The Embassy is the name of my weekly WFMU radio show. We broadcast at 91.1 FM in New York and 90.1 in the Hudson Valley, and of course we on the internets. You can stream last night’s show and check here for the playlist.
Our friend Daniel Perlin (a.k.a. N-Ron, but you’ll soon know him as Merlin) is throwing a crazy end of year houseparty at a space in downtown Brooklyn – Please join us in celebrating the amazing year that was 2011 and the arrival of 2012! Help us push away the spirit of apocalypse… He’s gone and invited the incredibleRipley, yrs truly, and some special guests. MORE details after Saul Williams, c. the year two thousand:
Saul Williams – Penny For A Thought
2012
APOCALYPSE LATER
DECEMBER 31, 10 PM
170 TILLARY ST. BKLYN
LOADING DOCK
Join Hosts dp, kwonix, Ezio and Danielle in celebrating the time-shift from 2011 to the year 2012
with DJ’s Merlin, Ripley, Lamin Fofana, + Special Guests.
1 night only, we are taking over The Loading Dock at 170 Tillary Street. This is a sacred space, to be treated with a proper party! To scare away the oncoming doom, we have everything, well, almost everything we need:
MUSIC- Be prepared to dance. Sounds from everywhere to make you move. LIGHTS- The most fabulous light system ever. It moves to the beat. It has switches for on and off! FOG- Yes. Fog. Even Kurtz could hide in our fog! DRINK- We have some. Bring more! BUBBLE MACHINE- 2012 in with style. Bubble style. HOT TUB- What more do we have to say. We have a brand spankin new hot tub in the and indoor/outdoor space. Never leave the boat. But you should know how to swim.
What we need: YOU! and a guest.
Please RSVP. We want to make sure we have all the necessary powers in order for an amazing time.
WFMU is a wonderful institution. The longest running freeform, independent community radio station in the United States! I’m excited and very much looking forward to doing this once a week this winter! We’ll staying true to WFMU’s commitment to unstructured-format broadcasting, and we’re going everywhere all the time. Listen in.
Dreams come true! Sometimes it’s confusing bc I assume everyone that reads DA also reads and follows everyone else that I follow and then I realize we haven’t been repping our close friends nearly as much as we should be. BUT FOR REAL IF U DONT PAY ATTENTION TO THIS BUNCH YOU ARE LOST AS FUCK. BUT IT IS NEVER TO LATE TO GET ON BOARD. We need more genius level thinkers giving their minds to think about media and what our futures SHOULD/CAN look like. XLR8R made a weird/clueless April Fools joke about Angela Davis inviting Venus to a conference as if to undermine any possibility of the political in cultural practice- which then begs the question that when they ride for Kingdom or Mike Q or ball room or anything if it is just purely about positioning within the emergence of cool and totally devoid from any sense of the importance of building safe spaces or supporting radical aesthetics. Whatever, dude’s probably just feel uncomfortable. ANYWAYS- this is a great week for music and one step closer to the global think tank I dream about.
LQQK!
DJs Ripley, D’hana, and Rizzla!
10pm, 21+, FREE
Public Assembly, Back Room
70 North 6th Street, Brooklyn
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This Thursday, come celebrate with us as we party with three of our favorite DJs: D’hana (NuLIfe/Chubrub) Rizzla (NuLife productions, Fade To Mind) and the soon-to-be-New Yorker Dj Ripley (Surya Dub). All three are in town taking part in the Radical Aesthetics and Politics Conference at Hunter. (There sounds like a bunch of dope presentations at the all day Friday conference event- but they are saving the best for last in what hopefully will be a dope panel discussion 4:30 – 6:00 PM Panel 8: We come alive: making exilic spaces for remixing social life) SIGN UP FOR FREE
http://chreculture.blogspot.com/
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D’hana Perry came of age as a DJ in Boston’s queer nightlife scene and has evolved, transcending expectations and catering to a wide range of diverse crowds. S/he was nominated as best DJ in the 2010 Boston Phoenix Reader’s Poll, and the mixtape NU LIFE Vol. 1, released with Rizzla, garnered attention from Fader Magazine, and Discobelle among other notable online publications. Perry has worked with rising stars in global bass and house music, queer culture icons and media studies mavens including: NGUZUNGUZU, Total Freedom, Robyn, M.E.N, Kingdom & VenusX.
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“By night DJ Ripley is a bass music luminary, sharing stages with everyone from DJ Assault to Dizzee Rascal and Flying Lotus, and has been an instrumental member of some of the world’s most forward-thinking DJ collectives. The rest of the time, she is Larisa Mann: journalist, legal ethnographer and economic historian, wrecking the ivory tower of intellectual property law with her research on music production in Jamaica.” – Fader Magazine
“Rizzla, aka Brian Friedberg, is an M.A. student in the curation of the carnivalesque…a regular at Zuzu’s, Milky Way and Middlesex, mixing and matching the slinkiest and slackest of hip-hop, dancehall, soca, house, nu world beats and unexpected rave musics, Rizzla will do everything he can to keep the party going.”
So far my 2011 has been a year of playing out in odd venues. After a spate of guerrilla gigs in machine rooms and lab spaces around Boston, my first DJ appearance in London landed me at an anarchist party in the docklands. Location: a disused boxing club across the street from the former hideout of the Situationist International. Dress code: “Things that shouldn’t go together — and don’t,” exemplified by a prevalence of latex+tweed outfits and one flasher in a jilbaab. As though anarchists in the docklands weren’t contradiction enough.
The hosts of the party were – of course – the Space Hijackers, a squad of self-styled “anarchitects” who have spent the last twelve years executing increasingly in-your-face actions to reclaim London’s public space. Most recently they made headlines from BoingBoing to the BBC World Service for launching a fake “life offsetting” company during the DSEi arms fair. There’s a lot to say about the Hijackers, but rather than try to sum up their work in a few paragraphs, I’ll leave you with a clip of them driving their own tank toward some police officers. OWS, take notes.
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LV & Joshua Idehen – “Melt”
from LV & Joshua Idehen‘s album Routes, an album which came out on Keysound Recordings a few months ago. I’ve listened to the album countless times, played some tracks on the radio, and at parties prior to the unrest in London. I highly recommend it. It’s an impressive, imaginative, muscular, and fun album. On “Melt” Idehen, a Londoner of Nigerian heritage talks about growing up in London on top of a ridiculously good kwaito-informed funky jam provided by LV (very impressive vocal cut ‘n past & repeat action.) So much is said in such little time (youth, class, perseverance,…) & so much understood even when the words aren’t clear!
Que Bajo?! returns to NYC after touring Miami, Medellin, Barranquilla, Bogota, Cali, and SXSW… come hear exclusive new remixes from myself, Uproot Andy, DJ Orion, Toy Selectah, Isa GT and more and check out our guest DJ’s Venus X of the Ghe20 Gothik Party who just rocked the shit out of the fader fort at SXSW and Panchitron from the Peligrosa All Stars crew down in Texas. Pancho’s mixtape stayed in heavy rotation last month for Que Bajo?! fans
Thursday March 31
Le Poisson Rouge
158 Bleeker St
11pm -$10
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I spent my Saturday in doors working on nothing but noizes and beatzes, stopping to watch Al Jazeera‘s coverage of a suddenly chaotic #Egypt – Egyptians demanding for their pharaoh to resign. In the evening, I walked down a couple blocks to a Senegalese-owned halal restaurant called “African-American Cuisine.” On my way back, iPod decided I should stop listening to 8Ball & MJG and pay attention to The Dark, The Third Eye Foundation’s 2010 album. For the most part, I’ve payed attention to Matt Elliot’s output under his birth name, at least since 2003′s The Mess We Made, but not his earlier releases as 3EF. While based on track titles alone “If You Treat Us All Like Terrorists We Will Become Terrorists” sounds apt for the times, “Standard Deviation” is immense, absorbing, murky and warm with low, low rumbles and creeping, ascending voices. If you enjoy this track, the album is a nice cohesive mix-up you should definitely check out.
It has been quite disheartening watching the post-election crisis in Cote d’Ivoire turn from yet another power struggle among African politicians to very dangerous and explosive situation. I’m watching this from a room in Brooklyn, a couch in Northern Virginia; seeing yet another African country on the brink of civil war after its leader refuses to step down gracefully following an election. Mind you, Ivory Coast is still healing and rebuilding from a recent civil war.
In late November, President Laurent Gbagbo, who has ruled the Ivory Coast for the past ten years, lost to opposition candidate Alassane Ouattara in the presidential elections, elections which Gbagbo has already postponed five times in the last six years, meaning polls taking place in 2010 should have happened in 2005! Gbagbo, backed by the national army and security forces/hired youths – “young patriots”/militias refuses to concede and hand over power to Alassane Ouattara, who is recognized as the clear winner by regional body ECOWAS, the African Union, the United Nations and most countries. Ouattara also has the support of former rebel forces (fighters from the civil war still armed and active!)
At the moment, tensions are high. The situation gets awful, more dire with each news report. With more than 170 people reported killed in the post election violence, thousands are fleeing into neighboring countries – with most people seeking refuge in Liberia and Guinea. ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) initially talked about armed intervention using its military wing ECOMOG (which was instrumental in bringing peace to Liberia and Sierra Leone albeit criticisms of abuse and property theft during the civil wars in those countries) but later open the door for more discussions with Gbagbo. In the Ivorien capital, Abidjan, Gbagbo’s security forces/militias are conducting raids, and killing dozens of Ouattara’s supporters, and also threatening to invade the UN-protected hotel in which Ouattara and his ministers are staying/trying to conduct a state business.
International pressure on Gbagbo is failing and the mediation/action from ECOWAS is providing immediate results. We hope for a peaceful settlement, but some sort of resolution must be reached soon so the situation doesn’t escalate. Something radical has to happen to turn this situation around.
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Streets of Abijan – CIAfrica’s Greendog “Afristepdub“
I’ve never been to Ivory Coast (not completely true, because my mother went to Abidjan several times when she was pregnant with me) and I don’t speak or understand french (well, I resisted learning another Euporean language through my high school and college years.) I mentioned these things because I want to say I don’t completely understand CIAfrica’s lyrics and the topics raised in their songs. If you don’t know, CIAfrica is a militant, pan-Africanist rap/reggae/bass music collective based in Abidjan. The collective came of age during the turbulent years of the Gbagbo administration, marked by civil and military unrest. According to the song descriptions/summaries of the tracks on their album on Dutty Artz, CIAfrica makes defiant music, speaks out against fraudulent, hoggish leaders who are determined to stay in power no matter how much blood is spilled, against corruption and brutalization. They are making music in this currently political chaos, and are hustling and trying to visit Europe and North America in 2011. Listen to the track “Negro Politicien” -
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Greetings from the darkside, Londoner Toby Ridler’s Becoming Real project recently unleashed a vicious EP entitled Spectre, outright insane beats with vocals from one vocals/raps from one of grime’s most amazing/underrated MCs Trim. There is also a wicked juke refix of the lead track by DJ Rashad.
“We are all only temporary curators of our present bodies, which will all decay, sooner or later. In a hundred years or so all the humans currently alive will have died. I take great comfort in knowing, with certainty, that thing that makes us special, able to enrich our own lives and those of others, will not cease when our bodies do but will be just starting a new (and hopefully even better) adventure … ” – Peter ‘Sleazy’ Christopherson
Coil was great. I can’t really explain it here. Just returned to NYC after a productive absence but today is one of those “days” where I’m “home” for less than 24 hours. His post– post– Throbbing Gristle project X-TG was slated to play at the GY!BE ATP this weekend, we were looking forward to that…
although his work that really opened my young self up was Coil.
Red Slur is the first Coil song I ever heard. Sometime in high school, these 3 minutes made an indelible impression. It remains one of my favorite songs.
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Coil – Red Slur (from Gold Is The Metal With The Broadest Shoulders)
I loved that they could be honestly, truly creepy…
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If I had more time I would of recorded street traffic and added it as a bonus cut “BK 4’33″ on the new iphone friendly .m4r ring tone version of New York Tropical. Which now happens to be coming out on Nov. 9 – so push back your calendar a week and call it a date.
We are dropping a 12 track tropical compilation just in time for when things start to get cold in New York and hot in Rio. Ten unreleased TROPICAL tunes + anthemic FUNKY THAT WE HAD TO COSIGN and A HEAVYWEIGHT NEW MASTER OF NGUZUNGUZU’s EL BEBE AMBIENTE. We feel bad that we have not kept up our LEGENDARY New York Tropical parties- but we just do not have time to promote a crew club night in New York- but maybe again in the future, with some good partners we would get into it again- because NEW YORK TROPICAL WAS A FUCKING BLESSING. The first time I went was before I had really started working with DA and everything about it was perfect. From the German Belgian installation art that slowly dissolved as the dancefloor spread to all surfaces, to the perfect Sangria, the heavy weight dancehall soundsytem that we rented from SoundMan Grimm, a crowd that reflected the diversity of the music…. basically NYT was one of the dopest party series I’ve ever taken part in (although sadly I never got to play caus I was busy learning things in school and hanging out in Europe).
For the comp we hooked up with DA resident internet excavator Seacrest Cheadle 892 u mean computer mean2 computer did u mean competitor a force that has been so next level for so long that it is basically my only internet news source. We have been dreaming of doing projects with him/it/her/zee since before the first .com crash but he’s basically the zeitgeist embodied and besides pretty regular appearances at Korea Town Karaoke Bars and Neurogenetic labs in undisclosed locations- she is damn near impossible to locate. but somewhere in the #based ether we convinced it them 2 make a deadline… and magically, it worked.
Our promo machine is at about cotton gin status at this point… so we just moving FWD looking towards a more cohesive way to reach a larger audience. I dont open or listen to almost any of the promo email I get, and you dont either. But some of it will keep coming but really this whole thing is about relationships. I, for one, am working on my relationship to the ocean and fresh fruit juice in Brazil. I suggest you keep a dream journal while you ask these questions.
There are also tracks on this compilation from important and soon to be important musicians like Lamin Fofana, Kingdom (flipping RITA INDIANA OMFG!), Lido Pimienta, Matt Shadetek, DJ /Rupture, Chief Boima, DJ Orion, Sonora, Salem, Knight Magic, La Ola Criminal, Maga Bo.
Tracks will be sold digitally via Hulk Share and on custom GuccixDuttyArtz all-over-print USB sticks
Joyful music for an expensive, shitty city with decaying infrastructure where DUTTY ARTZ lives & loves.
Dutty Artz will release Lamin Fofana‘s debut EP What Elijah Said on September 21. Lamin has been steadily working on beats for the past few years, and he’s about to make a public birth.
When we asked him to describe the music, Lamin sent us this sentence: “Yet, he would refer to the Mother Plane, a mysterious space ship with superior beings, giant black gods or something like that, that patrolled the universe, keeping an eye on the devil and ready to rescue Black Muslims from Armageddon.” Sounds like sci-fi, but turns out it’s from the New York Times 1975 obituary (!) for Nation of Islam founder Elijah Muhammad.
Everything is not what it seems, and this music’s mark of greatness is the way it so effortlessly calls for repeat listens.
What Elijah Said EP:
01 Happy 2010 // Dark Days Are Coming
02 “I will admonish you and give you absolution”
03 What Elijah Said // Eye on the Devil
04 Dance In Yr Blood
Artwork: Boy holding fluorescent bulb, photo by Brendan Bannon, Dandora Dumpsite, Nairobi. 8/29/2006. Hundreds of trash pickers scavenge the dump for food, plastic, glass, and metal. Areas of the dump smolder from a slow burn of plastics and detritus just under the surface. Local activist have attempted to close the site due to pollution concerns.
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Lamin Fofana was born in the West African country of Guinea. When the political situation got bumpy, he moved to Freetown, Sierra Leone, where his routine involved listening to Goodie Mob and Organized Konfusion as well as attending Quranic schools/mosques. In 1997 Lamin’s family had to flee worsening conditions in Sierra Leone – losing friends, belongings, documents, a home. They spent several days crossing roads and bridges destroyed by rebels to prevent people from escaping. At the end of the year, Fofana found a new home in Harlem, New York, where he lives today.
