It was my first time, and with all things late pass related, the prevailing wisdom is that the best days have passed, despite SXSW 2011 being the most attended in all of the event’s 25 years. Assessments of shark jumping are usually based on the indie spirit giving way to mainstream tastes and corporate control. Or in the words of the homie Phonte:

I can dig it. Kanye threw a massive, “secret” concert on Chevrolet’s dime, Pepsi turned an entire city block into a brand awareness playground and I drank gallons of free Miller Lite. But there were still weirdos who would never have any connection to sponsorship or a record label playing in every nook and cranny of the city. And a festival that started out focused on rock music has gradually been making space for hip-hop as well as DJs and electronica. Regarding how the music game has collapsed changed, the genie can’t go back into the bottle. But if one is looking for a new business model, SXSW may hold some clues.

I also must add that for an event of its size, SXSW was very well run. Being an official showcase artist resulted in some great perks. (thanks, Senari!)

If you’re not familiar with my WMC exploits, SXSW is similar, where one must maintain a breakneck pace to keep up with all the fun to be had and talent to be discovered. Since my rookie status required me to acclimate, I didn’t go as hard as I should have. So this roll call is of Artists I Regret Missing Whom You Should Definitely Support:

The Adrian Younge Black Dynamite Sound Orchestra
Andreya Triana
Belleruche
Chromeo
Matt And Kim
Homeboy Sandman
Los Rakas
Tanya Morgan

As WaPo’s Chris Richards smartly noted:

…in 2011, you don’t go to SXSW to discover your new favorite bands. You go to see if they can do justice to the MP3s you’ve been gorging on all winter.

So I did end up seeing artists I’ve seen before and had long since been stanning for. Missing new folks in order to see Kokayi, Black Milk, Quadron, J*DaVeY and Little Dragon deliver exceptional sets in Austin was worthwhile and scratched my fanboy itch.

But I’d be remiss to travel all the way to Texas to only see folks I already like. The best experience I had seeing someone for the first time was an intimate, front porch performance by Meklit Hadero at an Ethiopian restaurant in East Austin. Her mix of jazz and folk was the perfect set of nuances and depth to balance out the frenzy of everything else happening during the week.

As noted above, DJ’s are gradually infiltrating SXSW. I didn’t get to check out nearly as many as I would have liked, which meant not enough dancing to balance out standing around and watching shows. DJ Jaycee‘s set at the Two Sevens Clash really stuck out for me. I missed DJ Nu-Mark, who was superb from what I heard. But ATL’s own Jaycee told a seamless and funky story with the contents of his 45 case. Very classy, and also my first time seeing him spin.

Also notable was witnessing Cousin Cole, Tameil and Tim Dolla demolish shit at the Baltimore Love Thing. I pretty much abandoned B-more Club once the hipsters latched onto it years ago but observing some masters put it down made me consider re-introducing club to my arsenal.

Other DJ nerd highlights included DJ Yoda‘s live video mixing showcase…

DJ Yoda “Stop Look & Listen” from DJ Yoda on Vimeo.

…and a couple demos from DJ Big Wiz at the Serato booth. Learned a lot very quickly about The Bridge, Video-SL and adding MIDI controllers to your rig from a cat whose chops I’ve been studying for a number of years. I’m proud of myself for not shoplifting that SL4.

As for my actual SXSW gig, it started out slowly with the Sol Power All-Stars rocking to a scarce but appreciative group of early birds, and ended with Nadastrom on some punk rock shit throwing beer, breaking things and setting off mosh pits. In between I was most impressed by DJ Sabo and Toy Selectah. Definitely looking forward to rocking with all those dudes again.

Superb brunch menu + bottomless mimosas + and custom made bloody marys + DJs Adrian Loving and Stylus.

No Cover, Just bring an appetite!

Sunday February 20th
Hudson
12-6pm

Told y’all not to miss AudioTRIP. Peep the flicks and the video.

After half a century of blessing the world with the sounds of Brazil, jazz treasure Sérgio Mendes is releasing his 37th studio album and we’ll have it in hand for a listening session.

Bom Tempo showcases songs from the crème de la crème of Brazilian songwriters (including Antonio Carlos Jobim, Gilberto Gil, Joao Donato, Carlinhos Brown, Jorge Benjor, Milton Nascimento and Moacir Santos) and a song from his old friend Stevie Wonder, written especially for Mendes in 1977, the simmering “The Real Thing” (first recorded on Sergio Mendes and the New Brasil ’77 album). While many of Mendes’ friends and long time collaborators are present on the album (including drummers Mike Shapiro and Vinnie Colaiuta, bassists Nathan Watts and Alphonso Johnson, guitarists Paul Jackson Jr. and Kleber Jorge, percussionist Gibi, vocalist Gracinha Leporace—the bandleader’s wife—and songwriter-arranger-vocalist Carlinhos Brown, who was integral to the success of the Brasileiro album), newcomers are also in the mix.

Next we’ll be graced by some live vocals from dear friend, arts maven and all around fly girl Stef Renée. After serving as a pillar of the Philadelphia arts scene, she’s back in her native Washington and I’d like to welcome her home properly.

Wednesday, June 2
Sérgio Mendes listening session and Stef Renée feature
Tabaq Bistro (basement)
1336 U St NW, WDC
9pm – until
21+, no cover

So yeah, I kind of left you all hanging after Nicholas laced us last month. I only did that to give you more time to cop everything in the archives. (err… right.)

The brother brought a packed room full of admirers and sang his face off to tracks from Border Breaker, Hittin’ Switches and a few surprises.

And here are some highlights from my set.

Slakah The Beatchild – “The Answer” (Feat. Melanie Durrant)

The T-Dot beatmaker is already responsible for what has been a Refuge anthem since week 1. This samba is so sexy that I actually had to play it twice. Expect “The Answer” to become a staple.

A Tribe Called Quest – “Go Ahead In The Rain”

Shout-out to all the beckies who come up to the DJ booth asking if I’ll play some Tribe while I’m spinning something from People’s Instinctive Travels… This doesn’t happen at Refuge of course, but at other gigs.

Erik Rico came through and did the damn thing last week armed with Ableton Live, a mean Moog plug-in, BHE‘s MIDI controller and gang of new and old material.

[credit: Marq Few]

Of course there were a few warm up tunes before the live set.

Emmanuel – “Getaway” feat. Celetia Martin

SoulCulture hipped me and now I’m hipping you. I’m getting a faint but nice bit of Loose Ends vibes mixed with some Patrice Rushen on this tune. You know those are always good things in my world.

Johnny “Guitar” Watson – “In The World”

The bass line is EVERYTHING.

See you May 5? It’s like having your music collection come to life in your living room before having a house party. Next month we’ll have someone equally dope.

This year the family reunion vibe trumped the hustle, and I’ve come to appreciate that a lot more. I don’t know how much of it is the economy, a shift in the industry or a waning interest in WMC but attendance was noticeably lower. Last year I noted a recession effect and this year my mans John Crooms accurately quipped how South Beach was trying to get us all to pay for it. The gouging was ill this year.

[credit: John Crooms]

Even at a low point in the cycle, I was able to get great performances from the names I trust to always bring it, and also those moments of discovery when you get to experience artists and DJs you’ve heard about but never seen live before.

I didn’t make it to any Louis Vega associated parties or anything that had to do with South Africans. This was a huge FAIL on my part. Black Coffee and a bunch of his South African compatriots are making a big splash in the deep house world and they had some hot events at WMC this year. I’m really happy to see them blowing up. “Superman” is a big record now and we’ve been banging “Even Though” over here for the longest.

I’m pleased that Jahsonic and I were able to get our dynamic duo on and grateful to the folks who let us grace their sets. Afrique Electrique was a fun way to get the week started with a nice intimate room of appreciative dancers. Shouts to Salah Ananse and the whole ATL massive. Playing in memory of James Brown at Godfather IV was a deep honor. And our set at The G++dness was us showing everyone how we get down back home in DC. Much thanks to Daz-I-Kue for both of those.

[credit: Shelley Nicole]

Despite not hitting as many events as I usually would, here are a few highlights.

Favorite Party: The Do-Over

The perfect end to the week had me dancing on a backyard patio for 8 hours, eating burgers, drinking cold Mexican brews and experiencing some inspired, ridiculous displays of mixing records. Experiences like that will always allow me to be a fan, especially when you see how the big dogs in the game are all fans too. I love it. Still haven’t been to the Do-Over in L.A. but I now know what’s up.

Maceo of De La Soul was on when we arrived and I was a teen fanboy again. At first I was surprised by how he was as equally versed in broken beat, UK Funky and electro as he was with hip-hop, soul and funk. Then I remembered that he’s been doing this for 20-some years and rocking parties all over the world and I felt dumb. Jeremy Sole followed Mase, more on that later. Vikter Duplaix broke down to jazz after Jeremy and built back up through neo-soul, raw hip-hop and reggae before bringing the tempo up. Masterful. Rich Medina followed him with an all 45 set that made me feel like I knew nothing after collecting records for 20 years. Cosmo Baker was up next and he was one of the dudes I was most looking forward to hearing for the first time. After a whole day of monstrous sets, Cosmo stepped up and spanked it. Boogie, deep funk, disco, breaks, all handled with a party-rocker’s expertise. All on original vinyl. And his dashiki was cleeeeean.

The party was going into overtime with Daz-I-Kue, Jeremy Ellis and John Arnold among others next on deck. I could barely walk at that point and was obsessed with getting some delicious Tap Tap.

Runner-up: TRIBE Records with Peven Everett, Nathan Adams, Ian Friday & more

I caught the tail-end of the TRIBE jam since we were rocking at Godfather at the same time. When I got there, Peven Everett was in full holy ghost mode in the last couple of tunes of his show, working himself into a pentacostal trance. Ian Friday got on and damn near had folks coming out of their clothes out on the sand and under the palm trees. But that’s how he always do.

Favorite DJ set: Jeremy Sole at The Do-Over

I try to stay up on my research. I knew about Jeremy Sole‘s Afro-Funké party in L.A. I knew about his band Musaics. What I didn’t know was that he was going to stomp a funkhole into the Do-Over amid a band of heavy hitters dropping bombs of their own.

Is that cumbia? Plena? Is that an original edit? What break is that? Jeremy’s set sparked tons of mental notes and even more furious dancing. It was a well paced, seamless, ridiculously funky tour through classic and modern beats of the latin diaspora. I still won’t rest until I get every record in his set list. It’s that serious.

Runner-up: Ezel at The G++dness

Young master Ezel put on a clinic on the 2nd floor of Jazid at The G++dness. I think he caught Shango. His house set was very aggressive but well paced. He reminded me of Karizma in that way. It’s scary to think about how much iller he’s going to be in years to come on the decks and behind the boards.

Records you should be checking for:
At least the ones that I can mention… my trainspotting had me blowing up records on Twitter that aren’t out yet!

Aloe Blacc – “I Need a Dollar”
Ezel feat. Tamara Wellons – “In My Lifetime”
The Goodness EP

With DJs Stylus, Meistro, Deep Sang and Hermon on live percussion.

Snowpocalypse knocked us off track last month but the forecast for Saturday:
Abundant sunshine. Highs in the low 50s.

January the floor was filled all night grooving to afro beat, salsa, samba and more.

ALL beers are $4 (including Leffe & Redstripe)

Saturday, March 6
Dahlak
1771 U St, NW (18th & U)
21 and Over
NO COVER

The Black Snob was there too. Her pictures are much better.

Can’t see much in the Sol Power vids, but you can hear a lot of really excited people. They were so excited that they weren’t trying to leave when the lights came up and the music stopped at 3 a.m. We packed up, the drummers kept playing, folks kept dancing. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday night.

…and more flicks from Brotha Ash Productions (link)

I can’t remember the last time I was happy to oblige every single audience request, or an instance where people got HYPED over Organized Konfusion and then sang the roof off for a Fugees tune.

Shadow Lounge is coming up on 10 years in business. That’s what’s up. Much respect to Justin, Tim, Vex and Selecta. Next time I’ve got to make time to raid 720 Records.

Thank you DC.

Jamil and I were feverishly preparing for this non-stop from the time we got the heartbreaking news. In his words:

“Preparing for this gig was like getting ready to preach your daddy’s funeral.”

So many of you were looking for something that could help you manage the grief and we needed you there to help us manage ours. The turnout overpowered any possibility of ventilation but you all hung in there. The funk of 40,000 years for real!

Here’s our entire Michael Jackson memorial service that ran to almost 5 hours total.

part 1 [download]
Download audio file (mainingredient_mjspecial_part1.mp3)

part 2 [download]
Download audio file (mainingredient_mjspecial_part2.mp3)

part 3 [download]
Download audio file (mainingredient_mjspecial_part3.mp3)

part 4 [download]
Download audio file (mainingredient_mjspecial_part4.mp3)

part 5 [download]
Download audio file (mainingredient_mjspecial_part5.mp3)

A recent jaunt across the Atlantic yielded some nicely accomplished missions, stronger alliances and much needed R&R. I even engaged in a bit of tourism that was absent from previous trips.

Caught up with the Uprock fam and was an eager and well-received guest at their recent Sunday night holiday jam. Straight off the plane direct to the venue with luggage in tow. Big up Pursuit Grooves and Supa DJ Pogo!

In between kicking it with the crew and watching Man. U take their medicine in the Champions League final, I managed to rally the troops and have a studio session, the results of which I’m pretty excited about.

Then we all went to Alicante, Spain and spent a staggering amount of time blasting music by the pool, scaring European white folks on the beach with our unrestrained mirth, BBQ’ing and concocting every permutation in the pantheon of adult beverages. Big up Ayra & Ira and the Pancake Gallery for hooking it up!

But about that tune… Working on getting that to the people as soon as possible. Watch this space.

For everyone who didn’t follow my Twitter feed or check out Fusicology’s breakdown, here’s a much delayed final word on that one thing that happens after SXSW.

This was definitely the recession WMC, but the actual effect was less severe than I anticipated. Attendance was lower all around but the folks that did come were there to hustle hard and have fun. Lots of connections were made and parties got smashed off properly. It was kind of bugged out to see places like The Marlin and Specs Music shuttered that were the sites of landmark memories of WMC’s past (Jump-N-Funk and the debut performance of Elements of Life respectively) but SoBe isn’t immune to the downturn.

This was also the year where I actually had a couple of high(er) profile gigs. I’m still trying to graduate out of 12th grade but the Vibe Conductor brand isn’t yet a household name. The grind continues.

The first jam I played was one for the record books. Daz-I-Kue‘s 3rd annual James Brown tribute had a power packed lineup of everybody who is somebody and many of whom made me want to be the somebody I’m still trying to be. Jahsonic and I knocked out a quick and energetic set of fast rap with all James Brown samples. Then everyone else continued to merk it, building up the energy level until Spinna, DJ Cash Money, 3D and Scratch executed a four-man weave on the decks. Jeremy Ellis had already stunned the crowd with his unbelievable James Brown routine and came back out to spark a little freestyle cipher. I happened to grab some footage.

The other gig I had was with an old friend who recently got nominated for a Grammy, but met up with some hard times on her way out of Texas. We worked it out though. Keep pushing, Wayna!

After sets from young B-more club sensation Rye Rye, Canadian chanteuse Anjulie and future funk diva Joy Jones I finally got a live dose of the much talked about K’Naan. I’m definitely glad I stuck around until the end.

So outside of handling that bidness, it’s always good to hear my favorite jocks kill it, and hear cats for the first time that I’ve only heard of before. In that first group, there was the beat down that Benji B delivered at the Delano. Starting out with progressive hip-hop and nu soul bits, Benji worked it up through some latin funk into house into a roaring 2-step garage finish. Ian Friday levitated the situation at the Brooklyn Mecca/Libation jam with deep spiritual afro-house goodness. Karizma assaulted the Objektivity party with big-room bombs. There was literally no space to move in there, much less breathe.

In the group of folks I got to hear for the first time, Sabine impressed with her trance inducing, deeply black and raw set preceding Ian Friday. Young Miami local Mr. Brown is one of those crate digging cats who have actually combined their obsession with rare records with the ability to rock the spot. Every time I saw him he was playing out of massive soft-sided bag full of originals that have never passed through my hands. ‘Nuff respect to him and partners DJ Wasabi and DJ Le Spam for the fly balcony afro roots session they set off. Mad Mats has a huge rep and I’ve long been an admirer of what him and his crew have done with Raw Fusion. His turntable game is no joke. Quick, nimble and funky cuts combined with a buoyant, soulful selection is how he gets down. “Mad” mental notes taken of course.

Speaking of Raw Fusion, it was bananas like it is every year. And truthfully, the slightly lower turnout made it better, because there was actually room to dance. Big ups to OP!, Karl Injex, Phil Asher, Rich Medina, Freddie Cruger (Red Astaire), Simbad and of course Daz-I-Kue. If you can’t get across the water to Sweden, it’s definitely worth visiting the offshoot in NYC.

The main takeaway point from this week of sun, dancing and furious hustling is that we’re all fortunate to be sharing this time as peers, artists and fans invested in the music we love. This blog could run multiple pages if I bigged everyone up but I’m more motivated than ever to build the connections to you all this year.

Records to watch out for:

- Cecilia Stalin – Afro Blue
- Nathan Adams & Zepherin Saint – Circles
- Joy Jones – Supanova
- Salah Ananse feat. Zynzelay – Wonder
- Flood of hot joints pumping out of Exchange Bureau Music right now

Record that I desperately need a track ID for:

- Whatever it is that uses the Future Rage drums with those mental reversed synth stabs over the top. I think Simbad dropped it at Jazzanova vs. Bugz, and I heard it a few other places too. I NEED THIS SONG.

Took a few flicks too.

For real though?!!?

Apparently DJ FLX finds it dap worthy…

The O.G. heavy hitters:

Mandrill…

Osunlade…

More madness.

6 FRIGGIN’ HOURS!

As my man Bill Source would say: “WOW!!!! Wow!”.

That was a lot of fun.

This past Saturday was the official Rhomiepalooza birthday celebration and I created a new mix for the occasion that was distributed to my guests at the jam.

It’s woven with several thematic threads. Some of these tunes are current personal faves, others are records that have stayed in heavy rotation in my sets over the last couple of years and are popular with folks that come to see me. Most importantly, I’ve included some of the many local artists who have inspired me during my time in the DC arts scene. It feels like a fitting way to mark the 30th birthday milestone.

So if you missed out at the party, here’s another chance. Enjoy and tell a friend

1. Ty – Look For Me
2. Opus Akoben – Ronin
3. Asheru – Black Moses
4. Georgia Anne Muldrow – Nothingness
5. Bobby Hutcherson – La Malanga (Kenny Dope rmx feat. Kronkite)
6. Chuck Brown – Bustin’ Loose
7. Rare Essence – Back Up Off The Wall
8. John Arnold – Rise Up
9. Beady Belle – Hindsight (Ricanstruction mix)
10. Okada Taxi – Season 2 Season (feat. Abdul Shyllon & Mark De Clive-Lowe)
11. Mark de Clive-Lowe – 4.Y.V. (feat Abdul Shyllon)
12. Snowboy – 42nd And Broadway
13. Deadline vs. Batacumbele – Batacumbele
14. Big Bang feat. Nathan Haines – Smile In Your Eyes (Mark De Clive-Lowe rmx)
15. Ty – Wait A Minute (Dwele rmx)
16. The Sunburst Band – Far Beyond
17. Kenny Dope – Comin’ Inside
18. Alice Russell – Take Your Time, Change Your Mind
19. Common – Go
20. Lizz Fields – I Gotta Go (DJ Spinna rmx)
21. Platinum Pied Pipers – 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover
22. Chris Lowe Anda Ill Pedestrians – Midnight Blue

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