26 January 2010
Bobby Burningman Videos 1-3
Check out the three videos we shot of the trip to Burningman 2010. The trip across the states, Burningman by day & Burningman by night!
20 January 2010
Sub Swara in South India.
Sub Swara are without any doubt unique in the world of left-field Desi Electronica. With a manic attention to detail and militancy in their work ethic, both Dhruva Ganesan & Dave Sharma make sure their music lives in a space of its own. With both of them being accomplished multi-percussionists as well as great users of software it means we get Desi Dub-stepped audio made by musicians, as opposed to producers. Yay!
They are now beavering away on the follow up to ‘Coup d’Yah’, their debut album. This entails trips between bedrooms & studios in New York, as well as trips out to Chennai in the Motherland. Initial ’sketches’ of ideas in beat form are taken to musicians (who also work with AR Rahman) for them to play over, which Sub Swara then cut up and reproduce. The reason Sub Swara’s percussion & bass heavy sound is so unique is they go down the production route like scientists instead of just throwing in some tabla to make it ‘Desi’. I remember once Dave Sharma telling me about the 20+ rhythm tracks they had layered in the studio whilst creating their biggest track yet, ‘Koli Stance’. I also love the way Dhruva blogs about the different drums he’s been recording in Chennai,
“…sick instruments that aren’t often heard, like bass dholak (wow, ridiculous sub on that one), and folk drums like nagara and ghat singhari (clay pot with a leather skin on top for that super modulating wuump wuump kinda vibe).”
I think it’s safe to say that we all need a bit more ‘ghat singhari’ givin us some ‘wuump wuump’ in our lives! This is their latest video Blog, which sees Dhruva in the process of getting some great ‘wuump wuump’.
19 January 2010
Jaya Loves DJ’s.
Don’t just think that this Blog is about Muslim Punks, Desi Dub-Step and the politics of race…We also have room for a fully fledged fittie freaking us the f*ck out inna full-on pop stylee. Yes! Jaya is the latest Desi missile launched at the UK charts with all the bravado as well as the looks, that may just take her all the way.
When I interviewed her on my show as a Friction Introducing artist she told me about how her father was a Hindu priest, and that growing up in Wembley ensured that she got the full multi-culti musical deal in terms of influences. She’s young enough to almost be my daughter so I shall refrain from telling you what I was thinking about when I watched her video for the first time, but feel free to unleash ‘your’ inner angst in the comments section below.
I’m playing the Bharet Goel & Middleman Desi remix of her debut ’DJ, Do It Again’ on the Asian Network at the moment, and The single is out on the 22nd February. Check out her website (with great pictures) here.
14 January 2010
White Boyz & Brown Girlz.
I will not get involved in the debate I hear in pubs & front rooms around the country whenever a bunch of Desi men get together, but its safe to say that most conversations about ‘the ladies’ usually turn to how much ‘White’ men love ‘Asian’ women. In the chilled situations its usually just an observation, whereas add some alcohol to the mix and accusations fly about how its ‘Colonial’, or that ‘White’ women don’t love ‘Asian’ men as much as ‘White’ men love ‘Asian…etc…Yadda Yadda Yadda..!
That debate is for another time and another Blog post – BUT if aforementioned ‘White’ men had a theme song it would surely be ‘Indian Girl’ by Canada’s Peter Jackson & Patrick Christopher. I’m playing this track on my show at the moment, and its a sharp piece of work out next month…I just wish I was a singer, so I could write ‘English Girl’ and make a video that consisted of me gettin my grind on (from behind) with a fit young blonde ting!
Ps. Just so you know – This Website believes with a Fundamentalism that would make Bin Laden cower, that mixed marriages are the future. : )
13 January 2010
New M.I.A. – There’s a Space for Ol Dat I See (Feat. Rusko)
The latest installments in Sister Arulpragasam’s career happened in quick succession yesterday with her declaring the new album would have “no gimmicks“, .
according to Sean Michaels at The Guardian, and then a tweet from her with this video & track attached. She’s been working with Rusko in the states on the follow up to Kala as well as with Switch & Diplo, and ‘There’s a Space for Ol Dat I see’ is the first look we’ve had at the new material.
Its a very ambient piece compared to the full throttle insanity of the first two albums, albeit with her trademark delivery, and if its a peek into her state of mind in this new decade then all I can say is motherhood has calmed her the f*ck down..x
11 January 2010
Desi Ga Ga.
Kazz Kumar was quickly added to the Sona Family’s line-up a couple of years ago, after Hard Kaur’s loud & scrappy exit - and during those first few months stuck in between Harry Sona & MC Riz it seemed she may have been brought in primarily for her exotic wardrobe and multitude hair colours. But since then she’s slowly built up a loyal following as an artist in her own right, as well as a creative individual who has a momentum that just screams “Watch This Space!”
It may seem sometimes that her main role within the Desi music industry is to be photographed week after week in another ludicrous (but oh so cool) outfit, pouting and snarling into the camera lens, but 25th January 2010 is when her debut single ‘Dirty Word’ is released, and as you can see from this video its a bloody corker! The track and video both capture what I love about her – namely her ability to exist within the worlds of pop as well as independent cool at the same time. If you’re still not convinced check out the Maida Vale session she did on my Asian Network show for ‘Friction Introducing’ – we knew back then she wasn’t just a clotheshorse!
16 December 2009
Engine-Earz Experiment – ‘Kaliyuga’
Listen to this track by the most exciting thing to have happened in South Asian Electronica in years
- and once you’ve heard it you can tell me how you wanted to have a bass-heavy riot to celebrate the end of the world!
It gets its release this week backed up by the “just as sublime” ‘Introspector’ – Go and bag Yo’Self a copy..here