MistaTrick - Interviewed by Max Golfar

Max Stuart Golfar

Max Speaks to MistaTrick, one of the most creative producers and promoters in the UK, about his new live project, his festival, and his musical roots. The new live act is amazing, blowing my housemate's tiny mind with its combo of close harmony, live brass, a tight MC and serious dance beats. 

MAX: For those of you who don’t know you, who is Mista Trick and what are you all about?

MistaTrick: My name is Mista trick and I am a swing and bass DJ. I'm from London but now live in Bristol and I'm all about funky drum and bass.

MAX: You weren’t always a Swing’n’Bass guy, so would you be able to tell us about how your DJ career started and where your musical roots stem from?

MistaTrick: My musical roots stem from the UK garage scene in 2000s where I DJ'd under the name of DJ Halo. When I was 16, I ran a pirate radio station from my back garden and I learned so much about DJs and MCing. I then went onto Leeds Uni & DJ'd in pretty much every club by the end of the three years I was there. I'd mainly play R&B and hip-hop and at legendary house parties where the basements would always be drum and bass. I remember the first rave I went to was at the West Indian Centre in Chapel Town in Leeds; Subdub. The bass on that system was just mental. 

I ended up doing some commercial Djing in the West End and pretty much hated it - it's soul destroying playing music that you're not passionate about for 8 hours. I then started going to festivals and Boomtown changed my life and introduced me to the beautiful sound of Electro Swing.

MAX: You’ve progressed your music production in to a live show with a full band. What was that process like?

MistaTrick: After going to Boomtown I found out one of my friends was in a swing band called Elle and the Pocket Belles and I asked if I could remix one of their tracks called Swinging Together which was then released on Ragtime Records. We got loads of bookings as a collab band but I decided to create Mista Trick Live for the harder Electro-Swing tracks. The change has been a journey trying different ways of doing the sets and I'm always learning and one day I want to play live kit. One major factor I have is that I want to create more original tracks similar to the likes of Scratchophone Orchestra, Jenova Collective & Caravan Palace. This is why we're kickstarting our album and we need all the support we can to make this dream a reality.

MAX: Who have been some of your musical influences?

MistaTrick: Wow, so many. I think, at the moment, London Elektricity Big Band. They killed it at Glastonbury. The musicians are insane. Ed Solo tracks are always big tunes in the clubs. The reggae/jungle vibe is just perfect in so many ways and I feel that's what can be created in a swing/jazz style.

MAX: What music production software do you use and why?

MistaTrick: I was on Reason for years but then moved to Logic 9 (standard) and I dabble in Ableton. The warping function is second to none.

MAX: You also started your own festival last year, what was that like putting it on?

MistaTrick: Oh yeah, that! Sometimes I don't know how this happened! I love sharing people's talent and showcasing the scene. Under The Hill is a collab with my old family friend, James, and Amy, our incredible marketing expert. Funnily enough, putting on a festival isn't easy, I worked so hard I gave myself meningitis straight after!

MAX: What is Under The Hill all about and when is the next edition happening?

MistaTrick: Last year was really successful, we had 500 people attend. We managed to secure a license for up to 3000 this year and it's going to be just as good. We're also opening for one day more on Friday evening till Sunday morning. We'll be showcasing some incredible live bands and superstar DJs. I also want to reach out to anyone who wants to get involved, from sound, lighting, stalls and traders.

We also want local bands (Hereford and Worcester) and we are running a dj competition.

MAX: Where can people next catch you performing?

MistaTrick: Depending on when you may be reading this, I play all over the shop at a few London gigs, Bristol and the odd city in Europe. And a handful of great festivals. Also, Canada is going to be fun. Check Facebook and follow me on bands in town - great app for gigs. I also run a venue at Boomtown with Marcus Gear from Subsonic called Little Pharma.

MAX: Any else you would like to mention?

MistaTrick: You're a G! 

Mista Trick’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mistatrick/

Under The Hill Festival: www.underthehillfest.co.uk

Under The Hill Festival Event Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/234855063725631/
MistaTrick Live's KIckstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mistatrick/mista-trick-live-album-fundraiser

Red Light Reverie

Sam Baker

Sam Baker asks if the electro swing can play a similar role in combatting toxic politics as the original sound.

As we envelop ourselves in the re-creation of a genre long thought dead, reviving fashions, songs, and slang, it’s brutally important that we do not ignore the deeper meanings and the historical parallels, as well as the differences between our world and those of ages past.

Swing has meant many things to many people throughout it’s century-old history. To many Americans, it represented the opulence of the Twenties, and later an escape from the desolation of the Thirties. For blacks in Harlem, it meant a means to own their own personage in an era where most minorities were kept from owning land and exercising their right to vote. In Europe, it was a cultural travel-agent, allowing people to leave their homes and scoot across the Atlantic and the English Channel by means of the short-wave radio and innumerable local dance halls. Even the Nazis couldn’t quell the thirst for swing’s syncopated rhythms and blasting brass.

The music known today as electro swing is often very much apart in terms of performance from the genre we celebrate. Today it is mostly DJ/Producer-centric, albeit with a handful of stellar live bands and live-electronic hybrids; however, the early days of swing and jazz in general were a free-for-all of wild improvisation and musical conversation. What it’s lost in spontaneity though, it has made up for in community forged through means never before imaginable. Early swing made a world tour by way of the radio, and to this day has continued to step in time with the forefront of technology.

Swing bands, once eschewing even amplification, have now taken up the mantle of electronic bass and digital performance. DJs freely meld together sounds from the early years of jazz and swing with sounds so forward they sound as if they’re from a future which has yet to come. And somewhere in this tug and pull of yearning for the past whilst reaching for tomorrow, something is cooking the likes of which haven’t been seen since the hot houses of New Orleans’ Red Light District on the eve of the Great War and the birth of the modern era.

Swing is distinctly American, and yet it is not. The rhythm and the melodies came largely from traditions rooted deeply in Africa, fuelled by Hindu cannabis spread by the Spanish, and nurtured at the breast of a largely French city before steam boating up the Mississippi and out through the arteries of a nation still searching for it’s voice and identity. Today, we see and hear the results of it’s curation to and by the rest of the world and the results have been astounding.

Unlike many other popular musical movements, such as hardcore rock and mainstream EDM, the progenitors of electro-swing and neo-vintage connect across borders and disparate cultures, almost instinctively. This reminds us all of the fact that we are global citizens first, and national citizens second.

In the era of European fascism, swing was a bridge between increasingly separated worlds. Men like Günter Discher risked life and limb to collect and share the sounds and styles of swing, eventually spending three years in a concentration camp for his brazen defiance of the Nazi’s cultural control.

Swing wasn’t outright banned, but was controlled and scrutinised, it’s patronage punished. It was “nigger-kyke” music in the eyes of the Nazis so those who enjoyed and proliferated it were identified as enemies of the state, routinely being beaten, arrested, and thrown in concentration camps.

Now, we face a wave of democratic nationalism which threatens to undo more than a half century of multicultural integration and democratic advancement. As people seeking power aim to split people across ethnic divides, it’s all the more important to highlight what we share with our fellow humans.

We are not, as many people like to claim, at the gates of fascism. Fascism took hold as a reaction to a very real threat of communism, in an age where Bolshevists had just violently stripped entire classes of people of their land, wealth, and titles and in which Communists clashed with authorities in the streets of Germany using guns and grenades. Hitler, for example, was able to play off these fears and invoke Article 48, allowing for suspension of democratic rule in the face of a state crisis.

Things may seem grossly divided, but we aren’t embroiled in the often-fatal political violence of the 30’s. We are; however, seeing a rise of ethnic nationalism which threatens to undermine and unravel the European Union, as well as the relative peace enjoyed in America. The far reach of this is hard to predict, but it would certainly lead to less stable markets and more polarised populations. Unlike the fascists, the modern nationalists seek power through democracy, as opposed to trying to unseat it. It’s a crucial difference and important to avoid alarming sensationalism which only further divides us. This still doesn’t bode well for free and prosperous societies, as even those nationalist surges which do well by economic indicators leave behind those they characterised as out-groups to scapegoat in the pursuit of power.

So here we are, swinging into the future with our hearts in the past. As we, strap on our suspenders, don our stetson hats, and groove to house beats beneath the swing-era hits, let’s remember where we come from and keep close to heart where we can grow from here. As the swingjugend of Germany did, we must strive to highlight what we share in common, and express ourselves through voice of art and dance, transcending class, creed, and borders. Those who seek to divide us don’t stand a chance if we continue to come together over what we love — building bridges instead of walls.


— I would like to thanks Benjamin Studebaker, longtime friend and current PhD candidate at Cambridge, for taking the time to discuss the histories of fascism and nationalism in modern times.—

Album Review: Jack listened to the new Captain Flatcap Album

The editor gives his take on the new Captain Flatcap LP

Having recently decided to take a step back from actually writing the blog posts, it may strike some of you as odd to see my name in the byline again. There’s a simple explanation.

A few days ago I received a promo copy of the Captain Flatcap album, which was released today on Scour Records. To say that there were some nerves as I downloaded the files would not be overstating things. I’ve been a big fan of the Flatcap sound since I first discovered their remixes a few years ago. I enjoyed their early releases, including collaborations with Dutty Moonshine. Was this full length album going to live up to the early promise, or would it be one of those that leaves one feeling shortchanged? Full-length albums are few and far between in this scene, so when one disappoints it really feels like a kick in the teeth. It can be hard to sustain originality across that many tracks, especially if the act don’t look to push the boundaries of what vintage remix can be.

I’m very pleased to report that Captain Flatcap have sidestepped this pitfall with considerable flair. They’ve managed to weave together such a wide variety of influences, from ska to hip hop by way of folk and dnb, glitch, electro-house, plus a healthy dose of swing, all the while maintaining a style that is recognisably Catflap.

It perhaps should not come as a surprise that they do this with such apparent ease, given that Chris and Tom Rotherham, the brothers who represent 2/3 of the band, are classically trained musicians. The subtlety of the instrumentation at points is remarkable. In particular Chris’s flute is used to great effect on a  number of occasions to provide a lightness, brightness of sound that is rather uplifting.

That said, if their skill is only signalled by the gentle waving of a silk handkerchief, their love of a jolly good knees-up is announced rather more rowdily, with blaring brass and some very silly, squelchy wubs.

There's also a humourous tone to a number of tracks, with spoken samples taken from the likes of Black Books and Monty Python, which  gives an interesting insight into the chap's viewing habits, as well as providing a few genuinely funny drops.

I genuinely find it difficult to pick an objective favourite out of these tracks. I imagine that traditional electro-swing fans are going to feel most at home with tracks like ‘Coconut Affair’ and ‘Are you Me’, which sounds to my ear very much like some of the Jenova Collective’s work.

But for me the tracks that have been on heaviest rotation for me are the two hip-hop tinged tracks, 'Boom Bap Boxing' and 'Squeaky Clean', both very different, but featuring some of my favourite MCs on the scene: Great Scott and Too Many Ts respectively. I really look forward to 'Squeaky Clean' being released as a single: I imagine that the video will be fun.

But then I’m a sucker for hip hop. I can also see 'Sergei’s Journey' being spun by DJs in about three of Boomtown’s districts, so that implies a certain versatility. For straight out dancefloor stormers the appropriately named 'Filth Wizard', 'Alien Jazz', and 'Are you me?' are the go-to tracks.

I wrote on Facebook that I thought this was an example of what vintage remix can be, and I stand by that: While there’s a definable thread that runs through the work, there’s so much variety in this album that I think it should help to shove the scene out of the creative rut that it was in danger of entering. I can see this some tracks appealing not only to the vintage remix community, but to a wider audience of dance music fans, especially the growing community of Americans who have grown bored with 'EDM' and are beginning to explore the weirder corners of the dance music world.

Go out and buy this album now. Seriously. Do it.

Why are you still here?

Essay: The Art of Sampling by Chris Inglis, Musicologist

A short while ago I was bumbling around the internets and came across an extract from an academic essay on the subject of electro-swing and its evolution from old-time swing and 90s dance music. I hunted out and read the full thing, and discovered that it had been written by a Musicologist (yes, that's a thing) named Chris Inglis. Now, as regular readers will be aware, my qualifications for pronouncing on the scene are exactly none, so I thought I would get in touch with Chris to see if he was interested in helping me to bring a little actual knowledge to the blog. He very kindly agreed to share the fruits of his researches here.

Chris's post is somewhat longer than you might be used to reading on here, and its certainly a lot more intellectual than anything I ever write (it has references and a bibliography), but I strongly recommend reading to the end.

The author, looking slick

I was pleasantly surprised to be contacted the other week with a request to contribute an article to this blog. Being the only academic to be working within the field of electro swing (as far as I’m aware, and if anyone knows of any others I would genuinely love to be put into contact with them), it is a great opportunity to present my work to a much larger number of people than those who would normally read it. I’m currently working on an extended thesis with the working title of Sampling the Swing Era, specifically focussing on the practice of sampling within the genre, and what you’ll find here will form the basis of one of the chapters found within.

The key aspect of my current research involves determining the specific reasons why artists working within the genre of electro swing, and the vintage remix genre in general choose to work with vintage samples, and the distinct implications that working these samples may have. Concerning music, where many eras of the past have had their own individual style, this no longer appears to be the case. The author Simon Reynolds notes this in his book Retromania, in which he states:

“Instead of being about itself, the 2000s has been about every other previous decade happening again all at once: a simultaneity of pop time that abolishes history while nibbling away at the present’s own sense of itself as an era with a distinct identity and feel.”

[Reynolds, 2011:x]

But why specifically does the music of the past appear to be creeping back into the modern day? Through the use of sampling, a large amount of modern music can now largely be described as simply a reinterpretation of already existing music.

To begin, I’ll very briefly look at two case studies, simply to highlight the incredible importance of sampling within the genre. The first is Parov Stelar, who presents a great indication of this importance most notably through his 2013 album, The Art of Sampling. Clearly, from the very title of this release, Parov Stelar is indicating his fondness for sampling, and this is backed up with the following quote, made in reference to this particular album:

“Sampling is an instrument. You have an unimaginable treasure trove of material that you can use and transform into new things. I play the computer; that’s my instrument.”

[Füreder, 2013]

My second example comes from the band SwinGrowers, and more specifically, their 2015 album Remote. This album in fact features zero samples whatsoever; however this was presented by the record label as one of the selling points, indicating its uniqueness. As the press release states:

“What marks this out is the departure from any use of vintage samples. Instead, every track, every sound is entirely original - the influences have been fully absorbed. If there was ever any doubt that this genre had a future, then this is the rebuttal. “Remote” is nothing less than a game-changer.”

[Freshly Squeezed, 2015]

The phrase “game-changer” in this context is particularly telling.



Regarding the specific role and function that the sampling of vintage music plays within the genre of electro swing, there has been essentially no academic work conducted for this particular genre. However, a genre which has been researched quite extensively is the related genre of jazz rap, concerning artists such as A Tribe Called Quest, and De La Soul, which has been looked into by academics such as Tom Perchard and Justin Williams. Concerning the use of sampling in the genre of jazz rap, Williams has stated that “the fundamental element of hip-hop culture and aesthetics is the overt use of preexisting material to new ends” , and that “borrowing is hip-hop culture’s most widespread, and arguably most effective, way of celebrating itself”.



A number of different reasons behind the use of vintage influences have been presented by the authors conducting research into the genre of jazz rap. Perhaps surprisingly, the argument that seems to appear the most commonly is the suggestion that both jazz and hip-hop music have emerged from the same traditions and creative sources. For instance, a point is made by journalists Janine Adams and Havelock Nelson that “hip-hop is the jazz music of today”. Additionally, fellow journalist Danyel Smith makes the suggestion that jazz has been turned into “some elite, sophisticated music”; one of the ‘high arts’, as opposed to how it would have originally been considered, and that hip-hop is “bringing jazz back where it belongs”. Indeed, Williams lists some of the musical similarites between both genres, including their “origins as dance music, [that they] were largely the product of African American urban creativity and innovation, and [their] shared rhythmic similarities”.

However, a few authors have also suggested that this is not in fact the case, and that both hip-hop and jazz are two distinct, individual genres; therefore jazz rap’s sampling of jazz is intended to serve almost as a juxtaposition. As Tom Perchard suggests, the artists working within the genre of jazz rap are using these samples “precisely because of their distance from them”. It’s also been suggested by Williams that, as Smith suggests jazz is now considered one of the ‘high arts’ of today’s society, hip-hop’s sampling of it is perhaps an attempt to enter that same world, or as he describes, “part of hip-hop’s ongoing struggle for cultural legitimacy”.

Another suggestion for the use of vintage samples within modern music, is the concept of ‘retelling the past’. Hip-hop’s sampling of older genres has been described by author Russell Potter as “re-form[ing] the traditions it draws upon”, and Perchard describes the phenomenon that “traditions are invented and cultural memories mobilized at times of social change or trauma”, drawing parallels with hip-hop’s sampling of older generations’ music. Author Peter Burke goes on to describe how – as the saying goes, ‘history is written by the victors’ – “marginalized cultural groups have been apt to make more of that cultural memory”, and that “this reproduction of memories constructs oppositional historical narratives”. It is certainly possible to see these modern musicians using vintage music as a way of constructing an alternate history, more favourable for themselves.

Before moving specifically onto my own research, I’ll present a few more points made by Simon Reynolds. A question he poses, is whether “nostalgia [is] stopping our culture’s ability to surge forward, or are we nostalgic precisely because our culture has stopped moving forward and so we inevitably look back to more momentous and dynamic times?" Reynolds also suggests that perhaps we are now using more and more vintage samples simply for the reasons of ease and accessibility, stating that “all the sound and imagery and information that used to cost money and physical effort to obtain is available for free, just a few key and mouse clicks away”.

Therefore, within the genre of jazz rap, there are already a large number of suggestions as to why these artists may choose to work with vintage samples. With regards to electro swing, I was keen to discover whether or not these views were echoed by the practitioners of this particular style. In order to do this, I reached out to a number of artists working within the genre, and asked the following question:
“With regards to your music, what do you consider the role and function of using vintage music to be?”

The first artist to get back to me was Nick Hollywood, who says the following:

“Vintage music is a source of inspiration. That’s pretty much the only real common ground. Beyond that; in what way it inspires – either via directly sampling – or by simply providing a musical style template – is completely different from one artist to the next.”

Hollywood’s description of vintage music serving as a source of inspiration for him ties in with Reynolds’ idea that perhaps our culture has stopped moving forward. This implication that vintage music is perhaps of a higher quality than the music of today was in fact quite a common theme throughout many of the responses I received.

A DJ who takes this idea even further is Per Ebdrup of Swing Republic, who states the following:

“Very significant. Many tracks I make in this genre are sample based. The old samples give a great vibe to the tracks. In those days, only the very best musicians were allowed to record, because of the expensive technology. So the quality of the artists is high. Lyrics in 20-30ties are often quite fun which gives the music a happy and light feel.”

Ebdrup’s point that only the best musicians were allowed to record, and his suggestion that the quality of the artists is therefore high, further backs up this idea.

In some cases, there in fact almost seems to be an air of superiority with these various electro swing/vintage remix artists. To take a slight detour away from the artists who I contacted myself, this position is made no more evident than in the duo Goldfish. As Dominic Peters states of their music:

“I think our whole thing is kind of combining the analogue and digital world together. A lot of dance music’s very sterile and very bright and shiny, and we try and rub in a bit of dirt, and a bit of analogue warmth, and real instruments, and bring back the life to dance music.”

[Goldfishlive, 2012]

This suggestion of superiority is demonstrated perfectly in the music video for Goldfish’s track One Million Views:



This isn’t however to say that electro swing musicians necessarily look down upon regular EDM artists. Returning to the artists I contacted myself, Michael Rack of Dutty Moonshine says the following:

“Fun. Just straight fun. Jazz and Swing was an amazing and timeless sound, you could call it the 1st punk music of it’s day for what it went up against. Slapping vintage samples onto basslines and dance beats is a sure win.”

Rack’s fondness for “basslines and dance beats” is perfectly evident here, although it does seem that he still perhaps maintains a preference for vintage music, through his description of the reasons behind its use as “just straight fun”.



A further reason for the use of vintage samples is given by Tobias Kroschel, better known as Sound Nomaden:

“For me music is timeless, that means if you give vintage music a modern twist or put it in the right context people will feel it, even if they're born in a different generation. The great opportunity of using musical themes or samples from old decades is, that you can reach people from age of 16-80 years. It is an amazing experience to see these different generations dancing together on the same music.”

Kroschel’s suggestion that the music is “timeless”, and his reference to his love of seeing “different generations dancing together” is perhaps suggestive that he is leaning towards the ‘same tradition’ theory, in his indication that all people and ages can be reached with this style.



A similar point is made by Luca Gatti, better known as Dr. Cat, who says the following:

“I would say the role is a primary one, in that without those vintage samples the tracks would have a complete different vibe to it, I am not saying the tracks would be better I am just saying the track would not sound as categorized within the vintage remix domain. The function is of endless inspirational importance, not only re connect with the past but springs out in to the future.”

Another aspect I am investigating with my research, is whether to consider electro swing as a continuation of the original swing music, or whether to regard it as a genre in its own right, simply taking influences from the swing era. From this quote, it would appear that Gatti would take the first view, and that electro swing is what swing has now evolved into. This of course also ties in with the ‘same tradition’ theory.

So what we can ultimately conclude is that there are many different reasons for why producers may decide to use vintage samples. The fact that some of these views are complimentary, whereas others are contrasting leaves room for much more research to be conducted, but for now, I will briefly recap the various views presented so far.

For jazz rap specifically, the idea that both genres of music come from the same traditions is certainly an interesting one, and does in fact seem to translate across to electro swing. The music of the swing era evolved out of the jazz of the 1920s, just as electronic dance music evolved out of the hip-hop of the early ‘80s, so there are certainly parallels to be drawn there.

The suggestion however of a juxtaposition of styles can apply too; this point is made clearly by Simon Reynolds in Retromania when he states that “nearly all the most successful mash-ups worked by contrast and collision”. It does certainly appear to be the case with certain electro swing producers that they are making a conscious attempt to combine contrasting styles.

The idea of retelling the past is definitely an intriguing one. The suggestion by Tom Perchard that hip-hop musicians are constructing an alternate, more favourable past for themselves certainly makes sense; and when drawing the parallels we have already seen between hip-hop and jazz; and EDM and swing, this suggestion may possibly still apply.

The suggestion that our culture has stopped moving forward does initially appear questionable, however there does exist ample evidence, supplied by a number of authors to back this up. On top of this, the common suggestion found in many of the artists questioned that the quality of vintage music is higher than that of today seems to suggest that, if not our culture has stopped moving forward, then perhaps our range of influences has.

Reynolds’ other suggestion that vintage samples are being used more as a result of the ease that now exists to obtain them does indeed make sense. Whilst it is unlikely that artists are using vintage samples primarily for the reason of ease of accessibility, – they are almost certainly being used entirely for artistic purposes – the fact that it is now much easier to do this definitely helps out, and allows for a much wider use as well.

As I’ve suggested, there is perhaps a level of superiority present amongst electro swing and vintage remix artists, which would then of course translate across to the samples they choose to use. By demonstrating their knowledge and use of obscure and vastly unknown sample sources, these artists are simultaneously presenting to the world their uniqueness and merit as a musician, on top of their ability as a producer itself.

The suggestion made by Tobias Kroschel of using vintage samples as a way of bringing different generations together is certainly a very satisfying idea. From my own experience attending various electro swing events, I have witnessed many times that this is indeed the case; it is entirely common, and not at all surprising to find people of all ages enjoying the music together at these events.

Finally there is the suggestion that electro swing is the natural extension of swing music into the modern day, which of course ties in with my first point about the genres being part of the same tradition. I myself would definitely subscribe to this theory; my main argument being that jazz music has always been about experimentation, and in this sense, simply trying to repeat the styles of swing exactly how they would have sounded up to 80 years ago goes almost against the very ideals of jazz music itself.

By bringing in aspects of electronic dance music, these artists are experimenting with what can successfully be achieved within the genre; and within the style of electro swing, it would appear that they have indeed achieved success.


Bibliography
Burke, P. (1997). Varieties of Cultural History. Cambridge: Polity Press.

McAdams, J. & Nelson, H. (1992). ‘Hip-Hop Puts Fresh Spin on Jazz’ Billboard. 22 August 1992.
Freshly Squeezed. (2015). Catalogue. http://freshlysqueezedmusic.com/catalogue.html [accessed May 2015].
Füreder, M. (2013). In: Buhre, J. An interview with Parov Stelar. http://electro-swing.com/2013/webzine/interview/an-interview-with-parov-stelar/ [accessed May 2015].
Goldfishlive. (2012). Goldfish Outdoor (Official Aftermovie). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i526FcEHeU0 [accessed May 2015].
Perchard, T. (2011). ‘Hip Hop Samples Jazz: Dynamics of Cultural Memory and Musical Tradition in the African American 1990s’ American Music. 29 (3).
Reynolds, S. (2011). Retromania: Pop Culture’s Addiction to Its Own Past. London: Faber and Faber.
Smith, D. (1994). ‘Gang Starr: Jazzy Situation’ Vibe. May 1994.
Williams, J. (2013). Rhymin’ and Stealin’: Musical Borrowing in Hip-Hop. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.

Preview - Swingamajig - Birmingham - 5th May 2013 - electro swing festival

The Electric Swing Circus may well be the hardest working act in the electro-swing scene. Not only have they recently recorded an album (funded by their fans), organised their own regular and hugely successful Birmingham-based club night "Hot Club de Swing" and set up a record label (at least, Tom is one half of Ragtime Records), but they have also organised what must be the world's first electro-swing festival - Swingamajig. The event will take place on 5th May, from 2pm. The whole thing will stagger to a close at 5am the following morning.

The line up reads like a who's who of electroswing. I mean, just look at this poster: 

The festival will be centered around Spotlight Bar in Digbeth. There will be two outdoor stages, and a further indoor 'speakeasy'. As one might expect, there will also be a variety of stalls and associated festival-stuff like circus performers and what-not. 

Other people involved are the guys from Nottingham's Jitterbug nights, and Madame Electrifie's Discotech, which might go some way to explaining the strength of the line-up. I understand that there are still tickets left. Go to www.swingamajig.co.uk for more details.

If you still haven't decided to go, have a look at this here video.

If nothing else, the event should provide electro-swing fans a great taste of what is to come at Boomtown this summer, and the Electric Swing Circus a great warm up gig for their appearance at Glastonbury.

The Dancee Dancee pt.II

This was shared on Facebook last night by White Mink and I absolutely love it. Not only is it a fabulous new song from Caravan Palace that I have not heard  before, but the dancing is so much fun - a great little routine, with a fantastic flourish at the end - very impressive to pull something like that off, and to sing immediately after such an energetic performance. The very same post seems to suggest that they might come to the UK quite soon... exciting stuff... check this one out too... looks like a great gig! 

love


Jack

The Dancee Dancee

As I have mentioned in one of the club night reviews, one of the things I love about electro-swing is the dancing. It differs from normal club music as the swinging beat removes some of the aggression, while the partner dance style of Lindy Hop and similar dances translates really well to a modern setting, as well as opening the doors of possibility for meeting people and making friends. While I have had a couple of lindy lessons a couple of years ago, I mostly make it all up as I go along. 

I have just come across this handy instructional video from 1944 which not only explains the origins of some of the steps and might even provide some inspiration for some of you - I particularly like the Hesitation Shorty George. Complete with comedy vintage voiceover, this is a real gem. 

I would also like to post this video, which I found ages ago and return to occasionally as I think it a wonderful piece of choreography, excellently executed.

And finally, here is the king of the swingers, the man who started this whole journey for me, and who all my female friends drool over. Perhaps the best dancer to have ever donned spandex and a pair of two-tone shoes, ladies and gentlemen, I give you Mr. Bruce of the Correspondents:

In this second video you can't quite make out his feet, but you do get a taste of his remarkable MC skills and the now legendary treadmill dance.

Lots of Love,

Jack