ALFA 5

SHAWBROS SHODOWN.

*late 1990s video in event from kam and sip... gearing up for offerations vol. 1.2 this wednesday at the same spot (w/ transmolecular brethren). 1965 main street!@#$%!!!

the house of commons

reggay for your jeggay

touched by the hand of mod

touched by the hand of mod? well, sure... though i never owned a scooter, i did fancy myself as something of a UK-obsessed junior modernist in the early-to-mid 1990's, long after the first wave british mod revival of the late 1970's (the jam, paul weller, etc...). spurred on by my love of jamaican ska, rocksteady, and reggae, US black soul, funk, and jazz, not to forget original 1960's rockers the small faces and creation, i was only a parka and haircut away from the vast netherworld of subculture... in mid-1990's vancouver, night clubs played a large part in this scene. places where people drank, danced, and socialized w/ like-minded individuals. to get the desired "look," clothes and music often had to be ordered from overseas specialty shops. remember this was happening just as the internet started shooting its tangled webs and everything became accessible at the click of a computer. to be a mod, rude boy, skinhead or punk in those days required a lot of dedication. subversiveness through alternative consumption, rebelliousness through underground music, and expression through passionate dance and dialogue... today, it seems that much of this analogue spirit has evaporated, or at least the meaning lost or watered down (perhaps this was true of my era as well, something for debate). with the corporate world co-opting every ounce of cultural cool ever produced by the streets, the party may very well be over. going over to coquitlam centre to pick up your flash parka and 3-button suit jacket at H&M or urban outfitters simply doesn't have the same appeal to me... oh well, i look forward to seeing how the youths of today shape their own brand of subculture (*good luck my sons)... but in celebration of mod and the mod-minded folks that came before (and hopefully after) us, we pay tribute to the great soul, reggae, and R&B-influenced rock artists of the mid-1960's to early 1980's. armed w/ a stack of 7"s singles and trusty LPs, i, sipreano, and die-hard mod DJ limbo take it back to the essence. LOUD and PROUD music on vinyl, presented w/ style in a room w/ more than ample atmosphere and vibe (the waldorf hotel tiki bar). see you this thursday (april 21) and don't forget to leave your scooter out front...

supreme la rock (aka mr. supreme)

i've known seattle-based supreme la rock for a few years, but the hommie mr. supreme for even longer. for a short while i knew a crazy dude named pappi panama, but i can barely remember his trip. one time, i even read about a cat named born supreme in a pacific northwest hip hop zine, but hell, that was likely over 15 years ago... what do all these nutters have in common??? they are the cultural brainchildren of danny clavesilla.

for those who don't know, supreme is a true enigma (trust me, i'm not exaggerating an iota here) and one of the deepest musical maniacs rolling. his record collection (see videos below, part 1 and 2) is the stuff of much-ballyhooed legend, but i've witnessed it live and direct so any haters, wet mouths or non-believers out there can simply fall back. to add to the insanity, supreme was also 1/2 (along w/ super producer jake one) of legendary break beat tape dons, the conmen. it was their series of self-released cassettes—that probed deep into the murky depths of sample archaeology (soul, funk, jazz, library, EZ, world, and whatever your imagine could create... and beyond...)—that turned me on to a new reality and musical attack... i remember visiting sea-town w/ my DJ partner kamandi to link w/ preme for a record deal while he and jake were recording a conmen mix (veteranos???) many moons ago (*unfortunately, their last mix dropped 10 years ago).

needless to say, these were different times, and there was serious secrecy in the air. break beats were highly coveted, gold-like commodities then, a producers or disc jockeys secret weapon, and not to be shared w/ canadian strangers like us. jake was making sure that we couldn't see any of the album sleeves they were using for the project. pure comedy.  in retrospect, this competitive nature and one-upmanship helped elevate these artists to the highest levels in their respective games. supreme, once a talented rap producer w/ his conception records label and as part of the pioneering sharpshooters duo w/ deejay sureshot, has now turned his attention almost exclusively to world-wide DJ work. jake's production track record on the other hand is truly mind-blowing. but back to the DJ...

after forging a musically-minded friendship w/ supreme, kamandi and i even tried to bring the record guru north to our weekly soulcial party at the chameleon urban lounge. of course, this was a big deal for us and we not only had our mate jay gundzik design a spot on ad-like flyer for the occasion (see above), but also bought a beautiful bottle of X.O. hennessey as something of a rider. well, the night arrived and the club was more busy than usual, brimming w/ electricity, but no supreme. "sally got a one track mind," "ring the alarm," and dusty soul and funk 7"s filled the air as we waited for the headliner. though we had hung around the hotel patiently for hours beforehand and tried calling numerous times, it was safe to say that supreme was M.I.A..

eventually, we heard from the man. he had been detained at the border and denied entrance. DAMN!@#$%&?!!! perhaps the sight of a grand, tattooed man driving a mercedes benz filled w/ vinyl records made the guards a little suspicious. hard to say. anyways, our club patrons eventually found out that our guest of honour wasn't able to make it, and we finished the night a little deflated after such anticipation. c'est la vie i guess. but the night wasn't over yet. likely more than half cut at this point, we decided to crack supreme's henne and between a couple friends, proceeded to finish the WHOLE bottle at various locations across town. we ended the evening on the beach after making our 15th utterly obscene phone message to supreme's cellular, cursing him for not making the date. safe to say, if he still has these messages recorded somewhere deep in his archives (*i wouldn't be surprised, this man has EVERYTHING!!!), they could be potentially libelous in a court of law. oops...

regardless of our youthful hijinx, the point of this post is to say that supreme has been one of my biggest musical inspirations (teaching me to dig D-E-E-P-E-R... and always w/ a sense of humour), partially responsible for my rewarding link w/ light in the attic records (*BIG props to a man like shane as well!!!), and an all-around rad dude... it's our utmost honour to host supreme la rock for an all-vinyl set at this week's history of dance event at vancouver's waldorf hotel! thankfully, proper paper work for his journey has been taken care of this time. couldn't do it any other way. see you at the club folks! along w/ dancing bear of ladyhawk fame, jason lev, the magical rahaan from chi-town, and yours truly, prepare yourself for a bonkers evening...