Is it just us or does Mayor Bloomberg look like The Grinch Who Stole Brooklyn in this picture? From far left, that's Hiz-oner; Governor Paterson, who is helping to dig his own grave, even though he can't see it; borough president Marty Markowitz, who is just jolly being Marty Markowitz; and Jay-Z, who had to tilt his construction hat to the side. They're seen here breaking ground on the new Atlantic Yards project, which will bring the NBA's New Jersey Nets to Brooklyn. Not only that, but the BK is getting some more fancy gentrified stores and expensive condos. The natives are quite restless. Read the whole story of today's protest at The Awl. [The Awl]
I'm spinning at Horse Meat Disco in London later this week (Sunday the 14th at the Horse & Groom--if you're in town!) and figured I better do a disco-oriented mix for a bit of practice. And judging from some of the mixes in this set, I needed it. Nonetheless, it's easy to forget how powerful this stuff is when you haven't listened to it in a while. And yes, I know that some of these tracks are slightly post-disco in actuality, but all's fair in love and glitterballs.
Robert Luis and Tru Thoughts Records drop some highly explosive future club bombs on this week's episode of Unfold. Expect to hear dynamite material from Maddslinky featuring Omar, Bonobo, Sbtrkt remixing Tinie Tempah, Gang Starr, Edan, and DJ SS. Bam!
This week on Sound Dimensions, DJ Darkat digs into the unknown and goes walking down the middle of the road for fresh sounds, old and new. Artists include No Age, Janet Jackson, Marva Whitney, Horace Andy, Digable Planets, and lots more. Just click play.
A big shout to Brooklyn's "Teflon Don" MC, Notorious B.I.G., a.k.a. Christopher Wallace, who was murdered on this day back in 1997. How do you know when an artist's music is enduring? I DJ'd a Bar Mitzvah in Manhattan last month and had a whole chorus of 13 year olds rapping back to me the lyrics to "Juicy." Classic. (Shout to Mandean for the heads up.)
Back to basics this week, as I bring some fresh riddims for the new year. Jump Start riddim is fyah, the 2010 riddim: also fyah. A couple of new Vybz Kartel joints (leave your kids out of the room when "Beg Yuh..." comes on), including the new banger "Versatility,” a solid follow up to last year's "Romping Shop". Sorry, no Mavado in this mix, but don't think I'm taking sides in the Gaza/Gully conflict (peep this week's Village Voice to know what I'm talking about. Apparently some people feel that the rivalry between Vybz and Mavado could become Jamaica's answer to Biggie and Tupac.) I go out to left field with some solid Bhangra mash-ups from Tigerstyle, then bring it home like always with the roots and culture. Tell Mr. Officer to cool down for the next 50 minutes, I-man not cause no trouble, just bringing vibes and tunes.
This week on Greenmoney, Alex and Leo welcome Photomachine for a mix of heavy bass and forward thinking dance clangers. If you're in the Brixton area of the U.K. across the pond, you can check out the Greenmoney crew at their bi-monthly fiesta, Download This! at Plan B. Joining them on the decks is Roska, Seiji, Redlight, and Photomachine.
Lil' Wayne starts his mandatory rest and relaxation at Rikers Island Resort and Spa today. If the goblin rapper is a good boy, he could be out in eight months. He was sentenced to one year for gun possession on an October 2007 felony charge, when his tour bus was raided by the NYPD and a semi-automatic pistol was found. We look forward to his prison bar blues mixtapes, where autotune will be a hard commodity to trade for. Fast home, Weezy.
