TONIGHT! Sofrito’s HUGO MENDEZ brightens up the Roadhouse basement

…on-type nonsense) and bringing them back to these shores. He has also just compiled a release entitled Tropical Funk Experience for Nascente, a role he carried out in addition to his duties masterminding the famed Sofrito Special 12-inches. Mixing Latin, jazz, African and Samba, as on ‘Mambo con Mendez’, without it sounding like the music you hear in lifts or rubbish restaurants is a skill which should be applauded. As is bringing a little bit of…

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Boca 45’s 3rd 2020 Donut features Swaby of The Heavy and Invada Records crew The Bryan Munich Allstars

…LP “Vertigo Sounds.” Stepchild, Swaby & I formed a live trio, “The Boca 45 Experience” and played a host of gigs around Europe including a jump off sessions at Cargo in London & the legendary Jelly Jazz. Swaby’s band “The Heavy” went on to become a phenomenal success story. I’ve been pestering poor Swaby to jump on another beat with me for years but he’s always crazy busy. Luckily, he was keen to be part of the “2020 Donuts” project so we made it…

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Jamael Dean – Oblivion

…omie go in battling all negative forces, racing to find the truth. Sharada comes in to make that truth known, and heal the exhausted warrior. It starts to sound like rain until the last cymbal strikes and washes the sound away.”   Old Ways: about carrying on traditions in your own way, and segues into Infant Eyes, an intimate song about the “importance of family and taking care of the children. In my tradition, babies are reincarnated ancestors wh…

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Dweller – Record Of Achievement

You know the drill: stick your swimming certificates in and your work experience letter, plus the deets on your Saturday job, and your Record Of Achievement is sorted. Dweller’s taken a different approach. Born in the mid-80s in Salford, he discovered golden age hip hop such as Tribe through Rage Against The Machine and Beastie Boys. Drumming and DJing focused his tastes, eventually seeing him become an MC and producer in 2006. A family guy throu…

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In Pictures: The Midnight Hour in Manchester by Akse

…anchester hosted the final date of a long tour for Adrian Younge, Ali Shaheed Muhammad and The Midnight Hour. A heartfelt performance of the highest standard, we all left feeling like family thanks to local talent Emanuel J Burton and Supergroup, through to Jack Waterson and Loren Oden (album forthcoming – this will be huge), and finally the full Midnight Hour experience. Read my interview with Adrian over at Bonafide. Akse documented some of the…

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On Wax / Kamasi Washington announces 4LP Heaven and Earth

…This idea inspired me to make this album Heaven and Earth. The reality we experience is a mere creation of our consciousness, but our consciousness creates this reality based on those very same experiences. We are simultaneously the creators of our personal universe and creations of our personal universe. The Earth side of this album represents the world as I see it outwardly, the world that I am a part of. The Heaven side of this album represent…

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Stepping forward: Yemi Bolatiwa refocuses her space

…ss can also be a lot of fun and has given me a lot of valuable performance experience! Image: Brant Adam Photography How is Manchester for aspiring artists? What are the barriers and who supports? I’d argue we must have one of the best creative and music networks in the UK, mainly because of the closeness of community in the scene, incestuousness if you like (can I say that?) and sense of collaboration. I think a barrier could be not knowing anyon…

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New music / Jonti returns with Sleeping and Falling

…lored weirdo mutant composed of all the elements of your story and all the complexities of your character. In every song I was having a conversation with all the good and unflattering reflections of myself — AKA my Tokorats. While this album does document a five year spiritual journey, it was ultimately a fun and luscious experience. I’m lucky I got to know my Tokorats.     – Jonti Track Listing: 1. Lotus Street 2. Alien 3. Sleeping and Falling 4….

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Video / Kasperg: Modern Daze

…ynth lead – which is surrounded by electronic and organic instruments that combine somewhere between melodic house and RnB and hip-hop beats. I was stoked to have my good friends from the Helsinki based production company VeliCreative on board to the visual side.” KASPERG INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK SPOTIFY TWITTER   Boost the signal: Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on WhatsApp…

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ROCKERS REVOLT

…Sheffield, UK and sat down with members of Pama, Mungos and the Slackers. Come join us for insights into the Specials reunion, Lynval’s Duffy love, Pama’s TROJAN experience and the world of an independent label. Listen out for contributions from Groovement veteran Kwasi, on the tour as MC for Mungo’s! TRACKLISTING Pama International: Highrise ft Michie One Intvw: Lynval Golding and Finny (Pama) Pama International: Wonder, Wonder Intvw: Lynval,Fin…

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1.1.2016

…r // Dec 2015 by Jamie Groovement Aka Agent J on Mixcloud   With one of my comics article victims What with baby coming early and all, I never finished typing up October’s Blackalicious (who I was lucky enough to support on the night) interview for Bonafide, so look for that soon. I’m also invested heavily in an article for the mag about the current state/trend for hip hop x comics, which hopefully will be in the next print issue. I’m totally loat…

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Interview: KING // London and Manchester this week

…full in comparison to the EP, which to us felt like a sample of things to come.   The debut full length has been a long time coming. What were the ups and downs for you over the last four years? Why the name change from The Story – does it signify a turnaround or rebirth of ideas for what the album should be?   Everything that’s happened over the last few years contributed directly to the sound of the album – it feels like every moment has led us…

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Review: SNOOP DOGG for Rockcorps at Manchester Apollo

…uite the same as at a ‘normal’ night: everyone in there has had the shared experience of community work and is there to share the reward, so giddiness reigns supreme. Tom Middleton handled the DJ interludes once again – I do feel sorry for him, having to crouch down and hide every time he has to suddenly stop in the middle of a mix for the next act, yet you can still see his little white cap popping around behind the decks. Nice selection, across…

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Preview: GOGO PENGUIN // Fanfares {Gondwana Records}

…Bear, Django Bates and Acoustic Ladyland. Their music is a mix of original compositions and revisionist takes on contemporary anthems, such as Queens of the Stone Age, Massive Attack and The Beatles. To see Gogo Penguin live is an emotionally charged experience, taking the listener through the melodic to the manic; from the IDM-inspired Last Words by the Walnut Tree to the heart-felt tribute Esbjörn (dedicated to the late Esbjörn Svensson) and the…

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Screening: BABYLON (1980) + sounds from Ruf Dug & Jon K // Fri 14 June

…bes very neatly – part caper movie, part musical, part hard-hitting social commentary, BABYLON was for a long time a lost classic, only existing in the form of nth-generation VHS dubs, until a recent restoration saw it made available for a new audience, and so we are proudly able to bring you an opportunity to experience this fantastic movie in a full theatrical environment for one of the very first times in Manchester! Join us before the screenin…

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Manchester: The Writing’s On The Wall Photography Exhibition Launch Night

…r), with a variety of items up for grabs including a ‘photography tutorial experience’, a ‘how to’ on street art, signed prints, graff pieces and charity items (such as multiple hot meals for the homeless). Auction proceeds will be going to the Mustard Tree charity, who have been working for the homeless of Manchester since 1994. This money will help fund a range of projects focused on improving skills, encouraging social interaction, tackling som…

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Preview // Om Unit: Threads

…g London’s urban poet, and legend, Charlie Dark. A key part of the Threads experience is how the tracklisting presents the music, balancing introspective and energetic moments, instrumental and vocal. While stand out moments can be picked, as they are sure to, Threads is an album that works best when the listener lets him or herself be guided by its creator. It is perhaps cliché for a label to claim that their next release is a standout, or even a…

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Zombie double bill at Dancehouse: Day of the Dead x Zombie Flesh Eaters // 30th Oct

…dark arts of one kind or another. This programme offers an opportunity to compare and contrast two much-loved classics, DAY OF THE DEAD, the apocalyptic grand finale of George Romero’s original, seminal Dead Trilogy, which features the more familiar, modern, science-spawned zombies, and Lucio Fulci’s ZOMBIE FLESHEATERS, with its more traditional, voodoo-spawned zombies. Plus short: SAMUEL AND EMILY VS THE WORLD All attendees will be in with a cha…

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Preview: PROF-LOGIC // Multi-Dimension

…he musical catalog of Prof.Logik is like an extended trip back home to the community you grew up in. It may seem like a strange way to describe someone’s productions at first, until you experience the atmosphere, nostalgia, and melancholy of his music and beats. Listen carefully and enjoy! Prof.Logik is 27 year old Gregory Grant; a born and raised south-side Jamaica Queens, New York progressive hip-hop producer currently residing in Spartanburg, S…

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Preview: Om Unit celebrates two years of Cosmic Bridge with compilation ‘Cosmology’

…re “slow/fast” sound. Curated by Om Unit for his Cosmic Bridge imprint the compilation features tracks from the first wave of Cosmic Bridge artists and includes 3 collaborations with label head Om Unit. In 2 short years Cosmic Bridge has released material from Om Unit, Kromestar and Boxcutter and has given us Moresounds, EAN and Danny Scrilla; who after making their debuts for the label have gone on to make waves. Unifying the Cosmic Bridge sound…

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