You can't stop the rain (GMV BMF Soundtrack)

I thought I would improvise it
But got excited and had to write it
Many styles provided…
Like Kangol Kid on Bite It
And that was mastery, can imagine me
Listening to a Red Alert tape, powered by batteries?
I was UTFO fan, for the quick wit and the quick hands
(THEE UNTOUCHABLE FORCE ORGANIZATION)
And I still am
But I’m talking 85, felt so alive
15, rocking mics for staring eyes
So I gave em spectacle
And followed my own, even when it wasn’t acceptable
No regrets for the steps that I took
You wanna know what they were? Here’s a look
It was patience, it was focus, it was passion
It was taking control without asking
And I’m talking about my pathway
When I thought I gave my all, I realized I was halfway
At first that put a pain in my heart 
Then had to admit, it was still a great start
And I am here for the long run
For some, it begins when the song’s done
But I am here for the process
Imagination takes me hostage
I don’t just check the boxes
I follow my instincts and listen
Try to hear what my soul is whispering
Then I commence communion with the beats
And, I write till my mind is at peace

-Dedicated to: Kangol Kid, Educated Rapper, Doctor Ice, & Mix Master ice
-Hindsight Inspiration: Brother J of X-Clan, Native Tongues, All Natural, Chicago Underground Hip Hop circa ‘92 (IE Lower Links, The Flypaper)

Trusting Instincts (An Untouchable Force)

This was my second MIDI Production Experiment, and it was on done on December 26th, 2021. I decided to get crazy with this one… 

This is a beat where absolutely not much happens, but there are still about 3 or 4 “wait for it…” moments, at least for me. In general that was my approach with this EP…creating sometimes subtle, and sometimes not, “wait for it” moments. 

The drum patterns just came to me, and I’m guessing it was inspired by the abrasive nature of the drum sounds in that Jarble Kit. Soon as I looped the drums, I could hear an organ sound fitting on there. Perhaps obvious from listening, but I have ZERO music training. I merely push buttons until something sounds right to me. That in mind, I was originally going to only use those two sounds, and make this one about a minute long or less. However, I have been wanting to not get stuck on going back to the same sounds and kits. And, I hadn’t really explored the “Pad” folder in the Instrument Rack of Ableton. I thought the sounds of the Goodby Cassini Pad would be complementary, so I basically recorded it a few times, pushing the buttons “any ole way”, and there you have it. I particularly enjoy when the drums drop out and this ominous sound and organ enjoy a play day together. 

To complete, once I did the live arrangement and bounced that down, I took that file and brought it back into Ableton and added an analogue master effect, to give it some more “character”. 

This is the beat where I realized that I was creating my form of meditation music, though this one is an exaggerated, almost sarcastic response to that. The wild and sharp drums are not necessarily conducive to relaxing, but that is literally how it feels in my brain all the time, even when I’m just chilling or working. One little idea starts to spawn and the sparks go flying…ha. Are you old enough to remember that commercial, “This is your brain on drugs”, and the sound of a griddle sizzling follows? Well, this is the sound of my brain on a normal day, having some normal thoughts, about generally normal things…welcome to my world.

Relentless Meditation

Download

wings

Sampled from Crossover from the Persona 5 Strikers OST

Cool Pool

The Soul Guardian mix series was inspired by my time in NYC and the music scene I found there. Full of deep bass, breaks, house, and other heady joints that feed my soul.

Soul Guardian vol. 1

Legendary Edits

Chaka Khan - So Naughty (Edit with You)

In celebration of what would have been DJ Screw's 46th birthday, and the reunion of Eric B and Rakim; Stoney made me drop this mix.  Rakim stoned-up, blended with all sorts of funky, slow beats.  Enjoy.

Stoney B. & Rakim

For my wawa on her 8th birthday.

If you forced me to pick; I'd pick Madlib's Beat Konducta Vol. 5-6 as my favorite beat tape of all time. It checks all the boxes that I believe make a great beat tape: dope beats; beats don't drag-on for too long; a plethora of drops; and seamless transitions largely assisted by creative interludes. Particularly special to this tape is the fact that it's Madlib's dedication to his fallen friend, J. Dilla.

Listening to this album countless times, I continue to find little obscure tidbits (drops, sample sources, loops, etc...) that contain little musical messages that probably can only be fully understood by Madlib and Dilla. For all of these reasons, I used Beat Konducta 5-6 as the bed of this mix that is entirely dedicated to my daughter. Various musical sources (songs, drops, and interludes) are layered over the Beat Konducta 5-6 bed to create a tribute to my greatest inspiration.

"Wawa" is a Quechuen word (also frequently used by Spanish speakers living in Andean countries) which often translates to baby or child. My daughter was named after a special Inca girl who I befriended when I visited Peru several years ago; hence the title.

Though my daughter is unable to talk, she certainly knows how to communicate.  Despite her challenges in verbally communicating; I feel like I understand my daughter like I've never understood anyone before.  One of our preferred methods of communication is through music. Music is always playing in my home.  Though I sometimes have to oblige to an occasional request for Taylor Swift, most of the music played in our home consists of nothing but the classics.

Part of the reason for my Stoned-out style of mixing is because of my daughter.  She prefers a downtempo piano looped-based beats over just about anything. It is my hope that one day when I'm long gone, my daughter will play this mix and think two things: damn my daddy was a dope DJ; as well as my daddy sure loved me.

This mix is really only intended for an audience of one.  However; I'm sharing it with you hoping you'll appreciate it, and take inspiration from it.

The Wawa Tape

I made this track entirely with Cool Edit in 1998. Pulled together some dusty drum samples, children's records, video game sounds, and random default audio files  I found hidden on my computer. All of the cutting / scratching sounds were made just using math.

Monolith

"Zane and the Apple team politely extended a promotional opportunity around the release of 'The Mountain Will Fall' in the form of my own Beats1 mini-series. Each show was designed to illuminate the listener to different facets of my career up until that point. I basically had three hours to bring people up to speed so that the new album had context. At one point they asked me what I was going to name it, and I had a funny picture of a guy in my phone, so I used his image and added the hashtag '#Radioface,' for whatever reason. The name didn't really stick, but it was fun putting these together. "- DJ Shadow

Chaka Khan - So Naughty (Edit with You)

J. Love The Soundsmith

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