Category: Listen

Today’s special guest is my dad.

My father has had a profound impact on my life as well as influencing my tastes in music. Thanks to him, I grew up listening to The Beatles, Kraftwork, and Segovia as well as the subversive comedy of the Firesign Theater. I’ve introduced him to the likes of the Sex Pistols and The Orb and he introduced me to The Pogues and DJ Spooky.

He’s also had some great ideas for radio programs and podcasts. One idea was to introduce each song on a show with a bit of background on the artist and the song. As a deejay and especially as a deejay for an electronic music show I was resistant to the idea because half the fun of solipsistic NATION is taking people on a journey with a seamless mix so the last thing I wanted to do was break up that mix by talking about each song.

On today’s show we’re going to experiment with the format by trying his idea. In fact, I thought it would be cool to have each artist introduce themselves and their songs.

This week solipsistic NATION continues to promote art and design culture with another t-shirt give away contest, courtesy of Custom Industries. Email me at solipsisticnation@gmail.com and you could be a lucky winner of one Custom Industries t-shirt of your choice.

Photo Credit: Nick Konings Copyright © Nick Konings and Yell Saccani

1. WAYZ “Pain”
2. KT “Lessons In Life”
3. Nosaj Thing “Heart Entire”
4. Stuntdouble “El Guapo”
5. Genius of Soul “Identity Crisis”
6. DJ Om “Middle Eastern Swan Song”
7. The Winston Giles Orchestra “We Wait For Sunrise”
8. The Other Guy “Step One (Kings Street Mix)”
9. Bluetech & Shulman “Midnight Bloom”
10. Grouse “Twisted”
11. Rena Jones “Open Me Slowly”

The future of Internet radio is in immediate danger. Royalty rates for webcasters have been drastically increased by a recent ruling and are due to go into effect on May 15 (retroactive to Jan 1, 2006!). If the increased rates remain unchanged, the majority of webcasters will go bankrupt and silent on this date. Internet radio needs your help! H.R. 2060, The Internet Radio Equality Act was introduced by Representatives Jay Inslee (D-WA) and Donald Manzullo (R-IL ) to save the Internet radio industry. Please call your congressperson to ask them to co-sponsor H.R. 2060 by clicking here.

This week solipsistic NATION continues to promote art and design culture with another t-shirt give away contest, courtesy of ForManKind. Email at solipsisticnation@gmail.com and you could be a lucky winner of one ForManKind t-shirt of your choice.

1. Bassnectar “Underground Communication (Ft. Seasunz)”
2. Greenskeepers “Polo Club (D’s Book Learnin’ Dub)”
3. City Zen “Vozduh”
4. Riccio “Night Music”
5. Egor Boss “Stop My Mind”
6. eccodek “Fan the Flames Dub”
7. Brainboxing “Good Man’s Loafer”
8. Andres Bucci “Sentinel”
9. Crystal Fake “Monday After (Original)”
10. Naw “5 am West Bound”
11. Robsounds “No Undo”

Hello, citizens, and welcome to Solipsistic Nation, the show that features the very best of all genres of electronic music.

This week on solipsistic NATION we’ll take a journey in sound.

I think most DJs will tell you that when they play a set that they want to take listeners on a journey. There’s something magical about music in that it can take you places. The sound of crickets chirping can transport you to an idyllic summer night while the sound of fog horns can take you to a mysterious, somber place, all within the space between your ears.

On today’s solipsistic NATION we’ll go to the streets of Italy, the beaches of Mexico and the distant seas. We’ll hear the sounds of bicycles, automobiles, jets and sailing ships. We’ll travel the world without taking a step.

This week solipsistic NATION continues to promote art and design culture with another t-shirt give away contest, courtesy of Philosopher Garden. Email at solipsisticnation@gmail.com and you could be a lucky winner of one Philosopher Garden t-shirt of your choice.

1. Brindisi Paradiso “Boca Boca”
2. Chris Watson/Richard H. Kirk/Stephen Mallinder “Runway O2E”
3. Sismo “Palma Roja”
4. Bn Loco “Canción Playera”
5. Nosaj Thing “Aquarium”
6. Chimp Beams “Menina”
7. Skink “Pomme Rips”
8. Tycho “Send and Receive”
9. Detalles “Move On (Jonas Bering Remix)”
10. Elan “Driving At Night In the Rain”
11. Roland P. Young “Willow”
12. Maju “Distortion”
13. David Bickley and Tom Green “Frozen Ship”

Each week on solipsistic NATION I promote art and design culture as well as playing the best of all genres of electronic music. Last weekend I attended the THREAD Expo in San Diego to meet more artists to feature on the show.

THREAD is a showcase of emerging fashion designers and the music and art that rock their world. For demanding fashionistas seeking ‘whats next’ and the most cutting-edge looks, THREAD is a chance to pick up one-of a kind pieces ranging from hand-stitched frocks to eye-catching jewelery, often at reduced prices. For independent fashion designers used to settling for a couple of inches of rack space at high street boutiques, THREAD is a rare opportunity to showcase complete lines before they hit the shelves and sell off samples.

Below are some of the artists I met while attending the THREAD Expo

FMKLIFE
We are FMK, which is an acronym representing ForManKind. We are a brand out of north county San Diego and have a lot of local support. Currently all of our artwork is printed on some of the highest quality materials found in the universe, and it’s damn stylish, not to mention very comfortable as well. Our product is not particular to anyone, hence the reason we’ve branded ourselves as FMK (formankind). We incorporate everyone and anyone who wants to be apart of the FMK lifestyle.

What is the FMK lifestyle? It’s anything you can imagine, from your wildest dreams to your worst nightmares. Or it’s as simple as just life itself. We identify with the beauty of all life around us and our clothing represents it all. We are creating a culture of mixed backgrounds. We promote a free-living lifestyle filled with positive thoughts. We truly are boundless and we intend not to offend anybody with our different styles. We line ourselves with today’s very colorful modern youth culture. Often we try to encompass our adventures and wild thoughts into our artwork, which can be a bit off the wall, but that’s just how we do things…

WAFFO
Hey Y’all! Word on the corner is that we sell the softest, best cut, vintage tees on the block! None of that American Apparel or wannabe vintage hokey pokey. This is the real deal here! Are you down with old vintage “Screen Stars?” I thought so. Well, try this number out. Our own private label made with our own super soft custom blended fabric. 100% Made in the U.S.A.. Seriously folks, we guarantee this t-shirt to be the softest thing in your closet or yo’ money back!

We are currently cutting, sewing, and dyeing all of our t-shirts in down town San Diego. We use small sewing contractors on the streets of National City, Chula Vista, and El Cajon Blvd. to keep our inventory rooms full, and to keep the quality and cash flow in our neighborhoods.

We hope to provide you with the pleasure of owning and wearing one of our custom manufactured super softs! However, You have been *WARNED*. Once you put one on, it’s hard to wear anything else. Cheers!

IRON FIST
We started Iron Fist to make affordable kick ass clothing for the kids. It’s a sincere deal, no bullshit.

Just a crew of delinquent skaters, artists, musicians, BMX’ers, surfers, punks… whatever you want to call it making stuff that we want to wear. Not some 50 year old guy with his winning formula for brands who thinks we won’t know the difference because he has to pay people to wear his shit.

Fuck the so-called industry and fuck the way things are. Let’s change it for ourselves, create anew and make our own deal.

Just like how it all started out in the beginning when it all meant something to someone…

SPRKFR
“Because you can’t be naked, all the time.”

Founded by Marco Rached, SPRFKR, offers t-shirts that are both sexy and provocative. Marco’s clothing is clearly inspired by Art Nouveau, Victoriana, Dada, Pop Art and 60s psychedelic rock concert posters but twisting it with his own unique vision of the world.

You can email Marco at el_suprfukr@yahoo.com or visit his MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/SUPRFUKR.

TEAM NACU
NACU Clothing serves as a reminder to recognize the people who support and help us achieve our goals.

The five points of the star in the NACU logo represent the people and groups that influence what we do & who we are today. For John Joseph Nacu, those five groups are God, family, friends, teachers, and culture.

The letter “N” that connects to the star standards for “Nacu”.

CUSTOM INDUSTRIES
CUSTOM INDUSTRIES was founded in the summer of 2004 in Venice, California by graphic designer and world traveller Matt Taylor. Matt has visited over 45 countries on six continents, and has been around the world more times than he can count. Prior to founding CUSTOM, Matt worked for over 10 years as a designer and animator in the entertainment industry, creating works for clients such as Disney, MGM, Dreamworks, Activision and EB Games to name a few. Matt’s partner and wife, Catherine Roa, is a fashion designer with 10+ years experience in apparel design, sourcing and product development for a number of internationally recognized apparel manufacturers. All of the graphics and embellishments reflect our passion for travel, art and adventure. We share this with our customers by offering high quality, detail oriented streetwear with style and comfort. Each of our unique graphics is accompanied by an individualized tag with an anecdotal and irreverent description about the place that inspired the design. In January of 2007, Custom Industries moved to San Francisco, CA.

PHILOSOPHER GARDEN
Headquartered in Irvine, California, a company was born from the imagination of two young, creative, and independent women who believed there was a void in intelligent, yet sophisticated and fashionable items.

After countless meetings scribbling ideas, while sipping strong black tea and eating much too many Russian bakery cookies, a unique concept was conceived; we called it Philosopher Garden. Philosopher Garden provides a new and unparalleled experience of enjoying inspirational and meaningful written sentiments. Our diversified fashion and gift lines combine favorite quotes with high impact graphic designs.

Philosopher Garden’s fashionable t-shirts delivers heart felt, motivational, and witty sentiments in a personal and unique way. Our junior line, debuts with Mukalacha, our sweet and friendly cow. She speaks for our youthful spirit and desire “to be a star”. From our imagination to you…

MINDTRIX
MindTrix is a fusion of eastern wisdom and western fashion.

The clothing’s unique design is ruled by MindTrix’s passion for the environment, eastern philosophy and fashion.

MindTrix is for people with more discriminating tastes who want street fashion that fits their own sensibilities.  MindTrix focuses on reaching customers who have resisted being labeled as a particular generation or lumped into a target market.  Individualism manifests in their lives as a conscious choice and as a culmination of fashion, the environment and sustainable living.

BLENDS
There’s not much I can tell you about Blends because their web site is almost as minimal as their display at THREAD. I’m a sucker for sneakers so I headed right over to talk to the owners. I was directed to Keith, who was kind enough to take time out from his hectic schedule to share a few words.

The Blends display was all black and their shoes were either black or white, negative and positive. If I had more time I would have had asked the significance of their choice of colors, but there was so much to see and do!

This week solipsistic NATION continues to promote art and design culture with another t-shirt give away contest, courtesy of Marco Rached of SPRFKR SPRFKR. Email at solipsisticnation@gmail.com and you could be a lucky winner of one SPRFKR t-shirt of your choice.

1. Greenskeepers “Polo Club”
2. Urban Delights “Crush”
3. My Robot Friend “Rapture (Freelance Hellraiser Remix)”
4. Levan Vs. Ekala “Tram”
5. Tomboy “Flamingo (KIM Remix Radio Edit)”
6. Junior Boys “In The Morning (Hot Chip Remix)”
7. FMKLIFE Interview
8. Waffo Interview
9. Iron Fist Interview
10. SPRKFR Interview
11. Team Nacu Interview
12. Custom Industries Interview
13. Philosopher Garden Interview
14. MindTrix Interview
15. Blends Interview
16. Bizzart “Suicide Bomber’s Parade”
17. Omni “Batterie”
18. Paulie Rhyme “Thuganomix”
19. Walter Meego “Romantic”
20. Drop The Lime “Glock Box”
21. Kieran Hebden & Steve Reid “The Sun Never Sets”

On this week’s edition of solipsistic NATION we’ll focus on electronic music infused with rhythms and sounds from around the world.

Some call this subgenre of electronic music ethnotechno while others call it world beat. Maybe the reason it escapes such easy categorization is because this kind of electronic music borrows from so many cultures and is performed and composed by so musicians across the planet. Is ethnotechno electronic music that incorporates global rhythms and sounds? Or is it music composed by artists from different countries? Or both? We’ll ask Derek Beres, author of Global Beat Fusion: The History of the Future of Music, this question on today’s show.

Speaking of global beat fusion, this week’s solipsistic NATION give away is Karsh Kale‘s CD, Broken English.

On Broken English, London born and New York raised Karsh Kale balances his Indian heritage with rock ‘n’ roll, hip hop and atmospheric pop for his most diverse release to date. His third studio release, Kale works with a talented cast of collaborators including MC Napoleon and vocalists Trixie Reiss (The Crystal Method), film composer Salim Merchant (one half of the “it” Bollywood composer team, Salim-Sulaiman) and Dierdre of Ekova.

Send me an email at solipsisticnation@gmail.com and you might find yourself the lucky winner of Karsh Kale’s Broken English.

Photo Credit: Osvaldo_Zoom

1. Banco de Gaia “Kara Kum (Radio Edit)”
2. Karsh Kale “Hole in the Sky”
3. Welder “Shiva”
4. Soma “Baal”
5. ZAMAN 8 & Hafez Modir “Sani”
6. Marsicano “Ganges”
7. MIDIval PunditZ “Piya”
8. Bitstream Dream “Flight of the Diplasiocoela (Ft. Sandhya Sanjana)”
9. Mr. Tunes “Metamorphosis”
10. Maïdo Project “Galatasaray (Remix)”
11. Blue Tribe “Sun King”
12. Cheb I Sabbah “Madh Assalhin (Praising of the Saints Ft. Haddaretes)”
13. Interview with Derek Beres, author of Global Beat Fusion: The History of the Future of Music
14. Land “Bustle”

Drum and bass emerged out of the UK in the 1990s as an offshoot of the breakbeat and rave scene.

Like most forms of electronic music, drum and bass is flexible enough to incoporate other genres of electronic music such as dancehall, house and electro. It is perhaps for this reason why drum and bass has remained relevant for over 15 years. In fact, after a brief lull, there is currently a resurgence of excitement in drum and bass!

Many of the songs on today’s edition of solipsistic NATION came from my interviews with Simon “Bassline” Smith of Technique Recordings, Nathan Vinall of Skynet Recordings, Doug Kubiks of Rubik Records and Barry Lundie and Simon and Ashley Arnold of Jerona Fruits Recordings, not to mention erb N dub. Head over to small WORLD podcast to hear the interviews and to hear more great drum and bass!

This week solipsistic NATION continues to promote art and design culture with another t-shirt give away contest, courtesy of Noah Singer and Mike Andrews of Imperfect Articles. Email at solipsisticnation@gmail.com and you could be a lucky winner of one Imperfect Articles t-shirt of your choice.

Photo Credit: Mr. phelps

1. Skynet “Lucifer (Ft. Messinian)”
2. Phetsta “Intergalactic”
3. DJ Panik “Party Time”
4. BioUtopia “Psychological Continuity (Jungle Mayhem Remix)”
5. Mijatoho “Something True”
6. Sabre “Floating Source”
7. Physics “Far East”
8. Roberto “Ayeshia”
9. CLS & Wax “Double Bubble”
10. Roni Size “Friends”
11. erb N dub “Don’t Know Why (RMX)”

Back in September I released a documentary about nerdcore on solipsistic NATION. That epsiode got such an overwhelming response that I thought it was time do another show on the genre. Besides, I identify more with songs about video games and comic books than songs about drive-by shootings and smacking bitches.

If you dig the songs on today’s show you can download all of them and more at the Rhyme Torrents web site.

Since we’ll be listening to nerdcore on today’s show, I thought it would appropriate to give away a few tshirts from J!NX. J!NX specializes in clothing for discerning gamers and geeks. You know, people like you.

Hit me up with an email at solipsisticnation@gmail.com and you could be a lucky winner of one J!NX tshirt of your choice.

Photo Credit: Elinay

1. Benjamin Bear “Interlude”
2. Old Scratch “To Hell With Hip Hop”
3. Metamystiks Incorporated “Superior Beings (Ft. ArmageddonMan)”
4. Dr. Octagon “Ants”
5. Myf “Top Secret (featuring Masta Cwik)”
6. Super Dragon X “When You Wanna Win: The Cheate”
7. Futuristic Sex Robot “WoW”
8. Nursehella “Nursehellamentary”
9. Beefy “Tub of Tabasco”
10. MC Hawking “Rock Out With Your Hawk Out”
11. Baddd Spellah and MC Frontalot “Nerdcore Hip-Hop 2006”
12. Benjamin Bear “The Last Fantasy”
13. Rai “Big Lie”
14. Ultraklystron “So Long Kids”
15. funky49 and Redvoid “RPG (Rhymes of Phatness and Greatness)”
16. Baddd Spellah “Gawd Particlez”
17. YTcracker “In My Time”

Dubstep is a genre of music which came out South London’s dark 2step sound. “Dubstep” was coined by Ammunition Promotions and first used by XLR8R magazine on their feature on Horsepower Productions.

The dubstep sound is all about sub bass, reverb and delay and utilizes halfstep beat patterns to create a heavy and foreboding music. At it’s best you feel the bass more than you hear it while the drums are like a kick in the head.

I’ve got some more schwag to give away on solipsistic NATION. This time I’ll be giving away dogchains, courtesy of Radioactive Future, a San-Diego based collective of underground artists. Hit me up with an email at solipsisticnation@gmail.com and you could be a lucky winner of one of the dogchains of your choice.

1. Luke Envoy “Gamma”
2. Sileni “Twitchy Droid Leg (Vex’d Remix)”
3. DLI “Forsaken”
4. Cotti “Breaking Point Mixd 2”
5. 4N General “Daylight Robbery Orgi”
6. fliPPo “Techno Ghosts”
7. subduxtion “Forewarning”
8. Burial “Spaceape”
9. Metalboxproducts “Boom Boom (0.2)”
10. Pompende “Inhouse Vibes”
11. Shonky “Talking Drum”
12. Vonboyage “Flippin Livid”

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, House is one of my least favorite genres of electronic music. This week’s solipsistic NATION, however, features some of the sexiest House music you’ll ever likely to hear.

You may be wondering that if don’t like House why do I play it on solipsistic NATION. The answer is simple: I play the best of all genres of electronic music on solipsistic NATION. Even House.

Why I don’t like House is difficult to define. My initial answer is that House often sounds cheap. The cheesey synths, the lame drum tracks and boring bass lines just put me to sleep. Sounding cheap isn’t necessarily a bad thing, though. There are many artists who can craft great music out of those same elements but I think most musicians who create House music simply fall into the most overused clichés of the genre. It’s artists like Dorfmeister and Chuck Love who appear on today’s show who keep House fresh, exciting and oh so sexy!

Photo Credit: mr_max_mercury

1. Richard Dorfmeister/Madrid De Los Austrias “Valldemossa (Parov Stelar & Raul Irie Remix)”
2. Novalima “Candela”
3. Quasimode “Ipe Amarelo (Spiritual South Skitzophremix)”
4. Spiritual South & Sleeptalker Sleepwalker “Hullabaloo”
5. Funk Harmony Park “Silence Me”
6. BangGuru “I Wanna Dance”
7. Isla Deejay “New York Mood”
8. Chris Wilson “House In The Dark”
9. Onionz “Woman Of The Sun (Hipp-E’s Stripped Out Mix Ft. El Feco)”
10. Chuck Love “Beat Down”

This week on solipsistic NATION I’m going to give away some schwag. Hit me up with an email at solipsisticnation@gmail.com and you could be a lucky winner of a MindTrix tshirt. Check out which shirts are available at solipsisticnation.com.

MindTrix is a fusion of eastern wisdom and western fashion. The clothing’s unique design is ruled by MindTrix’s passion for the environment, eastern philosophy and fashion. MindTrix is devoted to opening the eyes and enlightening the minds of the masses. I figure why not rock one of their cool shirts as you rock out to solipsistic Nation.

1. My Robot Friend “Problems”
2. Walter Meego “Wanna Be A Star (Protman and Dangergirl Remix)”
3. Pink Punk “Yapolitical”
4. MSTRKRFT “Work On You”
5. In Flagranti “Business Acumen”
6. Momentum & Delicious Groove “Old Nasty”
7. Royal Sapien “Triple Nine (Royal Sapien Body Shot Remix)”
8. Ryan Crane “Just Like That”
9. Los Brutos “Mr. Nice (Original Mix)”
10. The Octopus Project + Black Moth Super Rainbow “Lollipopsichord”
11. Trans Mania “Boing Boom Jack (Pulsinger Remix)”
12. Plankton Man “Me Voy”
13. Urban Delights “Revolution Number 1”