TURF BUILDER

damn, damn, damn.....

2006-02-21T09:57:00.002-08:00

JAMES YANCEY 1974-2006

by scott c

Last week signaled the end of an era, when MC/ producer James Yancey, aka Jay Dee, aka J Dilla, passed away in Los Angeles as a result of complications from the disease Lupus. Some might remember, back in 2004, when rumours that Dilla was in a coma started circulating, later to be revealed as a health matter under control, generating from problems with malnutrition and his kidneys. That same year, he appeared in an Urb interview with Madlib to push the then-new Jaylib LP Champion Sound, looking unusually plump as a result of his illness.

Then, in late 2005, truly saddening pictures of a tour in Europe and the U.K. did the rounds, showing a frail and emaciated Dilla performing to packed houses from the confines of a wheelchair, his mother watching from the wings. My first thought then was that something was terribly wrong. It was strange for him to be touring in between releases, let alone with his mother in tow, being carried on and off stage by members of his entourage. Why would anyone choose to go out on the road in this condition? Strangely, his management played down the apparent severity of the situation and tried to reassure distraught fans everywhere that everything was fine, stating that Dilla was indeed on the road to recovery. I see now that touring when he did was perhaps his last chance to get out there and connect with true heads, many of whom had never seen the elusive workaholic live on stage.

Now, I’ve been writing about music for a minute, and I’ve been a DJ in love with great musical expressions for even longer, but I have to say that no one artist, group, producer or performer has had a greater impact or influence on me than J Dilla. His body of work is extensive, most notably having worked production magic for A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Busta Rhymes, the Pharcyde, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, Blackstar, Erykah Badu, Bilal, the Roots, D’Angelo, Common and Slum Village. Tracking his remixes might be a bit of an undertaking as well, given his teaming up with names like Jamiroquai, Janet Jackson, Macy Gray, Zhanè, Spacek, Innerzone Orchestra, DJ Cam, Daft Punk, Four Tet and the Brand New Heavies. The list goes on and on. Dilla had the ability to produce lush, breathtakingly soulful arrangements, or come with the rough, rugged and raw sounds of his hometown Detroit, where his legendary beats saved many a mediocre rapper from complete obscurity.

I consider Dilla one of the greatest hip hop/soul producers ever, and although I never met or spoke to the man, I will miss him very much now that he’s gone. Jay Dee R.I.P.

WE KEEP IT GHET-TO WITH THE PLASTIC CUPS... fathead@videotron.ca

The last GOODS party of 2005!! Don't miss.....

2005-12-03T08:16:00.000-08:00

Here we go again...

2005-11-29T11:07:00.000-08:00

2005-11-05T06:28:00.000-08:00

What do we have here?

2005-09-28T12:09:00.000-07:00

Our man Justin has just finished the second run of limited edition handmade GOODS t-shirts. A few lucky ladies were able to bag the first run of baby tees, but we'll slowly make sure that everybody can wear them well, seen? Me, I'm just waking up from a long blogger sleep that has kept me away from the post, but I've been rejuvenated by t-shirts, believe it or not. Lookout for DJ Format with MC Abdominal and D-Sisive at the GOODS on Saturday Octber 8th. Format is the reigning king of that old school feel of hip hop production that gets the b-boys and b-girls up every time, not to mention the rest of us. Abs and D-Sisive aren't too shabby either, but all three combined is out of control! It's bound to be a live night for sure. Don't front, and I'll se you there.

Russ Dewbury is finally coming!!!

2005-08-18T14:21:00.000-07:00

Bully for you!!

2005-08-01T11:23:00.000-07:00

the LAST wednesday of every month!!!!

2005-07-25T16:13:00.000-07:00

Here we go again. Me, I've got some MPC heat for this month, just a couple, but I'm anxious to hear what kind of vibe the latest heat wave is going to bring. Apparently P-Love has finished his new LP, so hopefully we can debut a few tunes for the regulars. I'm really trying hard to make some R Kelly style shit that will cement me as a true genius, but I don't think it's going to happen. There's only one R after all, right? See you there....

PPP get the hook at Montreal Jazz Fest

2005-07-08T09:40:00.000-07:00

PPP people: Where's Tiombe?

Right from the start, there seemed to be something wrong with the sound coming from the stage at this show, but for the crowd of a few thousand people who had gathered for this free, outdoor gig by Detroit's Platinum Pied Pipers, there was really nothing we could do. From where I was standing, it seemed like most of the audience had absolutely no idea who PPP were, and had just gathered for whoever was about to take the stage. Waajeed and Saadiq, who were joined onstage by vocalists Tiombe Lockhart and Roget, MC Invincible, and drummer Justin, seemed rightfully surprised that their requests for quick fixes to the sound were going seemingly unnoticed, and decided to muddle through anyways. Despite the several songs where certain instruments were lost in the mix, and the vocalists struggling to hear themselves onstage, there was still enough neck-breaking head nod to go around. Invincible was particularly on point, and seemed the least affected by the sound issues. Tiombe dropped her ode to Johnny Walker "Johnny" to thunderous applause, and drummer Justin (who was never properly introduced) simply stole the show. This cat looked to be about 17 years old and had no problems keeping the beat locked tight all night. Overall, PPP seemed to be working at a light, playful and almost comedic stage presence that involved an tribute to everybody's favorite Michael Jackson songs, and a kind of drunken hotel band kind of schtick. All good, but when they were cheered off the stage, they re-emerged and started into an encore, only to have the POWER CUT BY THE JAZZ FEST!! They wouldn't even turn a mic on so they could say goodbye! It was fuckin' embarrassing! The crowd started chanting "PPP! PPP! PPP!..." but it didn't help. Who knows what was going on backstage or in the wings, but clearly some sound-guy wasn't too pleased with all the criticism from the band during their show, and decided to teach them a lesson. It was all really too bad, but I enjoyed the show anyways. Claudio took some pics last night, but he hasn't sent them to me yet. His website is almost ready to fly, and seems to be coming along quite nicely. Check it out here.

Sim: I will BEAT you....

Looks like my boy Simahlak has also extended his web persona to include a new website that houses everything Sim, including music, news, discography, mixes and more. Don't sleep, check it out here.

It's that time of the month again...

2005-06-28T22:34:00.000-07:00

Hmmm...who can I possibly blame for taking so long to post? ABSOLUTELY NO ONE BUT ME! I'll dispense with the excuses and try to pick up where I left off. Turf Builder is here again, and unlike last month where a dodgy mailout tripped up the regular monthly traffic by a few heads, I'm expecting y'all to come through with the quickness. As I mentioned in the mailout, we've ironed out the details for the Turf Builder compilation, featuring some of the talented Montrealers who have contributed to this monthly forum from the start. Thanks to Moonstarr and PTR Music, some of the more memorable tracks you've submitted will make it to the ears of a lot more people. We'd like to start selecting tracks by the end of the summer, but I'd also like to give you an opportunity to get down to business with your best work, that is if you haven't already blown your wad at a past session. Stay tuned for more info. I was a little peeved yesterday when a scheduled interview with Platinum Pied Pipers' Waajeed fell through--or should I say he never called me back. No matter though, I'll check him and Saadiq next week when they play the Montreal International Jazz Fest. What? You didn't know? Lemme run down my picks for all the downtown festivities. All shows cost MONEY unless otherwise noted.

Feist

DON'T SLEEP!!

1. June 30 - Feist@Spectrum-6pm

2. June 30 - Roy Hargrove & RH Factor@Spectrum-9pm

3. July 1st - Amp Fiddler@Scene Stella Artois(FREE!)

4. July 1st - Bugge Wesseltoft@Club Soda

5. July 3rd -The Herbaliser@Metropolis with Bonobo & DJ Food 9pm

6. July 3rd -Tortured Soul@Scene Stella Artois 10pm(FREE!)

7. July 7th - Platinum Pied Pipers@Scene Stella Artois 10pm
(oh yes...it's FREE!)

the PPP

Hope that helps. We've also got a nice summer session of The Goods coming up on Saturday July 2nd. Would be lovely if you could make it...Nuff new tracks to try out on my favorite open minded dancefloor. Mmmmmm..MMMM! Do I love me some people dancin! People get into that shit like they can't help themselves sometimes, it's beautiful. That's down at the Collonade Room...or Sala Rossa, as the kids call it. If you're reading this, then send me an email at fathead@videotron.ca telling me what is musically killin' it in your headphones right now, and a few of you and a friend can dance right through the front door and on to the dancefloor this coming Saturday night. That shit might inspire to be a little more promt with with all this blog banter. Anybody out there heard the Dimlite LP, Runbox Weathers on Sonar Kollektiv? Dammmmmmmn!!

I gotta go back to the lab... This record is an exceptional piece of music right here. If Prefuse 73 and Nicolay from Foreign Exchange had a child, it would probably be a very 'special' child, but it would also sound just like Dimlite! Listen to it here.

ALL HELL IS BREAKING LOOSE!!!

2005-05-30T10:27:00.001-07:00

I get post lazy-they go post crazy!!

Dear people,

Damn. I get a little bit caught up in some other pursuits and the blog-o-rama goes bananas! I know I need to be a tad more timely up in here, but please bear with me. It's no secret I have too many pots on the stove.

sincerely, fathead

KUNTA LOUNGE CELEBRATES 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY

2005-05-02T16:18:00.000-07:00

Turf Builder 3 and the Triple P

2005-04-28T14:06:00.000-07:00

detroit style: saadiq and waajeed

Just because trees and things have been asleep for the winter, the purifying rain of spring decided to sprinkle us with wet goodness last night, the evening of Turf Builder 3. This, of course did not deter most of the usual suspects from showing up, but I must admit that even though we had plenty of submissions this month-many of them coming in on the very night, there were more people who just showed up to listen this time out. We heard beats from cats like Metikulus, Leg Alcove, Menoza, Natasha Hynes, Ghislain Porier, Nick Laroche, Moonstarr, Paco Al deBaran, DJ MO, Think Twice, Bootleg Sounds, Isra-Elite, X-Bomb, Dessy DiLauro and Rickey Pageot, Frank E, and many more, with of course few of my own personal ditties thrown in for good measure. Oh shit! I almost forgot Tony Ezzy showed up. Tony Ezzy! He didn't have any new material on him, but I happened to have one of his older Lp's in my bag, so we hooked it up for the people. I called him the Italian Prince on the mic, but he's really Lebanese. At any rate, the guy is fearless about making music and has a great sense of humor too. A true master of the analog synth realm. ahem. Also finally met my mystery friend, who's been nice enough to chat up the Goods over at her blog, totolehero007.

Looks like Moog Audio will be teaming up with Turf Builder in some capacity over the next few months. We've just got to figure out how. Anybody got any bright ideas about how TB can make the best of a willing and supportive local sponsor? I'm all ears. I know it sounds trite, but it's all the people involved, submitting month to month that should benefit, right? And please make sense?! There will be no cries of "MPC's for everyone!!" and no "all-you-can-grab shopping sprees" either.
I started yet another blog, specifically for charting the playlists from our weekly radio show, The Goods.
Enough people have already asked me about the Platinum Pied Piper's version of "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" to know that this record should do very well for Waajeed and Saadiq. PPP's full length LP, Triple P gets officially released on May 10 thanks to the always next-level Ubiquity Records, but nuff joints from the singles and the advance LP are bumpin around out there. Some super soul shit, with lazy, super-swung Dilla drums everywhere. If you read closely in the tour dates on the site you'll find that Montreal is due for the Platinum Pied Piper's live show when they hit the Montreal International Jazz Festival July 7th. If you're not familiar with the music of these Detroit originals, then check out this video that captures the PPP production process.

Grime on the Rise

2005-04-22T12:36:00.000-07:00

U.S. meets U.K.: Pharrell and Lady Sovereign---pic courtesy of www.chantellefiddy.blogspot.com

With cockney raps and console beats, pirate push and pubescent stars, the street-level East London amalgam called grime is stirring up heat, hype and beefs galore

by Scott C

There's a new sound coming out of the U.K. that has revived use of the term "British Invasion" in the North American music press. Not since drum & bass has a truly British form of underground music seen such growth in scope and popularity, both inside the U.K. and out. This music has been called many things - sublow, eight-bar, dubstep, eski, G-hop and the all-encompassing U.K. garage (pronounced "garridge") - but the top-o'-the-pile term for today is grime. The endless name-juggling, a matter star MC Wiley capitalized on with the single "Wot Do U Call It?," isn't inappropriate, given grime's wide spread of influences, adding variety and strength to a genre exploding with regional interpretations and creativity.

For many people outside of the U.K., awareness of grime began with the arrival of 20-year-old East London boy Dizzee Rascal (who plays Club Soda this week), but for thousands of devotees back in England, Dizzee was just the latest, most prominent manifestation of something that had been growing for ages. Pulling at the coattails of the commercialized, ailing two-step and garage scene, while ignoring the climate of derivative hip hop and R&B in an urban-music industry which had likewise ignored it for years, the grime movement is the youngest child in a long line of siblings, and is now garnering all the attention.

To assess the new sound of London street life as simply the U.K. version of hip hop is a little shortsighted, given that the wide range of material out there draws influences from hip hop, techno, drum & bass, dancehall and even punk. MCs do not waste time trying to pass themselves off as American types, instead lacing rhymes with Council Estate (government housing) cockney and manor-house bravado. With bouncing, syncopated rhythms, Detroit techno and eight-bit video-game synth sounds, strange minimalist blips and even straight guitar riffs that accompany infectious, guttural basslines, much of the beats don't resemble anything present in hip hop as we know it either. Add to this the strife and aggression of a generation of impoverished young black Britons, simmered in the juices of the British rave scene and peppered with MC battles and clashes that sometimes end in violence, and you have grime.

East End beginnings

So? Just what is it that has propelled grime into the spotlight? Is this truly a major moment in music, or has the hype machine just taken a bite out of London for a hot minute? "It's definitely a milestone in the development of U.K. music," explains Charlie Dark, DJ, producer, former member of U.K. outfit Attica Blues and founder of Blacktronica, a forum for black electronic expression committed to changing the parameters of the U.K. music industry. "Grime is the final conclusion of many different factors, one of them being the migration of people from the Caribbean and Africa into England. It's the offspring of these people that are making this music. With that, they've brought the whole influence of reggae, hip hop and various different cultures into the mix. The U.K. has always had a tradition of absorbing cultures from other places, and then spewing out its own version, and grime incorporates that as well. "Technology has also arrived at a point where anyone can get their hands on pirate music software, or a Playstation, make their tracks and have them on the radio or in the club that night, or sent around the world at a click. These things have allowed what is essentially regional music to constantly change and mutate very quickly."

Although grime was born out of the streets of East London, you can trace the sounds of hundreds of crews and individual artists to all corners of that city, while it slowly creeps into the rest of the country. The young faces who are currently championing this new sound - Wiley, Kano, Terror Danjah, Shystie, Plasticman, Dizzee Rascal and Lady Sovereign, to name just a few - may have helped spark a very healthy and welcoming scene in New York City, but ultimately they represent the voice of London youth, a voice that's cracking into maturity right before our eyes. With records made by 14- or 15-year-old kids getting play, this truly is the sound of young London. "To be honest, I don't think most of the kids making this music are really that bothered if anyone outside London is feeling it," says Dark wryly. "It's more like the music has given them an opportunity to say how they feel about the state of things where they live. They're thinking, with that voice, hopefully, will come some cash to help me survive the situation that I'm in. I live in the heart of East London, and it's unlike any other part of London, and the music is very reflective of what goes on here. It's quite grimy here! But the music embodies the attitude that you feel walking down the street, much like the early sounds of hip hop were able to capture the feel of New York in the music. Unlike drum & bass, which was made by people who had traveled, grime is made by people who have never been out of East London. Traditionally, U.K. music hasn't survived outside of the U.K. because the music gets exported, but the culture that goes with it doesn't."

Dizzee spell

East London's biggest export right now is a young Dylan Mills, better known as Dizzee Rascal, who before winning England's Mercury Prize in 2003 had already made a name for himself in the garage scene as a member of the Roll Deep Crew. 2003's award-winning Boy in da Corner LP was greeted with both enthusiasm and confusion by North America, with many taking the album completely out of context, having no prior knowledge of the thriving scene he had graduated from. Dizzee epitomized the rough-edged, troubled youth of East London and had no problem translating that into beats and rhymes, ultimately becoming the first breakout star to represent grime. Since releasing Showtime in 2004, he has been touring tirelessly, remembering to use his Mercury Prize as a doorstop, leaving just enough room for the rest of East London's thriving scene to slide through. "I didn't really realize how many people you could touch, just doin' two albums," says Dizzee Rascal in a calm but wildly cryptic voice. "It's mad. People ask me all the time if I feel pressure in the position I'm in, but the only pressure I feel is to make the best music I can, naw'mean? It's easy to say that you have no boundaries, but it's another thing to put that into your music, naw'mean? You have to be open-minded and really have no boundaries when it come to music. Hip hop is one of my favourite music, and then drum & bass and fing, but I appreciate rock, grunge, techno, 'ardcore, R&B, dancehall, country-western, whatevah, naw'mean?"

Dizzee seems to have embraced his stardom with a relative nonchalance, and clearly hasn't forgotten where he came from yet, but how did he go from being a little troublemaker getting kicked out of schools left and right to the biggest name in U.K. urban music? Was he plucked off a stage at an all-nighter? Did his demo fall into the hands of some high-powered A&R guy? Did he win an East London talent show? Nope. Dizzee tapped into one of the most pervasive and influential forces at work in the U.K. underground - pirate radio. "Pirate radio is one of the only avenues, where I'm from, for people to get heard, naw'mean? Whether they're MCs, DJs or producers. This is what the kids from the Council Estates have to do, naw'mean? But more than that, it's part of English culture. Pirate radio has been going on for years, and most of the big music to come out of the U.K., like drum & bass, 'ardcore, garage or whatevah, was born out of pirate radio."

Non-stop on the rooftop

With underground networks that run self-sufficient, confounding the music industry status quo with its reach and direct connection to the streets, it's no wonder that even in 2005, pirate radio is a vital part of this thriving underground scene. Only two weeks ago, 23-year-old DJ Slimzee was banned from every rooftop across the borough of Tower Hamlets in East London after a surveillance camera caught him setting up shop on a rooftop in Stephney. Slimzee was setting up for Rinse FM, one of the most popular pirate radio stations and the very one that launched Dizzee Rascal's career. The scene also boasts its own cable station in the form of Channel U, a big middle finger to MTV that plays homegrown grime videos right alongside big-budget American clips.

Some have questioned whether or not the whole grime scene can stay underground for much longer, looking at the demise of two-step and garage as a model. As these scenes grew in popularity, the music became more and more geared towards the mainstream audience. "I look at grime as a stepping stone, really," explains Lady Fury, a 17-year-old who reps as one of the rawest females on the mic. "Everybody is an MC. Over here, there's so many people doing garage, so many people putting out independent work, that there will always be an underground. It can't die. It's way too deep. But as far as getting recognition, moving forward, making a living off of your music, these are things that I think everybody wants to do. I'm going to use grime to do what I want to do."

While the divisions between North, South, East and West London makes for some great moments on record and provide propulsion for the entire scene, there's an accompanying amount of online message-board gossip that goes on, giving birth to beefs that will play out over time, whether it's a battle at a rave or gunshots in the back alley of a club. The British press has done much over the years to malign garage, and now the grime scene, stating that the music incites violence and criminal behavior, but Lady Fury believes just the opposite. "A lot of people don't realize that we're role models. There's always going to be some badman looking to cause trouble at a rave somewhere, but the youngest kids look up to us onstage. They're looking at us up on stage MCing, with people shouting our names and singing along with our lyrics, so obviously they think, ‘I wanna do that.' So instead of being on road, getting into trouble, or being bored and doing nothing with your time, you work towards it. You write the lyrics, you do the pirate radio, you do the raves and if you put in the hard work and dedication, you'll get somewhere. Kids know this because we are young people in this. It's young people that are pushing this thing forward."

Grime is perhaps the only genre of music where listening to 14-year-old kids rattling on about gunplay in their area over Playstation beats, can be as entertaining as an introspective twentysomething getting clever over alternating 16-bar spurts of well-polished gutter breaks. The sound of young London is demanding to be heard. The least you can do is listen.

Dizzee Rascal and DJ Wonder play Club Soda on Wednesday, April 27, 9 p.m., $17

TURF BUILDER SESSION 3 ALREADY?!!!

2005-04-20T14:49:00.000-07:00

Common interview JANUARY 2004

2005-04-19T21:16:00.000-07:00

I spoke to Common in January of 2004 for the Montreal Mirror, after he had just finished touring for the Electric Circus LP. This was from a talk we had on the phone that lasted inside of 10 minutes. It was short, but I tried to make it interesting.

POM!! POM!!

Last year, Lonnie Rashid Lynn sowed some musical oats that left a lot of his die-hard fans scratching their heads and comparing him to Outkast. As the Chicago-born MC also known as Common spread his artistic wings in an effort to inject variety and creativity into hip hop music, he was met with both critical acclaim and complete dismissal. Unaffected, the Electric Circus tour was touted as one of the best live shows of 2003, and Common was able to work with everyone from Prince and Omar to Bilal, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu and Mary J Blige. As Montreal gets ready for the first big hip hop show of 2004, I spoke to Common over the phone from a hotel room in Beverly Hills.

SC: Your friend Questlove is always talking in interviews about getting pigeonholed within hip hop as an artist. The Roots seem to take great issue with fans, listeners and critics who categorize them as conscious, or assume they'll be on the nu-soul tip forever. How did the obvious changes in your approach to the music, as well as in your own personal style, get received?

Common: I get all kinds of different opinions and perspectives. Some people understand that I'm just a person, and that I'm gonna go through changes just like anybody else would, and that I follow my heart. They understand that. Then there's people who are like, "Man, why you change on us? We just started gettin' into what you had been doing…" A lot of people said I went soft with Electric Circus. I understand that everyone can't see exactly what you're trying to do every time, and that as an artist you just have to do what you do and hope for the best.

SC: Did people give you a hard time after you did that Coke commercial last year with Mya? I could see both the Native Tongue contingent and the hardcore Soulquarians having something to say about a righteous brother like yourself dealing with a multinational.

C: I definitely heard people saying all kinds of things about that. My thing is this. If I'm intelligent enough to stay true to who I am and present myself on a bigger platform, and by that I mean what I think hip hop is about, what I think it means to be a black dude, a balanced human being, I'll take the Coca-Cola platform and major corporation push. I think that everyone should be exposed to pure music. There are lots of valid points for not dealing with corporations, but I wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for the label that I'm on right now.

SC: What's the deal with the Electric Circus live show? I keep reading how it was one of last year's best performances. What can we expect?

C: This particular date in Montreal is all about the next phase. Electric Circus was a big production in terms of the live show, but this time it's just me and the DJ. We gonna bang out all the core classics as well as some stuff from EC, and some brand new material as well. The new album is called BE, as in Basement Elevation or B-boy Evolution. We trying to take it to a higher place.

SC: Who's your DJ?

C: My DJ is DJ Dummy! DJ Dummy and Common Sense, a good combination -

SC: Speaking of good combinations, where's NO I.D., man?

C: NO I.D.? I saw him two days ago in Chicago. He's doing some production on the G-Unit album, on DMX's album, and he has an artist coming out called K. Fox, so he's got some stuff coming for the people.

SC: I remember, when we talked a few years ago, that we shared a love for the music of Omar, and agreed that he was perhaps the most slept-on contemporary soul powerhouse of our time. Fast-forward a few years, and now he's a vocal fixture of Electric Circus. That must have been wild.

C: You're right, man. Omar is the king. This is a very significant artist that most people in North America have no idea about, even after all the records he's released, and to have the opportunity to work with somebody like that is amazing. It was easy, too - once we met, we did a bunch of songs, but two of them didn't make it on the album. When you hear his music, you feel it.

CHECK COMMON IN MONTREAL MAY6th 2005@METROPOLIS

Forgive me for bringing this up...

2005-04-11T21:37:00.000-07:00

from top left: The Iron Shiek, Rowdy Roddy Piper,
Junk Yard Dog and Mean Gene Oakerlund, Kamala and Kimchi

www.obsessedwithwrestling.com had me and a friend peeing our pants on the phone for 2 hours one night last week. Now, believe it or not, I am by no means obsessed with wrestling, but I'm not afraid to say that at one time in my life-let's say 1980-1987- i definitely was. I mean, who wasn't?! So you can imagine the feeling of pure satisfaction when we stumbled on the most comprehensive collection of stats, personal information, timelines, pictures, movies and everything wrestling I have ever seen in my life. For years, me and a few friends would get drunk and inevitably end up trying to out -dig the depths of our wrestling obsessed youth for the name of the ultimate forgotten wrestler. There were so many names, some of them so obscure they could induce at least 5 minutes of hard laughing-the kind that makes you cry, pee or become light-headed. S.D. "Special Delivery" Jones. The Conquistadors. Iron Mike Sharpe. Even Haystacks Calhoun(?) We grew up watching WWF Wrestling, but this site pays hommage to the golden age of the 50's and 60's, the WWF years through the 80's, and the crazy 90's to the present with the WCW, ECW, NWA, WWE and all that other bullshit. I always liked Roddy Piper. He took no shit, and told it like it was, and he made us believe that he was actually as crazy as he acted on TV. Plus, he always rocked a kilt. Those of you who aren't familiar with the genius that is Roddy Piper can still get your hands on this man's work, even if it isn't him in the ring. If you haven't seen the 1988 movie They Live, get to the video store now!

I"M NOT DEAD...JUST BUSY

2005-04-11T11:28:00.000-07:00

Marie is Manager Material...

Alright, alright. It's been more than a full month since I last posted, but it's not because I've been sitting on my ass. On the contrary! Steady movin'... Me and Andy were lucky enough to land a prime time radio spot on CKUT 90.3, so now all y'all can tune into The GOODS Radio Show every Sunday from 2-4pm. You can check for the archives at http://ckut.ca/archives.php. You know what's up. We're playing all kinds of shit from funk and soul, to hip hop, broken beat and future jazz, and just this past weekend we had a couple of the guys from Kobayashi in to talk about their new Lp, Strange Lights and Resolutions, out now on BongoBeat Records. We also had Pablo Aravena, the director of Next: A Primer on Urban Painting in the studio, talking about how he's been hustling for the last 4 years making this film. This dude has managed to wongle his way to Paris, Tokyo, Sao Paulo, London, Amsterdam, Miami and a bunch of other places, where he tapped into urban art movements native to each locale, inspired by graffiti as we know it. The rough cut I saw of the film was super engaging and very inspiring, and drives home that fact that people all around the world are expressing themselves in ways that are very different, but also very much the same.

I'm hyped about this Nu-Mark show coming up. Flyer thanks to my boy Claudio Marzano who came with an ill caricature of Nu-Mark. I've taken to trying to invite anyone and everyone to the April 23rd show, including all the people behind that counter at Royal Sushi on Parc Ave., and some of the hard-working clerks at Videotron right by my house. Marie (pictured above), always very nicely puts up with my retarded video-store chit-chat, and occasionaly hooks me up with the 'house special.' I rent a hell of a lot of movies people. The other night, I had forgotten my wallet, and Marie was nice enough to make sure that I didn't have to run all the way home just for a shitty little movie called "Ray" starring Jaime Foxx. Is it me, or did this Oscar winning flic seem like a ABC movie of the week with some spit and polish? Anyways, I appreciate the gesture and would love to offer people like Marie an opportunity to have a good time on me for once. Yes, I'm back. Turf Builder 3 is on the horizon!

L.A. BEAT-MAKER@THE GOODS APRIL 23

2005-03-05T17:47:00.000-08:00

Spoke to Nu-Mark on the phone this week and confirmed an April 23rd date at La Sala Rossa for THE GOODS. He's pretty busy these days working on the new Jurassic 5 LP, but hopes that by April it will have reached the all important recording phase, freeing up a little more of his time. Some of that time will be well spent blowing our minds while doing what he does best. Last year he put out Hands On on Sequence Records, as some of you may already know, and the genius 2xLP Blend Crafters with Pomo on Up Above, but I'm very interested to hear the beats he's come up with for the new J5 LP. Still not sure if he'll be bringing the MPC with him or not, but regardless, this shit will be hot. Also in April, we might be doing some basement business over at Kunta with UK bruk-beat soul don I.G. Culture, but that all depends how the cards fall this week.
After the beats we heard at the first TB session a couple weeks ago, I don't think I'm the only one who went back to the lab to get ready for the next one. This time out, I'm asking anyone who's interested in submitting any of their beats to include at least one remix of something-anything that you think is representative of your sound. As usual, a CD with no more than 5 beats should be in my hands before the next Turf Builder session on WEDNESDAY MARCH 30th. This one should be good, and yes, the word is getting around. I'm happy to report that the ROCKDEEP/WE-FUNK family will be taking over the Thursday night over at Kunta Lounge, a move that will only help us continue to bring attention to this truly wicked Montreal secret. Don't forget me and Andy are up in there each and every week for The Spot on Wednesday night. Some of you thought that it was Turf Builder every week, or that we only played there once a month, or that I fought in the first Gulf War, but it's all LIES!!!! Learn from dat...

MIGHT AS WELL TAKE ADVANTAGE, RIGHT?

2005-02-26T14:24:00.000-08:00

ZED TV and TURF BUILDER unite?

In an effort to truly solidify the links between emerging Montreal beat-makers and producers, I've set up a Turf Builder page in the ZED universe. ZED is an open source TV show that airs every night at 11pm on CBC, where they showcase Canadian and international musicians, visual artists, filmmakers, writers and new media turks. Their website is deep with much more of the same. Not only will this allow people to listen and revisit some of the great tracks they heard at Turf Builder, but it also opens the gate to thousands of other web savvy people who could potentially check out your work. It sounded like a good idea in my head, and they're providing a 200MB upload, so we might as well use it right? This is by no means a substitute for your own website, or music dump, but it makes the idea of simply connecting with likeminded people and the opportunity to hear original material outside of the Turf Builder sessions a lot easier. If you want to post a beat that got a good reaction last Wednesday, or upload some next shit as a preview to the next session, hit me up for the the login to upload tracks. I'm at fathead@videotron.ca if you have questions...

TURF BUILDER #1---- SUCCESS!!!!!

2005-02-24T07:31:00.000-08:00

AND IN A BLUR, IT WAS OVER...

Holy shit Batman! Now, I knew that there were some people sitting on hotness out there, working on modest compositions until the wee hours of the morning, but DAMN! The first installment of Turf Builder was lucky enough to have a lot of very strong submissions, and we heard some wicked tunes that warmed up the place. First off, I'd like to get some feedback on the way I ended up conducting things---introducing every song on the mic, introducing and acknowledging the producer of the work if he or she was in the room---I wasn't sure how things were going to go, but this seemed to work out quite well. It was nice to hear people cheering hard and applauding the tracks that they were feeling, giving it a very casual "listening session" feel. The vibe was hot indeed. Anyways, let's get to the music. Gotta say big thanks to everyone who submitted tracks-the bar is pretty high, and that's good to see. Some nice tunes featuring production from Think Twice, Garret, Ghislain Poirier, Jimbrowski-One, X-Bomb, Menoza, and the always personable Gary Rice. Crowd favorites included a couple neck-breakers from Lotus, as well as 2 super deep tracks from patrOO. Nathan came with the subtle head-nod so everyone could lay back in their chairs, and Miss Cannonball pretty much locked down the tightest groove of the night. Dessy DiLauro's "Where is the Light?" had people feeling bass while hypnotized by the voice. Biggest reaction though, hands down were 2 tracks produced by Metrix. The first featured vocalist Shauna Callender and appeared to be on what I like to call the 'go west London' tip. This one ripped a hole in the place!! The second was a jazzy, uptempo shuffle with some big drums to make 'em move. We were all very impressed. Great to hear!! I also played some other Montreal music that I had kickin' around at home, namely some stuff from The Gibbernaut (aka Roadsworth), Moonstarr, Euphrates, Kobayashi, Sikh Knowledge, Dubline and many more. I was also able to pull some strings with the organizers and get some of my own beats played as well. Some of you may recognize the(ahem!) TURF BUILDER THEME? KEEP THE SUBMISSIONS COMING!!! Next Turf Builder is MARCH 30th 2005. Producers who want links setup from this page should get in touch with me fathead@videotron.ca. What did you think of the night? COMMENT!!!!!

Vocalist, lyricist, songstress, empress...

2005-02-21T22:20:00.000-08:00

MONTREAL CAN SING TOO Y'ALL...

I can't help but think that things are about to get serious. That's what's been going through my head steady for the last 3 weeks. After taking in a tight performance by Montreal's Nomadic Massive at a fund raiser over at NEST a few Fridays back, Kalmunity's extended musical collective took the stage, lead at times by vocalist Josephine Watson(top photo). While Kalmunity's vibe rolls with ease and comfort, Josephine's deep singing voice and spoken flourishes definitely set her apart on the crowded stage. I spoke to her after the show, where she was surprisingly critical of the crowd pleaser they had just pulled off. Typical perfectionst. A few days later, I was sitting in my own house listening to Dessy DiLauro(bottom photo) wax melodic over one of my own (ahem!) foolish productions, and although she was just freestyling and noodling around for something we could use, it was just incredibly exciting to realize that I actually know people that can sing as beautifully and effortlessly as she does. All hairs on the back of the neck take note. Montreal girls can sing, bwoy! Montreal girls can sing...Then, as if that weren't enough, I get a call out of the blue on Monday afternoon from Angela Burton(middle photo), yet another voice in this town that more people should have heard by now. She's looking for creative collaborators, and I'm looking for her. I never see this girl, and she lives right around the bloodclot corner too, but got-dammit, can she sing! She told me she's been messing with Logic and Reason, as well as being pretty handy with a guitar, but she has both control and power in her voice, and that goes a long way. None of these women fuck around when they're holding the mic, and I predict that you'll be hearing much more from alll of them very soon. While you might catch Angela taking advantage of the open mic at Kunta (2021 St.Denis) on a Wednesday night, Dessy has her own thing going on every Thursday at Utopian Lounge in Old Montreal (417 St.Pierre) with her band. You can check out Josephine's sultry tones every Tuesday night when Kalmunity works the room at Sablo Kafe (50 St. Zotique Est). Like I said, things are about to get serious.

KEB DARGE HAS LEFT THE BUILDING....

2005-02-20T08:30:00.000-08:00

The sweetest man alive perhaps?

Last night, we were lucky enough to have one of the worlds most celebrated deep funk aficionados heating up the hardwood at The GOODS. And I know that by all accounts he probably looks like one mean bugger in the picture above, but Keb Darge not only plays some of the most explosive funk, soul and undergound disco that you never heard, but this Scotsman is a true gentleman. A class act. A big fuckin cunt! (his words, not mine) No really. Keb has got to be one of the most humble, disarming and welcoming personalities that I have ever met. Those in attendance were treated to his signature microphone antics throughout the night, and a whole heap of crazy music. Keb has drums people-lots and lots of drums! At one point towards the end of the night, he warned us about how the song he was about to play would "..probably be massive some day." "Another new discovery...one to grow on ye!" and then BAM!---big tune. A really great night was had by all, but there's still some things you should know about Keb.

1. Keb really has a thing for Bourbon.
2. Keb really likes to say the word "fucker" on the mic.
3. When he does get dancing, get the bloody hell out of the way!
4. Once he's in the DJ booth, he's not leaving. Enter the famous Keb Darge bucket for bodily functions. Now that's true dedication.
5. Keb co-owns a label called Kay-Dee with Masters at Work don Kenny Dope.
6. Keb likes to snowboard, but he's not very good.
7. Talking with Keb confirms that nobody can pull off a good Scottish accent, except Keb.

TURF BUILDER IS HERE!!!

2005-02-17T18:41:00.000-08:00

Yes, this is the new flyer people. I asked for CD's in advance, and I have recieved a pile, but I know some of you are gonna show up with your music in hand. We'll deal with that then. For now, Foon.

"Y'all niggas in love with the S..."

2005-02-17T14:01:00.000-08:00

Montreal hip hop's rising sun?

Side-stepping the usual channels involved in getting their music out there, Montreal group Specifics new album Lonely City has enjoyed a brisk debut in Japan since it was released back in December of 2004. Although many artists around the world look to the dicerning ears and deep pockets of the Japanese music industry as a springboard for otherwise slept-on material, I think I'm right in saying that this is the first Montreal based rap group to do so. Think Twice, the dude behind the ill-producto-hotness that is Specifics, has already passed me his beat CD for Turf Builder, so keep yor ears open. Their new single "Craig's House" just dropped in the UK, Europe and the aforementioned Nippon....

MUSIC IS THE KEY....

2005-02-12T15:10:00.000-08:00

I heard it again this week. Montreal is the 'next big thing!' This year, the official notification came from the all-knowing, all-seeing New York Times.
It's pretty hard to swallow 'next big thing' rumblings about Montreal, especially when we've been hearing about how we're about to blow for about 10 years now. If I have to put it simply, Montreal is perpetually about to blow. What that means is, that at any given time, there are so many talented people producing music in this city that there's no possible way in hell that we wouldn't catch the wandering eyes of the rest of the planet. But of course, we never really do. There's always a few that are able to break out of Quebec, conquer Toronto and the rest of the country, followed by the states and the rest of the world, but on the whole, we're sitting on the motherlode of untapped potential. Lucky for me, I still have the same excitement about the creative merits of this still undiscovered country as I did when I first moved here from Toronto in 1994. Much like Quebec in relation to the rest of Canada, there is clear difference between what goes on in music here and the rest of the country, largely mixed up in language and cultural politics.
But there is certainly no lack of creativity.
Turf Builder is the beginning of a monthly music showcase, focusing on Montreal's wide array of beat-makers and producers. Through my regular stint writing for the Montreal Mirror, DJing, and having dabbled in bedroom production myself for quite some time, I kept meeting people with great music that no one else would ever hear. Inspired by nights like London's Burnt Progress , and the short lived Red Beet Lounge right here in Montreal, Turf Builder invites some of the creative energy people devote to their laptops, samplers, sequencers and multi-trackers into an open minded platform. While instrumental submissions are acceptable, we also welcome songs with vocalists and MC's as well. The aim is to not only provide a listening session for anyone interested in whats going on in Montreal's bubbling undergound of independent music, but to allow these people to link and meet others who are likeminded. First installment happens Wednesday February 23 at Kunta Lounge-2021 St. Denis. $4 gets you in.
I want to know if this is something that Montreal is interested in. I mean, if we are the 'next big thing', shouldn't we be keeping tabs on what we have right here at home?