Week Eight of MP3 Monday is all about the DJ mix: three long sets, approaching three hours in total length. Notate bene: Normally I host MP3 Monday tracks on my own server. These are hosted elsewhere, so they (a) may last longer than the week my songs do, but also (b) may disappear at any time.
1. “Brazilian Specialist Mix” by DJ Paulão. Found at brazilica.nl. Length: 45:00.
Brazilian are drowning in their caipirinhas over their football team’s ignominious defeat at the hands of Les Bleus. One comforting thought, though — and I say this as an established francoaudiophile: The music of France will never match the music of Brazil in diversity or quality.
DJ Paulão is based in Campinas, outside São Paulo, and specializes in Brazilian music of the ’60s and ’70s: samba funk, jazz fusion, tropicália, and MPB. (Although, if this page is to believed, he also mixes in New Orleans rare groove, Ethiopian funk, Nigerian afrobeat, and [new to me] “sitar funk.” I think I’m in love.)
Anyway, this mix is an excellent intro to a bunch of Brazilian sounds. The artists, in rough order: Fagner, Tim Maia, Sergio Mendes, Marcos Valle, Joao Donato, Emilio Santiago, Di Melo, Paulo Diniz, Ed Lincolm, Tom e Dito, Etoiles, MPB4, Claudete Soares, Novos Baianos, Tom Ze, Antonio Carlos Jocafi, Jorge Ben, Tim Mais, Roberto Carlos, and Chico Science.
2. “666 Mix” by Peanut Butter Wolf. Found at stonesthrow.com. Length: 1:05:36.
Peanut Butter Wolf is the founder of Stones Throw Records, which regular crabwalk.com readers by now recognize as The Greatest Hip-Hop Label In Recorded Human History. But even dedicated hip-hop guys like to branch out now and then, and this “666 Mix” is a prime example. Recorded for a DJ set on June 6 (06/06/06), it’s all death metal, thrash metal, and affiliated genres. (Well, not all — there is a smidge of Led Zeppelin — but pretty much all.)
I’ll be honest: This stuff makes my head hurt in large quantities, but it’s remarkable how hypnotic and (dareisay) tuneful short stretches can be. The artists, in rough order: Ec8or, Black Sabbath, Death, Gutted, Ministry, Slayer, Sepultura, Chimaira, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, Cabaret Voltaire, Bruce Haack, Venom, Necrophobic, The Cure, Faust, Helltrain, Metal Church, Queensryche, Wendy Carlos, Lost Soul Project, Iron Monkey, Satyricon, The Boneless Ones, Decide, Sepulvida, Pantera, Skinny Puppy, Frontline Assembly, Front 242, Nitzer Ebb, SITD, Revolting Cocks, Clock DVA, Motley Crue, and Led Zeppelin.
3. “Madlib’s 45s Mix” by Madlib. Found at the Stones Throw podcast. Length: 1:05:00.
(FYI: Those links go to iTunes, not a direct MP3 download. This is an episode of the Stones Throw podcast, so you’ll need to dl it within iTunes.)
Madlib is (and I fear I’m alienating crabwalk.com readers with my near constant pimping of him) the genius beatmaker behind most Stones Throw albums, mixing jazz, soul, funk, breakbeat, reggae, Brazilian, and any other style of black music you can imagine into a lush groove.
This mix is of a bunch of 45s from Madlib’s neverending collection. No track listing or artist list, alas, but you’ll hear a lot of great bouncy funk, R&B, and soul.