my kid has a ton of clothing w/ monkeys on it -- and thus:

TILLMANS

this past tuesday i returned to spin at TILLMANS. special shouts to Lil and Lautz for coming out! my boy Ant booked me for the gig and also showed me that i can review the set i played afterwards on serato, as I never plot my song list - and sometimes forget what i played. added bonus for you: you can see what I rocked, and go grab the tracks in your own time, if you'd like. so, here goes.

he's back!!!!!!!!!

more lego - this time, movie posters

see many more movie posters here:
http://speckyboy.com/2009/05/20/21-amazing-movie-posters-recreated-with-lego/

also, peep hiphop album covers:
http://djtakefive.blogspot.com/2009/03/more-lego-for-you-hiphop-covers.html

and NYC-oriented items:
http://djtakefive.blogspot.com/2009/02/lego-new-york.html

music + fashion

some sites i frequent, and recommend :::

MUSIC IS THE WEAPON :::

****BROOKLYN RADIO - the Rub. (a dope monthly party in Brooklyn -- did 1.5 hour hiphop mixes featuring tracks from 1980 - 1999)
the full listing.
http://brooklynradio.net/the-rub/

the best year in rap, ever :::::
http://therub.crewcial.org/history/TheRub1994.mp3

you can also sign up for their podcast on itunes and get a new mix each week

****JAGUAR SKILLS - his blog
http://jaguarskills.blogspot.com/2008/03/jaguar-skills-x-lord-basis-supreme-hip.html

track listing :
http://www.pearsontowers.com/mixes/dj-jaguar-skills-a-hiphop-odyssey-world-record-mix-800-tracks-1979-2006

he also updates weekly --- he has some ill stuff on here:::: (like "name that sample" - and a quick mix of prince tracks)
http://jaguarskills.blogspot.com/

****TYLER ASKEW's SHIBUYA FM mixes
my boy tyler plays the ill soulful cuts - in many forms. new mix each month.
MFT



FASHION YOURSELF WELL DRESSED :::

Stay up to date on the trends on the street:
http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/

Peep what the Brits are sportin'
http://www.duncanquinn.com/

If you have others you like, for either topic - please post in the comments.

pick 5

there's an app on facebook that has you choose top 5 lists - and share them with your friends. there are various categories; i chose to fill out the three that i was most passionate about from the batch they offered. here goes...
albums (the art of the full album has been lost. it is unfortunate.)
beer (i had never liked beer until my pops moved to belgium. beer is wonderful there.)
tv shows (i spent and spend much time in front of the tube. law & order marathon - sold!)

more lego for you --- hiphop covers

but wait. there are more. check them out: here

z-trip Obama Victory mix

DJ Z-TRIP's Obama Victory mix. (part 2) Go get it! :: VICTORY

Also grab Party for Change (part 1) :: CHANGE

BLUSTERY - part 2 of a 3 part series

another mix for you - by me, DJ TAKE 5. (part 2 of 3)
track 1 is hip-hop, and as usual, includes some old and some new.
track 2 is a bit more avant guarde - it has a couple of tunes in a new genre called dubstep - if you like them - i encourage you to check out an artist called BURIAL. he pioneered it.

let me know what you think.
download it here:
http://www.sendspace.com/file/ojsxy5

WINTERY (part 1) - can also still be downloaded here:
http://www.sendspace.com/file/pnfsj2

WINTERY - a new mix by me

WINTERY - by dj take 5
a short, 30 minute interlude for your holiday.
a jazzy stocking stuffer, if you will...
even if - well, especially if - you were naughty... enjoy!

all the best for a stellar 09.

grab it here::::
http://www.sendspace.com/file/pnfsj2

nova jazz : new jazz : jazzanova >> ("of all things")

this song "I can see" is off Jazzanova's new album "Of All things" - it features blue-eyed soul rising star Ben Westbeech. Ben was signed by the mastermind Gilles Peterson to his label (Brownswood) about 2 years and has already captured the attention of many. for more on ben westbeech, check out: http://www.myspace.com/benwestbeech

the video is pretty cool - and the first i've seen offered by JAZZANOVA a power-house of nu-jazz, broken beat and other soulful loveliness over the past 15 years! for more on them, go here and here.

solid as a rock!

Esta noche (Nov. 11) i'll be spinning up some tunes at TILLMANS. a really dope lounge spot owned by Ashford and Simpson. (26th street between 6 - 7 Aves)

i've been djing a long time - about 11 years now - and it's been interesting to see music and our lives evolve. i now use a system called Serato to play out. it allows a dj to utilize a laptop - and pull down tracks digitally onto platters that resemble traditional vinyl. same look and feel, without lugging 200 lbs worth of records around. a saviour. there are a whole bunch of other things you can do with the program, but i don't. i think it's kinda cheating. see, i had always used wax until 2 years ago, when the digital djing revolution really took hold. the problem is, with some of the technology out now, it makes anyone think they can be a dj. simply put - djing is 20% tactical (the actual mixing was never the hurdle). djing is 80% listening/ feeling/ knowing the music and what the flow should be -- and of course, reading the crowd to see if they like the vibe or whether it needs a shift. as such, technology should just better aid our journey to that place - that feeling - that music can deliver us to. through serato to marvin.

anyhow, i look forward to rockin' it for an hour-and-a-half tonight for heads who enjoy soulful music blended together to create a journey, and not just a doling out of hit-pop mickey-mouse tracks. despite the state of hip-hop right now -- soul music remains SOLID... SOLID AS A ROCK!

music for CHANGE

dj Z-TRIP put this mix together in support of Barack Obama. It is a treat. Please download it - listen to it - share it -- and please VOTE on Nov. 4th.

MORE INFO & DOWNLOAD LINK here: http://dubstrong.blogspot.com/2008/10/obama-mix.html

HILARIOUS!!!!! a translated rap freestyle

I remember back when I was in college (wow - over 10 years ago) -- and email went around where university students were asked to take lyrics to a Biggie Smalls song and 'translate' them for those who didn't understand slang. the result: a wonderful soliloquy of proper english breaking down Chris Wallace's incredibly genius rhyming.

Consider this part deux! An erudite freestyle battle - GREAT STUFF!!!!

thanks to Dj Herbert for sending this over. Oh - and if you have never been to his weekly party FREEDOM at Canal Room, i require your attendance there before Halloween. I mean it. It's truly one of the best parties ever.

a deconstruction

check out this wonderfully crafted blog entry on NaS' classic album, Illmatic.
it features a deep-dive on each of the tracks.
read more here.

detroit is jazz

dan's father invited me to join he and kate at the detroit jazz festival this weekend - and i had no plans for this long weekend - so i jumped on a plane. we went to 3 days of great music at the largest free jazz festival in the country.

DAY 1:
*dianne reeves - wonderfully jazzy, and a great rendition "just my imagination"
*marvin gaye tribute featuring christian mcbride, jose james, rahsaan patterson and layla hathaway - good stuff. jose was the stand-out.

DAY 2:
*philly/detroit summit featuring mcbride, karriem riggins, randy brecker, geri allen, perry hughes and bootsie barnes - great straight ahead jazz.
*sonny fortune quartet - check out his arrangement of "you and the night and the music"
*rueben wilson and grant green jr. - hard bop at its finest.
*latin jazz allstars!!!!! - FANTASTIC! ray vega was great on trumpet, arturo o'farrill was superb on piano, and steve turre put down his trombone to seashells in the finale!!!

DAY 3:
*brubeck institute - quintet of students from dave brubeck's school in cali. great young jazz musicians took the house down.

a great weekend of jazz music --- and friend food. :)
also in this photo array, you'll find scenic shots of detroit - and some shots of harvey & kate's lovely home.


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

I don't watch music video shows anymore...

i remember when i was young and MTV actually played music videos - i know - what a crazy concept for a channel whose name stands for MUSIC TELEVISION. Anyhow, now that the hiphop game is horrible, i don't bother watching rap city either. so i only really see videos when i occasionally blog-surf and find new treats. here are two i found today. enjoy.

the Real Live Show at Nublu

My guys, the REAL LIVE SHOW rocked it last night. Visit their myspace page to hear some of their tracks and learn how to buy their music. It's great - I promise.

?uest @ Love

last nite i went to see ?uestlove at a club famous for hosting underground house parties - the spot is called 'Love'. perhaps they booked him for the cache of the name?... to be honest, who cares. i went to hear some tracks either i haven't heard in a while - or maybe never. he did not disappoint. from 'the show' -- to 'the fat boys are back' -- to 'hit it run' : gotta dig a nice beatbox set. and the new busta track is just plain nutty - and he played a remix of a new kelis song called 'junkie for your love' -- not sure who produced it, but i hope to find it. the roots drummer also played a nice dose of Dilla - some obscure ones, like "eve - the dilla rmx" by spacek, and 'disco' by slum village. it was hot! -- no i mean literally, it was like a sauna in there -- and very appropriately, i ran into two guys from finland (famous for their saunas). they were impressed i knew where they were from - see, i learned something while at nokia besides geek talk. ;)

music and dancing in the park - with special shout out to jamie lidell