FOTR: Brian Coleman
Posted: March 25, 2015 Filed under: Friends of The Rub | Tags: Brian Coleman, fotr
We’ve got a double dose of FOTR this week as we have a special edition of The Rub coming up this Saturday at The Bell House in Brooklyn. We’ll be celebrating author Brian Coleman and the 2014 release of his book, Check The Technique Volume 2, and he’s up first for our double shot FOTR feature. Brian has become quite the voice as a historian of hip-hop over the last decade with his 3 published books and his CTT series have become the textbooks. Critics and rap aficionados alike are blown away by his “invisible liner notes” that retrace untold stories of classic hip-hop albums.
“My circle of liner notes junkies runs deep, and we spend many hours dissecting the chapters in Brian Coleman’s Check the Technique series. FINALLY someone has put in perspective the stuff I have been DYING to know about!!!! I can’t get enough.“ – Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
“Check the Technique Volume 2 has instantly become essential reading for anyone with even a passing interest in the genre.” – VILLAGE VOICE (Chaz Kangas)
Reading these books directly inspired the CTT mixes, and we are stoked that he will be at the party Saturday and encourage everyone to give him a pound and buy a book.
Bonus: here’s Brian talking about Mantronix on NPR:
Stay Up With Brian Coleman
Check The Technique Vol.1 by Brooklyn Radio on Mixcloud
We have a special edition of Rub Radio this month as Ayres and Eleven have put together the prequel mixtape to last year’s Check The Technique 2. In addition, we’ll be celebrating author Brian Coleman and his books Check The Technique Volumes 1 & 2 this coming Saturday at The Rub along with our very special guest, DJ Evil Dee.
Tracklist: Read the rest of this entry »
As Ayres mentioned last week, we’ve rolled out a new weekly feature that will focus on some new(er) tracks that have entered into our collective worlds we think are worth mentioning. This week for the 2nd installment of That New New, we’ve got the latest cut from up-and-coming LA based producer Venessa Michaels. She appears to just be jumping things off career wise as she’s only got 3 tracks posted on her Soundcloud so far, but “Touch Me” featuring Kiana Brown feels kind of special. Freestyle, Future Bass, Jersey Club and Bassline House are all blended seamlessly on this little jam that is arguably has some pop crossover potential. Free download here too for you DJs looking for something new, fresh and different that won’t alienate your dancefloor.
3/28 – Skip-the-line tickets sold out
Posted: March 23, 2015 Filed under: The Rub | Tags: Skip-the-line Tickets, the rub
We’ve got 100 skip-the-line tickets for tomorrow’s party and they’re going fast SOLD OUT! $15 (with zero ticket fees) jumps you right past a long wait in line, regardless of when you show up to The Bell House. Otherwise, The Rub line is always a roadblock by 11:00 pm so if you don’t want to wait, come out early. Brian Coleman will be there signing his Check The Technique books, and Evil Dee will be spinning classic rap songs from the same era. Speaking of which:
New Rub Radio is all songs from Check The Technique Volume 1! …
#TBT DJ Eleven & DJ Ayres – Summer Of The Rub
Posted: March 19, 2015 Filed under: DJ Ayres, DJ Eleven, TBT | Tags: DJ Ayres, DJ Eleven, TBT
While this week’s #TBT mix was more part of a specific promotional effort when it dropped almost three years ago, the music featured on Summer Of The Rub has played such an instrumental roll in my whole musical makeup and inspirations. Both of my parents were born in 1950 and so much of the music they introduced me to as a kid growing up was from this time period. Sounds like these always remind me of better times and the title appropriate, hint of summer. Eleven and Ayres again showcasing that unique sense of being able to completely dial in a vibe.
DJ Eleven & DJ Ayres (The Rub) – Summer of The Rub by Djeleven on Mixcloud
Tracklist: Read the rest of this entry »
NYC native Michna is our FOTR this week as his Thousand Thursday album dropped just last month on Ghostly International and we think it’s a great listen. His second LP for the label, he presents 10 tracks that blend so many different electronic music elements and influences together in a very cohesive way. Michna has always been a bit of chameleon when it’s come to his music which dates back to a production and djing career that started over 20 years ago. Stream his new LP below and make a purchase here if you feel like supporting.
Stay Up With Michna
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Soundcloud
We’re jumping off a weekly feature on The Rub site where we highlight new music we love. Brent Tactic came up with the idea, and he’ll probably do most of the heavy lifting but I wanted to set it off, mostly because I’m listening to this Kendrick album and I’ve got some opinions (just what the internet needs!). I fucking loved his last album, but I also can’t deal with squawky free jazz at all, so I’m really having a hard time with this new one. Challenging listeners is great, bravo for that, but nails on the chalkboard is nails on the chalkboard. But even if I was hoping for more “m.A.A.d city” and less Pharaoh Sanders, Kendrick’s rapping is stellar throughout To Pimp A Butterfly, and he’s talking about important shit. I picked “Hood Politics” to highlight – the writing is fucking exceptional and we get a break from the saxturbation and funny voices in favor of spacy keyboards and a funny hook. Even if this song doesn’t do it for you, I recommend you dig in to the album – it’s absolutely worth a listen, to hear what Kendrick is saying at the very least.
Just a short jump back in time for this week’s #TBT as Ayres released this set in 2012 as the 39th installment of Jubilee’s Fireworks podcast mix series. The former cohorts in the Flashing Lights monthly party, along with Fool’s Gold co-founder Nick Catchdubs, pushed forward-thinking sounds and Ayres slid right in here with almost 50 mins of cutting edge dance music from the era as springtime was getting into full swing. Killer records from the likes of Rustie, DJ Sliink, Kidnap Kid, RL Grime and Eli Escobar fill up this stellar mix that you can stream and download below.
Fireworks 39 – DJ Ayres Y’all by Brooklyn Radio on Mixcloud
Tracklist: Read the rest of this entry »
FOTR: Cousin Cole & Phi Unit
Posted: March 10, 2015 Filed under: Friends of The Rub | Tags: Cousin Cole, fotr, Phi Unit
New Yorkers Cousin Cole and Phi Unit are this week’s FOTR and our nod this week stems from their rad So Emotional remix and mix series that is now three volumes deep. So Emotional 3 dropped back on Valentine’s Day and it’s been on heavy rotation ever since. These dudes continue to put a fresh spin on pretty much everything they touch as they’ve been embracing their feelings for years now. Now if they’ll just drop that zip of all these new remixes featured on the mixtape already, then we’ll be set for spring officially.
Stay Up With Cousin Cole & Phi Unit
Cousin Cole Facebook
Phi Unit Facebook
Cousin Cole Twitter
Phi Unit Instagram
Cousin Cole Soundcloud
Phi Unit Soundcloud
#TBT DJ Ayres & DJ Eleven – Spitkicker Collabos 1
Posted: March 5, 2015 Filed under: DJ Ayres, DJ Eleven, TBT | Tags: De La Soul, DJ Ayres, DJ Eleven
This week’s #TBT is in the spirit of 2000 and the debut run of the Spitkicker Tour curated by De La Soul. Ayres & Eleven smoothly run through this hour and change of head nod inducing classic collaborations they appropriately called Spitkicker Collabs 1. The tracklist features the original tour lineup up of De La, Common, Pharoahe Monch and a host other cuts that quickly remind you how fresh this time period in hip-hop really was. Grabbing De La Soul to also host the mix definitely didn’t hurt things either.
Eleven & Ayres – Spitkicker Collabos 1 by Djeleven on Mixcloud
Tracklist: Read the rest of this entry »