DUSTY CRATES

SDF-one in his element. Photo by Jessie Weber

UPDATE: It took a minute, but I finally pieced this monumental night together thru photos and actual accounts. I unfortunately got there late and missed Joker entirely. But from the looks of it, a lot of people should be able to fill in more of the gaps and help me experience the sounds radiating from the stack of rumbling subwoofers vicariously.

Here are a few quotes and flicks from the Houston Beats and FB Joker/Gritsy recaps:

That had to be one of the best top 5 nights of my whole freaking LIFE! My entire body still hurts from dancing. Absolutely unbelievable! Thanks again to all the Gritsy family for bringing it proper. You guys are ridiculous! — HB

Ohmydays! big up gritsy for bringin that UK grime to Houston…now, i dont wanna sound greedy..but who’s next? big sets all around tonight and joker put the show to rest! — FB

Joker & MC Nomad on deck.

Purple H City!

OE and Drank was flowin'.

Gilbert feelin top notch!

There were too many great photos to post. But you can see more photos here, thanks to Jessie Weber. Other photos here. If you got ‘em, feel free to toss me more links to photos in the comments area below.

Noted! I’m not gonna miss it either, that’s for damned sure, and neither should you.

Gritsy DJs Live, Pt. 1,2,3 – 4/10/10 (mp3)

Bristol’s 20-year-old producer Joker has a passion. It’s a passion for subterranean subwoofer frequencies he’s shared with a steadfast group of dubstep fans worldwide for quite some time. Following a string of remarkable releases characterized by 8-bit sounds,  swooping synths and rattling basslines, Joker’s anthems are uniquely branded the ‘purple’ sound of dubstep.

Eventually Gritsy’s don, Suraj Kurian, tuned in full-blast.

The first time I came upon Joker was while * was running a dnb/dubstep/2step record store out of my house in 2007. I  had ordered a few copies of his first release called the Kapsize EP on DJ Pinch’s Earwax Label.

The thing that really set this release apart from all the other stuff that was coming out at the time [at least] dubstep-wise was its hype, grimey/SNES feel. It was a good release, but definitely not a game changer…

Enter Jae Swope from Sines. He dropped “Gully Brook Lane” during a set at Gritsy in the summer of ‘08.

It was the first time I’d heard [the track played] out on the Gritsy sound system, and quite frankly, it was the shit!

This track shoved my prior conceptions about dubstep immediately out the door. I wanted more.

I purchased the record that next Monday and  instantly fell for the B-side, “Retro Racer,” which became one of the first of many Joker tracks in heavy rotation in my DJ sets.

Since then it’s been a stratospheric rise for Joker, including remix work spanning various genres. And it doesn’t hurt that he’s in the company of international dubstep superstar DJ/producers Skream and Benga.

Not surprisingly, Joker’s “purple” anthems have gone over really well in Houston, particularly “Purple City” which got a lot of play last summer. I’m still partial to the monstrous “Snake Eater“.

And as expected, Joker’s recent popularity has also made him as elusive as his purple-draped comic book namesake. But persistence always pays off. Suraj and the notorious Gritsy boys finally locked Joker down for a Houston date.

Now the city infamously known for purple drank and passionate for dubstep parties is only one of four dates on Joker’s North American tour this spring. He touches down this Saturday, April 10th, at newcomer venue Wired Live (2000 Bell Street, 77003) to play alongside MC Nomad. Tickets are $20 for 18+ and $10 for 21+ before 11 p.m. with a Facebook RSVP. Doors open at 9 p.m. Purple attire and earplugs are highly recommended.

Download

“Tron” + VIP Mix (soundcloud)

Purple Wow Sound Mix (zshare)

Joker’s Guest Mix on Skream’s Rinse Show

Joker’s Sonar Mix (zshare)

“How You Like Me Know” (Joker remix) – The Heavy (mp3)

G.Wizz & Criminal Vox

DIRB!'s Gracie Chavez & Karma's Kung Fu Pimp

Amish & The Twins

This is how it pretty much went dawn on Saturday! Powerhouse trifecta with DIRB!, Karma and Gritsy teaming up for a special event at Block 21. Thanks to all involved for setting it off!

Wish you coulda been there!

More DIRB! Block Party photos on Facebook:

• DIRB! + Karma + Gritsy (pt 1)
• DIRB! + Karma + Gritsy (pt 2)
• DIRB! + Karma + Gritsy (pt 3)

Photos by Suraj Kurian for Karma Houston. Thanks for the roving lens!

Join our FB groups for more event updates:

• Block 21 on Facebook
• DIRB! in TX on Facebook

Photo by Karma Houston

Come through for a KARMA! GRITSY! DIRB! PAHTY, YA’LL!

Re-enforced BASS for your FEELING pleasure, with Karma & DIRB! DJs Kung Fu Pimp & Gracie Chavez rocking the main room.

Howard Hughes Room:
Chris Taylor, Suraj K., TDBZ and SDF-One

YOU KNOW IT’s FIDNA GIT NASTY UP’NERE!!!!! SEXY, SWANKY LOVE w/ DUB!! You Heard??

Early birds can catch the Body Of Work art exhibit from 8-10 pm. More details below…

This Saturday night is gonna be fiya!

DJs G.Wizz (Neon Nites, Fahrenheit-Media) & Jep (HoustonsMostHated) join the DIRB! team and tag team on the decks!

And in the Howard Hughes Bar, it’s an extended Cinco-De-Midge-O! Happy birthday, Midge! Guest DJs Jeff Mac and Gritsy’s finest Suraj K., SDFONE (DIRB!, Heavy) & Page will set it off!

COMING UP at DIRB! Block Party…
5/16 Kung Fu Pimp (Karma Houston). Plus, Gritsy DJs Suraj K. & SDFONE in Howard Hughes Bar.
5/23 DIRB! DJs
5/30 Champa Moore (NYC)

It’s official: our family is growing!

DJs Squincy Jones and SDF-One are the newest DIRB! members added to the roster. As El Jeffe embarks on his eastward migration and Sizzle holds down the West, DIRB! is not only going tri-coastal, but is beefing up its game with new talent.

SDF-One has been a solid force on the regional dubstep and drum & bass front, but most recently he’s dabbled in DJing fidget house.

One of Houston’s Best DJs (Houston Press, 2008), Squincy Jones easily genre hops to get the party jumpin’. He’s currently working on a follow up to his highly acclaimed Nintendub mix.

Both are set to play dates at DIRB! Block Party with the fam–Antonio and I. Squincy’s up first as he teams up with me (and El Jeffe, hopefully) to play this Saturday, April 11. Next month will be SDF-One’s debut at Block. Stay tuned for more info and a confirmed date.

They both recently played at Houston’s infamous Gritsy dubstep parties and recorded Squincy’s latest set.

Meanwhile, get this here:

Squincy Jones Live at Gritsy (04.04.09) (mp3)

SDF-One Live at Gritsy (04.12.08) (mp3)

And befriend them there:

www.myspace.com/enofds
www.myspace.com/squincyjones

When deep/tech house stronghold (and one half of the Dedicated duo) got married and left for Boston, there was a sizable void left to fill in Houston’s dance music scene. Tonight, Ben Clark comes back like a champ. He makes a much anticipated return for Heavy at The Backroom (3718 Main, Houston).

This time around, however, he’s left his vinyl arsenal at home (and traveling lighter, thanks to the FAA). Not compromising his signature smooth sets, he’s upped his game and is going digital. Tonight he’s poppin’ his Serato cherry and playing from a wider selection off his laptop. Get there early because, as rumor has it, he may team up with Mike W., the other half of Dedicated, for this special event.

And lastly, I’m teaming up with Antonio to DIRB at Heavy tonight, followed by sdfone playing his brand of “fidget” house. Heavy is veering from its usual d&b format, in case you haven’t figured.

Matt Sizzle will make up some dates with me at Gritsy’s NYE party and DIRB at Block 21 on Saturday, January 3rd. You won’t wanna miss it!

I’m not completely sold on “fidget house”. So, when fellow DJ pal and breakbeat purist David (sdfone) told me he was feeling a style of house music, I stopped short of a rewind! The staunch Gritsy d&b/dubstepper had converted to a 4/4 beat–whuh?! GTFO!!

Now, I’m a major fan of house, Switch and Jesse Rose, but in all honesty, I hate the word: fidget. So, with all the fuss about “fidget house,” it was enough to get me diggin’.

Wikipedia defines the sub-genre:

Fidget house is a style of house music that incorporates other dance music styles including rave, breakbeat and UK garage.

Hmmm…breakbeat? UK garage?? OK, I’m starting to see a connection.

Meanwhile, David has been itchin’ to play this glitchy style, but is met with the same puzzled faces when he mentions “fidget” (or “house” in his case). So, to push us naysayers off the fence, he’s gone over and beyond the call of duty and released a short mix, “Jackin’ The Drank With Patron”.

Sdfone’s mini mix clocks in around 30 minutes and, as the name implies, the recording was fueled by a couple of strong drinks of Cafe Patron and Coke. If you haven’t heard much of this latest jumpy, stuttery, um…fidgety dance floor style, well, here here you go:

Jackin’ The Drank With Patron – sdfone

01 jak z – feeling pretty good
02 danny t – dip dip
03 scott cooper – mad run (lee mortimer remix)
04 scott cooper & andy george – jump & twist
05 natty jack – jackin da garage (hijack remix)
06 paolo jackson – funkt (feat shena) (twocker remix)
07 south west beats – its love (trippin) (feat claudia patrice) (out of office mix)
08 missy elliot – lick shots (mark knight mash up mix)
09 dj fashen – bam bam
10 trevor loveys – byrdy beats