Jan 26-29, 2006
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Top 10
Essential Listening
10) Basement Jaxx
Rooty
Astralwerks, 2001
Simon Radcliffe and Felix Burton solidified their status as Britain’s premier house DJs with their 2001 sophomore album. Basement Jaxx’s sampling risks greatly paid off with head-scratching blends of funk, soul and female vocals.
9) DJ Blurray
Southern Comfort
Mix Tape Slayer Productions/Green City, 2005
Blurray takes the music DJ Screw spawned and DJ Michael “5000” Watts mastered and created his own local blend of mix tapes. Southern Comfort is his latest and most commercially marketable batch of “Screwed and Chopped” remixes that makes Mike Jones sound like a legitimate rapper.
8) DJ Danger Mouse
The Grey Album
Self-released, 2004
The art of the “mash up” has been a calling card for influential DJs like Philadelphia’s Diplo in the past years and the pivotal crown jewel is “The Grey Album.” Using Jay-Z’s acapella vocals as his basis, Mouse was able to surround Jay’s performance with sheer creativity. To create such innovative beats from such an established work (The Beatles’ “White Album”) was the calling card of a genius.
7) Frankie Knuckles
Motivation
DeFinity, 2002
Frankie Knuckles is known as the godfather of house, and his origins date back to the early-70s. In ’02 his mixing was as exuberant as ever; the seasoned dance floor pro took his skills to the gospel scene and, through a testifying array of vocal performances, crafted the perennial work of his career.
6) Beastie Boys
Hello Nasty
Grand Royal/Capitol, 1998
Hello Nasty will be remembered as the last great Beastie Boys record largely in part to Mixmaster Mike’s production. His beats channel successful ‘80s electronic funk (mainly Herbie Hancock) and create a densely layered opus fueled by analog synthesizers and old-school drum machines.
5) DJ Screw
3’N The Morning, pt. 2
Big Tyme, 1996
Though passing away in late 2000, DJ Screw is the most influential DJ in Texas history. His style of slowing down records and creating a syrupy mood has become one of the most imitated techniques in top 40 rap today.
4) Madvillain
Madvillainy
Stones Throw, 2004
Madlib showed the world what DJs are capable of in terms of production. His vehicles for MF Doom’s nutty verses are layered, rich and heavily jazz-influenced. He’ll take a ten second accordion sample and through simple drum patterns create a pounding, infectious beat. Homeboy even sampled “Street Fighter 2.”
3) Afrika Bambaataa
Planet Rock- The Album
Tommy Boy, 1986
Afrika Bambaataa and Zulu Nation took the block party culture of New York City DJs, added Black Nationalism and made the craft socially important, and funky.
The album only has seven cuts but it features Bambaataa’s essential recordings, including “Renegades of Funk,” a song Rage Against the Machine later covered and scored a hit with.
2) Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five
The Message
Sugar Hill, 1982
Grandmaster Flash is an originator and arguably, the most important DJ of all-time. The Message is proof. Though some of the album’s flows are dated and for lack of a better word, whack, Flash’s breaks and scratches were nothing short of groundbreaking.
1) DJ Vlad and Dirty Harry
The Notorious B.I.G.- Rap Phenomenon
Self-released, 2003
This album has the best MC of all-time spitting over today’s hottest beats.
Only available on MixtapeKingz.com, so underground the site is set up so you pay seven bucks for a sticker…and then get the mix CD, “free.”
The DJs layer “Hypnotize” with four different beats and on the very next track take an old, unreleased Biggie freestyle and put it over the “Ante Up” instrumental.
Essential Viewing
"Scratch"
“Scratch” does more than tell the story of the “zigga zigga” that made DJ-ing the art it is; it places the emergence of the new sound in an evolutionary and social context. GrandWizzard Theodore, who is credited in the film with the invention of both scratch and needle-drop, said in the documentary that each new element of hip-hop and its culture drew from its predecessors and redefined the art.
“When you say hip-hop, you say graffiti, you say break-dancing, you say DJs, you say MCs, the way you dress, the way you talk,” he said. “All the elements into one, that’s hip-hop.”
Doug Pray’s 2001 film does a great job interviewing the people who were most influential in the development of each element, which is cool. But what’s even cooler is getting to see these innovators — including Nu-Mark and Cut Chemist, Mix Master Mike, and DJ Qbert — kick back and show off.
Live DJ battle
Every Saturday night at Plush, located at 617 Red River, DJs battle on four turntables, spinning the best hip-hop, from the old school to today’s underground. “Table Manners” features regulars Tats, Diggs and Nerdy Harry, as well as a rotating cast of guest DJs. This week, the Table Manners crew will take on the master of all things ‘80s, DJ Mel.
Essential Reading
"The Pocket DJ"
Though this guide is most suitable for the mp3-oriented DJ and won’t help much with technique or style, former Spin editor and notorious blogger Sarah Lewitin’s pocket handbook delivers enough essential mixes to make even the most novice DJ play like a pro. Conveniently divided by genres (from mash ups to hair metal), artists (from Chemical Brothers to Dolly Parton) and occasions (from ‘Bar mitzvah jams’ to ‘You don’t know how much I miss you so let me tell you in song’), this book will navigate you through any situation.