Dem Bonez

What it is, blog crew...

Hoping all are well.

If you haven't seen Bonez's (djbonezblog) blog post about us working together yet, well, this may be some pleasantly surprising news. I have known Bonez for years now. I mean years. It's funny that even though we've moved in close circles, we're just getting to work together.

I've always respected the man as a DJ. I guess cos he comes from the same school / era as myself. He's got the funky & simple (and I don't mean 'easy', when I say that) cuts which I dig. Similar stylings to Danielsan. So you know we had to click when it came to working on a tune.

Bonez gave me a ring one day, said he had an idea, and I was like, "hell yeah... about time you asked me to do something with you!". Haha. So he sent me the beat, I laid down some demos, he dug it and, as you can see from the photo, I came through Bonez's studio and we got busy. Great bloke to work with, too. And yeah, I'm fortunate to work with the top dudes in this country.

So... what does it sound like? Ahhh... you'll have to wait for Bonez's album to be released for you to check it out. I jokingly said I was going to leak it on the net. He wasn't having it. Haha...

Sydney crew! 

Hoping all are well.

If you dig genuine hip hop, then make your way to this event this Friday night (25th Sept.) @ Melt, Kings Cross. Finale is a talented Detroit MC who has worked with the likes of J Dilla, Black Milk and Flying Lotus on his solid debut album, 'A Pipe Dream and a Promise' (out now!!!). If you haven't heard it yet, please get acquainted.

I'll be hosting the night, so come down, say hello, have a drink and witness Finale and one of Australia's premier hip hop producers, M-Phazes,  let it fly.

Click pic for details. Blam!

RIP Grandmaster Roc Raida

The X-ecutioners: (l-r) Rob Swift, Boogie Blind, Total Eclipse, Roc Raida (RIP), me & Precision

Being apart of the hip hop community is like being part of a big family. When some one dies, you are immediately affected. This year we've seen the passing of some great artists - Baatin (Slum Village), DJ AM, of course, Michael Jackson, and now, DJ Grandmaster Roc Raida.

Big fella was and is still a big part of the whole turntablism movement. A true pioneer. Roc Raida is well respected in the hip hop community and has the skills to warrant so.

I had the honour of meeting Roc Raida when he and the X-ecutioners came into the triple j Hip Hop Show for an interview and for them to do what they do best - mash up the turntables. Roc Raida seemed like a very focussed dude yet he still had a top sense of humour. Much like the other boys.

So with all that being said, I do a big salute to Mr. Raida, his legacy, his family and his supporters. Bless up, my man.

The Jacob Giles Sessions Ep. 2

OK folks. On the last entry, I mentioned that myself and Jacob were in the studio when he issued a challenge. Here it is...

The challenge:
Writing 16 bars in 16 minutes.

The result:
Nothing that would feature on 'The Blueprint 4', but it ain't too shabby either.

In this clip, see us through the writing and recording process of this 'untitled' track.
Stay tuned for part two to hear the whole song.

The Jacob Giles Sessions

How's it, blog peoples?

Hoping all are well.

If you don't know the name 'Jacob Giles' - that's cool. But I'm sure you will start to hear that name more often. Who is he? He is a top bloke who also happens to be a talented producer and lyricist. A breath of fresh in this sometime stale scene. He is also one half of 1NFO (long side the man, Nick Knowledge) and the man also has solo ambitions (az a ridah! Hehe...). Oh, if you haven't got the free (yes, free) 1NFO mixtape, get it right HERE!

OK, getting back to it. On my down time, I have been coolin' with Jacob - building, making music and doing some recordings for a side solo project. He has an appreciation for the art of sampling but loves to mix it up with some live instrumentation. So the sessions have been going well as Jacob is an inspirational person to work with. Stay tuned to hear some of that goodness we've created.

During our last session, Jacob laid down a challenge for the both of us, right there and then in the studio. Watch for the next post as to what we got up to. Hold tight, curious crew.

The Roof, the Roof, the Roof is On Fire!

How art thou, blog crew?

Just letting you know about this event coming up real soon. Yes, yes I know. I thought the same thing, too, when my man, Carlos, told me about it. Being on top of a tall'ish building's rooftop on 9/11? ¿Está usted loco, el hermano?

Nah, the brother ain't crazy. Just passionate about his music and city. So what better way to celebrate the two by putting this on? Exactly.

There will be a live band mashing it up and I think guest vocalist and musicians will be joining them on stage throughout the night. Who knows? I may even grab the mic to do my damn thang. Keep me charged off the vodka & soda and that will be more than a possibility.

OK brothers & sisters - I hope to see you there. Bam!

The Memory Lane Edition: APEX RIP

I was digging (do you still call it that when looking at 'em on the computer???) through some old photos and I came across this. Man, what a trip to see it. I totally forgot that I had this. It was taken in a pub in Sydney. A hip hop night.

That's me (duh!) with my man, Angel aka APEX. Him, along with some other crew, were the first blokes we ('we' meaning: myself and DJ Danielsan) met and hung out with in Sydney. We must've met them in the early 90's. Just when the Sydney scene was really starting to create some top shelf hip hop.

It was a quite exciting time (especially cos we were coming up from Queanbeyan & Canberra!). Graff had already established some killer writers & crews in Sydney. Same as DJs. But the MC'ing had lacked a bit of quality and authenticity. Not only in Sydney, but nation-wide. But around this time, things were about to change.

Def Wish Cast were really leading the way (although, honestly speaking, I wouldn't have admitted that back then. Haha...). Their unrelenting bboy style was really creating a buzz and the west Sydney-siders carried the torch for all the hardcore massive.

A duo named The Fonke Knowmaads were doing their thing, too. They had a really developed sound that was pretty much inspired by the east coast US hip hop. Their style and approach to music was almost on the other end of the scale to what DWC were doing. So there was a broad spectrum beginning to develop in ol' Sydney town.

Filling in the gaps were Crews like Voodoo Flavour, Illegal Substance, 046, Black Hand, Noble Savages and of course, Sound Unlimited Posse (which was created after Westside Posse disbanded). SUP were the first local hip hop outfit to be signed to a major label. Well, weren't there some lessons to be learned there???

A trio I admired from afar, Urban Poets, were about to expand into a ground breaking collective called Easy Bass. The crew consisted of IllPickl, JU, a young DJ Leeroy Brown, a baby Sleeping Monk & a well-skilled kid named Simple. Then there were us guys who were close affiliates. APEX, Mr. Clean, Simonitor and myself (amongst others). They were a very talented bunch of people and mad inspiring to be around.

Easy Bass released a tape called 'Space Programme' in '96. Man, it was as fresh as an immigrant just getting off the boat. High quality beats, rhymes and cuts. The whole package. You'd be hard pressed trying to find a copy of it, though. It had a limited press, but damn if you find yourself one... pass me a dub!

Now back to this particular photo. It must have been taken around '06 or '07. Unfortunately, APEX passed away last year in '08 from a motor cycle accident. Crazy sh!t. I thought I'd post this photo up here in salute to a tough man who was very capable on both the mic and the beats (and apparently the hands. Bam!). I'm sure he'd be happy to know that the Parra Eels are going great guns at the moment.

Much blessings brother.

Since I'm on a memory trip buzz, gotta send universal daps & pounds to my KOA crew, Dr. Phibes, Blaze, Kavi, Katalyst and MC Trey.

For more photos from this night with APEX, head to the Koolism myspace by clicking right HERE!



* All this is from memory. And you know, the ol' think tank ain't like what it used to be. Haha...

** Nothing wrong with my eye in this photo. Just trying to style on ya. Where's my Slick Rick eye-patch?

Old Time Goodness

OK, here's the gist. For those who know me, know I'm a biiig London Posse fan. If you have not heard of them, please click on that teeny weeny 'x' box at the top corner of this page.

For those who are hip to the game, you will at least recognise one of these rude boys in the car (notice I said, 'rude boys'. If I had said 'sad fulla', you would have sited the driver. Who is DJ & radio personality, Tim Westwood).

The bloke you should be familiar with, is the dude in the dark glasses. That, my friends, is one of England's... hell... one of the UK's finest MC's ever (in my humble non-living-in-the-UK opinion). Bionic. Even speaking with fellow former London Posse bad man, Rodney P (see me name dropping, right? Haha...) one time bout Bionic, he, too, agreed that Bionic was in a league of his own.

The bloke to his side on the beatbox, is founder of London Posse, Sipho (RIP). Apparently talented as hell, too. The footage I have seen of him on the ol' vocal percussion tip... yeah, he got the skills to definitely pay the bills.

Anyway, here they are, just chillin' in the back of some dodgy car lettin' it fly. Even though they're in casual mode, I reckon this kills 70% of artists' efforts today. Remember, this is like mid to late 80's. Proper.