Mantisounds

A.D.I.D.A.S. (ALL DAY I DREAM ABOUT SAMPLES)

2011-04-17T19:39:00.001-07:00

Been rocking this mix in my headphones for a month or so, and I've decided that tonight, on the eve of Boston's Together Festival (which, like last year, started up JUST after our monthly residency went down), I would drop this promo on the old bloggy blog. This mix gets back to my roots: pure, unadulterated party breaks. Lots of updated takes on classic samples/riffs/tracks on this mix, some cheeky, some sublime, all worthy of a Frosty Freeze with a side of Boogaloo Shrimp scampi. I'll be hitting up Breaker's Paradise this week to do some flyering/stickering/promo, pretty stoked about an all-breaks party. This should get y'all in the mood for some kick-snare-kick-kick-snare, hope to see you there.....

Mantisounds - A.D.I.D.A.S. (All Day I Dream About Samples) by Mantisounds on Mixcloud

mantisounds - A.D.I.D.A.S. (all day I dream about samples)

1. Makesome Breaksome - Bong

2. Jurassik - Guns n' Ravers

3. DJ Hero & Matt B - Baddest DJ

4. Kid Kenobi - Breakers Revenge 2010 (Drumattic Twins Remix)

5. Ruby Goe - Beat Breaking Boy (Stanton Warriors Remix)

6. La Roux - Bulletproof (Foamo vs DNF edit)

7. Adele - Hometown Glory (Adsorb Breaks Mix)

8. Stanton Warriors - Seeker (What What What Remix)

9. Odissi - Empty Vodka Bottles (Pyramid Remix)

10. Dustin Hulton - FCK Your Bassline (Curtis B Remix)

11. Lee Coombs & Uberzone - Right Now (Scott Remedy ReRub)

12. Skrillex - Scary Monsters & Nice Sprites (Zedd vs Original)(REL-1 ReDub)

13. Jinx - At Last (Breaks Mix)

14. Stanton Warriors - Still Here ft. Eska (Club Mix)

15. Noisia - Alpha Centauri (Elite Force ReVamp)

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

(cross-posted at La MoDa Mixtapes)

Revolution

2011-03-06T10:50:00.000-08:00

It has been a bad few months for the powerful on this planet. From Tunisia to Egypt to Libya to Madison, Wisconsin, the underserved and underrepresented have been making their voices heard. These are not your parents' revolutions: information-driven, secular, and televised. It's been amazing to see entire societies cast off the yokes of fear and oppression armed with not much more than smart phones and social networks. History is writing itself as we speak, and it sure reads like a new chapter for millions of people on this planet.

It is against this backdrop that I put together my newest mix. I've been vibing HARD on the new "140bpm jungle" sound that's gripping the underground, harnessing the raw energy of amen madness with the wobble of dubstep and the surgical stutter of top-shelf breaks. This mix starts off with a call to revolution from Ghetto Priest (remixed by man-of-the-moment RackNRuin), which is quite fitting for all my brethren in the Middle East. Skull-cracking dubstep/140bpm flavors get it rinsed right up through Ed Solo's MONSTROUS version of "Egyptian Horns," which I included as a little nod to all my January 25th Massive, and because it's arguably one of the greatest "rave" anthems of all time (I first heard the original on a DJ Overload mixtape from 1995 and the rest is history). Then it's all 140bpm jungle/breaks tomfoolery up through to the last track, Hybrid's epic remix of FSOL's classic "Papua New Guinea."

A wise man once said "If you make nonviolent revolution impossible, you make violent revolution inevitable." Get up. Stand up. Word up.

Mantisounds - Revolution by Mantisounds on Mixcloud

1. Ghetto Priest - Evolution (RackNRuin Dubstep Remix)

2. Skream - Lightning VIP

3. Magic Mash - M.A.G.I.C.

4. Karton - All You Need (Mars Remix)

5. Schema - Savage Henry

6. Ed Solo - Egyptian Horns

7. RackNRuin - Soundclash

8. Altered Beats - Bad Man Soul

9. HeavyFeet ft. MC Mad Rush - Vs Up (RackNRuin Remix)

10. Schema - Rat Bastard

11. La Roux - In for the Kill (Skream Remix)(Future Funk Squad Rerub)

12. Mobius - Champion Hounds

13. Ben & Lex - Soundboy Step-Up

14. Schema - Turn Off the Lights

15. Future Funk Squad - Shakedown

16. Future Sounds of London - Papua New Guinea (Hybrid Remix)

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

(cross-posted at La MoDa Mixtapes)

this is a man's dub

2011-02-14T19:32:00.000-08:00

I was going to do another post on the further escalations in the dubstep wars (commercial/brostep vs. deep/underground/"intelligent" dubstep), but I decided against it, because it seems like too much energy to spend focusing on things people don't like, on division, on negative energy. So the theme for this evening is: the glass is half full. Because, really, does the world need more cynicism? Negativity? Nah. Put some positive vibrations out there. Ponder what you LIKE...the glass is half full...

What do I like? I like bass music. All sorts. I like my bass music like I like my hallucinations: kaleidoscopic, dipped in chrome and neon, aurally expansive, and infectiously groovy. I like combining bass musics of different types to create interesting spectrums and combinations of bass music. Do you like bass music?

You know what else I like? Motown and soul music. I also like face-melting drops, and jump-up-and-grab-you builds. They're a blast (come on, admit it, they make you want to smile)....the glass is half full...

This mix combines elements of a bunch of things I like (bass music, soul music, melted faces, Foreigner, reggae, raves, and funky robots) into one chrome-dipped sonic hallucination. Can you dig it? If this mix makes you want to tap your feet, or nod your head, I am honored to have contributed to and/or assisted you in your sonic-kinetic vibrations. And fair enough if you don't like it, it's not for everyone (hallucinations rarely are). But either way, don't expend too much energy trying to categorize it or put it in a tiny little box: dubstep, brostep, chillout, wavestep, lovestep, future garage, post-dubstep, 2step, drugstep, soulstep, drumstep, sinestep, broken beat, broken heartstep, it's all sort of irrelevant.

A lion doesn't know the word "lion" but he still knows he's a lion...

The glass is half full.

Drink up....

mantisounds - this is a man's dub

1. James Brown - It's a Man's World (Regrooved by Parker)

2. Curtis Mayfield - Pusherman (Cutloose Remix)

3. Brenda Lee - I'm Sorry (Woodhead & Blenda Remix)

4. Gramaphonedzie - Why Don't You (High Rankin & Evolve or Die Remix)

5. Ashes - Dubvine

6. Bassnectar - Magical World ft. Nelly Furtado

7. Jean Jacques Smoothie - Two People (Jay Robinson's 1 Hour Bootleg)

8. Don Diablo ft. Dragonette - Animale (Datsik Dubstep Remix)

9. Bassbin Twins - Eat Em Up

10. SKisM - Power

11. Foreigner - Cold as Ice (Specimen A Remix)

12. Linton Brown - Horndog (Kinzy's Frisky Dog Remix)

13. Jinx in Dub ft. Rider Shafique - Meditate & Relate

14. Althea & Dona - Uptown Top Rankin (Hostage Remix)

15. Chop Shop 45 - Hyphy Gotta Learn Sometime

16. George Lenton vs. Mr. Little Jeans - On Repeat

17. Hostage - Sweet Sweet Riddim (instrumental)

18. Jurassik - Baby (Jurassiksravingmonsterloonymix)

Mantisounds - This Is A Man's Dub by Mantisounds on Mixcloud

(cross-posted at la moda mixtapes)

2011-01-04T09:41:00.000-08:00

So dubstep has arrived. Officially. I don't say that because it's being used to sell cereal and sneakers and electronics (it's not...yet). I don't say that because Diplo has finally slapped the Mad Decent stamp of approval on the genre with Blow Your Head: This is Dubstep (he has, and it's not bad). And I don't say that because Madonna's new album is all dubstep produced by Skream or Rusko or whoever else might be the go-to dubstep producer of the moment (though I will not be surprised if that's EXACTLY what Madge's new album eventually sounds like, given her flavor-of-the-month output of late).

Dubstep has arrived because it's beginning to eat itself. For all you drum n'bass heads out there who are a little long in the tooth (like me), what's happening in dubstep now is beginning to look an awful lot like what happened to jungle after its initial underground explosion in the late 90s. Jungle was starting to blow up, you started hearing it on main stages and peak-time slots, rather than side-rooms. Artists from different genres started "experimenting" with the sound (cynical interpretation: trying to cash in on a budding new market). The music press started trying to churn out endless sub-genres (jump up, ragga, trance & bass, darkstep, techstep, etc.). And then along came Roni Size and Reprazent: a stable of "old school" jungle cats performing dnb "live" with a drummer (Si Begg) and live vocals. Suddenly, jungle wasn't side-room niche drug music, it was "respectable." (BTW, I saw Reprazent twice live, both times they absolutley murdered it!).

With the rise of all of this "respectable" attention, and the need to compartmentalize everything for the music press, the genre began to split into different camps: the posers who heard the Aphrodite/Jungle Brothers single and decided they liked jungle and/or could sell it to lots of new fans, and the "intelligent drum n'bass"/intelectuals who were "pushing the genre forward" and who looked down on all the jump-up hip-hop sounds, the kids who loved them, and the producers who were making it.

(SIDEBAR: is there a descriptive term MORE obnoxious than "intelligent drum n' bass"? Like, not all that stupid UNINTELLIGENT shit, it's "intelligent." I always felt bad for LTJ Bukem, purveyor of that smoother, broken-beat/liquid/atmospheric jungle sound, because record stores and magazines would aways slap the "intelligent drum n' bass" sticker on his cds and make him seem like some pretentious asshole, which I'm sure he wasn't, and I'm also sure he didn't think his music was "smarter" than anyone else's)

I think that's about where we are with dubstep right now (seriously, google "dubstep" + "commercial" and take a gander at all those complainers!). You've got a lot of people making ear-scorching wobble tunes at 70 bpm that sound great on a soundsystem with hands in the air and pupils dilated, and then you've got a lot of people claiming that the "scene is changing" and the music is getting diluted because the sound is starting to be appropriated by other artists/genres. You've got folks trying to distinguish between "legit/underground/artistic" dubstep and the pervasive (and some would say formulaic) wobble of the more "commercial" stuff. And with the release of Magnetic Man's self titled debut, and the critical acclaim it's received (including from me, who loves me some Magnetic Man), it appears dubstep is having its "Reprazent" moment, and tribal boundaries are being drawn.

I mention all of this for a few reasons. One, I was around for the explosion and subsequent implosion (and rebirth/realignment) of drum n' bass, and I am very interested to see if dubstep follows the same trajectory. And two, this new mix would probably be considered a little more "underground" than previous dubstep sets, embracing artists and sounds that I've heard described as futurestep, future garage, lovestep, breakstep, junglebreaks, 140bpm jungle, etc. To me, it's all bass music, and there's a time and a place for all of it. Like, I generally enjoy microbrewed/homebrew beer, but apprecaite that there is a time and a place for a 30-rack of light domestic beer. Same with bass music in general. Some of it is all drops and builds and face-melting wobble bass designed to slay a dancefloor, and some of it is a little more subtle, a little more intricate, maybe appreciated more in your headphones or in your car. But it's ALL GOOD, homie.

Usually in my mixes I try to incorporate a little of everything (a splash of Anchor Steam, a dash of porter stout, maybe a pint of cider, and a can or two of Bud Light), though this mix is light on Bud Light and heavy on the microbrew. But that doesn't make it "intelligent" or "underground" or better than any other style or micro-genre or sub-category being pushed by the latest issue of Knowledge or Mixmag, because, really, in the end, this is DANCE music, people, not an anthropology class. Don't worry about how "commercial" something is, or how "underground" it sounds. Look around. Are people dancing? Are you? Isn't THAT what's important?

Mantisounds - Ender's Game

1. Liondub & Matt Shadetek - the General Riddim (OG Riddim instrumental)
2. BangaTang - Bashful
3. Bill Withers - Ain't No Sunshine (Indaskyes & Tracksmyth Remix)
4. Hunter Vaughan - High Hopes
5. Eric Hassle - Hurtful (George Lenton Remix)
6. Bertie Blackman - Peekaboo (Marco del Horno Remix)
7. Excision & Datsik - Swagga (Homegrown & Nils Jumpen Mondays Afternoon Mix)
8. I.D. - Flay
9. the S.K. - Bass
10. George Lenton - Cold Rocker
11. Nero - Something Else
12. Downlink - Moonrock Badman
13. Nero - Bad Trip
14. Excision - Obvious
15. Skool of Thought - Heart of the Hood
16. I.D. - Akusative
17. JSaxton - Kick Snare Ganja Buddha
18. Ludwig Coenen - Green Movement (XI Bas Vapour Dub)
19. Doorly - UK Geee
20. Ramadanman - Offal
21. Redlight - Rock the House ft. the Voodoos
22. Foamo - Centavo (Warrior One Remix)
23. BSD - We Are Elektro

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

P.S. All you sci-fi nerds out there might recognize the cover artwork appropriated above. "Ender's Game" was one of my favorite books growing up. It's the story of Ender Wiggin, a child prodigy recruited into Earth's "Battle School", a training camp orbiting the planet designed to develop the planet's next great generals and warmakers in the ongoing battle against the evil alien "bugger" race (kind of Harry Potter meets Starship Troopers with less campy bullshit and magic wands). If you have not read this book, cop it in paperback (or eBook like the kids on their Kindles) and get busy!

(Cross-posted at La MoDa Mixtapes)

Slyde November Promo Mix

2010-12-15T06:28:00.001-08:00

Slyde is up there in my top 5 breaks producers of recent memory, and I've definitely shown them blog love in the past. Getting their start on Fingerlickin' back in the good old days, Slyde has consistently turned out some of the chunkiest, dopest, jaw-dropping breaks in the game. The video above is one of their newest called "Russian Girls are Dangerous," and the mix below is their most recent promo mix, which is only streaming now, but is worth a listen.

SLYDE RussianGirls DJ-Mix Nov 2010 by slyde

As a bonus, I'm also posting the epic XX remix/bootleg Slyde dropped a couple of months ago. It's not downloadable here, but being a bootleg (and very popular at that) I'm sure it's out there on the interwebs for download...You can always try the chaps over at Lifesupportmachine.

Crystallised XX - SLYDE Remix finalised by slyde

Adsorb

2010-12-08T07:46:00.000-08:00

I just stumbled upon DJ Adsorb's Soundcloud page recently, and I felt I had to share. Adsorb is a producer/dj who has released tracks on Against the Grain, Westway, and Breakin Even and was a resident at the famed Supercharged nights in London, which saw him forge an alliance with Krafty Kuts and play regularly with acts like the Stanton Warriors, the Freestylers, Skool of Thought, and many many more. I have featured a few of his tracks on previous mixes (his remix of Deekline & Wizard's "Fire" still gives me bass face!), and I would highly recommend purchasing pretty much anything he puts out. Electro/breaks of the highest order, always guaranteed to punish a bassbin and ignite a dancefloor!

Here's an absolutely stunning remix he did of Adele's "Hometown" which I can't stop listening to!

Adele - Hometown Glory - Adsorb Breaks Mix by djadsorb

Shoot the Moon

2010-11-30T08:39:00.000-08:00

"The freak with the top hat is leaving with the basketball. Cover the freak....Tell the men, it's time to shoot the moon!"

I've been promising a disco mix for a while, and this weekend I finally got it together and finished it up. This is 14 tracks of smoked out, dubby disco edits that put a smile on my face. Nice and slow, lots of spaced out effects, slow motion funk for Sgt. Stedenko and the freak in the top hat (mostly for the freak). I used a bunch of edits from Deep& Disco and Munga, who are all killing the disco reedit scene right now. Check their Soundclouds for serious midtempo disco damage.

You can stream the set below, or download the mp3 directly using the link below. Better yet, head over to La MoDa Mixtapes and sign up for the podcasts, which will beam the set right into your iTunes/iPod fresh out the oven!

(Ralph Bakshi's "Heavy Traffic" promo, 1973)

mantisounds - shoot the moon

1. Marvin Gaye - What's Going On (Cole Medina Remix)
2. Minnie Riperton - Inside my Love (Darren Daz Dalton's Inside my Filter Rework)
3. Ed Wixard & Disco Double Dee - This Joint
4. Kazino - Binary (Munga Rework)
5. Loleatta Holloway - Seconds (Deep&Disco's Once is Never Enough Rework)
6. Sister Sledge - Pretty Baby (Eyan's Deep Space Dub)
7. Sister Sledge - Lost in Music (The Revenge Rework)
8. Mona Raye - Do Me (And Munga Done Did It Rework)
9. Sharon Brown - Specialize in Love (Munga vs. Deep&Disco Edit)
10. Jamiroquai - Alright (Dan & Kris Re-Edit)
11. BeatFanatic - Something Better
12. Richard T Bear - Sunshine Hotel (Musica Hermosas Bounce Edit)
13. Stevie Wonder - Do I Do (U-Tern Edit)
14. Alpha Blondy - Jah Glory (Rhythm Plate's Disco Riddim Plate)

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

(cross-posted at La MoDa Mixtapes)

Classic Mid-90s Mixtapes

2010-11-23T07:44:00.001-08:00

As this holiday week gets into full swing, I am thankful for classic rave mixtapes being hosted and posted all over the internets. Don't get me wrong, I still have hundreds (?) of actual mixtapes in a box in my lab, and occasionally pop them into the odd boombox to relive past glories, but there just aren't that many cassette decks in my life anymore. So I'm always stoked when I find online homes to some of the dopest mixtapes I own (and even more than I heard but never dubbed, or lent to someone never to be seen again, or lost in an afterparty parking lot, or heard about but never actually listened to).

These tapes represent so much more than music (though they ARE amazing sonic time capsules of a particular time and place in underground dance music through the years). Keep in mind that the first commercially available web browser debuted in 1994 (Netscape), so the internet, and all the far-reaching, social networking potential it brought with it, did not exist in anywhere near its current form. We had to improvise in a decidedly "analog" fashion. In much the same way that hippies that collected bootlegged Dead concerts built around them a loose network of likeminded souls that used the collecting and trading of these tapes as a vehicle to interact and socialize with other bootleggers, rave mixtapes and the "retro" distribution systems that sprung up around them were like precursors to the message board or genre-specific listserv/forum.

Sometimes you'd cop a mixtape from someone wandering the floor of a rave with a backpack/suitcase full of tapes. I always set aside extra money when I was hitting a rave far from my stomping grounds (the northeast) because I KNEW there would be tapes there from DJs I had hear ABOUT, but never seen live. An added bonus was that you usually had a shitty car-ride home the next day, and 4-6 hours of sleep-deprived Sunday driving was ALWAYS better with a couple of new mixtapes.

One fellow to take the "raver with a suitcase of mixtapes" thing to the next logical step was Raymond Frances, who, in addition to throwing the Bassrush parties and introducing British jungle to American raves, also had a mixtape catalogue distribution business. You could just browse his selection (usually a faded, photocopied and folded "catalogue" that was just an alphabetized list of dj mixes and live sets), and then send him a note via snail mail with some cash in an envelope, and if you were lucky, you'd get your mixtapes in a few weeks. It was like some sort of underground, slo-motion iTunes. Goddamn if you weren't stoked when your Fusion Productions package arrived.

Sometimes you'd cop a mixtape from a record store (remember those?), and those were usually representative of that particular city's most prominent and/or prolific DJs. I had a few friends who went to school in DC, and I always tried to cop a new Scott Henry or Feelgood tape from the old Modern Music store in Georgetown, or try to catch a party at Buzz or Fever when down there.

Most of the time, though, you'd cop a mixtape from one of your buddies, eagerly dubbing the mix onto whatever blank tape you had lying around (I always kept a fresh stack of blanks handy, as you never knew when the opportunity would arise). I remember coming home from college on winter break or for the summer, and trying to dub as MANY of my buddies' mixtapes as possible before I had to leave (praise be to highspeed dubbing!). And it was always dope when someone you knew came back from San Francisco or Orlando or some other techno mecca, becuase you KNEW they'd have lots of regional gems you couldn't find back east. Hell, I remember a few times in college where I'd commandeer multiple stereos on my dorm floor just to maximize my dubbing potential for a friend's weekend visit!

So, in the spirit of old school rave mixtapes, I invite you to spend the upcoming long weekend raving down memory lane at the following mixtape sites, where you can find such classics as DJ Dan's "the Scratch the Bass", Terry Mullan's "New School Fusion" mixes, or any of the live at Fever Scott Henry/DJ Feelgood classics, among many, MANY others.

Modern Music SF

EZSKANKIN Mixtapes

Simfonik

Peace, Love, Unity, and Respect!

Hyper

2010-11-12T08:27:00.000-08:00

Lots of the djs I used to obsess over have recently dropped new promo mixes (see the last post), so, at the risk of falling into a theme rut, I figured I'd take a moment to give props to Hyper's continued presence in the breaks game. I first heard the name DJ Hyper when I purchased Bedrock Breaks in 2001. Hyper was pushing a really crisp, razor sharp sound that I really dug, and the comp features a handful of his remixes (with Dylan Rhymes) representing some of his early work. He followed up with a few more compilation discs (Fractured, Wired) that continued to push that snapping clean sound of his, and I bought each one.

Hyper also started Killowatt Recordings, which has released tracks from Vandal, Hyper himself, Terminalhead, Stir Fry, and General Midi, to name a few. Pretty solid pedigree if you ask me...

I also purchased his first album "We Control," which was a bit of a departure from the "Hyper sound" I'd become used to. It was actually a "band" (like Freeland or Pendulum), more Prodigy than Bedrock Breaks, with an aggressive, breaks-punk feel throughout. Definitely a detour style-wise. I do think the breaks/rock thing was a bit overdone (and took itself a little too seriously), but points for trying something new, and there WERE a couple scorchers off the album.

Anyway, Hyper really had his finger on the pulse of breaks in the early half of the last decade (typing that made me feel old!), and I'm very happy to see that he hasn't let off the gas pedal. He's posted a new mix to his Soundcloud page that kicks some serious ass. I've posted it below, definitely check it out.

Winter Mix by Hyper

Adam Freeland - Late Night Deepness

2010-11-05T07:27:00.000-07:00

Since I'm on a roll with my trip down memory lane, I would be remiss if I didn't mention my absolute reverence for Adam Freeland and everything he did (and is doing) with Marine Parade Records. I was visiting Washington DC back in 1996 when I came across the "Adam Freeland Presents Coastal Breaks Vol. 1" compilation in the imports rack at Music Now Records on M Street (which is probably a Starbucks now). I recognized a few of the artists as really notable underground breaks producers of the moment (Bassbin Twins, Uberzone, Jedi Knights, DJ Icey) and thought "Damn, this 2xCD might actually be worth the insane import price (I think it was like $44 American dollars, which is a lot of money to a techno-obsessed broke college student). Truth be told, I think I actually convinced one of my buddies who DID have some extra scratch to buy it, and I taped it off of him (Mikey C?).

Needless to say, it was money well spent. It was like a time capsule of the hottest funky breaks of the time. Adam parlayed the exposure he received with this comp and started Marine Parade Records in 1998, and released "Coastal Breaks II" on React Records. With tracks by Kevin Beber, Ils, Tipper, Deejay Punkroc, Bushwacka, and the Freestylers, this comp pretty much started the "nu school breaks" genre, and I think a lot of the tracks still sound fresh today (seriously, listen to the programming and bass on tracks like High Prime's "Funky As..." or 9 Nickel's "Capricorn" and tell me they don't sound fresh!).

Adam Freeland is one of those producers whose work I will buy sight unseen just on the strength of his back catalogue. Check his Discogs page, he's put out a LOT of stuff since the heady days of 1998, all of it good. He recently linked up with URB.com to put together a mix of deeper, late night grooves (as opposed to the feedback-heavy tech-funk sound he usually pushes). You can download it here. It's smooth, it's melodic, and according to Adam's twitter feed, it's his favorite mix in a long time, so there you go. Check it out, and DEFINITELY pick up either Coastal Breaks compilations if you ever get a chance...

Stanton Warriors

2010-11-04T10:31:00.000-07:00

The Stanton Warriors are another of my musical heroes. The first "Stanton Sessions" mix cd they released in 2001 came at a really exciting time in the breaks genre (the first "Fingerlickin Thang" comp and the Plump DJs "Plump Night Out" in '00 and "Stanton Sessions" in '01) when the sheer volume of quality output was shocking for die-hard breaks fans like myself, who had up until that time been relegated to digging through bare-bones "electronica" sections of record stores or picking through "big beat" compilations for tunes worth a damn. '98 through '02 were the gravy days of breakbeats, and the Stanton Warriors had a lot to do with that.

The Stanton Warriors are still going strong, touring like hell and dropping remixes all over the place. Check their Soundcloud page, or the Boomtown Blog for some of their more recent sonic booms. I've posted a couple of tracks below, as well as a downloadable version of the Stanton Sessions. Truly ahead of its time....

Like the head of the Riffs said, "I want all the....Warriors, alive if possible, if not...WASTED!"

Stanton Warriors -Still Here (Bounce Funk Mix) by Stanton Warriors

SubFocus - RockIt (Stanton Warriors Edit) by Stanton Warriors

Stanton Warriors - Stanton Sessions Vol.1 by Stanton Warriors

BONUS: Classic theatrical trailer for "The Warriors."

Magnetic Man

2010-11-04T10:03:00.000-07:00

Dubstep pioneers Skream, Benga, and Artwork have formed what may be the first dubstep supergroup: Magnetic Man. Backed by super-hot vocalists Katy B and Ms Dynamite, Magnetic man is doing for dubstep what Roni Size's Reprazent did for drum n' bass: pushing the genre to a broader audience without losing any cred. And the music is TIGHT. The video above is Magnetic Man performing live at the BBC1 Maida Vegas studios with Katy B on vocals and a live string section. Also worth mentioning is "I Need Air" and the smokin' "Fire in Session" with Ms. Dynamite. Fire!!!

The Magnetic Man LP is one of the best I've heard in 2010, do yourself a favor and cop the whole thing.

Tom Middleton

2010-11-02T11:00:00.001-07:00

Tom Middleton is one of my heroes. One half of the legendary Jedi Knights/Global Communications team (with Mark Pritchard), this dude contributed to some of the greatest and most foward-thinking tracks of the mid 90s ("May the Funk Be With You" or the Blackbelt Jones-sampling "Catch the Break" being nu-funk before the word even existed, and funky breaks standards in the mid/late 90s!). The "Jedi's Night Out" comp from Mixmag is a great representation of Tom's smooth sonic touch, deep broken beat before that genre was all over XLR8R, and I still bust it out from time to time.

Then, as if he hadn't done enough, Tom released the "Sounds of the Cosmos" triple disc comp in 2002, which is still in my opinion one of the most complete and stunning collections of music ever collected in one place (one disc of deep house, one disc of breaks, one disc of downtempo, all assembled with Tom's ear for lush, warm, ambient sonics). For real, check the tracklist, it's silly.

Tom's still doing his thing and has recently posted a "November DJ Mix" on his Soundcloud page. It's not downloadable, just streaming, and I have no idea if he'll ever post a tracklist, but I think it fits quite well with the legacy Tom's made for himself. It SOUNDS like a Tom Middleton mix, which I personally think is a huge compliment.

3AM Request Line

2010-11-02T07:37:00.000-07:00

I keep trying to switch things up, really I do. I've been working on a sleazy disco mix for you all, and it's coming along fine, but I keep getting distracted by wobbly, face-melting breaks and dubstep when I step beind the mixer! Here's another bass-heavy set I put together a couple of weeks ago that I hope you'll enjoy. It's the polar opposite of Mo's last mix (which I suppose is the point), and definitely will get you humming on your morning commute (legal disclaimer: not liable for moving violations incurred while consuming this product).

As always, flash player and download link below, but please sign up for the La MoDa Mixtapes podcast by following the directions on the right-hand side of this page, and you'll be the first on your block to receive all La MoDa-sanctioned mixes, podcasts, manifestos, and musique concrete! Do it to it!

Mantisounds - 3AM Request Line

1. Jinx In Dub - Bucky Don Dub
2. Steve Bug & DJ T - Monsterbaze (Evil Nine Remix)
3. Koma & Bones - Medium Cool (Bassbin Twins Mix)
4. Bassbin Twins - the Lock
5. Jabbawockeez - Robot Remains (Sangers & Ra Mix)
6. Project Bassline - Drop the Pressure (Cut La Roc ReDrum)
7. Excision & Datsik - Calypso (Elite Force Mix)
8. Giggs & Mike Skinner - Slow Song (Marco Del Horno Dubstep Mix)(Dustin Hulton Breaks Edit)
9. Miike Snow - Black and Blue (NAPT Remix)
10. Ben & Lex - All Da Breakz (Mskr-nt's VIP Remix)
11. Freestylers - This City (Kouncil House Remix)
12. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Heads Will Roll (A-Track Remix)(Andy McAllister Reedit)
13. the Prodigy - Spitfire (Future Funk Squad's Dogfight Remix)
14. Specimen A - Just a DJ
15. Access Denied vs NAPT - Remark You Realised (Yreane Mashup)
16. Freerange DJs - Back to the Old Jack (Eshericks Remix)
17. ILS - Sabotage (Deekline & Wizard Remix)
18. Ways & Means - Serious Business
19. Phaeleh - Selecta (Jinx in Dub Remix)
20. Cut La Roc - Looking for the Deep Bass (Schema Remix)
21. Jurassik vs. Skream - Midnight Rquest Line (Jurrassik ReRub)
22. Ed Solo & JFB - I Need You

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

(cross-posted at La MoDa Mixtapes)

DJ Dan - Chop Shop Video Mashup

2010-10-27T10:51:00.000-07:00

I can't get enough of the video mashups that have been popping up on the YouTubes lately. Now that anyone and everyone uploads songs to YouTube for self-promotion, I'm always a little bummed when my YouTube screen just shows a still photo for 7 minutes while some bangin' shit is going on in my computer's speakers. Maybe I'm a product of my ADD multimedia upbringing, but, hey, it's not my fault (it's the MEDIA!).

I previously posted the Slyde mashup here, and Tim Healey's been dropping killer promo mashup vids for his singles (like this Fast Eddie refix and the "Back to the Ghetto" shit he did with Calvertron), and this DJ Dan vid also goes on my wall of fame with those others.

Producers take note: the still photo placeholder YouTube "vid" scourge MUST die, and vids like this are gonna do the killing (god willing)....hey, did I just make a hip hop there?

Low Hanging Boot - Dustin Hulton

2010-10-26T12:13:00.000-07:00

(pic: piotr tarka)

Back in the old days before micro-genres popped up every two weeks, there were like three types of breaks: "funky breaks," "progressive breaks," and "Orlando breaks" (according to the stickers Satellite Records used, anyway). "Orlando Breaks" described a breakbeat sound that was a sort of hybrid of miami bass/electro and some of the trancier, ravier elements of what was then a fairly new underground sound, supported heavily by DJ Icey and the rest of the Florida scene (DJ Baby Anne and Friction & Spice also come to mind). As time has passed, and genres have been mixed up and rearranged over the years, the "Florida sound" has changed a bit, but still primarily straddles the worlds of the more forward-leaning sounds of breaks (dubstep, electro, B'more club) and Miami bass, with a heavier dose of the Miami booty influence (and the strippers and thongs and sexual subject matter that have been a staple since 2 Live Crew were making parents blush back in the late 80s).

I'll be honest, this style of "booty breaks" is one of my guilty pleasures (to my wife's eternal annoyance). When done badly, it's just 808 kicks and poorly written laundry lists of stripper moves (touching toes, booty claps, makin' it rain). When done right it's a goood balance of sex rhymes, cut up vocal hooks, and searing basslines and synth riffs. One of the dudes doing it right these days is Dustin Hulton. I first saw his name on the remix of the DJ Assault track ("One in the Front") from Deekline & Wizard's last LP (which is the first song below). It's a propper introduction!

Since then, he's been killing everything he puts his name on, and has been giving a good bit of it away on his Soundcloud page. I've included my favs below (pay attention to the "Slow Song" edit, it's catchy as f*ck). Enjoy, and remember, if you're at work, turn the speakers down a bit, a lot of this is NSFW....

Deekline & Wizard "One In The Front" ft. DJ Assault & Sporty-O (Deekline & Dustin Hulton Remix) by Dustin Hulton

Giggs and Mike Skinner - Slow Song - Marco Del Horno Dubstep remix (Dustin Hulton Breaks Edit) by Dustin Hulton

Far East Movement ft. Cataracs & Dev - Like A G6 - (Dustin Hulton Club Edit) by Dustin Hulton

Pyramid - Gunman [Funkatech Records] - Free Download

2010-10-26T06:09:00.000-07:00

(banksy)

I figure I spend enough time listening to other people's music that I should start blogging about it for all 5 of my regular readers. Funkatech Records is a breaks/dubstep/tearout label from the UK (aren't they all?) that has been absolutely MURDERING it over their last several releases. They're giving away the track below, "Gunman" by Pyramid, for free, and ain't nothing better than free gut-thumping breakbeats at 9:30am EST. Take a listen and enjoy the murderation...

Playing Catchup Vol. 749

2010-10-25T10:24:00.000-07:00

Been slacking on cross-posting mixes I upload to La MoDa Mixtapes on my own site here, and since I've pledged (to myself and the voices in my head) that I'm going to try to get back to more regular postings, with a focus on highlighting artists that are currently warming my heart/melting my face, I figured I'd start off by catching up all 5 of my regular readers on the most recent Mantisounds contributions to the La MoDa Mixtapes podcast pile (definitely head to the blog, follow the instructions in the upper-right-hand-side and get the funk beamed directly into your iPods). And with that I give you my last two podcasted mixes, both posted at La MoDa Mixtapes and repeated here for your pleasure (and my OCD)...

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Good news boppers, it's new mix time from deep inside La MoDa Central! Both Mo and I have been hard at work, with some new goodies in the pipeline to get your toes tapping as the summer says goodbye and the leaves start changing. First up is a new breakbeat mix from me (Mantisounds). I endeavored to create a mix that was a "breaks-through-musical-history" concept, if you will. Starts with some flapper-style swing elements, passes through the early days of pop music (Mr. Sandman), and then storms headlong into the disco era. There's a nod to classic breaks (the Mexican remix), the remix of the year (IMO) from Peo and the Drumattic Twins, and then I finish up with breaks from the future (Slyde and the Stanton Warriors remix). All given the big room tweaked out thump that I can't get enough of.

I played most of these tracks in my set when I joined Atomik in Portland in August, and they went down really well, so I thought I'd do it again and post it up for all to enjoy.

Keep it locked, more treats from both me and Mo coming soon....

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

1 parov stelar - catgroove

2. gramophonedzie - why don't you (krafty cuts re-rub)

3. the chordettes - mr. sandman (mr. no hands wobbly remix)

4. emanuel kosh - make my music (zodiac cartel remix)(krafty cuts re-rub)

5. yolanda be cool & dcup - we no speak americano (johnny dangerously breaks mix)

6. duck sauce - aNYway (andy mcallister remix)

7. stardust - music sounds better (rebel sketchy 2009 remix)

8. the soulbrothers - 21st century disco shit (miles dyson remix)(rel1 re-fix)

9. bombermen - alcatrax vol. 1 (miles dyson breakfast edit)

10. wolfgang gartner - 5th symphony (rel1 refix)

11. drumattic twins - crazy love (peo de pitte 2010 disco edit)

12. plaza de funk - get crazy

13. fort knox five - party pushers ft. mustafa akbar (smalltown romeo mix)(krafty cuts re-rub)

14. mr. b - little acid people (drumattic twins remix)

15. deekline & tim healy - the mexican (krafty kuts re-rub)

16. slyde - move ya body

17. sub focus - rock it (stanton warriors edit)

18. dj zinc - wile out (small fry rerun)

19. yeah yeah yeahs vs a-trak - heads will roll (electric soulside ft. odissi mix)

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Whoa. It's been a minute since I posted a mix on the bloggy-blog. Holding down a 9 to 5 and raising twin babies has been a LOT of work, to put it mildly. Thankfully Mo has been holding it down on the podcast front. But I haven't stopped digging....still searching for the perfect beat. I've been trying to focus what little energy/free time I DO have on the monthly residency I'm throwing called Uptown Hustle at the Enormous Room in Cambridge (Northeast peoples, definitely mark the first Thursday of every month on your calendars). Been pushing a very disco/funk heavy future-retro vibe. Some might even call it "nu-funk" (shit, I call it nu-funk when I'm trying to come up with copy for the flyers).

I probably shouldn't say this, because it makes me sound old, but I remember when "nu-funk" was called "big beat," and before that when it was called "funky breaks," and before that when it was called "trip hop." (...and before that when it was all called acid jazz!) Before magazines needed micro-genres to sell issues, everything that wasn't house/techno or "jungle" was called "trip hop." (shit, no one reads magazines anymore. damn I sound old...) You could find Coldcut next to Mondo Grosso next to Metro LA next to Massive Attack. And it was all in the "dance" section of Tower anyway. Ah, simpler times...

Anyway, since I been feeling nu-funk since before it was called "nu-funk", I figured it was time for me to put together a proper mix to promote the night. A sampling of the sort of disco-dripped, funkafied future retro sound that I've been steering towards as I've taken the helm of Uptown Hustle while Mosart212 is doing his bid upstate. In honor of Todd the Rocket's guest appearance on August 5 at Uptown Hustle, here's a promo mix for everyone who just wants to break a sweat on the dancefloor. Don't try to play this mix sitting down....

Mantisounds - Hustle Uptown by Mantisounds on Mixcloud

mantisounds - hustle uptown

1. bill ben & baggio - pusherman

2. wu-tang clan - c.r.e.a.m. (dj moneyshot's travesty mix)

3. totalcult - brown feeling

4. afrika bambaataa & the soul sonic force - planet rock (dj ayers vs jay.soul remix)

5. fort knox five - the spirit of '75

6. fendaheads - sunrise

7. pale the kid - the doll that made the dice behave (rory hoy & lebrosk remix)

8. maelstrom & nap-z - mash the peas (post life the rat disorder mix)

9. funkanomics - last night a dj saved my life

10. jem stone & j.c. - disco daze (disco mix)

11. oasis - wonderwall (dvw remix)(dj ark rerub)

12. michael jackson - don't stop (dmndays re-edit)

13. grateful dead - shakedown street (tommie sunshine & figure brooklyn fire edit)

14. santigold - brooklyn we go hard (shovit gt mix radio edit)

15. donna summer - bad girls (sonicc remix)

16. michael jackson - get on the floor (summerheadz main mix revamp)

17. harvey mason - groovin' you (morsy mix)

18. rockets - golden strings

19. stardust - music sounds better (kid massive mix)

20. earth wind & fire - let's groove tonight (gogobizkitt remix)

21. brothers johnson - stomp (only children edit)

22. prince - I wanna be your lover (dimitri from paris re-edit)

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

Pushin'!

2010-05-19T07:18:00.000-07:00

(cross posted at La MoDa Mixtapes)

Picking up where Mo left off on his last post (which I assume not many people read, but definitely should), Mo and I both come from the same place when it comes to WHY we do what we do: because we love it. Not because we want to be famous, not because we think it looks cool, not because we're show-offs or because we think we're the best djs in the world. We both love music of all kinds, and at different places and times in our lives, we each were bitten by that post-modern sonic bug that says, "wow, if this song sounds this dope on its own, how much better could it sound mixed with this OTHER song, or sound, or rhythm, or peom, or whatever." We like the sound of two different things being mixed together to create a THIRD thing. And we like to play those things loud, preferably with other people who like to dance to those things. Because dancing to dope beats is fun.

With all the millions of songs out there, there are a thousand billion permutations of combinations, and that alone keeps us pushing to find that next dope mix, that next perfect rhythm or sequence, which, like a surfer's perfect wave, only comes along a few times, or maybe just once, in your life. But once you've caught it, once you've stood in front of that speaker stack and it's all clicked and you've captured that perfect rhythm, you will spend the rest of your life looking for it again, or trying to create it, or top it. Sometimes we get close, sometimes we totally lose the plot, but it's something you never stop shooting for...

I don't want to speak for Mo, but I don't spend most of my waking minutes obsessing about obscure miro-genres of music and trolling the dusty corners of the internet for sounds because I think it will make me famous, or get me laid, or be the "best" at scratching or juggling or reverse crab flaring. I don't do it to try to inflate my friends on Facebook or followers on Twitter. And I definitely don't do it to make money (though a little here and there doesn't hurt). I do it because I like hearing dope shit. Period. And making something dope into something REALLY dope, even if just a little bit more, is never a bad thing. Plus, what the fuck else am I going to do, play videogames?

I bought myself a gangload of subsonic weaponry recently, and spent about 90 minutes mixing it together and throwing down effects on the Kaoss pad. I recorded it, check it out below. I hope you like it, but I fucking love it, and really, that's all that matters...

Still lookin' for the perfect beat...

1. Slyde - Block Party
2. Slyde - SlydevsMGMT booty
3. Skool of Thought - Villa Funk
4. Hot Mouth - I Don't Care (Krafty Kuts and Hot Mouth Re-Reub)
5. Stanton Warriors & Bassbin Twins - Rhythm Rocks the Blue (Elite Force Mix)
6. Slyde - Discofukka
7. 30 hz & Vlad - Get Low
8. Lee Morimter & Laidback Luke - Blau (Fog's Blunderbuss Mix)
9. Micky Slim & Mark Brown - You Know What's Up (Krafty Kuts re-rub)
10. Hatiras, Vandal, JELO & Stanton Warriors - M.A.D. (Elite Force Remix)
11. Twocker - Stitch (Bass Kleph Mix - Krafty Kuts Re-Rub)
12. NAPT ft. Louise Marshall - Make my Day (This is NOT a Jack Beats Remix)
13. Deekline & Wizard - Angels (NAPT remix)
14. Deekline & Wizard - Back up (Krafty Kuts remix)
15. Bar 9 - Shaolin style (Elite Force Mix)
16. Splitloop - Ghetto UK
17. Elite Force - The Law of Life
18. Deekline & Wizard - Fire (Adsorb Remix)
19. Stupid Fresh - Get the Fuck Up ft. Stellar MC (Krafty Kuts re-rub)
20. Si Begg - Are You the Big Boy DJ (Milo Firewater Remix)
21. Deekline & Wizard - Bounce and Rebound (Beat Assassins Remix)
22. Deekline & Wizard - Keep It Pushing ft. Freq Nasty & DJ Assault (Specimen A Remix)

Direct Link to MP3

Bless Up, Wile Out!

2010-04-26T08:05:00.000-07:00

(cross-posted at La MoDa Mixtapes)

Stoked about this mix. I've always loved DJ Zinc, his Bingo Beats imprint was killing the dark 2step/breaks hybrid sound back at the turn of the century (I love writing that), and his drum n'bass output was always rugged ("Tru Playaz Vol. 1" is still one of my favorite jump up compilations). I recently copped his Crack House EP as well as the "Wile Out" package (with Ms. Dynamite's long-overdue return to good music), and have been feeling his warehousey, bassed-up toasty dancehall-tech sound, so I decided to put together a mix along those lines (sidebar: there very well could be an actual genre that encompasses the sound on this mix. Being an old fart, I stopped trying to figure out what every new micro-genre was a long time ago. So if you're saying "duh, this is totally formulaic Jackin Ethno-Fidget Wobble, get with it!" you're a young whippersnapper who should respect his elders...)

When putting together this set, I imagined wandering into a seriously grimy rave full of rudeboy antics and toasting mcs, dancing my ass off, and then hitting the afterparty of that rave on a beach with the sun coming up and the scent of purple kush and Nag Champa incense filling the air....(In case you needed a visual). Starts all shuffling and shady, peaks with some annihilating rhythms, rave sirens and generally over-the-top bassbin madness, and finishes with some serious skankin and toasting. I used the Kaoss pad for this mix, and will admit that I got a little carried away at the end with the dub reverb/feedback effects, but hey, put something in the air and let this mix freak you out....It works...

As usual, please sign up for La MoDa Mixtapes podcasts using the instructions at the top right of the page. And if you like the mix, tell a friend!...

Mantisounds - blessup, wile out by Mantisounds

1. layo & bushwacka - love story (SOLO bootleg)
2. dj zinc - music makers
3. sub focus - could this be real
4. roisin murphy - momma's place (heavyfeet remix)
5. trevor loveys - organ grinder (greenmoney's lighter remix)
6. rox - my baby left me (arms remix)
7. dj zinc ft. ms. dynamite - wile out
8. dub pistols - i'm in love ft lindy layton & rodney p (d-funk's summer of love remix)
9. flore - we rewind ft. rodney p (am I angry? flore remix)
10. sub focus - move higher
11. dj zinc - nu sound
12. rusko - woo bost (subskrpt)
13. benga - 26 basslines (elite force refix)
14. benga ft. ms dynamite - my dj
15. freestylers - cracks
16. dee patten - who's the badman
17. aquasky & tayo ft. earl 16 - looking for a session
18. evil 9 ft. toastie taylor - restless
19. dreadzone - king dub rock

Direct link to mp3

Playing Catchup Vol. 2

2010-03-04T01:19:00.000-08:00

Since I've been busy posting at my other blog, La MoDa Mixtapes, I thought I'd take a minute to cross-post my previous few mixes to this place...

So up until 6:43am on Feb. 24, 2010, my favorite twins in the world were the Bassbin Twins, followed by the Drumattic Twins. Hell, my wife and I rearranged our honeymoon to catch the Bassbin Twins in Las Vegas at Club Ice (sidebar: thanks for representing for my honeymoon, Bassbin Twins)!...All that changed when my wife gave birth to OUR twins, Paloma and Bodhi. Words cannot describe how amazing an experience it is, and how proud I am to be a father (or how amazingly sleep deprived I am after a day and a half of doublemint duty!).

DJ Recon, the mad genius behind Monkeys for Helping, suggested a few weeks ago that, in honor of the birth of my twins, I should do a twins themed mix (Recon is an "ideas man," as they say in the "biz," a mad scientist with the ideas and the lazers and the test tubes with the bubbles and the electricity and the bunsen burners and the 1.21 jigowatts). What better reason to collect all of my favorite Bassbin/Drumattic Twins songs in one place and melt faces in honor of the twins that melt hearts (that might sound corny, but when you meet these kids, I DARE you not to turn into a cooing teary-eyed mess. They are fucking adorable!). I even snuck a Capoeira Twins track in there too to round out the theme.

You can peep the divshare player below, download directly using the link below, OR, impress your friends and neighbors and sign up for the podcast service directly to your iPod or Zune by following the instructions posted on the upper left of this page.

Don't be a singleton, meet the twins....

mantisounds - meet the twins

1. bassbin twins - the dogs
2. bassbin twins - gun down
3. capoeira twins - to the dawn of the day (slyde remix)
4. drumattic twins - under the lights
5. drumattic twins - sound of the drum
6. evil nine - crooked (bassbin twins remix)
7. aquasky & the drumattic twins - bring it on down
8. mr. no hands vs bassbin twins - adrenaline
9. drumattic twins - twister
10. drumattic twins - the flunk
11. drumattic twins - big buddha
12. drumattic twins - feelin' kinda strange (bass kleph & nick thayer remix)
13. bassbin twins - UFB2
14. bassbin twins - the ruffest
15. deejay punk-roc - my beatbox (bassbin twins busted my beatbox remix)
16. bassbin twins - woppa
17. bassbin twins - whistle choon

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

(pix by =surround)

So it's my turn to rock your iPods, and for this mix I've gone back to what I know: jackin' beats and funky breakdowns. This mix is awash in BASS and I tried to keep the intensity high throughout. I also made a conscious effort to make this mix familiar and new at the same time; thus, lots of remixes of songs y'all can sing along to. A little Sir Mixalot, some Run DMC, a bit o' Stevie Wonder and some Lionel Ritchie, even a remix of that Robin S classic "Show Me Love." Oh, and a bit of a "fuck you" to Henry Rollins by AC Slater, flipping one of Rollins' more obnoxious "spoken word" rants into a face-melting bassed up workout! (Sidebar: I fucking HATE Henry Rollins!).

Anyhoo, as always, you can enjoy the mix with the embedded flash player below, and even download it from divshare if that makes you happy, but what makes la MoDa happy is when you sign up for the podcast by following the instructions on the top right of this page. It's easy, it's fun, and it blasts our weekly mix madness straight into your iTunes/iPod! While it might cause you to accellerate out of control, or stop you from braking properly, we promise we won't have to issue a recall!

mantisounds - knowhow

1. A1 Bassline - 8oh8
2. Hostage - Achtung!
3. Joakim - Watermelon Bubbalicious (torro Torro Party Remix)
4. Rye Rye ft. MIA - Bang (WTF I Asked for a Kuduro Remix by Buraka Som Sistema)
5. Young MC - Knowhow (Stanton Warriors Edit)
6. AC Slater - Play the Record Again
7. Sir Mixalot - I Like Big Butts (Tom EQ's Cellulite Edit)
8. Run DMC - It's Like That (2 Bit Thugs Remix)
9. Don Nola - Roasted & Toasted
10. Curtis B - Cough and Choke ft. Mafioso
11. DJ Dan & Hatiras - Drop Hits (DJ Dan Unreleased Mix)
12. Black Noise - Knock You Out (Kik the Break VIP)
13. Fake Blood - I Think I Like It (Philly Blunt Mix)
14. Robin S - Show Me Love (Redlight Remix)
15. Stevie Wonder - Sir Duke (Dirty Monkeez Remix)
16. Lionel Richie - All Night Long (Rico Tubbs Remix)

Direct link to MP3

So even though it's Mo's turn to post, and even though he's sitting on a couple of hot new mixes that he's posted on Facebook already (calling you OUT, homie), I'm going to go out of turn and post another new mix for the masses. It's another dubstep set, starts pretty mellow but builds into a pretty noisy climax. I'm digging the dubstep coming out of Giant Pussy Records right now, and used a bunch of tracks from that label on this mix (the Ed Solo remix being a particularly heady vintage). I broke out the Kaoss pad again, I'm really starting to enjoy incorporating effects into the mix. Hopefully it adds a little flair, and alla y'allz enjoy it too.

mantisounds - dub intentions

1. chromeo - night by night (skream remix)
2. miike snow - black and blue (caspa remix)
3. robert miles - children (hxdb remix)
4. deadmau5 & kaskade - i remember (caspa remix)
5. interpartysystem - last night in brooklyn (numbernin6 remix)
6. lea luna 0 leaving for mars (b. rich remix)
7. artful dodger ft. craig david - rewind (havocndeed remix)
8. 321 vs tim healey and deekline - bring it back (ed solo and jfb remix)
9. the partysquad - murderer (diplo & jayou remix)
10. tinny - zingolo (doorly remix)
11. perfection & will streetwise - tough old colin
12. ac slater - calm down
13. felguk vs tim healey - rio (jfb remix)
14. sidney samson ft. wizard sleeve - riverside (lets go)(breakage remix)
15. simian mobile disco ft. beth ditto - cruel intentions (joker remix)
16. stripper ft. dj omega - stripper theme (akira kiteshi remix)
17. tim healey and tai - pocket rocket (tes la rok remix)
18. fast eddie - yo yo get funkky (crissy criss remix)
19. j-break - 24 hours (curtis b remix)

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

Damn, December 31. Another year down. 2009 was the year La MoDa Mixtapes really took off, but also the year half of La MoDa relocated to Rochester, NY (sniffle, pour some of my Colt 45 onto my carpet). 2009 saw the inauguration of the first black president, and then 10 months of thinly-veiled racism, know-nothingism, and general bad behavior by the forces of evil (yup, I said it). 2009 gave us Balloon Boy, John & Kate +8, Tiger Woods the D-Bag, and Sarah Palin the bestselling author (that was difficult to type). 2009 was also a tough year economically, especially for my people in New York, who saw Wall Street rewarded for screwing us all while Main Street (or Flatbush Ave., or Washington Street, or wherever you live) was struggling to make rent on unemployment and looking for jobs that still haven't called back. As much garbage as 2009 gave us, it also took from us: MJ, DJ AM, Roc Raida, Ted Kennedy, Les Paul, Walter Cronkite, Swayze, the list goes on.

All in all, I say "f*ck 2009, bring on 2010!" I'm about to be a dad, La MoDa mixtapes is getting its geographically-challenged groove back, and 2010 is looking to be a much better year. So with that in mind, here's a little party mix to kick 2009 in the ass and lay a big sloppy kiss on 2010. I figured since Mo switched it up with his (bangin') fancy dancey mix for the last installment, I'd lower my BPM and give y'all something that goes well with party dresses and champagne flutes. It starts out classy but definitely gets sweaty by the time the ball drops...

As always, do yourself a favor and please sign up for the podcast by following the instructions on the upper right of this page, and get your friends, family, associates, spiritual advisors, cell-mates, and mortal enemies to do the same!

mantisounds - money beet$

1. jay z - walk away (alex goose instrumental)

2. sade - soldier of love

3. speech debelle - better days revox ft. wiley

4. lauren hill ft. method man - say

5. wale - letter ft. john mayer

6. fort knox 5 - blowing up the spot (instrumental)

7. debilorithmicos - i'm out ft. cise star and akin

8. common ft. lily allen - drivin' me wild

9. the roots - duck down

10. jay z - roc boys (alex goose remix)

11. the revenge - curtis

12. freddie cruger - bap yo head ft. rapadon

13. emiliana torrini - me and armini (simone lombardi mix)

14. marvin gaye - what's goin on (beatnick & k-salaam remix)

15. rox - my baby left me

16. alicia keys - karma (karmastition remix)

17. people under the stairs - hit the top

DIRECT LINK TO MP3

Bring on 2010!

Where them Dimes At?

2009-11-22T16:34:00.000-08:00

It's time for another installment of "Polar Opposites," where Mo drops a smooth, buttery downtempo set and I follow it up with jackin' gut-thumping electro madness! I'm in the process of packing for a move at the end of the month, so I've been listening to music that keeps your brain humming and filling boxes with junk. I've been feeling a lot of fidgety house and vocal/booty breaks lately, and wanted to put together a really high energy breaks/bass mix with some of my favorites. I tried to keep it big-room and bass-heavy, with more of a hip hop feel (lots of samples and bootlegs with vocals), and I'm really pleased with how the mix turned out. I included a few current Stanton Warriors stompers, some Krafty Kuts re-rubs, a few 2 Bit Thug remixes, and a few facemelters from Hostage.

Make sure to sign up for our podcasts (instructions in the box at the top right of the page) to get La MoDa mixtapes each week piping hot out' the oven....

Mantisounds - where them dimes at? by Mantisounds

1. Rico Tubbs - Gangsters (2 Bit Thugs Rerub - Dirty)
2. Vato Gonzalez - Badman Riddim
3. Hostage - I Get High
4. DJ Fast Eddie - Yo Yo Get Funky (Tim Healey & Deekline Remix)
5. Decibel vs Busta Rhymes - Dangerous (Krafty Kuts Re-rub)
6. Chemical Brothers - Block Rockin Beats (2 Bit Thugs Remix)
7. Hostage - Badman Sound
8. The Beach Boys - Good Vibrations (Stanton Warriors Remix)
9. Mightyfools - We Want (DJ Icey Recon Remix 2)
10. Bass Kleph - Bump Uglies (DJ Icey Remix)
11. Farace & J2K - Booty Aint a Thang
12. Hoxton Whores - Friday Saturday Love (Breaks Mix Vocal)
13. Rye Rye ft. M.I.A. - Bang (Stanton Warriors Remix)
14. Major Lazer - Hold the Line (Golden Gloves Wobble n Shake Remix)
15. Ctrl Z vs The Freestylers - Ruffneck '09 ft. Navigator (RackNRuin Remix)
16. Krafty Kuts v Draxx & Seavers - Rude Boys (Krafty Kuts Re-rub)
17. DJ Motion - Beatz 4 Me
18. Stanton Warriors ft. Gus Gus - Blue (Vocal Version)

Playing Catch-up: A Whole Lotta Breakbeat

2009-09-30T12:10:00.001-07:00

This summer has been crazy for me, personally and professionally. Well, mostly personally. Mrs. Mantis is preggers with twins, so I've been trying to get my affairs in order in preparation for the Battle of Sleep Deprivation. Being an old school party kid, I'm actually well-armed for the fight (being the King of Disco Naps and all), but I know it's going to seriously cut into my rave time. While I haven't been posting much this summer, I have been mixing. A lot. So here you are: a summer's worth of mixes, most posted at various times on Facebook but never here on the blog (or over at La MoDa Mixtapes, which is undergoing some changes and should be back with a vengence very soon!).

Mantisounds - keep marching by Mantisounds

Mantisounds – Keep Marching
1. NAPT - Heart of Stone

2. ILS - Hate is an Illness (NAPT Remix)

3. Drumattic Twins - Crazy Love (Peo De Pitte Remix)

4. Bird Peterson - Bird Goes Off

5. Tittsworth - WTF ft. Kid Sister & Pase Rock (Deekline & Tim Healty Remix)

6. Splitloop - Party People (Adsorb Remix)

7. BreakZhead - Going On (Jurassik Remix)

8. Future Funk Squad - Blow ft. Mojo

9. Brothers Bud - The Sting

10. Chemical Brothers - (Saturate (Stanton Warriors Remix)

11. BSD - Get Hype on This

12. Ed Solo & Skool of Thought - When I Was a Yout (Krafty Kuts Remix)

13. The Arsonist - Gimme My (Slim Blue Mix)

14. Si Begg - The Bleeps

15. LCD Soundsystem - Disco Infiltrator (Stanton Warriors Remix)

16. Kid Digital - It's True

17. A Guy Called Gerald - Voodoo Ray (Stanton Warriors Remix)

Mantisounds - i like to dance by Mantisounds
Mantisounds – I Like to Dance
1. stanton warriors - who are the warriors (bassleph remix)

2. bjork - hidden place (zuul remix v3)

3. groove diggerz - we rock

4. slyde - frequen...cy (miles dyson remix)
5. groove diggerz - one love

6. soul of man - dizzy heights

7. lee coombs - future sound of retro (2008 remix)

8. plump djs - electric disco (d ramirez remix)

9. stanton warriors - precinct (plump djs remix)

10. vespers - this is the beat

11. discosynthetique - vibrate

12. splitloop - electricity

13. mobius - tools of the trade (lo definition remix)

14. stereo type, screwaface & ctrl Z - balls the wall (stereo:type part 2 mix)

15. blim - tattoo

16. infusion/freeland - starwater/nowism (bassbin twins edit)

17. the martin brothers - dum (dubbel dutch remix)

18. soho jo - i like to dance

Rhythm is the difference by Mantisounds
Mantisounds – Rhythm is the Difference
1. groove diggers - body flow

2. dj shaolin - bitches and money (breaks mix)

3. groove diggers - funky heroes

4. nick thayer - fabricated

5. meat katie - work ya body

6. plump djs - rub off

7. nick thayer - groove with it

8. bootasaurus - booty calamity

9. dj phunkae ft. aleeta bensen - super star bass (plaza de funk remix)

10. plump djs - take the weight

11. bassbin twins - ruffest

12. omni trio - renegade snares (aquasky vs masterblaster remix)

13. 9 nickel - rhythm is everything

14. beber - chief rocka (beber bass remix)

15. beber - chief rocka (beber beats remix)

16. beber - juvenile delinquent (beber supafly remix)

Shed a tear by Mantisounds
Mantisounds – Shed a Tear

1. bruce lee - be water, my friend

2. ali kay - numb

3. electric soulside - system d

4. tim healey & marc adamo - ghetto blaster (krafty kuts remix)

5. meat katie & d ramirez - stop the revolution (bassbin twins remix)

6. rico tubbs - it gets no better (VEN)

7. general midi - the westerner

8. breakzhead - the lost (ways and means remix)

9. mr. l"apes - skunk burner

10. tayo meets elroy and piper - down under dub

11. deekline & wizard - all your love

12. ed solo & skool of thought - when I was a yout

13. drumattic twins - hyperspeed

14. black canvas - we fear not (12" mix)

15. drumattic twins - broken planet

16. deekline & wizard - dancehall thrilla

17. kouncilhouse & micky finn - shed a tear

Giant Pussy Records

2009-09-30T11:37:00.000-07:00

Deekline and Tim Healey have both been around for a minute. Deekline has been cranking out dancefloor madness since the late 90s UK Garage scene with such favorites as Ed Solo, Wizard, Freq Nasty, Stanton Warriors, etc. Tim Healey got his start as more of a "main room" act, making big techno/electro-house bangers since the mid 90s. They've teamed up to form Giant Pussy records, which they describe as a "vault of sleaze, trash, and bass." I think the world could use a little more sleaze, trash, and bass....

The video above is the first project these two embarked on. The video below is their most recent offering. In addition to being SMOKING hot songs, these guys have figured out that adding just a few bells and whistles to a YouTube vid will assist greatly in spreading the word (take note producers uploading videos with boring still photos!). The future is booty....

Slyde - Block Parties

2009-09-30T11:23:00.000-07:00

Slyde has been KILLING it over the last 12 months, from last year's LP "Everyone's Entitled to Our Opinion," to all of the bangin' remixes that LP spawned (NAPT and Miles Dyson remixes of "Frequency" coming in for special notice). Well, they're teeing up what appears to be another smoking release, based on the video teaser above. As a breaks head from way back, Slyde (and some of the other acts on Fingerlickin') continue to get me hyped with this updated, bass-heavy take on funky breaks. These guys are definitely ones to watch!...

Neurosonics Audiomedical Labs Inc.

2009-09-16T12:29:00.000-07:00

Neurosonics Audiomedical Labs Inc. from Chris Cairns on Vimeo.

There was a time in the not-so-distant past where turntablism was the dopest thing since sliced bread (Wave Twisters was a highwater mark for the genre, IMO). Glad to see people keeping the flame burning, and even pushing the boundaries a bit...

Pantyraid!

2009-09-16T07:41:00.000-07:00

Dubstep is thought of as a very British genre (much to the frustration of some of the folks holding it down on this side of the pond like the heads at Soulchampion and Selector Moldy out of Portland), growing as it has out of drum n’ bass and downtempo with a dash of dub reggae. Marine Parade records, one of my all-time favorite labels (and Bri'ish to boot), is putting out a new album by an AMERICAN dubstep duo called Pantyraid. Check out their site for a streaming 50 minute mix. Who sez America can't do bass?

Wu Tang is for the Children!

2009-08-03T13:45:00.000-07:00

Wu-Tang Lego: Da Mystery of Chessboxin' from davo on Vimeo.

If you want to see the shot-for-shot comparison, peep it here.

Tracking MJ Samples

2009-07-30T09:41:00.001-07:00

via Blue Crane Standing

Test Press @ Middlesex, Cambridge, MA

2009-07-18T21:55:00.000-07:00

Come out to see DJ Triple A and me (Mantisounds) at the Middlesex in Camibridge this Wednesday evening (July 22, 2009)

Change comes to America (and this blog)

2009-02-01T07:33:00.000-08:00

The Year of the Ox is shaping up to be a year of change. As I've discussed previously on this blog, I have recently formed a new musical partnership with the Mighty Mosart212, and as such, we've started a collaborative home for our collective mixes and ramblings. Since cross-posting everything on that site, this site and the occasional Monkeys for Helping collabo just seems like way too much work for someone as lazy as me, I'm going to indefinitely shutter this site and start posting solely over at La MoDa, but I'm going to keep the Mantisounds blog archive (and corresponding Divshare links) active so my legions of fans and groupies can continue to do the science.

If you want to check the Mantisounds mixes I've put up on this site to date, click here.

For new posts, more funky goodness, and more Black Metal Mondays, please join me at my new home:

La MoDa Mixtapes

If Movie Posters Told the Truth

2009-01-22T15:43:00.000-08:00

(via Holy Taco)

Justice x the Simpsons?

2009-01-18T07:46:00.000-08:00

(via asian dan)

Playmobil Security Checkpoint

2009-01-16T10:09:00.000-08:00

(via the Washington Monthly)

The idea that children would want to "play" security checkpoint is strange enough to me, but you HAVE to click through to the Amazon.com link for this toy if for no other reason than the awesome customer reviews. Here's just a taste:

"I like the basic idea. I applaud Playmobile for attempting to provide us with the tools we need to teach our children to unquestioningly obey the commands of the State Security Apparatus, but unfortunately, this product falls short of doing that. There's no brown figure for little Josh to profile, taser, and detain? Where are all the frightened plastic Heartlanders pointing at the brown figure as they whisper "terrorist?" Where are the hippy couple figures being denied boarding passes? And shouldn't someone be forcing a mother figure to drink her own breast milk?"

Black Metal Monday (on Friday)

2009-01-16T07:41:00.001-08:00

Sorry for the lack of substantive posts, I've been busy with other ventures. However, with a little time on my hands, I thought I'd drop in on my face-painted brethren at blackmetal.com to see what's new in the world of evil incarnate. Thankfully, Satan has been hard at work in the recording studio, as evidenced by the following holiday-themed releases:

War Hammer Command has released "Hellish Wrath," and not a moment too soon, as my mom has been harping on me about hooking her up with some new holiday tunes. Blackmetal.com describes this tour de force as "War, Nihilism, and Misanthropy! Impressive corpse-painted Brazilian Black Metal full of rage and aggression! Absolutely fuckin' great, highly-recommended high-calibre, yet still Underground attack-- believe it!" Oh, I believe it. Especially after enjoying such ditties as "Sodomize the Dead" and "Infernal Holocaust Dissemination." Normally I find that albums embodying War and Nihilism are just OK, but throw in a pinch of Misanthropy and you've got the makings of quite a party!

Next up is the long-awaited (at least for me, anyway) REISSUE of Carcass' classic "The Reek of Putrefaction" CD. I'm going to be honest here: while I understand that "putrefaction" has vaguely yucky connotations, I didn't know until just now that it's "the decomposition of animal proteins, especially by anaerobic microorganisms" (thanks wikipedia). While you might be asking, "Who cares, as long as it's evil?" it helps explain why this particular re-release comes in a limited edition MEDICAL WASTE BAG. Also sealed in this medical waste bag is a DVD entitled "The Pathologist's Report Part 1" which, I'm assured, will "satisfy even the most gore-obsessed diehard CARCASS fanatic out there!" Given the Oscar buzz surrounding "the Pathologist's Report Part 2," this re-release couldn't be more timely.

Finally, in the "Evil AND Clever" department comes this 2005 release by Misantropical Painforest, "Winds Saturate with Inhumane Longing." After trying to imagine the evil backslapping and demonic high fiving that must have followed that play-on-words, we are treated to this surprisingly effective description: "Misantropical Painforest play chaotic, yet epic Finnish Black Metal violence borne of solitary journeys into ancient forests, recorded in the midst of the very atmosphere that this mind-bending music evokes. It incorporates influences from Doom, Death, Thrash, and traditional Heavy Metal into its Underground BM core, melding thematic minimalism with progressive, torturous and innovative arrangements. This is a stunningly original, grandiose and uncompromising vision of an ancient world undefiled by the sickness that grips modern Man!" Reading that, and checking the song titles ("Besmeared the Tunic of Honour," "Demons Haunt this Forest") I imagine these dudes worship Sauron, not Satan, adding a dash of nerdery to their "Finnish black metal violence"...

Everything In Its Right Place

2009-01-12T19:45:00.000-08:00

(good lookin' out Mo)

Ratatat Live

2009-01-10T06:20:00.000-08:00

(via fried my little brain)

No Comment

2009-01-09T12:42:00.000-08:00

Update: Mrs. Mantis has reminded me that Recon posted this like two years ago on M4H, which figures, since he's generally funnier AND timelier than me.

Stay Tuned...

2008-12-18T11:22:00.000-08:00

...For all three of you who continue to check this site periodically, thanks for sticking around. I've been a bit quiet here because I've been busy elsewhere: mainly in the real world, behind a laptop/turntables. I've made a new DJ connection ('sup Mo) and we've been forming like Voltron to rock dancefloors the world over, from Cambridge to Somerville and everywhere in between! ; )

We're going to make the partnership official at the dawn of 2009 by teaming up to throw down a series of mixtapes, and will probably also be creating a new online home for said mixtapes. Fear not, though, I'll still maintain this website (inasmuch as I've been "maintaining" it recently) and will strive to cross-post as much content as possible. This partnership should be yielding lots of musical content, as well as some opportunities to hear a Mantisound or two in person up and down the northeast corridor. So stay tuned...

...in the meantime, here's how I'll remember the worst president in history:

Merry Christmas from John Rambo!

2008-12-18T11:21:00.001-08:00

Hand Rave

2008-12-09T08:46:00.000-08:00

Bruce Lee Would Have PWNED the Wii!

2008-11-24T13:55:00.000-08:00

Viruses Suck, Serato is Awesome

2008-11-19T22:06:00.000-08:00

(pic via kaneda99)

Posting has been nonexistent in November. It started off well enough. New apartment, new president, good shit all around. Then, I decided to try to outsmart the virus I've been battling by reinstalling Windows on my desktop and it was like hitting 88 mph in Marty McFly's DeLorean, and going back to a time when computers sucked ass and didn't work at all. I just said fuck it, scrapped the PC and made the switch to my Mac full time from here on out. It's a brave new world. I even took the plunge and surrendered my musical life over to iTunes (I have periodically been semi-seriously paranoid that iPods were a grand conspiracy to get a nefarious trojan-laden iTunes application onto every computer in America. Big Brother has an iPod, and now he knows what's on mine).

(my Serato sessions with Mo)

I've also been trying to unlock the potential of the Serato Scratch Live application, as I've only recently learned how tragically I've been underutilizing it. So that's also been taking up a lot of free time. I haven't even had a chance to troll for killer black metal lately, but hope to do some catching up over the long holiday weekend (Happy Thanksforthesmallpoxblankets Day).

Spark Your Lighters Wave 'Em Around

2008-11-07T10:38:00.000-08:00

(photo via orkibal)

(This is the other mix that Blogger deleted on me, so I'll try it again and hope it will stick if I use a different picture)

This mix is equal parts jaw-clenching rave and sugary sweet pop. I often try to strike a balance, because I find that the ravers will dance to anything (trust me, I've been there), but to get their sober friends/girlfriends dancing, often times you've got to play something slightly recognizable, something they might even know the lyrics to. And the mixes that I myself cue up on the iPod over and over again work on both levels as well: you can sing along while you're giving someone a backrub and hauling on a Blowpop. This is one of those mixes. Pay special attention to the Sinatra tune. Big up my Big Apple crew!

mantisounds - spark your lighters wave 'em around
(FOR PROMOTIONAL USE ONLY)

1. Metronomy - Radio Ladio (Mac 3000 Remix)
2. Diplo ft. Rye Rye - Wassup Wassup (ddpesh remix)
3. Kanye West - Homecoming (Disco Tech Remix)
4. Lykke Li - Dance Dance Dance (Dada Life Guerilla Fart #4)
5. 2Pac - California Love (Big Nasty Remix)
6. South Rakkas Crew - South Rakkas Crew (Fake Blood Remix)
7. The Kills - Cheap and Cheerful (Fake Blood Remix)
8. Frank Sinatra - New York New York (Chew Fu Remix)
9. Fake Blood - Blood Splashing
10. Boy 8-Bit - The Suspense is Killing Me (Dada Life Guerilla Fart)
11. The Death Set - Negative Thinking (Treasure Fingers Remix)
12. Chromeo - Needy Girl (Dolby Anol's French Mistake)
13. Cansei de Ser Sexy - Let's Make Love (Streetlife DJs Rappinhood Remix)
14. NASA Ft. Method Man & E-40 & DJ Swamp - NASA Music (LA Riots Remix)
15. Meterhead - Escalator
16. The Count & Sinden ft. Rye Rye - Hardcore Girls (Don Rimini Remix)
17. Yelle - A Cause Des Garcons (TEPR Remix)
18. Lismore - Light Years (B. Rich Remix)
19. Tyken ft. ADL - Let it Rain (Trevor Lovey Remix)
20. MSTRKRFT ft. NORE - Bounce (A-Trak Remix)
21. Britney Spears - Gimme More (LAZRtag Remix)
22. Santogold - L.E.S. Artistes (ooh-ee Remix)
23. Treasure Fingers - Cross the Dancefloor (Chromeo Remix)

#44

2008-11-07T04:09:00.001-08:00

(picture via morning breath)

What an amazing night it was. My face hurt from smiling. I didn't get to spin, but couldn't care less. The party was great, EVERYONE was on the same page. I wish I had been with more of my friends, but I heard from them all night, and they were all on the same page too. The reality of what we face, what our new president faces, is daunting, but the SYMBOLISM of what we've done, as a country, is immeasurable, and I intend to savor that symbolism, that message of hope and idealism, until at least January 20, 2009, when the heavy lifting begins....

Go Vote!

2008-11-04T08:16:00.000-08:00

I voted this morning at 8am, and though the lines weren't as crazy as the reports we're getting from Lo and the rest of my New York intronauts, I was still surprised we had to wait. Even in deep blue Massachusetts they're predicting an additional million voters this year. All generated, I'm sure, by America's need to hear more of Joe the Plummer's really insightful analysis and Sarah Palin's mastery of domestic and international policy.

I took tomorrow off so I can properly (hopefully) celebrate this historic night. After watching early reviews with a few fellow liberals, Mrs. Mantis and I are planning on meeting up with Mosart at The Independent at Union Square in Somerville, spinning a little funk/soul for the revelers while we watch late returns roll in, hopefully by the time I get there we'll be raising a glass (or 12) to history.

U.T.O.P.I.A.

2008-11-01T05:18:00.000-07:00

(photo via FlyPi)

Let's try this again. This mix is like a bag full of Halloween candy: you've got your Pop Tarts to start, then a healthy dose of sawtooth sine waves, so those would be your sour patch kids, or maybe your fireballs/Red Hots. From there it wanders into Fun Dip/Pixie Sticks electro territory, straight into disco flavored bubblegum, and closing out with straight up chewy nougat breaks. Chubby basslines, synth syrup and pop sprinkles. Happy Halloween!

mantisounds - U.T.O.P.I.A.

1. Lykke Li - Little Bit (CSS Remix)
2. Yelle - Ce Jeu (the Twelves Remix)
3. CSS - Music is My Hot Hot Sex (Kill the Noise Remix)
4. TEPR - En Direct De La Cote (Alavi Rerox)
5. Yuksek - I like to Play
6. Dragonette - Competition (Whip Vocal Remix)
7. Late of the Pier - Focker (Boys Noize Terror Remix)
8. Hearthache ft. Cujo - What Does it Mean (Calling In Sick Remix)
9. Notorious BIG - Going Back to Cali (Tenderloins Remix)
10. Sidechains - Dr. Funk
11. Moog Skywalker & Zappenduster - Lazerboogie
12. Simian Mobile Disco - Hustler (Alias Big Boob Edit)
13. Common ft. Pharell - Universal Mind Control (Hydroz BBoy Bass Mix)
14. James Pants - Ka$h (A-Trak & XXXChange Remix)
15. Jackson & His Computer Band - utopia
16. Lykke Li - I'm Good, I'm Gone (Metronomy Remix)
17. The Golden Filter - Solid Gold
18. Mass Repeat - Wulfenite
19. Estelle - No Substitute (Treasure Fingers Remix)
20. Slyde ft. Kathy Heath - Frequency
21. Bassnectar ft. Jahi & MC Lush - Blue State Riddim
22. Atomic Hooligan - Weed
23. DrumAttic Twins - The Hunt For Twisted Desire
24. Led Zeppelin - The Immigrant Song (Streetlab Remix)

Strange Things are Afoot at the Circle K

2008-11-01T04:58:00.000-07:00

(photo by spoonford)

So that virus I got on my desktop computer is pretty gnarly, but I've learned that it's not gnarly enough to delete posts on Mantisounds. THAT would be the work of the folks enforcing the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), who apparently took issue with a post or two I put up in early October and sent blogger an order to remove at least one post. Unfortunately, the notification email is frustratingly nonspecific, stating simply that SOMETHING in the post violated the DMCA. Since they've left all my other mixes up, I think it must have been for using the photos I used, so I'm going to try again with different accompanying artwork. But the paranoid stoner in me can't help but wonder if now the killjoys from the DMCA are going to scrutinize my blog more regularly. I'm going to try to be as vigilant as possible when posting artwork or photos, and as always, if you see something that's yours, just drop me a line and I'll yank it. Just PLEASE don't narc me out to the DMCA...

(it just occurred to me that it might have something to do with the Zeppelin remix I finished the mix with. I bet those dudes can afford vigilant-ass copyright enforcers, even if it's part of a dj mix for PROMOTIONAL USE ONLY)

Mondays Are Pure Evil (Tuesday Edition)

2008-10-28T19:35:00.000-07:00

(artwork via monavx)

Last night I settled in to post some brutally hilarious black metal for you all, when I discovered that my computer has been infected with a malware trojan virus...That's hijacked my Google and redirects all my search results to bullshit shopping websites...And deleted two of my more recent posts here on the webinet...And blocks my ability to restore the system to restore points in the past, no matter how many times I hit 89.9 miles per hour...And makes my illegal mp3 downloading unbearably slow.

Thankfully I've got my trusty MacBook, so I won't miss a beat per minute. And once Mrs. Mantis and I upgrade to our new hive this weekend, and I'm settled in, I'm going to hunt down that virus and choke it to death with my bare hands...

...which reminds me, have you heard the new Satanic Corpse? Inspirational. Feel-Good LP of the Year. Play it for your Nanna. Grandparents will especially enjoy "Agony and Death Necrotizing the Bone," and I'd recommend "Comfort in the Darkness (Retreat from the Writhing Pain)" for weddings and bar mitzvahs. Blackmetal.com describes this surefire crowd-pleaser as "A brutally grim mix of raw obscure darkness and Blackened ritual incantations featuring neo-classical keyboards, grinding Thrash guitars, blasting rhythm-machine, and an unholy variety of vocal ranges including orthodox Black Metal screech, Deathish growls, solemn intonations, epic chorale, or strange gothic opera, and funereal lamentations. The songs are mesmerizing in their overall chaotic unpredictability, and utterly cult Satanic atmosphere. Recommended only for truly adventurous diehards craving deeply Satanic music. Devilishly delirious and deliciously Demonic!"

I have also been meditating to the dulcid sounds of Kratornas, the Jonas Brothers of black metal, on the Infection/Fudgeworthy label (love their holiday promo cd, btw). The new 7" is called "Hallow Ground Destruction," and it is so bad ass that it even butchers the English language on its campaign of literary carnage. The special edition picture vinyl, seen left, makes a striking stocking stuffer or Hanukka gift. Blackmetal.com describes Kratornas thusly: "High-density grinding Thrashing Black Metal darkness and deathish brutality from the Philippines; in the chaotic and cruel, noisy vein of GOATPENIS, LUST (Canada), ENBILULUGUGAL, and BOTULISTUM." Shit. I love ANYTHING in the vein of Goatpenis!

(cross-posted at Monkeys for Helping, funniest site on the cybertubes)

Crate Digging, Don't Do It!

2008-10-25T06:24:00.000-07:00

Check out this series by Stefan Glerum about the perils of crate digging.

Stefan Glerum: Crate Digging, Don't Do It!

(via Curb Crawlers)

Awesome Takes Practice

2008-10-23T19:34:00.000-07:00

Mondays Are Pure Evil

2008-10-20T12:46:00.000-07:00

(photo via trippingthelifefanatic)

Many moons ago, I became slightly obsessed with the Black Metal scene in Scandanavia, Northern Europe, and anywhere else white people can get together, do speed, wear corny stage makeup, and make terrible music. While I've got nothing specific against Christianity OR Norway, and though I absolutely can't STAND the music itself (makes Slayer sound like the Wiggles), the press releases and promotional copy these bands/labels churn out is pure comedy gold, as exemplified by the earnest (and unintentionally hilarious) copy posted on http://www.blackmetal.com/. After all, when pure evil is your BASELINE, it's awfully hard to diferentiate your product in a decidedly saturated market, so monikers must be over the top, song titles should disturb and offend, and cover art ideally triggers your gag reflex. Hopefully this will be the first installment of my weekly feature examining some of my favorite unintentionally hilarious black metal releases:

The new THUS DEFILED disk, "Daemonspawn," which is reviewed thusly: "Sakis of ROTTING CHRIST provides guest-vocals on track 2!" That Rotting Christ cameo will ensure thousands of extra spins on the radio, and maybe a diamond encrusted platinum inverted Jesus piece in the Hype Williams-directed video...

Hot off the presses it's the new LUFTWAFFE RAID joint, described as: "Satanic NSBM-oriented thrashing darkness and chaotic atmosphere featuring MOAT mastermind Warharan, with GODLESS / ex-LETHAL PRAYER drummer...According to Warharan, Luftwaffe Raid is not a band with NS ideology." (so they're NSBM oriented, but do not have a NS ideology. mmmmkay....)

In case that crap is too "unicorns and rainbows" for you, may I offer you the newest charmer from EVISCERATED, entitled "Gorging On Rotted Entrails": "Blood, gore, death, rape obsessed brutal Death Metal from San Antonio, Texas." Some song titles included on this fine release include "Suicide by Self Disembowelment," "Severed Foot F*ck Fetish," "Fetal Consumption," "Toilet Bowl Bowels," and my personal favorite "Penetrating of the Rotting Orifice" (I'm assuming this would be the radio-friendly ballad).

Finally, I give you HELLGOAT/LEGIONS OF ASTAROTH, a breezy release off of the Deathgasm/Vile Art record label (these guys will be DOMINATING the ringtone market in no time, mark my words!). Here's how this Seacrest-approved hit factory is described on their new split release "Moonlight Ritual/The Moon Beeds Red Upon the Earth": "Hate-filled. Misanthropic. Occult. Evil. All adjectives probably well-overused to describe Black Metal… but damned if I could come up with anything better to describe this offering from [both of] these USBM terrorist cells." It's really too bad I've already gotten married, because I would have a hard time deciding which song to use for the traditional first dance: "Turning the Skies Black with Nauseating Rage" or "Absence of Self in Vile Chaos"? You can see my dilema...

(Thanks to blackmetal.com for the hours of fun, head over to check out some of the streaming samples they offer, and maybe in exchange for your web traffic they won't put a hex on me, murder me, boil my brains in a stew and make a necklace out of my vertebrae, like Ohlin and Aarseth).

UPDATE: Lodi points out that a blog post on pure evil isn't complete without at least one Dick Cheney reference/image. To give him more of a black metal flavor, I've found an image that combines uncut nerdery with pure evil to give you Dick Cheney as a Skeksi:

(via blogumentary)

The Olden Days

2008-10-19T13:27:00.000-07:00

A Word About Pictures, Paintings, and Yanni's Gorgeous Tits

2008-10-08T18:33:00.000-07:00

(art by cova)

As the three of you who normally read my blog can confirm, I usually try to give credit where credit is due. If I know who took a picture, or painted a painting, or drew a drawing, or said a quote, or websited a cool website, I try to link directly to them. But I've gotta level with you, I waste a LOT of time stumbling around the more random guest room closets, utility sheds, and dusty attics of the internet, and I find a LOT of cool shit with file names like "sja030293gjoksgo39.jpg" and no identifiable signatures or markings. So if you see something up here that's yours, that isn't labeled as such, please drop me a line. I spend my time picking the internet's loose change out of its cybersofa, and if it's yours, I'd be happy to give it back (or just link to your site). Anyway, let me know.

Really this is just an excuse to post a few more photos and paintings and pictures of Yanni with tits.

Post Bills

2008-10-08T18:04:00.000-07:00

Words to Live By

2008-09-27T13:15:00.000-07:00

McSame

2008-09-27T13:09:00.000-07:00

Night Swimming

2008-09-26T07:48:00.000-07:00

(via saltyshadow)

Another new mix because the public demands it. Stay up past your bedtime and shake your ass, kids, even if it's a school night.

Mantisounds - Night Swimming

1. ACDC - Thunderstruck (tittsworth remix)

2. Daft Punk - crescendolls (dj nate day remix)

3. R.E.M. - Nightswimming (Kissy Sellout Remix)

4. the Ting Tings - shut up and let me go (LAZRtag remix)

5. Dragonette - Jesus Doesn't Love Me (Lismore Remix)

6. Sneaky Sound System - UFO (RCTBR Remix)

7. City Reverb - City of Lights (Trevor Loveys Vocal Mix)

8. Evil Nine - They Live (Trevor Loveys Remix)

9. Machines Don't Care - Spycatcher (edit)

10. Faithless - Insomnia (Dirty Disco Youth Remix)

11. Herve - Cheap Thrills (Detboi REmix)

12. New Young Pony Club - the Bomb (Villains Remix)

13. Daft Punk - Harder Better Faster Stronger (Coin Operated remix)

14. Cazals - Somebody Somehwere (Moulinex REmix)

15. Hail Social - Cherry Cola FUnk (Sta remix)

16. the Faint - The Geeks Were Right (Disco Villains Remix)

17. Rico Tubbs - I Like It Raw

18. the Count and Sinden ft. Rye Rye - Hardcore Girls

19. Lil Wayne - Lolipop (LAZRtag remix)

20. A Girl and A Gun - Whomp that Sucka (A1Bassline Remix)

21. Fatale - Marcus' Secret (Grand Marnier Remix)

22. Chew Fu & J-Cast - It's Just Begun (Solly Remix)

Mercury In Retrograde

2008-09-13T08:12:00.001-07:00

New mix time, kiddies. I was quite the avid raver in my younger days (when, you know, they actually threw raves), and the best ones always offered a variety of rooms with different sounds, genres, and vibes. You'd often have the main room, then a second room with drum'n'bass or maybe breaks/electro, and then a lounge where you might hear some downtempo/trip hop/hip hop. It was a good setup, especially if you didn't want to hear 120 decibels of hard techno or gabba or happy hardcore in the main room (and, depending on when you popped your pill, maybe you needed a slightly less angry spot to e-puddle for a while). I remember a few times when, in my, uh, "heightened" state, I SWORE the beats were matching from one room to the other, like some rainbow colored rip in the space-time-P.L.U.R. continuum. It was probably dumb luck, or alien molecules making me THINK that's what I heard, but it was a vision of the "seamless" party, where every dj at every booth was synched to the same timecode, the same BPM, so walking from room to room was like a mix that the LISTENER controlled (like I said, alien molecules...).

Anyway, this mix is like that: techno, breaks, electro, hip hop, bmore club, disco, house, speed garage, all taking turns uprocking in the circle. Enjoy (preferably with alien molecules).

Mantisounds - Mercury in Retrograde

1. Sebastien Tellier - L'Amour Et La Violence (Boys Noize Remix)
2. The Ting Tings - That's Not My Name (Kasper Bjorke Remix)
3. The Presets - This Boys In Love (Zombie Nation Remix)
4. Siriusmo - Mein Menu Fahrrad (Boys Noize Edit)
5. Boy 8Bit - The Cricket Scores
6. Topspin ft. Tanira - Gere (Muttonheads Remix)
7. Machines Don't Care - On a Roll Man (Malente Re-Edit)
8. Bloc Party - Mercury (Herve Is in Disarray Remix)
9. Busta RHymes - Get Down (Meterhead's Westside Mix)
10. Das Pop - Underground (Busy P Remix)
11. Unkle - Resless (Fake Blood Remix)
12. Busta Rhymes - Don't Touch Me (Bird Peterson Remix)
13. Ugod - Ugodzilla (Yuksek Remix)
14. Tenderloins - In Addition
15. Kissy Sellout - You're On Fire
16. Kriss Kross - Jump (Funkanomics Planet Cross Remix)
17. Estelle - American Boy (Nelsen Grover Remix)
18. Mark Ronson - Stop Me (Kissy Sellout's True Romance Mix)
19. Kaiser Chiefs - Love Is Not a Competition But I'm Winning (Nelsen Grover Remix)
20. Meterhead - Space Rakim
21. Scenario Rock - Both Gotta Move On (SebastiAn Remix)
22. Santogold - Lights Out (David Rubato Remix)

Darth Grater

2008-09-09T21:27:00.000-07:00

Michael Sera Is Stalking You

2008-09-09T21:15:00.000-07:00

You Traitorous Swine

2008-09-09T20:02:00.000-07:00

I've been slacking on the posts lately, mostly because I've been trying to put together a few mixes at the same time (and to optimize funk contained in said mixes), so attention has been focused elsewhere. I've also been trolling the internets for stupid shit that might make all three of my readers crack a smile (weed helps, trust me). First off, I'd like everyone to eat some mushrooms...

...and ride the vine...

...into the clouds, where I'ma get mine.

P.S. I would empty my whole clip on you if I could, you fucking self-satisfied piece of shit.

Do It Sexy

2008-08-28T06:32:00.000-07:00

(via Sexy People)

This site is just too good not to share. As a child of the 80s (meaning I was a child IN the 80s, not BORN in the 80s, kids), it is strange for me to witness the appropriation by hipsters and indie kids of some of the most horrible "fashion" choices made during that time (I am still waiting for Skidz overall short sets with one strap down to come back...Chess King what what!?!). This website offers up the horror of the late 70s and 80s and early 90s in all its unironic glory. It's like a time capsule of all the stuff you would rather have left out of your time capsule...

Are You Ready to Rock?

2008-08-27T20:22:00.000-07:00

Here's an older mix of mine, one I put together with Mrs. Mantis in mind (she's into The Warriors and rock n' roll). Really I just wanted an excuse to post that random photo of the Pope channeling Bruce Dickinson (recognize).

mantisounds - running to coney island

1. the Warriors Soundtrack - Baseball Furies
2. the Kaiser Chiefs - I Predict a Riot
3. the Strokes - Reptilia
4. We Are Scientists - Inaction
5. Clap Your Hands & Say Yeah - Heavy Metal
6. Matt Pond PA - Several Arrows Later
7. Bloc Party - Banquet
8. Prodigy ft. Juliet Lewis - Hot Ride
9. Basement Jaxx - Kish Kash ft. Siouxsie Sioux
10. the Go! Team - Power is On
11. the Killers - Somebody Told Me
12. Clap Your Hands & Say Yeah - Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth
13. The Exit - Don't Push
14. Green Day - Blvd. of Broken Dreams
15. Clearlake - Good Clean Fun
16. Freeform 5 - No More Conversations
17. Basement Jaxx - U Don't Know Me (Jaxxhouse clubz Mix)
18. the Faint - I Disappear (FC Kahuna Mix)
19. the KBC - Poisonous Emblem
20. Muse - Newborn

(art via antz81)

Amen!

2008-08-27T20:19:00.000-07:00

Music Is Music to Me

2008-08-24T13:03:00.001-07:00

Greetings intronauts, I've returned from my 10 days in the Maine wilderness, 10 days of kayaks and lobsters and swimming holes and largemouth bass and s'mores and diners and one-hitters. Mrs. Mantis and I headed north to Acadia National Park for a few days in the tasty haze with T-bizzle and Brie Street, and then it was off to the land of Poland Springs for a week on a lake with the extended Mantis family. My break included lots of sunrises over Frenchman's Bay or Thompson Lake, lots of cups of coffee and full-moon spliffs, and plenty of quiet introspection. I put together a soundtrack for such mist-soaked mornings or moonlit nights on the dock, which might as well be called "I Heart ILS" for all the top notch productions I've included from one Illian Walker. This is one for the breakbeat purists, please enjoy...

mantisounds - music is music to me

1. stanton warriors ft. jhelisa - seeker
2. deejay punk-roc - the world is my ashtray (ILS remix)
3. ed solo & skool of thought - music is music
4. ILS - west coast
5. the black ghosts - it's your touch (ashley beedle's heavy disco edit)
6. M.I. Loki - Get Raw (ILS remix)
7. ILS - Kashmir
8. Plass - We Are Going to Argentina
9. Care in the Community - Flip 13-02-13
10. Dirty D - Electropeeps get Nasty
11. Dan F and Jariten - Halo
12. Cereal Killaz - No Mercy
13. ILS - Razorblade (Stranger Remix)
14. Hexadecimal - Cold Rock
15. ILS - Saxtrax (ILS Club Mix)
16. Ursula 1000 - Step Back (Deekline & Ed Solo Remix)
17. Freddy Fresh - Chupacabbra (Bassbin Twins Remix)
18. Drumattic Twins - Big Buddha
19. Wiley - Wearing My Rolex (JoolsMF Remix)
20. Moloko - Cannot Contain This (FFS Deeptech Dub Mix)

(artwork via Dozign)

Why I Love Ernest Borgnine

2008-08-14T11:17:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Losers

2008-08-11T17:43:00.000-07:00

Continuing through my misty-eyed soft-focus 90s nostalgia, my boy Lo forwarded me the trailer to "Beautiful Losers," a movie about the early 90s art scene that gave us Harmony Korine, Shepard Fairey, and Ed Templeton, among others.

Ed Templeton was introduced in New Deal's 1990 vid "Useless Wooden Toys," one of the greatest skate vids ever. He was a fearless skater (him and Vallely were going SO big when lots of skaters were putzing around in parking lots trying to perfect super technical freestyle tricks...like me), as well as a visual artist, a photographer, and an animal rights activist (if anyone can find the gross vegan shoe ads he dropped with the skinned cow heads, drop me a line). Here's his part from Welcome to Hell (1996), just check how fast he is going in every segment:

And the dude still skates, still snaps flix, and still paints. I'm glad to see him getting some shine. Go see "Beautiful Losers" if only to support vagrants like Ed.

Banksy Unmasked?

2008-08-10T18:51:00.001-07:00

Via Analog Giant, word that a few weeks ago Time magazine uncovered the identity of Banksy. I always thought the anonymity aspect of his schtick was more of an interesting aside, and not the most critical piece of the presentation/message, so unless Banksy is Posh Spice or Prince William or some shit, I don't really care if he's "outed" or not. Really it's just an excuse to post some dope Banksy shit...

Pogo - Alice

2008-08-10T16:50:00.000-07:00

I don't really know much about Pogo aside from what I learned doing some cursory, lazy internet research on him (19 year old Aussie, Nick Bertke), but I DO know that the video for "Alice" is a mash-up of scenes from the movie that becomes slightly mesmerising the longer you let the song bubble and simmer. This video is a pulsing, hypnotic cut-up disco track just waiting for the lawyers from Disney to shut it down. Enjoy it while it lasts...

They tryin to catch me ridin dirty

2008-08-10T16:41:00.000-07:00

(photo source unknown)

I Don't Even Have a Lawn...

2008-08-10T16:32:00.000-07:00

(t-shirt via Stolli Clothing)

Exchange Rates

2008-08-10T16:28:00.000-07:00

(photo source unknown)

Plan B and Laika

2008-07-31T19:44:00.000-07:00

I used to skate when I was younger, and in high school I was fully into Plan B Skateboards. In particular, the team video "Virtual Reality," released in 1993, was an absolute gamechanger. I think it was pivotal in shifting skating's focus from ramps to street. The fashion was miles ahead (trust me, kids, it might not look it now, but...), the attitude put the "street" in street skating, and the music was all over the place (until then skate vids mostly featured punk or metal on pretty much every skater's part). The whole movie is sick, but I thought Rick Howard and Mike Carroll stood out, and Mike chose a bangin' ass Del joint to skate ("Lose in the End"), which was in heavy rotation in the crew I skated with (Souls of Mischief, De La, Tribe, and Wu as well). Here is both of their parts from that classic film:

Thanks for indulging me down memory lane...Anyway, these two dudes started their own shoe company, Laika, and since it's the 21st century, and cash rules everything around me, they have put out a team video. And they have upped the ante. A lot squared x infinity. These two have blown my mind again, brah! This might be the next skate vid I actually purchase rather than download!

2008-07-31T19:36:00.000-07:00

Don'tcha?

The Twelves

2008-07-31T19:24:00.000-07:00

The Twelves are the best thing to come out of Rio since brazillian wax and Carnivale. Seriously. Particularly their remixes. I have not heard a Twelves remix I haven't liked, and have gotten some serious mileage out of these guys on several of my past mixes (nothing mixes better with a Twelves remix like...ANOTHER Twelves remix!). They have really outdone themselves, though, with their most recent remix of "Ce Jeu" by Yelle (who is the best thing to come out of France since french kissing and french ticklers).

Jimmy Adja - Popular Famous Artist

2008-07-31T19:07:00.000-07:00

Maybe I'm the last person on the planet to learn this, but "Jimmy" by M.I.A. is essentially a remake of an old Bollywood disco song "Jimmy Jimmy Jimmy Adja" from the film Disco Dancer.

According to Wikipedia, "Anil, a street performer and wedding singer, is scarred by the memory of the rich P.N. Oberoi beating his mother in an incident during his childhood. When David Brown, the manager of current Indian disco champion Sam is fed up and looks for some new talent, he happens across Anil who is dance-walking down a street. Rebranded as "Jimmy", the rising disco star must take the throne from Sam and win the heart of Rita (Kim), P.N. Oberoi's daughter."

Seriously, this is my new favorite movie, and I've never seen it. Peep these quotes:

"He's got guitar phobia. A guitar killed his mother." - P.N. Oberoi
"These are the tears of a popular famous artist." - Jimmy
"Mother, I have my music. I will sharpen this music like a sword and stab the city's heart with it." - Jimmy

And here's the M.I.A. remake.

(h/t january second)

Bassbin Twins - Woppa

2008-07-29T21:30:00.001-07:00

Those of you who know me know how badly I sweat the Bassbin Twins, and I won't get into it here, but I stumbled across this track of his recently and, while not exactly new, it is one of those tracks that must be heard to be believed. Aliens DID land at Roswell, and they tracked Pete Bassbin down and they GAVE him the perfect beat. With this extra-terrestrial technology the motherfucker continues to create music that sounds like aliens breakdancing. Like I said, you gotta hear it to believe it...

(h/t to Monster Says Rawr! Tunes go BOOM!)

Bird Seed

2008-07-29T21:16:00.000-07:00

(painting by imscared)

"I planted some bird seed. A bird came up, now I don't know what to feed it." - Steven Wright

The Fonda Workout

2008-07-29T21:02:00.000-07:00

(Timothy Leary, photographer unknown)

"I've been doing the Fonda workout - the Peter Fonda workout. That's where I wake up, take a hit of acid, smoke a joint, and run to my sister's house and ask her for money." - Kevin Meany

Say Hello to My Little President!

2008-07-29T20:51:00.000-07:00

It's almost over. He's just got a few more months, then "say hallo to my little fren'!" and it's roll fucking credits. About time...

W is the XFL of American Presidents. Discuss.

Thank You Both

2008-07-28T22:05:00.000-07:00

(artist unknown)

Just sayin'..............................

Rock the Bells 2008

2008-07-28T20:16:00.000-07:00

So for those of you who don't know, me and my boy Kenny Muthajunksta met up with Drums and Scace (+ Mrs. Drums and Ms. Yvette) at the Rock the Bells tour this past weekend in Mansfield (I still call that shit Great Woods 'cause I'm OLD SCHOOL like that, fuck a Comcast Center, or whatever it's called now). Anyway, as you can see from above, the lineup was golden-era sickness on the main stage, with the youngsters holding it down on the second stage.

We rolled up at about 4pm, so I missed most of the second stage acts I wanted to see (the Cool Kids, Kid Sister, Wale) AND we missed Rakim, Immortal Technique, and Dead Prez on the main stage. Truth be told I'm getting old, and 12 hours in the sun standing on a goddamn 30% incline would have seriously killed my staying power. Sacrifices had to be made....But enough about who I missed, the acts I saw were worth the price of admission.

De La Soul: only caught the end of their set, since we were actually entering, getting our bearings, and locating the Mr. Cesspool port-a-potties (that was the actual name. who are the add wizards...?). What I saw was solid (on stage I mean, not in the port-a-potties).

Afrika Bambaataa: on the Chevrolet (second) Stage. If someone had told my rave-crazy ass 12 years ago that someday I'd watch Afrika Bambaataa perform under a giant Chevy logo I would have asked them to buy whatever drugs they were on. Sometimes I still get floored by how marketable and successful club/hip hop/underground culture has become. We've come a long way from illegal raves at the Boston Public Works garages...but I digress. Bambaataa was solid, played mostly remixes of old school jams (kurtis blow, james brown). I left after about 20 minutes to hit the main stage for:

Redman and Method Man: now I was pretty far away from the stage (and the video screens), and it was hot out, and I wasn't what the kids informally refer to as "sober" at that point, but I don't think Meth was there. If he was, he's 50 pounds heavier now and doesn't like to sing songs with his lyrics in them. Almost the entire set was parts of Red & Meth songs that I'm pretty sure didn't include many Meth verses. And joints from Red Gone Wild. Or Doc's Da Name. So given that it appeared to be essentially a Redman show, it was hot. Redman is not only one of the most consistently tight MCs ever, he also puts on a great live show. Thumbs way up for Redman, sorta pissed Meth wasn't there (I think)...

the Pharcyde: they did almost all of the joints I wanted to hear (no Soulflower, though), and they played with a live band, which was tight, but it was a little too groovy after the ruckus that Redman brought. Tough act to follow, though they did their thing. Also, I had been checking Devlin and Darko, which I was feeling (Bmore & some electro/disco shit), so going from that to live Pharcyde was a momentum shift, to say the least.

Mos Def: the most underwhelming act of the day, for me. He pretty much did all of the groovy/interludie/silky songs from his catalog, and was kind of mumbly and uninterested at times, it seemed. Also, I think it should be illegal NOT to perform the Ghostface remix of "Ms. Fat Booty" if Tony Starks is in the same city, let alone on the same lineup. Totally missed opportunity, and sort of obvious at that. We all decided that either A) Redman dosed his drink, B) his hype man had just died and he was glum, or C) with such a sick lineup prior to Tribe, everyone drew straws on who would phone it in, to make sure Tribe was better than SOMEONE, and Mos Def drew the short straw. I'll tell you who absolutely did NOT draw the short straw:

Nas: holy shit. Nas absolutely destroyed it. There was a mini-stampede as he started and everyone went running for their spots, which was scary, 'cause we were sort of in the middle of it, and when hundreds of staggering, sweating, drunken caucasians come running towards you, I don't care who you are, you kind of freak out. But Nas quickly justified the South Shore stampede. He did like half of Illmatic (wise move, given it's the best hip hop album ever). He did all the good joints off It Was Written, he did "Hip Hop is Dead" and "Made You Look," which pretty much blew my brain out the back of my head. The new songs he did were good too (the O'Reilly/Fox dis joint was cool). But the show pretty much peaked when he did "One Mic" just after it got fully dark out, and the lighters came out, the whole place was flickering, and when the chorus first dropped, and the beat kicked in, Nas just blew, and the crowd lost it (I did anyway). Seriously, if you get a chance to go see Nas live, do it.

A Tribe Called Quest: I was a little nervous, I'll be honest. 1993 for me was Tribe's year (also Timothy Leary's year, but that's another post altogether), and Midnight Marauders is up there on my all-time list, so I was bracing myself for the letdown. Q Tip came out with Mos Def (who drank a Red Bull or 6 after his set and was much better) and they both delivered on Q Tip solo joints like "Vivrant Thing" and "Breathe and Stop." But after three or four songs, all of us started to fear that Tribe might be a no-show, and Tip and Mos were filling in or something. But when the lights went down and the narrator from Marauders started with "A. Tribe. Called. Quest. Consists. Of. Four. Members...," we knew it was on. And sure enough, Phife, Ali Shaheed Mohammed, and Jarobi (!) stepped out and fucking killed it. They did all the shit I wanted to hear: the good songs off of Low End Theory (Bonita Applebum, The Jazz, Buggin Out, Scenario), a bunch of songs from Marauders (Award Tour, Oh My God, Electric Relaxation), and not too many from The Love Movement, which I wasn't that big a fan of as far as Tribe albums go. All in all, exactly what I wanted and more than I expected. So good.

Anyway, I'm definitely going to Rock the Bells 2009, if they put one on (or bother with Boston again). Guerilla Union puts on a tight show. See this tour!

You're Doing It Wrong

2008-07-23T19:04:00.000-07:00

Darth Hipster?

2008-07-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

(photo source unknown)

The Unavader? The Vaderbomber?

The Mantis Returns - THE Summer Mix Post

2008-07-20T05:39:00.000-07:00

(photgrapher unknown)

Well fellow intronauts, the rest has done me good, the St. Maarten sun and the sound of the surf brought the beats in my brain to a slow simmer while I was sitting by the pool enjoying the daily two-for-one happy hour, and I have been a busy bug since my return. I've got four, count 'em FOUR new mixes for you all, four sets to keep your summer sweaty and steamy, whether you're strolling downtown with the earbuds chirping, cruising the strip at the beach in your convertible, or uprocking into a thumping bassbin in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Enjoy...

(image via terratag)

Straight nu skool fucking fire on this mix, this is main room, peak-time shit right here. Every time I hear that Metallica remix drop, I pee a little...

mantisounds - obey your master

1. justice - phantom (hydroz remix)
2. ed solo & skool of thought - believe in the funk
3. krafty kutz - bass phenomonon (curtis b remix)
4. sam hell - stay out all night (groove diggerz remix)
5. lady waks & hardyhard - listen
6. paradox 3000 vs. madonna - break the music
7. atomic hooligan - dreaming (BLIM remix)
8. drumattic twins - one thousand speakers
9. ed solo & skool of thought - tug nut
10. dj offishall ft. akon - dangerous (dj barletta remix)
11. batik - love again (b. rich's big room remix)
12. dylan rhymes - muzika (the rogue element remix)
13. metallica - master of puppets (aUtOdiDakt remix)
14. the rogue element - rogue rock
15. lazaro casanova - klover
16. dj rush - motherfucking bass (popof remix)
17. the rogue element - you know that sound
18. drumattic twins - stiletto
19. boy 8bit - fogbank
20. LA Riot ft. jadis - if I could

(image via MaliceMind)

This one I put together with Mrs. Mantis in mind, who likes her bass big and her acid lines aggressive, but also likes to sing along now and again, so this is a collection of the filthiest dirty pop remixes I could find...

mantisounds - bust a move

1. enur ft. natasha - calabria 2007 (hatchmatik clubabria remix)
2. boy 8bit - ghost house
3. young mc - bust a move (diplo remix)
4. chromeo - tenderoni (proxy distort remix)
5. pink skull - gonzos countreau
6. sparks - good morning (JBAG remix)
7. daft punk - around the world (paul anthony & ZXX Bootleg)
8. estelle ft. kanye west - american boy (kill the noise remix)
9. janet jackson - go deep (dubbel dutch bmore disco edit)
10. fergie - fergalicious (j-kube remix)
11. missy elliot - we run this (duke dumont remix)
12. paradox 3000 vs. alient ant farm - OK annie
13. rennie pilgrem aka mr. potatohead - sexy trak
14. jay z - dirt off your shoulder (elroy vaanderley dirrty edit)
15. kris kross - jump (dave dirt remix)
16. a-track - say whoa
17. kylie minogue - boombox (revolte remix)
18. scissor sisters - i don't feel like dancin (teenage bad girl remix)
19. shena - electrosexual (aston shuffle remix)
20. nelly furtado - maneater (crookers edit)

(photo via last night's party)

This mix starts off in Brazil (the Twelves), passes through Chicago (Kid Sister) and Baltimore (Rico Tubbs and Dr. Werewolf), makes a layover in the dirty dirty (Weezy), and then takes off at warp 9 to the outer reaches of the breakbeat universe. See if you can keep up....

mantisounds - fingernails matching

1. asobi seksu - thursday (the twelves remix)
2. kid sister - pro nails (TEPR remix)
3. the ting tings - that's not my name (doctor werewolf bmore mix)
4. rico tubbs - bmore dominator
5. lil wayne - lollipop (dj barletta remix)
6. hostage - mash up the speaker
7. south rakkas crew - mad again (boy 8bit remix)
8. slyde ft. liz melody - get this good
9. LBJ - Hamma
10. malente - open secret (groove allegiance remix)
11. slyde ft. lady posh - vibrate to this
12. the rogue element - dead drummers (curtis B remix)
13. freddy fresh - rugged ways (malente remix)
14. meat katie & d ramirez - stop the revolution pt. 1 (30hz remix)
15. tom real vs. rogue element - he's so hot right now
16. strider - tiger uppercut (superstyle deluxe mix)
17. groove diggerz - check this love
18. drumattic twins - big buddha
19. pod browser - the anti
20. grand def audio - start of my life
21. boogie army - start the engine

(image via photoshop_addict28)

For the nu skool purists, this mix is fiya 'pon dem rudebwoys. By now you can tell that I've been SWEATING Rogue Element, Ed Solo & Skool of Thought, and anything Slyde's name is on right now. After a week in the Carribean, I got back with a hankering for some dubbed out reggae breaks, and this mix delivers. Pass the Rizzlas...

mantisounds - leaving babylon

1. ed solo & skool of thought - when I was a yout
2. ed solo & skool of thought - babylon breaks
3. slyde - kiss kiss bang bang (ft. lady posh)
4. drumattic twins - mind the gap
5. the rougue element - my style
6. soul of man - sukdat (the rougue element remix)
7. plump djs - mad cow
8. bloc party - the prayer (ill self stanton warriors remix)
9. deekline & wizard - all your love
10. son of the electric ghost - concept of nature (lawgivers remix)
11. jhz - haus
12. lawgivers - up
13. ed solo & skool of thought - love your life
14. backdraft - off the wall
15. the rogue element - let me breathe
16. spike - toxic culture
17. c893 ft. tamra - twisted logic (kraymon remix)
18. bonobo - terrapin (mr. scruff remix)
19. jose gonzales - crosses (stanton warriors remix)

Welcome Back, Sez Mr. No Hands

2008-07-13T08:45:00.000-07:00

Hey all. Me and Mrs. Mantis have just returned from a weeklong recharge in St. Maarten (highly recommended), and thought I'd ease back into los sonidos de drogas by posting this bass-baking track by Mr. No Hands (via Noise Porn, that site is slaying it). Not only is the song a grumbling slow burner of a track, but the video is trippy. And trippy = good. Welcome back, beatrice.

Happy Birthday Recon

2008-07-01T06:22:00.000-07:00

(via stillfootball)

Just wanted to wish everyone's favorite beatmaking oddball curator of all that is WTF on the internets a happy birthday: happy birthday Recon!

Head on over to Monkeys for Helping and say word.

(via blogclops)

MantiSounds - F**ckin Thing SUCKS!

2008-06-29T21:42:00.000-07:00

(stencil via Senriman)

I consider this mix my homage, my beat-chopped benediction for the Silverback of douchebags, the Lord of Dick Manor, the Sheriff of Doucheingham: Bill O'Reilly. The Santogold track is pure fucking fire, it's the song of the summer (it is here at Spacestation Mantis, anyway). And Siriusmo, Revolte, and Broke.One are all doing their part to destroy my hearing and keep me up at night past my bedtime. Trust me, invite them all into your head, even that finger-sniffer Bill O'Reilly...

mantisounds - fuckin thing sucks!

1. ciara ft. M.I.A. - Goodies (Richard X Remix)
2. santogold - say aha (Tepr Remix)
3. wu tang clan - stomp (the bloody beetroots remix)
4. chemical brothers ft. spank rock - keep my composure
5. bill o'reilly - do it live!!!! (disco tech mix version 2)
6. ratatat - wildcat (e-vax remix)
7. siriusmo - all the girls (yusek remix)
8. shwayze - buzzin (villains remix)
9. daft punk - voyager (revolte remix)
10. simian mobile disco - it's the beat (siriusmo remix)
11. revolte - guess what
12. broke.one - tempo
13. revolte - blackout
14. broke.one - evrbd!
15. dizzee rascal ft. calvin harris - dance wiv me
16. siriusmo - diskoding
17. shook - 1986
18. codebreaker - we don't need no (miami horror remix)
19. munk ft. chloe - ce kul (passarani remix)
20. teki latex - disco dance with you (spank rock remix ft. amanda blank)
21. snoop ft. robyn - sexual eruption (fyre department remix)

If I Saw Flickr on the Street in Flames, I Wouldn't Piss on it To Put Out the Fire

2008-06-22T17:55:00.000-07:00

So you might have noticed that instead of all the fully credited cool artwork that used to be on my blog, there's nothing but white squares in their place. I've been erased from Flickr, probably for some bullshit terms of use reason (though I've got to guess, since no one bothered to warn me beforehand).

Apparently Flickr's on a mission: to be the biggest douchebags on the internet (way to go, fellas, NAMBLA thought they'd take the trophy for the foreseeable future!). I'm not going to draft up the sort of creative treatise that Recon dropped over on Monkeys for Helping when Flickr ruined his week, first because he's funnier than I am, and secondly because the shit-gargling baby-petting piss-drinking killjoys at Flickr don't deserve any more column inches feeding their pathetic power-tripping tiny-dick-compensating killjoy egos. I would hope that if someone had a problem with me posting a picture or a song, they'd have the decency to shoot me an email and ask me to take it down. If it was you, you're a pathetic tattletail. And hey Flickr: FUCK YOU!!!

mantisounds - pounds of 'dro

2008-06-19T21:46:00.000-07:00

(via minchi)

It's new mix time, kids. Turn-turn the bass up.

mantisounds - pounds of 'dro

1. new young pony club - get lucky (the twelves remix)
2. Theatre of Disco - YOA (the Twelves remix)
3. Estelle - American Boy (Nadastrom Remix)
4. Mika - Lollipop (Yusek Remix)
5. P. Diddy - Bad Boy for Life (La Mode Bad Motherfucker Remix)
6. Rye Rye - Wassup (Crookers Remix)
7. C-mon & Kypski - Shitty Bum (C-Code & Mike Mago Remix)
8. Water Lily & St. Plomb - Shake a Leg (Jokers of the Scene Remix)
9. Beastie Boys - Intergalactic (Yellus Remix)
10. Fake Blood - Mars
11. Adele - Cold Shoulder (Basement Jaxx Classix Remix)
12. Daft Punk - Around the World (Villains' More Cowbell Remix)
13. Michael Jackson - P.Y.T. (Marquis Dmerit Remix)
14. Scroobius Pip vs. Dan Les Sac - Look for the Woman (Fake Blood Remix)
15. Boys Noize - Shine Shine (Apparat Remix)
16. LIttle Boots - Stuck on Repeat
17. Boy 8-Bit - Bulbs Burn Out
18. Jamtech Foundation Ft. Busy Signal - Pounds of 'Dro
19. Wu-Tang Clan - The Jump Off (Bird Peterson Remix)
20. Beastie Boys - Super Disco Breakin (Project Cyborg Remix)
21. Robbie Williams - Lovelight (Soulwax Ravelight Dub)

More Fucking Cowbell Indeed

2008-06-16T20:05:00.000-07:00

The first time I heard this beat drop I peed a little. NAPT drops a Walken-Approved BANGER.

(via Noiseporn, a horsepunchingly good website)

Noise Porn: Horsepunchingly Good

2008-06-16T19:50:00.000-07:00

Noise Porn is such a good website, I'd punch a horse in the face to read it. For real. You should try it. The website, I mean....

Be Water, My Friend

2008-06-06T07:40:00.000-07:00

(flick via Terratag)

“Don't get set into one form, adapt it and build your own, and let it grow, be like water. Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless — like water. Now you put water in a cup, it becomes the cup; You put water into a bottle it becomes the bottle; You put it in a teapot it becomes the teapot. Water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.” Bruce Lee, Bruce Lee: A Warrior's Journey (2000)

Something Makes Sense

2008-06-06T07:33:00.000-07:00

(flick via Isaac Pierro)

"Hope is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something makes sense regardless of how it turns out." Vaclav Havel

What the F-ck's a "Mantisound"?

2008-06-06T06:47:00.000-07:00

This was created by my good friend, the design genius over at sweatervest.net (fav it, link it, blog it, Digg it, and put it on your Facebook, bitches!).

However, if you're in any way affiliated with a certain lawsuit-happy global corporation that probably doesn't put discarded human organs in your food ("special sauce is made of people!"), then I TOTALLY just found this jpeg on the ground, picked it up, had my friend scan it on his scanner, and posted a photo of random street flotsam on my blog (there sure is some fly-ass garbage drifting around the East Village!). Any resemblance to an established corporate logo is totally coincidental and completely the fault of the unknown party that left this jpeg laying around...

Thanks 'ru...

Slow Moving Street Art

2008-06-04T14:25:00.001-07:00

(via Inner City Snail)

Mantisounds = Jo Jo the Circus Clown

2008-06-02T11:30:00.001-07:00

(flick via WonderDookie)

Remember that scene in Tommy Boy when Farley has his little breakdown with the chicken wings, and he starts petting his biscuit and talking baby talk to it like Jo Jo the Circus Clown? Well, I'm a hungry fat guy, and your comments are my chicken wings. Tommy like wingy...

Seriously, I'm installing a sitemeter around these parts soon, so maybe I'll find out that I really do only have three readers, in which case please feel free to (continue to) ignore me. But if you come by and you enjoy what you read/hear/see, drop me a comment. I'm so eager for even negative attention that I'll probably send you an eCard thanking you for reading my blog before calling me a douchebag, or for not being meaner to me.

Bite Your Own Teeth

2008-05-30T08:42:00.000-07:00

(artist unknown)

"Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth. " - Allan Watts from Life magazine (April 21, 1961).

Arithmetic for the Soul

2008-05-30T08:25:00.000-07:00

(photographer unknown)

"Music is a hidden arithmetic exercise of the soul, which does not know that it is counting." - Gottfried Leibniz in a Letter to Christian Goldbach, April 17, 1712