ON DECK: playlist from the past

Drunken Butterfly - Sonic Youth

For a little while Greg, Tommy and I were doing a weekly show on IM Radio. At this time (It's since moved to Echo Park) IM Radio was broadcasting from a rad little spot in the window of the MJ Higgins gallery, which at that time (It has since moved a few blocks east) was on Spring between 5th and 6th; my block!

At that time we were all DJing together. We all found ourselves with Spring St. addresses (we have all since moved on, Tommy and I to the retired comforts of Silverlake and Greg to fuckin' Mexico City) and thusly operated under the banner of "Bruce SpringStreet" a local, very local DJ collective. It was a fun way to listen to Punk Rock records, stay out late on weeknights and drink enough pints of Schlitz to float a manatee.

Our radio show was a rather moist affair, as well, with bottles placed among the begged, borrowed and stolen Internet radio equipment. We always had fun but I wanted to banter. I felt like Greg always wanted to "get back to the music", leaving me silently screaming, "just let me get to my punch line!!"

Well, on the night which hosted this particular play list from the pleasant past was different, I was alone. Engagements of natures forgotten kept both of the boys away. I was alone to banter, ramble and play as much "new shit" as I pleased.

Knowing that I had no buddy at my saddle, ready with a vinyl life vest, I scratched the following play list. No song titles, just band names and denotations concerning medium; "vinyl", "7 inch","CD".


Set 1 (I call this my, "geez, go to The Smell much?" set)
1. Ponies
2. NO AGE(2)
3. Silver Daggers
4. Mika Miko
5. Abe Vigoda
-talk-

Set 2 (This is my, "I'm old but I still like drugs and only listen to KCRW sometimes" set
1. Phychic TV-Godstar
2. Feathers(7)-LSD MUSIC
3. Animal Collective-Feels
4. White Flight
5. Violent Femmes(18)-American Music
-talk-

Set 3 (Um???? this is like a "I go to college in Oregan and have mad natty dreads coming in" set. weird one)
1. Aesop Rock (last song)
2. Dangerdoom
3. Ghostface Killah
4. Paul Barman
5. Kimya Dawson
6. Juiceboxxx
-talk-

Set 4 (This is like a "fuck you I'm gonna play bands from high school and a couple from nowadays...and Buddy Holly" set)
1. Propaghandi
2. Black Flag
3. Upsilon Acrux
4. Buddy Holly
5. French Film Blurred
6. Clip'd Beaks
-talk-

Set 5 (This is my "raddest set EVER" set)
1. Raooul
2. Old Tyme Relijun
3. Econochrist
4. XBRX
5. Elvis Costello
6. Sonic Youth
-fin-

My favorite parts were when I got to -talk-

On Deck: Ghost Face Killa-GhostDeini The Great

Everyone knows that I name check Mr. Tony Starks among my favorite rappers whenever favorite rappers are discussed. I love all of his joints. Even when More Fish came out and people were talking shit, I still thought it was brilliant

Well, my brother bought me GhosDeini The Great for Christmas. It's a"best of", of sorts with 2 new tracks and an accompanying DVD. This Comp is haphazardly put together and a little fucking boring.

The bonus DVD depicts the before-and-during of a GFK live show, which would have been entertaining except said live show takes place in Orange County for a room full of the white and brown backpackers that comprise the SoCal Indie Hip Hop Set; the most annoying of all regional Hip Hop sub-sects. Oh, and guess what, the pre-show rehearsal, which could have been the jewel of the live DVD was sans Ghost...He didn't show, leaving only footage of his goateed white boy temp. band. Yawnsville, population: Me

Of Course, track by track, Tony is still one of the most inventive, mystifying storytellers in the game. This is evident here in the track that inspired the title of worst Wu-related release in years, check it...

Ghost Deini - Ghostface Killah feat. Superb

ON DECK: Dert-Talk Strange

"Take Your Brain On Space-Walks, Talk Strange Like Björk"-Rza

I’m a fan of concept albums, rock operas, themed restaurants, and this sorta thing. It creates a point of reference with which you relate the other points and details of the experience.

I like it even more when this theme of themes is applied to a beat tape by L.A.’s emerging king of the concept, Dert. In past years Dert has given us Dert Floyd: The West Side of the Moon, poking around in the obstacle course that is Roger Waters’ head and making it Hip Hoppable.

This time he confronts your ex-girlfriend’s fucking favorite, the incomparable Bjork. Bjork, who as leader of The Sugarcubes, incidentally comprised 1/3 of the bill at my very first show with my then BFF Nate Gardner in the infancy of the 1990s. Bjork is always a point of nostalgia for me and this is probably the singular reason I haven’t yet smacked the shit up out of her.

Dert’s Bjork inspired beats capture the whimsy and light tread of Iceland and stir them up with Dillaesque drums and lackadaisical melodies. The perfect beat tape to queue if you’re sippin that sticky shit…if we did that out here in L.A.

The best part about these 18 Sunday afternoon bangers are that they are free. Download this shit here and pop it in on your way home from The Do-Over, perfecto.

PDX: The next Rap capital?

Portland is my favorite rap city right now and your boy Ohmega Watts is the unofficial Bridge City mayor.

Let's see, we grew up in New York, popped our cherries in LA, got stoopy down south, Hyphy up north...are we really ready for that rainy day women rap?



peace to Fresh Selects and the Pac Northwest.

The Freshest Five

Why is there so much ill shit, right now? Two years ago I was hungry for beats, fucking thirsty for rhymes. There was good rap on the radio but I was sleeping on the underground; opting instead to focus on the amazing feats being accomplished in the realm of Noise and Punk but you know that Wee Ginger Cunt needs that boom, bap, boom, boom, bap!

Well when it rains it pours and it’s fucking hailing dopeness, as of late. I see a lot of Dilla influence weaving through this new school, but fuck! Who hasn't been inspired by the great J.Dilla?

Without further rigmarole, I present the WGC Freshest Five…

Mr. Diabiase-Carrying Watts on his back


Devon-Carrying Portland on his back


Hi-Res-State to state, track to track


Das Racist- Kings of that Wikipedia rap


Suzi Analogue-Fuck you, I’m pretty

Please Believe Me

So, The Bruce SpringStreet DJ's are getting together for another installment of CRASS MONDAYS at Bar 107, this Monday, October 20th

It's traditionally a Punk night where we rinse classic Punk, Noise, Garage and shit like that.

However, I am going to play Ghettotech and Booty Bass, 'cause right now songs about Anarchy make me sad.

BAR 107 is located in lovely, historic Downtown LA on 4th Street between Spring and Main. We start at 10 and rage 'till you leave

High Places:EXPOSED!!

High Places say they are from Brooklyn but I see the dude with the beanie errywhere in LA.

Assuming that High Places is indeed from Brooklyn they are 1 of maybe 5 good bands from New York right now (shout out to Vivian Girls!!). So that leaves the score at NY:5, LA:87, yet I still hear dorks Worldwide lament about how rad New York is and how hopeless LA will always be.

Voicing this opinion in 2008 is basically an admission of dorkdom and means one of two things:

1. Either the person making this claim is super out-of-the-loop concerning where to go and what to see in The City of Angels
2. They are just regurgitating the same poison they heard 4 or 5 years ago when this claim actually held a little agua.

Basically what I’m trying to say is FUCK A HATER.

High Places make cloudy stoner jams with chick vocals that don’t bug the shit out me, which is rare.

I would suggest packing the wizard bong and letting High Places S/T rip, no matter which coast you rep. WEST SIIIDE.

ON DECK: Raooul/Skinned Teen...Slut-Core from the 10th grade

I walked into the uncomfortably hot Ooga Booga store on July 4th in hopes of swallowing some beer and catching a day time set from our favorite hybrid bitch-band; Tony (Formerly Teenage Moms).

These goals were indeed accomplished along with a windfall find that has left me with a Punk boner ever since. I found a brand-new gleaming copy of the 90’s Slut-Punk masterpiece Jailbait Core by Raooul.

Raooul was a band existing in the heyday of Lookout Records, when I would sit around my bedroom and daydream about dropping out of Greenway High and hopping a train to Gilman… never to return. Half the reason this Crust Punk utopia was so enticing was close proximity I would be to the members of Raooul(who were like my age, 15 or 16 , at the time) and their famed vaginas. Maybe, just maybe, if I played my cards right I would trip on Telegraph and find my teenage pecker coated in Raooul goo. God that would have been great.

This re-release is pressed as a split with Skinned Teen. They are from England or something.

Lookout! Records

On Deck: Urinals (Best Band EVER)

“You wanted the best and you got the best, the hottest band in the world…The Urinals!!”

Dude ain’t lie! Raul gave me a copy of Negative Capability…Check it out and blew my fucking mind.

Apparently, these rippers formed in Big Los Ang in the late 70’s and never looked back.

There tunes are at times fuzzy surf rock and at other moments blistering fucking punk rock. Every song however is a classic. If I could frame a song, my apartment would be decorated floor to ceiling with urinals.

I will probably never recommend any record/collection/compilation as highly as I do this one…Not that you give a flying faggot’s fuck which records I dig.

on deck: New Bloods, The Secret Life

New Bloods are a Portland trio that has found themselves on Kill Rock Stars and in my life.

They played this week at The Smell and they are most definitely all girls. This surprised me because the poster I received folded into my copy of The Secret Life LP looked, to me, to depict a male violin player. The ripper with the bow was indeed vagina-equipped. In my opinion she was actually the looker of the squad.

New Bloods plays Punkish Folk jams with stabbing strings that make you think, “This band is fully from Portland, but they have for sure hung out in Oakland”.

The Secret Life reminds me of why I love the Northwest, but why I would never, ever fit in there.

KILLROCKSTARS.COM

thenewbloods/NEWBLOODSMYSPACE