Music Mashup
Winter Time Rhymes
Summer is officially over and winter in all its glory will slowly start to descend on us. But have no fear mes amies! While I can't stop the weather being rubbish, I can light up your lives with the best gigs and albums in town - thus keeping you chipper.
Story Highights
- The Kano Gig
- Diesel U Music
- Uffie and Feadz
- The Top Five Albums
The Kano Gig
To start with here's a little skit on Kano. I first came across Kane Robinson when I was still a sprightly teen, raving all over London to Garage. Kano was an MC with the crew N.A.S.T.Y and had a big hit with the tune Boys love Girls. This was a satirical look at relationships and features one of my favourite lyrics of all time: “Drink til drunk, lick off and strip off - girls love boys.” Kano then got sighed to 679 records, famous for the Mitchell Brothers and of course - Mike Skinner. Kano's album Home Sweet Home was well received and despite the fact that he didn't have the impact of his contemporary Dizzee, he was still a contender on the underground music scene and also commercially. He therefore straddled both in a way that you don't normally come across.
Now when his second album - London Town came around, I went down to Deal Records which promised a one off performance by the man himself. I have to add here that we went for coffee before the performance and guess who was there? Yes, Kano and his manager were chilling in the same coffee shop as yours truly. His performance was certainly poised but in no way calm. The energy exuded during his hour long performance and the response from the crowd were promising, both in terms of album sales and his up-coming tour.
Kano is a bit off an undercover ladies man, hence his new single - This Is The Girl. All the girls were in fact definitely feeling him! Kano shows his solid London roots with tunes such as Buss It Up - with basement outfit Vybz Kartel and Bad Boy. This samples UK Apache's Original Nuttah and the performance was the most popular of the evening. He even had all the cooler than thou hip hoppers dancing and singing along. In fact the small road outside the shop was packed and people were climbing up to get a glimpse of the K-man. With that in mind I'll be catching his London show next month and relaying all the gossip.
Until then, here are two other fab October nights you can look forward to.
Diesel U Music
October 3, 2007 - Koko
Where else can you see Wiley, CSS and the Good Shoes, all together on one night? Where else can you hear the mighty TapePlayer DJ and where else can you do it all for £5? Koko - that's where and we have Diesel Jeans to thank for this great line up. Tickets are on sale now from ticket web and the other usual outlets. See you there!
Uffie and Feadz
October 4, 2007 - Secret Location in EC2
Uffie is one of those voices you can't get rid of. Maybe it's because of the girlish timbre but it's more than likely it's because of the filthy lyrics that spout from those very pretty lips. At this one off FREE gig, Uffie and Feadz will be performing in an undisclosed Shoreditch location. Go to anewmovement.com for further details. This is not to be missed.
The Top Five Albums
Tried and tested … Tunes that have DJ Michelle spinning around.
1. Timbaland - Shock Value
Not only has Timbaland worked with and produced almost everyone of note, his own album is pretty damn good as well. Well it hasn't left my stereo. Tunes such as Give It To Me are great party numbers but probably forgettable. It's tunes like The Way I Are that stand out due to the stellar production. New comer Keri Hilson also appears on two other great tracks - Scream and Miscommunication. The bonus track, Come Around is exactly what a bonus track should be - an exclusive track featuring the lauded M.I.A. As long as Timbaland keeps making those hypnotic beats, we will keep dancing to him.
2. Kelis - Bossy
The lady that brought the boys to the yard is back with a third album and she's still on great form. This bunch of tracks show off her very diverse talents and includes the gospel inflected Appreciate Me, the funky love song Til The Wheels Fall Off and the lovely Scott Storch produced Trilogy. But Mrs Nasir Jones is best known for sexy Hip Hop tracks that can make everyone dance and the tracks entitled Handful and Aww S*** are guaranteed to persuade most girls to pull their best sexy face and shake it! Well that's what those songs make me do!
3. Kano - Home Sweet Home
This album follows in its predecessor's Hip Hop roots but this time there's a bit more flavour for your ear. This is courtesy of Vybz Cartel, Damon Albarn on Feel Free and Kate Nash on Me and My Microphone. Has Kano gone the same route as Dizzee by making an album that will reach more mainstream ears? Yes and while the vitriolic review in NME does contain elements of truth, the album still sounds fresh and I'm waiting until I see him in the flesh to make my final decision.
4. The Cure - Greatest Hits
In my opinion you can never have enough eighties tunes and The Cure were certainly popular. Songs like Friday I'm In Love and The Lovecats might be well known but it's gems like Close To You, Just Like Heaven and the totally infectious Why Can't I Be You that show how The Cure garnered so many fans. If you like introspective, lovelorn lyrics sung with more than a touch of the whimsical, then you'll definitely enjoy this album.
5. KT Tunstall – Drastic Fantastic
It's by no means as catchy as her first album but then this time she hasn't been lying around in pent up obscurity waiting for a big break. The tracks are slower, more perfectly tuned in to her unique style and despite the comparative points of weakness between album number one and album number two, there are no fillers. In some songs it sounds very much like a free fall into the vocal stylings of Sheryl Crow but the other tracks successfully bring you back down to KT Tunstall-ville with a welcome bump.
- DJ Michelle
