Rivers of Bass (Something Else! on www.WtnrRadio.com for 01/14/10)

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The ever-present Something Else! Intro starts us out before we journey with Underworld on their \”River of Bass\” from the second album (my favorite) DubNoBassWithMyHeadMon. Next up is Ethel Beatty with \”I Know You Care\” produced by Roy Ayers, a rare-groove classic. I just found out a friend from L.A. is involved with the group Hawthorne Headhunters. They were featured on both Gilles Peterson and Benji B\’s Best of 2009 shows! I really liked a few cuts and decided to play \”Manifest Station\” this week, expect to hear more soon (thanks Max!) I haven\’t been to Holland yet, although I definitely plan to at some point. Another recent discovery is that the Dutch version of Erykah Badu\’s Mama\’s Gun has a 2nd disc with a few fun songs on it, including \”Hollywood\”–a cover of a Rufus & Chaka Khan cut from the 70s. Thanks to the NYC organization known as Giant Step, I was introduced to the work of Salvador Santana. His \”Keyboard City (The Hood Internet Remix feat. GZA)\” is a fun vocoder joint with guest spot from one of the Wu-Tang Clan (Gza) giving it a bit more \”hood-vibe.\” Another interesting guest appearance happens on the next cut, \”Why Cry (Radio Edit)\” by rapper Afu-Ra featuring German reggae sensation, Gentleman. I\’d known Afu-Ra for years, mostly because he was associated with Dj Premier (Gang Starr,) but Gentleman I\’ve just found out about in the last few months thanks to my friend Zsofi from Hungary. Speaking of Gang Starr, \”Ex Girl To The Next Girl\” was always one of my favorite cuts by them, so I was intrigued to find out there was an official remix. \”Ex Girl To The Next Girl (Remix)\” isn\’t just the same song with a new beat, it includes new scratches from Primo along with the new groove (nice!) I\’m sure you all know I\’m a big fan of the Bamboos from Australia and over the years I\’ve featured music with Lyrics Born, um, \”a lot.\” \”Turn It Up\” has these two great flavors together–Bamboos featuring Lyrics Born. Turns out LB is a Bamboos fan as well and said they were the only group in Oz he wanted to work with. Fortunately for Lanu and the crew (i.e., The Bamboos) LB was on Australian radio when he revealed that tidbit and a few phone calls later… On to an anthem from The Future Sound Of London, namely \”Papua New Guinea (12\” Original Mix)\” which hopefully inspired a few ravers to pull out their maps or globes to figure out where the heck the inspiration was (not too far from Oz, actually.) More English music inspired by exotic places is provided by Thomas Dolby. The title track from his album \”The Flat Earth\” (you might remember the hit \”Hyperactive\”) is pleasantly atmospheric and sets you up for the energetic switch-up of Mr. Manuva\’s bass anthem, \”Witness (One Hope)\” by Roots Manuva. I hate being nostalgic, but I find myself being drawn to the music of The X-Ecutioners. I love how their first artist Album X-Pressions was really an artist album and not merely a compilation of turntablist routines or standard hiphop with MCs. There were bits where you got to hear them working out bits, talking about their approach and feelings about music and then tracks you could appreciate even if you didn\’t realize how they were constructed. \”Musica Negra (Black Music)\” features the mc Gudtyme expressing the plight of Black people in the United States and there are ingenious interjections by the djs within the rhyme. It\’s also one of the few hiphop tunes I can recall with a prominent cello part. I close it out with one of my favorite Drum & Bass tracks from back in the day, Photek\’s \”Ni Ten Ichi Ryu (Two Swords Technique.)\” Photek was always \”the one to beat\” when it came to chopped breakbeats–no mere sampling & speeding up from that guy…

Anyway, enjoy and look for more craziness from me next week…