Yellowman: Alive and Kicking

Yellowman at The Globe, Cardiff, photo by Paul Seligman.

Last Thursday I went to see Yellowman. King Yellowman that is. Dancehall legend. His appearance is what you could call remarkable: he's tall, skinny, athletic and albino. In 1986 he was diagnosed with cancer of the jaw and was told he had only 3 weeks to 6 months to live. Thanks to surgery he is still among us, but it left his face disfigured. Being raised by nuns at the Alpha Boys School orphanage in Kingston, Jamaica (it fostered many famous musicians, like Desmond Dekker and four members of the Skatalites), you could say his life hasn't been all beer and skittles, cakes and ale or a bed of roses.

But all these misfortunes didn't stop Yellowman. On the contrary! He rose to fame after winning a toasting competition and had some big hits in the 80s. He became one of Jamaica's biggest stars and was the first dancehall artist to be signed to an American major label.

So you can understand I was very excited that this living legend was coming to my humble town. As with all artists whose heydays were decades ago the show could either be a hit or miss. Well it was no miss. Yellowman is 54 years old, but he is very much alive and kicking, literally! And no DAT or backing track, no he had a full live band, his Sagittarius Band. There was a nice mixed crowd of old balding, slightly overweight men, who obviously have adored Yellowman since 1982 (they went nuts), and younger folks, notably from Cardiff's hip hop scene. Yellowman has been a great influence on American hip hop artists from the 80s (and later), as prove these tracks that sample two of Yellowman's greatest hits: Zungguzungguguzungguzeng and Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt:


Masters of Ceremony - Keep On Moving. Get it here (YSI).


Eazy-E (of N.W.A. fame) feat MC Ren - Nobody Move. Get it here (YSI).


BlackStar (Mos Def and Talib Kweli) - Definition. Get it here (YSI).

I'll let you go with the wise words Yellowman sent us home with and which have been my motto ever since:

"Be nice. And if you can't be nice be good. And if you can't be good be careful. And if you can't be careful.. you're on your own."

Dissidents & Dancers

One of my favorite bands from Cardiff is The Method: a five piece that sound like a Mariachi band playing Northern soul infused psychedelic garage rock. Really! Even though I think their music is best consumed live, I am very happy they've immortalized their songs in the form of a record. If you're in the Diff come down to The Globe this Saturday April 16 to celebrate the launch of their debut album Dissidents & Dancers. Tickets are £7 including the cd (£4 without). Support comes from the ever smartly dressed youngsters Houdini Dax. You will dance, you'll feel like a dissident if you don't!!

Here's a track from the forthcoming album that is up for grabs from the Miniature Music Press website. Buy the cd directly from their label See Monkey Do Monkey!



The Method - Fool. Get it here (YSI).

Three cheers for midweek drinking

Can I hear three cheers for midweek drinking?! One of the few good things about being self-employed is that I can go out on school nights (when I plan it properly of course..). And the most exciting artists always happen to been in town during the week, probably to cater for the enormous student population here in Cardiff. So in order to see some of my favorite bands and DJs in the flesh I have to endure hours of feeling old! It almost puts me off going, but I really want to go see the following men, who are in my opinion some of the more innovating men in the genre of subtle electronic music today...

Tomorrow (that's a Wednesday) i'm going to see a duo called Mount Kimbie at the Cardiff Arts Institute. Luckily my friend was wise enough to buy us tickets, because it sold out pretty quickly. I really like their hypnotic, organic sound and I'm curious how things will come across live. Hopefully the beanbags are still around at CAI..


Mount Kimbie - Tunnelvision. Get it here (YSI).

I'm happy to see a fellow Dutchie coming to Cardiff this Thursday when Martyn plays Buffalo Bar. He's a genre bending composer and producer, and he has done remixes for some big names on the scene. He describes his music as "music for a warm but rainy day", which is a perfect description. Apparently he used to live very close to me in Rotterdam, as he named his label after the zip code: 3024. And apparently he's buddies with my former art teacher Erosie, who designed the cover for his album.


Kode 9 - You Don't Wash (Martyn's Scrub Vocal). Get it here (YSI).

Third cheer is for James Blake who will grace us Cardiffians with his presence on Thursday November 25th. I'm severly addicted to his track CMYK but his latest single Limit To Your Love (a Feist cover) is 'not bad' either. As is the video.

let's get physical.. critical...

I've been ranting about cycling in the UK before on this blog, and today I'm going to do it again. I'm afraid I became a bit of a bike fanatic since I moved here. A classic case of 'you don't know what you've got until it's gone', I guess... Cycling is so good, in so many ways and I can't stand it that I get ridiculed for riding my bike!

So last weekend the time had come to put words into action: I joined the Critical Mass bike ride here in Cardiff. Now I might need to explain the phenomenon of the Critical Mass to our Dutch readers here, since in Holland there is no such thing.

The first Critical Mass ride took place in San Francisco in 1992 with the idea of drawing attention to how unfriendly the city was to cyclists. Cyclists will be wearing signs and banners and make lots of noise by ringing their bells. The rides can take on truly massive proportions, with thousands of people taking part in the London and New York rides for example. Unfortunately things can get aggressive. Car drivers get impatient. As it's important that the group stays together roads might get blocked off and traffic lights ignored. (But I always found it's fascinating what happens once people step into their motorized cookie jar on wheels. They suddenly think they're invincible (and invisible - ever noticed how many people are picking their nose while waiting for a traffic light?!).

But in Cardiff things weren't that extreme. I thought it was good fun. It was so nice to be riding together. I felt even more like being in that Smiths video! So I gathered some more music videos featuring people cycling in herds (them being decent songs was another criterion). Enjoy the ride hehe..

The Cardiff Critical Mass takes place every first Saturday of the month. They meet at 11.00 in front of the museum on Park Place. Join their Facebook group!

100

Clap your hands everybody, because this is our our 100th blog post!! And funnily enough this 100th post is about a project I took part in recently, called Jazz Cakes 100!

100 t-shirts were handed out to 100 artists from various disciplines by Jazz Cakes, an artist collective based here in Cardiff. Each artist had to work with a designated number to create a piece from the starting point of this plain t-shirt. I got number 77..

Of course the first thing that came to my mind was BINGO. Pretty obvious, but as I moved to the UK I noticed that bingo is taken much more seriously over here. Much more. I pass a bingo hall every day on my way into town and I’ve become intrigued by the whole ‘bingo culture’. I started fantasizing what goes on in behind those doors. The anticipation, the suspense, the defeats and the victories…

Instead of making a print or cutting the shirt up, I decided to keep it close to its subject by making brooches, an accessory usually associated with old ladies (just like Bingo is).

I drew lots of elderly ladies and taxi's (to my annoyance there's always a huge line of cabs parked on the cycle lane in front of the bingo hall) and I learned a lot about bingo lingo!

It took a while for the Jazz Cakes to retrieve all 100 shirts, but the countdown has begun: the exhibition opens this Saturday April 10 at gallery Studio B, 24 Tudor Lane (Riverside) in Cardiff. Drop by anytime from 18.00 till 23.00!

easy jet set

Tomorrow, right after our students presented us their zines, we graded them and gulped down a drink at the closing reception, we need to hurry ourselves to Schiphol Airport to fly across the Channel. We'll be heading straight to the club to DJ at the Word Virus Essay's EP release party in Cardiff!! We're feeling very rock 'n roll..

After playing together for little over a year it's now time for this triphop-drum-'n-bass-four-piece to release its first mini album Fields Apart. It's going to be such an amazing night at the always bumping 'n grinding Toucan club, with support of one of Cardiff's finest MCs Skunkadelic and us playing till the wee hours.

Have a listen to the teaser on their MySpace (and while you're there check out the artwork :-)! For all of you who won't be able to pick up the physical thing, the tracks will be available through iTunes, Amazon and Nokia as well.

Toucan, Womanby Street Cardiff. Doors 9pm. Free before 11pm, £3 after.

MAYHEM tonight!

O yeah, Dutch Dolls will make their DJ debut in Cardiff tonight at Mother Mae I, an electro night of mayhem at the Cardiff Arts Institute!! They tell us to expect "everything from electro-pop to dirty beats via all manner of friendly filth with an electric undercurrent". Plus lollipops, limbo bears, riot showgrrrls and FREE PINK FIZZ.....

We're on from 11.00 till 12.00, HALLELUJAH!!!

Cardiff Arts Institute, 29 Park Place, Cardiff.
Check out the Facebook event here.

the zombie skank

Ever heard of zombie walks? God, I think this would be the best thing to do on Halloween ever! Dress up like a zombie and invade the streets with hundreds of other zombies. I knew of zombie walks in the US and Canada, but I didn't know there was one so close to where I live: in Bristol!! They had a zombie walk for the first time last year and was a huge success. Just look at the pictures! Anyone who fancies joining next year's walk should check out their Facebook group or MySpace and let me know so we can stride together!


I would definitely be heading over to Bristol to walk along today, if it wasn't for the fact that my day is packed with other fun events and parties here in Cardiff. First I'm heading over to the Halloween October Fest at Artisan Beer's on Kings Road. It's a micro brewery (it's so small you could call it a nano brewery!) within an artist studio complex, so there will be the best beers, market stalls, open studio's, a BBQ and lots of live music. Among which the amazing Word Virus Essay!! I'll then be popping over to a friend's birthday party and to top it off I'll be dancing till my legs are worn away down to my knees at Dance of the Dead!! The line up of Toddla T, Ms Dynamite (she's back!!), Mumdance and Squire of Gothos (just to name a few) will have me walking home like a zombie for sure!!

I loves you Porgy! And Bess!

Not a lot of things are more exciting than entering a theater, hearing the orchestra tune their instruments and waiting for the lights to go out... And then the curtain goes up and the music swells...

Last night I went to see Gershwin's "people's opera" Porgy and Bess being performed by the Cape Town Opera. They had changed the setting from South Carolina in the 1920's to the township of Soweto in the 1960's. Since there were quite some similarities there, it worked really well. As the company's manager put it: “When our cast sings Porgy and Bess, they sing from the heart because it means something to them.”

I LOVED it! I left the theater with very, very sore hands (after it had finished the audience was still so caught up by the story that they booed the 'bad guys' - it was brilliant!). Unfortunately I haven't got much time to tell you more about this love story, its social-historical background and the controversies surrounding it. But if you're interested you can read more about it here.

The piece is a great mix of proper opera, jazz, blues, folk and gospel. Many of the songs have be come CLASSICS, proof provided by these songs performed by the three grand dames of jazz...

Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong - Summertime. Get it here (YSI).

Billie Holiday - I loves you, Porgy. Get it here (YSI).

Nina Simone - I love you, Porgy. Get it here (YSI).

"bringing the Bristol sound to Cardiff"

Not that I'm not biased or anything, but I would like to call to your attention this excellent band from Cardiff: The Word Virus Essay. Their singer Rachel has a golden voice and it sounds like she comes up with the most beautiful melodies effortlessly. Then there is Daryl, who writes most of their songs and is responsible the electronics and plays guitar as well. Their rhythm section is ace. Sanders is a really really really good drummer, and their double bass player Casper is not only a fine musician, he's also a HOTTIE ;-) The music is a mix of trip-hop (you know, that mid 90's Bristol sound), drum 'n bass and trance (in a very good way!!).

Catch them tonight at The Promised Land in Caerdydd! There are two other bands on the bill, including another Cardiffian band called Miss Maud's Folly. I've heard a lot of good things about this band, so I'm really looking forward to this gig!

The Word Virus Essay - Two lives. Get it here (YSI).

the woolen-cardigan-feeling

It feels like ages ago since I last went to a concert. But tonight my earplugs are getting greasy again!

Although... tonight I might not even need them. Tonight's bands fall into the category of singer-songwriter and folk. Normally I'm not the biggest fan of these genres, but when I'm in the right mood I can really enjoy some of it. And now that it's autumn, I am in the mood; you know this sitting-in-front-of-the-fireplace-mood, that warm-woolen-cardigan-feeling, the let's-bake-some-apple-crumble-state of mind. Then listening to Julie Doiron is just perfect.

Julie Doiron - Wintermittens. Get it here (YSI).

P.S. Check out Geeske's drawing (it's a detail) at the top. Isn't it awesome??

and if a double-decker bus crashes into us

You all know how Dutchies love their bikes. So when I moved to the UK my bike remained my principal mode of transportation. Of course! But riding a bicycle is something most people here don't even consider. No wonder with the facilities here (hardly any - though the council is working on it). So as a cyclist you're somewhat of a curiosity. I get frequently cheered and yelled at... Especially when riding my bonanza bike (a chopper)! Thing is with the chopper that it's like riding a kiddie bike. You have to pedal like craaaazy and even the slightest hill feels like climbing a mountain. I felt like a sitting duck with all these cars, 10 ton trucks and double-decker buses speeding beside me. So I recently bought another bike on eBay. It's a really nice 40+ years old 'Dutch style' bike. But it's not Dutch, it's a Raleigh, and it feels definitely different from a real Dutch bike. You know what it feels like? It feels like being in this video by The Smiths (which happens to be my favourite band EVER). When I'm riding the streets of Cardiff, with that little basket in front of me, I can't help thinking of riding along with Mozzer in There's A Light That Never Goes Out:

Sour times

So today I wanted to write a review of the Micachu & The Shapes show at Buffalo Bar last Wednesday night. I had already missed them twice, so I was very happy my time had finally come. But when I arrived at the scene it turned out Micachu had CANCELED at the very last moment. What is wrong here?? Is this the story of my life? WTF??? I was so sad and disappointed I couldn’t be bothered with the other bands anymore (sorry other bands). Instead I ordered a WHISKEY SOUR at the bar, to match my mood...

I’m not going to post any songs by Micachu here. I can’t bear it. No, I’m giving you a song about WHISKEY and a song about SOUR. Cheers.

Cat Power - Moonshiner (Bob Dylan cover). Get it here (YSI).

Portishead - Sour Times (Live at Roseland NYC). Get it here (YSI).

it’s a DEAD END

I am HEARTBROKEN. Today Master Shortie was supposed to be playing here in Cardiff (along with Dan Black en Boy Crisis – not too bad either), but for some reason or another the show has been canceled!! I was so looking forward to this as I am SO IN LOVE with Master Shortie *sigh* This boi is cute! And his tracks are frrresh! God how I wish I was that girl he was flirting with in his song Dead End. Oh well our love is hopeless anyhow, because he’s got a wifieeee at hohome (not to mention the fact that he’s only 19)(and that he’s a superstar in the making)…

Master Shortie – Dead End. Download it here (YSI).

And while I’m at it, I would like to mention another up and coming star on the UK hip hop scene: Speech Debelle. I don’t know a lot about this young lady, besides the facts that she’s from London, she’s on the same label as Roots Manuva and her debut album will be released in May. Check her out on MySpace and when you do make sure to listen to the track Searching, a beautiful hip hop balad (!).

Speech Debelle – The Key. Download it here (YSI).

HERE WE GO!!

O yeahhh, Dutch Dolls’ first blog post! We’ll share with you our latest musical findings, keep you posted on events, DJ-gigs and exhibitions, show you our latest creations and bore you with everything else that’s on our mind ☺. We hope you enjoy!! Alrighty, here we go…

When I moved to Cardiff about six months ago I was thrilled to learn one of my favorite blogs is actually based here: Chromekids. Check them out when you’re into grime, dubstep, (Welsh) hip hop, Bmore and all that. Last night these guys DJed in 10 Feet Tall here in Caerdydd, along with South Rakkas Crew. This Crew has worked with all the best dancehall artists (like Beenie Man, Elephant Man, Lady Saw, Sizzla and many more), so I thought I’d check them out. Unfortunately not that many people turned up ☹. The party was far from steaming, but the tunes were gooood and British gals dance anyway (drunk on their 10+ cm high heels), so it turned out to be an entertaining night after all…

While I was going through the previous posts at the Chromekids blog I came across a post on free maxi single by Th' Mole featuring the awesome Warrior Queen. It also included a remix by Mochipet. I’m very happy to see Mochipet doing VERY well, since he nearly went bankrupt when his brand-new-bought-on-credit-laptop got stolen in Rotterdam’s own Warung Mini a couple of years ago!
You can download the maxi single from the Daly City Records site here. I dig it!!