow...

What, you're expecting more? Some comedy perhaps? A little ha-ha with your music selection? What am I, a performing monkey? When you're in clubs, do you walk up to the DJ and ask him to do a little stand-up between tunes? I bet you do, don't you. Hey Mark Farina, tell me a knock-knock joke! Hey Donald Glaude, do five minutes about airplane food! Although I will say that you must, MUST see Miguel Migs' Joan Rivers impersonation. Comedy gold...

Today's post has been brought to you by my lack of imagination... and Shitto!


Also available in Family Size!

So, um... yeah.

Time for a special Olympics bonus post!

Considering the fact that I woke up today and flipped on the TV to back-to-back Greco-Roman Wrestling and Women's Ping-Pong (it's not "table tennis", okay... it's fucking Ping-Pong... deal with it), I guess you can tell that I'm a total Olympics junkie. So, for you--

Wait a minute... do you think I should reword the title of this post? Tee-hee.

Anyhoo, yeah, the Special Olympics rule, Michael Phelps is half-man/half-beast (or rather, all-meast) and I might actually enjoy it if the U.S. Basketball team loses again, because Kobe Bryant is a cock. There, I said it. Also, I find it kind of odd and ironic that athletes diving into a pool of water are not allowed to make a splash. That's some kung-fu mindgame shit right there...


"You heard me! No splash! Question me and die!"

I could go on with such comedic musings for days! Be grateful that I won't. On to the musica...



What better way to cash in on Olympics-mania than to put out some product with a vague-to-downright dodgy allusion of a tie-in to the games? That's what the marketing geniuses at Great Stuff Recordings thought, and this is what they came up with. A two disc set of artists from different countries doing songs and then naming them for their countries! You know what that is? Genius! Because suckers like me fall for that kinda shit every time. I love me some high-concept. But is it any good? Well, it's Techno, so the answer is... it's kinda hit and miss, just like Archery. My favorite track is the Spanish production from David Amo and Julio Navas. This one's some serious bass-driven funky Techno biznezz. Max volume required...

David Amo & Julio Navas - Spain (ysi)

If nothing else, that song is certainly a lot more fun than what happened to this guy. Snap! Somebody call Joe Theisman...

Mixing up some tasty Salsa

Here's one I just recently heard about, scurried out to acquire and was not disappointed by...



Don't let the cheapo cover art fool you, this new compilation of remixes of classics from the mighty Salsa label Fania Records is teh hotness! I've been on a Salsa kick lately, both for the music and the delicious condiment... and while I get my tasty salsa from a nice lady at the farmer's market, I get my Salsa music from Fania. So naturally when I found out about this comp and saw names like Louie Vega, Quantic, Nicola Conte and, of course, the object of my completely heterosexual man-love Gilles Peterson on the remix duties, I had to have it. Check out this one, as Salsa legends Willie Colon and Ruben Blades get their beats broke by Bugz In The Attic...

Willie Colon & Ruben Blades - Plastico (Bugz In The Attic Mix) (ysi)

That is hot like a habanero, if may be allowed to continue to beat the food metaphor into the ground for a bit longer... and did I mention this comes with a second CD of all the originals? Well, it does... so bonus points... or should I say, "that makes it extra spicy"? What's that? I shouldn't? Yeah, you're probably right about that...

A little Pop music won't hurt ya

Today I got something really edgy for ya... I'm talkin' experimental, avant-garde, you name it...



... okay, maybe not so much. But there's no way anyone can hate on Sade, I don't care how often you read Pitchfork or how many Deerhoof shows you've been to. Sade is unfuckwiddable. The voice, the songwriting, the fact that your girl doesn't want to be listening to your obscure-ass music 24 hours a day. Nope, sometimes you have to back away from your "Recently Added Blog Tracks" playlist on your iTunes, sit back, drink some wine, put on some Sade and let the magic happen...

Sade - Jezebel (ysi)

I was once lucky enough to see Sade do a few songs on a tiny soundstage from a seat less than 10 feet away when she played a TV show I was working on. Talk about some chills-down-yer-spine action. But does that make me any cooler than anyone else? Well, actually it kinda does, but I won't let it go to my head... :P

R.I.P. Isaac Hayes (and Chef)

Taking a break from non-stop Olympics watching (Womens' Badminton teh hotness, yo!), to pay a tribute to a lost funky brother...



So Isaac Hayes passed away this weekend along with Bernie Mac... what a doubleheader of suck that is. Looking through the iTunes, I was kinda shocked to see that I don't have a whole lot of Isaac Hayes music in there (a situation I must remedy), but I do have Hot Buttered Soul, as should everyone... especially the whippersnappers who might only know him as the voice of Chef on South Park. They need to know what a bad musical motherfucker Chef was... and I'm not just talking about the "I wanna make love to you woman, wanna make it down by the fi-yah" song...

Isaac Hayes - Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic (ysi)

But I'm not hating on the South Park. To the contrary, it's my favorite show probably ever. Isaac left the show after getting all offended when they trashed Scientology (in the awesome "Tom Cruise In The Closet" episode), an action which A) made one say, "Isaac Hayes is a freakin' Scientogist?"... and B) led to Matt and Trey killing off the character with all of the nuanced subtlety they are famous for...



Ouch. So, to recap... Chef's death = hilarious. Isaac Hayes' death = the opposite. Rest in peace to the both of them...

Large Love

House Music Friday is gettin' all loved up...



... which is an incredibly clever lead in to today's track by Mr. Chuck Love. Yeah, I impress myself sometimes. Now, Chuck comes from the Deep House hotbed of-- wtf, Minneapolis?!?! Well howzabout that? Good to see that there are peeps in the Twin Cities fightin' the good fight against flaccid Indie Rock (because I know they have a lot of that there). But who cares about all that when you got Purple Jesus linin' up behind the quarterback up there? Man, I am stoked for football. Anyhoo, Large Music are also out of Chicago (he says, referring to yesterday's post as if it was like, memorable or something), and they are one of the few survivors of the recent mass-death of the great Deep House labels. And since they keep putting out tracks like this, it's easy to see why...

Chuck Love - Share It (Pool-Side Vocal) (ysi)

Very Naked Music, no? And that, as they say, is a good thing. I suggest you heed the title and play this at your pool party this weekend. Unless you don't have a pool, in which case, um... sucks to be you. Ah, I'm just teasin'... have a great one, folks!

Now, if Brett Farve were eaten by sharks, we'd be getting somewhere...

Hey, did you hear the big news? Brett Farve got traded to the Jets! I'm very excited that Tonegents is breaking this story. I have no idea why none of the major news media are covering it...



Guidance Recordings is yet another fallen soldier of the Deep House wars. Based out of Chicago, they closed shop in 2004 after a pretty prolific and top-quality run of about 8 years. And while most of their output was 4/4 deepness and downtempo Lounge-vibery, they did put out two of these Mundial Muzique comps of Latin/Afro Nu Jazz sounds which were quite smashing. Here, a couple of Italian guys calling themselves Easydelics bring a Samba-fied number, which was apparently the only track they ever released. It was comped right and left, though... which makes me wonder why they never followed it up. My guess? They were eaten by sharks. Sharks love eating people...

Easydelics - Berimbau De Osahna (ysi)

Guidance has actually done what Paper Recordings did and opened up an posthumous online store. You might wanna check that out. But watch out for the sharks... they're everywhere... and they're hungry.

Fat boys and skinny girls

Time for some sample source fun...



... and a Philly Funk side from singer Ann Robinson, who I can't find jack about. On a compilation that's strangely unavailable for purchase anywhere. So if you're looking for much information today, you are shit out of luck. Well, except for the fact that you're getting an awesome tune. So stop your bitching already. Can you name the song that samples this one?

Ann Robinson - You Did It (ysi)

If you guessed Fatboy Slim's "Gangster Trippin'", you win a year's supply of Shitto!

Shitto... it's like a party in your mouth hosted by Paris Hilton!

What can I say, they're my only advertiser. And speaking of Paris... I know this vid is already everywhere, but it's pretty genius and post-worthy...



I'll see you at the debates, bitches.

A rocker gets kinda interesting for a minute...

Okay, so by the record-low download total, I'm gonna guess that you weren't quite feeling 24/7 Spyz yesterday... let's just chalk that down as "feedback" and move along, shall we?



Now, you probably wouldn't expect The Afghan Whigs to be brought up around here either. They're one of those bands with a ridiculously rabid fan base that I just don't find to be all that interesting. However, their singer, Greg Dulli, did come up with a nifty-neato record on his first "solo" release as The Twilight Singers. He had the very good idea to, after recording the songs with a couple session guys, send the tapes to British beat masters Fila Brazillia for a little spit and polish... and the result was a kinda unique Alt-Rock/Beats hybrid...

The Twilight Singers - The Twilite Kid (ysi)

Dude's voice really fits with the music, eh? Dulli has released a couple more under the Twilight Singers name, but without the Fila boys so I really can't be arsed to care about them. I'm a dick like that...

Spyz is dope, man

In which I trumpet a very obscure band that I was into when I was in college (cough cough) years ago...



... and that band would be 24/7 Spyz. "Howmany whatsnow?", you say. Well, I'll tell you. They were a black Rock band from New York, back in the era when black Rock bands were maybe going to be the next big thing... which never really happened despite the success of Living Colour and Fishbone. But these bands definitely did pave the way for far less talented white people to mix Rock & Rap & Funk in ways that horrify music fans to this very day. So, um... thanks a bunch for that, fellas. Anyhoo, the Spyz were a fantastic mix of all of the above plus some Reggae, too, kind of like a funkier Bad Brains, or a black Red Hot Chili Peppers. They coulda shoulda been huge, but constant line-up turnover and record label stupidity kept 'em from the big time. And while this isn't your typical Tonegent selection, I do love this album. So here's a happy little ditty about a bunch of people getting killed the failed 1987 attempt to have free elections in Haiti... so yes, a feel-good tune...

24/7 Spyz - Ballots Not Bullets (ysi)

The Spyz (I always want to pronounce that "spizz" for some reason. But hey, give your band a dumb name...) also had a really good song about the Exxon Valdez disaster. No, really. So suck on that, Zach De La Rocha...

Le Sexay

House Music Friday brings you teh sexay this week...



... and like many sexay things, this comes from France, and more specifically Parisian producer Alexkid. Although really, I would have to give more of the sexay credit to singer Liset Alea, what with her being a smoking hot babe and Alex being yet another balding, pasty white dude and all... plus I'm gonna doubt that he has a sexy voice... although who knows? He could have a tenor so sultry it could turn you gay. But alas, we may never know...

Alexkid - Come With Me (ysi)

I would also recommend that you track down the Llorca remix of this song, which is more bangin' beat-wise and includes a nice sexay heavy-breathing interlude. Make that your homework and have a great weekend!