I like when words are used delightfully & effectively. Like Mr. Provost does. Happy weekend y’all.
Monthly Archives: March 2014
Guest Post: Notes On Radical Inclusion
(I bring people who aren’t necessarily part of my immediate community to parties, as I always like when my friends have fun when they go out. More importantly, I try and listen to them when they talk about their impressions/experiences. One of the photographers I’ve had the privilege of knowing & working with did me the honor of sharing some of her frustrations with one of the facets of the underground here in NYC: The Burner/Burning Man community, one she very much enjoys. Her comments are presented unedited & the photos added to the article are by her, chosen by me, with her permission.)
I do not consider myself a burner, but I’d really like to be. The principles of radical inclusion, civic responsibility, radical self-expression and reliance, gifting, participation, etc., yeah that’s a kind of world I want to see, that I want to help build. But what does radical inclusion look like when economics keep many would-be burners out of the NYC scene? How do we make spaces welcoming for people who don’t have the money & who lack the ability to create elaborate costumes? I want to be a part of the burner scene, I really do, but factors beyond my own social anxiety keep me out.
One of the hardest parts of privilege is that by definition you aren’t aware you have it. In New York City it’s easy to lose sight of one’s own economic privilege because there are always twenty someones with bigger wallets than you. Most burners I know have a financial stability that I have never had the luxury of experiencing which is probably why this issue is so glaring for me. I know people who live in apartments where the rent is two months’ salary for me and yet they still call themselves “poor” because compared to their finance neighbors they feel they are. To these people a fifty dollar party is no big deal but to someone working a minimum wage job it’s a day’s pay. Now I don’t begrudge anyone their good fortune but I also think people need to be aware of the privilege they possess. We need to be aware of fact that the prices of events and the expectation of elaborate costumes are by nature exclusionary. We also need to be aware of the kinds of people these exclusionary practices are keeping out.
Midnight Music: NEUS Remixes Pharrell’s HAPPY & It’s Wonderful.
NEUS has been on my radar for about a year now, but this is definitely a track that I hope skyrockets him into a great place. The warm vibe, shimmering piano, synth work and the strummy magic of Pharrell’s signature track off his new album blend perfectly. Don’t worry y’all, summer is coming, I promise.
Midnight Music: Drake ft. Jay-Z – Poundcake (ENFERNO Live Remix)
I am done hearing people whine about how electronic music isn’t performed live, isn’t an art and/or isn’t music. Watch DJ ENFERNO play 4 instruments and construct a song right in front of your eyes. The combination of dubstep, piano synth melody, MPC-sickness & some fantastic old school vinyl will blow your mind and someone needs to get this guy to hang out with Beardyman.
Ten Questions With Terry Gotham: DJ Dollpartz
1. If you were forced to spin a genre/genres of music other than the genres you spin now as Dollpartz & as one half of WoJ, what would it be? Both my solo and collaborative sound projects definitely engage a huge range of musical genres, so I’d just have to go with what I have yet to explore! I’m a huge hip-hop fan, and because that genre necessitates a certain technique of mixing, it would be a great new skill to master. I’m also a huge Reggae fan, and can see myself grooving behind the decks to a nice mix of Reggae and older dub and dubstep. Maybe you’ll hear a set like that from me in the future!
2. How does Dollpartz differ than your half of the Talon/Claw pair? What makes you one or the other? The real difference is in the sound that’s created when I DJ solo versus the sound that Tyler and I collaborate to bring to audiences and listeners. For example you’ll find a lot more soulful house lyrics in my solo work, simply because I love them but they don’t make sense for whiteowljaguar’s sound. When I dig for tracks for whiteowljaguar, I’m not only listening through my ears. I’m always conscious of what we’ve created in the past and take into consideration whether this track works with or grows off of those sounds. If the track really doesn’t fit with woj but I still love it, it goes into my Dollpartz folder. That’s not to say I don’t dig just for Dollpartz, or that some tracks don’t carry over between projects. Dollpartz has a playful, teasing, naughty, and hearful sound… at least, so far. Whiteowljaguar is more deep, dark, and dirty.
Catch The Throne Mixtape Ft. Big Boi, Common & Daddy Yankee Released!
Just in case you didn’t have a thousand reasons to be excited for Game of Thrones, there’s a mixtape. Yup. There’s a whole lot of hip hop associated with the ridiculously popular HBO adaptation of George RR Martin’s globalized torture device. They brought the second half of Outkast into this, and he drops his own thoughts surrounding the Mother of Dragons on you. Check out the other tracks on the Soundcloud page, and yes, it’ll be impossible to ignore come April. So if you’re not down, run and hide, the White Walkers are coming.
Celebrity Portraits Made From Vinyl Records
In a move that will enrage vinyl & physical media purists everywhere, Greg Frederick makes celebrity portraits & art out of vinyl records. And they’re pretty damn good. Laughing Squid got down on it and so should you. He’s taking comissions and did something for Courtney Love I think. Buy something for the record head in your life just in case you have no idea what kind of Techno they like when their birthday comes around.
London Clubs Stand Against Sexual Harassment
I think this is one of the most important things that’s happening in any city these days, and I am so glad it is. The biggest clubs in London, including Fabric & Ministry of Sound hare united in fighting sexual harassment & assault within their walls. The global Hollaback network is asking dance music venues to take a “zero tolerance attitude to harassment & send a message to patrons that bad behaviour won’t go unchallenged” (via FACT Mag)
I think this is a tremendous opportunity to capitalize on the critical mass of dance music bloggery & the impact some DJs can have when it comes to changing the culture. I would love to see NYC clubs do this as well. If even a tiny percentage of top name DJs refused to perform at events if there wasn’t a zero-tolerance policy against aggressive behavior & unwanted attention, this could snowball very quickly. Tell a friend.
Rihanna + Porno ‘Stache = Prince
That’s terrifying & there really are no words. (via Traditional Hard Robots)
Andre 3000 Is An Amazing Hendrix.
I read somewhere that Andre 3000 practiced 6 hours a day to be competent enough on guitar that he could approximate the mad genius of Jimi. Just in case you didn’t know, yes Andre is going to be Jimi Hendrix, and if you’re at SXSW and you didn’t see this movie, I’m going to kick you. This clip looks fantastic and I can’t wait for the rest of it.
Terry Gotham 