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THE DROP: Dirty South Joe and Flufftronix prepare for LUVSTEP 2 on Valentine’s Day, 2011!

23 Dec

2010 was the year that the internet imploded. Man gained mastery of the medium, and in the case of the music industry, the deluge of content caused record sales to plummet, and micogenres like our beloved moombahton to be invented, develop, replicate and almost reach the mainstream without a commercial release. Of note as well is the development of mixes and mixtape culture. With the advent of Soundcloud, mixtapes and mixes reached a fever point in 2010. Every DJ has them, and dependent upon genre, they usually feature almost precisely the same content and are a case of sound and fury, ultimately signifying nothing. Save one.

In February 2010, I stated that Dirty South Joe and Flufftronix’s melodic, slow tempo “Luvstep” dubstep compilation “will make everyone fall in love with dubstep. Really. Even you. Yes you… Dirty South Joe and Flufftronix’s Luvstep mix succeeds in making the genre tolerable, entertaining and *gasp* fun.” Luvstep met and exceeded that expectation. By October, the combination of dubstep and heavy bass practitioners Skream, Artwork and Benga were united as championship trio Magnetic Man, and alongside the angelic vocals of Katy B released an album that is a major pop success and entirely erred on the side of romantic and emotive melody with a handful of bass and spoonful of wobble.

The Mad Decent related Philadelphia combination are at it again on February 14, 2011. If history is a judge, fully expect that their mix will once again prove prescient, and be the forward thinking destination of the progression of dubstep as a genre and significant cultural standout. Visit Luvstep.com for last year’s standout compilation and celebrate this coming year’s Valentine’s Day with a musical gift that keeps on giving.

THE DROP: Luvstep Live at the Mad Decent Block Party

9 Aug


As I walked up 12th Street in Philadelphia on my way to the Mad Decent Block Party, I heard the unmistakable, soothing sounds of luvstep. The set marked the live debut of luvstep, the dubstep subgenre identified by Dirty South Joe and Flufftronix earlier this year on their mix of the same name. It was one of the many can’t-miss sets during the day. Luckily for those who missed it, the proverbial tape was running and the set is now available for download.

An introduction from Ten Things I Hate About You sets the tone: melancholic, bittersweet, and teeming with raw emotion. The 30-minute mix kicks off strong with tracks by Sky Ferreira and Nero, before revisiting essential tracks (Caspa’s remix of the Deadmau5 & Kaskade collab “I Remember”) and dropping new popstep heat (the trio of “Hold On,” “I Need Air,” and “Katy on a Mission”).

“PClart” by Kavsrave has been floating around for a few months; the female vocals and wonky bass are a perfect fit for the mix. The same is true of the “Edge of Seventeen”-sampling “Days Go By” by the Boogaloo Crew (who now are part of Future Grooves featuree Dark Sky). The mix closes with some Don Juan DeMarco:

“There are only four questions of value in life, Don Octavio. What is sacred? Of what is the spirit made? What is worth living for, and what is worth dying for? The answer to each is the same: only love.”

For dubstep, a genre derided for its harsh sounds and bromantic attitude, only luvstep can save it.

Tracklist for Luvstep Live at the Mad Decent Block Party
Introduction: KATARINA
Sky Ferreira – One (Bar9 Remix)
Nero – Innocence
Deadmau5 – I Remember (Caspa Remix)
Rusko – Hold On (feat Amber Coffman)
Magnetic Man – I Need Air
Katy B – Katy On A Mission
Professor Green ft Lily Allen – Just Be Good To Me (Joker Remix – Fluff’s Greenless Dub)
M83 – We Own The Sky (Udachi Remix)
Kavsrave – PClart
Bobby Caldwell – What You Won’t Do For Love (DZ Remix)
Guido – Mad Sax
The Boogaloo Crew – Days Go By
The Living Graham Bond – Winter Hunter ft Fiona Bevan (Bare Noize Remix)
Epilogue: DON JUAN

LeninsTomb presents… Dubstep Dossier

20 May

This year, Valentine’s Day meant more than just flowers, chocolates and ham-fisted attempts at romance. It also marked the release of Luvstep, a long-awaited mixtape by Dirty South Joe and Flufftronix on the Mad Decent Radio podcast. The Luvstep mix codified a developing trend in dubstep and bass sounds, away from the metallic and industrial and towards the melodic and orchestral. Introducing the mix was Philadelphia’s Starkey, a DJ/producer whose sonic output fully fits within the luvstep realm, even if he opts for the grimier “street bass” descriptor.

Starkey’s debut full-length, Ear Drums and Black Holes, released last month on Planet Mu, is a monument to how far dubstep has come. Throughout its 15 songs, Starkey pays tribute to two-step, garage, grime, and all the musical seeds that have cross-pollinated to form dubstep in 2010.

On opening track “OK Luv,” waves of shimmering synths and chiptune effects build over a stuttering shuffle, a pattern that repeats on tracks like “11th Hour” and “Four Dimension.” “Stars,” the first single from Ear Drums, puts the warbling synths and vocals by Anneka in the front of the mix for a chilled-out feel. Starkey does get grimey, too, opting for pnuematic, grinding bass and epic, siren-like instrumentation on tracks like “Spacecraft.”

Rappers Cerebral Vortex and P-Money turn the clock back to the grime glory days, reminding rappers, both underground and mainstream, that these gurgling instrumentals are the perfect complement to rhymes, once you master the two-step rhythms. Starkey proved this on his remix of Gorilla Zoe’s “Lost” for the ATL RMX album.

With dubstep producers like Rusko and Skream bringing back the rave, the scene needs a producer to advocate for luvstep. If Ear Drums and Black Holes is any indication, Starkey is more than capable. And remember, don’t fear the wobble.

SHIT I’M DIGGING THIS WEEK

11 Jan

aka avant garde musical water cooler discussion.

1. Sade releases Sophie Muller directed video for “Soldier of Love”

http://spamtheweb.com/ul/upload/021109/76629_player-viral4.6.swf

Possibly due to a dearth of R & B or pop chanteuses with a classic sound on the market at the moment, Sade has cleared a free path for herself back to the top of the charts merely based off of the titanic strength of her eponymous lead single for her album which drops in February. Eschewing a move to more modern production for her comeback salvo, “Soldier of Love” sounds, and now also looks like nothing on radio or television at the present. Anticipation for the album is high, and in using Mike Pela and her exact same group of producers and songwriters she has always surrounded herself with for her canon of epic hits, I fully expect this album to be the defining R & B smash of the year.

2. Bird Peterson remixes Robin Thicke’s “Sex Therapy.”

Any reader of the site knows that one of my favorite remixes of 2009 was Austin native Peterson’s take on Wu Tang rhymeslayer Method Man’s intro to “M.E.T.H.O.D. Man,” “Torture Motherfucker.” Well, as well as being a valued contributor on Mad Decent’s Free Gucci: Best of Gucci Mixtapes project, he’s also remixed Robin Thicke’s slightly more mature content of “Sex Therapy.” It’s a thoroughly soulful house/electro take on the track, and absolutely indicative of the talents of the usually bass heavy Texas native. http://goo.gl/fb/yL5t For more on Bird Peterson, check http://www.myspace.com/birdpeterson

3. LUVSTEP. Valentine’s Day.

http://www.youtube.com/v/PdYFDZuSFBA&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01

Notes from the good Philly homies Dirty South Joe and Flufftronix on what is my favorite mixtape of quite some time that you will come to absolute be enamored of on Valentine’s Day:

Luvstep, a 60 minute mix by Dirty South Joe & Flufftronix illuminating the sensual side of dubstep. Coming to Mad Decent Worldwide Radio on Valentine’s Day, 2/14/10.

Plus, anything involving the film Say Anything is a GIANT win in my book.

4. At this moment, this is the hottest hip hop mix on the planet:

MANDATORY DOWNLOAD HERE

NYC’s DJ Ayres, Cosmo Baker and Eleven combine forces as The Rub and throw easily some of the hottest parties in NYC with ONLY the freshest music. This mix is easily the best best thing the crew has EVER put together, a 60 minute audio journey that takes you through the history of hip hop and its predecessors, giving you only the highs of emotion of the sound over and over and over again until you submit yourself wholeheartedly to the belief that, as, Fruitkwon of Stetsasonic says, “there ain’t nothin’ like hip hop music!”

1. Archie Bell – Any Time Is Right (Apt One remix)
2. The Wise Guys vs The Jets – Wise Crush (Platurn remix)
3. Kid Sister vs Justin Timberlake – Damn Girl (Sammy Bananas remix)
4. Afrika Bambaataa vs Breakout – Planet Rock Unplugged (DJ Ayres edit)
5. Kool Keith vs Switch – Papa Large (Matthew Afrika remix)
6. Big Daddy Kane – Raw (DJ Day remix)
7. MSTRKFT ft NORE and Isis – Bounce (A-Trak Dub)
8. Notorious B.I.G. vs Diamond D – Party & Bullshit (Cosmo Baker remix)
9. B. Hamp vs Puff Daddy – Do The Ricky Bobby (DJ Protege remix)
10. Wale vs BDP – Chillin (Skratch Bastid remix)
11. Kanye West – Champion (Nick Catchdubs remix)
12. Lloyd vs Commodores – Girls Around The World (Skinny Friedman remix)
13. ODB vs Rhythm Heritage – Got Your Money (DJ Eleven remix)
14. Pase Rock vs Axwell – Get Money (Emynd remix)
15. C&C Music Factory – A Deeper Love (Morsy remix)
16. The Supremes – You Keep Me Hangin’ On (DJ Eli Remix)
17. Stevie Wonder – Fingertips (Pase Rock remix)
18. Jonny Blaze – Let’s Rock This Joint
19. Tittsworth ft Kid Sister & Pase Rock – WTF (Sammy Bananas remix)
20. Funky Green Dogs – Fired Up (DJ Ayres & Nadastrom remix)
21. Subfocus – X-Ray (Tittsworth remix)
22. Diplo & Buraka Som Sistema – Inna De Ghetto
23. Benga & Coki vs Project Pat – Night (Smalltown DJs)
24. Mr Vegas vs Ludacris – Hot Wuk (Nick Catchdubs remix)
25. The Specials – Ghost Town (Sake One remix)
26. Lil Scrappy – Money In The Bank (Ross Hogg remix)
27. Ghostface & Raekwon – Freek’N U (DJ Eleven remix)
28. Marvin Gaye vs Groove Theory – Sexual Theory (DJ Day remix)
29. D’Angelo – Girl You Need A Change of Mind (DJ Eleven edit)
30. Waajeed – Jeedo Suave
31. B.O.B. vs Marvin Gaye – I’ll Be In the Sky (B.Cause remix)

TUESDAYS WITH MARCUS VOL. 2 – THE DIRTY SOUTH JOE INTERVIEW

23 Dec


Dirty South Joe is an underground DJ staple with an absolute love of all music. With roots in DC, NY and Philadelphia, he’s been an important part of the development of the reigning underground musical subculture that dominates the dancefloors worldwide these days. Having worked in probably every major record store in the Northeast corridor, and having been a resident at the old 9:30 Club in Washington, DC, he has the chops to definitely know exactly what he’s talking about. At every key moment of the underground’s development, Joe has been there, either as a premier selector of the tunes being played, or lending management or distribution assistance to the purveyors of the sound who needed it. Be it dirty south bounce music, Baltimore club and its Philly and Jersey derivations, and now even extending into dubstep with Flufftronix, Joe is a nexus for the American underground.

The Ol Head Records, Mad Decent and Brick Bandits representative played Gavin Holland’s C U Next Tuesday party last week, and of course, when someone of this nature of importance is in town, it’s an absolute necessity to sit down and discuss their background, their musical influences, their production styles, desires and forward thinking thoughts about music in general. Noted as well in this interview is a particularly deep and thoughtful set of answers about club music and its inner city influences, plus Joe’s thoughts on dubstep and namely his “Luvstep” mix with new collaborator and co-conspirator Flufftronix that once it drops will be true in the attempt of getting so many of the sound’s detractors to change their tune entirely.

DOWNLOAD HERE