La traduction

For those who asked me for a translation of the P45 thing...I think it sounds better the way that Vero did it!

I always liked reggae, but when I heard Stone Love, I was smitten. Stone Love isn’t a band, but a soundsystem—one of Jamaica’s many mobile discos, a concept that has been around for almost fifty years, playing the music audiences demand to hear. A soundsystem is so much more than just a DJ, it’s a whole experience. I didn’t think that music could be so loud, so powerful and so fun. From that moment forward I have had a love affair with Jamaican music, specifically dancehall and especially at top volume.

One of the things that’s particularly wonderful about the types of music played at a soundsystem event is that some of the sweetest tunes—stuff called lover’s rock—gets just as much of a response as the most intense dancehall. Jamaican music is so varied. Granted, sometimes I’m beyond disappointed by the lyrical content, but I tend to focus on the positive stuff I like and simply don’t support the negative.

Given the sheer amount of tunes available, for this playlist (or playlists!) I chose some of my favourite tunes from 2008 and split them up according to mood. Depending on how you’re feeling check out a little something soft or a little something hard. I like ‘em both equally.

Have an argument about a frying pan...

When lovely, Jamaica-bound Larissa and equally lovely Matt came to stay a few weeks ago, they showed me a hilarious and brilliant thing by Lev Yilmaz. I've now gone through all of this fellow's videos and I think he's all the more hilarious and brilliant. Take the following, for example.

Lazer Frere-Jones

I have been promising to tell you about "lazer bass” (my own dumb term) for a while now.
So the New Yorker/SFJ has written about the lazer-guided melodies coming out of Montreal--specifically those of the folks I wrote about last month in the Mirror, though I already linked to that below, so doing it here is probably overkill.

I'm happy these guys are getting some shine--and from the New Yorker, no less. I had been thinking about writing more about the whole interconnected fun that is what Megasoid, Blingmod, Lunice, Mofomatronix and co. come up with. It really is terribly enjoyable music and there's a lot of Montreal in it. I wanted to write a response to Louis Pattison's piece "Electro feels the shock of the old" where he states that if you "look to the new innovations in electronic and dance music in the last couple of years, and they, too, seem curiously retrogressive."

Maybe it's just me, but I do see something a little new in the stuff that's being created here in Montreal, down in California and across the pond in Scotland (and probably in other places where there's access to the internet and an interest in bass-heavy dance music).
When talking to the boys behind Turbo Crunk, the monthly celebration of lazer fun here in Montreal, I said that I thought this stuff was the anti-dubstep. Now, I've been told that bassline is the anti-dubstep--where dubstep is boy music, bassline is girl music. I see bassline as being much more heterosexual-it's-dark-let's-dance-sexy-and-hook-up music, but I see what Sasha Frere-Jones calls "lazer bass" as being an antidote to dubstep in a much different way.

Sure, dubstep draws a very male crowd. Having being to FWD a coupla times, I can testify to this fact. Thing is, I think that what's more emblematic about dubstep is its earnestness. It's no surprise that Burial, who may not sound like a lot of dubstep, comes out of this scene. Burial's stuff simply matches other dubstep where this earnest factor is concerned. "Lazer bass" (I might as well use the term) seems to be able to balance this factor with terrific fun and almost self-mockery--if you don't believe me, check Blingmod's costumes and Lunice's myspace videos. SFJ says this stuff combines hyphy, Autechre, and Timbaland--among others. But it's not pretentious. There is no pretense of this being some "scene" to end all scenes. If music like this took off in London, they'd be calling it a movement. In Montreal, it's just damn good fun.

Top Stuff

It's that time of year again. Is it just me, or do I seem way off in some bizarre left field...
Top 10 albums
Burial Untrue (Hyperdub)
Ghislain Poirier No Ground Under (Ninja Tune/Outside)
Tinariwen Aman Iman (World Village)
Mavado Gangster for Life (VP)
Vieux Farka Toure self-titled (Modiba)
Arcade Fire Neon Bible (Merge/FAB)
Andy Palacio & the Garifuna Collective Wátina (Combancha)
Skream Rinse 02 (Rinse FM)
Sdunkero Edladleni Vol. 1 (House Afrika)
King Jammy’s Selector’s Choice Vols. 1-4 (VP)

Bottom 3 albums
Bunny Rabbit Lovers and Crypts (Voodoo-Eros)
Sinead O’Connor Theology (Koch)
Shaggy Intoxication (VP)

Best song: Teddy Afro, “Abebeyehosh”/Mutya Buena and Groove Armada, “Song 4 Mutya” (tie)
Worst song: Natasha Bedingfield, “I Wanna Have Your Babies”
Best show: Ghislain Poirier, la Tulipe, Nov. 2
Worst show: Benga and Hatcha, Death of Vinyl, Oct. 27

“My cheerleading of Ghislain continues. Heaps of fun as always, his launch demonstrated just how much fun an audience crammed with Montrealers can be. Benga and Hatcha came out swinging, but the crowd was far less than stellar. It’s pot, not coke, that goes with dubstep, kids! If that’s my biggest complaint though, things seem to be quite all right. Now, if only I could convince someone to launch a kwaito/2-step night, this city would be perfect.”

Cocktails, Cocktails and Countdowns

Last Thursday I hosted a no beer/no wine party--seulement les cockatails! I also insisted (because I like to makes demands of my friends) on cocktail attire. For photos check here. I had a few too many Woohoos, Ameretto Sours, Coke and Wines (thanks Pierre), Alize and Juices, Lemon Jacks, and, I think, Jedi Mind Tricks. After a while it was really tough to tell. Clearly I was intoxicated, else I wouldn't have allowed Ms. Vero to do this. Anyhow, it was a whole lot of fun, so thanks to all who showed up and gave me an opportunity to wear my prom dress again.

The next day I had to write my top ten of the year--no real surprises, except maybe that I'm totally crazy for Keak da Sneak. How great an album is Kunta Kinte? I was at the Mighty Crown dance on Friday (unfortunately not as well attended as one might have wished, but still fun) and they palyed a number of versions of "Ridin' Dirty." Not bad, but when I am going to hear dancehall voicings of hyphy tunes? How great would that be? Seriously.

Imagine what Sizzla or Capleton could do with this: