So, back 25 years ago (holy shit), I was hanging with my boy DJ Link in Cologne, Germany, playing some tunes and making the wiki-wiki on the turntables. I had a bunch of lyricist tunes that I had been playing out, many of which few people stateside knew, and even fewer in Germany, yet they always got a great reaction, especially in the back nook of Liquid Sky or Six Pack (if you know, you know).

I slapped this together from what was probably stacked next to the decks to get these tunes out into the world, and it did well. The title comes from a lyric in the song Definition by Black Star, and this was the time of actual "mixtapes," so the skit in the middle was intentional for the turnover.

I was also fortunate to know some amazing graphic artists and this cover was designed by the homie Don Q Shot (helluva DJ as well) at his company, Planet Pixel.

It's not fancy. It’s not perfect. The tracks are dope; a perfectly fancy snapshot of a vibe and a place in time.

Enjoy!

Tracklist:

Quannum feat. Lyrics Born - Always Fine Tuning
Peanut Butter Wolf feat.Planet Asia & Madlib – Definition of Ill
DJ Revolution feat. Rasheed & Chief Kamachi – Forever
LMNO – Streetwise
Motion Man – Duck, Duck, Duck
Hieroglyphics – The Who (Del Mix)
Ghostface Killa – Malcolm
Lexicon – Not Pseudo
Interlude – Woodrow the Base Head
KRS1 feat. Mic Vandals – Why You Call Yourself an MC?
Insane Poetry feat. Pope – Calico Flows
Pharoahe Monch – Simon Says (Remix)
D.I.T.C. – Time to Get This Money
Word A’ Mouth – Famous Last Words
Black Star – Definition
People Under the Stairs – San Francisco Knights
LMNO feat. 2 Mex – Stick Up

www.instagram.com/anodnb
www.instagram.com/hoodiemonks
www.instagram.com/whitelotuswoodworks
www.facebook.com/theejoker

A Cipher Will Complete Us

Beginning with his roots in the seminal D.C. and NY hardcore scenes and evolving into his current guise as a turntable terrorist, Thee Joker has always been a champion of aggressive, bass-driven sounds. It was at his cousin's suggestion that he "always played people the best part of the song" that Thee Joker, with the help of renowned house DJ Chris Bjork, released his first vinyl for the public at NYC's famed Webster Hall.

As part of the music/performance art group Master IT, Thee Joker performed at such hallowed venues as Limelight, The Tunnel, Sound Factory, Webster Hall, Esso, and Cafe Con Leche during the rise of electronic music in NYC. Through these shows, he received the opportunity to travel to Berlin and perform at the legendary Love Parade in 1995 alongside the infamous Armand Van Helden, Josh Wink, and Supa DJ Dimitri. While appreciating the house and techno sound of New York at events like N.A.S.A and Save the Robots, Thee Joker developed a resonance with Jungle and DnB through Liquid Sky and its basement jewel, Temple Records. He further honed this sound with the encouragement of Giant Step & Junglenut DJ Lion in the dimly lit bars of lower Manhattan.

In 1998, Thee Joker was invited to perform in Vienna, Austria. Attracted by the change of scene and the open minds and arms with which he was received, he decided to move to Vienna full-time to continue his music career. While living in Vienna, Thee Joker traveled extensively, performing in Austria, Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Italy, both solo and as part of the DJ crew Th3 G4ng. Their weekly five-hour radio shows on FM4 showcased the talents of six DJs and multiple genres. Soon thereafter, he was invited to Cologne, Germany, by Dr. Walker of Air Liquide and became part of the Liquid Sky posse, continuing the lineage that began in NYC with his association with Liquid Sky and Temple Records. Before leaving Austria, Thee Joker's vinyl releases began with his inclusion on Berlin-based Pharma Records' "Its Pharma Time" alongside Jammin' Unit of Air Liquide, Bad Street Boy, and DMX Krew. After several releases on Cologne-based Hotel Lotte and Harvest Records compilations, Thee Joker, as part of Reissdorf Force, released the full-length album "Smart Dust" for EMI Records.

Upon returning to the US, Thee Joker and Chase Dobson (c.db.sn) formed f(x):function as a vehicle for their twisted brand of live EDM, which they dubbed "Machine Funk Decimation." This project culminated in the full-length album "Sketching Pieces of Scattered Silence," which included a wide swath of their IDM/Electro/Hip-Hop/techno sound and even a one-off "Live" DnB performance. Continuing to perform live and DJ in the Tampa area since its release, Thee Joker began searching for alternatives to the watered-down sound being played all around him. Returning to his turntablist roots in DnB and Hip Hop, he steadily began pushing a more bass-heavy sound with broken beat and 2-step as an antidote to house and breaks, including many of these tracks on his mix CD "Smooshed."

Never abandoning his interest in the dark and grittier side of Hip Hop, he continued to collect raw tracks from the UK's Grime scene and its evolution into Half Step, 2 Step, and futuristic DnB.