KNP Music, formerly Wax Recording are proud to announce the launch of the new KNP Music website, the latest offering from the KNP family.

To mark the launch of the new website KNP are offering an incredible recession busting deal to Choirs, Brass Ensembles and Orchestral Ensembles.

Be sure to head over to the deal page to see the current jaw-dropping, pre-Christmas offer.

The Barossa Valley

Savour the delights, experience the culture

Vintage delights down in the valley.

The Barossa Valley – one of the world’s greatest wine producing areas … a focus for outstanding festivals, food and hospitality … a rural community with a special place in Australian history and culture .. a timeless landscape beckoning you to share its charms … and only one hour from the city of Adelaide.

Raise your glasses … there’s so much to celebrate.

Vines among gumtrees ..

A European chateau surrounded by Australian gumtrees full of birdlife.  The Barossa has blended its rich German heritage with the best of Australia.  A delicious variety of premium wines are ready to taste in imposing settings, vie-covered courtyards or humble stone cottages.  And don’t forget the food!  The famous Barossa butchers, bakers and restaurateurs have many delicacies with a taste of Europe – and why not then tour the charming villages and historic homesteads for a flavor of pioneer life?

A time to indulge.

Seeking a special experience?  Then sweep over the valley by hot air balloon to see the patchwork of vines, a scattering of cockatoos and glistening church spires spread before you Touch down to a champagne breakfast before exploring the many art galleries and craft shops.

Spend the night in a cosy cottage, country hotel or luxurious lodge.  Linger in front of that winter log fine and savour the atmosphere – you deserve it!

In tune with the season …

When you enter the valley, you switch into Barossa time – a life in harmony with the grapevine …  of spring green, summer fruit and autumn gold.  And music keeps time with the season – with the rejoicing of church balls, organs and choirs … and the celebrations of brass bands, street fairs and parades of harvest time.  Whether you prefer a party atmosphere or peaceful retreat, the choice is yours in this special world.  Locals call it ‘Gemutlichheit’ – you’d call it ‘the good life’ and you’re very welcome to share it.

Visual source:  singlestravel

I have posted these gems on my Facebook page and now share them with the rest of the world.

Enjoy, and know that Brian Eno was one of the musicians in this band.

Regular readers of this blog will know that I’m a very laid-back kind of guy, unlikely to take an irrational dislike to anything or anyone and in possession of an easy-going and tolerant nature not disposed to any form of grumpiness.

However, I’ve decided to celebrate the fact that I’ve finished marking all my resit examinations by letting my hair down a bit and giving you a list of my musical pet hates. The title is an allusion to  George Orwell’s 1984, wherein Room 101 was a personalised torture chamber containing a prisoner’s own worst nightmare. Here I’ve confined myself to music. I was going to include rap but, as I said, I’ve decided to confine myself to music.

Brass Bands. I don’t mind brass bands – particularly colliery bands and the Salvation Army band – at Christmas or for singing hymns to, but I’ve put them on my list for the excruciating brass-band arrangements of classical or jazz that make my skin crawl. You wouldn’t want to play Jimi Hendrix on the banjo, and you shouldn’t let a brass band play Wagner.

Elvis Presley. His music was largely nicked from much more talented black musicians, and his inferior versions became popular simply because he was white and (when he was young) good-looking. He wasn’t even average as a singer. During his later years he became a monument to extreme self-indulgence and dreadful Las Vegas Kitsch, a bloated laughing-stock in a sequinned jumpsuit. I like a lot of Rock’n'Roll, but Elvis was the pits.

Brahms & Liszt . Where the majestic journey of the Germanic romantic tradition veered off into a tedious cul-de-sac. Turgid and impenetrable on the one hand, flowery and overwrought on the other. But what about Brahms’ German Requiem? I’m with George Bernard Shaw, who said that it was a work to be “patiently borne only by a corpse”. When invited to hear the work for a second time, he declined. “There are are some sacrifices which should not be demanded twice from any man; and one of them is listening to Brahms’ Reqiuem.” I could have added Schumann to this too, but then I would have lost the reference to Cockney rhyming slang.

Period Instruments My heart always sinks when I pick up a CD of a much-loved piece only to read the dreaded words “played on period instruments”. Read “played on inferior instruments (and probably out of tune too)”. Why on Earth would anyone prefer the buttock-clenchingly awful scraping sound made by a baroque cello or viola da gamba to a proper instrument? And as for the so-called “natural trumpet”, words fail me.

I’ve added this from Anton, which makes the point better than I could!

Barbershop Quartets Close-harmony singing can be wonderful to listen to – I’m a great admirer of Welsh male voice choirs, for example. However, the whining fake joviality of a Barbershop quartet is quite unendurable. Cut my throat with a razor rather than make me listen to one!

The Four Seasons I’m prepared to accept that Antonio Vivaldi might have written a reasonably competent piece of music in The Four Seasons. After all, he wrote so many little concerti that he’d be expected to come up with one half-decent one just by chance. The problem is that I’ve heard it so many times, in lifts, shops and, worst of all, at the other end of a telephone call centre line – and usually in very badly played versions – that I think I’ll commit murder the next time I hear it. And don’t get me started on Nigel Kennedy either.

Pan Pipes I dream of the day when it is possible to walk along a British high street without my ears being assaulted by faux Andean tootling to the accompaniment of overamplified muzak. Those guys may dress like Incas but they’ve probably never been closer to South America than Weston-super-mare. And do they think people can’t tell they’re miming?

Hector Berlioz Revoltingly overblown bombastic nonsense from a man whose ego exceeded his talent by as large a factor as you can find. My music teacher at School loved Berlioz, with the result that his vacuous splurgy ramblings were inflicted on me and my classmates lesson after lesson. The normally generous Giuseppe Verdi said that Berlioz “was a poor, sick fellow, full of fury against the world at large, bitter and spiteful.” Perhaps he couldn’t come to terms with his own mediocrity.

Folk Singers I like a lot of folk music, but don’t like English folk singers,  especially those that sing in a made-up west country accent and stick their fingers in their ears as they do so. If we have to listen to their irritating nasal droning, then at least they should have the courtesy to unblock their ears and suffer with the rest of us.

Harpsichords I could have included these under “period instruments”, but I think they deserve to be singled out for special mention. There might have been an excuse for playing a harpsichord in the days before the pianoforte was invented, but they should now all be destroyed to save us from the hideous plinky-plonky jingly-jangly noise they make. “Like two skeletons copulating on a tin roof” was how Sir Thomas Beecham described them, and who am I to disagree? Nothing was ever written for the harpsichord that didn’t sound better when played on the piano.

So there you are. That’s my list. If you feel like relieving a bit of stress feel free to add your own via the comments box. But please keep your contributions as measured and reasonable as mine.

I’ve been getting really into brass bands recently. I know what you’re thinking, isn’t that just a load of old men playing military music in Yorkshire? To some extent, yes. But the brass band diaspora is what really interests me. I love how the brass band tradition has reached musicians all over the world, all of which have fused the traditional style with other genres and traditions to create a unique brass band hybrid.

So who am I blowing my trumpet for? (sorry)

My current top five are:

1. Youngblood Brass Band
2. Hypnotic Brass Ensemble
3. Gangbe Brass Band
4. Fanfare Ciocarlia
5. Boban Markovic Orkestar

I have gotten the chance to see all of these bands live in the last year or so and I have to say they all blew me away live. I have come to realise that for these bands it is not only about fantastic musicianship (they were all note-perfect and had beautiful tone) but it’s also about showmanship. If a sousaphone player can pull off dance moves whilst playing that thing (wiki tells me that the most popular sousaphone weighs 20k!), well then I think it puts the rest of us non-dancing instrumentalists to shame.

Youngblood Brass Band

These guys are a hip hop brass band from Wisconsin. They have the most catchy and cleverly written tunes of all the brass bands mentioned here, although they are also the least impressive band live in terms of pure entertainment value, so it’s swings and roundabouts. They also have the most talented Sousaphone player in all the land. He manages to use that instrument as a bass and a melody instrument at once, creating some awesome DJ scratch effect noises unlike anything i’ve ever heard before. Check out their track ‘Brooklyn Live in London’ off their myspace. (The amazing Sousaphone solo comes in around 4:20)

http://www.myspace.com/youngbloodbrass

Hypnotic Brass Ensemble

Saw these guys play at the Barbican a few weeks ago and they have the most enthusiasm on stage i’ve seen in any band in a long time. I particularly liked the way they managed to get white, middle-class, Barbican-loving 60 year olds to bust hip-hop moves. So these guys are a  hip hop/New Orleans/Jazz based brass band from Chicago, made up of 7 brothers, all of which were taught about the New Orleans brass tradition by their jazz musician father Phil Cochran. Pop over to their myspace to listen to ‘Baliky Bone’ or my favourite ‘Sankofa’ on Spotify.

http://www.myspace.com/hypnoticbusiness

Gangbe Brass Band

Also saw these at the Barbican. They are an African brass band from Benin, West Africa. They fuse the traditional military brass band style (brought over by the French when they occupied Benin in the late 19th century) with traditional West African flavours and some African singing and French rapping to create a wonderfully unique sound. Blissful.

Of course they have a myspace – check out ‘Beautiful Africa’ though I don’t think their recordings do them justice to how amazing they were live.

http://www.myspace.com/gangbebrassband

Fanfare Ciocarlia

I got into this Romanian Gypsy Brass Band a few years ago when I saw them play at Roskilde festival in Denmark. They have some great tunes and are a real party band.

They have quite a few albums and again, I don’t think their myspace currently reflects some of their best tracks but ‘Asfalt Tango’ is certainly worth a listen.

Obligatory myspace;

http://www.myspace.com/fanfareciocarlia

Boban Markovic Orkestar

Again, saw these at the Barbican recently, they are a Balkan brass band from Serbia. Again, quite gypsy influenced. Leader of the band, Boban Markovic is often regarded as one of the best trumpet players to come out of the Balkans and you can certainly see why! God knows how he moves his fingers so fast!

http://www.myspace.com/bobanimarko

My favourite is ‘Mundo Chochek’

So go on, give these guys a listen and or be brassed off you missed out!

Getting There

So I got up at 9am to get a shower and repack my rucksack for the long trip ahead (actually it only takes 1hr 15mins to get to glastonbury but unfortunately for us, the traffic was terrible!).  We checked out the hostel and went to a place up the road where we got the greasiest fry ever!  For anyone staying in Bristol in the future, I would definitely reccommend the hostel we stayed in (think it was called the Full Moon).

Finally got to the bus station and I swear, I have never been so wrecked from walking only 5 mins!  Not only were we carring almost 20kgs on our backs but we also had two tesco bags that weighed the equivalent of two 24 cases of beer! Also, at the bus station the police were confiscating gas canisters from people as there was a chance they could explode on the bus which got Sarah a bit scared seeing as how she had one in her bag! lol was so funny.

The bus journey ended up taking around 5 hours and we would end up hearing stories all day from people about the backlog.  The bus driver told us that the bus that left before us was somehow 9 miles behind us!  Also people pitched beside us told us that they left Bristol at 11am and didnt get to Glastonbury till 9pm!

After the hardest walk of my life, we finally pitched near the Park Stage.  Originally I thought it was a pretty central location but I think next year I would definitely pitch somewhere near the other stage.  After we got our tents erected me and Chris made our way to the top of the hill behind the park stage to see over the whole of glastonbury

Looking Over Glastonbury

We went back to the tent and then had another massive walk around absolutely everywhere.  We saw circus performers practicing for their shows over the next 3 days, brass bands walking down the pathway whilst simultaneously playing their instruments.  You’d walk past a cafe and there would be a kick ass reggae band playing on stage whilst people were drinking their coffee.  So surreal.

That night we all made our way to the Ribbon Tower at the Park Stage (it was then nicknamed “Jimmy The Jellyfish” by people we met there!)

Ribbon Tower, aka Jimmy The Jellyfish

and sat there for a couple of hours drinking cans of lukewarm fosters.   We met a guy called Josh

Josh

who had been going here for around 5 or six years now and he continually talked about just how amazing glastonbury was (we would soon realise that nearly everyone thought that and would not be ashamed to tell us).  In fact for him, the last thing glastonbury is about is the bands.  He saw a total of 4 bands last year and he hadnt even looked at the lineup for this year.  That definitely says something about all the other things you can do at glastonbury.

I went for another big walk with Chris & Lucy, just exploring everything around us.  I would actually end up spending most of my time over the week with them both and they were the best craic to hang around!  They never made me feel like a third wheel and didnt seem to complain (well to me anyway) that I was cramping their style.  Im really glad they were both there .

We stayed up for another couple of lukewarm fosters until Sarah’s friend Emma arrived and then hit the hay at around 2:30am.  Ohh and last point I need to make was that doing a number 2 was definitely an experience!!

On Saturday (yes, there is a slight time delay setting in on this blog) I attended the local church fete.*

I came away with -

• 1 jar Nescafe Cafe Parisien (L’experience des cafes francais, apparently)
• 1 litre bottle of lavendar-scented bubble bath (from Avon – is the Lady still operating?)
• 1 copy of Keywords by Raymond Williams.

Fondly picture an epicurean evening lying in a lavendar-scented bath, sipping un tas de Cafe Parisien and reading Raymond Williams – but sadly it’s not to be. 

Do, on the other hand, make an interesting discovery – that any piece of music is improved by being played by a brass band.  Hear something strangely stately and poignant – turns out to be the Theme from the A Team.

So – picture the most irritating piece of music you can think of (in my case probably mid-period Spandau Ballet), imagine it played at half speed by a brass band and – presto! – it’s not so bad after all. 

* sorry – no accents available on this blog, or – if there are – I haven’t been able to find them.  Bit Anglocentric, I’m afraid.

Barnardo’s Brass is a unique fund-raising initiative that aims to unite the musical heritage of one of the UK’s largest children’s’ charities with brass bands throughout Britain. BFBB is supporting the Barnardo’s Brass Appeal which officially launched on 1st January 2009

Dr. Thomas Barnardo was a true visionary in his acknowledgement of the benefits that music training and music making could bring to the young and deprived children in his homes. Today it is generally accepted as a means of developing the potential of all children whatever their background.

Historic archives show that Barnardo’s Homes originally located in East London had several marching bands, which played for the local community and on special occasions. The more talented musicians were chosen and formed into smaller ensembles called “Musical Boys”. They travelled throughout the United Kingdom and Commonwealth countries raising much needed funds.

How can you help?

 By visiting the Barnardo’s Brass Appeal website

 By organising a fund-raising concert in aid of the Barnardo’s Brass Appeal

 By attending a fund-raising concert in aid of the Barnardo’s Brass Appeal

The organisers of the Barnardo’s Brass Appeal will be happy to help with the development of your event ideas and can support you in a number of ways. Previous Barnardo’s Brass Appeal concerts have helped to develop new partnerships between a number of organisations who see the value of the project.

What do you get when you combine Teknochek Collision with Big Easy funk? Why a Slavic Soul Party!, of course!

Yeah…what does that mean exactly? Well, to really find out, you’ll have to attend the Cleveland Museum of Art’s Summer Solstice party  on June 20. Slavic Soul Party! (yes, there’s an exclamation point in their name, and it is warranted!) will take the stage at 9:15 p.m. on the museum grounds to help usher in the longest day of the year, and a summer filled with great art and entertainment. To get a preview of their music click here.

Loaded with brass, great vocals and a hip-hop beat, Slavic Soul Party! will keep the party booming throughout the night. 

The Summer Solstice celebration begins at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 20 and runs until 2 a.m. June 21 at the Cleveland Museum of Art. The party marks the opening of the museum’s new East Wing, which will feature modern and contemporary art, Impressionism and photography.  

It’s an exciting moment for the museum and the city of Cleveland, not to mention a party you don’t want to miss.

Be there.  You know the rest.

Image: Courtesy of Slavic Soul Party! 

House – Deep House
House was born from the hybrid between European Electropop and the American Disco music, in the middle of the Eighties, very precisely in Chicago. It was a thing which was inevitably to come, the expectation was almost palpable everywhere in occident. Two clubs can share the paternity of this sound around 1983: the Warehouse (which gave its name to the style), and the Musik Box. The first House tracks appeared on reel-to-reel magnetic tape in 1984 in the scene of the East Coast African-American deejays, but it is only into 1987 that House landed with force on to Europe. In Belgium it started from the clubs Boccaccio (Destelbergen), La Gaîté (Brussels), AB (Gent), 55 (Kortrijk), … It did not lose any single part of its worldwide prestige since then.
Characterized by a rhythmic 4 times/4 measures and a cordial and festive environment inherited from Funk and Philly Sound, it immediately reveals its filiation with the Disco music. Very vocal in the case of the Garage House, or very instrumental as in the case of English Uplifting House, it varies and changes color but always keeps its original flavour.

3 House miniclips: House [realaudio]
5 outstanding labels: Chicago Traxx – Strictly Rythm – Eight Ball – Guidance – Cajual
4 current labels: 20:20 Vision – Paper rec. – Soma rec. – Tactile rec. – Defected rec
Some Belgian House deejays: Koenie, Geoffroy, Raoul, Lorenzo, Isabel, Danny V, S-Venus, Smos & Baby B, Sven Van Hees, Murvin Jay
Some more ClubHouse deejays: Olivier Gosseries, Junior Jack & Kid Creme, Olivier Abbeloos, Miss Luna

Progressive House
Recently appeared because of the Progressive Trance wave. This style answers the expectations of a public seduced by Trance but which wants something softer or a little more refined. The House rhythmics and atmospheres thus integrated the sounds, the gimmicks and the emotions close to Progressive Trance to give Progressive House.
Some deejays: Sander Kleinenberg, St Dic (when he plays this, but he’s usually more House)

Techno
Techno was born under the recent impulse from House around 1987. It is a purified vision, much more centered on the electronics, and also colder than House, which made possible for young blacks of Detroit to create the first rhythms of Techno. Since 1987 let us point at Juan Atkins (the mentor), Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson, and very quickly Jeff Mills or Mike Banks. Two large American tendencies quickly became apparent: the hardest and radical side around Mike Banks, Jeff Mills or Robert Hood, the calmest and intellectualized around Derrick May, Carl Craig, Stacey Pullen, Kenny Larkin, etc. .. But during that time, Techno had taken an incredible recognition in Europe with its German, Belgian, Dutch or English derivatives.
In Techno, you’ll find a 4 times/4 measurements rhythmic, but voluntarily mechanical and preeminent, underlined by rageous or enigmatic electronic sounds. The general atmosphere is rather cold, often energetic and very futuristic.

3 Techno miniclips: Techno [realaudio]
4 outstanding labels: Transmat – Planet E – Axis – Underground Resistance
Some Belgian deejays: Deg, Kozz, Pierre, Psychogene, T-Quest, Zzino, D-Jack, Tomaz, Tim
Belgian Techno live acts: Sharpside, Fabrice Lig, Sebastian S, Analog B,…

Drum’n Bass (or Jungle)
Originally typically English, all started in 1988-89 with a style named Original Hardcore… a blend of Hip Hop and Industrial Tech music. The band Prodigy started with that style on “XL” records, but also Dave Clarke (the Techno deejay) or some other labels like “Shut Up and Dance”. Then it turned faster and faster (180 bpm) and integrated some sounds and lyrics from the Ragga … it thus became the Jungle music, thanks to the ‘Jungle club’ in UK.
Back then, Jungle filled Wembley stadium, and made gigantic events with 15 to 20.000 people around London and Brixton. Some originators of that music style say it was the greatest time for creativity.

In 1996, there has been a split between the Jungle (fast and ragga) and the Drum’n Bass (chillout, jazzy and more atmospheric) … but the term “Drum’n Bass” had more support and sticked to the global movement… so in 1999, everyone was talking only about Drum’n Bass for the quiet as well as for the faster. It was the rising top of the phenomen in United Kingdom, and with its British stars it really engraved that new music into the world medias.
But now there’s a new generation of Drum’n Bass musicians… from Australia, Brasil, New-Zealand, USA, Norway or Austria, … worldwide. Plus the wilder and younger names from UK, such as Evol Intent, D Kay, Spor, Jenna G, Calibre, Raiden, or Ben Sage.

In Belgium, after long years in the deep underground, the scene is now bigger every year and gathers more and more crowds since 1999-2000. The smallest parties get 300 ppl, the biggest 5000 and more.

2 Drum’n Bass miniclips: Drum’n Bass [realaudio]
Brilliant original UK names: Aphrodite -Hype -Bailey -Adam F -Marky -Doc Scott -Nikki Blackmarket -LTJ Bukem -Roni Size -Grooverider -Fabio -Krust -Brokie
New ruling names: Zinc -High Contrast -Vapour -Optical -Spor -Calyx -Pendulum -Concord Dawn -Calibre -Dom&Roland -Evol Intent -Noisia
Some labels: Metalheadz, Bingo, Dope Dragon, Full Cycle, Revolve:R, Source Direct, Virus, Breakbeat Kaos, V Recordings, Reinforced, Moving Shadow
Some Belgian deejays: Wontime, Millenium Kru (aka Daviz & 187), System D, Rhumble, Brekbit, Saiko, Baz, Lady Vortex, D-Convict, Pneumotracks, Miss Elorak, GroundKontrol, Shift 62, Wasp, Respawn

Breakcore / Drumcore

And then came the Breakcore… which is still bit of a mystery for most people out there.
Well (this description is OPEN to ANY SUGGESTION or MODIFICATION … just send us a mail),
Breakcore has probably also a British origin, but it has strong branches in France, Italy, Germany and Switzerland. In belgium it now often gathers 1000 to 5000 people partying all night.
It’s the dark soul of what Drum’n Bass could have been if rebuild by Aphex Twin or Autechre… plus a touch of punkrock, a drop of Gabber, a hand in HipHop, a cloud of Ragga, a laugh of fun samples, and a slice of Industrial. Fasten your seatbelts and make sure there’s no neighbours.

There’s already many subdivisions in that scene… a slow and a fast one, the Breakcore, the Drumcore, more dark or more fancy, etc…

6 Breakcore miniclips: Breakcore [realaudio]
Some labels: Planet Mu, Zhark, Wood, Worm Interface, Tigerbeat, Uncivilized World, Shockout, Ambush, Radio Bomb, Position Chrome, Blut, Praxis, Damage, Mirex, Bloody fist, F.L.O.,…
Some Belgian names: X&Trick, Tim Terror, Droon, Hell-zo, Sickboy, C-drik, Bioxyd, Errorik, Zek, Probex, Mushka… Seal Phüric can come close to that too… as well as Acid Kirk (Syncopated Elevators Legacy) or Yuri (Lester Lewitt).

Electro – Electrofunk – Electronic Body Music
(+ Miami Bass, Electroclash, DiscoNouveau)
The Electro has two great interpretations. The Electrofunk and the Industrial.

The first was born in the United States, and mainly in New York and Detroit at the end of the 70′ S, then gave birth to Hip Hop a couple of years later. For New York we must mention Africa Bambaatah from the Bronx, Grandmaster Flash or the Newcleus band, whereas for Detroit one found Juan Atkins (already) and his nickname Model 500. This style of course found its roots in a mixture of Funk and electronic sounds of Kraftwerk.

On another side, more strictly European, a phenomenon coming from the cold suburbs of Manchester, Berlin or Brussels showed up around 1982 to expand in the mid-80’s. Hybrid of the hard Rock’n'roll, Kraftwerk (them again) and of the electroacoustic of Stockhauzen, bands like Nitzer Ebb or Tuxedo Moon, Split Second, Front 242 or Snowy Red gave life to what would become Electronic Body Music and Industrial Electronic Music. Anne Clark and John Foxx had opened in 1980 that post-Punk way in which was engulfed the whole continent… some today name that typical early 80’s wave ‘ElectroPop’.
We also should mention the ‘Miami Bass’ which has been a strong electro movement over the USA in the mid-80’s and came back to influence Techno in the early 90’s. Name here Teckmaster PEB, Dynamix II or Magic Mike.

Today, blend of all that, after about ten years of underground maturation, the Electro returns while surfing on the Eighties revival. But no one could forget the influence of Drexciya or so many Electro producers from Detroit or Germany.

3 Electro miniclips: Electro [realaudio]
Outstanding labels: Ralph rec., Off Beat, Tellektro, Underground Resistance, Disko B
Some Belgian deejays: Spacid, Joost De Lyser, Stel-R, Raphael, Mi-Yu, Shaman, D-Jack, Tabi

Electroclash – Electrohouse
Disconouveau – Booty [Ghetto Tech/Accelerated Funk]

But in Belgium, Germany, England and Netherlands -besides the strong underground communities since the early 90’s- the thing that really launched the come-back of the Electro for the larger public is the Electroclash wave that went through 2001-2002 under the influence of a label named Gigolo records. Cover of 80’s Cory Hart hit song, global electro-trance crossovers, creation of a star named Miss Kittin, maximum fuss about The Hacker, Tiga or Vitalic… the wave was and is still huge. It even slowly overwhelms Techno since January 2003 in the clubs and large events.

Electroclash miniclips: ElectroClash / Synthcore [realaudio]
Electroclash labels: Gigolo, Lasergun

_____________

There’s also the Italo Disco in his kitsch 82-86 version which is coming back in a big revival (see at ‘Disco’). Consequently to this Italo revival came an hybrid of Electro and late Disco plus a touch of House… the Disconouveau. Many clubs use that word for anything now (even for some average funk music… hehehe), but Disconouveau is not House music, neither Disco music or Funk. Disconouveau is a very new sound with roots in Electro and Italo Disco, and even a slight touch of trancy loops.

Disconouveau miniclips: DiscoNouveau [realaudio]
Some good Disconouveau labels: Viewlexx, Catnip, DiscoNouveau (Ghostly), Holosynthesis
Belgian Disconouveau deejays: Dr Lektroluv, Cosy Mozzy, Joost de Lyser, Dan, Lady Jane, Darko, Stephen, Mandrak, Ed & Kim, Rob&Zoopsie

_____________

And you could also count with the Booty, also called Ghetto Tech or Accelerated Funk…
Born in the mid 90’s in some parties of Detroit from a public who was tired of ‘intelligent Techno’, It’s really a joyful blend, changing the records almost every 25 seconds. Booty is a ride over speeded Electro + R’n B tunes spinning at twice the normal speed + action movie references (star wars, superman) and a HUGE dose of sex words (ass, titties, shake ya booty, in and out, …). Wonder why the name is Booty… heh.
Shortly: it goes fast as a rabbit and bold as a buffalo. Try to follow.

Booty miniclips: Booty [realaudio]
The two leading names from Detroit, USA: dj Godfather, and dj Assault

_____________

Electro crosses the fury and the calm, the past and the future. .. without never really choosing between both, it makes us live the present. It may wear hundreds of names… it’s still Electro.

Trance
About 1992, the deejays played House, Techno and the beginnings of Trance without particular reference to any style. One only spoke about “hard” or “deep”, sometimes about “hypnotic” but nothing very sectarian. Then since 1994 the movement emerged, encircled stars (Paul Oakenfold, Paul Van Dyk, Sasha) … and then it dominated the clubbing scene during 5 years.
It consists in a Techno base with bold loops of increasing sounds… the target is to seduce the masses so it has to take them into a tornado of uplifting sounds. Some could say it’s a very pretending music, some others actually say that it has been a musical revolution in terms of popularity and technicity of the electronic music.
Some Belgian deejays: PhiPhi, Marko, Yves Deruyter, George’ S, HS
Since then , two big styles emerged (see below)

————————

Progressive Trance
Primarily English and extremely popular, it has been the N°1 music on BBC Radio One for more than 10 years (1993-2004).
On a Techno based rhythmic with a countertime bass, it develops cathedral sounds and voices of sanctified wonder-lolitas. “Take me higher”, “release your body”, “I love the way you make me dancin”. .. the topics do not miss. No doubt, this style has a stock of sounds and unceasingly recycles increasing targeted stereotypes. .. successfully since this principle gathers tens of thousands of young people in parties in England or Holland, also under the name of Hard House.
2 Prog-Trance miniclips: Progressive Trance [realaudio]
Outstanding names: Paul Oakenfold, Mauro Picotto, Paul Van Dyk, Tiesto
Some Belgian deejays: Yves Deruyter, Marko, PhiPhi, TC BRain,..
Belgian live acts: Push, Ian Van Dahl, Yves Deruyter

Psytrance
Initially named Goa Trance since it arrived in the cases of deejays coming back from the bays of Goa-India around 1994, Psytrance is today the center of the largest raves in the West coast of the United States (SoCal Raves, side-scenes at Burning Man, …) and of a revival of open air raves in Belgium, Lithuania, Italy and France (with many problems of respect and politics in this last country but it seems to get better now).
The base is also a Techno rhythm, but equipped with psychedelic and hypnotic sounds. Tens of repetitive layers superimpose and evoke enormous polychrome spirals, added with words and sentences sampled from mystical films or great human speeches (cosmic poetry, Gandhi, Dr. Luther King, Indian mystic chants,. ..)
At first, the Goa deejays were not mixing the tracks, they just switched at the right moment from the one playing to the next… only because they took minidisc copies and DAT tapes of their records when flying to India … and also because there was almost no mixtable there, so they switched directly from the amplifier. It went to be a mixing style for a short time in the European Goa community in the mid 90’s. No mix, only cuts.
Excessively merchandized from 1996 to 98 with the name Goa (featuring hundreds of compilations with mostly sad cheap Eurotrance), that sudden commercial peak pushing Goatrance on TV and radio touched the curiosity of many neo-hippies. Then, exploited to the bones, Goa Trance vanished from the stores as fast as it came up. But the underground Goa community was yet structured and went bigger and bigger every year since then… preferring Psytrance to describe its music. Psytrance for Psychedelic Trance, of course.

Now Psytrance adapted itself to a newer impulse, with talented deejays and a strong worldwide community. Some talk about a coming second big popular wave, but a good one with a real creativity… some others want to protect it from the big appetite of the music business. One thing is sure: Radio shows invite more and more Psytrance deejays and magazines such as Out Soon are also publishing full pages about it. Who said Goa was just a short hype?

2 Psychedelic Trance miniclips: Psytrance [realaudio]
Outstanding names: Goa Gil, Astral Projection, Overlords
Some Belgian deejays: Anoebis, Djamoon, Kyoa, Oonah, Azrael, Xio, Dava, Moushka, Phasid
Check for the flyers or you’ll remain out of the thing… locations are usually not on the web, only on the flyers.

Bootlegs (Mashup / Bastard Pop)
That’s more popular since 2003-2004 … but it started in the mid-nineties.
A new style is born from the BLEND of all musics, and typically from the deejay culture.

Take the music of a random hit… a big one. Mix it perfectly with the voice of another song… and make it so perfect that it creates a new track… a new song. That’s what a bootleg remix is.
It’s not just a remix of a track. It’s not just a Techno version of a classic song.
It’s a mix of two classics, giving birth to a new one.

It has no particular style… it can be Rock, or Reggae, or Funky, or House, Drum’n Bass… anything as long as it mixes at least two songs.

There are already many big names producing albums strictly made of bootlegs, and many deejays play it in parties…
Outstanding names: Osymyso, 2 Many DJ’s, McSleazy, Lenlow, Loo & Placido, Zebra, dj Moule
Some Belgian deejays: Flying Dewaele Brothers (2 Many DJs, Soulwax), The Glimmers, Protesta, Piiit, Sebwax, Zamali.

7 bootlegs miniclips in 3 minutes: Bootleg [mp3]
(by djMoule, djMashup, Arty Fufkin, McSleazy, Divide&Kreate, Loo & Placido,…)

But you can be sure that even in the local popular clubs, any deejay will have some of those bootlegs and will play it. That’s just very 2007
For instance… the music of Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” with David Bowie singing on it? That’s a bootleg… or a Mashup … or a Bastard Pop … however you name it.

Reggae
Do you know Bob Marley and Alpha Blondy? It’s Reggae. You know Dennis Brown or Israel Vibrations? It’s also Reggae. You know Jah Shaka, King Tubby, Lee Scratch Perry or Linton Kwesi Johnson? That’s Dub Reggae … more instrumental and weird. Well, you already know what’s Reggae. Its origins are coming from the Fifties and the Merengue in the Carribean islands, and it took 20 years to the 60’s Jamaican Ska to become the Roots Rock Reggae that we know. But it’s a Rock singer who made it popular… Eric Clapton singing Bob Marley’s “I Shot the Sheriff” in 1973.
In Belgium, the Reggae scene has been a little forgotten at the end of the 80’s to boldly come back in the mid 90’s thanks to many young soundsystems (Far West Crew, Roots by Roots, Reggalize, Bass Culture Sound, ROC Sound, Nyabinghi Sound, …) and to the success of a summer festival like Geel.
2 Reggae miniclips: Reggae [realaudio]
Some Belgian soundsystems: Bass Culture, Bong Prod., Exodus Freedom Fighters, Roots by Roots,

Ragga (or Dancehall)
It’s the Dance version of the Reggae. What Reggae became with the 80’s. First there was the Rub-A-Dub style from 1984. The music was going faster, le rythm louder, and the lyrics way more claimed than sang. A short time later, that style getting extremely popular evoluated to become the RaggaMuffin. Today in Europe and in that scene, it is the term Ragga which remains. Most of the Belgian Soundsystems play more Ragga than the classical ‘Roots’ Reggae.
Outstanding names: Little Lenny – Beenie Man – Bounty Killa – Buju Banton
Some Belgian soundsystems: Bass Culture Sound, Civalizee Foundation, ROC Sound, Boombastic sound, Far West Crew.
Belgian Ragga live act: Uman

R’n B & Funk
That’s everywhere in your FM stations … and that’s deserved. Originally named New Jack at the end of the 90’s, it rapidly emerged in the billboard as the overwhelming style since the mid 90’s. Destiny’s Child, Mariah Carey, Robert Kelly, TLC, Bobby Brown, Lauryn Hill… all of them have been part of the R’n B wave. But, even if that music is Funky, mostly black and totally creative… most of the musicologists wonder why it’s been named R’n B … when it’s not Rythm and Blues. But R’nB is R’nB and you’ll find it in most of the mainstream clubs.

Funk is the widest way to name all the groovy warm African-American dance musics that emerged since the late fast Soul Music of James Brown, or the Funkadelic creations of Georges Clinton. It puts together Kool and the Gang, Prince, Michael Jackson, Charles Mc Pherson, Diana Ross, Joe Tex, Commodores, etc… I say it shortly here… but it’s one of the widest style to explore.

Some Belgian deejays: TLP, Sake & Cosmic, Du-Tam, Noise P, Killa Tactics, Daddy K, HMD
2 R’n B miniclips: R’n B [realaudio] (but too commercial… i’ll change it soon)

Hip Hop
Wide range of music, hard to define. It includes Rap, yeah… but not only. It all started with Electrofunk item ‘Planet Rock’ by Afrika Bambaatah from the Bronx in New York, but also with Sugarhill Gang and Grandmaster Flash who also made raps on a sortof slow Discofunk. That was in 1979, maybe 1980… and now you see what it is: one of the biggest music phenomen in the 20th century. Unfortunately, the very diverse publics and moods it brings seems not to fit with a nocturnal event and most of the Hip Hop parties stopped in Brussels since a ‘Cut Killer’ event in 1996 that turned really bad. A real Hip Hop scene still remains in Gent, Antwerpen and some other cities by the help of some clubs like Culture Club.
Big names: Ice T – Wu Tan Clan – NWA – IAM – Gangstarr – LL Cool J – Canibus
Some Belgian deejays: Grazhoppa, Defi-J aka Sahly, TLP
Lives: Starflam – Puta Madre – Uman – Pitcho

Disco
Yeah! Da thing from the seventies and eighties! The Philly sound (Black dance soul from Philadephia) took a step into history when it turned into Disco around 1973 or 74. All clubs in America suddenly played that music initiated by the African-American community, and the movie ‘Saturday Night Fever’ made it big worldwide in the time of a snap. Even the normal R’n B records were then sorted in the Disco sections of the recordshops because that name was even doing better sales on any music. Actually the American production was vast and inventive, so thousands of records and new names emerged to answer the popular demand. But in 1981, Disco had a massive backclash in USA and quickly disappeared from the radios and clubs playlists.

Disco miniclips: Disco [realaudio]
Big names: Salsoul Orchestra – First Choice – Norma Jean – France Joli – Amy Steward – Georgio Moroder
Some Belgian deejays: King Kitsch, Dr Disco, Yves-E-Zone, Kidd Coconut, Felipe cortez

In Europe it was more like Abba, Ottawan, Patrick Hernandez and some really cheap music or a little later the big Italian Disco movement. That’s the second age of Disco, when it was already crashed in USA but still alive in Europe… and it then took the name of NRG Disco (Sylvester, Patrick Cowley, even Blondie in UK, …)

Precisely in Italy, a huge Disco phenomenon banged the Adriatic seacoast: the Italo Disco , from about 1980 to 1986. Hundreds of singers and bands appeared and disappeared as fast as you can imagine, but a style finally remained from all that electronic fun stuff. It was mostly a first-degree cheap electronic base with some very simple English spoken lyrics told (or sung) by a very virile voice with an italian accent, and some girls in the background. Juicy!

Italo Disco miniclips: Disco [realaudio]
Big names: Mito (Romano Musumara), Alexander Robotnik, Mike Mareen, Gazebo, Koto, Scotch
Belgian deejays: Spacid sometimes, Rob & Zoopsie, Joost de Lijser sometimes

Psychedelic Rock
All started back in the mid-sixties when youth turned on new colours, new states of mind and new ways to appreciate music. Of course there’s the truth and the memories which are never the same, but even today some party people want to enjoy a deep journey into that time. Acid Rock, Rock Garage, Head Rock, Progressive Rock, Protest Songs, ballads, and symbolic peace & love anthems.
Expect sounds like Jimi Hendrix, The Byrds, The Doors, Jethro Tull, Shocking Blue, Hawkwind, The Troggs, Beatles, Jefferson Airplanes, Sonny & Cher, Led Zeppelin, etc… but also some 60’s Soul like Otis Redding, Joe Tex, James Brown, Aretha Franklin or Curtis Mayfield.

Psychedelic Rock mix in a Psyclotron party 1994
Some Belgian deejays: Beat Gonk (aka Philippe Golbert), Colantoni, Miss Shazzula, El Bosco, Gillax-O-Tron, Gilles Maes, Uriel

Latino
Alias Salsa, Samba, Merengue, but it’s as large as South America can be …
Never confuse Samba with Mariachis… that has nothing in common except the suntan.
Some Salsa names: Ray Baretto – Jerry Rivera – Tito Puente – Grupo Niche – Ray Gayo – Chico Buarque
But now also: Bebel Gilberto – Suba – Zuco 103 – and all the nice neo-latino stuff …
Some Belgian Salsa deejays: Mario Rumba, Cisko, Diris Daris, Lady Tania, Robert Swing

Dubstep (and Grime)

The Dubstep is one of the new winds in the electronic nights, and it’s mostly coming from UK.
Its sidestream named “Grime” is more strictly typical from London.

Yeh, well… it’s told as “the new hype” on BBC Radio One and MTV, but it’s also a refined scene full of new artists on the edge of the musical progression.
And what is it like? Wow… large question. What is Dubstep?
Let’s say (and I can be wrong):
a rythme base made of TwoStep breakbeat + wild as Hip Hop + a few Electro sounds + loud bass from the Drum’n bass + sometimes some Rock and heavy guitar sounds … and there’s even more influences in it. But it’s a lot slower than Techno or Drum’n Bass.
A weird and fancy musical blend of the last 15 years… and strictly instrumental.

The Londonian “Grime” usually comes with an MC toasting on the mike.
Could remind some of us of the ‘Speed Garage’ that shook UK in 1995-96, but with an uplifted MC rhyming on the loops.
There’s already an underground Grime and a commercial Grime… so, beware of imitations.

The Dubstep and the Grime are really new … the name could change with the time, and the music could slightly change too… but this style orientation will remain in the nightlife for a while.
Dubstep already has some dedicated shows on the UK national radios and shows up more and more in Gent, Brussels and Liege.

3 Dubstep miniclips: Dubstep [realaudio]

Fanfare / Fanfaria / Brass Bands / Street Orchestra
a band of 5 to 50 musicians playing any style with a lot of fun

It’s reggae – samba – soul – ska – traditionals – jazz – rock remake – funk – anthems – movies themes – circus music – any music that makes the people move!
Some used to call them Punk Fanfares, but it’s not really punk… it’s more like fun and hilarious gathering of musicians in a new way to see the brass bands.
Don’t even think about the usual bands in uniforms with dancers etc… it’s nothing like that. Way more like a bunch of nice neo-hippies and post-punks playing Duke Ellington and James Brown for a young public.

Some horny horns: trumpets, saxophones, bass tuba, some wicked flutes, a few drums, and it’s up on the streets!

The biggest names for Belgium:
Jour de Fête (30 to 50 musicians, ex-’Combo Belge’), Cramique, Les Alimentation Générale, La Fanfare Electrique, Los Trogos, Fanfare du Commando Fête, La Nouvelle Flibuste, Les Fanfoireux, Fanfare du Belgistan, La Band’As de Wattrelos, la Margharitta, Sans Tambour Ni Trompette, Les Joue Debout, Les Pas Ce Soir Chéri (ladies band), Les Bidochons, Los Arsouillos, Fanfare des Crapauds St Jacques, Fanfare Bolchévique, Les Plaies Mobiles,

The biggest hit in Belgium: the ‘Strip Tease’ original soundtrack by Combo Belge
And Arno singing ‘Les filles du bord de mer”

2 Fanfare / New Brassband miniclips: Fanfare [realaudio]

Jazz
Jazz is as wide as electronic music now is, it features many substyles.
At night, the most represented are Blues and Bluegrass, New-Orleans early Jazz (Armstrong, Bechet, Beiderbecke, Roll Morton), Big Bands (Glenn Miller, Lionel Hampton), Be-Bop (Charlie Parker, Monk, Gillespie, …), Cool (Coltrane, Adderley, Chet Baker, Miles Davis) and of course the whole Acid-Jazz thing (Harry Coninck Jr, US3, TalkinLoud, etc).
Jazz outstanding names (others than those already mentionned):
Pharoah Sanders, Max Roach, Hank Mobley, Sun Ra, John Surman, Philip Catherine, Jacques Pelzer, …

I’m not sure it’s really convenient to mention Trip Hop here, since now it’s closer to the Breakbeat stuff, but that style contained from 1993 to 1998 a lot of Jazz references and tributes. Trip Hop phenomenon has been part of the roots of the current Jazz revival.
Trip Hop outstanding names: Massive Attack, DJ Cam, MoWax label, Kruder and Dorfmeister

Oriental
aka Arabic Dance, Turkish, New Raï

In the 80’s and 90’s, a new scene showed up in North-Africa and in the Middle-East… the Raï. It’s a young, fancy version of the traditional arabic way to sing. Cheb Mami, Khaled, Cheb Hasni, Bilal … all those new stars arrived in the late eighties to claim that their music was still alive and kicking the youth till morning comes.
In the mid 90’s, they started to blend more and more new sounds inspired from R’n B and by the brand new House music… and step by step some new artists released a new branch of Raï, more electronic, more Funky, and strictly made for the dancefloors.
Cheika Rimitti, Cheba Zina, Naima Ababsa, Saidi or Chaabi are some of those newly leading names.
The productions mostly come from Algeria, Morocco, Turkey, …

3 New Oriental miniclips: Oriental [realaudio]

Bollywood & Banghra
aka Indian Dance

In 1988, exactly when House Music arrived onto Europe, another new style pushed the doors of the nightlife… the Banghra. A dance and very electronic version of the traditional Indian music, with some Indian ways to rap their lyrics.
Since the mid 90’s, another Indian influence also hits the European dancefloors: the Bollywood. That’s not precisely new, since the Indian movie scene has been extremely productive in the late 30 years, but the European public recently showed a stronger attention for the music of their original soundtracks.

Some artist names: Bally Sagoo, Malkit Singh, Ananda Shankar, …

Chill-Out & Ambient
aka Krautrock, Kosmische Musik, Chillout, Atmospheric
Caution: many Chill-Out nights also blend Wave Techno and some soft Breakbeat.

Let’s go back to the late sixties, when a few venues in Europe and USA decided to open their evenings with music for meditation… in a friendly and earthy environment (Indian graphics, incence, tea, chicha waterpipes, oildisk projectors). There was no dance music at all, only quiet and relaxing sounds created by Ash Ra Tempel, Popol Vuh, Wendy Carlos, Louis & Bebe Barron (music from the ‘Forbidden Planet’), the most quiet side of the Pink Floyd, and of course Indian music by Ravi Shankar among other artists. Even George Harrison (the guitar from the Beatles) produced a strictly electronic and Ambient album. In 1968-1972… the ‘Paradiso’ hall in Amsterdam had then the biggest recognition for those events.
In the 70’s the scene grew up big time. Using new terms such as Krautrock or Kosmische Music, and working with a lot of electronic tools, loads of new bands showed up… mostly in Germany, UK and USA but also in Japan, France and Italy. That’s when Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Baffo Banfi, Aamon Duul, Michael Garrison, Eduard Artemiev, Jean-Michel Jarre, Vangelis, Moebius & Plank, Anna Sjalv Tredje, and many more went to be famous.

But in the late 80’s (around 1988), while New-Beat and House Music were knocking at the doors of the nightlife, a new race of Chill-Out landed: the band KLF produced the first LP of that new style, an album named “Chill Out” and a second one “Space”. It wasn’t stricly Ambient, but also blending some new rythms and some noises (a train, birds) in a calm way. Then, in the early nineties came The Orb (feat. Alex Paterson), Future Sound of London, Irresistible Force (aka Mixmaster Morris), and a dozen of other bands playing in more and more secondary Chillout rooms, or in 100% Chillout events. The Orb was so popular that it was standing on the posters of most major festivals, and gathered more than 6000 to 10.000 people in the biggest European concert-halls. Back then, dj Ambient Daan (Nl), James Lavelle (UK), Morpheus (B), Bill Laswell (UK), Mixmaster Morris (UK), Alex Paterson (UK) and Acid Kirk were quite the biggest name of that style.

And another kind of new Chill-out music also started in the early nineties: the Ambient Music … with absolutely NO beat and NO rythm at all… only sounds, waves, echoes, looped frequencies, etc. It revealed some artists such as Pete Namlook, Scanner or the famous Ambient works by Aphex Twin.

Some Chill-Out names: Ash Ra Tempel, Alto Stratus, Bruce Ditmas, Jean-Jacques Perrey, Tangerine Dream, Manuel Gottsching, Steve Roach, Ron Geesin
But now also: Snooze, Scanner, Irresistible Force, Coil, DJ Shadow, Pete Namlook, Jocelyn Pook, Spyra, Syncopated Elevators Legacy
Some Belgian Chillout deejays: Morpheus, Seal Phüric, Acid Kirk, Vishnou, Zombie Fleshh, El Bosco aka Nico Noctis

97 minutes Chillout & Ambient mix

Student Parties
Have a beer, have sum friends, and don’t drive the way back. Take the bus!
Kindof: Simple Minds “Don’t You” – Phil Collins “Sussudio” – Scatman – Da Rude – Modjo “Lady” – Eurythmics “Sweet Dreams” – “I Will Survive” megamix – U2 “Sunday Bloody Sunday” – Ian Van Dahl “Castles in the Sky” – Jimmy Cliff “Reggae Night” – …
Since 2000 it seems there’s more and more House hits like Mojo, David Guetta, Bob Sinclar, Benni Benassi, plus R’n B (Beyonce, Miss Dynamite) and a bit of Rock classics (Stones, Floyd, Queen, White Stripes, Nirvana) … but still only the fully secure popular hits.

All Hits
It can be a hits selection with humor and sarcastic references, like Jonathan can do at Johnny’s… or good blend of refined classics… but most of the times it’s globally MTV, MCM, M6, Viva, & all music channels selections + some current dance hits (David Guetta, Daft Punk, Roger Sanchez, when it’s good … Cher and Da Rude when it’s not).
Good deejays at it: Jonathan (Poil au Culte / Crema e Gusto), Ben-DJ (Bulex), Vivian, Arnaud Quittelier (JdH), Serge (Chez Johnny), Didier Jugnon (Point G),…

India- There's Space for everyone & everything

Indigenous introduction

India is a one large land to understand during one’s lifetime. I have been enriched with unforgettable experiences, sheer joy and most importantly quick wisdom. Those experiences had great influence on me.  There are few things, uniquely special to India, irrespective of the state, language or culture and could not be found in rest of the world. I have picked the objects, instances from my personal travel experiences, the earliest possible memories and real-time observations. As this is a subject with tremendous research potential, I will only narrate only on a few.

Jugad [जुगाढ़]: the ubiquitous 3 wheeled vehicle of rural India

A typical 4 wheeled goods Jugaad

Description: This is the published name of this vehicle. It’s a marvel in homegrown automobile engineering. It consists of scooter handle, a plastic container as petrol tank, and water pump as the diesel engine. The rear part is a wooden platform and two motorcycle wheels on two sides. The built & suspension is customized to suit rural Indian roads and fuel economy. A typical Jugad runs on a liquid fuel called “mixture”, of Mitti-ka Tel or Ghaslet (Kerosene) in the ration of 80:20.

Use: business travel, transportation of goods & people, family outing, rescue vehicle

Availablity: Any mela in rural or suburban hinterland (case study- Bharat pur-Rajasthan, Faridabad- Haryana, Bantala- West Bengal)

Price: Rs 40,000 approx for a new one, resale depending on the age & usage.

Addional info: A jugad does not comply with Bhart Stage-III norms or any recommended specifications, hence does not need any registration. Have mixture? Lets go.

Gamchha[गामछा]- the basic apparel

Gamchhas hung to dry by the Ganges in Kolkata

A Gamchha seller

Description: Translucent lightweight stitch-free multipurpose cotton apparel. Mainly used as bath accessories but mostly seen in the shoulders of hard-working men (i/c LPJadav) and hed of hard-working women. Normally the apparel comes in many colors but the most popular and classy ones are reddish.

Use: Easily customizable as headband, belt, bandana, miniskirt, pagdi, strainer, cleaning cloth, duster, rope, toe-chain, veil, bathrobe, brief, ice-bag object to book space in bus and general compartment of passanger train.

Availablity: Anywhere in India.

Price: Very cheap compared to Turkish towels. And Turkish towels can’t be customized.

Addional info: Wet gamchha is heavier & more transparent than a dry one.

Indian Signage- the pop culture

What is your child is drinking this summer ?

Description: Apparently they look like collection of useless letters, but profound philosophy, native culture and timeless tales are embedded in these texts. These are normally seen in body of trucks, toilets, shops, walls, trees and ancient monuments under ASI preservation. ” Buri Nazar wale teri muh kala” & ” Horn OK Please” are the most commonly seen texts in trucks. But there are more meaningful ” My INDIA is grate Dengar” and “Use deeper at night” available too. In Madurai you have to use the “Wesh Baisin” whereas in Jaisalmer you can buy “Child beer” for your kids. If you are a man and want to use the public loo in Fatehpur-Sikri parking lot, confidently enter the door marked “Jains” as the other door is for “Ladies”. However in Agra you have “Jents” toilets in abundance. I always wanted the real meaning of “No hand signal please” on rear of air-conditioned white Amby’s used by key Govt offcials. I also wonder what’s the net result of Rahul+Priya, Deepak+ Anjali? In Kolkata I saw a sign in a bus ‘Forla Dies’. I was keen to save Forla from dying, but refrained himself realizing it was the reservation note for ladies seats, just a space gone wrong.

Public Toilet : For Jains !

Use: To guide people who can’t read, for others its great food for thought.

Availablity: all around you, just keep your eyes open.

Price: priceless

Additional info: Never ask the meaning of words or phrases, which you don’t understand readily, keep traveling and you will learn the meaning.

Beedi (also knows as Bidi) [बिड़ि]- for smoking

Beedi & packaging

Description: Small Tendu leaf rolls containing tobacco and tied with white or colored strings. Beedi is a product of cottage industries and normally made by womenfolk of rural India. A beedi is 5 times stronger than an average filter cigarette in terms of nicotine & tar content and takes 5 times less to smoke. There’s nothing, which can be compared with the ‘kick’ of a beedi, after a cup of tea. Large variants of beedi are available- blended, flavored, export quality, long, short etc. beedi’s are also classified by their string colors e.g. lal-dhaga, safed-dhaga,  and time it takes to smoke e.g- College beedi- can be puffed in the gap between two classes, Tennis bedi- while the opponent is preparing to serve! Among the samples I have tasted, I have found the strongest  in Rajasthan & Karnataka.

A cobbler smoking beedi

Use: To smoke, scratch interiors of ear, in item numbers

Availablity: Everywhere except discotheques and 5 star hotels.

Price: It was Re 1 a pack of 25 when I started smoking. Must be 10 times now. Anyway, I am not interested anymore (I’ve quit).

Additional info: Though Beedi is free from harmful chemicals as found in cigarettes, its equally harmful for health.

Dhaba [दाबा]- roadside eateries

Sardarjis in a Dhaba

Description: Originally meant for truck drivers stoppage & meal, dhabas formed in the vicinity of petrol pumps. As highways & petrol pumps are operative 24 x7, so are the dhabas. An ideal dhaba will have the hearth & kitchen in the front near entrance, with large containers arranged in series. There would be charpai for seating, eating & sleeping. A good dhaba will be neat & clean with a humourous manager, a chhotu with gamchha to serve you with helpings and loads of butter in everything. The stainless steel utensils are slightly distorted, like the plates will have concave/ convex bottoms. Chai-biskoot are the daytime snack, Rum-murgi for night, lassi goes anytime. Water always tastes sweeter in Dhabas than bottled.

Use: Refuel break for vehicle & the driver, to unwind, sleep, make friends.

Availablity: Near petrol pumps in all NHx (x= any number below 100), some simulated dhaba’s can be found in urban precinct.

Price: A full meal comes for anything between Rs 20 to Rs 200 depending on how much butter you put. Once I had aloo parathas for 35 bucks which I asked to fry in butter.

Additional info: Read the menu carefully before placing order and ask for the day’s special. Dhaba’s have a big hearth ♥,  a spilled glass of tea is always replaced on the house, so is a chapatti with hair inside it.

OK TATA

फिर   मिलेगें

Horn OK Please

I am sure there are many such objects & subjects, that are uniquely Indian by origin (like zero), by customization (Jugad) or simply by affection (Bollywood), that even a research of a lifetime won’t do justice to them. The good thing is, these are famous worldwide and branded as Indian, the bad thing is, it’s so close and so common to us; we overlook them and walk away.

Next time you are traveling in India, take a closer look around you- the paper packet, signboards, matchbox, rear of the bus, dress, food, colors, sounds, lights, language.

There are mysteries & surprises galore, unravel as much as you can in this small life.

The Article was posted earlier here which gathered some comments.

Note: The first pic, Child Beer, Jains toilet, Cobbler and the last pic are taken by me.

The National Association of Professional Band Instrument Repair Technicians

The National Association of Professional Band Instrument Repair Technicians (NAPBIRT) is the largest non-profit international educational association dedicated to the advancement of the craft of band instrument repair.   

Founded in 1976 as a small grassroots organization of 45 members with a common goal of technical integrity and professionalism. Each member placed ten dollars into a hat and NAPBIRT was born. NAPBIRT has since blossomed into an open friendly international organization of over 1300 members located in over 20 countries. In 2000 the organization opened its NAPBIRT Technical Training Center (NTTC) in Normal, Illinois. This facility is specifically designed and constructed for the purpose of continuing education. Training sessions range from one day to one week and are intended for members interested in career development or specialized training in a particular field of endeavor.

TECH LOCATOR- Peter Pollard

Expert advice is just a phone call away

If you wish to contact us please phone, email, write or see us in person.  

• Tel:   + 44 (0) 0161 929 6949
• mob; +44(0)7834805314
• Fax :   + 44 (0) 0161 929 7769
• Email:  sales@printed-sheet-music.co.uk
• Email; pollardtrumpets@hotmail.com

        Musicparts UK & Pollard Trumpets

• Address:  23 Stamford Park Road, Hale, Altrincham,
    Cheshire, WA15 9EL

 

 

The mission of NAPBIRT is to promote the highest possible standards of musical instrument repair service by providing members with a central agency for the exchange of information and continued education through the administration of programs that benefit its membership.

If you wish to contact us please phone, email, write or see us in person.

Peter Pollard

• Tel:   + 44 (0) 0161 929 6949
• Mobile +44(0) 7834805314
• Fax :   + 44 (0) 0161 929 7769
• Email:  sales@printed-sheet-music.co.uk
• Email; pollardtrumpets@hotmail.com
• Address:  23 Stamford Park Road, Hale, Altrincham,
    Cheshire, WA15 9EL

Kappingarførir vøruprísir við meginlandið, so hví fara yvir um hav……..?

The only workshop of its kind in the country. Fully trained machinist and later musical instruments maker specialized in brass- and woodwind.

Having finished High School I worked as a truck driver and went to sea as a sailor. Later after 4 years of apprenticeship I got my diploma as a mechanical engineer in Tórshavn as well as a diploma in practical sailing. After that I graduated as a ship’s machinist in Denmark. I sailed for some years as a ship’s machinist in far seas and in european seas. I started another 4-year skilled training in crafts, this time in musical instruments making and repair. This I did partly in Norway and in England and specialized in brass- and woodwind instruments. I have now worked for some years in my own workshop.

Brassbands in the Faroes:

Frelsunarherurin
Fuglafjarðar Hornorkestur
Harmoniorkestrið GHM
Ungdómsharmoniorkestrið GHM
Havnar Hornorkestur
Havnar Ungdómshornorkestur
Klakksvíkar Hornorkestur
Nes Sóknar Musikkfelag
Sørvágs Tónleikarafelag
Tvøroyrar Hornorkestur
Vestmanna Hornorkestur

York Brass

Les meira um York Brass
Full Brass Band Instruments

British Sound and Tradition backed by the best German Technology

Schreiber-Keilwerth

Jupiter

Alexander Mainz

Getzen

Helmut Voigt

Warburton

Kelly Mouthpieces

Paxman

Pollard Trumpets

Schilke

Sinus-Line

Sterling

Taylor Trumpets

The newly formed All Party Parliamentary Committee on brass bands is gaining pace with its second meeting taking place earlier this month in the Houses of Parliament

The British Federation of Brass Band’s Chairman, Robert Morgan MBE was in attendance along with Treasurer, Nigel Morgan and myself. The group’s Chairman, Jeff Ennis, MP for Barnsley & Mexborough welcomed a good gathering of MPs and members of the House of Lords.

Robert Morgan explained to the delegation that following advice from Arts Council Yorkshire and a meeting organised by Jeff Ennis, the BFBB were now putting together an application for further funding to engage another full time employee to liaise with all the regional arts regions and to assist bands with the preparation of lottery applications. Arts Council money is available for bands and bands need to progress applications next year.

The meeting decided that next it was a good time to question the BBC over its support of bands and it is planned that a delegation from the parliamentary group led by Jeff Ennis, will question the BBC on its input to brass bands and support from the BFBB’s member bands will be gained as discussions continue.

Further meetings of the parliamentary group will take place in the next 12 months along with a possible concert to showcase bands in Portcullis House.

Commenting on the success of the meeting, Robert Morgan said: “This was an excellent meeting and an opportunity for the BFBB to present a united brass band voice to the all parliamentary group. I do feel that this group of influential people can open some doors for us; Arts Council first, the BBC next! The opportunity given to us by Jeff Ennis is one to be nurtured during the next 12 months and bandsmen and women throughout the UK are urged to encourage their MPs to become a member of the group.”

With the support of the parliamentary group and the co-operation and hard work of the BFBB, new doors are being opened for the brass band movement, including possible further funding for brass bands from the Arts Council.

Well, it was a long weekend (I love Monday holidays!). I’m glad I had the chance to go out and about. The weather was marvelous, but still there’s no mistaking that Autumn is upon us: yellow and red leaves have flooded the streets, the parks and the forests.

Saturday we stayed urban and checked out the HONK! 2008 festival in Davis Square, Somerville. Activist brass bands from different places get together and there is much noise, color and excitement for the bands and the crowds. I like this kind of music, rhythmic and urgent and danceable. Davis was crazy busy! I brought my new D90 with me to take some pictures, but I got bored with it quickly. Most of the photos I took are of the Brass Messengers;  they were pretty cool!!!

The other week I posted about the band I am in, Tarleton and District Brass Band. Well, this weekend (12/10) saw the band at the annual Fleetwood brass band contest. The band has entered every year and I have to say I do enjoy this contest. The contest is always in October and features several brass bands from the north-west area competing for either a third, second or first prize.

In 2006 we won at Fleetwood which was a great achievement for the band aswell as coming third place last year.

This year we came third again which is, yet again, great news for the band aswell as being able to take home a prize for the third year running.

For more information on the band, visit www.tarletonbrassband.co.uk

Jazzmania runs from 10-noon every Sunday on WTJU. Today’s playlist reflects a special theme for New Orleans week – the brass bands.

1. “Georgia Swing” – Dirty Dozen Brass Band – Jelly
2. “Love Songs from the Nile” – Billy & DeDe Pierce – Atlantic New Orleans Jazz Sessions
3. “Caledonia/Bucket’s Got a Hole In It” – Treme Brass Band – New Orleans Music!
4. “It Feels So Good/Joe Avery’s Piece/John Casimir’s Whoopin’ Blues – Young Tuxedo Brass Band – Atlantic
5. “Mardi Gras Medley” – ReBirth Jazz Band – Here To Stay
6. “Take Your Burden to the Lord/Bye and Bye/Whoopin’ Blues” – Eureka Brass Band – Atlantic Set
7. “Bourbon Street Parade/Eh La Bas/Sister Kate” – Paul Barbarin – Atlantic Set
8. “Cissy Strut” – Dirty Dozen w/ Robert Randolph – Medicated Magic
9. “We Got Robbed” – Dirty Dozen w/ DJ Logic – Medicated Magic
10. “Keep that Body Shaking“ – ReBirth Brass Band – Take it to the Street
11. “Yolinda/Big John Special” – Michael Ray & the Cosmic Krewe – Funk if I Know

N.O. assistance organizations: Direct Relief, Jazz Foundation, Rebuilding New Orleans Together, Friends of New Orleans, WWOZ-FM.

Follow the links to learn more about a unique American art form and the musicians who bring it to our airwaves.

Comecemos pelo fato histórico que, além de esclarecedor, auxilia no deslocamento da percepção etnocêntrica, evitando aquele deslumbre pelo exótico que mais atrapalha do que ajuda. Antes de ser colonizado pela França no século XIX, por muitos séculos Benin (antiga Daomé) foi um reino africano próspero. Durante os pouco mais de cento e cinquenta anos de colonização, sofreu todas as expropriações comuns a este processo, envolvendo-se inclusive em guerras que não eram suas, empregando sua força de trabalho em favor do welfare state que não chegariam a usufruir. O produto histórico deste percurso não constitui novidade para ninguém, mas esconde um paradoxo difícil de aceitar: conforme a economia e a política adquirem um aspecto nefasto, a constituição cultural, embora atribulada e mal documentada, ainda assim exprime profunda riqueza criativa. E aqui proponho uma reflexão: a grande música, assim como a grande cultura, nasce do caldeamento de populações que vivem em situações extremas, ou oriundas de uma estrutura material adequada ou de grandes e desgraçadas lacunas. Quero dizer, a grande cultura não emana da classe média, ou melhor, de uma economia libidinal regular e utilitária, ávida por prazeres anestésicos, calmantes e, portanto, já decodificados. A música jamaicana, brasileira e americana, produto da diáspora africana, traz em seu cerne tanto as trocas e sínteses culturais características da colonização, como também as péssimas condições de vida ocasionadas por contextos sociais e políticos racistas; no mesmo sentido, pode-se dizer que, em países abastados como a Inglaterra e a Alemanha, a música vive hoje uma espécie de reflorescimento com o dubstep e as variações do techno. No que diz respeito a constituição histórica da música de Benin,  assemelha-se a do jazz, não por acaso também nascido da apropriação criativa de velhos instrumentos de sopro que compunham as fanfarras militares (em inglês, brass bands) na Guerra da Secessão. Vejo como uma comprovação desta estranha ciência das relações entre a criatividade e as condições materiais, o fato de as brass bands de Benin também constituírem, dos restos da guerra, uma cultura rica e multifacetada. “Descobertos” pelo selo belga Contre-Jour, os dez membros da Gangbé Brass Band exprimem de forma contundente esta realidade complexa, que só agora, com o alargamento do espectro de difusão musical, começa a aparecer de fato. No dialeto Fon que vigora em Cotonou, gangbé significa “som do metal”, que tanto faz referência aos instrumentos de sopro (saxes, trumpetes, trombones) como a algumas percussões utilizadas pelo grupo. Como Benin faz fronteira com a Nigéria, sua música herda não somente a polifonia das fanfarras e do jazz, como também as mesmas fontes musicais que alimentaram o afrobeat de Fela Kuti, o juju e os ritmos religiosos vodu. “Ajaka”, segunda faixa de seu segundo disco, Togbé, é uma viagem indescritível pelos meandros dessa combinação. Como um cego na escuridão, tateio elementos do jazz e da juju music, mas percebo também um ritmo estranho que marca o início e o meio da faixa, possivelmente religioso. Sobre uma fascinante cama de percussão – em um andamento que minha pouca competência para teoria musical não soube identificar – vocais e tambores se entrelaçam em desenhos rítmicos sincopados; os metais pontuam uma melodia fúnebre, ao que parece, também religiosa. A influência do jazz é notória nos temas dos sopros, mas se posiciona de forma modesta na paisagem sonora, compartilhando seu traços fortes com uma série de pequenos detalhes, como a inusitada prosódia da canção até às variações de ritmo e o modo como as vozes as acompanham. Lá pelos 40 segundos finais, um arranjo de metais, doce porém dissonante, no melhor estilo Moacir Santos, dialoga com a chocalhada da percussão, coroando um exemplo espetacular de música altamente expressiva da hiper-fragmentação da cultura contemporânea. O fato de que a Gangbé Brass Band assume a trágica origem militar me parece uma troça, uma forma alegre de superá-la – tal como faz o negro americano com o termo nigger. Mas essa história não se resume na palavra superação, ao contrário. Porque o que a Gangbé, como todas as culturas oriundas de extremos sociais, nos mostra é a assimetria dos processos culturais contemporâneos, onde a invenção é sempre fruto de uma perspectiva. Posso estar fazendo uma pergunta perigosa, mas, ciente de que há um problema muito maior aí, me arriscarei: será que a formação de indivíduos nivelados nos moldes do estado de direitos e na economia de mercado contribui para quaisquer tipos de efervescência cultural? Será que vivendo no tal “mundo globalizado”, preenchido por sociedades ideais, criaríamos dinâmicas sociais capazes de fomentar uma arte tão complexa como o jazz ou o dubstep? (Bernardo Oliveira)

Well, after blasting you all with my horrifying emotional revelations for the past while, I thought I would give the gift of random shit.

These are things that I have just stumbled upon, or remembered, and thought “Gosh, what an awsome (fill in blank)” etc.; yet, I can’t write a whole blog about just one of these things (that’s a lie), so you will get them all together.

I hope your head doesn’t explode.

First up, I remembered this one when I was learning to play bass guitar just this evening. The. Coolest. Shit. Ever.

Okay, how is Alice Cooper ever not cool? Add in Muppets blowing shit up and it equals one of my best childhood memories.

Next here is the poster I found for the obviously B-grade horror flick “Circus of Horror.” I haven’t found this one to watch it yet, but I can imagine that it stacks up fairly well to B horror classics like “Werewolf VS Vampire Woman.”

“One man’s lust…turned men into beasts…stripped women of their souls! For ever stranger thrills…he turned the greatest show in the world into…the Circus of Horrors!” I will so watch this film when I find it. That’s not just fromage–it’s full on fondue pot goodness. Plus the bonus of Specta-colour, what could provide more entertainment than this? Perhaps some Extra Action Marching Band?

Moving on to the next completely random piece, have you ever thought what sort of advice famous people might give? I mean this in the cheesey Elvis appears and saves the day way, or even in “Children of the Corn”…I mean “Field of Dreams” way; where it just seems that these people would never, in reality, stop to give plebs like you and I advice (and generally conveys a feeling of wtf due to some sort of drug induced trip). I have. So one day I was out walking, and I thought “What kind of advice would Elizabeth Taylor hand out to me about love relationships?” and then by some sort of MIRACLE, my internalized Liz said “Honey, you have to let the man win the arguments sometimes.” I will take her advice, only because I love her acting skills, not because I feel her track record is stellar in the relationship department. Though in my head she is still the beautiful “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” Elizabeth, not the perfume selling, wheelchair confined cougar she is today. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but I like the “Golden Age” of Elizabeth, not the “Golden Years” of Elizabeth.

And last, but certainly not least, one of my absolute favourite artists: Rachel Brice. She is an amazing, amazing, amazing bellydancer of the tribal fusion style. She has a dance troupe consisting of herself, Mardi Love, and Zoe Jakes (both of whom are also amazing dancers) called the Indigo. They’re touring right now I believe, so if they’re coming to your area, go see them! For really real, get your ass out from behind your computer and have at’er. Anyways, as always the artists work speaks far more for itself than any lame exclamations I can attach. So here’s one of the first performances I saw of Ms. Brice (the quality of film is crap, but it’s still one of my favourites), and underneath it part of the Indigo’s performance at Tribal Fest 8. Enjoy and have yourselves a happy Sunday.

Jeff Ennis, MP for Barnsley East and Mexborough, has really been a great friend to brass bands in this country. Other MPs and members of the House of Lords are taking a healthy interest in his message; a wider participation of people in brass bands. So much so, that they have formed a cross party parliamentary Brass Band Group. Over thirty Lords and MPs are now signed-up to the group and the list is growing. Some, such as Lord Foster of Bishop Auckland, have campaigned on behalf of brass bands for many years but others are gaining a fresh insight into this vibrant art form. A list of those MPs and Lords that are members of this group will be published on the BFBB website soon.

The inaugural general meeting of the group was held at the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday evening, 8^th July 2008. I was asked to attend on behalf of BFBB. After the election of the various officers I gave a brief overview of banding in general and the work of BFBB in particular. BFBB was then asked to perform the duties of group secretariat, to which I readily agreed. Meetings will be held at the Houses of Parliament twice a year. It will be a wonderful platform to air the views and discuss the issues that matter to the brass band sector.

This is an opportunity to be grabbed by brass bands, when the list is published, take a look at it and if your MP isn’t on it, write a letter urging him or her to join the group. This group will be able to influence decisions taken in parliament that will affect the future of all British brass bands.

A major national conference, entitled ‘Our Creative Talent’ was hosted at the Barbican centre, London on 1^st & 2^nd July 2008 by DCMS, ACE and VAN. The focus of the event was to launch new research that looks in detail at the size make-up and impact of the voluntary arts sector and its potential for growth. On the agenda were also discussions and presentations about the significant contribution that participation in the arts makes to local communities. Of course brass bands are right at the heart of many of our communities and that is why I attended the event.

The keynote speakers were Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MP, Minister for Culture; Alan Davey, Chief Executive, ACE; Robin Simpson, Chief Executive, VAN and Feargal Sharkey, Chief Executive, British Music Rights.

Much of Margaret Hodges’ presentation was centred on the recent MacMaster’s report and the notion of excellence. She made a welcome distinction between excellence and elitism and spoke about our nation’s social capital, support for the arts from ACE and local authorities, and the diverse ways in which we all communicate and network in this electronic age.

Both Robin Simpson and Feargal Sharky called for the recognition that arts groups, including bands, crave for, as well as asking the government for better communication and involvement, support with capacity building and improved innovation and challenges for the sector.

So what of the future? Emerging proposals for arts and culture in the 21^st centaury are gathering around the provision of ‘informal adult learning’, that is, finding a balance between the provision for skills and qualifications and the funding of activities for community development. Government, both local and national will be searching for a framework of values that will include the broadcasting media, the use of public spaces and consultation with the voluntary arts sector. A further government report is expected in September 2008 followed by a policy paper that will set out the future vision for Informal Adult Learning.

This was truly an inspiring conference. VAN is certainly centre stage to represent the arts at national level, quite rightly so. The brass band sector should be in full support of VAN and congratulate them on a superb event. It was an important day for the voluntary arts, brass bands included, what a pity that none of our so-called band press were there to cover such a significant meeting. Such influential events are vital to the development of banding in the UK.    

The BFBB One Voice Conference took place on Saturday, 14^th June in Birmingham and delegates from all brass band associations throughout the country were invited to attend. The event was skilfully chaired by Paul Hindmarsch and over thirty delegates participated in the presentations and wide-ranging discussions.

The presentations covered a number of salient issues for brass bands and particularly focused on links with local authorities and local communities. Ian Carter from the Southern Counties Amateur Brass Band Association, Peter Fraser from the Scottish Brass Band Association and Louise Renshaw from Macclesfield Youth Band all spoke about the promising initiatives and developments in their associations and bands, while Alun F Williams of Greater Gwent Music Services and Steven Legg of Gloucester Music Services gave fascinating insights into their work and the connections that bands could make in this sector.

The evaluation forms for the conference have been handed to me and they make vary encouraging remarks, many congratulating the BFBB on running a superb event and asking for an annual seminar. I am happy to echo their sentiments. For those who attended, it was informative, thought provoking and constructive; for the BFBB, it was a successful event which should be repeated annually. A detailed report about the conference will be made available from the BFBB after further evaluation.