Monday, June 14, 2010 at 4:49PM Beat-Man, House, Reverend, Round Table Knights in Aside Monday, June 14, 2010 at 2:13PM 
Brother Ali is a blind, albino, Muslim. Also one of my favourite Rappers.
He’s signed on to be part of the upcoming “Takin’ It To The Streets,” a (predominantely) Muslim music festival in Chicago next week. He just released this new track, “Don’t Look At Me, Look Around,” featuring Medium Zach, to promote his performance. Other names on tap for the festival are Mos Def, Tinariwen, Malika Zarra, and The Reminders.
Brother Ali, Rhymesayers in Aside Sunday, June 13, 2010 at 2:49PM One of the best videos of 2010. Ronson went all out with this one.
Q-Tip is too cool.
Mark Ronson, Q-Tip, Video Sunday, June 13, 2010 at 1:06PM 
One of the best Essential Mixes to date. This guy is an absolute monster on the decks. One of my favourite tech-house DJ’s/Producers.
1.UGLH & Federico Locchi — House Gift
2.Osunlade — Africa
3.Basti Grub & Aldo Cadiz — Me Sabe A Porro
4.Lucero En Vivo — La France
5. Frank Roger — Yeah!
6.Nyra — Feeling Rhythm
7.UGLH & Federico Locchi — Caracan
8.Jordan Peak — You Make Me Better
9.[unknown] — Tool P39
10.Thom Norton — Worth It?
11.Karm & Matteo Milleri — Grubjo
12.Hooved — All Together
13.Cesar Merveille & Pablo Cahn-Speyer — Wait! The Story Continues
14.Findling & Lihab — Stay Down
15.Zeque — Groovy Pleasure
16.Jey Kurmis — Fenton Is Mint
17.Hooved — P O Box
18.Till von Sein — Sista O Dissey
19.Francesco Gernelli — All Night (Nicole Moudaber Remix)
20.Dapayk Solo — All Eyes On You
21.LoSoul — Calma
22.Pepper — Ice
23.Tigerskin, Till Von Sein — Sle
24.Johnny D & Butch — Blue Shoes (Johnny D. Mix)
25.Mulder — 50/50
26.Frink — Redoble
27.Frankie Watch — Pif (Ernesto Ferreyra Pif Puf Paf Edit)
28.Tim Green — Lone Time
29.Loco Dice — Definition (Nic Fanciulli Edit)
30.Edwin Oosterwal — Scrub The Tub
31.Cassius Cassius — 99 (Tim Green Remix)
32.Jose Cabello — Kamax Crash
33.Patrick Lindsey — Lass Mich Raus
34.Guy Gerber — The Stockholm Syndrom
35.Ahmet Sisman — Hey Now
36.Emerson Todd — 110
37.Tim Green — Flote
38.Tim Green — Old Sunshine
39.Onno & Sante — Unknown Title
40.Behling & Simpson — Track 05
41.2raumwohnung — Rette Mich Spater (Soul Magma Remix)
42.Pawel — Panamerican
Essential Mix, House, Tech-House, Tim Green in Aside Sunday, June 13, 2010 at 12:59PM Sunday, June 13, 2010 at 12:36PM 
Manchester Academy - August 3rd
Brixton Academy - August 4th
A full line-up of Method Man, Mastakilla, GZA, Ghostface, U-God, Raekwon, RZA, Mathematics, Inspectah Deck, Cappadonna and Streetlife will return for gigs at Manchester Academy on August 3 and London O2 Academy Brixton the following day.
UK Tour, Wu-Tang Clan in Aside Friday, June 11, 2010 at 5:06PM 
About 4 years ago I discovered a Mixtape called ‘We Didn’t Invent The Remix’, by a Rapper named Example. It was 13 tracks of remixes/re-makes, which were to drastically change my outlook on UK Music forever. Along with Eminem and KanYe West; this man’s entire Discography has influenced me more than anyone else’s throughout the past 10 years – I have always been able to relate to his lyrics and this new album is no exception.
“There be no more rapping; if there is then I’ll keep it old fashioned”
Back in 2008 I remember him saying to me on MySpace that “Electro Example is the way forward” – at first I wasn’t totally convinced, but now I know he couldn’t have been more right. Once a very good Rapper, Example has transformed himself into an exceptional all-round artist who now knows how to write anthems, instead of just a few witty bars. This Summer he will be playing at Glastonbury in front of about 15,000 screaming fans, which is quite a stark contrast to the 15 fans that stayed behind in Manchester to see him perform just 3 years ago. The overall success he has achieved from this change in direction is quite incredible, considering very few US rap acts have been able to do this after 10 years, let alone one album.
‘Won’t Go Quietly’ is a breath of fresh air and everything I could have wished for, and more. A lot of albums with more than 5 producers struggle with fluency; however Example’s unique vocal tone and superb lyrical talent allows the album to flow perfectly from start to finish. One of the main aspects of the album which makes me happy, is how refreshing all of the Singles sound alongside the 10 new songs – ‘Watch The Sun Come Up’ and ‘Hooligans’ in particular, which I’ve had in my iTunes for more than a year now. A lot of this is due to fact that there are no samples on the album, which means every song is a brand new sound that’s never been heard before. I’ve noticed a lot of ‘fans’ of Example’s older work have complained about him going down this route and veering away from UK Hip-Hop. But really; when has he ever been a stereotypical UK Hip-Hop artist? I will always love ‘What We Made’ and it is an album that will forever have a special place in my heart; however ‘Won’t Go Quietly’ will appeal to wider range of people and has much more quality and depth throughout. As Jay-Z once said; “want my old shit - buy my old album”.
2010 is shaping up to be one of the greatest years of all time for Music and we have been blessed with some of my favourite albums of the past 20 years. ‘Won’t Go Quietly’ is one of those album’s – it’s a masterpiece and an important moment for the UK Music movement that is happening right now. All the work done by Example himself, Sheldrake, DJ Wire, Rusher, David Stewart, Mark Surridge and Chris Maas over the past 4/5 years has led us to where we are today. It’s been a long road to get here, but definitely worth it. For me, someone who’s been Example’s biggest fan from the start; it’s amazing to have been able to get to know him as a person and watch him develop and grow as an artist from the inside. Everything he wanted to achieve two years ago is now finally starting to fall into place due to his hard work and perseverance. He deserves all the success this album brings.
Below is a snippet of the track I thought I would like least, but it has become one of my favourites on the whole album – ‘Two Lives’, which is produced by the brilliant Ishi.
Kickstarts will be on iTunes this Sunday: BUY
Won’t Go Quietly is out on June 22nd: iTunes, HMV & Play
P.S. HMV Bonus CD is a must have.
Example, Review, Won't Go Quietly in Aside Wednesday, June 9, 2010 at 1:46PM 
Posted a track from this a few weeks ago. Well, now the album has finally come out and I am pleased to say it is one of the most enjoyable listens of 2010. Uplifting and enjoyable Music from start to finish. Here’s my favourite track from the album - ‘Panther Sneer’ featuring the brilliant Double yellow.
Tie Breakers encompasses elements of nu-jazz, funk, hip-hop and electronica. Imagine the wild offspring of the more recent Mr Scruff material and the infectious horn and rhythm stylings of Quantic - then you’d be getting closer. But, comparisons aside, the UK’s Diesler (AKA: Jonathan Radford) has managed to strike a golden balance between amazing instrumentation and dancefloor rhythms. Incredibly well constructed tracks that would be just at home on your headphones as they would in a club.
With a blend of instrumental and accompanied tracks, Tie Breakers features vocal contributions from Laura Vane (The Streets, MJ Cole, Laura Vane & The Vipertones), Double Yellow, Stee Downes (Sonar Kollectiv), Linda Bloemhard (Kraak & Smaak, The Jazzinvaders) and Stockholm’s Carloline Ekstrom.
Tracklisting:
01. Samba Magic (feat. Laura Vane)
02. Panther Sneer (feat. Double Yellow)
03. Deepest Cuba
04. South Side Morning (feat. Stee Downes)
05. Zebra Boogie (feat. Linda Bloemhard)
06. Pick Pocket (feat. Laura Vane)
07. Buzzin
08. Back to My Old Tricks (feat. Linda Bloemhard)
09. Chillin’ (feat. Caroline Ekström)
10. Change/Trust (feat. Stee Downes)
At the moment you can grab a FREE download of the incredible track, Deepest Cuba, as a little taster from the album!
You can also stream the entire album via Diesler’s Soundcloud page.
The single, Samba Magic, is due out later in the year which will include a heavy duty remix by one of London’s hottest producers of 2010; Warrior One, so be sure to look out for that.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010 at 1:04PM Tuesday, June 8, 2010 at 2:08PM 
Well; I’m not really sure where to start with this one. Just over 10 years ago from now, I heard an album called the Marshall Mathers LP by a rapper named Eminem. It changed my life, my outlook on Hip-Hop as a genre and the way I listen to Music as a whole. Ever since that moment; me, along with millions of other people my age, have followed this man’s career religiously - it’s been a roller coaster ride; however it seems as though he has finally got everything back on track again in 2010.
Throughout the process of making this album there have been pieces of information which made me question where he was going with this project and how much of an improvement we were going to see from his previous effort, Relapse. Only 1 production from Dre and features from Rihanna, Pink & Wayne weren’t the most promising signs for me personally. However; last night I learned one thing - never doubt one of your favourite artists of all time and one of the most talented men to ever pick up a pen & mic. From start to finish this album just, works.
I see Recovery as a collection of everything I’ve loved about Em for the past 10 years, coming together and finally creating the type of Music we all knew was possible for a man with so much talent. I think the main aspect behind this, which makes the album stand out from all his others, is the maturity of themes and content he uses throughout each and every single track. On Relapse and Encore it was impossible to question his flow or the level of lyricism, but what he was talking about didn’t have any passion, thought or meaning. Tracks such as ‘Talkin’ 2 Myself’ and ‘You’re Never Over’ have all of these - they are deep, heartfelt songs that I have been waiting to hear Em do for years and years. It’s been a long time since his guy’s lyrics put a smile on my face, but it’s definitely been worth the wait.
Production wise; this was uncharted territory for Em. Who’d have thought you would ever hear him rapping over Ozzy Osbourne and Haddaway samples? I didn’t - but, it’s all part of what makes this album so very special to listen to. I also never thought I would say this; but, maybe it was a good idea to not rely on Dre so much this time round. We have heard so much of their work together, that it was a breath of fresh air to hear him over some different/innovative beats. Like most people, I hate making early calls with new albums; however I would go as far in saying that this could be Eminem’s best work to date. Of course the Marshall Mathers LP is the most important piece of music in my life, but this album has everything I love about Em in 17 tracks. He has grown up incredible amounts, and it shows - this album is on another level.
Instant Classic? Yes
Best Album of 2010? Maybe
Best Eminem Album? Maybe
Best Rap Album of All Time? Only time will tell
Recovery is out 22nd June: Pre-order
“Fuck my last CD, that shit is in the trash”
Welcome back Marshall.
