Not afraid to step beyond the borders of Afro-Funk, Yaaba Funk are one of the more interesting shards of the aforementioned afro bomb. If you know Heads High, you should know Yaaba Funk from a heavy NYE basement session we collaborated on in East’ London’s ‘Life‘ venue (word to Kato!). if you don’t yet know Yaaba, you’re in for a treat. Peep the sample stream below, check the video and if you like what you hear, head over to SHOOK to investigate the interview I recently did with them…
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….and the event? Deep South runnings courtesy of Jamie Renton and his Chilli Fried machine…
As the flyer says, you know the drill by now. 12 Tone Brass are hot (if you don’t believe me watch the video below), Heads High are heat, add them together and you’ve got extreme snow melting capabilities….we’ll see you there (Vibe sell hot drinks too so no excuses!)…
Don’t know 12 Tone Brass? Allow them to introduce themselves…
It’s been while since we spoke in depth. Apologies for the hiatus. Time will show where time was spent. I’ve been busy collating some pieces for the site, some pieces for friends and getting our monthly sessions back up & running. Thankfully, Lola has been holding it down in the meantime despite her own hyper-hectic schedule. Props to her for keeping the flow…
Alright, I was rappin’ with my man Jocko last night and all he could talk about was rhythm. With any African diaspora music, you cannot isolate the rhythm. The rhythm is always linked and the rhythm is always moving. Back to Jocko, as he was talking, I had a realisation. I love the rhythm. The rhythm is the foundation for nearly all music I hold close. My recent delve into the cross-pollination of the rhythm in the Caribbean (click here for the first evidence of this) made me realise just how little I knew about the traditions that underpin our musical expressions. Journalists love to squeeze tags like ‘Afro-inspired, Tribalistic and Tropical’ into their descriptions of contemporary musical movements, but what do those things really mean? I can honestly say that digging the traditions of the French Antilles, and meeting some amazing personalities in doing so has changed how I perceive music. Forever.
‘Traditional music has another aim than to entertain. Traditional music is the past, it is the present it is the future. Eternal music. Popular music aims solely to entertain but with the traditional, entertainment is but one of many aims.”
That’s my friend and colleague Suga Kan’n’s word. When he’s not making organic ice cream, he travels the African continent absorbing it’s traditional rhythms, dance and song. He also happens to have roots in Martinique. Linking with him provided me with an introduction into the Gwo-Ka I share with you today.
Both the name of a family of drums and the music they create, Gwo-Ka runs deep. Most often used as a platform for social commentary and inextricably linked with Africa, her culture and the idea of ancestral lineage, the Ka is heavy. Before I continue, check this out to feel the real…
The big drums the brothers are holding the foundation rhythm on are Bouladrums. You’ll find these type of drums or similar across the Caribbean. Again, the link… The soloist is playing something called a Kake drum. His job is to follow the moves of the dancer who is constantly trying to outsmart him with their steps. Traditionally, only one dancer holds the floor at any-time….pressure if your movement’s not fluid!
There are seven main rhythms in the Gwo Ka family each having dozens of variations. The tradition has been on Guadeloupe since the first slave ships docked. Some say the rhythms come from the Kongo (an idea I like) others say they developed with Guadeloupe’s slave communities. Either way, there’s a depth to the Ka you can’t ignore.
Alongside Velo, the official king of Ka (whose statue can now be found on la rue Saint John Perse, Point A Pitre). The work of Gwo Ka musicians like Germain Calixte, Ti Celeste and Carnot deserve a place on the world stage.
Recognition is a sore point when it comes to Gwo Ka. For reasons which I explore in an upcoming SHOOK feature, the style never made a strong impact on the collective consciousness outside of the islands and their ex-pat communities. There are a few heads who have bridged the gap and taken the Ka somewhere other – mostly somewhere Jazz. Again, hold tight for the SHOOK piece. You’ll have all the info you need, past and present….
When something touches you its good to share it. It cleanses the soul. My soul feels a little cleaner now. I hope this all means something to you. If it does, be sure to stay tuned for the fullness and for more rhythm talk…
I hate Twitter. That living your life online ish isn’t for me. Tucking self-promotion between tweets about how good your Cornflakes taste and how you feel about sitting on a bus in traffic jars my spirit….I still use it though. And as much as it pains me to say it, I have to admit its not all bad because it’s thanks to a tweet from the Brownswood BPM that I found out about Bookworms.
His bumpy yet hypnotic re-imagining of Mi Ami’s African Rhythms is currently smacking up the real and virtual worlds and his dense, unreleased dubs have rumbled their way onto the playlist of Ms Mary Ann Hobbs more than once over the past year. With our current wave of hot beat producers, you’d be forgiven for thinking Mr Worms is yet another fresh-faced talent jostling for position in the Bass Music marketplace….not so. He’s been doing this for a minute.
“…since around the year 2000, I was 17 years old…making beats on PlayStation recording to boom-box. The first music I ever let anyone hear was a couple Bjork remixes I uploaded to this old website called bjorkremixweb. This was around 2000. Then I produced and worked with some punk and hard-core bands who met through friends from high school. I also made beats for a couple mc’s from around the way. Around 2003 I got really into making my own beats and instrumentals, mostly because other people were too hard to work with…I guess you could say it was a natural progression.”
Although other artists proved hard to work with, it would seem Bookworms has no problems making friends with different genres. Listen to any one of his original productions or remix efforts and you’ll hear traces of Punk/Rock, Hip Hop, Detroit Techno,Disco, Dubstep and Experimental Electronica all present, all correct and all somehow managing to compliment one another.
I need to know more about the San Francisco scene. There’s some hot music out there and by the looks of Bookworms’ discography, he’s busy remixing a lot of it. Lemonade are a San Fran based band who have been getting some hype this side of the water recently and sure enough, who do we find on their ‘RemixTape’…
“My ex girlfriend used to work at a used-clothing store in SF with the Callan from Lemonade, so we knew each other from around SF and going to shows. They’re cool dudes, we talked about it at a show and they sent me the files to remix ”
Talking to Bookworms it soon transpires that many of his links are a direct result of long nights spent listening to loud music on herbal foundations. Take the Solos label that’s put out his version of African Rhythms as a case in point.
“Solos is on some crazy shit, it’s electronic music. It’s all across the board. I met Roche at a warehouse party Solos was throwing in Berkeley, I wanted to smoke and he was rolling a blunt, so we smoked and then I gave him a CD. A week or so later he asked me if I wanted to put some music out with Solos. The rest is history.”
Probing further, I discover that sadly, not all of Bookworms night-time trips have such a happy ending
“…back in about 2006 I went to Big Sur, California for this weird show where San Francisco bands Tussle, Brookhaven, Lemonade and the Drift were playing. Now Big Sur is way out in the woods and nature so I was a bit out of my element and it was hella dark….to cut a long story short I end up jumping off a motor home into the darkness and spraining my ankle really bad outside the show…not a good way to end the night…”
We feel you on that one…moving on to happier times we’ll focus on the music, or rather how Bookworms would like it to be received.
“I would like people to listen to my music on headphones while riding around a medieval city on Tron light -bikes. I am trying to expose parallels between sounds and samples and styles of music. I hope to share that with others.”
Shared it he has. Sounds to me that he’s read a little too much Sci Fi though. Well I guess with a name like Bookworms you can’t fault the brother for hitting the books…
“I like Simple Takes A Wife by Langston Hughes… anything by Isaac Asimov and [I read] lots of Sci-Fi end of the world stuff when I was younger..Reading helps me come up with names for songs…sometimes.”
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Finest Dearest – Slow Going (Bookworms Rmx) Brookhaven – Something Must Remain Of Us (Bookworms Rmx) Brookhaven – Static In The Valley (Bookworms Rmx) Mi Ami - How Can I (Bookworms Rmx) Mi Ami – African Rhythms (Bookworms Rmx) Lemonade - Sunchips (Bookworms Rmx)
LP’s, EP’s and singles
Bookworm Kills (Demo cassette)
The Hidden Staircase LP (Solos Records)
Mandarine Hits CD (Expel Records)
Folks: Remixes (Self released)
African Rhythms CD (Solos Records)
A singer, self-taught guitarist, painter, writer and musical pioneer, Lizzy Mercier Descloux was special. Her sound, like that of her No Wave peers, occupied the space between Punk and Funk. It was her expansion of that space that made her so unique. Sounding more like a softly spoken beat poet than a singer, Lizzy chanted, scatted and chatted over effect-laden rhythm tracks composed of minimal, single note guitar lines, off-key harmonies and rhythm sections oozing with funk. To begin with at least, the people weren’t ready. Like Albert Ayler’s Free Jazz formations of the early 60’s or J Dilla’s late 90s MPC musings, Joe Public and Ian Industry slept….thankfully though, they woke up.
A Paris native, Lizzy made the transatlantic jump to New York in the mid 70s. Starting as she meant to go on, she published ‘Desiderata’ (a collection of poems and photographs), bought a Fender Jazzmaster guitar, starred in the New Cinema short ‘Blank Generation‘ and eventually recorded a six-track mini LP for the cult legend ZE Records under the moniker Rosa Yemen in 1978. Rosa’s low-key Punk Funk stylings invited comparisons to fellow No Wavers ‘Mars‘, but the release showed few signs of the genius that was ahead of her.
The real gold came with the release of her ‘Press Color‘ long player in 1979. The album is simply off the chain. Now, I was born in 1979 and waited almost twelve years to experience genres whose seeds can be found germinating on Press Color. LP cuts like ‘Hard Boiled Babe‘ and ‘Birdy – Num -Num‘ are mind blowing. The former sounding like a pre digital Burial/Sbtrkt cut with French accented vocals while the latter presents an eerily pitched jazz workout punctuated by double time, proto Drum & Bass rhythms. Heat.
Predictably, LMD found little fame with her 1979 offering. Despite its artistic calibre, ‘Press Color’ was barely distributed in the U.S.. The true light of her work managed to shine through however and a tour of the States and Europe grabbed the attention Island Records supremo, Chris Blackwell resulting in the tropical funk of ‘Mambo Nassau‘.
Recorded in the Bahamas at Blackwell’s Compass Point Studios and crediting one Wally Badarou with co-writing and production, Mambo Nassau married the futuristic Punk Funk of Press Colour with subtle African/Caribbean musical constructions and hyper energetic equatorial vibes. Although not as hard-edged as it’s predacessor (which is natural when you exchange the NY skyline with the Bahamas coastline), Mambo Nassau still has it’s fair share of noteworthy moments. Highlights include the synth driven syncopation of ‘Five Troubles Mambo‘, the melancholic stepping of the Bob Marley cover ‘Sun Is Shining‘ and the Pidgin Funk of ‘Lady O’K'pele‘. Lizzy had been closely studying ‘World Music’ collections issued on the french Ocora label and it’s no accident that the Mambo Nassau LP bears the hallmark of an artist who was looking beyond the Western preoccupation with funk, soul and rock. Again, success was elusive under the star spangled banner but this time Lizzy’s efforts were appreciated in Europe, with her home country’s CBS office adding her to their roster. The people had woken up.
Clearly the ‘World Music’ bug (World Music was a term which was yet to come into existence) had bitten LMD hard. 1983 saw her exploring the African continent, beginning in Ethiopia and culminating in South Africa. Naturally, she recorded an album on her travels, it’s title track ‘Mais où Sont Passées les Gazelles‘ becoming a surprise hit in France and despite being three albums deep in creation, it is this track that remains her signature piece to the European market. It peaked at number 30 in the French charts and it’s international focus somehow managed to alter the course of French Pop music from that point onward.
From here on in we complete a familiar story. The sequence is this:
1. Artist offers up some truly inspirational forward thinking creativity. The people sleep.
2.Artist continues to do so, the people sleep but some take it on.
3. Artist’s output loses some of its original magic but the people are now awake and lauding his/her present offerings with praise.
4. Artist ‘peaks’ in the mainstream sense and continues to create work which gradually falls into obscurity again, but this time without the quality that characterised their early releases.
In Lizzy’s case, this ‘post-peak’ period saw her working with Chet Baker on her 1985 offering ‘One For The Soul‘ and linking up with old peers from her No Wave days Mark Cunningham and Constance Burg for her final release, 1988’s ‘Suspense‘. There is also rumoured to be an unreleased album of her work recorded in 1995.
At the end of her recording career, Lizzy settled in Corsica and revisited her old loves, painting and writing, completing a novel ‘Buenaventura’ which is as yet unpublished. Sadly, in 2003 she was diagnosed with a cancer which proved terminal when she left our realm in on 20th April 2004. It is said that two Dolphins surfaced as her ashes were scattered into the sea off the coast of Saint Florent, Corsica. The Dolphins knew too…
Needless to say, the very fact I am writing this shows both my admiration and gratitude for the influence her work has had. I am happy that compliation projects like Strut’s ZE 30 and Soul Jazz’s New York Noise are doing what the re-issues of her early work failed to and shine a broader beam on a truly inspirational pioneer. An artist who was immersed in punk and yet never conveyed any anger in her work, instead presenting a child-like wonder of the world, its cultures and possibilities. I’ll leave the last words to punk icon Richard Hell with whom Lizzy worked on her ‘Desiderata’ book:
“At 17 she was more sophisticated than anyone I’d known, while also seeming utterly unaffected. Or at least her affectations came from such a stubborn confidence and will to defy convention that they were irresistible.”
Click Here to listen to Duke Etienne’s latest Afro/Two-Step/Funky/Aquacrunk/Soul selection which kicks off with LMDs ‘Hard Boiled Babe’… and see below for Lizzy Mercier Descloux’s unrivalled discography.
Electronic or organic? Both have a place and both need each other to survive. Symbiosis. If you’ve heard any of Reggie Dokes‘ output you’ll know he understands this relationship. You’ll know he knows (poly)rhythm, African composition and how to translate soul through machines. Basically, Reggie Dokes is a deep brother. The good news for us is his depth has long been noted. Prime Numbers, Philpot, Third Ear, We Play House, Clone and Planet Harrier have all signed his wares, following in the esteemed footsteps of the Transmat, Sound Signature and Rhythmic Deep labels who came to the party early. His own Psychostasia imprint provided the foundation and continues to broadcast soul transmissions. I wanted to write a feature on Reggie because he embodies precepts that I hold dear. Innovation, depth and knowledge of self….so here it is…
Everything I’ve read about Reginald Dokes points to his father, musician and music teacher Dr Limuel Dokes, as the prime inspiration for his work – the foundation. He bought him his first copy of Martin Circus ($50!) and moved him to train formally on the concert snare and later the drums. So that’s where he got his rhythm from. In his own words…
‘My first inspiration would have to be my father, Dr. Limuel Dokes. His life to me has been truly inspirational. He touched many young people with his gift of music. He was formerly trained. Taught high school stage band, concert band and marching band. As a kid, I remember walking and marching with the drum section as they played on the football fields of various Detroit high schools performing. He taught me how to be a great man, father, lover and creator of good music, R.I.P. Dad.’
Detroit again. I’m sure there’s a portal to some kind of higher artistic dimension in that city. There’s just so much talent, and not just any talent, it’s deep, timeless, raw creation. There’s something so special about Detroit that no matter where artists move out of the city, or for what reasons, a piece of the magic remains with them indefinitely.Reggie is no exception.
‘I was born and raised in Detroit. Although I am in Atlanta now, I will always love my city. There are some hard realities in my lovely city, high unemployment and a lot of vacant buildings. Despite the run down buildings and vacant structures, artistically, I am still able to go within and bring out that creative side to my music. I like to think many things inspire me when it comes to music. My surroundings would certainly be number one on my list.’
Now seems a good time to mention Derrick May. Our awareness of Mr Dokes east of the Atlantic is due in no small part to Reggies’ relationship with the Bellville Three innovator. (The championing of his ‘The Skin I’m In‘ cut by one Theo Parrish didn’t harm either.)
‘Derrick May and I are still great friends to this day. He helped considerably in exposing me to the professional side of DJing. I had a residency in Canada a long with my partner Randall Washington. Thanks to Jerry the Cat, the head DJ at the club, he wanted us to come in and do some different things musically. Derrick would come to the club and hang out, especially if he had some gigs that way. I remember him coming up to the DJ booth. He was very cool. Two weeks later I was hanging out at this late night party off of Woodward, and saw Mr. May. He turned to me and said, “Hey what’s up? I want to help you with your DJ career.” The only thing I could say is, “Thanks.” At the time he had a DJ agency called Point Blank with this guy named John. He exposed me to parties in the states and eventually overseas. It was rough going though because I did not have any records out at the time, so basically Derrick would have me open up for him. It was a great experience but also quite nerve racking. I got over the nervousness eventually and just started having fun with it. Derrick is a great DJ. I have seen a lot of them. I remember we were doing a party in Detroit together and a record scratched while he was playing. He immediately hit the effects button and spun the record backwards. I was like, “oh shit!” No one really even noticed, the vibe was still on point. He did not even sweat it.’
It wasn’t all opening for legendary innovators though. We’ve all got to start somewhere and Reggie’s career began in the basement of his family home, cutting and pasting hot wax from New York and across the water in Europe.
‘I have been a DJ since I was 14. I had a good family friend that had a DJ set up. Naturally I wanted one, because he was mixing records that sounded very unique to me. A lot of them were records from overseas and New York records. DJing back then was such a cool thing to do for a kid. A lot of these records from Yazzoo, Yellow, Beat the Street, Capricorn, I Want it to be Real by John Rocca. These records were so different. The vibe was so amazing to me and intoxicating. My father started to support me in buying these records every week. Finally I got a DJ setup. It was a Realistic mixer with two Technics turntables called SLB 200s I believe. My setup was in the basement of my parents home, and I spent hours mixing and making mixed tapes for my friends at school. Sometimes I would make a mixtape before doing homework. My parents did not like that at all. Then I hooked up with a guy name Greg Freeman who DJed, and we just connected. Another guy joined us name Will Guest, and we formed a group called Audio Sounds. We eventually became this popular DJing crew playing Progressive and House Music at house parties. We progressed from playing house parties to being booked by clubs and various venues. Everybody started wanting our mixtapes and we became like local stars at our high school in Detroit. One memory I have is playing this event in Detroit and all the guys would stand around the table watching how we mixed records and stand by the speakers to hear our blends and transitions. It was quite competitive, but very fun.’
On to Psychostasia. Reggie’s label and home of his early output. Established in 2000/1, Psychostasia has consistently served up the goodness from Reggie’s own lab, not forgetting tracks from associates like Jerry the Cat, JuJu and Jordash and the fruits of collaborations between himself Craig Huckaby and fellow Detroit dweller Pirahnahead under the Napi Headz moniker. The label is still going strong today and has never swerved from it’s original aim of releasing eclectic, innovative, soul drenched productions.
‘It [Psychostasia Recordings] was inspired by my experiences in meeting road blocks with other independent labels. Many of them were giving me the runaround. I got tired. Decided I wanted to start my own thing. Psychostasia Recordings was born. With any label it is always a struggle. I remember sending my records overseas to shops in London for free, just to create a buzz. The fortunate thing is that my artistry came from the inspiring streets of Detroit. Considering Detroit’s history or ties to techno, that helped my label. My vision was to have a label that reflected independence. Meaning a label whose vibe was different or eclectic, soulful and genre bending. In addition, it was my aim to show that you could still put out records that particularly did not have the dancefloor in mind. I have manifested my vision, and I continue to push forward with my music.’
Focussing on this music, there is a strong African thread binding together Reggie’s back catalogue. Imagine Ali Farka Toure and Mustapha Tettey Addy in the studio with Juan Atkins and you’ll be getting close. It’s a real skill to balance those Motherland influences with more Westernized styles and do credit to each of the sources. Reggie has this art on lock.
‘…in that there is an intentional injection of African vibrations on my part when it comes to most of my productions. I make no excuses about that…I can only speak for myself, but I always try to make that connection and recognize the beauty of indigenous African rhythms with my electronic music, whether it be House or Techno. The African history/legacy that is a part of me, I share and send out through my music productions … At the risk of repeating myself, I think any person that creates should put a part of what is important and spiritual in their work. Without hesitation, I will unashamedly articulate that Africa, specifically the music, has influenced the world many times over. My first album was called Afromation. I wanted the world of electronic music to know that I am about Africa. I am about history. I am about peace. I am about love. I am about spirituality. I am about music.’
The Afromation was a truely breathtaking debut long player. Released in 2004, it still sounds as fresh today as when I first pressed play. The same goes for his ‘Rhythmicity EP‘. Reggie cites these as his most cherished works.
‘The productions that I am most proud of would be my first EP on Psychostasia and my first album, “The Afromation.” Like most artists, you always have a special connection with that first piece of work. I remember struggling trying to get that first EP out, and most importantly, creating that minimal track, “Black Thoughts” while my daughter was on my lap. The first album is always significant to the artist, this was a body of work that I presented to the world, representing all that is important to me: sprituality, family, music, genre bending artistry.’
The journey is far from over. With a new long player and Psychostasia reissue programme from in the pipeline, plans for a collaborative album with his brother in music Boddhi Satva and murmurs of a European DJ tour early next year, the master of the deep continues his walk….and long may it last.
Reggie has blessed us with a free download of his ‘Funk Below’ which you can pick up here:
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We like moving pictures too, so I included this trailer for the TechnoMecca which features Reggie discussing the black roots of Techno. And for throwback value, check out Sharon Redd in all her black leather glory in the original video for the awesome ‘Beat The Street’.
Many Thanks to Reggie for his patience and assistance putting this piece together. Our blessings stretch out to you brother…
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