2009~The End of the Year...

but the road continues on......2009 in the rearview mirror....2010!!...so, as those who know me well might tell you, Im something of a bibliophile, a reader if you will...cue Bill Hicks bit..."Looks like we got ourselves a reader." So, I thought I'd post some of the books I read this year along with some music to accompany each book..sounds exciting, huh?






~Jeff Chang's "Cant Stop Wont Stop" is the book every hiphop historian wishes he couldve written. I mined this book for source material while writing my own short piece on hiphop and found Chang to be my guiding light through the rough and tumble boroughs of New York City. Chang, along with Robin D.G. Kelley, stands as the archivist and interpreter for the embattled hiphop nation.

B-Boys-Rock the House






~Aliester Crowley, the Great Beast, was a truly unique individual who engaged in all sorts of strange occultist activity. He was into yoga and the Kabbalah way before Madonna made such things en vogue...I first heard of Crowley over 10 years ago; I tracked down a book of his (Magick Without Tears, I believe) and found it utterly incomprehensible...this biography by Martin Booth entertains and informs...perhaps I'll revisit Crowley's work this year if time permits....

Mos Def-Supermagic





~A number of years ago, I was afforded the pleasure of meeting Dagoberto. We sat at the same dinner table at the wedding of a mutual friend. I knew he was a writer, but had yet to read any of his work...too bad b/c, as it turns out, he writes about the same three cities Ive called home---Los Angeles, El Paso and Austin. For me, reading Dagoberto is like reading a letter written by some not-too-distant relative. His English/Spanish word use and his subject matter seem ever-so familiar. I almost expected him to write at some point about Chicos Tacos in El Paso, or El Tepeyac in E. L.A. I will definitely be on the lookout for more from Dagoberto this coming year.

Grupo Fantasma-Cumbia del Coyote






"If He Hollers Let Him Go" by Chester Himes may very well be one of the great pieces of African-American literary art in America...Whereas Richard Wright, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, and others appear in highschool textbooks, Himes gets left out for some reason (interracial sex)...whatever, I ran through this book in a few days, hungry for more from the mind of Himes. His books can be tough to find (at least where i shop), so if ya find one grab it.

Jay Electronica--Exhibit C (one of the best hiphop tracks of the year)






Rick Strassman's "DMT: The Spirit Molecule" found me; I was in the bookstore looking about, and there it was. I bought it, obviously, and devoured it (not literally-but you knew that). Strassman is a researcher at some university in New Mexico who began performing experiments with volunteers who he would give DMT to. The volunteers would undergo incredible experiences, many of them claiming that they felt as if they had died and left their body for good. The DMT users returned to their bodies safely, telling of strange realms filled with amazing colors, shapes, patterns, music, machines, and the tale of an occasional alien presence. Cool.

DJ Avatar--DreamingofMyToad

Buyin Old Records is a Habit....

but if I cant afford to pay, I'll just bag it...(not really though)...



~just came up on this one here...(mp3s to come--hold tight)...........found another great cumbia track on another record, gonna chop it up and turn it into some nasty tropical-krunk-goodness real soon like.......


~La Kabala---latin psychedelic soul out of Mexico, i believe...late 60's/ early 70s era stuff...real groovy and funky tunes...plus the covers something else.......check the link below for a taste of La Kabala.........

La Kabala--El Cumbanchero

~whoa....

I Got the Blues

~finished with my classes, time off from work...time to chill, enjoy some music, and make some music....


drummmmssss.....


Little Sonny_Hard Comin Up




classic cut...


Marlena Shaw_Blues Aint Nuthin but a Good Woman Gone Bad

Gil Scott Heron on the blues tip


and of course...Stevie Ray Vaughn

Wiz Khalifa--youngin on his grind~avatar refix

as much as i try to focus on global/ethnic fusion music, im always tempted by a hiphop acapella to unleash a lil rap stress out my system...so here ya go...i actually cooked this up back in like '07, but who cares...right...

wizkhalifa_avatars u-so-gangsta-refix by dj avatar

Some of that ol' Latin Funk ish.....

Before this record was reissued, copies on ebay would sell for way more than I was ever willing to pay for a copy. Luckily, I got my hands a quality rip and saved some serious loot....Such a great record...couple of stand out tracks for me are Lupita, which you can check out on a mix I did--as well as the Rakim flip I threw over the break---and Ritual, an absolute scorching Latin Funk monster...B-boys take heed when this one gets dropped!!!

Nico Gomez--Ritual

~if memory serves, tracks 9 and 10 should be Lupita and the Rakim flip....


and while Im at it........I still rock my Cypress Hill tape I bought at Camelot Records back in like '91....and the shirt I got at Blondies too!!! Old skool ATX cats know whats up........

Cumbia, Electro, Reggae Minimix~Summer 2008

~uploaded this on Soundcloud recently~have a listen, download, stream, enjoy!!



MasCultura MiniMix by dj avatar

Sand Painting

~this is so brilliant, any attempt to describe this would be futile...thanks to the sunshine girl for bringing this to my attention...;)

South America~Inna Mellow Mood

~freezing cold approaches; sing a song in honor of the departed sun.....




Os Mutantes-Baby~Os Mutantes usually brings a heavy dose of Brasilian psychedelia to the table, complete with heavy fuzz, knockin drums, and spaced out vocals---this ones pretty laid back for them...but def worth checkin out...



Arthur Verocai-Caboclo~first heard this song on a Prefuse 73 sampler a couple years back; had no idea who it was, but I was really diggin it...lovin the spacy sound effects in the background; mellow goodness for the cold winter approachin...




Cesaria Evora-Sodade~this one comes off a Luaka Bop comp; Cesaria has a voice that just penetrates into the deepest recesses of your soul...you cant help but listen in awe...this song is just so raw and emotionally powerful---put this one on repeat

Turkish Psych!!!!!!

Many are under the belief that San Francisco was the capital of psychedelic rock back in the 60s and 70s...Well, there was this place called Istanbul, Turkey, and they were on a whole 'nother level of psych-acid-rock fusion...





...Ive only discovered whats been comped so Im no elite source of knowledge here...but what Ive heard thus far is incredible....








...so many great tunes...what was up with Turkey?? Sure, we can only imagine the amount of psychedelic substances passing through Turkey making their way into the lucrative markets of Western Europe...Turkey is the bridge into Europe...thats what has made this little piece of land so valuable over the centuries...access to trade routes.....






...be sure to peep the videos below...Mavi Isiklar is a beast!!! and Baris Manco is simply put...that dude...he makes me envious that I was born 30 years too late in a city not Istanbul...



Mavi Isiklar--For Your Info




Baris Manco--Ben Bilirim

Yeah, You Get Props Over Here

http://the13thtribe.blogspot.com/

~noticed some extra hits coming up on one of my Fairtilizer mixes, so did some quick google research super-sleuthing and found the link above...looks like a great blog, filled with the same sort of musical/cultural fun stuff I love to post...also, noticed this....

~looks like a great party...in London. But noticed they put my "Cumbia Int'l" on their mixtape, so BIG UPS to them cats for that...


"Fftang is a rum-fuelled safari through the clubs of the Tropics and beyond, exploring mutating party rhythms and culture-sound-clashes. Brazilian dubstep meets Middle Eastern mambo? Swedish hip hop over Congolese speed disco? Boundaries are melting and genres breed as worlds collide.

This week we're proud to have DJ IZEM from our favourite radio station GROOVALIZACION with us. In between delivering his monthly podcasts the Dublin based DJ and producer has played all over the globe, blazing up such musical hotspots as Recife, Casablanca, Valencia, Paris, Buenos-Aires and for tonight Matthew - Brick Lane.

Expect a global beat inferno taking in cumbia, samba, reggae, hip-hop and scorching tropical-meets-western-grooves mashups.

Joining him will be Huskiii (afro/latin/traditional-regional-music fused with b-boy beats and bastard bass) and musicians Captain Trumpet (brass) and Paolo (percussion) on jamming duty.

FREE ENTRY and 2 bottles of beer for a fiver until 8:30pm."


The FFtang crew have also been so kind as to run a feature promoting The 13th Tribe & VOCA movements on their outstanding blog.If u cant make it along to 93 Feet East to witness the aural delights live and direct then u can still sample the juice from afar-their mixes are already the stuff of legend on the 13t ipod.



grab the Fftang Mixtape 02 here


check this track list !!!

Totó la Momposina – El Porro Magangueleño
Super Sonido Changorama – La Suave Cumbia De
Kinfolk Kia Shine – So Krispy (cumbianativo remix)
Sonido Del Principe – Boom Boom
Balkan Beatbox – Red Bula (bbb remix)
Dunkelbunt – Dunkelbunt Rocks da Funky Beats
Hernan Builes – Chela (sneaky p remix)
DJ Avatar – Cumbia Int’l Mas Cultura Prod.
DJ Rage – La Companera (remix)
Tupolev Sound Crash – Green Curry Cumbia (facon darcyr remix)
De Leve – Cão Fudido
Palov & Mishkin – Ouist Atou
Willie Colón – Che Che Cole
Joe Cuba Sextet – Bang Bang
Rye Rye ft. MIA – Bang (prince of ballard remix)
Riot Kid – Shalom
Amadou & Mariam – Sabali (uproot andy remix)
Paulinho Pinheiro – Merengue Rebita (dj dolores rmx)
G.Rag und die Landlerg’schwister – Schorschl Take 3 (Isartaler Ghettoschützen Schlachthofbronx remix)
Grandpamini – Pégalé
Os Mutantes – Bat Macumba
Som Tres – Take it Easy my Brother Charle


nice playlist!! next time Im in London (lol) I'll be sure to swing by

Gin and Juice--the Country version??????

~seriously, if I was at a show and these dudes came on stage and did this song...I'd be in the front row gettin hype to this....Im officially a fan....this shit is hilarious!!!!!!!!




update---holy shit!!! these dudes are from Austin...Im sleeping

Crazy Diver

~back in the day, we used to cliff dive out at the lake...i swear we thought we were 'those dudes' cause we were jumping off 20-30 ft cliffs into the lake...this guy here is jumping 172 ft!!!!!!! this is crazy




Method Man--Sub Crazy

Whats Up in AFRICA??

~feelin this!!




~not too sure what to think of this...music doesnt emerge out of a vacuum, so Im tryin to pinpoint this guy's influences...gary numan?? the chorus sounds eerily familiar...interesting.....

La Kmbia Kontinental

La Kmbia Kontinental by Pernett

~received this in the soundcloud dropbox the other day...from Pernett in Colombia...really feelin this cut...check his blog too...I get the feeling that big things are goin down in Colombia and much of South/Latin America these days...something on the verge of an all out musical explosion...dont say I didnt warn you.....

cool psychedelic video w/ some funny moments--the dancing Bin Laden!! too much...





from his blog:
By Toto González
Vuelve Pernett, with a hand full of tricks and a track selection that can be described as his best work yet. A true artist that follow his instincts and his roots taking it to a next level and presenting them to the world in a release called “El Mago”.

The style can be described as a new generation “Folklore” Colombiano going deep and most important, studying the mastermind behind this sounds like “Toto La Momposina”, “Joe Arroyo”, "Batata" or “Petrona Martinez” to name a few. 10 tracks well layered and organized in a way that you can listen to the whole CD non-stop and not skip a track. “La Kmbia Del Sol” opens as a welcome, almost like a ritual to the good spirits of cumbia with positive lyrics that can take you to a full moon breezy beach en el caribe. “Ponte Firme” blends the typical “tambora” sounds with the usual Pernett signature of electronic beats and synth that can be delighted on different tracks like “El Mago” and the part II of “La Rumba Bacana”, which I select as my favorite track at the moment. “La Vida No Es Pa Llorar” resembles the good spirit and the optimism from the beautiful people of the pacific. “Fantasia Tropical” has a great string section that combines, once again, the classic with the autoctonal.
This is a CD that will travel in time making Pernett a pioneer and fearless Latin-American producer.

Rumi Callin--Sufi Dub

Ive been a fan of Rumi's poetry for some time now. His work is considered amongst the finest of Persian poets. So when I came across DJ Umb's "Rumi Calling" I was intrigued to say the least.

What I heard didnt disappoint. The sound is straight up King Tubby-Kingston Dubbed-Out Bliss, rockin a soundclash in the heart of ancient Persia---the sounds of post-industrial Western civilization grinding against the spiritual landscape of the revered Sufi poet....like Jodeci might say, "Dont talk, just listen."






RUMI CALLING : SUFI DUB (November 2009) by djumb

History 101: 99th Anniversary of the Mexican Revolution

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Nov 20, 1910-Nov 20, 2009



For those that dont know, Im a bit of a history geek. So, today, as you now know marks the 99th anniversary of the Mexican Revolution. Yes, that explains why every town in Mexico has a street called "20 de Noviembre".




Babe Ruth--The Mexican
Mexican Institute of Sound--Cumbia Deathface Rmx
Unknown--El Imperialismo Yanqui (not actual title)--sounds more Peruvian than Mexican, but you get the idea


books on the Mexican Revolution worth reading:

John Mason Hart- Revolutionary Mexico: The Coming and Process of the Mexican Revolution--absolutely essential reading!! This book altered the way scholars viewed the Mexican Revolution.

Paul Hart--Bitter Harvest--friend and mentor, Paul Hart examines the origins of the Zapatista rebellion in Southern Mexico---from historycooperative.org>>>

"This very good book fills a major gap in Mexican history. The movement led by Emiliano Zapata made the Mexican Revolution revolutionary. It developed in the State of Morelos, a warm basin south of Mexico City, where sugar estates jostled peasant communities from the sixteenth century. We have solid histories of the region in the colonial era: we know the sugar industry's early foundation under Hernán Cortés; we know the long and contested history in which estates expanded and stabilized in long waves, imported African slaves, and saw those slaves find their way into local communities that kept limited lands while providing vast reserves of cane-cutting labor.
1
The historiography of Zapata's 1910 rising and of the years his villagers ruled Morelos and shaped a revolution is vast. But we have lacked a history of estates and villages in Morelos from independence to the revolution. Thus we have not understood how the contested stability that marked the region at the end of the colonial era turned into waves of conflict from the 1840s through the 1870s, then stabilized again only to explode in revolution in 1910.

John Reed-Insurgent Mexico--the same John Reed from which the movie "Reds" is based. Reed rides along with Villa and his Division del Norte, documenting his experiences along the way. Thrilling first hand account.


--apologies for the blurry pic--

Rai_Cheb Khaled

A number of years ago, I discoverd the genre of music originating in North Africa known as Rai. I found the music to be beautiful and, although I couldnt understand the lyrics, I sensed a passion emanating from deep within the Rai artists, particularly Cheb Khaled.

Heres what wikipedia has to say on Rai:

"Rai is a form of folk music that originated in Oran, Algeria from Bedouin shepherds, mixed with Spanish, French, African and Arabic musical forms, which dates back to the 1930s and has been primarily evolved by women in the culture. Raï literally means opinion but is colloquially used as an interjection along the lines of "oh, yeah!"


Singers of raï are called cheb (shabb, young) as opposed to sheikh (shaykh, old), the name given to Chaabi singers. The tradition arose in cities like Oran, Relizane and Mostaganem, primarily among the poor. Traditionally sung by men, at the turn of the 20th century, female singers became common. Raï musicians as early as the 1930s were singing about social issues which affected native populations. These ranged from disease to the policing of European colonies.


Raï is a popular music style that originated in Algeria in the 1930s. It became popular among young people who sought to modernize the traditional Islamic values and attitudes. Regional, secular, and religious drum patterns, melodies, and instruments were blended with Western electric instrumentation. Raï music mixes with hip hop, reggae, funk, blues and with North African beats and rhythms. Raï's lyrics song speak to a new nationalistic identity that encourages the union of contemporary and traditional ideals. "

Apparently, Khaled has dropped the "Cheb" and just goes as Khaled now, like when Buckshot Shorty dropped the "Shorty"...makes sense...this track Ive uploaded has more of a hiphop feel to it, but still retains some elements of Rai...also, Ive stopped using Divshare--too many problems--and am now going with Mediafire...

Cheb Khaled and Iam--Oran Marseille

El Hijo de la Cumbia--La Mara Tomaza

came across this on the emayocutz blog...one of my favorite psychedelic cumbias out there...so good, great teaser!!

i obviously have a fondness for videos shot in cities in Latin America...in a way, i feel I'm reminiscing about those days I spent backpacking through Mexico, loafing about aimlessly, stopping at various towns, sightseeing, wandering, soaking in the sights and sounds of the streets, slowly transitioning from one beach to another...cocos frios, fresh pan dulce, sleeping in a hammock, staring out into the vast expanse of the Caribbean................................

you feel me??


b/w this aint no Corona commercial

Bebel Gilberto feat Mark Ronson--The Real Thing

now, Ive been a fan of Bebel Gilberto since day one...her lovely, sultry vocals over electro-samba and bossa nova beats just made for some great sunday morning music to cook pancakes and sip coffee to...so when i came across this track, i was glad to see shes teamed up with Mark Ronson, whose soulful r&b funk productions hearken back to the sounds of the 70s...Brasilian Funk?? yes please...

Well, what we get is closer to any Amy Winehouse track w/ Bebel taking Amy's place. Gone are the Brasilian rhythms and instrumentation of her native country, with Ronson's funk-based sound replacing them....and rather than sing in Portuguese, Bebel opts to sing in English...Portuguese is far more gentle on the ears, plus it sounds so SEXY coming from a woman's voice...its a good track and will do well Im sure, but I miss the old Bebel sound that transported me to the beaches of Brasil.

Mexicans with Guns

Mexicans with Guns---came across this track on Soundcloud...really diggin the sound here...some Latin Bmore with some nice horns thrown in for good measure...Im a sucker for horns, so you know Im sold on this...Will have to keep an eye out for these guys, as I missed their last visit to Austin

Bring It On Home (Mexicans With Guns Remix) by Exponential

dj hannibal drops some remixes on me

ive been postin too much on my damn self already...anyone got some music--or any other artistic venture--they wanna share, do feel free to hit me up...otherwise....ill keep sharing whatever i come across...k?


seriously, if it wasnt for this dude i probably never wouldve gone out and bought some turntables...honestly, i felt compelled to go out and get some tables b/c i couldnt hang out at his spot all nite/every nite practicin on his...

anyhow, for those that dont know, this cat has been makin some of the illest remixes/blends/smasups, whateva u wanna call em, for some time now...Spoon v. Gorilla Zoe, Three Six Mafia v. Benny Benassi....the Britney Spears v. Marilyn Manson...damn, i could go on....so heres a couple more he was kind enough to lace me with....

MJ-Smooth criminal (hannibal rmx)

and

Ice Cube-It was a Good Day (hannibal rmx)


that bassline on the MJ track is crazy...definitely flips the vibe on it...the Cube refix is like some smooth, souled-out funk bizness...some slow rolling funk that just oozes out the speakers, plus Cube's voice fits the beat like a fresh pair of sneaks...

Fairuz

years ago, i was listening to a local community sponsored station that features a variety of music from virtually every walk of life...this was back in 2000, and the show i was listening to featured music from the Middle East...at the time i was not very familiar with any of the music, so it was refreshing to hear some music that was new and, dare i say, "exotic" to the ears...well, before long this song came on and i immediately stopped doing whatever else i was doing at the time and listened, actually i probably pushed 'record' on the tape deck as that was the norm for me in those days---anyhow, the song, as i discoverd after calling the station and speaking with the dj, was by none other than the legendary Fairuz...

In some ways i mark this point as the beginning of my interest in music from the Mediterranean/Middle East, as i took very little interest in it prior to this encounter. perhaps this was the song that played...its been a while and i dont recall; she has so many great songs, it couldve been any number of them really

Fairuz--Sa Alony El Nas


a short time later, i made a track of my own and used a sample of her voice from a different song in the track...i think it was a fitting homage.

DJ Avatar--Dreams of the East



heres another great song of hers

Soundcloud

finally signed up...took me a while, yes...i was a bit hesitant, as im trying to limit my online pitstops...but thats a futile task i realize...

ok, so heres a track i did a while back...it still needs something else, i just havent quite figured out what...

01 - Avatar Like u the Champion by dj avatar

Y Chile Verde Mix__tracklist

so ive been meaning to get the tracklist for this up...finally gettin round to it after a few listeners have requested some detailed info.....apologies for not knowing the names of all the songs...




1) Nortec Collective--El Lado Oscuro de Mi Compadre
2) ??
3) Christopher Goze--Sirocco
4) Morcheeba--Shoulder Holster (dj swamp rmx)
5) Max Sedgley--Happy
6) Home Team--Pick it Up
7) Supreme Nyborn--Style
8) Antibalas--Che Che Cole Makossa
9) Nico Gomez--Lupita
10) Lupita Break v. Rakim (Avatar Blend)
11) El General--Caramelo rmx
12) DJ Food--??
13) DJ Format--English Lesson
14) Le Peuple le Herbe--??
15) Frank T--Nuevo Ser
16) DePhazz--Mambo Craze
17) Alma Tropical--Que te Parece Cholito

PsychRock__Shocking Blue

im still learnin the ropes of the whole psych genre...once you get into it, and you realize how deep the rabbit whole goes, you can feel a bit overwhelmed...hence, new discoveries lurk upon the horizon...

one of my first psych discoveries was this lil' gem i found on 45 whilst diggin one day...these cats are Dutch, i believe, and on another level as far as im concerned

hot sand--shocking blue


this is the same band that Nirvana covered for their 'Love Buzz' single off one of their first releases on SubPop...the self-titled album is fantastic and actually is not too hard to get a hold of

my life, my life in the sunshine

the weather has been perfect lately...blue skies, cool temps, with a full moon that just illuminates the night sky...great time of year here in austin....so i leave you with

Roy Ayers: Everybody loves the sunshine




and the live version as well


and of course---Erule's 'Listen Up"

Halloween Get Ups

ok folks, its dress up time...ive got my outfit figured out (look below)--if you see someone in a bird mask walkin around with no shirt, thats me!! holler....


all my good halloween themed music is on the laptop...since im posting from the desktop, this is all i could scrounge up...its an old smash up i did 5 years ago...ghostbusters v. hyphy v. j boogies "PPP"...it kinda works...play it out and you tell me...oh yeah, this came off an 80s themed smash up mix thing i did, so peep the Revenge of the Nerds drop at the end....!!

Halloween nite

my austin folks, Halloween nites around the corner...come check dj hannibal @ District on w 6th....MJ tribute

Yin_random dj mix from the archives

there was a time not too long ago, while living in a small one-bedroom apartment in north austin, i would, from time to time, push record and just grab records and start playing. my apt was full of vinyl--records occupied virtually every conceivable corner of the place--in the kitchen, on the couch, behind doors, in the closet, etc...it was both beautiful and pitiful at the same time...

so this mix is one from one of those nites...i called it 'yin' simply b/c thats what seemed appropriate at the time...i call it a 'mix' although i was just kind of playing records, so some of the blends are less than tight...some dreamy-jazz, pink floyd, electric prunes, gravediggaz, doors, beatnuts...and sun ra to kick it off



cant be too bad if sun ra is startin things off, huh?

Soy Cuba

just finished watching the first hour of Latin Music USA online...This one seems to really focus on the sounds coming out of Cuba and these Afro-Cuban rhythms that really influenced an entire generation of musicians--from jazz cats to latin rockers such as Santana on the west coast. it never occurred to me that groups such as the Beatles, the Stones and the Kingsmen were incorporating 'latin' sounds into their music...

anyhow, while watching this i thought of this movie---



Soy Cuba, made in the 60s by Russian film makers, is really an incredible piece of film making...some of the shots are quite unique, lasting for much longer than normal and moving through a variety of scenery (the pool scene in the beginning and the end shot that falls off the building are both remarkable)...

the movie follows the lives of several Cubanos--a young prostitute, a fruit vendor, a peasant, and a disenchanted college student--revealing how each is some sense exploited, seeking political/economic liberation through various avenues...a top-to-bottom perspective that is left-leaning, yet free of the preachiness so characteristic of such an approach...a fantastic film that comes highly recommended!!

Ska Cubano_Soy Campesino

just came across this track...lovin it...too bad i cant download it...

now it says 'ska' but the vocalist says 'cumbia' and it has that cumbia sound...whatever, this track is slaying me right bout now

Mexclass djs

TERREMOTO DE DJ´S (19.09.09) from eldisque on Vimeo.

just saw this...its like a commercial...its advertising a gig, seriously, flyers are so static...video makes much more sense...i like

Fuego!!

cant get enough of this track really...repeatedly kickin myself in the arse for missing their SXSW show this past time around....ah well..........

Latin Music USA on PBS

so, back in june the whole digital switch left me sans-tv...just static these days. luckily, theres the interwebs, cuz i was feelin a bit pissed that i was missing this special on PBS on Latin music. so i got the chance to check out hour 2: the salsa revolution.

http://video.pbs.org/video/1293757593/

great interviews, unseen footage, all around exceptional work. Jerry Masucci comes off looking like some Leonard Chess exploiter of the brown and black youth of the Loisaida Nuyoricans...whatever the footage of the show at Yankee stadium, with the crowd surging on to the field, jumping on stage and confiscating instruments was pretty wild. the interview w Willie Colon sayin they sounded awful, Larry Harlow breakin down the piano, footage of Lavoe, Mongo...it was all too much...

As a historian, though, i would have liked to see the film makers tie in the African roots of Salsa and then connect the music to modern day hip hop artists who incorporate salsa rhythms into their productions--a sort of before and after if you will. i listen to salsa from a hiphop frame of mind, and i know im not alone. there are many others.

dj avatar--boricua bounce (loisaida rmx)


another thing, how bout some of the other fania subsidiaries...vaya, inca, etc...?? why no mention of them??











like i said, i'm an amateur historian with an interest in latin and modern day music, so i tend to view these things with a critical eye...forgive me.

Bellydance Music

Sabaya


so, at home the other nite and i toss an old bellydance cd from one of the nites i dj'ed for the Sabaya girls. my 10 yr old stepdaughter hears the music and comes in the room--midrift exposed--like some professional bellydancer who has been honing her craft for years. she literally wont stop dancing and keeps playing the same song over and over again.......take a listen.



i was getting a kick out of her, cuz usually shes not so thrilled with my obscure selections. however, shes now looking to sign up for beginner classes, so look out....heres another song i really dig...sorry i dont know the artists names here...




i love the music myself, obviously or i wouldnt have been playing it. it seems the arabic influence is slowly creeping into other genres--hiphop, dancehall, etc...American youth are spoonfed boy bands and sub-par musical acts, while radio kneels to the interests of the few and powerful...huge cultural barriers separate us from the music the rest of the world enjoys and experiences. there are attempts to keep us isolated from this music...keep radio dull, repetitive and utterly uninspiring...ok, u get the point......dig the music for now

So, where do we go from here?

A blog? OMG, thats so 2004!

In the course of putting this whole blog thing together, a number of questions jump to mind. Why? What for? How come? and the like....Well, its all about the music...so, with that said, I will not be posting entire albums for downloading...theres plenty other blogs that do that already...although I will post a song off an album, and if you like that song, I encourage you to go out and support the artists and musicians who make that music.

So, who am I and what qualifications do I bring to the table?

good question. heres quick rundown...my first memories of music go back to my days as a child, waking up on Saturday mornings to the sounds of War, Sly and the family Stone, The Beatles, The Stones, Janis Joplin, Earth Wind and Fire, Santana, Malo, etc. My parents grew up in LA during the 60s, and their tastes in music reflected this fact. Where my dad loved rock, soul, blues, and funk, my mom preferred the Motown sound--The Supremes, Temptations, Marvin Gaye. Actually, my mom--prior to meeting my dad--dated a kid who used to work at a record shop off Whittier Blvd in East LA. She amassed a nice collection of 45s too, that now rest comfortably in my hands!! (I'll post on this in the future).

In the 80s, we left Cali and moved to El Paso, where my parents both found work at radio stations. I recall hanging out in the control room while the radio dj picked out records to play. Also, by working for radio stations, my parents used to get free tickets to the shows coming through town. I remember seeing Twisted Sister in 1983, Prince during the Purple Rain tour, ZZ Top the Eliminator Tour, Men at Work, Tina Turner, Phil Collins, and so many more. In 1988, we left El Paso, and came to Austin. My life as a DJ began in 2000. That year I inherited my grandfather's records. This cumbia record was one of his.



Cumbia Colombiana


Its a great record. I ended up using a sample from a different track off that same record for my 'Cumbia International' released this past summer.

Cumbia International--DJ Avatar



ok, so you get an idea of what to expect. I dont want to focus solely on one genre, when my interests are so much greater. I can easily write on some obscure hiphop 12" one day, then some Arabic artists the next, and Reggae, Bollywood, Afro-beat, Salsa, 80s, etc...dig the music.

heres a slice of some lovely soul jazz...i got lucky and found this record this past summer at a local shop. i didnt realize at the time that this record is pretty rare and goes for a bit of $$$...anyhow, enjoy!!