Thunder Picks #020

New music seems to be a bit thin on the ground this week, doesnt it? Well maybe its just me but not a lot has been floating my boat. Been lots going on though, getting ready for Thunder with Rick Wilhite next month, and Joe from Thunder and I have been working hard to secure some killer bookings for later in the year. Heres some other-not-necessarily-new-record stuff thats been taking up my time, otherwise known as THUNDER PICKS!

Dance Mania Two Disc Compilation on Strut

A few weeks after I wrote my Dance Mania Special in this very column, Strut records got in touch and asked for a little help with a Dance Mania compilation. It was the brainchild of Conor Keeling, the man those Daft Punk Teachers mixes, so it was in pretty good shape and I didnt do that much really, helped tweak the tracklist by trying to apply some objectivity but probably ended being very subjective! I did manage to convince them to put a few favourites on there, Fear The World, Im So Deep, and most importantly, Tim Harpers Toxic Waste. Tim apparently didnt know that it had been mastered through a sock so after a phone call from London, he turned his place upside down ands managed to find the original DAT. So, we will hopefully be able to hear what it was meant to sound like for the first time ever. The whole thing, including a vinyl package, is out in January. Heres the tracklist:

CD 1

1. Hercules 7 Ways (Club)
2. Victor Romeo featuring Leatrice Brown Love Will Find A Way (Club)
3. The House Master Boyz And The Rude Boy Of House House Nation
4. Duane & Co J.B. Traxx
5. Vincent Floyd I Dream You
6. Da Posse featuring Martell Searchin Hard
7. Club Style Crazy Wild
8. Jammin The House Gerald Black Women (Club)
9. Tyree Nuthin Wrong
10. Strong Souls Twinkles
11. 3.2.6 Falling (Armandos House mix)
12. Rhythm II Rhythm A Touch Of Jazz (Lifestyles Of The Rich mix)

CD 2

1. DJ Funk House the Groove
2. Paul Johnson Feel My M.F. Bass
3. DJ Funk The Original Video Clash: Video Clash II (Street mix)
4. Parris Mitchell Project feat. Wax Master Ghetto Shout Out!!
5. DJ Deeon Da Bomb
6. Houz Mon Fear The World
7. Vincent Floyd Im So Deep
8. Tim Harper Toxic Waste (Club mix)
9. Robert Armani Ambulance
10. DJ Deeon House-O-Matic
11. Traxmen & Eric Martin Hit It From The Back
12. Top Cat Work Out
 

NY*AK The Truth Will Find You EP (Intimate Friends)

Now this IS a great new record. Dunno much about NY*AK, except hes a producer from the UK. Dunno much about the label either except its a new project from Marcel Vogel (of Lumberjacks in Hell fame). I guess the whole thing comes on with a bit like a slowed down MCDE/Loverbirds type sound, which in turn is all a bit Moodymann-ish. It sounds pretty good , especially the title track, which is a proper low slung throbber. Thanks to Dan Harrington, of Modernista Records, for the tip.

From the Vaults Michelle Shaprow If I Lost You (Scuba Mix)

After more than 10 years of having an ebay search set up, the other day, finally, a promo copy of the unreleased King Britt mix of this record popped up. Apparently the after the mix was commissioned, Michelle was dropped by her label. A few promos found their way out but not many (vinyl promos being an almost extinct species in the noughties). The track, from the golden ear of King Britt productions, was then championed by Gilles Peterson and Norman Jay, but by that point it was too late, the master tapes were gone. So the only vinyl versions of the record mastered from the original tapes are these scarce promos. Worth the wait. Oh and big shout out to Saint and Power on this one boyyyeee!

Re-Press Corner Anthony Naples Mad Disrespect (Mr Saturday Night)

The last year has been a big one for young New York resident Anthony Naples, with 4 strong releases under his belt and burgeoning reputation as DJ too. The record that that kicked it all off, a garage-disco-house-jazz-postdubstep hybrid , Mad Disrespect, is now back in the shops. Dont miss it this time.

Mix of the Week Mark E (FACT)

Mark E is on fire at the moment. As covered in a previous instalment of Thunder Picks, he bent Unknown Festival over his knee and smacked its booty big time. A few weeks ago he was featured in the excellent FACTs podcast series. And hes turned in an absolutely stunning mix Ive had on repeat days. House music in pure form, check it out and can you let me know what that track is at 34 mins too please?

THAT Russell Brand Interview on Newsnight

Hes a massive fop. Hes a verbose twat. Hes a vainglorious bastard. Hes like a sixth form politics student. HE DOESNT HAVE ANY ANSWERS! Yep, Russell Brand on Newnight was or did all of those things. But his performance was also quite pretty special, especially the last minute or so, when having held his own against a smug and patronising Paxman throughout, he absolutely wiped the floor with him. His ideas arent fully formed and by his own admission, he doesnt know what the answer is, but he kind of has a point. Im no fan of the cult of celebrity but because he is a celebrity, because he's pretty, because he dresses like Dick Turpin, because he was knocking off Katy Perry, he's got a platform and lots of people that never engage with politics are listening to him. Its all well and good being snobbish about politics but doesn't really engage the masses, does it? How many of the X-Factor generation are ever likely to read anything written by a graduate from LSE? None? Superficial stuff aside, its hard to argue with his underpinning point, the current system isn't working. Global capitalism isn't working. And we all suck up the propaganda every day. The world is now run by big businesses, Government's job is to control the masses and make sure it can all happen. We've all bought in, haven't we? Grow up with big ideas. Get an education. Get a loan to get an education. Buy a car. Rent a flat. Have a baby. Get a mortgage. Buy a bigger flat. Get a bigger mortgage. Go to work. Pay your student loan. Pay taxes. Pay bills. Buy stuff you dont need. Tie yourself into the system. Give the money you got in exchange for your labour back. Conform, conform, conform and do your job, as a tiny, tiny almost irrelevant cog in a massive machine that pumps out money you never see… and then you die. I dont know what that means in the context of column that tells you to go and buy records, but in week energy companies hiked your gas bill by 4 times the rate of inflation and blamed wholesale prices, while that Government decided the best response to that was to cut the green energy levy and then in the same breath, signed a deal to allow a foreign energy company to build a nuclear fucking power station,  GUARANTEEING  that company they will receive double the current wholesale price for the energy they produce, maybe he does have a point, maybe it will take a revolution, and maybe hes a modern day Robert Tressell?

?Party of the Week – Random Magic, Saturday 26 October

If you want to take a few minutes off worrying about how were going to create a socialist utopia, I recommend dancing, and the best place to do that on Saturday night is Random Magic with Omar S, Honey Dijon, Optimo, Luke Soloman, Dan Hotstuff Beaumont and loads more. I mean thats a dream line up, right? The sort of line-up only the finest of people will be into. Its the place to be.

Tickets here

Miles 'Thunder' Simpson