Ageing B-Boys Unite!: Streetsounds Electro 1

The ABU & Disco Scratch Summer Madness!

Well, we've both talked about it, chewed the fat and given you hints but now both myself (Repo) and Waxer can finally give you the whole damn skinny on the event of the summer.

The date is Saturday June 22nd, the event is Summer Madness where you will find yourself maxing and relaxing in the company of other like-minded members of the whole Ageing B-Boys and Disco Scratch fraternity.
You need no reminding of how exactly it is that we roll. We put on no airs or graces and refuse to take the whole hip hop mindset as seriously as we may have once done as an angry young African Medallian-wearing teenager.
Just like the evening surely will be at Summer Madness, the mood is mellow now and all we want to do is kick back and chill with a cool bottle, can or glass of our favourite tipple, chinwag and listen to some great, classic hip hop and cot-damn funky breaks.
Whilst there you will be chatting to people that previously you may have only communicated with in the Disco Scratch chatroom but now you can see what they are like in person!
Pull up a chair, discuss the finer points of nodding your head on the up or downbeat with JimCee and Bit; discover just what goes into preparing the finest cookies with LG's Biscuit Roulette; ask Mrs Waxer in person if it is actually a diploma or a degree? The sky really is the limit, folks.

We have purposefully decided NOT to call this event a jam because we are not booking any acts to perform. However due to the spontaneity of this culture we love (not live, c'mon unless you're Westwood) then if anyone feels like dropping some lyrical outpourings on the mic then, just like Aviva Insurance, we got your back.
We have plans for you all to get interactive up in here should you wish to. Two activities that are designed to keep you steppin', brother man, are Rap Karaoke and Scratch-aoke. Get on the microphone as the liquid refreshment is the key to unlock that patter you've kept locked in your dome for 20 years and unleash it over a familiar beat.
Drop that famous scratch you've practiced so many times over your favourite tune. Scratch like Eric B and win a prize!

Summer Madness will also bring to you something that Waxer and myself feel is almost unheard of, especially around hip hop circles.
This is an effort to get family together. The Disco Scratch Thursday Night Wives are cordially invited, nay, begged to attend this gathering. And not only that but if you have kids then WE WANT THE SHORTIES!
Yes, we are proud to give you a special event that will give your kids the opportunity to shine and be a part of the day. For two hours the music selection will be provided by the dj's of tomorrow. Your cherished offspring can play 4 or 5 tunes each and get a taste of what being behind the wheels of steel with a booming system is like. Don't have vinyl? We have Traktor. We got your tunes. We taking care of bidness, yo.

The sun will shine. And what else do we need to keep the funk flowing? This party needs a Hip Hop Pub Quiz, you say? Way ahead of you, tough guy. Like the J-Beez, we got it like that. Teams of 4 are needed here - however Whirlwind D is in a team of one, possibly bound and gagged to let everyone else in with a chance. Drop the knowledge and prove to your missus that all those years of reading vinyl run-out grooves have certainly not been in vain.

With the sun beating down on your baseball hat, we're sure the need for grub will be most anticipated along with your bring-your-own-beer. A BBQ with the sweetest meat this side of The Real Roxanne will be handled by a team of hip hop honeys to provide you with a mouth-watering selection of chicken, burgers, sausages and ribs.

And of course a Bouncy Castle and Water Slide for the little 'uns and a Hot Tub for the mums and dads.

The whole thing kicks off at 2pm with the booming system toned down to a chilled-level at midnight where we can carry on until the small hours.
The venue is in a large, spacious house with ample parking in a quiet lane situated in the South-East of England.

This is not only a family affair but a modest one, too. We are keeping the numbers down to 40 adults.
Tickets are £10 each and a Family Ticket is available at £30. A one adult/one child option is also available at £15.

(The above Paypal button has cut-off the information on the Single Ticket option. It should read: Single Ticket (One Adult or One Child).
The last date to purchase, should there still be tickets available, will be Friday May 31st. Don't sleep on this.

This is a non-profit event and should any profit be made it will go straight back into the kitty to buy booze! How you like them apples?

Tuesday, 6 May 2008

Streetsounds Electro 1

The first instalment of the mighty Streetsounds Electro album series started wayyy back in 1983. Mixed by Herbie Laidley, a name to become synonymous with the series ("mixed by Mastermind on the GLI"), these albums immediately intended to hit the floor running - a new style of music AND each track segued into the next?

Beginning the album is I'm The Packman (Eat Everything I Can) by The Packman. Who remembers the video game PAC-MAN? Well if you're a regular reader of this Blog then that must mean you. Over time video games and Electro would collide regularly (check pages 94 and 29 of David Toop, 'THE RAP ATTACK, AFRICAN JIVE TO NEW YORK HIP HOP' Pluto Press 1984). This was actually a great intro for bringing this new robotic music to the masses as it contained all the stereotypical elements of Electro Funk - drum machine beats, lots of claps, dark synth basslines and looming vocoder.

Next is the chipmunk sound of Jam On Revenge (The Wikki-Wikki Song) by Newcleus which uses a simple combination of claps, kicks and snares for the rhythm and a repetitive hookline. I like the Grandmaster Flash spoof just before Herbie busts an inventive scratch. West Street Mob's Break Dancin' - Electric Boogie is the flip of what we've heard so far with the live cutting and scratching of Apache which was more in relation to what was being done in the small Bronx clubs.

If you think the next song is similar to early Bambaataa stuff then a quick shufty at the producer's name might be a clue. Get Wet by C-Bank is more than a little close to sounding like Looking For The Perfect Beat which John Robie also produced.

Yet another sub genre in Electro is displayed on K-9 Corp's Dog Talk which uses a big chunk of George Clinton's P-Funky Atomic Dog (later to be used by Icecube).
Some more vocoder action on G. Force's Feel The Force follows which is a nice, unassuming track which although not great still does the job.

A sign of the times is shown by the title of Project Future's Ray - Gun - Omics. Don't be misled by the song's chirpy rhythm and melody, the vocoder'd vocals state, "High inflation, Reaganomics / And taxation, more atomics / Reaganomics, high inflation, / More atomics, and taxation" in the age of President Ronald Reagan.

A basic scratch heralds the Return Of Captain Rock by, erm, Captain Rock. This is my pick of the album with some great beats, production and clear vocals. The Prodigy famously used this on their debut lp for the track Hyperspeed (G-Force Part 2).

So there we have it. Streetsounds has unleashed this strange new music called Hip Hop on us. What did we make of it? It brought to the nation's teenagers a new revolution in music, that's what. And started me breaking my parents' hi-fi system, too.

Download Electro 1