Global Noize

Global Noize Has Moved!!!!!!!!

2010-01-04T11:22:00.000-08:00

We have moved the blog! It is 2010 and Global Noize is moving to the new address
http://www.globalnoize.wordpress.com.
Please mark your bookmarks and RSS feeds.
best
Six Degrees Records

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2010-01-01T10:40:00.000-08:00

Happy new year everyone! Here are your Friday five to help you kick off the new decade with flavor.

A now classic cut from the ever funky Poets of Rhythm. Yes, the song is called "Strokin' The Grits."

Such a lovely track from the underrated Willie Rosario.

Sublime baby making music.

Top tune from the Curtis Mayfield of Jamaica.

My all time favorite James Brown.

Check out www.djvinnie.net for the latest news and dj gig info. Thanks!

Alice Russell Notes: Santa's helpers

2009-12-28T11:09:00.000-08:00

Santa's helpers
A quick update from Alice Russell.....

Christmas time, 'tis here. 2010 is on the horizon. Me and the lovely band of merry men enjoying spiced cider n cheese overload...Oh, and watching Bad Santa to get in the festive mood....The band have now been dispatched to the North Pole to help with last minute present making and to check the list of who has been naughty or nice! I'm cooking up mince pies for their return (as it's hungry work).

Exciting plans for 2010!

Time for some new music making in 2010 methinks ..I'm wanting to crack on with my new album so watch, or listen, rather, to this space. The band and I are getting in the studio in January to see what we come up with together! It should be interesting with all our love of musical tastes in the band, ranging from Zappa (most def), Major Lazor, Ozric Tenticals, Steve Gadd, Talking Heads and many more.

More shows to be announced for the new year, including a special grand piano and strings show at Union Chapel in London around April. Keep checking alicerussell.com for regular updates.

For now, catching up with friends and family and a goblett of fine wine is in order.

Big big love and massive thankyou to you all for supporting me and the band doing what we love doing!

Here's to you all and here's to 2010...see you next year!!!!!

xxxxx

Ancient Astronauts- Christmas Mix:

2009-12-23T15:33:00.000-08:00

We've been singing the praises of Germany's excellent Switchstance label ever since we met founder Tom Strauch at the MIDEM convention may years ago. Looks like the rest of the planet is starting to catch on, as Tom's band, Ancient Astronauts latest release has been licensed by Thievery Corporation's ESL label. The group also did a fantastic remix for our recently released Vieux Farka Touré remix project. In the spirit of a funky holiday season, here's a rocking reggae & jungle DJ mix guaranteed to "roast your chestnuts" just right-

Download - Ancient Astronauts - Christmas Mix

Best of 2009 DJ UMB

2009-12-21T23:11:00.000-08:00

This mix and list comes courteous of DJ UMB (Editor Generation Bass)

BEST OF 2009 - DANCE ORIENTED STUFF-

SO SORRY IF I MISSED ANYBODY

1. BEST DJ MIX

"Concordia" (officially known as the Bobby Friction BBC Mix) by Bandish Projekt

2. BEST ALBUMS "OFFICIAL RELEASES" (No particular order)

Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II

Sclachthofbronx - SCHLACHTHOFBRONX
schlachthofbronx album by schlachthofbronx

Addiquit - ADDIQUIT
ADDIQUIT by ADDIQUIT

Moderat - MODERAT

Bassnectar - COZZA FRENZY
Cozza Frenzy (Original) by Bassnectar

King Coya - CUMBIA DE VILLA DONDE

Bandish Projekt - CORREKT
SENSE DISTORTION by bandishprojekt

Celt Islam - DERVISH
Mevlana by Celt Islam feat Dawoud Kringle by Celt Islam

Liquid Stranger - THE INTERGALACTIC SLAPSTICK
Lotus by liquid stranger

Liquid Stranger - Soundboy Killa
Soundboy Killa by liquid stranger

3. BEST ALBUMS "FREE RELEASES" (No particular order)

Phil Retrospector - INTROVERSION

Villa Diamante - EMPACHO DIGITAL

Sonido Del Principe - LA NARANJA MECANICA

DJ UMB - Stoned Cumbia
01 STONED CUMBIA (August 2009) by djumb

Caballo & the Mothafu Kings - GLOBAL PROPOGANDA

La Misión (Caballo & The Mothafu Kings mix) original by [dunkelbunt] by caballo t

Filthy Kicks - DIRTY LITTLE SECRET

Colatron - TENEBRISM

BEST OVERALL TRACK 2009:

DIGI DESIGN - JOKER

BEST DANCE-ORIENTED TRACKS:
"African Chant" - Top Billin' rmx

"Horario De Verano" - Sonido Del Principe

"Lollibon" - Daleduro v Madison (mashed by Simon Iddol)

"Sane Eba" - Zakee Kuduro

Didi 1 & Kwaab- Bandish Project

El Tigeraso - Maluca

El Tigeraso

MALUCA | MySpace Music Videos

Sylvia - Sa' Bat Machines
Sylvia by Sa Bat' Machines

BEST NEW ARTISTS 2009:

Led Zeppelin - They're new to me every year.lol

Joker

Barbarix

Sonido Del Principe

Sa' Bat Machines

Zakee Kuduro

Cheasleauen

Deaf Bass Twins

Engine Earz

Ku Bo

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-12-18T09:35:00.000-08:00

...and I want a pony and a soft serve machine and...Happy holidays! It's your Friday Five!

Oui, S'il Vous Plait.

Lovely Italian soundtrack music. Sooooo nice!

One of Quantic's best remixes. Love how this slowly builds.

Funk Africano.

Groovy, man. Just Groovy.

Check www.djvinnie.net for the latest news and gig info on yours truly.

KCRW Top 10 of 2009

2009-12-17T11:26:00.000-08:00

Here's a link to KCRW DJ's top ten list for the year.

Congrats to Céu's Vagarosa for making DJ Jeremy Sole's list!

Big ups to KCRW for keeping up amazing programming in this age of Clear Channel playlists!

Fort Knox Five - Live DJ set on Four Decks

2009-12-16T11:59:00.000-08:00

Fort Knox Five: "Live on 4 decks at the Belly Up Aspen" by fortknoxfive

Fort Knox Five has a new release called The New Gold Standard 2 out now, luckily for all of us they recorded a 4-turntable dj set in Aspen, CO last month and you can download it from the link above! Thanks for keeping it funky guys!

Best of 2009: Derek Beres (EarthRise SoundSystem/ Journalist/ Yoga Guru)

2009-12-15T16:00:00.000-08:00

Best of 2009: Derek Beres (EarthRise SoundSystem/ Journalist/ Yoga
Guru)

1. Tinariwen—Imidiwan: Companions (World Village)
2. Fat Freddy’s Drop—Dr. Boondigga & The Big BW (The Drop)
3. The Spy From Cairo—Secretly Famous (Wonderwheel)
4. Vanessa Da Mata—Sim (Sony)
5. Norah Jones—The Fall (Blue Note)
6. Vieux Farka Touré—Fondo (Six Degrees)
7. Béla Fleck—Throw Down Your Heart: Tale From The Acoustic Planet,
Vol. 3 - Africa Sessions (Rounder)
8. Bebel Gilberto—All In One (Verve)
9. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo De Cotonou—Volume Two: Echos Hypnotiques
(Analog Africa)
10. Tumbélé: Biguine, Afro & Latin Sounds From the French Caribbean,
1963-74 (Soundways)

Best of 2009 by Brendon Moeller

2009-12-15T14:10:00.000-08:00

Best of 2009: Brendon Moeller (Beat Pharmacy/ Echologist/ Steadfast
Records)

singles:

1. floating points - vacuum EP
2. STL - from a distance
3. wbeeza - he so crazy
4. tensnake - in the end (I want you to cry)
5. mike dehnert - umalut2 first version
6. king midas sound - cool out
7. instra_mental - leave it all behind
8. DJ sprinkles - the occasional feel-good
9. black jazz consortium - what's up with love
10. appleblim & ramadanman - sous le sable

albums:

1. moritz von oswald trio - vertical ascent
2. iron & wine - around the well
3. nick cave & warren ellis - white lunar
4. mocky - saskamodie
5. john daly - sea & sky
6. deer hunter - microcastle
7. atlas sound - logos
8. intrusion - the seduction of silence
9. fluxion - constant limber
10. cluster - qua
--------------------

Karsh Kale: My Favorite Personal Projects/Albums of the Decade

2009-12-14T13:07:00.000-08:00

Karsh Kale: My Favorite Personal Projects/Albums of the Decade

1) Liberation
2) Breathing Under Water
3) Broken English
4) Hello Hello - Midival Punditz
5) Give Peace A Chance - Yoko Ono (KK Remix)
6) Tabla Beat Science - Tala Matrix
7) Asian Massive
8) Vieux Farka Toure -( KK Remix)
9) Awake - Janaka Selktah (KK Remix)
10) Realize

Favorite Live Projects

1) Realize Live
2) Live w the Midival Punditz
3) Tabla Beat Science w Zakir Hussain
4) Breathing Under Water w Anoushka Shankar
5) Material w Bill Laswell
6) Timeline
7) Madman of God w Sussan Deyhim
8) Live w Ustad Shujat Khan and Vijay Iyer
9) Sound Tribe Sector Nine
10) Live w Gigi

Favorite Albums of the Decade

1) Hail to the Thief - Radiohead
2) Up - Peter Gabriel
3) Air Drawn Dagger - Sasha
4) In Rainbows - Radiohead
5) All That You Cant Leave Behind - U2
6) Battle Of Los Angeles - Rage Against the Machine
7) Live in Paris - Seal
8) Takk - Sigur Ross
9) Remeber Shakti - Shakti
10)The Blueprint - Jay Z

Favorite Concerts of the Decade

1) The Police - 2008 - Madison Square Garden
2) Radiohead - 2002 - Madison Square Garden
3) Peter Gabriel - 2003 - Madison Square Garden
4) The Roots - 2001 - Central Park -Summerstage
5) Shakti - 2006 - Carnegie Hall
6) Daft Punk - 2007 - Coney Island NY
7) Manu Chow - 2000 - Central Park -Summerstage
8) Ravi Shankar - 2006 - Disney Theatre LA
9) Busta Rhymes - 2001 - Paramount Theatre
10) Herbie Hancock - 2000 - Montrieux Jazz Festival

End of Year/Decade Listmania 2009:

2009-12-14T11:41:00.000-08:00

Yes, it is incredibly, "that time of year" when we take stock of the year's (and the decade's) greatest moments in music, film, books etc. Once again, in the next few weeks we will be getting "Best Of" lists from a variety of our friends both in and out of the music biz and once again, I will kick things off with my own picks. Feel free to chime in with what rocked your world this year.
My Best of 2009
Bob Duskis- Co-Founder Six Degrees Records

Best" Bass-Centric" Album which seamlessly mixes Dub, Dubstep, Psy Dub and Global Textures:
Liquid Stranger- Intergalactic Slapstick- Interchill Records

LIQUID STRANGER RICKSHAW MIX (BBC) by Liquid Strangler

Try as I may, I cannot think of another global/electronica record that I have enjoyed more this year than Liquid Stranger's Intergalactic Slapstick. Martin Staaf has taken all of the crunchy, "bass in your face" power that I love about Dubstep and liberally mixed in elements that many of his contemporaries routinely leave out. (you know, little things like melody, nuance, texture and dynamics). I think this is a landmark release that stretches genres in wonderfully "ear opening" ways while still remaining accessible. If you've been wanting to "dip your toes" into the dubstep waters, look no further for the perfect entry point.

The Bon Iver Award for Best Singer Songwriter of the Year:
J. Tillman- Year in the Kingdom-

Don't let the fact that J. Tillman is the drummer for the now hugely popular Fleet Foxes, fool you. While I like the Foxes, I infinitely prefer Tillman's darker and more intimate songs to his band's relentlessly sunny harmonies. This is gorgeous music for people who like their singer songwriter's music to be both "haunting" and "haunted"

Most Enjoyable Movies of the Year: Tie between Pirate Radio & Fantastic Mr. Fox
Notice that I don't say "Best" movies of the year. Neither one of these films is a groundbreaking work of genius- but both of them had me grinning from ear to ear throughout their entire running time. (Nowadays, that's a rare & beautiful gift). Mr. Fox was breezy, charming and perfectly enjoyable for my entire family (another incredible rarity) and Pirate Radio reminded me why I fell in love with radio as a kid and how much radio helped me to fall in love with music for life.

Best Book About Demons (Both Personal & Literal):
Graham Joyce- How to Make Friends With Demons-
Originally published in the UK as Confessions of a Master Forger, under the alias W. Heaney, Graham Joyce's latest is now out in the U.S. under a new title and under the author's real name. This tale of a book forger who can see the actual "personal demons" that have attached themselves to many of us, is a beautifully written examination of suffering & redemption and the often agonizingly difficult task of "getting on with life" despite the sins of the past. Although this sounds heavy, it is in fact often incredibly funny and acerbic and a pleasure to read throughout. You can't go wrong with anything by this wonderfully gifted author.

Best "Flipped Out" Band that has amazingly broken into the mainstream: Animal Collective-
I'm not quite sure what it means when a group as beautifully bizarre as Animal Collective is showing up on the Billboard Pop Charts but I'm pretty sure that it's a good thing. Both the full length, Merriweather Post Pavilion and the new, Fall Be Kind EP were fantastic slices of hallucinogenic dream pop that conjure up images of the Beach Boys on some South American, shamanic drug ritual. It will be interesting to see what sneaks through the crack in the door that Animal Collective have pried open in the months to come.

http://www.sacurrent.com/sb/72025/arts_friendswdemons_CMYK.jpg

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-12-11T11:43:00.000-08:00

Friday is here! Hello weekend! Now if we could just do something about this cold weather...

Warm thoughts during these chilly months. Perhaps the loveliest version of this song ever recorded.

Top shelf 80s boogie.

Remembering John Lennon this week. Fantastic cover of one of his songs.

The pinnacle of psych perfection. From Spain, early 70s.

I can't get enough of this song. Pure Jamaican rock steady magic.

Check out www.djvinnie.net for the latest info and news on yours truly. Have a great week!

Starfire Blog: DJ'ng the Virgin Galactic Spaceship party

2009-12-10T10:51:00.000-08:00

Today's post comes from the blog of David Starfire -

I was very excited to receive a message from a production company about an extraordinary DJ gig in the Mojave Desert for the Virgin Galactic SpaceShip Two (SS2) unveiling at the Mojave Air and Spaceport. For those of you that don’t know about Virgin Galactic, it’s a division of Richard Branson’s Virgin Group (like Virgin Airlines) and is dedicated to be the world’s first commercial space travel service. Yes you can travel to space for a mere $200,000, in a couple of years after test runs and the actual ship was there at the event for everyone to see for the first time.

The gig seemed almost too good to be true and had to keep some secrecy about it because of security reasons with V.I.P.s including Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bill Richardson and various elite from around the world including and 300 people that have paid $20,000 down payment on their future space flight. The DJ gig was from 8pm-12am and had to be prepared to play for any type of crowd and ultimately had to create a cool vibe. I took lots of time to prepare a special set of taking the guests on a musical ride of a lifetime, as if I was creating a DJ set for a space flight to the moon. I knew that that I was in good company when I heard that the #4 DJ’s in the world Above & Beyond were spinning before me, which meant I had step it up. The set up of the party was something like 2001 space oddity meets burning man meets the W hotel bar. In the party area were 2 giant plastic inflatable dome structures, an outside section that had an ice bar hosted by Absolut and the Swedish Ice Hotel bar with a woman making ice sculptures. There was a clear plastic tent for press where Richard Branson talked about his SpaceShip Two (also named VSS Enterprise) and his company as well as the people that helped him to create it. After the press conference the ship rolled out on the tarmac and came through the fog and snow like a ufo approaching. The celebrity crowd surrounds the ship to get a glimpse of their future ride to space. Soon afterward the party kicked off with Above & Beyond rocking the decks with some nice house music. The VIP crowd seemed to be in their late 30’s-40’s and all had cocktails in hand and were feeling very special indeed. The rain and snow had stopped, but the wind was picking up and they decided to close one of the domes down and move everyone into one dome. The domes were rated at 40 miles per hour, but was picking up fast and was about 30 degrees and getting colder. The party crowd seemed content and cozy with their Puma Virgin Galactic jackets that were handed out to them. It kinda looked like everyone were in uniforms and you couldn’t tell the production crew from the jet set. Above & Beyond had finished their set and I started to spin and started off with the song “Sitarfire” from my upcoming album Bollyhood Bass (Six Degrees records) that will be out January 12th. I was on for a bit when all of a sudden I hear, “Attention, there’s a tremendous storm approaching and everyone must evacuate immediately!” and there went the rest of my DJ set. I started grabbing my gear and was placing it out of the dome when a large man came up to me and said, “You gotta get outta here, this domes gonna go any second!”. I ran out to the car and had experienced wind that I hadn’t experienced since I was in a tornado in Oklahoma, or when I was in a hurricane in Puerto Rico (really!). I was hoping the winds died down but just kept picking up to 70 mph and the party was definitely over. Went to my hotel room and the power was out, so drove back to Los Angeles and was an experience that I will never forget.

great news article and pics here

www.virgingalactic.com
www.davidstarfire.com
www.sixdegreesrecords.com

Chief Boima

2009-12-09T10:32:00.000-08:00

Chief Boima - African by the Bay EP

Chief Boima, Bay-Area dj/producer, scribe for GhettoBassquake, and purveyor of all hybrids of post-Global beats delivers a free EP courtesey of Dutty Artz. Imagine Lil Wayne mixed with Techno in the Ivory Coast and your getting close to what this sounds like.

Vieux Farka Toure- Other Roads: Fondo Remixed

2009-12-08T11:49:00.000-08:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - Vieux Farka Touré - Cherie Le (Sabbo remix)

Next Tuesday sees the release of our Vieux Farka Touré remix project, Other Roads: Fondo Remixed. I really enjoyed putting this collection together and I feel like the diverse cast of remixers really brought their "A Game" in respect to the beautiful source material from Vieux's original versions. From atmospheric psy-dub to dance-floor bangers to minimal tech treatments, the various mixes cover a lot of stylistic ground on this collection and I am particularly proud of the variety and creativity throughout the release. To whet your appetite today, we are offering a free download of Israeli producer Sabbo's scorching take on the track "Cherie Le". Be sure to check out the full release of Other Roads next week and if you like his mix, definitely delve into Sabbo's latest Soulico project which is well worth your attention.

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-12-04T11:59:00.000-08:00

Friday brings five new goodies for your listening and viewing pleasure!

Perhaps the funkiest and most relaxed piece of "library" music ever recorded. Like butter.

New Edan! Never disappoints!

It's hard NOT to love this song.

Lee Perry at the controls! 1976

This song is kinda awesome. Starts off kinda loungy and a bit cheesy, and then kicks in to high gear towards the end. Wicked!!

Check out my site for all the latest new, gigs and info! www.djvinnie.net

Sub Swara - Koli Stance (David Starfire Remix)

2009-12-03T11:20:00.000-08:00

The new David Starfire full length lp, Bollyhood Bass is coming out on January 12th, the much anticipated album features collaborations with Freq Nasty, The Ragga Twins, iCatching and many more. In the meantime David has been busy remixing some amazing tracks like 'Koli Stance' by Sub Swara off their Coup d'Yah Remixes Volume 3 EP, who were kind enough to share this track with us today. David took it to some tribal dubstep areas, for all the low-end lovers! If you dig it you can embed the widget wherever you like by clicking "share" button. If you like the track, you can check out and buy the Coup d'Yah Remixes Volume 3 EP here. More information on David Starfire can be found here.

Tea - Dreams

2009-12-02T14:28:00.000-08:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - Tea - 'Ibiza' from the album Dreams

A few months ago I received through the magic of E mail, the latest album from a duo who call themselves Tea. Mixing soul, house and jazz with African flavors, Tea is the brainchild of guitarist Franck Balloffet, from Lyon, France, and Southern California drummer/keyboardist Phil Bunch. Franck & Phil first met as members of Los Angeles’ premier African band, Bateke Beat, which featured multi-instrumentalist Fidel Bateke, formerly of Fela Kuti’s ensemble from Nigeria. The group's second record, Dreams, rises to the challenge of fusing lots of different influences while maintaining a distinct personality all its own. The entire record is so lovely and soulful that it is almost balearic at times, (Legendary keyboardist Brian Auger even guests on the album!). I must say that I find the project's overt melodicism quite refreshing in these days of distorted drums, acid synths and massive, squelchy bass (not that there's anything wrong with that- but sometimes a guy needs a little melody in his global fusions) The duo have generously allowed us to share a track with you today, so if you like what you hear, be sure to explore further

Stateless, Dec 4th.

2009-12-01T16:03:00.000-08:00

Stateless is back! On Dec. 4th Jef Stott and our good friend The Worker are performing at Underground SF (424 Haight St, San Fransico, CA). This one of a kind event should not be missed. For a sample of what's going down on Dec. 4th take a listen to some of these complimentary tracks.

Jef Stott- Lamaset (Miami Mix)

The Worker -Drift

For more info on Stateless visit: http://www.myspace.com/sfstateless

LIQUID STRANGER BABYLON OUTCAST MIX

2009-11-30T10:38:00.000-08:00

LIQUID STRANGER BABYLON OUTCAST MIX by Liquid Stranger

Enjoy the Monday blues with this new dubstep mix by Liquid Stranger.
His new record Intergalactic Slapstick is out now!

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-11-27T00:50:00.000-08:00

It's the Friday after Thanksgiving. Oh, no thanks. I'm stuffed.

LITTLE ANN - DEEP SHADOWS. Does soul get deeper than this? I don't know. I really don't know.

Another heavy duty cut from this album begging for a proper reissue. Vinyl too please.

Lovely version of the War classic.

Writer, composer, producer and all around bad-ass.

Tremendo boogaloo!

DJing tonight (Friday, Nov 27th) at the Elbo Room in San Francisco for the 6th Annual Biscuits & Gravy party. Free!! Check out my site at www.djvinnie.net. Thanks!

Midival Punditz - A new dj set for the Floor!

2009-11-24T13:02:00.000-08:00

Midival Punditz recent genre-defying record 'Hello Hello' just made the Amazon Best of 2009 charts. While we wait for more Punditz to drop enjoy this wicked techy mix that the Punditz just posted on their Facebook page.

Dancing in The Hills Mix - Groovio by Midival Punditz

Tito Rodriguez - A Man and His Music

2009-11-23T13:06:00.001-08:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - Tito Rodriguez - Mama Guela

Fania Records just released a compilation of the work of Tito Rodriguez called 'A Man and His Music'. It's a great listen and spans the many moves of "the other" Tito. Also be sure to check out the PBS documentary Latin Music U.S.A. for some amazing footage of Tito in action!

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-11-20T10:38:00.000-08:00

San Francisco finds itself with grey clouds and impending rain this weekend, therefore some of today's selections may be a little moist. Enjoy!

Niceness from the mysterious Bob Azzam. He also did some amazing Brazilian work.

Extended disco mix of this underground classic.

Brilliant cut from one of my favorite Sun Ra albums.

KINGS GO FORTH - HIGH ON YOUR LOVE. Some mighty fine *new* soul out of Milwaukee. Check out the funky breakdown towards the end. This is Luaka Bop's latest signing.

I could listen to this all day, every day.

Check out my website www.djvinnie.net for the latest news and DJ schedule.

EarthRise SoundSystem: 'The Yoga Sessions'

2009-11-18T12:29:00.000-08:00

EarthRise SoundSystem - Daylight As Sunset [feat Lucy Woodward]

Don't let the fact that Derek Beres & David "Duke Mushroom" Schommer have called their debut album, "the Yoga Sessions" fool you. This beautiful mix of dubby global textures and soulful pop influences may very well be the perfect soundtrack for your Yoga practice (I wouldn't pretend to know)- but this project certainly transcends any one usage. Beres does teach yoga in NY- but equally relevant is the fact that he has consistently been the most intelligent writer to cover the "global fusion" scene through his excellent book 'Global Beat Fusion' and his articles in a variety of magazines and on line publications. He's also a great DJ as a member of the Globesonic crew. Schommer helmed the excellent Ethiopian flavored Bole 2 Harlem project a few years back and has played on over 50 records. Together these guys have crafted a lovely album which is filled with atmosphere and nuance but is also not afraid to be tuneful and soulful.

We're moving offices!

2009-11-12T13:21:00.003-08:00

Sorry for the lack of posts this week! We are moving offices, and all our wires are being transported along with everything else!
We'll be back real soon with lots of new music and treats for you on the blogosphere!

Captain Planet - Speakin' Nuyorican

2009-11-12T13:21:00.001-08:00

Free Download - Captain Planet - 'Lagos Speedway'
Listen/Buy Captain Planet - Speakin' Nuyorican
One of our favorite bloggers (previously on Captain's Crates, currently on Mixtape Riot) is also a great producer on a great indie label (Bastard Jazz). Captain Planet finally unleashes a follow up to his Gumbo Funk EP of five years ago. This will have discerning dancefloors moving for quite some time.

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-11-11T19:13:00.000-08:00

Hey folks! Sorry for the late entry this week. Call this the "evening edition!" Here's your Friday 5!

Lovely latin ditty from Clark Terry & Chico O'Farrill. That almost sounds like a superhero duo!

Tasty party funk from a band called "Black Nasty." Yes, Black Nasty.

Top tier British jazz!

Unstoppable cut from Mr. Hutch. From the excellent Foxy Brown soundtrack.

One of my favorite cuts from his strongest album "Clube Da Esquina." Fantastic!

Check out www.djvinnie.net for upcoming gigs in San Francisco! Have a great week!

And here is the rest of it.

Quantic - Descarga! Mix

2009-11-10T12:36:00.000-08:00

Tradition in Transition: A Postcard from Cali (TRAILER) from Quantic on Vimeo.

Quantic has been doing his thing in Columbia the last few years, putting out new releases on the regular and blessing the rest of us with his vinyl and other musical discoveries.

Here is a great dj mix of Columbian cumbias and other treats from Quantic, below is the trailer to the film Tradition in Transition which follows Quantic on his recording odyssey in Columbia.

Brownout - Free on Twitter and vinyl for the heads!

2009-11-10T12:12:00.000-08:00

Brownout's new record 'Aguilas and Cobras' has had dance floors burning since it was released last month. If you want to check out the funky Latin jam Slinky from the album just re-tweet this link and the song is yours for free!

For the vinyl heads, Brownout now has a 45 for sale featuring the tracks C-130 and Nawlins. Smokin'

Ocote Soul Sounds - more Coconut Rock

2009-11-09T11:26:00.000-08:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - Ocote Soul Sounds - The Revolt of The Cockroach People

Six Degrees Records' own Brownout recently wrapped up West and East coast tours in support of the 'Aguilas and Cobras' record, which gave lead guitarist/composer Adrian Quesada enough time to go home to Austin to pack his bags and hit the road with one of his other projects, Ocote Soul Sounds. Ocote just finished opening up for Thievery Corporation for a number of dates including Halloween in NYC! Ocote is a collaboration between Adrian and Martìn Perna (of Antibalas) which has a downtempo electronic psychedelic Latin vibe; sounding like DJ Shadow on a mescaline trip through a Tex-Mex border town. Not to make it sound like drug induced lounge music, Ocote is much deeper than that, most of the music reflects the respect toward their shared Latino musical traditions and the mutations those traditions make in the face of technology, advancement, and an ever-changing sonic and cultural landscape.
ESL Music will be putting out a digital deluxe edition of Ocote's most recent album 'Coconut Rock', including remixes by Ancient Astronaughts, DJ OBaH and more on December 8th.

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-11-06T12:14:00.001-08:00

Wow! November is already here! Another Friday means another round of tasty musical treats!

From the infamous Mulatu album that has yet to see a proper reissue in the states. Amazing.

Does a funkier song exist? No. I think not.

New project from the always excellent Numero Group out of Chicago.

Sublime track from this rare psych masterpiece!

The definition of perfection.

Check out my site, www.djvinnie.net for all of the latest news and gigs! Have a great week!

Ceu Touring Europe

2009-11-05T13:31:00.000-08:00

Céu has been on tour in Europe and has a show in London on Friday night as part of Jungle Drums magazine's Anniversary celebration. Our friends Nina Miranda and Chris Franck's band Zeep will be opening. I love this beautiful poster that was put together for the show and thought we'd share it with you along with a couple of live video's that have been shot on the tour so far.

DJ Morpheus: Chillout Autumn Session

2009-11-04T10:48:00.000-08:00

Free Download - DJ Morpheus: Chillout Autumn Session

Our buddy DJ Morpheus is one of the most open minded and creative DJ's in the world. You may know him from his ground breaking Freezone compilations which were released on the great Crammed Disc label. We're happy to be sharing his latest Chillout mix with you today which features a typically broad selection of amazing, forward thinking sounds. Enjoy-

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Fresh Kush

2009-11-03T15:29:00.000-08:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - Nickodemus - 2 Sips & Magic (Kush Arora - 2 Sips and a Cup Remix)

San Francisco's Bass Pioneer and Surya Dub resident Kush Arora has re-imagined Nickodemus' Balkan inspired mid-tempo '2 Sips and Magic' song into a club (or playa) anthem.

Kush says that his remix is "a bashy bashy tribal banger around 132 bpm with santoor from the original, my take on a lot of the soca step, uk funky, and tribal house revival that's been happening over the past few years! I hope you guys enjoy."
You know we will Kush!

Nickodemus' Sun People Remixed comes out November 24th on ESL Music.

Mulatu Astatke and The Heliocentrics

2009-11-02T11:30:00.000-08:00

Masenqo - Mulatu Astatke and The Heliocentrics
FREE DOWNLOAD -(CLICK ON DOWN ARROW ON RIGHT)

Preview/Buy Mulato and The Heliocentrics Inspiration Information 3

Preview/Buy New York - Addis - London The Story of Ethio Jazz

Mulatu Astatke is from Ethiopia and recorded his seminal records in the 1960's and 1970's on small independent labels in Ethiopia. The world is finally catching up to this maestro's greatness, 2009 has seen Mulatu tour the world and release new material, including a collaboration with Malcolm Catto's London based psych-jazz ensemble the Heliocentrics. In the 1960's Mulatu studied in London and New York and absorbed a lot of the NuYorican sounds going around at the time, mixing it up with his unique blend of Etiopian music and it's unique pentatonic scale (which has five pitches per octave). Their aren't too many composers whose sounds equally remind you of the arrangements that Duke Ellington composed mixed with fuzz and wah-wah psychedelic sounds. His music has influenced a new generation of musicians including the Budos Band, Dub Collossus, and Cut Chemist.
There is something that can only be described as magical in Mulatu's greatest compositions; part cinematic, part jazz-funk, it sounds like Roy Ayers scoring a gangster film in the desert. The new album, Inspiration Information 3 captures the essence of Mulatu's previous work and the Heliocentrics and their drummer Malcolm Catto deliver the goods behind Mulatu's vibe playing and percussion work.
In the last ten years the songs of Mulatu have appeared on the compilation Ethiopiques 4: Ethio Jazz and Musique Instrumental and in the Jim Jarmusch film Broken Flowers. In 2009 Strut records released the collaboration Inspiration Inspiration 3, and now they have compiled a Mulatu anthology called New York - Addis - London The Story of Ethio Jazz, which features very hard to find gems from Mulatu's back cataloge. Mulatu has also begun to tour again, and if you get the chance do not miss this giant of music in person!

posted by Oz

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-10-30T14:13:00.000-07:00

Lawdy Lawd! I have these hot tracks that are just aching to be posted. Let's get on with it already!

A timeless track that could have easily been made today, or 30+ years ago (which it was). A relentless groove!

I love me some Gabor Szabo, and this track is one of my faves. From the underrated "Jazz Raga" LP on Impulse.

The Cool Ruler at Work. Lee Perry at the controls. 1976

Mid-60s Chicano sweet soul that instantly turns me into a mere puddle of water.

Slammin' descarga courtesy of NYC bad-ass Johnny Colon.

BONUS ROUND: "For Your Height Only" movie trailer.

A Filipino Mini-James Bond? The best movie ever made?????

Check out my website www.djvinnie.net to check out any of my DJ gigs in San Francisco. Have a great weekend!

.

Nueva Cumbia Argentina: The Buenos Aires Implosion!:

2009-10-28T15:20:00.000-07:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - Los Destellos-Elsa (Sonido Martines remix feat. Fefe)

I'm not sure when Cumbia made the transition to THE hot flavor for
global dance floors around the planet- but for some time now we've
been experiencing "Cumbia- Mania" which has encompassed a seemingly
never ending stream of mash ups, remixes and re-issues. Our buddy DJ
/rupture has just released a great new compilation on his fine Soot
label which is sure to keep the Cumbia
fires stoked. Here's the official spiel:

Cumbia! The infectious Latin American rhythm keeps on grooving –
from makeshift dancefloors in Mexico to trend-hunting clubs across
Europe. Millions dance to it each weekend across the Americas, and
cumbia's blogosphere love and gringo attention has skyrocketed in the
past year, so we turned to the most knowledgeable cumbiambero we
know, Buenos Aires' Sonido Martines, to guide us through cumbia's
roots and future.

Nueva Cumbia Argentina is set to be the most important cumbia
compilation of 2009. It includes major figures Damas Gratis and DJ
Taz, whose work kickstarted both cumbia villera the new cumbia/cumbia
digital scene. The comp then reaches forward to the latest
developments, like El Hijo de la Cumbia, who got his start producing
for big-name Mexican cumbia soundsystems before going solo.

Sonido Martines was the perfect person to organize this compilation.
The Argentine has spent the last decade traveling between
Bolivia, Buenos Aires, Bogota, and Lima, organizing parties and
connecting scenes in the emerging independent cumbia movement.
He's collaborating with national radio in Argentina on a series about
cumbia and tropical music. Martines is recognized as one of
South America's premiere record diggers, finding obscure vinyl LPs
and hot-off-the-harddrive digital bangers. The result is the
sweetly-tuned snapshot of the best in nueva cumbia in the '00s, from
cumbia villera's populist explosion to Kompact-influenced
electronica hybrids.

Alice Russell - Pot of Gold Remixes

2009-10-26T11:32:00.000-07:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - Alice Russell - Living the Life of a Dreamer (Mr. Scruff remix)

Alice Russell - Let Us Be Loving - Dir Steve Glashier 2009

2009 has been quite a year for Alice Russell, at the start of the year Six Degrees Records released "Pot of Gold" - produced by TM JUKE - and will now release a follow up album of 32 remixed tracks from the full length album. Alice Russell's funky, soulful masterpiece full length has been given the world class remix treatment from an all star cast of producers. Remixers include Mr. Scruff, DJ Vadim, J Boogie, Shawn Lee, Ohmega Watts and many more! "Pot of Gold Remixes" - the 32 track digital only release is due October 27th with a physical version of the collection out December 15th.

In between these releases Alice worked with David Byrne (“Working with a singer like Alice was something new, terrifying and ultimately amazing.” David Byrne), toured around the world, including the Big Chill festival and has turned on many new fans to her spine-tingling voice.

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-10-23T10:11:00.000-07:00

Friday means five flavorful treats to start your weekend off right!

Late 60s Cadet Records could do no wrong. Here is one of my faves. Incense is not included.

Sublime example of British "library" (soundtrack) music from the almighty KPM label.

Heavy tune from New York based Wackie's Records.

If the band's name is "Fried Chicken," PLEASE believe it's gonna be good.

Obscure treat from one of two dynamite LPs Ray Terrace recorded for Jubilee. Fuego!

Check out my site www.djvinnie.net to see where I am spinning in San Francisco! Have a great week!

Playing for Change

2009-10-22T12:22:00.000-07:00

Great video, great cause! Featuring our friend Rocky Dawuni alongside Bono and many others. Check out www.playingforchange.com for more information on upcoming events!

SABRA SESSIONS VOL. 1

2009-10-21T11:03:00.000-07:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - SABRA SESSIONS VOL. 1

SABRA SESSIONS VOL. 1 is a high energy Israeli dance club hip hop influenced mix by Diwon, the American-Israeli DJ/Producer extraordinaire behind the Shemspeed label. The listener hears Diwon remixing, choppin up, slowing down, speeding up, and sampling all types of sounds to create a seamless mix of seemingly disjointed tracks that sound like Israel landed on top of Daft Punk & M.I.A.'s studio. "Sabra Sessions" is a mixtape I was driven to do," commented Diwon, "where I remixed, chopped, and sped up Israeli and Hebrew music to the style of Baltimore and Miami club music and beyond." The Sabra Sessions makes for a festive and energetic blend into Israeli culture, Hebrew music, and the sounds that move people to dance floors worldwide. Enjoy it and feel free to blast it to your emails, blogs, facebook groups, twitters...and all.

Dunkelbunt - Raindrops and Elephants

2009-10-19T12:16:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Dunkelbunt - Cinnamon Girl (Roskilde Edit)

Dunklebunt is a musician, producer and dj based out of Vienna. He crafts a very unique blend of jazzy electronic music that incorporates Eastern European and Balkan flavors with dub, dancehall and ragga vibes. When he is not djng or producing he also blends his own spices that you can mix with your coffee and tea, like I said he is unique. If you like the free sample track today, go check out the other Dunkelbunt albums that Piranha Musik has put out on vinyl and cd. You will not be disappointed!

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-10-16T13:53:00.000-07:00

Once again, Friday brings a great music and cool vids to kick off your weekend! Enjoy!

Early Frankie Paul with the extended DJ mix. Heavy sounds!

One of my "most wanted" records. Truly beautiful rendition of this rainy day classic.

More vibes, this time with a Latin feel, from this criminally underrated talent. Fans of Cal Tjader, listen up!

Six Degree's own Bob D. turned me on to this gem. Thanks, Bob!

Fans of Cumbia and Dubstep listen up, local SF DJ Sneaky P hooked up this fresh remix from a record I sold him. Nice!

Check out www.djvinnie.net to check out where I am DJing in San Francisco! Have a great weekend!

CéU - O Ronco da Cuíca - Programa Ensaio

2009-10-15T12:36:00.000-07:00

CéU - O Ronco da Cuíca - Programa Ensaio
Buy/Listen on iTunes Amazon

African Dope: Cape of Good Dope Mix #2

2009-10-13T12:48:00.000-07:00

AFRICAN DOPE RECORDS - CAPE OF GOOD DOPE 2 MIX

I love finding out about scrappy, like minded labels tucked away in the different corners of the world. For many years now, I have been corresponding with my man Roach from African Dope Records based out of South Africa. Far from your pre-conceived notions of what a South African label should sound like, African Dope has been putting out releases that focus on everything from hip hop, dubstep, breaks and glitch electronica all with a modern African flavor.

The label's excellent new "Cape of Good Dope 2 Mix" serves as a nice primer to what they are all about.

International Observer: House of the Rising Dub

2009-10-12T12:01:00.000-07:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - International Observer - House of the Rising Dub (Dubmission Records)

A few weeks ago I had the great pleasure to have lunch with Tom Bailey, formerly of the Thompson Twins. Tom was visiting in San Francisco on tour with his more recent musical alter ego- International Observer. We first became aware that this former 80's pop star was operating as a first rate electronic dub producer, when he did his excellent remix for the Bombay Dub Orchestra's track "Monsoon Malabar". It seems that not only does he have a love for the dub but he also has a deep abiding respect for Indian music and has spent lots of time over in that part of the world collaborating with classical musicians. Despite many years of pop stardom, Tom is a true humble gentleman, who is now making music that he loves, for the love of it. Today, his label Dubmission Records' founder Crazy Baldhead has generously allowed us to share a track from the fine new International Observer record, Felt. It's a great, dubbed out cover of the classic "House of the Rising Sun" which Tom has creatively transformed into "House of the Rising Dub". Check it out- and by all means delve deeper into the catalog of this latest chapter in the musical life of this fascinating artist.

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-10-09T09:48:00.000-07:00

Once again, Friday brings a bounty of beats from the crates of DJ Vinnie Esparza!

From an incredible album badly in need of a proper reissue. (WITH vinyl too please!). This track is pure fire.

I love me some Betty Wright. What an amazing singer AND producer.

From a Keith Hudson album called "Studio Kinda Cloudy." Extended mix of one of my favorite songs.

Wicked mid-tempo funk. "...and they can dance as good as they want!"

Drums for days on this fierce workout from Mr. Puente!

Check out my site, www.djvinnie.net for gigs and info. Thanks!

Vieux Farka Touré live

2009-10-08T16:35:00.000-07:00

Just got this amazing footage of Vieux Farka Touré performing the song Diaraby Magni live at Colorado College.

Hawke:+++

2009-10-07T11:58:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Hawke - 'Inside Job' from the album +++

Gavin Hardkiss aka Hawke released his great new album +++ yesterday. Once again, Gavin has cheerfully ignored typical notions of genre typecasting and has crafted a record that mixes many different styles into a very unique, psychedelic, electronic collection of actual songs. The track Gavin has let us share with you today, "Inside Job" features an inspired collaboration with former Steve Miller band guitarist David Denny. Gavin describes it as "channeling Ry Cooder & Paul Simon".

If you are in the Bay Area, be sure to check out the record release party/art show happening this evening at the Project One Gallery located at 251 Rhode Island St. in San Francisco at 7pm. 16 visual artists were enlisted to create works inspired by the new record, so it should be a cool evening of music and art.5

DJ UMB's India Calling: Dubstep Yaar Mix

2009-10-06T13:16:00.000-07:00

Download DJ UMB's India Calling: Dubstep Yaar Mix

Our buddy DJ UMB has posted yet another killer Indian-centric dubstep mix up on Fairtilizer. As I told him, I was cranking this the other night at home and finally had to turn the volume down as I noticed I was shaking the neighbors windows. Further proof that the sounds of South Asia meld perfectly with the big bass wobble of dubstep.

Here's the Tracklist:

1. Intro – Bhor (Umb Edit) – Bandish Projekt
2. Journey (Liquid Strangers Sliptrip Edit) with Bhor sample (Umb Edit) – Bombay Dub Orchestra
3. Halaqa (Umb’s Edit-with sample from Puerta (Atlantean/Natacha Atlas) – Celt Islam
4. Cobra – 16 Bit
5. Ali (Deaf Bass Twins Remix) – Midival Punditz
6. Installer – Barbarix
7. Cassiopeia – Nuphlo
8. ;-)
9 ;-)
10. 12345 Technology (Barabrix mash up) – Bandish Projekt
11. Cop Killer- Sukh Knight
12. Boom – Datsik
13. ;-)
14. Kesariya Balam – Deaf Bass Twins
15. Sense Distortion – Bandish Projekt
16. Waiting (Umb Edit) – Bandish Projekt
17. Pragat Pritam – Nucleya
18. Atomizer – Nucleya
19 Outro – Words of Rumi

Slavic Soul Party!

2009-10-05T11:40:00.000-07:00

FREE MP3 DOWNLOAD - Slavic Soul Party - Taketron

Buy/Listen Slavic Soul Party - Taketron on Amazon

In the last few years the heavy brass sounds of gypsy music and Balkan inspired melodies has been infused into many sub-cultures of new music, including punk (Gogol Bordello) and electronic stylings (Balkan Brass Band). Slavic Soul Party keeps the brass out front but inflects it with heavy doses of JB's inspired rhythm and funk that keep the feet moving, heart pounding and dancefloors filled. Their newest album is Taketron and it continues the SSP tradition of fusing the Gypsy with American funk, soul and jazz. Check out SSP live whenever you get a chance, they just finished up their cd release tour in North America and are headed to Europe. They also have a legendary Tuesday night residency in Brooklyn at Barbés.

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-10-02T08:53:00.000-07:00

It's Friday! What better way to celebrate than by checking out these 5 tasty treats below?!

Heavy duty Indian funk!

Sweet dancefloor soul from the highly underrated, Mighty Hannibal. The go-go dancers are my favorite!

Hmm...I wonder what it would sound like if The Impressions did a rocksteady track?

Cosmic disco funk with a heavy jazz influence from the late 70s.

Top notch vintage bossa nova. Too bad this record costs as much as a tropical island nowadays!

Check my website, www.djvinnie.net to check out where I am spinning in SF!

Brownout - in Studio 1a at KUT

2009-10-01T13:09:00.000-07:00

Brownout is about to embark on the Eastern leg of their CD Release tour. While in Texas they recorded this version of "Framed by Death" at KUT. The new album Aguilas and Cobras has been getting rave reviews and is available at your favorite record stores and iTunes, Amazon and the other usual suspects.

Indian diasporic beats 'n' bass mix by DJ Coconuts of Tupolev Soundcrash.

2009-09-30T11:33:00.000-07:00

Tupolev soundcrash coconuts Indian radio mix by tupolevsoundcrash

Indian diasporic beats 'n' bass Mix by DJ Coconuts of Tupolev Soundcrash.

I first found out about this excellent DJ mix from the essential Generation Bass blog. Since the compiler had the good taste to include quite a few Six Degrees artists, I thought it was only natural that we share it with you. It's been very interesting watching Dubstep continue to grow and morph as a genre and some of my favorite stuff coming out of the scene incorporates global sounds into the mix. Between this and our recent Liquid Stranger post, I think you can start to see some of the intriguing new directions coming from today's bass culture.

Here's the Tracklist:

Kray Twinz feat. Twista, Lethal B & Gappy Ranks : what we do
Jeff Stott : Faqir
Karsh Kalé : Manifest (Radiohiro Remix)
Tigerstyle : Balle Shava (Sinden Remix)
LH1 : Zam Zamz
Sub Swara : Insh’allah
Nitin Sawhney : Last Train to Midnight (Gloom world Mix)
Rahul Sharma :Chandaryan (Realtone Mix)
Omnious Dj’s vs dr Psycho : Omnious Dj’s vs dr Psycho
Shri : Ethni – City
Kush Arora : Tribulation
Stenchman : Fat Bloated Idiot
Sukh knight : Cop Killer
Shandy : Experience east
Secret Archives of the Vatican : Stainless Steel Cat
Matt-U , Cardopusher & Sukh Knight : Tricks of The Trade
Chase & Status : Eastern jam
Distance :Temtation
Sukh Knight : Knightlife
Dj Pinch & P Dutty : Alien Tongue (original version)
Kid Kishore : Klap Perker (Lady smita version)
Sharmaji : Jawani
Northern Lights : Pounda Naal
Daler Mehndi : Tunak Tunak Tun
Maksim : Requiem (breaks remix)
State of Bengal : Dushto Meyra
Jawani (feat. Banni Sandhu & Ambassadors of dhol)
Vishnu’s Eastern Block (Line 47 remix)
Kid Kishore : Nahi Babba Sitar Speed Grime
Midival Punditz : Atomizer ( Nuclea remix)
Panjabi by nature : Aashiq (feat miss Pooja)And here is the rest of it.

Liquid Stranger: Dance on the Petals Avoiding the Nettles

2009-09-28T12:30:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Liquid Stranger: "Dance On the Petals Avoiding the Nettles"

Our friends at the fine Interchill label are releasing the latest from the great Liquid Stranger on Oct. 16th. The new album is called The Intergalactic Slapstick and to my ears, it is one of the most enjoyable fusions of dub, dubstep and psy-dub that I've ever heard. This is music that brings the bass in big, fat slabs but never forgets to throw texture and melody into the mix in large helpings. Whether you are a seasoned dubstep fiend or you're just dipping your toes into the bassbin shaking waters, this is an artist well worth exploring further. Be sure to check out the full record when it comes out, as well as the great remix Liquid Stranger did for our own Bombay Dub Orchestra for their 3 Cities in Dub release.

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-09-25T09:15:00.000-07:00

Once again, here is a fresh serving of five goodies to start your weekend off right!

Heavy duty Turkish funk!

I don't normally check for this guy, but this song is undeniably killer!

Fantastic cut from her debut album. Like a ton of bricks.

Video of this instant northern soul classic out of Finland from Nicole Willis & The Soul Investigators.

Got to give it up for Bay Area native Cal Tjader!

Check out my website for more info on where I am spinning in San Francisco! www.djvinnie.net

Latrama- San Shi

2009-09-24T12:39:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Latrama- San Shi

Our buddy Eduardo Duque aka Latrama has been spearheading the Asian Electronica movement in Spain for many years now, both on his own and with the Chandra Sound System Collective. He is an artist who is well worth greater recognition on the global stage- so today we bring you a great new video that he has produced and a new exclusive track for download.

Alice Russell news

2009-09-23T11:55:00.000-07:00

(Alice Russell plays Let Us Be Loving at the Big Chill 2009 to a slideshow of photos taken by Digby Oldridge)

We just an update we'd like to share from Alice Russell, whose 'Pot of Gold Remixes" album will be out on Six Degrees Records in the States at the end of October!

Hello There -

Video Shoot
I write this a little bit in a rush as we are preparing for the video shoot tomorrow of 'Let Us Be Loving' (it's going to be the next single!) Last week the band, TM Juke and I got back in the studio to re-record the single version. After playing it live the song has evolved so we decided to recreate that in the studio.
Lots of lamb kebabs and extra string parts later we had it down so we decided we should get the gang together and do a video. Everyone has been amazing helping out. The only thing we have left to sort is 2 dancers but I think we are close. It's amazing if you reach out to peeps how much people give back. I've even got my man friend on catering duties so the troops will be well fed. I will post up some photos of tomorrows delights so you guys can have a sneek preview of the video that is to follow!
Koko Launch Party
Next we get rehersing for the launch party at Koko in London next week! I can't wait as I have always loved this venue and we have the full big band in full effect for this so im excited, yes-sirrr-eeeeee! Hope to see you there.

I gotta go and buy some beads n eye lashes for the backing singers and dancers for the video so I best get on my way!

Big love xxxxxxxx A

Carlos Lamartine on Akwaaba Music

2009-09-22T13:28:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Carlos Lamartine - Kimbemba Buy on iTunes

Akwaaba Music is a newish label that is focusing on releasing undiscovered gems by artists from West Africa. Label chief Benjamin LeBrave is going beyond finding obscure vinyl and putting it on compilations, instead he is doing some meticulous research in the field and meeting current musicians and artists in Angola that are making kuduro tracks that have never been played outside Africa. Akwaaba is also unearthing some beautiful music from past-masters, like Carlos Lamartine who plays a style called semba. The track Kimbemba is indicative of the rest of the album, great vocals and rhythmic guitars with traditional carnival rhythms. Dig the video below and check the Akwaaba website/blog for lots of great treats, beats, and knowledge!

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-09-18T09:56:00.000-07:00

Issa live in Colorado

2009-09-16T12:22:00.000-07:00

This just in from Colorado College radio station, KRCC's blog

"If you missed the Issa Bagayogo concert at Armstrong Hall on the Colorado College campus last month, you missed one of those rare shows that’s impossible (nearly? truly!) to not love. Bagayogo, from Mali plays the kamele n’goni, a West African folk instrument somewhere between a harp banjo with a gourd for a body, and his backing band included a DJ, a percussionist who played drums with his fists and a keyboard player. Fortunately for you, you don’t have to take our word for it; the Pikes Peak Library District video-taped the show, a portion of which you can watch above to whet your ears."

Brownout - The Legendary Latin Funk Sounds - Mixed by Chicken George + Aguilas and Cobras out now!

2009-09-15T12:14:00.000-07:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - Brownout - The Legendary Latin Funk Sounds - Mixed by DJ Chicken George

Austin's finest funk band gets the mixtape treatment courtesy of one of Austin's finest djs,DJ Chicken George.

Brownout's new album Aguilas and Cobras is out now.

You can listen/buy the album from the Six Degrees shop, or from Amazon or
iTunes

Issa Bagayogo- Remix on Vinyl!

2009-09-14T15:50:00.000-07:00

The Issa Bagayogo song Poye, remixed by Tal M. Klein comes to vinyl, courtesy of Aniligital Music!
You can cop it from Juno and Fat City.
Check the full digital release here.
Dig this 4-minute radio edit of Tal's epic remix!
Issa Bagayogo - Poye (Tal M. Klein Remix Radio Edit)

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-09-11T10:14:00.000-07:00

We've known DJ Vinnie Esparza since he was just a pup. He's always had great taste in jazzy, funky & psychedelic grooves and has been voted "Best DJ in San Francisco" a few times. He's also been known to release some rare and tasty sounds on his own Disjoint label. We've asked Vinnie to bring Global Noize a regular selection of some of his favorite tunes. Check back every Friday for a hand picked selection that's guaranteed to make your weekends groove harder-

Here is another selection of five tunes and videos fans of Six Degrees will dig.

This clip just kills. This is the legendary Fruko on bass along with with other heavyweights of Colombian music.

Perhaps my favorite Beatles cover to come out of Jamaica. This was recorded around 1972.

Diggin' deep on this one. Heavy Chinese Funk!

Had to pinch myself when I came across this. The African James Brown??

Yes, it's Parliament covering Funkadelic on this early 45. Parliament never sounded so raw!

Spinning the Monterey Jazz Festival September 18th & 19th. Swing by the DJ tent and say hi.

Brownout - "Slinky" video

2009-09-09T11:53:00.000-07:00

Film maker Miguel Alvarez just completed this wonderfully whacked out video for Brownout's track "Slinky". As I told band member Adrian Quesada, any video that features Sun Ra AND Santo the Mexican wrestling hero is OK in my book.

Mark you calendar because Brownout's super funky, Aguilas & Cobras hits stores on Sept. 15th. Pre-sale available here.

Les Triaboliques: Crossing the Stone Bridge

2009-09-08T12:40:00.000-07:00

by
Free Download - Les Triaboliques: Crossing the Stone Bridge

We've got something a little bit different for you today courtesy of of the good folks from the World Village Label. This moody slice of acoustic fusion is from a new collaborative project called Les Triaboliques featuring multi-instrumentalists Ben Mandelson, Lu Edmonds and Justin Adams. Their debut album rivermudtwilight is the culmination of a decades-long quest by these visionaries to absorb and utilize the planet’s panoply of sound. Having exercised their skills individually within numerous diverse settings, it was perhaps inevitable that this “meeting of the ancient guild of post-punk, Anglo, globetrotting string players reveling in idiosyncrasy,” as Adams describes it, would eventually come to fruition.

rivermudtwilight, released today, comprises 11 exquisitely rendered tracks—most composed by the British trio and produced by Rob Keyloch—that employ a battery of conventional and exotic instruments, multilingual vocals and a seamless merger of international influences. These diablos of dusk-core bear new distressed string band music for the 21st Century. The Desert, the Delta, the Steppes and the Underground—all are united in what Mandelson likes to call “Triabolique Twi-Fi.” The U.K. newspaper The Guardian has called Les Triaboliques “a pleasingly ragged supergroup,” but the musicians see themselves as like-minded seekers who, as Adams puts it, share “parallel musical lives.”

DJ Vinnie Esparza's Friday Five

2009-09-04T10:49:00.000-07:00

We've known DJ Vinnie Esparza since he was just a pup. He's always had great taste in jazzy, funky & psychedelic grooves and has been voted "Best DJ in San Francisco" a few times. He's also been known to release some rare and tasty sounds on his own Disjoint label. We've asked Vinnie to bring Global Noize a regular selection of some of his favorite tunes. Check back every Friday for a hand picked selection that's guaranteed to make your weekends groove harder-

Here is a selection of some of my favorite tunes that fans of Six Degrees will dig!

The song is called "Booty Butt" and the artist is Ray Charles. 'Nuff said!

Such a hot version that was recorded before the more popular Black Uhuru rendition.

This is a group called The Ordells. This song is so beautiful, it almost hurts.

Cortijo and the gang just killin' it in this old clip. Vaya!

Being from Oakland myself, I had to put this on.

Catch me this week as I spin SF JAZZ's new HOTPLATE series. This month we do a tribute to Wes Montgomery with guitarist Terrence Brewer. (Catch me before, between and after his sets). THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10th at Amnesia, 853 Valencia St. in San Francisco, 8pm - 2am. For more info on this event, check out www.sfjazzhotplate.org or call SFJAZZ at (415) 788-7353. You can also catch me at the Elbo Room on FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 11th for "Treat 'Em Right" with DJ B-Cause, Matthew Africa and a special guest. Elbo Room is at 647 Valencia St., SF, 10pm -2am. For more info on me, visit www.djvinnie.net

New Khaled download and album

2009-09-03T11:46:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Khaled - Gnaoui - (Wrasse Records)

Today we are happy to be sharing a track with you courtesy of our friends at Wrasse Records, from the excellent new album from the king of Rai music, Khaled. Khaled's new album, Liberté, could not be more aptly named. Casting off the shackles of record company formatting, the Rai king has freed his voice from beneath layers of synthesisers. Liberté, recorded with producer Martin Meissonnier, reveals the full extent of Khaled's incredible vocals. A range of instruments including accordion, gumbri, ney flute, the guellal, and soaring Egyptian strings give Liberté a strong acoustic feel. Khaled takes musical liberties on this new album, too, straying beyond Rai and voyaging towards Béchar and the hypnotic trance rhythms of the south as well as diwan (traditional Algerian Gnawa music boosted by Meissonnier's electronic bass) and creates his own fusion sound, mixing African Rai with Middle Eastern strings. This is Khaled’s best in years!

Aï Haïra (live) by Vieux Farka Touré

2009-09-01T12:29:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Aï Haïra (live) by Vieux Farka Touré

One of the most gratifying things about working with relatively young artists is witnessing their growth over time. When I sign an act, I'm not just banking on what they sound like "frozen in time" at the moment of signing- I am counting on an exciting level of exponential growth as they gain experience in the studio and on the road. Vieux Farka Touré is a young man with some big shoes to fill. The fact that his father was Ali Farka Touré, one of the most beloved artists to ever emerge from Africa, has inevitably colored the expectations of both fans and industry folks. Watching Vieux grow beautifully into his role as a major artist in his own right and one of the most exciting new guitarists on any continent has been a true joy. In particular, Vieux's growth from the first time I saw him play live in San Francisco in Sept. of last year, to his last show at the Independent Club in July, was truly mind boggling. Don't get me wrong, Vieux was excellent, professional and charismatic during the first show- It's just that after touring the world with his crack band for many months, playing everything from huge festivals to tiny clubs, it was a different being that strapped on his guitar and caused jaws to drop throughout the Independent gig. The songs were much more elastic, serving as springboards for extended jams that built in intensity. The band was tighter and looser at the same time, perfectly backing up Vieux in an almost telepathic manner- and most astonishingly, Vieux's guitar playing was more confident, edgier and more adventurous, conjuring echoes of everyone from his father to Jimi Hendrix, yet remaining completely original.

If you missed Vieux and the band on their last U.S. dates, you can rejoice in the fact that they are coming back. Complete tour dates can be found here. As a special added incentive, here's a typically fiery version of the song "Aï Haïra",recorded live by the CBC at the Sunfest Festival in Ontario Canada a few months ago. One listen will give you some inkling as to why uber producer Don Was calls Vieux's current ensemble the "best f*cking rock 'n roll band in the world"

Bombay Dub Orchestra - Junoon Dub

2009-08-31T12:36:00.000-07:00

Bombay Dub Orchestra's Junoon Dub, from the 3 Cities in Dub album, video by Alpha Omega.

Shantel - Planet Paprika

2009-08-31T12:29:00.001-07:00

Dig the new Shantel video for the single Planet Paprika from the album of the same name on Essay Recordings.

Céu live on KEXP Seattle

2009-08-27T12:03:00.000-07:00

In July while on a brief U.S. tour in support of her new lp Vagarosa, Céu stopped by KEXP in Seattle to play a live set.
You can stream her performance here.

Brownout: Aguilas & Cobras

2009-08-25T13:17:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Brownout - Olvidalo (Right-click and return to download)

Listen/Pre-Order Brownout - Aguilas and Cobras

I first saw the members of Brownout when they were performing under their other band identity of Grupo Fantasma at Yoshi's here in San Francisco. Six Degrees and the band share publishing partners and I had consistently heard that they were a "must see" live band from many people who I trust. I was also intrigued by the fact that Prince loved them and often jammed with them. After all, you don't win the admiration of the little purple one unless you can throw down some pretty serious heat. Sure enough, the group delivered the goods and put on a smoking performance of Latin jams. I was particularly impressed with the twin electric guitar attack of members, Adrian Quesada and Beto Martinez who kept sneaking in little flurries of psychedelia into the mix. I left the show very impressed but craving more trippy axe shredding.

So it was that I was immediately interested when I later heard from the group's manager that they were shopping a project that was the band's "hardcore, psychedelic Latin" side project. Basically an alter ego of Grupo that focused more on all that good weird funky stuff that I wanted to hear more of. Brownout's Aguilas & Cobras has enough intertwined guitar textures and authentically sweaty grooves to satisfy even the most hardened funk junkie. I love this record because it reeks of the real deal, original Latin funk vibes of old schoolers like Malo while managing to have a distinctly unique vibe all its own. There's a lot of retro psychedelic funk revivalism going around these days but to my ears, Brownout towers above the fray.

Check out the free "taster" download that we are offering today and mark your calendars for September 15th when the full length will be dropping and blowing minds everywhere.

Baaba Maal - Television Remix Contest

2009-08-24T10:43:00.000-07:00

Baaba Maal returns with a fresh new album, complete with video and remix contest.
The winning entry will be selected by Baaba Maal himself and the remix will be released on his official website www.baabamaal.tv. The winner will also receive a prize of £200 for the track and you will be credited with the remix.
So if you’ve got creativity flowing through your veins, and a love of moulding music to make your own, this is it the competition for you. You can download the stems here.

Kush Arora - Boiling Over

2009-08-19T13:42:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Kush Arora - Boiling Over - from the upcoming Boiling Over release.
Listen/Buy - Boiling Over

Kush Arora, king ambassador of dread bass, returns with a follow up to his recent critically acclaimed Dread Bass Chronicles with an album of instrumental dubstep, bass heavy, low-end nuggets.
The album drops on September 8th, you can pre-order and listen to the entire record here.
Dig the interview with Kush below, waxing poetic about the new release.

Bomba Estereo - Fuego (Remixed by Pacha Massive)

2009-08-18T12:13:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Bomba Estereo - Fuego (Remixed by Pacha Massive)
Buy/Listen from iTunes

Bomba Estereo just released their ablum Blow Up a month ago and already the infectious lead single, Fuego, is burning up dancefloors from their hometown of Bogota to Brooklyn and Berlin. A perfect blend of organic and electronic, Bomba styilstically combines cumbia, dub, chicha, and dancehall into a moveable feast of sound. Check the rest of the record out and you will find a group that can write not only dancefloor bangers but also is comfortable laying down great hooks and great pop songs that are accessible to all. Bomba Estereo aren't following any trends, they are making them. Dig the video for the original version of Fuego below.

guest post by Señor Oz

Alice at Big Chill

2009-08-17T12:16:00.000-07:00

This footage is a little rough, but gives a good idea of how Alice Russell ripped it up at this year's Big Chill Festival.
Pot of Gold Remixes coming soon!

Rena Jones- Indra's Web:

2009-08-13T12:15:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Rena Jones - "Indra's Web" (Click on divshare icon to download)
Rena Jones is one of those artists who I have been discovering bit by bit, through a series of excellent tracks on various compilations. We recently connected on Facebook, resulting in her sending me her wonderful latest release, Indra's Web. By combining the mournful sound of her cello with dubby electronics and full string arrangements featuring the New Millennium Orchestra, Rena has crafted an electronic record with a warm, organic heart. The title track which we are sharing with you today should give you a good idea of the pleasures that await you in the full release. By all means dig deeper into Indra's Web as well as into Rena's other releases, some of which feature beautiful smatterings of Indian instrumentation.

Bio:

“Multi-instrumentalist and sound engineer Rena Jones is a force to be reckoned with. At age 30, she boasts more than 30 collaborative albums, 3 full length solo albums, 20 years of classical violin study, and 12 years of cello–and she is considered one of the leading women in audio engineering today.” – Strings Magazine

Her extensive background in music and sound covers a colorful spectrum from award winning video games “Dance Dance Revolution and Karaoke Revolution” and for various films as a sound editor, sound design and composition.

Rena Jones slips through the veils of defined sound, weaving cello, violin, woodwinds, rhodes, electronics and sound design through unique instrumentation. Her most recent album “Driftwood” was given the honor of the sixth most essential albums of 2006 on NPR Echoes Radio.

Jones’ live sets are a potent sonic session. She orchestrates her violin over hand crafted beats melding the organic with the electronic. Her performance is a sophisticated example of the modern movement in electronic dance and ambient music.

Multiple tours around North America and Europe have lead Rena to perform at some of the worlds most established cutting edge electronic music festivals; The Glade Festival (UK), Shambhala Music Festival (Canada) and The Secret Garden Festival (UK) as well as tour support for Plaid and opener for Ladytron.

Rena Jones has released tracks with such reputable international labels as Iboga, Spun Records, Aleph Zero and Native State Records and has just launched her own label Cartesian Binary Recordings.

Naina Laagey - Karsh Kale & Midival Punditz (Live at Paleo Fest 09)

2009-08-11T17:09:00.000-07:00

Karsh Kale & Midival Punditz Live at The Paleo Festival in Geneva 2009.
Featuring Pandit Ajay Prasanna & Papon

Amadou and Mariam - The Magic Couple

2009-08-10T14:37:00.000-07:00

FREE DOWNLOAD - Amadou and Mariam - 'Sarama (La Charmante)'

To say that Amadou and Mariam are breaking down borders between what is considered "world music" and what is just great music is an understatement. The Malian born couple just finished touring with Coldplay in amphitheaters across the U.S., their last album, Welcome to Bamako, was produced by Damon Alburn of Blur and Gorillaz fame and their previous record was produced by Manu Chao. Their journey has been a long time coming, first meeting at a school for the blind in Mali in the 1970's, moving to France in the 1990's to enhance their recordings and careers, producing three stellar albums that began to catch the ears of the rest of the world. The Magic Couple (Wrasse Records) is a greatest hits compilation covering the period of albums from 1997-2001; Sou Ni Tile, Tje Ni Mousso, and Wati
It is the best of three unmissable albums of Amadou & Mariam. It is worthy of even the casual listener and required if you're just getting into their sound.

Alice blogs from France

2009-08-06T12:11:00.000-07:00

We just got some exciting updates from Alice Russell during her summer tour across France, you can read more on her website!

Hello there,

Montreaux Jazz Festival

Well recently got back from a lil leg of gigs....we started off at the Montreux Jazz festival, rammed to the rafters the crowd were so up for it, the energy could have been sliced into pieces of electric cake, check the pictures here!
After the gig I was bursting to catch Earth Wind & Fire, so grabbed a beer and ran for it. Sweet Be-Jesus, those guys hit them high notes and the drummer never stopped!!!
But the icing on the most tasty of cakes was spying Mr Quincy Jones!!! So there I was with Mikee by my side, a bit bedraggled, definitely sweaty, still in my stage-wear, two CD's of Pot Of Gold in hand and my eyes fixed on my hero, waiting my turn to go to and hand over my humble offering! We had a warm hand shake and exchanged some cockney rhyming-slang so another great hero meeting tick! Al Green last month this month Quincy, maybe Prince for August?? He was in my dream last night, does that count?

France and Joss Stone

So onwards to France where we were supporting Joss Stone! To say the boys in the band were pleased is a small understatement! We got to see her show and hang out her and her band afterwards (check the pics here). They where all lovely peeps and there happened to be a big fridge with a seemingly unending supply of vino ‘n’ champers The drinking of which, saw us all ending up in the sea and the boys got to see lovely Joss in her pink bikini!

Then onto Warsaw and Croatia by which point sleep was in high demand, but, no time! Once again the crowd where so lovely and full of energy that 2 hours sleep felt like 12 and we got cracking!! So big love was had and it was an ace ending to a hectic but rather amazing lil week!
Big love and a massive thank you to all who made these shows so great to play!! You keep us going!!!! So thank you thank you thank you!

The Big Chill

So, I’m writing this as the band and I munch our lunch, in the middle of rehearsing the delights we have planned for this weekend’s Big Chill set. I’m getting excited now and hoping the sun will shine upon us! So, this is a call out to all of you that are coming to get down and get involved in some audience participation! Also, to come to the Scruff tea tent on Sat afternoon, as we have had some rather fetching head sweat- bands made up which we’re giving away! And, at some point in the set I will be calling upon all of you to don the sweat band and join us in the running man.... Are u game?

Also look out for our autumn tour dates! We’ve got Koko on October 1st and other dates to follow.....
Big love
Ax

DePedro (from Calexico) new solo album and download

2009-08-05T11:21:00.000-07:00

Free Download - DePedro - Don't Leave Me Now from the self-titled debut album by DePedro (click on downward arrow to download)

DePedro – a name chosen because it sounded “kind of Mediterranean, kind of Spanish” – is the musical project of singer and guitarist Jairo Zavala. His first solo project, DePedro is the culmination of years of writing and playing songs for others, including Spanish star Amparanoia, Spanish instrumental surf phenoms Los Coronas and as the touring guitarist for Calexico, not to mention as frontman and founder of Vacazul and 3000 Hombres, both renowned bands in the respective Spanish rock and blues scenes. He will be touring this summer with Calexico as part of the band, as well as supporting them for their European shows. As DePedro, he has also appeared at SXSW, the WOMAD festival, at the nationally-broadcast Spanish Music Awards, and at various other festivals across the country.

Zavala grew up in Madrid listening to both the pre-WWII songs his grandparents used to play and the music his Peruvian father brought back from his travels to Latin America and Africa, as well the rock from the 70s and 80s that was popular in Spain. He credits these various influences for helping to shape his own style of guitar playing, one that pulled from blues, folk, flamenco, Afrobeat, Latin, and rock.

This is Tex-Mex border music meets the Spanish sense of melody, and songs like “La Memoria,” which was inspired by a trip to Mexico and the poverty and injustice he saw there, and “Como El Viento,” a kind of love song, reflect both equally. On “Don’t Leave Me Now,” Jairo’s voice – warm and expressive, but edged with a scratchiness that makes it as much of a focal point as his guitar playing – draws out the same Spanish melancholy also heard in Amparanoia’s version. Yet there’s a slyness there, enhanced by Calexico’s Joey Burns’ upright bass, and it gives the song a sultry, dusty Western feel, the expanse of the land stretching out before them.

The result is a personable, vibrant album that celebrates Zavala’s many influences and inspirations while retaining a warmth and a center that engages and entertains. It’s the product of a lifetime spent listening and observing and playing, of living; it’s Jairo Zavala and everything he’s done, but most of all, it’s DePedro

Eliyahu and The Qadim Ensemble - "Im Nin'alu"

2009-07-30T13:10:00.000-07:00

Free Download - "Im Nin'alu" by Eliyahu and The Qadim Ensemble from the album "Eastern Wind" Produced by Jef Stott for Embarka Records

Six Degrees artist and friend Jef Stott recently produced a record for Eliyahu and The Qadim Ensemble and was generous enough to share a track from the record and some insight into the recording process! Thanks Jef!

I had the good fortune to be asked to produce the new album for Eliyahu and
Qadim early last year. It seemed to me a great opportunity to reconnect
with my "roots" in traditional music from the Middle East and step away,
for a moment, from the fast moving world of electronic music production.

Our intention on this production was to use only acoustic instruments but
record and arrange them in a contemporary way, i.e adding heavily
compressed contra bass to saturate the low end or creating deep
interlocking rhythm sections with many layers of percussion played expertly
by Fasil Zedan and John Villa as well as jump-cut edits and subtle dub
effects as a nod to the current era, circa now.

But mostly we wanted to lovingly create a collection of pieces that reflect
the diversity of the region known as the Middle East, an area that is sadly
too often in the news and is known primarily for conflict and injustice.
The collection of material presented by Eliyahu and Rachel spans the whole
range of cultures of the area, Arabic, Persian, Armenian, Mizrahi Jewish
and a few original jams thrown in for good measure. The result is a deep,
playful and expansive album that is absolutely gorgeous. The vocal and oud
performances by Rachel are consistently stunning and Eliyahu's solos on
ney and bansuri are as deep as any taksims I have heard.

We released the album on my Embarka Records label and it is available
everywhere, Itunes, CD Baby, Embarka Records website etc...
www.embarkarecords.com
Thanks to the folks at Six Degrees for helping us put the word out!

cheers,
Jef Stott

.

Revolution Rising

2009-07-29T12:27:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Genetic Drugs - Hannena feat. Mohamed Mounir -Hartsteine Island remix by Transglobal Underground from the compilation Revolution Rising vol. 1 presented by dimmSummer

Head over to ethnotechno.com and grab the limited edition cd along with a free copy of the goonda double disc + remixes (offer valid until the digital release of RR, which is fast approaching!)

Our friend Sank (aka dimm) at ethnotechno.com sent over this great track from the compilation and a short note on how the cd came about:

"I made this compilation for two reasons:
1) it was way over due (the site being online for 8 years).

2)I had to supply a remedy to Meta4's comment during his 2001 interview with me: "...a lot of these compilations are not put out by people who are die hard fans, connected at the grassroots. There are just people who put out a ska compilation and then turn around and put out an 80s compilation, and the sources they go to find about what to put on are the other compilations in the store..."

he goes on to talk about how no one knows what a hit will be - and that "the correlation between quality and success is very tenuous in the music business. Arguably the more quality you can objectively say is in the music the LESS likely it is to do well in the market..."

i've received mostly favourable reviews on the cd, but who knows - all i'm banking on is my taste and relationship with the artists. the physical limits of a cd meant i couldn't get everyone i wanted on board in one go, but the next volume is most likely digital-only so sky's the limit ;)

Vieux on "The Interview Show"

2009-07-27T13:03:00.000-07:00

Last week Vieux Farka Toure stopped by The Interview Show at The Hideout in Chicago to give an interview and short performance with Huffingtonpost writer Mark Bazer.

Lal Meri - Live on KCRW

2009-07-23T13:12:00.000-07:00

Lal Meri performed a great set, live on KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic program earlier this week. The set even included a guest appearance from Indian vocalist Pooja Lal who flew in specially for the performance.

Listen to the show here

If you are in the LA area you can catch Lal Meri live at the Roxy on 7/30

Huun Huur Tu & Carmen Rizzo- Eternal

2009-07-22T11:50:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Huun Huur Tu & Carmen Rizzo - Saryglarlar Maidens from the album Eternity

Buy from Amazon or iTunes

I've been working with the talented musician/producer, Carmen Rizzo for many years now. From his production work with Ekova to the two groups signed to Six Degrees that he has been involved with, Niyaz and now Lal Meri, Carmen is so good at what he does that one could be forgiven for taking the high quality of his work almost for granted. Perhaps this is why I was completely blind sided by the power and the beauty of his latest project, a collaboration with the Tuvan group Huun Huur Tu. Carmen had kindly sent me an early, advance CD of the project which I slipped into the CD player in my kitchen, one night while making dinner. Suddenly the room was awash in lush electronics, beautiful string arrangements and those incredible voices that defy any notions that you might have of what a human voice SHOULD be capable of. This is fusion music at it's most creative- one of those rare projects where different cultures beautifully collide, forming something totally new and dazzling. Check out the free track that Carmen has generously let us share with you today and then make sure to make this gem a part of your collection.

Issa Bagayogo- Live & Remixed:

2009-07-20T13:10:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Issa Bagayogo - Poye (Tal M. Klein Remix Radio Edit) from Issa Remixed (click down-arrow icon to download)

It's been an embarrassment of riches when it comes to Six Degrees artists on the road this summer. Just last Saturday night, we had BOTH Céu and Vieux Farka Touré playing two separate shows here in San Francisco. Both concerts were amazing and worked like two sides of one coin. Céu was deeply dubby, soulful and groovy at the beautiful Herbst Theater, while Vieux was fiery and rocking as he proceeded to rip the roof off of the Independent Club with screaming guitar licks that equally summoned the spirits of his West African ancestors as well as guitarists as diverse as Jimi Hendrix, Tom Verlaine and Carlos Santana.

Also currently on the road is Mali's Issa Bagayogo who is bringing his unique style of African/Electro across North America. You can get his complete tour dates here. Last Thursday Issa wowed an LA crowd at the Skirball Cultural Center and our buddy, radio host Derek Rath snapped some great shots that he has generously allowed us to share with you.

Also don't forget Issa's fantastic new remix project, Issa Remixed, which is filled with great mixes from the likes of Shrift, Tal M. Klein, Adham Shaikh, Tapan Raj (one half of the Midival Punditz), Rise Ashen and many others. Here's the radio edit of Tal M. Klein's inspired Afro- Disco mix to give you a taste of the future-Afro sounds and to get your booty moving.

Punditz on BBC

2009-07-15T14:10:00.000-07:00

Great interview on Pathaan's Musical Rickshaw this week. Check out the show here.
And don't miss the World Odyssey Mix by Midival Punditz linked on the right hand side of Pathaan's page.

Tracklist
Sunday 12th July

Karsh Kale feat Vishal Vaid Sunbeam [High Chai]
Twotrups The Cello Track (Kobbe Remix) [Yoshitoshi]
Hakan Lidbo From Hackney To Caracas [Enjoy Recordings]
Munty Disillusioned [Munty Recordings]
Asli Sevgilim (ZAD Remix) [White]
7 Samurai feat. MC Coppa FavelyGyal_ZeroCashRmx [Poets Club Records]

***STOPOVER: LEBANON***
Beirut Mazaj Featuring Oumeima [Virgin]
Clotaire K Emigrate (Remix) [Sub Culture]

Radio Trip Whole Wide World (UBK Featuring D.M Karase Whole Wild World Remix) [Jalapeno Records]
Laroca Yallah Andalucia [Just Music]
Sweet Coffee Tomorrow [Turntable Dubbers Radio] [Dubplate]
Ragana Ah [Interchill Records]

*** WORLD ODYSSEY MIX & INTERVIEW: MIDIVAL PUNDITZ***
Shankar Mahadevan Breathless [HMV]
Midival Punditz Har Ek Baat [Six Degrees]
O.T.T. Splitting An Atom [White]
Midival Punditz Tonic [Six Degrees]
Karsh Kale and Midival Punditz Ranjabi [Six Degrees]

Ashtech/Polcari The Third Planet [RareNoise Records]
OMFO Tipsy Djinn [Essay Recordings]
Entropik Sirius [Striling Media Music]

***CLASSIC NOT FORGOTTEN***
Navdeep Jogi [Anamika Records]

Oumou Sangaré Iyo Djeli [Brownswood]
Vieux Farka Touré Paradise [Six Degrees Records]

***BHANGRA CONNECTION***
TJ Rehmi Who Killed Bhangra? [Nation Records]

Cantoma Maja [iLabel]
EarthRise SoundSystem Daylight As Sunset feat. Lucy Woodward [White]
Third Ear Audio Ethereality [Dubmission Records]

Tracklistings

"The Queen of British Soul Music"

2009-07-14T11:41:00.000-07:00

This week's Gilles Peterson Radio 1 show is up now and features live tracks from Alice Russell taken from the video above at the Maida Vale sessions. You can listen to the full show here.

Watcha Clan - Diaspora Remixed

2009-07-13T11:50:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Watcha Clan - Goumari (EarthRise SoundSystem remix) - From Diaspora Remixed on Piranha Records

Listen/Buy from Amazon or iTunes

The French city of Marseille is a melting pot of cultures, a gateway French port-city that was founded by Greece over 2500 years ago. Marseille is also home to Watcha Clan and their sound is a 21st Century reflection of their backgrounds, their musical interests and their time. Mixing traditional Berber music with contemporary Dub, Hip-Hop and Electronic productions Watcha brings heat to dancefloors and headphones alike. The free download on the blog today is off of their brand new album, Diaspora Remixed, if you like the free track you will love the rest of the album which features heavy remixes from some of Europes finest, including Dunkelbunt, DJ Click and Transglobal Underground. If you are in the U.S. Watcha Clan have performances in SF and LA this week and more extensive dates at the end of the summer!

Watcha Clan are a French band that fuses together influences as
diverse as its members’ heritages. Drawing on North African, Spanish, Arabic, Hebrew, French, and modern electronic musical styles for inspiration, the Clan claim a nomadic ethic, calling no single style “home.” Since their inception at the turn of the century, Watcha Clan’s touring schedule and lifestyle have been as nomadic as their philosophy. Their compositions feature Hebrew, Arabic, French, English, and Spanish lyrics, drawing in listeners from all sides of the Mediterranean.

post by Señor Oz

OMFO: The Sorcerer

2009-07-06T12:24:00.000-07:00

Free Download - OMFO - "The Sorcerer" (click on downward arrow next to wave form to download)

Music doesn't always have to be so serious. It's rare in the "Global Grooves" scene to find the sense of fun and whimsy that pervades the catalog of the artist who calls himself OMFO. Originally from the port city of Odessa in the former USSR, the man who was born German Popov has just released a new album on the fine Essay Recordings label, (home to such other great artists as Shantel and Senor Coconut.). While I have enjoyed OMFO's prior releases, this new one, Omnipresence kicks things to the next level with a really fresh mix of middle eastern influences, electro beats, dubby goodness and yes, a great sense of humor that in no way takes away from the power of the grooves.

Thanks to our buddy Jean Trouillet at Essay Recordings for allowing us to share this track with you today

Evan Bluetech - Free Call Of The Wild EP

2009-07-01T14:22:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Evan Bluetech - Call Of The Wild EP

I recently had the pleasure to meet one of my favorite electronica artists Evan Bartholomew aka Bluetech in his last swing through San Francisco. Evan has been putting out a variety of gorgeous releases of many different styles under a variety of names (Evan Mark, Evan Bartholomew & Bluetech). Although the approach on the records may vary, what remains constant is Evan's impeccable production skills as well as his singular approach to sound and arrangement. He has recently posted a free EP on his site at http://www.bluetechonline.com which is well worth you checking out. He describes his motivation for this release by saying

"In my increasing frustration with the broken mechanics of the music industry, I've been constantly thinking about why I actually make music. Since I'm barely able to survive doing this, and no matter what I do people will pirate my releases within a few hours of release, I've thought about what I would do instead. I keep feeling this tug from the natural world to bring myself into alignment with a more organic approach to life, to finding myself in a flow of clear water."

Do your self a favor and after you get the freebie, move on to further explore the many gems in this fascinating composer's catalog.

Céu - Free Download - 'Bubuia' from Vagarosa

2009-06-29T12:22:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Céu- Bubuia (from Vagarosa - July 7th release date)

Pre-sale at Amazon
and at The Six Degrees Shop

Second albums are notoriously challenging affairs. Especially in the case of someone like Céu, whose debut was both commercially and critically successful. Expectations regarding a sequel are inevitable, as are pressures on the artist to come up with a suitable follow up affair. When we first starting receiving music from Céu's Vagarosa sessions, it was as if none of these issues existed at all. As the world can now hear, Céu and her able collaborators Beto Villares, Gustavo Lenza and Gui Amabis have crafted a sophomore release that builds on all of the promise of its predecessor and travels confidently into new sonic realms. To my ears, Vagarosa is the work of an artist who transcends the boundaries of categories like "world" or "Brazilian" and who is now simply "world class". I truly believe that if Portuguese was not the dominant language on Vagarosa, we would be comparing it to works by artists like Bjork & Tom Waits, without any pre-conceived "global music" prejudices.

Enjoy this free taster from an album which is sure to become one of the essential soundtracks to the summer of '09.

Weather Pending - And How!

2009-06-23T16:47:00.001-07:00

Free Download - Weather Pending - "Tide" from And How!

Buy/Listen on iTunes - Amazon

Weather Pending is a San Francisco based band whose debut And How! has just been released. Vocalist Janie Oliver's (Six Degrees staff represent!) lush vocals give the breezy jazz and downtempo songs a depth and emotion that resonates and draw listeners in.
If you are in the Bay Area the band will be having a cd release party at Mojito on Sunday July 5th!
Be on the lookout for remixes of the album coming soon, featuring some really exciting producers mixing up the WP sound.
Check out the bands website for more info.
Dig the video below directed by Roger Landon Hall and featuring the SF Critical Mass bike ride!

Vieux on Tour: Spin Bonnaroo Review & Tour Photos/Reviews

2009-06-22T13:13:00.000-07:00

photo: Ankur Malhotra more Madison photos here

So far this has been an epic summer for Vieux Farka Touré, touring in support of his new album Fondo. Check out the recent NY Times review of his show at Highline with Blk Jks, and this amazing bit from Spin's Coverage, giving Vieux a "Best of Bonnaroo" for

"Best Unexpected Guitar Heroics: Vieux Farka Touré"
I'd heard of the young Malian singer-guitarist Vieux Farka Toure before seeing him play at Friday's African music-heavy Other stage (he's the son of well-known musician Ali Farka Toure), but I had no idea of the things he could do with an electric guitar. Whether spitting ringing clusters of notes, spilling forth with long, snaking phrases, or banging out metallic open chords, Toure, rocking a pair of black leather pants, played with a master's sense of pacing and flow and a showman's knack for knowing exactly when his Arabic-influenced songs needed a guitar goosing in order to ascend to the next level of badassitude -- and beyond --

Don't forget, Six Degrees and Jambase still have tickets to giveaway for all of Vieux's remaining shows on his current tour.
Click here for more info.

Vieux and band with famed banjo player Béla Fleck and Toumani Diabate.(photo Jon Kertzer)

more photos after the break

Tourmani Diabate and Vieux (photo Jon Kertzer)

Ashely Hollan (contest winner) and Vieux Farka Touré

Nickodemus - Sun People

2009-06-17T13:12:00.000-07:00

Free Download - Nickodemus - Sun Children

Buy Sun People here or from iTunes

NY based dj and producer Nickodemus returns with his second full-length album Sun People on ESL Music.
When he djs Nickodemus plays cuts from all around the globe and finds a common thread to them; he takes a similar approach on this record, which features Balkan, Jamaican, Afro and Latin rhythms with Nickodemus' signature mid-tempo dance beats and guest musicians including The Candela All-Stars, Quantic, The New York Gypsy All-Stars and many others.
The amazing thing about Nickodemus as a producer is the ease in which he combines so many styles, tempos, and moods with ease. There are moments on this record perfect for sweating in a club (Just Move), chillin' at the Hookah Bar (2 Sips and Magic) and even some deep introspective ish (weRiseweFallweRise). It is all natural for Nickodemus, and if you have followed his musical career it is easy to see why: he has always believed that good music and good times are not dictated by any one style, genre or hemisphere. His weekly summertime party Turntables on The Hudson and his own label Wonderwheel have proven that diversity is the spice of life, and now he has re-affirmed it with Sun People!

Here's an older Nickodemus video/cut that still moves bodies in the club.

guest post Señor Oz

And here is the rest of it.

Lion Head Compilation Volume 1

2009-06-15T16:28:00.000-07:00

Lightning Head - Me and My Princess (From the album LionHead Compilation Volume 1) (click downward arrow to right of wave image to download track)

Click here to buy CD, click here for iTunes

Glynn "Bigga" Bush is the man behind the Lightning Head and BiggaBush aliases, as well as one half of Rockers Hi Fi. He is currently putting out his own releases on his own label, Lion Head Recordings. If you were not lucky enough to discover his recent releases The 13 Faces of Lightning Head or Studio Don records (which I highly recommend you cop along with the more Minimal but very deep BiggaBush in Dub), this compilation will help you get caught up with Bush's massive output of dub-inflected Afro-beat, funk, reggae and Samba influenced electronic dance music.

The track "Me and My Princess" gets a lot of people's attention in the club everytime I drop it: swinging beat, toasting MC, funky Clavinet line, minimal but effective. All of Bush's output is consistent in quality no-matter how diverse the styles might be. Lion Head Volume 1 is a crucial record, if you want to dig deeper, check out BiggaBush's website where he has links to many podcasts, cds, and exclusives.

Dig the dubbed out video for the Lightning Head track "Mudman Skank"

guest post - Señor Oz

And here is the rest of it.