Clusters of Time and a Journey Into a Timeless Temple of Sound History

Time often seems to coalesce around clusters of memories or experiences. Periods in life ebb and flow with the seasons not unlike recurring themes in the universal human story – fog rolls in, Sun shines up, the end of something, the start of a next thing. Blink your eyes and a season has past or one memory has flickered away to the next. But still, the grooves on the record must rewind from time to time…So rewind and come again my selector…

One such brief cluster of time in the 10 year story of the Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional was lived some five months ago on the Indian Subcontinent. After having been invited to play at the Indian Electronic Music Festival in late November of last year, we found ourselves barreling forward on an outernational adventure to the land of many a bustling metropolis, thousands of temples, and oceans of humanity so thick as to be beyond comprehension at times. The full story of that adventure is indeed a story for another time.

For now, I am going to step back to one moment in that journey - A moment that I had been anticipating for years before I ever set foot in India. Some years ago Khenu described to me what sounded like some mythological chamber within a chamber within a chamber lined with an endless union of priceless gold and gems all kingly in character. The temple and gems of which Khenu spoke had nothing to do with the Taj Mahal in Agra or the Golden Temple in Amritsar, but everything to do with them in a way such as it is. To me this place and the multitudes Khenu described became imbued with just as much majesty as the many temples, mausoleums, and shrines I was blessed to visit while India.

The multi-chambered temple of which I speak is lodged in bustling neighborhood only a short rickshaw ride from the Rajouri Garden stop along the Delhi Metro Rail. This particular shrine was first anointed with one simple but revelatory act: the purchase of a long play vinyl record. The year was 1964. The record was “Uran Khatola (Na Toojan Se Khelo)” by the legendary Hindi musician Rafi. The sonic curator-to-be was a young Lakhwant Singh known affectionately as Lakhi Uncle. Anyone who has ever felt the tactile shiver of opening a gatefold record sleeve, stared for hours at a particularly artful album cover, or studied the minutia on the back of a album sleeve can relate to the feeling Lakhi Uncle experienced. An unfolding. A coming home to a sense of pure, direct, unadulterated experience. Musical dispensation.

Place it on the platter.
Lift the needle.
Let it drop.

Records, as Sociologist Paul Gilroy has said, are complex cultural artifacts. Gilroy writes in his book Small Acts,

The music encoded onto the surface of the discs may be the primary inducement to acquire a record, but the sleeve with its combination of text and images comprises an important…element…

The pictures of Hindi album covers sprinkled throughout this article point to the multifarious purposes that album sleeves serve. Gilroy reminds us that album covers have, first and foremost, served as a way of defining an artist to an audience. Album jackets also function as a way of conveying symbolic “sub-culturally” distinctive ways of dress, fashion, and such. Album sleeves open a dialogue on how a cultural group, a sub-culture, or, as may the case, a nation views itself. The album sleeve and the music found therein “facilitates the circulation of styles and symbols, creating an aura of pleasure and desire around them which is an important political phenomenon. … They also help to solicit…audiences into specific modes of cultural and political identifications.”

This article is meant to serve as a brief opening and meditation on the lost art of the album sleeve and the multifarious meanings they carry. Each one of these images captures in one way or another, the essence of a particular historical moment in a way that the music cannot do alone.

Lakhi Uncle carries this history with him. Who feels it knows. Lakhi Uncle feels it. Lakhi Uncle knows it.

Should you be interested in exploring the depths of his musical ark you can contact Lakhwant Singh at lakhwant_7@hotmail.com. Likewise, Lakhi Uncle is open to sales should you be looking for anything in the way of vintage and rare turntables and sound equipment.

Text by Andy G of Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional

Photos by Heather King Singh

Roots and Wires inna India!

Greetings Musical Fans, Friends, and Extended Family,

Recent events in the World of Roots and Wire Sound Dimensional have unfolded in ways synchronistic and magical. A few weeks ago we were asked to perform at the Indian Electronic Music Festival in New Dehli on 21 December 2007. The opportunity to dig into our dub basket and play a set of our original productions alongside some exclusive tracks sent our way is an honor indeed.

A big thanks to Qasim, the festival organizer, for offering us the opportunity to play this gig.

So if you are going to be in New Delhi during the holidays make it a point to swing by and check Roots and Wires in action. The outernational audiovisual vibes of Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional will be present in full force. The festival venue details are as follows:

Venue: The 2007 Indian Electronica Festival: Delhi will be held at Kuki - a new spot located in Greater Kailash II.

Kuki
E 7, Greater Kailash II,
Masjid Moth Commercial Complex
Phone: 29225241

Kuki's website: http://www.kuki.in/

Tickets at the gate! Come early! Stay late! Roots and Wires will be hitting the stage at 11 PM so Don't be late.

While in Delhi we will be entering the studio to record with a number of Indian classical musicians including members of the Roots and Wires extended family, Kishu and Vishal Nagar. In typical Roots and Wires fashion we will also be documenting our journey with camera and video cameras in tow. Nuff magnificent audiovisual magic must rise! So fret not if you can’t bounce to India!!! 2008 should bring some more audio inventions, deep dubs, and visual trickery from the RWSD set and sound. Stay tuned and in touch whether you may hail from east, west, north, or south!

May this holiday season bring blessings to you and yours. A special musical message from Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional!

Peace,
Andy G and Special Agent K
Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional

Who Was Mr. Brown?

Link to 111 Minna Performance Audio Stream

I was recently invited to perform at a New Global Citizens fundraiser, sponsored by Alarm Magazine. The visual and aural artists were asked to give individual expression to a fantastical story of a coffin that was said to have floated through Kingston with three crows perched on top… Though there are several versions of this tale in reggae music, the most known is Bob Marley’s – “Who is Mr. Brown?” It’s been referred to as one of his “most memorable songs.” Perhaps we can understand some of it's popularity through a consideration of socioeconomic forces, but upon reading the 1970 news report from the “Jamaica Daily Gleaner,” it seemed to me that there was something deeper at work in the capacity of this story to fascinate. Let’s take the first few paragraphs of this news report as a launching point for our own depth psychological exploration:

Hundreds of curious persons chased through the streets of downtown Kingston yesterday. For the
Majority the object of their chase was both elusive and invisible.

With pedal cyclists setting a hot pace, hagglers, office clerks, and school children rampaged along
King Street, Orange Street, Beckford Street, invaded Tivoli Gardens, and then doubled back on
their route; all the while searching for a glimpse of the object. The chase was provided with added
fuel by the spate of fanciful and weird rumors.

The whole narrative has a feeling of the mysterious and the fantastical, a numinosity that makes it clear that there are deeper elements of psyche at work... It can be looked at as a dream in which all the elements are aspects of an individual psyche, or also at the level of the group or collective psyche. Viewed from a Jungian perspective, in either case there is something from within or beyond (chose your preferred metaphor here) seeking relation or emergence. How will we respond to the calling? The frenzied quality of chasing after this strange and mysterious object, seems to reflect an ambivalent curiousity and an existential yearning for the numinous and spiritual – a hunger for the otherworldly. The collective nature of the frenzy reminds me of a good soundsystem dance - being connected in individual and yet collective ways to something (and some process) that we often term spiritual...

Of course, this type of contact can also evoke dread (which is why I say "ambivalent curiousity"), as obvious in the next quote:

A policeman shot at it in Spanish Town, a rumor stated. He was immediately stricken and taken
to the Spanish Town Hospital in an unconscious condition. The Spanish Town Police denied that
any member of the Force in that town was so incapacitated.

It’s fascinating to see this arise in the narrative. This fearful shooting at the otherworldly is associated with a state of unconsciousness. If looked at as a dream, the shooting can be equated with attempts to repress - in part, because of the intense anxieties associated with the unknown. Rudolph Otto, in his "The Idea of the Holy," defines the numinosum as Mysterium Tremendum et Fascinans - the mystery that not only fascinates, but also evokes dread and fear. As we know, we often try to destroy what we don't understand and what we fear. Yet, if we can't step up to it and into it, if the communication is repressed or ignored, consequences can follow, leading to or sustaining states of unconsciousness… If we look at Jung's recently published Red Book, we see the devastating consequences across Europe (during the World Wars) when the material in the personal and collective shadow was ignored. And we only have to open a newspaper or get online to see how the devastation emerging from unconsciousness continues across the globe through to the present...

Returning to the news report, it's interesting that it's a policeman that does the shooting. If we look at this "dream" in another way, we might also consider the police to symbolize something of the collective order that needs to be broken down, to allow space for new structure that is more congruent with the spirit of the times. This is like the myth of Osiris, Ra and Horus - where the old patriarchal order needs to be symbolically killed off in order for the new patriarchal principle (a new and more dynamic king principle) to be established. This is the potentially healthy impulse in rebellious energy (as Jungian Analyst Heinrich Karl Fierz says, the health versus dysfunction of this depends on whether we are trying to depose the Ra or Horus principle)...

The details of the elusive, mysterious object are also intriguing – it was reported as a coffin that either floated through town in mid-air, or rolled on three wheels. On top were perched three crows – in some versions, they were dressed in coats! This seems to accentuate the archetypal, trickster aspect often associated with crows. As well, from shamanic and Native American traditions, the crow is seen as the mediator between worlds (e.g. consciousness and the unconscious). Synchronistically, as I was preparing for the show – just the morning of the performance – I heard cawing and looked out over my laptop and midi controllers to see two large, black crows sitting on my fire escape. It was as if they had escaped from Mr. Marley's track and this blog piece into the world, flowing as ravens and crows do between worlds! The world as having qualities of dream is an interesting topic but for another time. I will say that the archetypal has a tendency to externalize at times, with the related phenomenon of synchronicity blurring the boundaries between internal and external, between dream/myth and so-called consensual reality… It's uncanny to see this unfold or emerge when I get into deeper processes with the patients in my psychotherapeutic practice. And back to the "dream" - the coffin image is also relevant. In alchemical treatises, where the goal was most deeply a process of transformation of cultivation of the lapis (philospher's stone) or the Alchemical gold (i.e. a living relation with our core nature - what Jung and vendantics call the "Self" or Atman), one important stage along the way was the nigredo which involved the dying off of older and relatively limited ways of being, perceiving and so on, in order to pave the way for a new and more whole or authentic relationship with oneself, others and the world...

(this image is from a 17th century Alchemical text depicted the Nigredo - note the presence of the raven/crow!)

Rewinding the story a bit, as I sat with this news report in Andy G’s echo chamber, the whole account seemed to come together as a contemporary fairy tale or myth. Starting with the mundane, ordinary state of consciousness. Then, the encounter with the Mystery – or psychologically, the encounter of the ego with the Self, or consciousness and the Unconscious. Next, an initial fear in relation to the encounter, as it shakes things up and breaks things down in a sort of symbolic dismemberment. Sometimes we don't have the ego-strength or right attitude to pass the initiatory trial (e.g. the policeman who shoots and is rendered unconscious) - leaving us with a failed initiation. And sometimes we do - see Jung's essay "Spirit Mercurius" - Alchemical Studies CW 13 - for another version of this myth and this theme. There’s an ensuing struggle and the process of potentially transformational contact between consciousness and soul, as the ego seeks to reconstitute itself in new relationship with the depths. In our composition for the event, we tried to capture some feeling of these dismembering-fragmenting processes by transitioning from slower, darker dub (Little Tempo’s “Boogie Man Walk”) to subsequent, more frenetic junglist riddims. Finally, when all goes well, there’s the reconstitution of a more integrated person/group/culture. When it doesn't go well, there's some form of psychosis - either literally or metaphorically...

The collective unconscious emerges in images. The most vivid images are found in popular culture. There is a compensatory aspect to this emergence from the shadows, with the goal being movement into a relatively more whole and integrated state of being - again at both personal and collective levels. Of course, this is always an ongoing process, rather than some final end state. Along these lines, there is the history of Jamaica as a former colony, largely composed of the descendents of former slaves. In the 1930’s, Marcus Garvey started the “Back to Africa” movement, echoed throughout roots reggae and reggae-influenced songs. This is another expression of yearning for the (breakdown and then re-) creation of a new, more empowered and authentic identity - here, one with more capacity for self-determination and with connection into a larger framework of roots and culture… We attempt to convey this sort of movement in the Aswad track “Back to Africa,” as well as a version by the Japanese band “Tokyo Reggae Clash.” This theme also continues with the classic Earl Sixteen track, “Going to Africa,” and concludes with the wicked Smith and Mighty version of Mudala Kunene's “Ubombo” that evokes a sense of trembling and quivering connection with one's deeper nature and power...

So enough of these meandering and words for now! Get cozy in your space, and click on the link below to hear the performance as played at 111 Minna on August 10, 2007 by the Special Agent K…

Link to 111 Minna Performance Audio Stream

Bass is Maternal: Rob Smith in the Sound Arena

BASS IS MATERNAL: Rob Smith in the Sound Arena

BY ANDY G, Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional

“For me, dub is about the combinations and the omissions… hard and soft, rough and smooth, and also about the space in between sounds.”
~Rob Smith~

Music on my sound system in the here and now:

Smith & Mighty’s first full-length album, BASS IS MATERNAL.

With each pulse, each hi-hat rewound and rerubbed, each sliver of keyboard omitted and reintroduced in between the constant heartbeat of a dubwise bassline, the boundary between me and the sub-frequencies entering my ears and body is diminished. I have entered an all-encompassing womb of sound…BASS IS MATERNAL. WHEN IT IS LOUD I FEEL SAFER…Believe…

In the realm of sounds and blues, Rob Smith, founding member of Bristol beat makers Smith & Mighty, Blue & Red, and More Rockers reigns supreme. Born out of the rich musical firmament of the early 1980s Bristol U.K. scene, Rob Smith cultivated his now distinctive sound through endless experimentation with old reel-to-reel tape recorders. Slowly but surely, Rob began making loops and playing sounds through echo pedals.

Given the dub reggae foundation on which his sound has been forged it is no surprise that Rob also cultivated his skills by playing rhythm guitar for early Bristol reggae band, Restriction. During this time his band shared the stage in support of many a roots reggae stalwart. He did the Rasta Serenade along side Aswad. He did the Herbsman Hustle on the same bill as Sugar Minott. He recorded for the mighty Mad Professor at Ariwa Studios.

All the while Rob soaked in the vibes of roots reggae sound systems: Jah Shaka, Jah Tubbys, too many to mention. Dub like dirt. Musical dispensation. Heartical revelation.


Around 1985 he met up with Ray Mighty. On discovering that they had a similar interest in synchronizing beat machines, synths and sound effects, the untrained pair began producing their own sound based on hip hop beats, dub reggae treatments and sixties melodies. Smith & Mighty was born.

In late 1987, on their own Three Stripe Records label, Smith & Mighty produced and released ‘Anyone,’ a bass driven cover version of Burt Bacharachs ‘Anyone Who Had a Heart.’ After their follow up underground hit ‘Walk On By,’ the pair took on a string of productions including Massive Attack’s debut single ’Any Love’, and top ten hit ’Wishing on a Star’ for The Fresh Four who’s members included the young DJ’s Krust and Suv. Since those heady days Smith & Mighty have released three albums, the aforementioned "Bass is Maternal," "Big World, Small World," and "Life is..." as well as contributing to K!7 record's longstanding "DJ Kicks" series.

I was first exposed to the revelatory sounds of Rob Smith’s productions via the foundational drum & bass junglist “Dubplate Selection: Volume 1.” Released on Smith and company’s very own MRR (More Rockers Records) imprint, “Dubplate Selection: Volume 1” represents one of the finest mixes of wicked ragga junglist basslines, atmospheric and soulful lyrics, and tough-like-lead dubwise reggae samples. When a tune like “Selector,” with its Jah Tubby’s sample hits one’s ears the debate need not continue. “Selector him good. Selector him Wise.” More Rockers runs proper junglist vibes. Unsurprisingly, Smith has carried the More Rockers sound far and wide with Volume 2 of the series coming on Select Cuts Records out of Germany and Volume 3 featured on Japanese imprint Rush Productions. Also not to be missed is the compilation "Select Cuts From More Rockers 12 Inch Selection," a set of dub, drum & bass cuts originally released as singles on the MRR label.

The next brick that the builders of pop culture refused but that caught my curious ear, the mid-1990s underground and shamelessly overlooked digital roots masterpiece from Rob Smith collaborators Henry & Louis entitled “Rudiments,” brought me deeper into Smith’s sonic fold. Whereas Smith & Mighty’s soul inflected, dub inspired breakbeats and More Rockers dubwise jungle meet somewhere between a Jah Shaka session at Digwall’s and a Soul II Soul dance at the Africa Centre, Henry & Louis is pure roots dub tailored for those that champion the next generation UK digital roots reggae sounds such as Manasseh, Iration Steppas, and Aba Shanti I. Seek this one out at all costs. One for the steppers crew.

Born out of the same collaboration, Rob Smith/Blue & Red and Henry & Louis released “Time Will Tell” on the now sadly defunct Portland based BSI records in the early 2000s. Once again, roots reggae was the sonic glue. Recorded in both Jamaica and the U.K., “Time Will Tell” was another digital roots scorcher replete with guest vocalists such as Johnny Clarke, Tony Tuff, Willi Williams, and Tippa Irie. Keeping up his strong connection to the Japanese dub/reggae/breakbeat scene Smith released the dub companion to “Time Will Tell” on the Japanese Rush Productions imprint.

More recently, Rob’s passion for bass and dub treatments has been evident on his solo album projects ’Up On The Downs’ and ’In One Way Or Another.’ Continuing in the same vein as Smith & Mighty, these two full-length sets represent a mix of breakbeat, dub, soul, and hip-hop.

Year 2007 has seen Rob unsurprisingly moving from strength to strength. So far this year Rob has released two breakbeat dub twelve inch singles on the Functional label entitled ‘Give Love’ and ‘Loveage.’ Likewise, he has entered the dubstep realm via the new Bristol dubstep label Punch Drunk. This time, working under the nom de beat, RSD, the tunes ‘Dub Corner’ and ‘Pretty Bright Light’ are serious entries into the “Best of 2007” category. Never one to rest long, Rob will also be releasing a new heavyweight dub track named ’Kingfisher’ on Earwax along with ‘Firewall’ on the Dub Related imprint. Rob is also busy making remixes for UK digital roots crew Zion Train, UB40, and Japanese outfits Antennasia and Rub-A-Dub Market.

Currently deejaying all over the globe from London’s ‘Fabric’ to Tokyo’s ’Club Yellow’, Rob drops a combination of reggae, breaks, dub step and drum and bass. He will also be playing guitar with Bristol ten-piece band Dub From Atlantis at this year's Glastonbury Festival. The long standing UK festival will also see him once again join with Ray Mighty as one-half of Smith & Mighty.

…But hold tight… Before you start booking your flights for Europe’s premiere summer music fest you can see the mighty Rob Smith live in his first San Francisco appearance in over five years.

The STATELESS crew (Michael K, Andy G, and Special Agent K) are proud to present Rob Smith at the Rickshaw Stop on June 8th. Featured along side Rob Smith will be The Worker and Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional dropping the very best in outernational beats. Check this link for more info. Reach early. Stay late. Miss it at your own peril.

STATELESS @ Rickshaw Stop V. 1.2

Men and Women, Young and Old…All of them are ready for Chapter Two of the Stateless crew’s run at the mighty Rickshaw Stop coming this Saturday, March 10^th.

Hot off the heals of our successful party featuring Stateless stalwarts Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional and the Worker along side SF favorites, Lemonade, and Rio’s Magabo, Chapter two only increases the heat as we move into the spring months.

This time around we have very special guests and Soot Records recording artists DJ Rupture and Filastine.

Barcelona based, DJ Rupture will be bringing his trademark sonic clash of global beats mashed up inna 3-turntable fashion. Audio alchemy through a 21^st century filter!

Filastine, in his second performance at a Stateless event, will be dropping his politically charged sounds siphoned through a laptop and stitched together with hip-hop backbone and live percussion. Postworld sonic grit aimed straight at the World Bank’s head!

…And just in case you thought it ended there, Roots and Wires will be playing their trademark blend of original productions and outernational beats from dubstep to UK steppers. Of course, Special Agent K and Andy G will be running it all through their wide array of sound banks, effects units, and secret sonic weapons inna dubwise fashion! Roots and Wires’ highly individual take on visuals will also be omnipresent throughout the night…So open your eyes and ears for the sounds and sights of the Roots and Wires!

Rounding off the bill will be the Worker with his always tight and tip-top minimal house, ragga breaks, and international hip-hop vibes.

As always reach early and stay late for this musical dispensation meant to rock the nations!

For more information check these links:

www.rootsandwires.com
www.myspace.com/stateless

Serious Sonic Pressure a Gwaan!

Attention all music lovers…

Thank you for the massive attendance at our inaugural Rickshaw Stop event. Maga Bo (from Brazil) and Ustaad Vishal Nagar (from New Delhi, India), alongside the Worker and resident soundsystem Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional, dropped some serious sounds that night... It was a truly outernational event. There were 500+ people and such warm, sweaty and beautiful vibes that night. People were even moved to tears at certain sonic moments and quite a few told us it was one of the best events they had been to in some time - I kid you not!

You can see some video footage of our set, with Tabla Virtuoso Ustaad Vishal Nagar dropping vicious tabla bhols over original Indian Classical Dubstep, at our myspace site:

www.myspace.com/rootsandwires

The next STATELESS will be even more massive, but first:


This Friday night all roads lead to Madrone Lounge (500 Divisadero at Fell).

Six Degrees records presents Casa De Degrees: A Night of International Music featuring Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional dropping tunes hotter than lava and heavier than lead. Your auditory nerve will be blessed with original digital dubplates produced in the firmament of the Roots and Wires studio as well as a serious selection of roots reggae, dub, dubstep, junglist rhythms, and beyond.

Roots and Wires….Serious Dubwise Pressure….Seen?

Featured along side Roots and Wires will be The Worker (Stateless, Six Degrees) serving up International hip-hop, hard-hitting Brazilian beats, and global techno sounds.

Reach Early! Stay Late!

And, just in case you haven’t been taking your recommended daily dose of sonic vitamins you can mark your calendars early for the next chapter of STATELESS at the RICKSHAW STOP. Coming up March 10th the STATELESS crew will once again be bringing in a unique blend of sonic sculptors and knob twisters for an outernational sound conference.

This time around, DJ Rupture and Filastine, two premier beat blenders from the SOOT record label, will be blessing SF with their transnational mash ups and jarring effects.

As usual, Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional and the Worker will be holding down the foundation and turning the tastemakers’ heads with a unique set of sounds unlike any other club night in San Francisco. Believe.

Warmly,
andy g & the special agent k
http://www.rootsandwires.com/
www.myspace.com/rootsandwires

The Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional - Stepping Forward into the New Year!!!

With year 2007 around the bend Andy G along side the Special Agent K have been deeply immersed in the Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional Audiovisual Laboratory. We have just completed our new logo and updated our website. We've been working on new musical matters which are getting airplay across the globe, via digital dubplates. To top it all off, we have been gearing up for an exciting year of STATELESS.

Our first event of the new year will be 1.12.07 at the Rickshaw Stop. Topping the bill is Rio's rising underground star Maga Bo (Soot Records). Maga will be mashing it up with borderless beats - from Capoiera to Drum & Bass and beyond.

The Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional will be dubbing tabla virtuoso (from New Delhi, India) Ustaad Vishal Nagar over fierce original dubstep productions and ragga jungle riddims inna raw session style!

San Francisco band, Lemonade, will be playing their own brand of experimental punk sounds that sit somewhere between the sounds of CAN and Tropicalia.

Rounding it out will be the mighty Worker with a dancefloor ready set of tasty selections.

It will be massive no doubt.

Finally, in case you have not peeped it yet make sure you check the new Roots and Wires website:

www.rootsandwires.com

More content soon come.

On the Blog sides, Special Agent K will soon be breaking down the origins and archetypal significance of the labyrinth and the squared mandala which have been incorporated into our new logo:



So sit tight, listen, and look keenly as Roots and Wires Sound Dimensional high steps it into the future 2007 style!

The Stateless Pounding System - 9/30/2006

The Sun was just dipping under the tree line of Golden Gate Park. 6:00 PM, Saturday 30 September 2006. Darkness would soon descend over San Francisco City and yet another chapter of “Stateless” would unfold deep in the Mission at Club Amnesia. As I walked down the way premonitions of sounds filtered through my sonic mind’s eye…Blink forward…Sound check…1, 2, 1, 2…Just right? Maybe not, but no reason to fuss and fight. Just sip a whiskey and let the stress digress and the night progress…

And progress it did. This particular evening of sonics went down in serious fashion. Marking his first appearance at “Stateless” was DJ Vanka. The Belgian born Vanka dropped some serious Afro-Beat-Brazil-Poly-Rhythmic-future funk that reached a boiling point by the end of his two hour set. Having never reached his legendary “Misturada” sessions at Club Six, his aura preceded him in my eyes. I, along with the bubbling Amnesia masses, no doubt were fully engaged by Vanka’s set. Big. If you ever see that he is playing in your neighborhood, check him out! You won’t be disappointed.

By the time Vanka was done, the warm glow of Amnesia was burning just right. Next up was the “Stateless” foundation, the man that holds it all down, the Worker. The big beat pieces of plastic selected by the Worker bounced from rough ragga-tinged breakbeats to full force techno. The Worker rode the energy Vanka laid out early on and pushed it up a notch even so.

In keeping with the “Stateless” mission, the night switched it up to a live vibe. The Wailing Junktet, a Brazilian influenced drum ensemble pounded some serious poly-rhythms that landed somewhere between São Paulo, San Francisco, and a stateless commune run by Orishas from outer space. Echoes of DJ Vanka’s set took on a live presence through this very talented ensemble. Kinetic and propulsive to the core.

Check an audio clip here:

link

Closing out the night was Roots and Wire Hi-Fi. Our set ran the gamut from vintage dubwise evergreens from the Tubby’s, Bullwackies, and Yabby You stables on through uptempo ragga jungle tunes and two blazing Roots and Wires exclusive dubplates with production by Special Agent K.

You can check our set here:

link

A big thanks goes out to Amnesia and especially Ben who did double duty as sound man and bartender. No easy task given that the club was corked with dancing bodies working up a healthy thirst.

So hold tight until the next “Stateless” storm comes your way. If you missed this time, make sure you reach next time.

Peace,

Andy G

Roots and Wires Hi-Fi

Stateless - 8/25/06 - Grey Filastine Meets the Roots and Wires Hi-Fi!

first off, we've finally joined in on the myspace thing:

http://www.myspace.com/rootsandwires

it's still sparse and basic, but does host initial drafts of some of my own works in progress...

thanks to all that came out to last month's stateless. this was a serious soundclash - stateless sound meets the roots and wires hi-fi - featuring the special agent k and andy g (roots and wires hi-fi) and the worker (stateless, six degrees), dropping some wicked tunes... andy g and i closed out the night with some thundering UK steppers and soulful roots and dubwise sounds for an appreciative dancefloor, who were whistling and hollering for more. i really enjoyed my debut with the video manipulation as well - this will continue forward with stateless episode 8...

so please mark your calenders for STATELESS, this august 25th (friday) at amnesia (voted best dive bar in the bay guardian) in san francisco's mission district (853 valencia, between 19th and 20th) starting at 9 PM and continuing until 2 AM. for this next event, we return to our model of guest dj, resident soundsystem, and live act. for our live act, we will be flying in grey filastine from seattle, to debut material off his new album... grey will be playing a live set and will be featuring music off his recent release on DJ rupture's soot records. the album has already been receiving top ranking reviews:

"filled with both with jagged edges and moments of sad sweetness... Burn It is sure to win fans across multiple scenes" - XLR8R

"worldly field recordings, sound collages and electro burners line a tracklist with concealed explosives that loom in the splitting beats and impending ruin of cuts... promising paranoid sleeplessness for all in earshot" - Remix Magazine

'It’s a news clip you can dance to, a “report from the frontlines” given a beat'... a distinctly inclusive style of music" - PopMatters

"reminiscent of the murky drama of Ninja Tuners like Amon Tobin and DJ Food, and throughout the album the lines between live performed contributions and meticulously contextualized samples is slurred and burnt... feels like a thrillingly tense interaction between these ideological factors and the gold-toothed, whip-riding luxury of hiphop culture" - The Stranger

"easily one of the best records that will be released this year, electronic or otherwise... a thinking-man’s record, assembled by the thinking-man’s DJ" - Slug Magazine

"This is grit. This is raw. This is...actually...a bit spooky... One of the more interesting releases to land on our desks in quite a while." - Kotori Magazine

"a hypnotic variety of both sequenced and live percussion. Murky hip-hop beats melt into rapid tabla workouts and then further transform into intricate patterns... a musical tincture that’s simultaneously aggressive and lovely" - Missoula Independent

wow - some serious soundbwoy business! the night will start out with guest dj cyan, who will drop a downtempo, dubwise, and dubstep set. the worker will follow and drop his mix of microhouse, electro and ragga breaks, as well as other outernational sounds. headliner grey filastine will play next. finally, the roots and wires sound will close off the night, with the special agent k and andy g manning the turntables, laptops, dubwise sirens and effects units, analogue delays, melodica, and perhaps even some tabla. also, prepare for more original dubplates from the special agent k - steppers, dubstep and drum and bass meets sarod, sarangi and classical indian vocals... so please join us for a night of bass heavy, diverse and eclectic sounds, spanning roots, lover's rock, dub, dubstep, UK steppers, electro, asian underground, bhangra, old school bollywood, ragga jungle and drum and bass, with a touch of baile funk and afrojazz...

My Operator, My Selector: White Mice in the Area

As Khenu a.k.a. the doctor, and many others, well know there are very few conversations about music in which I do not utter the words “Roots,” “Steppers,” “Shaka,” or some such dubwise variation. So keeping with form, I have to give my 100% Roots and Wires sound-dimensional props to the basic channel crew for their hotly anticipated recent reissue of four purely wicked 7” singles.

All serious selectors take note: These singles from the mid-eighties Jamaican singer White Mice are pure worries. The Basic Channel site tells the story so:

“Born in 1970, in Montego Bay, Jamaica, Allan Crichton aka White Mice is a graduate of three sound systems - Sugar Minott’s Youthman Promotion, Jammy’s Hi Power, and his hometown Ticka Muzik. His first break came at Sun Splash in 1985, when he and Little Kirk were called on stage to perform with Tenor Saw. Recording at King Jammy’s and Channel One studios, with Junior Delgado at the controls, over next the few years Mice let off a series of records amongst the very deadliest of digital reggae - nearly all on his brother Blemo’s Intellitec imprint, out of Miami…”

The four singles that make up this particular brace of White Mice tunes are “It’s A Shame,” “Try a Thing,” “Youths of Today,” and “Tallawah.” Each one is a slice of serious mid-80s computer riddimized roots. Like Little Kirk’s “Ghetto People Broke” from the same era, these singles retrospectively bridge the gap between the anachronistic roots-steppers vibe of the 70s and the nascent UK digital roots that was soon to give birth via such artists as Dred and Fred from the Jah Shaka stable and Nick Manasseh/Sound Iration via the Mr. Modo imprint.

I first heard White Mice’s minor-key digital classic “Youths of Today” on a Jah Shaka sound tape from around 1986. With Shaka chanting over the dub I was hooked. Since that time, the mythology around these White Mice singles only increased as my luck in finding them hopelessly decreased. Soon come…

About a month ago, I received the four singles in a printed white paper bag. Crisp, solid pressings ready made for pushing bass bins in a dance. They have been rotating on and off my turntable ever since.

“It’s Shame” starts with a wicked digital drum roll before White Mice wails “Oh it’s a

shame, oh it’s a shame to see my brother’s blood running down the drain….” From there White Mice licks lyrical shots at world leaders that build nuclear weapons to ghetto youths that kill one another. Sub-bass lines rumble under the propulsive digital riddim. The version accentuates the snapping snare in counterpoint to the rolling bass line. “Oh it’s a shaaaa…..mmeeee” echoes out, guitar and keyboard licks bounce around the echo chamber in fine fashion.

“Try a Thing” is a 4/4 mid-paced marching stepper with the Mice once again singing lyrics dedicated to all those sufferahs trying get by in the ghetto – “Just try a thing… Brother and Sister try a thing…” The guitar evokes Black Uhuru circa “Red.” The version on the flip, is proficient if a bit unadventurous. The kick drum and staccato guitar dominate with snare shots echoing in and out alongside shards of White Mice vocals.

“Youths of Today” is the tune that brought me to White Mice in the first place. It is, to my mind, the centerpiece in this serious brace of reissue 45s. “So the youths of today will be the man of tomorrow, but when your old and getting grey…and we are the youths gonna lead the way… and try and try youth to get a bly…” The riddim on this one hits harder than hot iron to anvil. The drums move back and forth from full-fledged digital roots riddim to pared down kick-kick-snare dancehall roughness. The dub version begins with an unorthodox skipping echoed shard of White Mice vocals before the strident riddim kicks in. From there out it is dubwise marching time.

“Talawah” in Jamaican parlance means sturdy and strong. On “Talawah,” White Mice comes in a strong fashion. Over top of yet another blistering minor-key steppers, the Mice warns all upstarts not to judge a book by its cover. By this point, they should know White Mice a come in “Talawah.” The version is a rudimentary dub unhindered by major studio trickery. The marching riddim is given space to breath. Time to clear out the living room and start stepping.

So once again the reissue folks at basic channel/basic replay come with pure sound quality. For all folks interested in a few 7" singles of serious minor-key mid-80s digital roots reggae these White Mice tunes are for you. Check them and support the labels that tread the lonely waters of diminishing record sales to uncover beautiful music such as this.

In coming installments of the Roots and Wires blog I am going to highlight more of my favorite recent roots-dubwise reissues. Likewise, in the coming months make sure to stay tuned to these pages as Roots and Wires Hi-Fi spreads the word in the San Francisco-Bay Area and beyond.

Peace,
Andy G, Roots and Wires Hi-Fi

Stateless Six Month Anniversary - Photos & Audio

It's been a nice, deeply synchronistic flow during these first 48 hours in Seattle, my first return to the Pacific Northwest in three years... I'm taking off tommorrow early morning for a four day backpacking trip into the "Enchanted Valley," in the Olympic National Park, and pretty excited about this (as long as I don't get mauled by bears).

Thanks to everyone who came and made a special six month anniversary of Stateless... Our two live acts were great, a nice contrast to one another. Micropixie was ethereal, dreamy and wonderful. MC Rai producer Jeff Stott composed some amazing beats, played oud, and had two guest percussionists.

Check it for yourself and post some comments:

Micropixie Set

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Embarka Soundsystem Set

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Special Agent K Set

set one (check out the electro set!)

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playlist:

punjabi mc - jogi

asha bhosle - chura liya (from yaadon ki baaraat 1973)

special agent k feat. kishu nagar (vocal) and preetam ghosal (sarod) - dubstep 13

e.m.s. - close encounters

freezie freekie - flow (with an original recording of ghanshyam sisodia on sarangi mixed in)

errol davis - path i have taken

irration steppas - rasta headquarters

irration steppas - revelations dub

irration steppas - rejection remix

special agent k feat kishu nagar (vocals), preetam ghosal (sarod), ghanshyam sisodia (sarangi) - classical roller

set two (some ragga jungle in this one!)

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playlist:

navdeep - amrit

bally sagoo - tum bin jina (strobe's drum and bass remix)

andy c and dj hype - potential bad bwoy

congo natty feat. top cat - over u body

chopstick dubplate feat. general pecos - got the lovin'

mighty three's - nearer to dub

The Worker Set

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Ok, there's more audio to come soon...

Peace,

khenu

Outernational Travels through the realms of pounding Percussion

The early hours of June 22nd saw my brother and I make our way to LAX on course to catch a flight to Toronto, Ontario. My recollections of this great metropolis were informed by the bitter winter I experienced there in January 1997 so I was looking forward to landing during the summer. June, no doubt, would be a mellower affair. What was not mellow was the security we had to navigate as we checked in at the desks of El Al, the national airline of Israel. The tension was palpable as security eyed our passports intensely. They peppered us with questions pertaining to our intent to carry nefarious cargo aboard. The experience offered a brief window into the negative human costs of the perpetual Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Ironically, the history of diasporic displacements experienced by the Jewish and Palestinian peoples would find parallels in our outernational travel through the realms of pounding percussion.

Our central reason for journeying to Canada was to attend a two-day percussion retreat outside of Toronto co-sponsored by the wonderful people of the Tanglefoot Lodge and Mountain Rythym drums. The Tanglefoot Lodge is part yoga studio and part retreat house run by Russ and Nicky Hazard. Nestled in the woods Northeast of Toronto, the lodge made for the perfect zone to commune with nature and the nature of sound. These two know how to run a retreat space. Their tranquil and positive vibe was apparent in all of they did during the weekend. The vegetarian meals they cooked were some of the best I have ever experienced. Ital and pure! I highly recommend checking their website and definitely encourage one and all to visit them.

The other sponsor, Mountain Rythyms, is one of the premier makers of high quality hand percussion. They innovated the “simple twist” tuning system. For anyone who has tried tuning or retightening an old style Djembe this system is a godsend. Mountain Rythyms very own resident percussionist and teacher Ray Dillard, along with Russ, created a two-day introduction to “rhythmic teachings from around the world.” Entitled “Rhythms of the World”.

As the lattice of coincidence would have it, Ray is originally from Texas. Fresh from leaving Houston for San Francisco, I could only smile when he told me. Mirroring Khenu’s previous posts, the synchronistic moments that mark beginnings and ends; births and rebirths never ceases to amaze. While living in the Lone Star state Ray spent much of his time as a member of the Music and Audio Engineering faculty at San Jacinto College Central in Houston. He spent three years studying tabla in India. He has studied and played in Cuba. He has toured throughout Europe. He can jump from a Samba to an Indian Tal before he ends with a Cuban Clave. More importantly, he can teach it. Ray’s ability to convey his knowledge and passion for rhythm makes me wish I knew him ten years ago. I would be much further along in my own musical journey no doubt.

Outside of Ray, the organizers brought in two other superb instructors. Along with being an instructor at Humber College of Music, Rick Lazar is the creator and artistic director behind Samba Squad, one of Toronto’s main Samba schools. Rick was a seriously feisty cat. He had twenty people who had never met and even some complete novices like my brother and I playing serious samba in unison. The sound we created rivaled the sonic dominance one hears in a sound system dance. Our ears were pounding after Rick’s session on the seminar’s first night.

The following day Andy Morris connected the diasporic dots from Brazil back to Africa. He dedicated his session to various aspects of Ghanaian drumming. As would become a theme throughout the weekend, there were numerous points of overlap; a kind of sameness within differentiation that penetrated through the various sessions. Rick’s Afro-Brazilian lessons bled seamlessly into Andy’s discussion of West African traditions. The West African session provided a kind of centeral axis around which the other African diasporic traditions coalesced. Moving out of Andy’s session into Ray’s lesson on Afro-Cuban percussion gave one the sense of a resonant connection between the rhythmic patterns we were playing and their historical roots in the forced dispersal of African-descended peoples.

The serious mental work came when Ray broke down the some of the most common Tals in Indian music. As Ray states, “Tabla repertoire is traditionally taught orally, so no standardized notation exists.” This lack of a written musical nomenclature presents many difficulties for most western-trained musicians. Indian classical music’s eschewing of 4/4 time in favor of 7,10, or 16 beat measures, to name just a few possibilities, also had many of the participant’s looped. Asian massive cut-and-paste tabla this was not.

More could be said about all of the nuances present in the various percussive forms we experienced over the weekend. Suffice it to say, throughout the two days I was trying to work out basslines in my head that might fit over top some of the rhythms presented. With the unfolding and always synchronistic flows of the roots and wires I have no doubt that new rhythmic and musical discoveries will unfold in a home studio or two somewhere in the city of San Francisco…They will no doubt be partially influenced by my experiences over this weekend in the rolling hills northeast of Toronto…stay tuned

...But before I go let me give one last shout out to all the crew of the Tanglefoot Lodge and Mountain Rythym not to mention all of the great warm and welcoming Canadians that we met at the seminar and while wandering the streets of Toronto. Big up to the Canadian crew...

Endings and Beginnings

I might brave potential moments of dripping wax, to check out Jah Shaka at the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival this Friday. I’m expecting a different experience than when I last checked him at the Africana Center in London, in the mid-90’s. It was such a powerful experience then to see, hear and feel the "mighty zulu warrior's" sound – especially that feeling of his mighty tube-powered soundsystem thundering in my chest…

Transition and synchronicity have been strong in the air. I was at Maneesh the Twister's wedding last weekend, witness to the creation of a wonderful union. The next morning, while still in San Diego, we learned that my wife's grandmother had transitioned into the Mystery. Of all days, the funeral happened to be the same day as my entrance into the San Francisco Jung Institute, as a preliminary psychoanalytic candidate… So beginnings, endings, and beginnings again…


On another note - the last Stateless was wicked – mad props to Kush Arora for a next-step ragga-bhangra set! Friday, June 30, we will return to Amnesia (b/w 19th and 20th on Valencia, in SF's Mission) with our six month anniversary of Stateless. This should be an extra special event – first off, we have two amazing headliners. Micropixie will be playing with a live tabla player. Then, Jeff Stott, MC Rai producer and founder of Embarka Records, will be performing beats and oud, with a violinist and arabic percussion. Michael (The Worker) and I (Special Agent K) will be dropping opening and closing sets - spinning roots, dub, bhangra, outernational breaks and jungle, afrojazz, dancehall, dubstep and so on... I'll be doing my usual soundsystem business, with siren unit and analogue delays. I’m also planning on dropping some dubplates of original south asian dubstep and drum and bass. Finally, we will have visual art by Sue C. and live visuals by Yasi (Flaming Lotus Girls). Make sure and check it!