Here it is. Here is the place that started it all for me. This picture is the inside of Brickhouse Records. To give you an idea of scale the Photographer is standing in the doorway. It was tiny but it was the place where new galaxies opened up and horizons stretched far and wide. It was my library, my map of the world and this was my home. Brickhouse Records in Grays, Essex. I wasn’t really into music at all and a late developer when it came to all things records. Whilst peers were succumbing to the lure of popular teenage culture I was playing computer games. My pocket money was spent on Sega Mega Carts not records or the frivolous fashions of early adolescence. I didn’t want to be cool I wanted to complete Phantasy Zone. In my mind music and clothes were the tacky, irrelevant side effects of growing up and I planned to circumvent that whole scene until I was ready. In my musical development this was a big mistake but an easy one to make considering that the only music I was exposed to was via Top Of The Pops. Pop Music. Mel and Kim. Stock Aitken and Waterman. Failing that the ‘rebellious’ kids were into Iron Maiden. Rock. It hurt my ears. Literally. So it was either a ‘pop’ or a ‘rock’ 7” from Our Price Records or Contact Sam Cruise for my Spectrum from Basildon Market.
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Archive for the ‘Music’ Category
Brickhouse Records. Grays. Thurrock. The World.
Sunday, September 19th, 2010www.rapwax.com
Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010My prayers have been answered. The best forum I have ever seen about hip hop vinyl period – www.rapwax.com. I’m an addict and like Tim Westwood used to say, you need this in your life.
Reservoir Doggs & Street Smatrz
Sunday, March 14th, 2010Two banginest tracks that I think I need in my life. First, Reservoir Doggs. Nope, never heard of the dudes either but its seems they have based their whole steez on Mobb Deep which, to my ears at least, is no bad thing. Of course no proto-Havoc would be complete without a slab of smooth yet sinister music to accompany the various threats and the Dogg’s, thanks to Buckwild, do not disappoint. The bragado of side A is far better relayed against a backdrop of sparse rolling drums with an eerie vocal harmony and a boom bap RPM. Hypnotic.
Buckwild also blesses Street Smatrz ‘Problems’ track with some very melodious refrains as MC ignorant drops some very cliched ish but again Buckwild knock its out the frame with beat. Listen to the instrumental
Recent Purchases
Saturday, March 13th, 2010Been a busy month of record purchases which is lame considering how much expenditure in my house there is and another mouth to feed BUT needs must. The only thing that drags me through the dark days of teh remainder of my time on this rock is music. The 45 minute drive to and from work is punctuated by the my latest records which I download after I have purchased the original on EBay or Discogs and get sent back to my UK bolthole. It’s weird being a record collector in Bahrain but the exchange rate is so good I’d bee a fool not to.
I digress. Firstly, back in Shanghai, I downloaded this compilation from Buckwild one of the 90′s most slept on producers. Loads of beauties on this and I returned to it once more when an email from Discogs had the Buckwild Remix of You Know Now up for sale at a very low price. Missed out on one over on Ebay a few weeks ago so didn’t want to miss out again. A lovely three and a bit minutes punctuated by the excellent AG just riding out the mellow break like it was always supposed to be. Some prefer the origninal but it’s all about this version for me.
Oddly another Show and AG white label came up in the same week and again, really low price which I snapped up without a doubt. Fat Pockets remix on whitle label second release from the legendary duo. For years I had this song in my head never knowing who it was by. Pure unadulterated banger from way back when Hip Hop was cutting edge and the lyrics and beat stood for something. Classic. Kill for a copy.
discogs action
Friday, March 12th, 2010I am a fan. I love the artform and I love Guru be he gay or straight. Why? Well, the memories and the good times and I hope that he can get through whatever it is that he is going through. My Guru Gay post has had millions of hits and searches and it troubles me. What is it they hope to find here? Solar reaming Guru? There is nothing to see, just my idle speculation and I feel dirty for putting it out there but I’m not the only one putting two and two together and coming up with bullshit. Anyway, the music. That’s what got us here. That’s what binds. Nice copy of Words I Manifest came up today on Discogs cheapy cheapy so I did the decent thing. Longer and rawer than the album cut, the 12” remix is an essential item in the collection of any Gang Starr aficionado which is what I am evidenced by my vinyl collection – every single release apart from the first two right up to Moment of Truth. I’m a fan.
Guru Gay?
Friday, March 5th, 2010Please remember I have NOTHING to base the following presumptions on but man, the more I think about it the more it makes sense. Gang Starr. The most legendary hip hop groups of all time disband for reasons unclear. Just stopped. DJ Premier and Guru part on an acrimonious basis yet Premo’s stock soars whilst Guru retreats. Guru hooks up with a stranger, an unknown young looking dude called Solar. This is how they hooked up in their own words…
Um…Met via ‘mutual’ friends….they just hit it off…they start kicking it….uh huh. The above YouTube clip reminds me of a Pet Shop Boys interview. Anyway, from the Halcyon Gangstarr days ‘super producer’ Solar and Guru make music together like this:
Yep, that’s a new ‘club’ angle right there.
Guru’s new, er, Guru controls all aspects of Guru’s output like some weird Svengali figure. Years pass. Guru gets tattoos. Guru starts roiding up and rumours about cocaine and alcohol abuse grow. Solar and Guru travel to Europe a lot. Guru has a heart attack. Nobody can see Guru apart from Solar who controls Guru’s Twitter account and all Guru’s affairs. Guru’s family members come out and attack Solar for keeping the MC from seeing his folks. Premo, and everyone, is blocked from seeing his homeboy laying in a coma.
It’s early days re: Guru’s health but this is all sounding fishy and if anyone that has the power over Guru’s affairs like Solar does is normally called a wife or a civil partner. OK, so what? What if he is Gay? Well, cool, but tracks like this take on a whole noew meaning…
Stunts Blunts and Desperation
Friday, March 5th, 2010So here I am blogging via a mobile as it seems this stuff works at long last. One of the things about a blog is finding the time to sit down and type this shit like people used to write letters back in the day. Its old. Mobile technology has now allowed me to update this site whilst waiting for my son to fall asleep at night. So where were we?
Stunts Blunts and Hip Hop is where. Back, twenty years ago Fuck What You Heard came out on Mercury records. Using a lovely John Handy baseline it featured the best producer on the mic Diamond D who is now a seminal figure on the rap atlas thanks to his first album Stunts Blunts and Hip Hop. Now, this being the 90′s all eyes were on CD’s as the future with vinyl having only years to live. Record execs pictured the future was small and silver rather than big and black so as a kick start to this some albums were not released on vinyl with Stunts, Blunts and Hip Hop being one. In the UK I couldn’t even find a CD version and had to settle for owning just the one Diamond D record for the last decade or two.
Last May, whilst in London, I managed to get a copy of Sally and and via Discogs a Best Kept Secret 12″ but the real holy grail is the album. It transpires that a limited ammount were pressed up as promos and it is one of these babies I am fiending for. Ever since I started building my collection up again after my firesale when we left London for HK I have seen half a dozen on Ebay and Discogs over the last year but couldn’t bring myself to part with the money (150 dollars minimum) but since the Bahrain dinar is so strong and my children are young enough not to require school fees I feel now is the time to strike lest I torment myslef for all eternity. I have emailed collectors on Discogs (which makes me feel a little dirty and cheap but needs must) and I’ll await to see what gwarn. Wish me luck or sell me your copy.
The Best Song Ever…
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009with this best video ever?
My Mood
Friday, August 21st, 2009KMD – Peachfuzz
Wednesday, August 12th, 2009Another superb EBay performance. Between Discogs and EBay you can find some bargains out there but you have to dig. Digitally dig. Until I get back to London or another civilised location the internet is my friend. Besides that I doubt even in reality I would have been able to find an O.G. copy of Peachfuzz for eight quid. Bargain.
KMD’s first release and its a weird video but the song is wonderful. The samba like OC Smith’s ‘On a Clear Day’ is looped and KMD inform us that, despite the girls laughing in the background and despite not being old enough to grow a beard (or peachfuzz) they have what it takes. Innocent but not cheesy. This is the time when KMD were hanging around with 3rd Bass and you see Prime Minister Pete Nice at the start of the video checking out the boys afrocentric stall. Golden Era’s get no more golden. Play it loud.