McLaren dead... Guru dead.... Thatcher still clings on...

I mean it’s mind boggling how the great and good fall by the wayside, whilst Maggie Thatch, that vicious shrivelled spectre of evil has just about maintained enough of a vice like grip on existence to (probably) see the Tories back in charge again. If one good thing comes off the Cameron-bot getting elected it’ll be that the old witch can finally begin her descent to hell.

Ahem.
Back to those who have passed.

So this was going to be a special tribute to the questing, genre defying, somewhat pretentious Malcolm McLaren. But then, horribly, Guru of Gangstarr went and died, so we’re going to get a track for each. First up is the McLaren produced B Beat Girls, discovered, as with so much other gold, in Deptford market, on a sunny day a couple of years ago. I grabbed it because it had McLaren’s name on the label, and got a massive treat when I got it home--- amazing razor sharp electro with a much sampled intro and dirty low end frequencies. I’d download this quick if I were you as it’ll probably get removed—there’s no video of the full vocal on youtube so you’ll just have to trust me, this is a winner---

B Beat Girls - For the Same Man


As for Guru, most of the Gangstarr stuff I've got doesn't qualify for this blog as I bought it in proper shops for proper cash first time round... still after a lot of digging through the archives, here’s one thing I found in Islington Marie Curie earlier this year, a remix of Lina, a once hyped RnB diva who combined 20s swing with urban production. I can’t help but think she just showed up too early, and had she been around in todays burlesque loving climate she would have done a lot better. Anyway this remix from Premier is a banger without any of the swingtime affectation. The magical tones of Guru bless the start and middle of the track. I can’t believe he’s died at 43, what a great loss to hip hop, and music in general.

Lina - It's Alright (Gangstarr Mix)

Charity Shoppe Flip House Vinyl Mix by John & On

I was about to say, "it's been a while since I've put up a post", but let's be honest, it's been bloody ages. Anyway, if for no reason other than to put a stop to Nasty's not-so-subtle jibes about when my next post is coming, here is a short mix I've done featuring some (but not all) of the best tunes you are likely to hear us play at our Dalston Superstore party this Fri.





It's a 40 min hip-house / 80's dance mix done live on 1210's with a very shoddy mixer, even shoddier headphones and a neighbour banging on their ceiling. Of course, in strict accordance with the manifesto, all records cost no more than £2 and come from charity shops and flea markets. I've got to say it's not exactly a seamless beat-perfect mix (a long way from it in fact) but it makes a nice antidote to all the soulless Ableton mixes floating around the internet. Plus... I couldn't be bothered to spend to do a million takes getting it exactly right as I had a scallop pad thai to cook. Yum...


Download: http://www.mediafire.com/?zd5yzzdzjhi


Stream / Tracklist:

Charity Shoppe Flip House Vinyl Mix by John & On on Mixcloud