It’s time again for headlines from the Ghetto Archipelago. Read on to find out the latest developments in dancehall, cumbia and other invasive species.
Starting from the top of the globe and working down: The homey Uproot Andy was interviewed for a CBC radio documentary on cumbia—sounds deep but I haven’t figured out a way to listen to it, short of moving to Canada (not that that’s necessarily off the table). In the UK, Gyptian won the MOBO award for Best Reggae Artist yesterday, beating out Vybz Kartel and Damian Marley—and he might just beat them again to win the Soul Train jawn on November 10th, too. Here in New York, Max Glazer and Federation Sound are following up their Badda Badda Gals mix CD with an all-Natalie Storm version tentatively titled Songs 2 F@*K And Fight 2. In anticipation, they have leaked the wicked-slow, sexually frustrated taunt “Feel Up” as an um, teaser. Also, venomous lionfish are apparently fucking shit up in the Caribbean basin.
Banana Clipz, “Coupe Cumbia” (Bersa Discos)
La Ola Criminal, “Sin Gas” NY Tropical (Dutty Artz)
Rita Indiana, “El Juidero” (Sony US Latin)
Natalie Storm, “Feel Up” Songs 2 F@*K And Fight 2 (Federation Sound)
Cham f. Mykal Rose & Rodney Price, “Stronger” remix (Madhouse)
Download: GP 119 Lionfish Blend
The Lionfish thing appears to be only latest wave in a worldwide epidemic of invasive species—fueled by hurricanes, rising temperatures and most of all globalization. You’ve got your Burmese pythons brought to Florida as pets and of course your zebra mussels and ghetto palms smuggling themselves everywhere in the bilgewater of tanker ships. But my personal top rated invader has got to be the fugitive African hippos that escaped from the ranch of drug kingpin Pablo Escobar to breed in the jungles of Colombia.
In related news, Banana Clipz is finally releasing a full-length project, a digital-only release on Bersa Discos—more info on that soon—and Dutty Artz is dropping a NY Tropical compilation, er, posse cut, in November. (They also made the brilliant move of putting together an iPhone-ready compilation of ringtones as a companion piece).
Back in the Caribbean, dancehall’s original mad genius Dave Kelly went into the studio with Rodney Price. In case you don’t see why that’s news, that happens to be the government name of Bounty Killer aka the Warlord, who voiced some of his most legendary 45s with Kelly at the boards. (Apparently, though, he, Kelly, refuses to work with Bounty Killer. He only works with Rodney Price. Seriously. Mykal Rose and Cham he works with under their usual names.) Ex-model turned ex-novelist turned jam-creator Rita Indiana lived up to all hype surrounding her unleashed a military coup of an album called El Juidero. Lastly, me and Martei hung out with Maluca uptown by the cloisters.
