feeling's tight

Today, a 1979 disco classic from GQ, "Disco Nights (Rock Freak)." Nice wah-ed out guitars, some great work on the organ and keys, and excellent vocal harmonies. Just wish the track was a bit longer!

GQ- Disco Nights (Rock Freak)

Also, I behoove you to check out some advance proofs of the first official book to be released by DJHistory, The Disco Files 1973-1978 by Vince Aletti, including some amazing photos, playlists from Larry Levan and other DJ pioneers, and Aletti's own weekly analysis of the disco movement from its infancy until its heyday. Download a PDF of some proofs here. Looking great, yeah?

drift therapy

My brother in house, Leo, sent me a wonderful track from Fred P.'s latest split release with Connecticut's DJ Jus-Ed. "Theropy" is a 126-bpm deep bit, with hypnotic congas, a nice muffled kick, and synths reminiscent of Carl Craig's early work. Delayed vocal samples and crisp hand-claps make the track real winner, something nice and groovin' perfect for starting off a deep set. Check it, spread it!

Fred P.- Theropy



Next up, a track from Glimpse's upcoming record on Planet-E. Carl Craig's remix of "Drifting" is a 125-bpm, more restrained take on the original. The melodic loop is kept back until the point of breaking, then the piece explodes as excellently-panned pseudo-squelch and hi-frequency washes abound. The main loop itself is given more reverb, some hallucinatory alterations and excellent snips which will sound great on a big club system. The drum programming is also consistently more interesting and subtle than the original-- not surprising given Mr. Craig's penchant for such! Excellent stuff, hop on this.

Glimpse- Drifting (Carl Craig Remix)

Tomorrow, some stuff about books and some disco for your ears. I am in Chicago from the 11th until the 15th, so expect some wildness in the next week, especially because I am finally witnessing a live Moodymann set on Valentine's Day!!

on our way home

Past week has been insanity with work, new friends just moved to town, housing interviews, and what not. Sorry if this blog has been dusty!

That said, I've been listening to lots more hip-hop-oriented stuff as of recent-- nothing too radio-friendly, but some gems. Perhaps one of the most heralded albums of 2008 was Los Angeles by Flying Lotus, and with good reason. Along with some more danceable numbers like "Parisian Goldfish" (which also functioned as a soundtrack to an unaired Tim & Eric bit), the album is full of some truly insane, left-field beats. "RobertaFlack" is a smoothed-out, almost neo-soul number with a nice, lazy roll to it, an excellent melodic loop, hi-frequency synth squawks and lazered moments, and some very ethereal vocals, courtesy of Dolly. The track's end features some hallucinogenic acid lines of great sonic texture. A fucking plus.

Flying Lotus- RobertaFlack (featuring Dolly)



Next up is a track from Omar-S' hip-hop record. "Turn and Walk Away" just has that special sound of old-school hip-hop: beautiful cracklin' piano samples, crisp hi-hats and near-explosive snare hits. The nostalgic quality to the track is inescapable, and really makes me feel great. Should do the same for you! Now we just need some vocals on this biz.

Omar-S- Turn and Walk Away

Soon enough: a great, unheralded deep piece from last year.