Tuesday, July 31, 2007

They're all dressed up and ready to go...
Brand new tune from Go Team, featuring Chuck D, off the new Go team album out in September. Listen here. Seen the cover art for the new MIA album?

Simon Grigg checks out the old home town here ... ah, the joys of life in AK.

RIP Tom Snyder. Described as "Unlikely Punk Benefactor" by Idolator. Follow this link and see all the delights Youtube throws up with him and his guests, from John Lydon (circa 1980) to The Clash (great interview - watch out for the teddy bear), Iggy Pop and early U2.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Ring The Alarm playlist, BaseFM, July 21
Bacao Rhythm and Steel Band - Look-a-py-py
Jungle Bros - How ya want it, we got it (Upstate remix)
Sound dimension - Heavy rock
Freddie McGregor -Rastaman camp
Quartertones - Caffeine (DJ Format mix)
Eddie Floyd - Knock on wood
Booker T and the MGs -Melting pot
Massive music - Find my way (Kode9 mix)
Donald Fagen - Ruby baby
Ray Barretto - Acid
Hugh Maseklea - Languta
Recloose feat Tyna - The sanctuary

On-U-Sound set, including...
Dub Syndicate - Stoned immaculate
Dub Syndicate - Hifi takes a pounding
Little Annie -I think of you
Bim Sherman - Nightmare
Lee Scratch Perry & Dub Syndicate - You thought I was dead
Jalal - Mankind

Keith Lawrence - Judgement day dub
LCD Sound System -Daft Punk is playing at my house
Future sound of London - Papua New Guinea
Cornerstone roots feat Luciano - Jah
Collen and Webb feat Jill Scott - Golden
Luiz Bonfa - Strange message
Sisters Love - I'm learning to trust my man
Piero Umiliani - Mahna mahna


Ring The Alarm playlist, BaseFM, July 14
The Lions - Think
Toots and the Maytals - Who knows better (version)
Million Dan -Dogs N Sledgez
Alton Edit - On the road again
General Levy - The wig (Syrup mix)
Harry Belafonte - Man smart, woman smarter
James Brown - Take some, leave some
BT Express - Express dub (Kenny Dope remix)
Marva Whitney - I am what I am
People under the stairs - Hang loose
Blufoot vs JStar - Intchaaa!
Little John - Gambin
Dillinger -Detention
Taggy Matcher - Rockit
Plastic Junk -Man from Atlantis
Kraftwerk - The model
Chuck Brown and the soul searchers - We need money
Sisters Love - Now is the time
Ohio players - Who she coo?
Nina Simone -Seeline woman (MAW mix)
Manuel Bundy - Higher (Ota mix)
Visoneers - Funk box
Connie Price and the Keystones feat Percee P - Thundersounds
Massive music - Find my way (Kode9 mix)
LCD Sound System -Someone great
Bacao Rhythm and Steel Band - Look-a-py-py
Marva Whitney - Soul sisters
Top cat - Champion DJ (Shy FX remix)

Monday, July 16, 2007

Weekend highlights
1. Chocolate mousse cake for my birthday. Sugar coma.
2. Cocktails at the Film Festival lounge (The Wintergarden at the Civic Theatre, beautiful venue, criminally underused). Half price between 5-6pm. Check it.
3. Helvetica, a doco about a typeface at the Film Festival. Geek heaven for designers, and the director was present too, very cool. Screens again tonight (Monday).
4. Final episode ever of the Gilmore Girls.

and then there's this... bad album covers. He he....

Friday, July 13, 2007

Studio One Sunday; A Concert For Henry & Lola-Jean
"Almost 1 month ago , DJ extraordinaire and all round nice guy Matt Watson ( aka DJ Big Matt ) passed away , leaving behind a wife and two young children.

So this Sunday, a benefit gig on their behalf will be held at the Kings Arms from 1pm. Entry by koha, so please come and give generously, cause as you know, raising kids is hard work and it doesn't come cheap.

It is a fantastic lineup, and you don't have to stay all day or give a million bucks. Every little bit helps."

Studio One Sunday; A Concert For Henry & Lola-Jean

The Managers / Tenement Yard / Badtown / Tigi Ness +Guests / Dubhead / Stinky Jim / Proto / Slowdeck

Kings Arms Tavern, Sunday July 15th 1 PM til late.
Koha entry

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Check your antenna
"Pagan and its sister label, Antenna, is the often unsung hero, and major player of the New Zealand post-punk indie scene. Whilst Propeller and Ripper may have set the scene, and Flying Nun garnered the reputation (and released far more records), Pagan was far and away the most successful independent label, and had a massive influence. And its influence goes beyond its own catalogue.

It was Pagan that discovered Bic Runga and passed her on to Sony. Indeed the list of Pagan signed acts is quite incredible as this list, of the singles on the labels up to 2000, is clear evidence. Think Shihad, The Warratahs, Hallelujah Picassos, Strawpeople, Shona Laing, Ardijah, Tadpole, Greg Johnson, Relaxomatic Project, Pluto, Eye TV and many others.

Indeed it can reasonably be argued that Trevor Reekie has the best set of A&R ears since the golden NZ pop days of the sixties. Perhaps ever."

Simon Grigg has compiled a top list of releases from Pagan Records and Antenna Recordings, with additional notes from Mr Reekie. Well worth a read. There's even a link to a video I did for Reekie's band Trip to the Moon buried in there. LINK.

Thursday, July 05, 2007

The week of interviews continues
Quite unplanned, but it's a theme, so let's run with it..

Henry Rollins has recently been to Iran...
"I went just as a tourist on the street. I have no great intelligence or in-depth knowledge of a classified nature. But I saw a bunch of people with their kids and I met a lot of people who like America very much but are also scared of America and its president. And I hope I get a chance to go back there..." Interview here.

Headline of the week :Al Gore's son busted for drugs in hybrid car

Wednesday, July 04, 2007

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Here come the warm jets
Two interviews... one with Brian Eno, and one with Neil Finn. Neil is interviewed by Gary Steel in the latest issue of Metro magazine, the full text is on their website.

It seems Neil was displeased with a review Gary wrote on the mag's website, about a listening session for the new Crowded House album - he wrote that listening sessions are like "The modern equivalent of Chinese water torture, the volunteer victims then have to decide on their tactic for the next hour: Stare vacantly into space, feigning great concentration? Scream at other victims over the din? Drink with great enthusiasm? Be seen to be taking copious, possibly derogatory notes? The first Crowded House album in well over a decade sounds like, um, pretty much like a Crowded House album, really. Except it’s a bit hard to hear clearly, really, because someone’s cranked it up to ear-splitting, heavy metal levels..." (He also wrote some nice things about it too.)

"When Gary Steel went to interview Neil Finn about the reborn Crowded House, the musician took him to task about a certain review.
Neil: I read your little piece actually.
Gary:
On MetroLive?
Neil:
Yeah. [Read Gary Steel’s piece here.]
Gary: A bit too facetious for you?
Neil: It made me curious, I was going to ask you why you bothered coming, to be honest, because if it was like Chinese water torture, why would you put yourself through it?

And then Neil listens to Gary's answer, and asks him the same question, again. And again. And again. Til he's asked it SIX TIMES. Tenacious little bugger. (Full interview transcript here) Props to Gary for not letting grumpy Uncle Neil get to him.

Monday, July 02, 2007

Ring The Alarm playlist, BaseFM, June 30
Today's theme - psychedelic soul. Good excuse to play lots of Norman Whitfield-produced tunes (Temptations, Rose Royce)...
Specials - Message to you Rudy
Jungle Bros, Ernest Ranglin - Funky Bond St
Idris Mohammad - Express yourself
Sly and Family Stone - thankful and thoughtful
Dave Pike Set - Mathar
Hank Marvin - Sunday for seven days
Rose Royce - Put your money where your mouth is
Barry White - Love serenade
Jose Feliciano - She's a woman
Kenny Dope - Can you handle it?
High fidelity -Cream of the beats (Metrophonic mix)
Temptations - Papa was a rolling stone
Solomonic sound - Children of israel (Blak doctor mix)
Sea train - Flute thing
Sisters love - Ha ha ha
Iggy and the Stooges - Down on the street (Cheers to the person who texted the studio with the word "goats" Yes, peeps, you can throw up your goats via txt message -who knew?)
Spanky Wilson -Sunshine of your love
Fred Wesley and the JBs - Watermelon man
Taggy matcher - Rockit
Lalo Schifrin - Enter the dragon theme
Rose Royce - I'm going down
Bad Brains - Banned in DC
Rodriguez - Sugarman
Life Organization - Pink steamroller
Keith Mansfield - Morning Broadway
Didier's sound spectrum - Sound spectrum
Deodato - Superstrut
Ray Charles - In the heat of the night
Rose Royce - It makes you feel like dancin'