Bob (King of the delta blues) has quit his job and is about to set off on an eight month trip with his wife Gemma to India and Central america. While away he is going to be doing some work for Aid camps international and its partner NGO, Social Change and Development (SCAD) in Tamil Nadu, India to help provide English classes to trainee teachers and staff at its technical college whilst also sharing his professional skills as a design and technology teacher.

SCAD supports over 300,000 people in two districts to free themselves from a life of grinding poverty and debt to one of hope and opportunity through education and training. He is raising funds for the project on behalf of the charity.

The initial target is £500 but he would love to manage a bit more.

Gemma is running a half marathon to raise cash but Bob’s knees are too shot for that, so he is going to attempt an eight hour all-nighter internet radio marathon. It’s going to be on Friday 30th July from 10pm till 6am. Stick it in your diary.

As Bob digs deep in his record collection, risking back ache and square eyes, please dig deep in your pockets and sponsor as much as you can.

Bob’s donation page is here:

http://www.aidcamps.org/robertjohnston/default.aspx

More information on SCAD is here:

http://www.salt-of-the-earth.org.uk/

Cheers!

Our good friends at Festinho HQ have invited Purple Radio along to their fab August bank holiday festival to play some records. We’ll be providing tuneage all weekend across various stages, so we’d love to see you there.

Also, we’re donating all 2010 profits from the sale of Purple Radio clothing at Dizzyjam to the good people at Festinho who’s ace festival is in aid of the Action for Brazil’s Children Trust (ABC), which is dedicated to helping the most vulnerable children and young people of Brazil.

See you in a field (hopefully in a nice new t-shirt), soon.

Cheers

PR

My monthly Steel City Loungecore shows are available for download via Soundcloud.

Due to space issues on my account (cheapskate that I am), there is only room for two shows to be hosted at a time, so I will be taking the oldest one down each time I post a new one.

As of now, the June and July shows are available – the June show will disappear when the August one is uploaded and so on…

If anyone wants any of the previous mixes just contact me and I’ll sort something out for you.

 Banger #2 has now been served. This time we have (non-funky) house monster It’s Yours by Jon Cutler featuring E-Man.

Eat it all up now!

Streaming and download

Hola

This is the first in a series of tracks to download that have rocked the Purple Radio airwaves/gigs over the years.

We’re kicking off with Mr Scruff’s super-wonky mix of Capoeira Twins ~ Four (4×3) and the series will continue until we’ve run out of pictures of veggie sausages to post.

Enjoy!

Streaming and download

Been meaning to post this for ages but the recent (off the scale) Leftside Wobble edit of this amazing dancefloor bomb gave me a much needed kick up the arse to dig it out and rip at full fat 320 kbps for your listening pleasure.

Turn it up!

Streaming and download

Purple Radio, friends and family are having a Summer shindig in a beautiful corner of South Warwickshire, 10 minutes from the Cotswolds and Stratford-upon-avon. 

Here’s what is happening.

Fri 25th June – pitch tents, a few beers, wander to a local boozer, hang about. No big party. No food so bring your own or eat out. LIMITED TO THE FIRST 40 PEOPLE TO PAY.

Sat 26th – arrive, pitch tents.

12 noon til 12 midnight -  music  in a great outdoor space. Two 10m Indian teepees mean it’s weather proof and top fun. DJs, live music and general lounging about. Home cooked dinner.

Midnight – 2am – late night music in the barn for the late night crew. It’s a cramped but ace space. Make for a great party.

Midnight onwards – bonfire for those what don’t dance

Sunday 27th – home cooked breakfast, from pigs and hens who sleep yards away. Tea, coffee and lazy morning music. More lounging.  Clear off about lunchtime (and in plenty of time to catch the England game in the local boozer if you so wish.)

This could be you.

Cost: £35 inc evening meal and breakfast. Kids 5 -14, £10.

Sleep: bring a tent.

Wash & wee: Lovely, newly built cedar loo and shower block. Hot water all day.

Want to come? Then get in touch – but make it quick, just nine places left.

Ray Mang’s chunky, chugging remix of West Phillips ~ (I’m Just A) Sucker For A Pretty Face. A 2003 release on the mighty Eskimo Recordings, this is the full version rather than the weedy radio edit that’s also on the 12″.

Enjoy.

Streaming and download

I have dug around in some old folders and collected all the playlists from my Purple Radio shows from 2007-2009.

And here they are for anyone who’s interested:
2007
2008
2009

Purple Radio has won Internet Radio Station of the Year 2009-2010!
Full list of winners
Celebrations here!
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The second of my two Favourite Bits of 2009 shows (the other is here) – this show is mainly about the downtempo, more electronic side of the svelte repertoire, though there’s some off-kilter indie and folkish type business in the middle, and a couple of tracks to dance to at the end.

You can download the whole show from here, or check out a limited number of tracks (about 50 mins worth) through Spotify here. Again, I urge you to go and buy records you like, or check out the various gigs these people do. THEY DESERVE YOUR CASH.

The all important tracklisting and links to stuff wot I talked about in the show:

1. Bat For Lashes – ‘The Big Sleep’ from Two Suns (EMI)
2. Bowerbirds – ‘Beneath Your Tree’ from Upper Air (Dead Oceans)
3. Kathryn Williams – ‘Sustain Pedal (live)’ from The Quickening (One Little Indian)
4. Antony and The Johnsons – ‘Dust And Water’ from The Crying Light (Rough Trade)
5. The Beaufort Scale – ‘Boej Kashmet’ from Forgotten Memories (Bandcamp)
6. LJ Kruzer – ‘Ter4’ from Manhood & Electronics (Uncharted Audio)
7. Tim Hecker – ‘Borderlands’ from An Imaginery Country (Kranky)
8. Peter Broderick – ‘Diverge’ from Docile (Erased Tapes)
9. St Vincent – ‘The Bed’ from Actor (4AD)
10. Gènia – ‘John Richards Suite for Piano and Electronics (Gabriel Prokofiev ‘Dirty Organ’ Remix)’ from John Richards – Suite for Piano and Electronics (Nonclassical)
11. Bill Callahan – ‘My Friend’ from Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle (Drag City)
12. Sleepy Sun – ‘Golden Artifact’ from Embrace (ATP)
13. Mama Lucky – ‘House Of The Unknown’ from Permanent Stranger (Mama Lucky)
14. The Duckworth Lewis Method – ‘Jiggery Pokery’ from The Duckworth Lewis Method
15. Samandtheplants – Henbane Beer from The Eft (Twisted Nerve)
16. Micachu – Curly Teeth from Jewellery (Warner Bros)
17. YACHT – Psychic City from See Mystery Lights (DFA)
18. Fever Ray – Dry And Dusty from Fever Ray (Rabid)
19. Soap&Skin – Marche Funèbre (DJ Koze Marxa mix) from Marche Funèbre EP (Pias)
20. Yimino – Doe from Autonoe Vera (Ominim)
21. Eno – Moebius – Roedelius – Foreign Affairs from After The Heat (Water)
22. Lucky Elephant – Neptune from Starsign Trampoline (Sunday Best)
23. Major Lazer – Pon de Floor from Guns Don’t Kill People… Lazers Do (Downtown)
23. Four Tet – Love Cry (Joy Orbison Remix) from Love Cry 12″ (Domino)
24. Black Meteoric Star – ‘World Eater’ from Black Meteoric Star (DFA)

Chimera Productions – who put on Blank Canvas

LJ Kruzer @ Concrete, Saturday 16th January

First Biosphere symphonic work and the London Contemporary Orchestra @ The Roundhouse, Saturday 23rd January

Samandtheplants, Jon Hopkins and many more at a Celebration of Quiet Music @ Cecil Sharp House, Saturday 23rd January

Kathryn Williams @ Purcell Room, Saturday 6th March

Varese 360° @ The Southbank Centre, 16 – 18 April

Four Tet and Joy Orbison @ The Dome, Tufnell Park, 12th February

Rounding up my favourite records from this year (and what a great year it’s been for electronic disco – there’s been some amazing music released).

2009 retrospective pt.1

Touch Sensitive ~ Body Stop
Atomico ~ Disco Fantasy
Beard Science #4 ~ Clean Energy (Harrison Fraud edit)
Bent ~ Always (Mighty Mouse mix)
Atlantic Conveyor ~ We Are
Casinoboy ~ Timerider
Detroit Experiment ~ Think Twice (Mark E mix)
Eddie Tour ~ Come In To My Life
Mikki ~ Dance Lover (Dub)
Situation ~ Love In Me
Craig Smith ~ The Soul (Part II)
John Talabot ~ Sunshine
Dirt Metal Choir ~ Body Dub
Neighbour ~ Phyllo
Ledgroove ~ Being 90s Thru The 80s
Shit Robot ~ Simple Things
Partners In Crime ~ Get In To It

Streaming & download

2009 retrospective pt.2

Arcadion ~ Fly Vision
Billy Bogus ~ Alphabet City
Floating Points ~ Love Me Like This (Nonsense dub)
Eddie C ~ Let Your Mind Be Free
Black @!#$ ~ Shine On
Eddie C ~ Make It Better
AN-2 ~ From Now On
Crimea X ~ 10pm
Nick Chacona & Anthony Mansfield ~ Swungfunk
Phreek Plus One ~ That’s It
M ~ Pop Muzik (Todd Terje mix)
Chamboche ~ Ipso Facto
Zopelar ~ Don’t Give An End
Steve Kotey & Max Essa ~ 1986
DJ Agent 86 ~ Magic
Weirdo Police ~ Electronic Cretin
Hip Kid ~ Move My Mind
Filipsson & Lindblad ~ Pleasure Treasure
Dee Dee Sharp ~ Nobody Can Do What You Do (Chalk Hill edit)
Automats ~ Guardian Angel

Streaming and download

2009 retrospective pt.3

DJ Agent 86 ~ Disco Dancin’
J Boogie’s Duntronic Science ~ Together (Crazy P mix)
Tal M Klein & Anthony Mansfield ~ Disco Villainy
Beatfanatic ~ Automatic
Messengers ~ First Left
Los Charly’s Orchestra ~ Some Of The Things (Joey Negro’s dub)
Sloppy Seconds ~ The Sound
K.I.D. ~ Hupendi Muziki Wangu
Dorothy’s Fortress ~ Milo’s Revenge
Popular Peoples Front ~ Space Race
Fat Camp ~ Put A Little Jam On It
Eddie Tour ~ Heartache
Walter Jones ~ Living Without Your Love
Lovebirds ~ Out Into The Night
Beatfanatic ~ Hot
Social Disco Club ~ The Way You Move (GW edit)
Beard Science 4 ~ Clean Energy (Harrison Fraud edit)
D-Train ~ Keep On (Space Rangers edit)

Streaming and download

Thanks for all your support over the year, it’s very much appreciated.

Here’s to 2010!

Cheers

Blackie

The first of my two Favourite Bits of 2009 shows, this month’s radio show has a load of stuff from ATP’s Nightmare Before Christmas festival, chat about Peaches and reminiscing about other great gigs of the year, plus lots of of tracks from my favourite albums of the year (a proper blog on that coming soon, btw). Part II will be broadcast on the 13th January over on the marvellous Purple Radio.

I discovered, just before the broadcast, that my mic was buggered so I’m afraid it’s only coming through the left channel and I’ve had to amplify it to fuq to get it audible. Muchos apologies. I’ll be getting myself a new ‘un for Christmas.

Still, the music sounds good – go and fill your Christmas stockings with a few choice album purchases, would you? Buying Rage Against The Machine is all well and good, but go and get something new, eh?

You can download the show from http://www.sendspace.com/file/5cxtjf

Or listen to some of the music via the Spotify Playlist I’ve created.

1. Tortoise – ‘Gigantes’ from Beacons Of Ancestorship (Thrill Jockey)
2. Dirty Projectors – ‘Fluorescent Half Dome’ from Bitte Orca (Domino)
3. The Phantom Band – ‘Island’ from Checkmate Savage (Chemikal Underground)
4. Tunng – ‘Don’t Look Down Or Back’ (Full Time Hobby)
5. Jon Hopkins feat. Tunng – ‘Seven Gulps Of Air’ from Seven Gulps Of Air EP (Domino)
6. Jon Hopkins – ‘Colour Eye’ from Insides (Domino)
7. Tune-Yards – ‘Lions’ from Bird-Brains (4AD)
8. Blur – ‘To The End’ from All The People – Blur Live In Hyde Park 03 July 2009 (Parlophone)
9. Retribution Gospel Choir – ‘Somebody’s Someone” from Retribution Gospel Choir (Caldo Verde Records)
10. Low + Dirty Three – ‘Cody’ from In The Fishtank 7 (Konkurrent))
11. Dirty Three – ‘Some Things I Just Don’t Want To Know’ from Whatever You Love, You Are (Bella Union)
12. Yo La Tengo – ‘Nothing To Hide’ from Popular Songs (Domino)
13. Sonic Youth – ‘Anti-Orgasm’ from The Eternal (Matador)
14. Buzzcocks – ‘What Do I Get’ from Buzzcocks:30 (Cooking Vinyl)
15. múm – ‘Illuminated’ from Sing Along To Songs You Don’t Know (morr music)
16. Brightblack Morning Light – ‘All We Have Broken Shines’ from Brightblack Morning Light (Matador)
17. Arctic Monkeys – ‘Cornerstone’ from Humbug (Domino)
18. Tyondai Braxton – ‘Uffe’s Woodshop’ from Central Market (Warp)
19. Fuck Buttons – ‘Surf Solar’ from Tarot Sport (ATP)
20. Circlesquare – ‘Hey You Guys’ from Music About Dancing and Drugs (!K7)
21. School of Seven Bells – ‘iamundernodisguise’ from Alpinisms (Ghostly)
22. Pet Shop Boys – ‘It Doesn’t Often Snow At Christmas’ from Pet Shop Boys Christmas EP (Emd International)

Purple Radio has been entered in to the Internet Radio Awards!

The Internet Radio Awards has been set up to provide a place where internet radio stations can compete against others to reach the coveted award titles. Each year, the listeners will vote for their favourite internet radio station and help that station reach the top spot.

To vote for us simply click on the image below… You can submit a vote once a week so don’t forget to keep voting!

If you got to this page from a voting link elsewhere, apologies for making you double click
- unfortunately the click does need to come from this site to be counted!

This is my final post of a much-delayed report from DEMF (including uploading  it to the wrong location earlier this week – plank!). If your appetite has been whetted, I’d like to recommend a couple of others – pipecock at ISM and kenny hanlon at bodytonic – I know, for example, they had a very different time to me at the Mills thing. And they’re top lads with great blogs. Check ‘em out. Meanwhile, read on…

Monday (Memorial Day) was the last day, which I always knew was going to be a tricky one. I knew that I had to drag my arse off site by 7pm, so I could realistically be in the car and crossing the border by about 8ish, to have any chance of getting home at a reasonable hour to be functioning as a responsible parent for the next day and rest of the week (we’ll just not even pretend to think work was even an issue – but a 2 year old is). And there’s always next year, and the fact that Detroit’s literally a drive down the road from ours these days. But still.

I knew I was going to miss Los Hermanos live – which, if the live UR showcase (Galaxy 2 Galaxy as a full band, etc.) the last time I was here would be anything to go by, would be a real kick in the teeth. Particularly in the light of how relativly underwhelming the day before had been on site.

At last, I finally get to see Flying Lotus after missing him several times in the UK. Holy. Fucking. Shit. Completely mental but totally kicking it. Finished with something that was almost twisted deep house then went down to half-step on a real Alden Tyrell “Phaze Me” tip. Oooof. No idea if that’s a big tune of his or if he was just going for it on the spot, but a Movement Moment if there ever was one. Sun’s been shining, great turnout, stages all close together so you can go and catch someone even out of curiosity – strolled past Ellen Allien as she was dropping LFO and cutting up Wee Pappa Girl Rappers somewhere in it all. Mental. Dennis Ferrer was pretty good, Carl Craig didn’t seem to be doing anything ground-breaking, but maybe next year as musical director he’ll get some of the duff aspects of the festival sorted (particularly the Detroit stage piss-poor excuse for a sound system – and the slightly patchy programming).

But it’s not just about the actual festival itself. Memorial Day weekend in Detroit is about so much more. Catching up with old mates. Meeting a shitload of great new folk. Record shopping. Bloody great off-festival parties. Rooftop afterparties in Greektown with the sun blazing down as you realise just exactly where you are, looking around,and feeling there’s no place like this on earth. And knowing you’ll be back. Who’s up for a meetup next year?

First, apologies for the delay between blog posts – real life got in the way too much this summer. Typed this up with a slapped wrist, promise to do better in future!

An early start was well rewarded with a lovely chilled set from Liz Copeland on the Beatport stage. Can’t remember who else I heard for most of the rest of the day, as reconnecting with old mates (and new) from far and wide: Iowa, NYC, Rotterdam, Pittsburgh, Dublin, Atlanta – yup, people travel for this. And it really adds to the good-natured, sociable vibe that makes this special.

An early night was had, cos I wanted to make it along to the Omar S party the next day, which was basically one of the best things of my whole weekend in Detroit – lovely sociable vibe, top sound, 70+ degrees sunshine, and some great tunes from Dave Powers (including some top tunes I later discovered were his own – which will definitely be getting airing on Purple Radio) before Omar S himself. I’d heard a lot about his guy, and wasn’t disappointed. House music can mean anything these days, and most of it ain’t good – so it was a pleasure to hear someone who keeps the faith, and lived up to the buzz I’d picked up from many different quarters.

Innervisions live were pretty damn good, MK was very disappointing (dire sound on the Detroit stage), Wighnomy Brothers, on the other hand, were amazing – . Missed Octave One and Osunlade, but you can’t get to see everything at these things, and apart from the terrible setup and unlistenable sound at the Detroit stage, it was all good, as they say over here.

Ended up that night at a Jeff Mills afterparty which was ultimately disappointing: waiting >30 mins so they could double the admission after midnight. So was fucking cold, $20 lighter, then stepped in to a not-that-busy venue with it banging out in two rooms. Great. It was *incredibly* fucking loud (even with earplugs), and hardly any real variation on an overall theme of bangbangbangfuckingbang. NFM, as they say on a couple of fora. Room 2 was equally banging (to about 10 people), and then by the time Mills came on, the room was packed and pretty uncomfortable to say the least. By which time, I was shattered, despondant, and wishing I’d gone to something else. Overall, a totally overpriced and utterly underwhelming event. Oh well. You live and learn (but I wish I’d fucking well gone to one of the house-oriented parties that was also on – went with the flow, and ended up at something that simply wasn’t for me at all. You live and learn..

But fuck it. I think that was an official afterparty, and the promoters seem to be showing themselves as cash grab merchants this year much more so than previous years, from what I could gather (boat party was $50 – same price as the whole weekend ticket – WTF?! – yet sold out within days. Hmm). That said, it merely strengthens the case for checking out the many other parties in town, which have historically been the ones to check out – such as the sublime Omar S the day before.

Another epic win of the day was at the ‘party store’ (’offie’ to our UK readers, ‘beer store’ to the Canucks). Michigan microbrew heaven, as discovered the first day I got here – so I stocked up as they were going to be closed on Monday (public holiday), and wanted to take some back to Canadia with me. Scored a couple of mixed cases, including: Third Coast Beer; Bell’s Pale Ale; Arcadia IPA; and Arcadia Nut Brown Ale.

There’s a lot to be said for the exceptionally fine ales you can get in this part of the world. And, indeed, some damn good places to eat in Detroit. Slows is incredible. This was another highlight of the Saturday, and one of my erudite and discerning buddies proclaimed they were some of the best ribs he’s ever had. And he’s not one to say such things lightly – far from it – so it would be churlish to disagree. Festivals in cities rule for this exact reason!

I’ve been really getting into a lot of “Skweee” recently, a relatively new musical style with it’s origins lying in Sweden and Finland and I thought I share a few of my choice finds so far. The Skweee sound is loosely described as being 8-bit funk, but that really doesn’t do it justice. Best just take a listen and make your own mind up I reckon.

The first track I heard that made me really stand up and take notice was a track called Leisi Ellis by Finnish artist Eero Johannes. This was released on Harmonia Records, and is a great example of the Skweee sound, coming across like a futuristic take on P-Funk – you can hear it on Eero’s myspace page.

Skweee music is predominantly instrumental, though there are a few tracks out there with vocals on, notably “Adult Games” by Randy Barracuda (what a name!!) & Mesak – check it out on Randy’s myspace.

My most recent discovery has been a Swedish musician called Beem whose album “The Future” is free(!) to download from his website… best money I’ve never spent. Highlights on the album include the wonderful “Is This The Future”, another great slice of future funk, and “Mount Everest”, a track that sounds like an r’n'b version of Four Tet. Direct link to the DL here. 

Further Reading/Listening:
Labels: Flogsta Dancehall, Harmonia, dodpop, Lo Fi Funk, MAZOUT
Bleep is good for buying anything from the labels above – though the vinyls tend to sell out damn quick!
Loads of interviews with Skweee artists at skweeelicious.

Beem’s Depot Mix
Beem has very kindly donated his brilliant “Depot Mix” to our 24-7 server – keep your ears peeled for it! Many thanks to Beem/Fredrick. Here’s the tracklist:

ESG – The Beat | Lizzy Mercier Descloux – Dolby Sisters, Saliva Brothers | Bow Wow Wow – Do You Wanna Hold Me? | Pylon – Weather Radio | Maximum Joy – White & Green Place | Lizzy Mercier Descloux – Sun’s Jive | Godwin Ezike & The Ambassadors – Torri Wow | Lokonon Andre & Les Volcans – Mi Kple Dogbekpo | Lonnie Givens – Galaxy | Arto Lindsay & The Ambitious Lovers – Let’s Be Adult | Delta 5 – Mind Your Own Business | Deux – Game and Performance | Lio – Le Banana Split | Paul McCartney – Coming Up | Digital Dance – Human Zoo | Buzzcocks – Love You More | The B-52’s – 52 Girls | Bangles – Going Down To Liverpool | Cristina – Smile

Picked up a stack of tracks from an Aussie mate of mine the other day – we share similar tastes in music, so I send him links to British hip-hop and he returns the favour.

This time around, the recommendations were thoroughly sunny, so I thought I’d share a few of the best with you.

First up are Bliss N Eso. consisting MC Bliss, MC Esoterik and DJ Izm, they seemed to have been around on the Australian scene for a good few years now, so I feel I’ve been more than a bit behind the cutting edge on this one, this is cracking little summer evening number, from their album Flying Colours

The other end of the scale is Seth Sentry, who hasn’t even been signed yet, but seems to be getting himself around a cult following around Melbourne. This guy has fantastic flow, and definitely falls under the ‘relaxed, non-aggro’ hip-hop that I really like. ‘The Waitress Song’ is due to be included on his yet-to-be-released EP ‘The Waiter Minutes Promo’.

Last up is Shad, who isn’t Australian, but Canadian. This track, ‘The Old Prince Lives At Home’, from the album of the same name, definitely ticks my ‘phat horn line’ box, and shows his skills with the acapella at the end – this bloke deserves to be better known over here.

So I was updating the thread I started on the purple radio forum with a few impressions from the weekend just gone, but thought it might be good to try and flesh things out somewhat for posterity.

Friday:

Arrived at the motel around 10:30pm. Being able to drive to Detroit after coming home from work still feels surreal (in a good way), but certainly wasn’t complaining. About 3.5 hours’ drive, plenty of time to listen to some recent downloads (Four Tet vs Burial stands out in particular, and the Surgeon RA podcast made a lot of sense en route). No fecking service stations were fully open on the 403/401 heading west, though – sort it out!

My room-mate, as discussed, has already left for the evening (he was off to a private barbeque/gig round someone’s house) but my car license plate attracted comments from my neighbours – first time someone’s GOT it, but hardly surprising under the circumstances. Turns out not only do these good folk know my room-mate, but we have other mates in common, *and* two of us are on DJHistory! You know when you sometimes feel “yup, I’m definitely in the right place”… hadn’t been out of the car even an hour, and I knew this weekend was gonna be special

So I ended up tagging along with them to a party – early night, pah! – which my room-mate also happened to come along to. Can’t really recall much, apart from Karizma was playing (and was great – so were the others who played before), struck by what a great crowd it was (very mixed, no attitude/lairiness, everyone up for it, and seemingly fuelled on little more than booze and ciggies – there’s no smoking ban in Michigan). But a great first night in Motor City, and the festival hadn’t even started!