Raw Word Record’s DJ Orion is a DJ/producer from Austin, TX of Colombian/Puerto Rican ancestry who just released a new album. Although we’ve yet to make a formal introduction, this guy has been on the radar for quite some time. He’s been making moves at his Peligrosa nights and various other spots along with Klassen in ATX, and seems to be building una tremenda onda tropical.

Carajo Colombia is mainly his edits of tracks he grew up with and focuses on cumbia, with bmore/funk/hip-hop vibrations that manage to sneak in. You can name your price and download the album here.

Check DJOrion.com for his SXSW 2010 schedule as I’m sure he’ll be rockin’ a party near you!

It’s been a while since Witnes was back home and last night was a hellova visit! It almost felt like Rock Box all over again, but with better bathrooms (kinda). Even the Mathmatechs reunited for a split second.

At the start of the night, El Roy got all futuristic on us and Ustreamed the first two hours at Boondocks…

Dayta and Wit got it dancy and raised the roof! But Squincy pretty much recapped the rest of the night better than I could here. So I’ll just toss you over Awwready!

Thanks to primo Nonsense for some of the blurry flicks. LastNightPics has nothin on ‘em! Cheers to that!!

Once upon a time drum & bass was king.

By 2000, Houston had become one of North America’s headquarters for dominating beats and tougher basslines. Any new d&b soldier in the area had to earn respect (and status) from either pride of DJs at the forefront of the d&b movement — Purrin Lion or Protoculture – if they wanted to step up to the decks.

Shortly after Matrix Crew’s Chris Anderson and Andrei Morant introduced “jungle” over the KTRU Rice Radio airwaves in 1996, I started covering its progression at home and abroad for Public News, Tha Pride and URB magazine. All truth told, I fell in love.

At its peak in 2000, Houston’s d&b crews (reluctantly) fraternized on successive UK-headlining events, monthly Micros at 2020 Commerce and weeklies across the street at Club Hyperia. Audio 3 (Lionel Gonzales), Classic (Brad Slack) and Ramsey (Mike Davila) spearheaded Static, a weekly d&b night and ad hoc DJ crew made up of oftentimes opposing units. That collaboration ushered in a new era of d&b here nearly a decade ago.

Today, Heavy DNB is the only d&b event in town that’s endured featuring local and out-of-town talent on a quasi-monthly basis at various venues. Our own DIRB! crewmate, SDF-One, and Pejman have become musical curators of sorts, carrying on the d&b sound via Heavy DNB installments. And this month’s round-up brings it full circle (see flyer below).

This Saturday, March 6, a founding member of each d&b crew, Matrix’s Andrei Morant, Purrin Lion’s BMC and Static/Protoculture’s Ramsey, steps up the bpms at The Blue Room (Wired Live, 1503 Chartres, 77003). Ramsey also dropped us his new February Mix 2010 to share just in time. After listening to the mix, it also reminded me of that long-lost love.

Ramsey February Mix 2010 (dnbshare)

Track List

I Need You – Subwave (Medschool)
Bone Structure – Rockwell (Critical)
Dark age – Total Science & SPY (CIA)
Lonliness feat Riya – SPY (CIA)
Tribes – Rockwell (Critical)
Jerhico – Total Science & SPY (CIA)
Spectrasoul – 4points (Metalheadz)
Slum Dub – SPY (Soul:r)
Stars Get Down – Subwave (Medschool)
Jubei – Outcast (31 Records)
Icicle feat Noisia – Driftwood (Shogun Audio)
Alix Perez feat Peven Everett & Spectrasoul – Forsaken (Shogun Audio)

Guess who’s back this Thursday?

I’ll Raise It Up to that!

Can you spell FEBRUARY?

It’s playtime again!

After playing musical chairs with the lineup, DIRB! welcomes special guest DJ/remixer Panchitron. Along the same veins as Toy Selectah and Uproot Andy, Houston’s Panchitron mixes up tropical bass, cumbia, house and ghetto to get you to the floor. !Puro fuego! [Spanish lesson: straight fire!]

He’s starting things off for the Recess crew including that bad boy Squincy Jones who’s finally out of Time Out and ready to play nice!

Finally, thanks to Oahn (www.soundslike1.com) for the dope-ass flyer. If we would have have animated it, we could have played on it like this: SPEAK & SPELL.

GOODBYE,
D-I-R-B!

(l-r) Madlib & J.Rocc

Hip hop. Visionary. Dilla.

Those are the three words that come to mind when you think of Madlib. A trifecta of hip hop, this much sought-after rapper/producer/DJ has mastered a variety of ambitious projects, like recording Yesterday’s New Quintet, creating his alter-ego Quasimoto, and collaborating with the late J Dilla .

Since his rise in the late ’90s to last year’s Beat Konducta Vol. 5-6: A Tribute to Dilla, Madlib continues to explore the soundscape of hip hop, jazz and soul through his honorable tributes and music collaborations: from tha Alkaholics, Peanut Butter Wolf, to MF Doom, and most notably with Dilla (and J.Rocc) as Jaylib.

Madlib joins his Stones Throw label mate and turntablist, J.Rocc, at Numbers (300 Westheimer, 77006) this Saturday, February 27th in Houston. The Beat Junkie’s founder DJs during Madlib’s live performances and has also put out his own Dilla tributes, Jaylib vs. J.Rocc (mp3) and Thank You Jay Dee mixtape series.

The doors open at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday night and I highly suggest you get there early. Hosted by the ever prolific B Boy Craig, you won’t wanna miss Houston’s hip hop powerhouse HISD live show and a radiant set by one our own DJ Sun.

Get your money’s worth is all I’m sayin, ’cause these men deserve mad props!

Tickets are on sale now.

Listen >>

J.Rocc

Jaylib vs J.Rocc (Stones Throw, mp3)

Hueston Independent Spit District (H.I.S.D.)

PeaceUvMine.com (videos, clips)

DJ Sun

Soular Grooves Podcasts (SoularGrooves.com)

Thanks to my homie Witnes who also contributed to this post.

Some of you may have been around the Houston electronic music scene in the mid-’90s and perhaps had the pleasure of meeting Abiel Mejia who was part of the original Matrix Crew. Along with DJs Chris Anderson and Andrei Morant, the Crew hosted some of the first raves in Houston, which featured DJs mixing hard house, techno and jungle all night long.  They began a movement that became not only an integral part of the local rave scene, but also one that permeated through subsequent electronic music communities in Texas.

Abiel was also a graphic designer who designed some of the most recognizable rave fliers in town. He later became art director and worked alongside with me at newsweekly Public News before his tragic and untimely passing in 1997.

Fast forward 12 years:  we still haven’t forgotten his impact. Thanks to his loving family and friends, Abiel’s legacy lives on through his recordings and mix tapes.

So today, tune in to www.di.fm as Andy “Champa” Moore pays tribute to Abiel by webcasting his classic Chronolog mix on what would have been his 41st birthday.

To listen as the 2 hour-long PING program streams, go to: http://www.di.fm/calendar/event.php?event=16088. And for more show info, check the FB event page: 02.24.10_Got to Keep the Fire Burnin.

For those of you in Texas, showtime is at 1 pm (CST). If you live elsewhere, click on the most appropriate “Listen Now” button on www.di.fm just before or during show time:

* 2pm US EST
* 1pm US CST
* 7pm GMT
* 20:00 CET

Finally, to hear more of Abiel’s live recordings and mixes, visit www.subcrates.com. The forum chronicles his recordings as far back as 1994.

As you rest in peace, brother, we’ll celebrate your life.

Austin’s Big Face couldn’t make this SDC pre-Valentine’s event last week, so G.Wizz and I stepped in to cover at the last minute. Get well soon, *smiley face.

Meanwhile, I’m not sure I can top Squincy’s Awwready rave review (sic), so I had to repost it hurr…

Hey look a rave

Last week I opened up for Drop the Lime and played a gnar gnar DARSHSTEP set. I was nervous as shit the whole week pretty much because I was supposed to play 2 gigs that night, DTL & Gritsy, but ended up not playing Gritsy due to time constraints. =/ Heres a couple flicks from the portyyyyy. (Flicks by Mad Bass & Steven Sartini)

Here’s a bit of the hair of the dog that bit ya last weekend.

With so many Valentine’s-themed mixes to choose from, it felt like standing in front of the condom aisle wondering which was gonna get the job done.

I rounded up five mixes, so choose a flavor to get you in the mood. Or try them all–just be sure to also pick up Alka-Seltzer for that love hangover in the monin‘!

1) The Motel Mix 2: For the Ladies – DJ Mel (aka Mel Caravicci) [mediafire]
A nice segue from our last post, this smooth transition is brought to you by none other than our dude in Austin, DJ Mel.

It’s been a minute and since it’s that Valentines time of year, I’m breaking you off another volume of THE MOTEL MIX. This time around, the focus is on the ladies and female R&B groups.

Get the track listing at www.smellyone.blogspot.com.

2) VDAY Mix – DJ A-One [mediafire]
Double-whammy! Also coming off an All-Star weekend high, Dallas’ DJ A-One found time to drop this joint. Find out how insane it got at www.djaone.blogspot.com.

3) #CHNS2DSD – Bobby Trill [zshare]
This one hails from our boy Bobby Trill in S.A. He’s been rampin’ up on them Twitter hash tags and this is the pantie-droppin’ outcum. Squincy Jones pimped it on his blog Awwready:

This mix hops around genres with dope cuts and blends while staying on that luvy dubby tip.

4) Cowboys & Girls, Vol. 1 – Ace Boon Coon & B*Luxe [mediafire]
B*Luxe dropped this hot one on me via email. Now that he’s back in the H, B*’s ready to ro-de-oh with pahtnah Ace BoonCoon! Check ‘em out at www.cushcushco.com.

5) LuvStep – Dirty South Joe & Flufftronix [direct]
With dude-step now synonymous with dubstep, it’s a huge relief to hear that Dirty South Joe & Flufftronix exposed a softer, more feminine side thru LuvStep. No half-steppin’, this podcast mix made me wonder why I didn’t think of it first (thanks, SDF-One ;P)! Mami likes!!

We live in a cynical world, and we work in a business of tough competitors, so what’s in a wobble? You don’t have to be a smart man to know what love is. LUVSTEP completes you and is programmed for pleasure. It’s music for starry nights and candle light…slow wine and grind time. Dirty South Joe and Flufftronix are your captains for this maiden voyage into the heart of the boom’s cosmic bosom. It’s amazing, the love inside. You take it with you.

Peep the track listing and more on Mad Decent.

The beats are kickin. The bass is thump, thump, thumpin.

Your toes are tappin. The tempo starts to travel from your toes, up your leg and through your body.

Your heart is pumpin just a bit faster than the cut that’s playin right now. But all you hear is the next one cued up in your headphones.

You look up for a sec…yep…they’re still dancin. Now you’re starting to feel their heat. A beam of light shines in your eyes. The disco ball showers the dance floor with color.

OK, focus…

Levels? Check!

Beats are on…

Timin’s right…

All right, here we go…

When it comes to DJing, Austin’s DJ Mel always maintains that next level. His eclectic musical taste blends well with his masterful mixing. This DJ innovator pulls out classic gems and current tracks for awe-inspiring mixes each and every time. He programs sets from a vast collection of history’s recorded dance music. Plus, it helps when you’ve been Waterloo Record’s perennial music buyer for years.

Mel’s broad criss-crossing knowledge of music genres coupled with an unbelievable dexterity behind the decks has earned him numerous credits–Lollapalooza’s stage manager (2008), Scion “Free Your Mix” Finalist (2004) and Austin’s “Best DJ” four-times over!

But, I personally consider DJ Mel a “DJ’s DJ.” He happens to be one of my top favorite DJs of all time and, I’ll even admit, a source of inspiration for my threading musical taste in my DJ journey. But I’m not gonna discount that he still makes me shake my ass pon de floor.

Mel made his debut at The Lot (4212 Washington, 77007) with us last month in the H. It was one of the coldest weekends in Houston, but he brought some heat with him and set shit on fire. The response was tremendous!

So, I’m happy to announce that he’s back this month to DIRB! with us again! This Saturday, February 6th, get there early because traffic on Washington Ave. gets pretty heavy after 10 p.m. Parking can be spotty, but there’s valet available right out front of the Lot. There’s no cover and drink specials include our favorite Texas beer: Lone Star tall boys. I’ll be on deck to warm it up before Mel, but save me a spot on that dance floor as soon as he’s on!

Now, if that ain’t enough to get you out to see this man live in 3-D this Saturday night, push play on the video link to see what you missed last month. Or just download DJ Mel’s mixes and remixes at www.smellyone.blogspot.com.

DJ Mel Mixes

• DJ Mel – The Motel Mix
• DJ Mel – The Funky Terrier.
• DJ Mel – Live @ Nasty’s – 06.11.07.
• DJ Mel – Live On East Village Radio – 11.17.06.

For more details, RSVP: DJ MEL at The Lot, Feb 2010 (Facebook)