DUSTY CRATES

Sista Stroke

UPDATE: Brick City House on www.chicagohouseFM.com actually starts next Wednesday, March 18. My bad–I was just buildin’ up the hype is all!

Sista Stroke has jumped the pond. Starting March 11 March 18, Stroke is taking from her Chicago roots and webcasting “Brick City House” live and direct from her new locale — London.

Webcast weekly at 1-3 p.m. (CST) via www.chicagohouseFM.com, the format is essentially house music but Stroke promises to dust off some house classics and sampled hip-hop and r&b tracks for good measure. So for two hours every Wednesday she’ll evoke more ’70s soul at the cusp of ’80s street with a b-girl element than we can shake a ‘fro at.

Now that’s mighty, mighty!

Also enjoy her latest EP and other releases…

Makin’ Moments EP (Stompy.com) plus more Stroke goodies

Dirty Honey for Your Soul

Every first Saturday of the month it goes down with funk-soul brotha Brett Koshkin and guests at Dirty Honey (Boondocks). I’ve missed quite a few of these lately (including this past weekend’s romp) because of our DIRB! weekly, so when Brett tossed this live recording over I immediately pushed play.

Recorded live in Houston, Texas at Brett’s 45s/rare groove dance party, it’s nearly two hours of Dirty Honey! Yep, for the February ’09 show the man was kind enough to enlist High-C to help supply the soul sounds for his jam-packed dance floor. Where do all these people come from? They even dance to odd R&B shuffle beats! God bless them. If in Houston do NOT miss this party. You owe it to yourself to dance a hole in your soul!

Thanks to RehashRecordings.com for the initial post and two-part mp3 stream!

LIVE AT DIRTY HONEY, HOUSTON, TX – DJs High-C & Brett Koshkin (Part 1)

LIVE AT DIRTY HONEY, HOUSTON, TX – DJs High-C & Brett Koshkin (Part 2)

It seems just like yesterday I met DJ Cashless at the old Aerosol Warfare warehouse. Back then, Jef was a UT student and DJ broadcasting mostly hip hop over the airwaves and on the Web. On weekends you’d see him at then local joints like Reprogram and The Waxx. This cat clearly knew what was up in the H. But then he disappeared.

Fast forward: It’s Diplo‘s first show in Houston and Cashless emerges. After flip flopping between Japan and Houston, Hater Mag‘s contributing writer is here for good–well at least for now. And he’s back at the decks, ‘cuz he ain’t playin. Cashless is now part of the much diggable NY-based DJ crew Buhbomp, which consists of Empanadamn, JD, Lil Tiger, and Elz. But most importantly, Cash is back in the mix.

Check him out on Saturday night with me at Block 21 and on Tuesday for the Estelle/Kid Cudi Afterparty at the House of Blues-Houston. And hit him up for that mini-mix he owes us on Dusty Crates!

SATURDAY, 3/07

Cashless (Hater Magazine, Buhbomp.com)
Gracie Chavez (DIRB!, DustyCrates.com)

Howard Hughes Room
DJ Pooks & Drew

BLOCK 21, 2420 Washington, Houston
21+; No cover. Come as you are.

Next Up
03/14 DIRB! with Gracie Chavez, Antonio + El JEFFE

It's time to get down!

Speakerboxx, March '09

While Squincy is on an evangelical tour of the bible belt with his Nintendub beats, El Jeffe and I are gonna do it real grande at Speakerboxx this Thursday.

The Don Santos and Dayta will also be on hand for the take-over!

It’s gonna go as hard as Benga!

Fly Girls

Soul Jazz Records released Fly Girls! to celebrate the 30th anniversary of female rap on record. Respect to that! More ammo for me to work into my DJ sets.

This double-CD (and limited edition two volumes of super-loud double-vinyl) narrates the story of female rap from its birth in the tenement block parties in New York City’s outer boroughs through to the dizzying career heights of Queen Latifah, Missy Elliott and other modern day power brokers. ‘Fly Girls!’ also discusses the influence of an earlier generation of black female poets whose ideals (both in their art and how they established career paths) helped lay the foundations for birth of the genre.

The one thing I wish this collection had done was bring it up to date with the latest female MCs on the scene: Rye Rye, Amanda Blank and Kid Sis. These ladies are def takin it to the next!

Check out the rest of the Fly Girls! review at ComplicatedDanceSteps.

Then listen here:

Fly Girls! – V/A (Soul Jazz Records)