It's that time of the year! Put up christmas lights, air your grievances, and post your top ten lists online in front of god and everybody. I really enjoyed Erik's review of good dj mixes for the year, I think I listened to that Johnny Nash mix way more than the doctor ordered.
So, let's put an end to revisionist history right here by posting our top tens up before everyone else does. After seeing everyone else's lists I always want to pretend like I listened to something way more legit than I really did.
More realistically, I had to put together a list a week ago, so I'm not leaving much hope for the releases of the month of December. However, those Academy reissues of SJOB Movement and Mebusas are real hot. That and the Nosmoke release of the Ngozi Family LP 45,000 Volts is so good, I may like it more than the Chrissy Zebby Tembo and the Ngozi Family LP from last year. Super heavy on the Sabbath riffage and still throwing down some traditional Zambian percussion and language in between is about as essential as they come.
Because I spent a ton more time on reissues than new music this year, I will start the list off there.
Reissues:
V/A Ouga Affair (Disques Savannahphone)
V/A Take Me To The Water (Dust-to-Digital)
V/A Psych Funk 101 & School Me Volume One (STA)- Strong start for an oddball label!
Alan Lomax in Haiti (Harte)
Mortika: Recordings from the Greek underground (Mississippi)
The Units -History of (Community Library)
The Durutti Column Box Set (Kooky)
Death… For the Whole World to See (Drag City)
Ofege – Try and Love (Academy)
Jerusalem - Jerusalem (Vintage)
As always, many <3’s to Analog Africa, Honest Jon’s, Monk, and Norton (particularly those early Sun Ra Doo Wop jamz and "I am Strange" 7".
New Releases: No Particular Order
Julianna Barwick - Florine (Self-Released)
Desire (Italians Do it Better)
Lindstrom & Prins Thomas - II (Eskimo)
William Fowler Collins - Perdition Hill Radio (Type)
Dam Funk - Toeachizown (Stones Throw)
Ducktails - Landscapes (Olde English Spelling Bee)
Music Go Music - Expressions (Secretly Canadian)
Ata Ebtekar &The Iranian Orchestra for New Music Performing Works of Alireza Mashayikhi - Ornamentalism (Sub Rosa)
Neal Morgan – To the Breathing World (self released)
Life’s Blood releases 001: Cole’s Gifts and 003: The Endless Bummer’s Modern American Calypsos For Voice and Computer
Record digging highlights for 09: Gems from the bargain bin
Willie Guy Rainey - s/t (Southland Records)
The Sufi Dance & Song Record, San Francisco CA (Rainbow Bridge Distro)
Kitaro - Ten Kai aka Astral Voyage (Wergo/Spectrum)
Level 42 - Starchild (Polydor)
Manhar Udhas - Aagman (Super Cassette Industries)
A friend of mine asked me to do a "balearic" set at his party. Not sure he knew what I knew, but I found that song just in time and squeezed it between this great cheeseball gypsy disco song called "sandstorm" and some Japanese folk ragas. Turns out doing a "balearic" set is a good way to loose friends who DJ Detroit techno using Serato the rest of the night. Saved myself by pulling out a Ricardo Villalobos suite and getting the hell out of there. I wish I could've recorded my set, I would have posted it. It was fun, switching off with a kid who showed up with a bag of Chicago house records (many of which he preferred to play at 33 rpm?).
That wraps it up for me. Miss you dudes. I'll be in CA for the holidays, and I think I am going to the Rickshaw Stop for New Years. Hopefully be able to see you guys when I'm out there, nerd out and listen to some records!
