The HighLife

Today, as we proceed with the globe trotting, we find ourselves in France.  Courtesy of the multi-national jet-setter better known as Dimitri from Paris.  His sound fuses heavy doses of disco and funk with electro, house, and jazz.   All combining to create a welcome atmosphere for that ever elusive social custom known as the dance party.   He was a DJ for Radio NRJ in 1986, and is credited for introducing the first house show broadcast in France.  To add to his swag, he also produced runway soundtracks for Chanel, YSL, Hermes.  You know, just your everyday tailor shops.  He's released a slew of mixes, compilations, and albums that have received wide critical acclaim.   Sacrebleu (1996),  A Night at the Playboy Mansion (2000), and Cruising Attitude (2003) might be all the nudging you need to finally get that disco ball you've always wanted.  Stay classy.  Voici Dimitri from Paris.

During my brief period of highlife convalescence I had the opportunity to explore new territory musically.  Discover new sounds if you will.  Pretty much an exercise in stretching my sonic proclivities beyond their current shores.  A lot of the music I came across is actually by artists from other countries; including this particular artist.  Dj/Producer Tomoyuki Tanaka, a.k.a. Fantastic Plastic Machine,  hails from Japan.  He played the bass, dj'ed, and recorded music in Japan through the 80's and early 90's.  Eventually releasing his first solo effort titled Fantastic Plastic Machine in 1997.  The sound is highly influenced by bossa nova, house, and 60s lounge music, making it almost seem theatrical at times.  He's released five more albums since his debut, and they're all solid.   Here's a little sample, but I highly recommend getting to know more of the Fantastic Plastic Machine.

I don't know how many truly sunshiny days we'll have left before the sun decides it only wants to do half of its job for the next 5 months, and since i can still hear birds chirping it seemed like a good day to break you off with some Zach Deputy.  He a South Carolina native that makes his way around these parts quite often.  His music is never down or sullen, surprisingly soulful, deeply funky, and just downright fun.  He's a one man band (a la Keller Williams), but you forget that once the music gets going. 

He played at the Wormtown sidestage off Shakedown Street at Bonnaroo this year, and i was literally drawn, like a moth to a flame, to the sound.  Phish had their glowstick war, he had the haystack hoedown.  Straight up ridiculousness! And trust me, that hay was not pristine.  There's a video of the Saturday latenight hoedown that i found.  Everyone in it is getting down, except that it's 6:30 am.  There was another dance party further up Shakedown that morning, and if i hadn't already been in one hoedown earlier in the night/morning you might have seen a dude attached to a gigantic 3ft in diameter pink balloon tied to a 20ft string bouncing along to the music in the back of the crowd.   True story.  Anyhoo, check out more of his music. We'll definitely keep you posted about upcoming shows.  It's an awesome live experience.  He's a pretty chill dude too... Here's to sunshine.  This is Zach Deputy (Sunshine, She Say, Haystack Hoedown)

Word on the street is that this show is going to be making its way across the pond to American viewers soon, and it's about time.  One of my best friends put me on to this show a few years ago, and i've been a fan since.  Created by two chaps Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt, it's probably one of the most random shows ever. Preface, it's British humor.  Meaning, it can be a bit cerebral.  The clips here are from an episode titled, The Nightmare of Milky Joe.  The guys are marooned on an island with themselves and coconuts for company.  Hilarity ensues.

I've been on a bit of a British music tilt lately.  Particularly, one 24 year old dude ( i think dude applies) from London.  His first album blended energetic riffs with amazing melodies to create songs that touched on issues from the irreverent, to the humorous, to the romantic.  He recently released a new album, titled, Everything is New.  Which showcases his growth as a musician and songwriter.  I was only going to put up a few tracks to give you a feel for his latest album, but i got a little carried away.  So here's a little mix of some old and some new songs of his.  Sort of like his album title.  Ladies and gents, Jack Peñate.

Hello, hello! Happy Friday and such!  Presenting to you, one of Lower Allston's finest! This next band has been handling the bidness for over 6 yrs in and around the Boston area.  Up until last year they had a Saturday night residency at the Middle East corner room.  They have since been touring the country sharing their brand of funk, rock, and jazz with any and all who would listen, all the while working on new music.  Even more awesome, is that for all of August into September, they will be working New England like it owes them something.  Mainly, a Thursday night residency at TOAD in Porter Square (which by the way is free music 7 days a week).  I caught their show last night, and was reminded of why my Saturdays are now a shade of what they used to be.  Tyler Drabick (guitar), Sam Gilman (hammond, keys), and Blake Goedde (drums, percussion) are OTIS GROVE...


www.myspace.com/otisgrove
www.otisgrove.net

Make this yours... Otis Grove - Crank it up

It's the mighty Mos once again. Here he is performing an exclusive acapella version of the first single, from The Ecstatic, for Current on the streets of Osaka, Japan.  Plus, the conceptually genius official video for the track.  If you don't hear it, you'll see it.  One way or the other, this is...



Mos Def - Casa Bey

"With all thy getting, get understanding"
-Solomon

Few movies are made that actually make you look at the world as it is, warts and all.  Just as there is good with bad, understanding with ignorance, love with hate; it is no different when considering society.  Not to say that there is a majority on either side of the spectrum, just that there always lies a contradiction to whatever one may think is the norm. 

A movie debuted on HBO recently, Prom Night in Mississippi, that is sure to spark quite a bit of uproar.  Here's a clip to give you some more insight.



Sometimes, it's the people you think you understand the least that are the most like you, and vice versa.  This documentary does a great job of presenting the story of a community made to address its status quo, juxtaposed against the reality of the society it lives in.  The high school seniors are the movie, and give you a real glimpse into the mindset of a community that hasn't been forced to measure itself against society at large.  That is surely going to change now.

This group from Washington D.C. is made up of a number of highly talented musicians and individuals.  They DJ, produce, remix, whatever, they do it. They released an innovative, and creatively inspiring album, Radio Free DC, last year.  Which should be a part of your music collection yesterday.  Here are a few tracks that they're responsible for to give you a taste.

 

The time of thoughtless hiphop is over.  And thank goodness for that.  If this decade has proved anything, it's that the illusion of separation is just that, an illusion.  Whether geographic, cultural, ideological, or musical.  Things that at first seem disparate are really quite similar at the heart of the matter.  East coast, West coast; a president that's both black and white; African, Latino; North America, South America.  I could go on...

Here we have a work that aims to, no, it actually does, show that assertion in motion.  N.A.S.A , which stands for North America South America, is a collaboration by Sam Spiegel (Squeak E. Clean), of Bethesda, MD, and DJ Zedon from Brazil.  They absolutely break the mold of what some would call hiphop.  Yeah, it's been happening for a while, but please tell me when was the last time you heard Tom Waits and Kool Keith on a track together.  Truth is, most people forget that hiphop was created by pulling from every source and genre that was available at the time. Why? It didn't exist before that.  So back to the quote at the top.  It's a Yoruba proverb that simply states, "A river that forgets its source, will run dry."  I could list all the people that they worked with on this album, from the Wu-Tang, to David Byrne, to George Clinton, to Spankrock, but it would take way too long.  N.A.S.A have put together an album which proves that the sun shines on all of us the same.  Truly this is...