Grand Analog

If I knew little about The Herbaliser before I caught their live performance at Montreal's Le National, I knew even less about Grand Analog.

Grand Analog was the opening act for the people in attendance. The group took the stage with an eclectic set of hip hop, rock and reggae music. 

Grand Analog did a great job. I feel they were a perfect fit considering how The Herbaliser's music incorporates many genres as well. That night made me a Grand Analog fan.

Where hip hop is concerned, most of the artists that interest me would be considered hip hip hybrids like K-os, K'Naan and Grand Analog. That says a lot about my musical tastes & direction and the state of hip hop. I've been looking for more than hip hop for years and respect hip hop artists that do more than the stereotypical and traditional sounding hip hop.

I love the eclectic nature of Grand Analog. No song is similar. I was shocked to learn Grand Analog had released Metropolis is Burning. I had only learned of the band when I was at The Herbaliser show. I met 2 members of Grand Analog at my home away from home Death of Vinyl record store just before their last Montreal performance.

I have been looking forward to the release of their third full-length album.  My wait is just about over.  Word of new music has made the rounds and below is proof positive. Check out one of the latest tracks featuring Saukrates. 

Grand Analog returned to Montreal at Divan Orange on November 22, 2013 for M For Montreal.  

The Suite Delight new time slot is Tuesday morning 2-3am EST on www.ckut.ca & 90.3 FM.

If you haven't already, please make yourself familiar with the link below for more of your favorite show and mine.

Below is a podcast to bring you up to speed.  Click here to download it and more.

The Suite Delight - March 4, 2013 Playlist:

1. Kokolo - Soul Power (Lack Of Afro Remix)
2. Kelis - Trick Me
3. Nickodemus – 2 Sips & Magic (Second Sky & Thomas Blondet Remix)
4. The Souljazz Orchestra - Celestial Blues
5. Fabolous - So Into You feat Tamia
6. DJ Honda - When You Hot, You Hot feat. No I.D. & Dug Infinite
7. Fashawn - LIfe As a Shorty
8. Oh No - Beware feat. Cali Agents
9. Brand Nubian - Punks Jump Up To Get Beat Down (Remix) Featuring Diamond D
10. Souls of Mischief - Good Feeling
11. De La Soul - Afro Connections At A Hi 5
12. Moka Only & Chief - Crickets
13. Grand Analog - Take It Slow (Spaces & Places)

The Suite Delight - 2013-11-12 Playlist:

The Suite Delight - 2013-11-12 by Dj Solespin on Mixcloud

1. Ghettosocks - U Ain't This featuring D-Sisive, Rich Kidd, & Muneshine
2. Eternia & MoSS - At Last featuring Termanology & Reef the Lost Cauze
3. Anonymous Twist - Sweet 16 featuring Planet Asia
4. Grand Analog - Electric City featuring Shad
5. Marco Polo - Hood Tales feat. Kool G Rap & DV Alias Khrist
6. Theo3 – Ari Gold
7. The Extremities - Morning After feat Apollo & Wordsworth
8. SepTo - Really Living feat. Dan-e-o, Grimace Love, Wio-K
9. The Narcicyst - Falling Down
10. CeasRock - 10.5
11. Jeff Spec - Stop feat. NaRai
12. Miles Jones - Never Too Late
13. Friday – AmiR
14. Mickey Boston - Science

Mark Ronson

I am possibly still the biggest Mark Ronson fan in Montreal, Quebec and maybe Canada.



I admire his production, his albums and his own radio show has been influential on me this year. His playlists were practically musical treasure maps to me.

As a DJ, producer and radio show host, Mark Ronson has had a great deal of influence on me.



The vinyls for Here Comes The Fuzz & Version are among the most I've ever paid for in my life.

With the amount of times his name appeared on my own show's playlists, it was only a matter of time until a tribute show was done in honor of Mark Ronson.



Mark Ronson's Version started me on a quest of learning more about the British Indie rock scene. Names like The Charlatans, The Jam & Kasabian were new to me until I discovered Ronson was covering classics that most current Indie rock fans have known or should know.

I would have loved to be have been at the Mark Ronson talent showcase during the CMJ Music Marathon featuring Wale, Rhymefest, Daniel Merriweather and Rumble Strips. I read about how well they performed that night. 



As I have stated numerous times before, Mark Ronson’s radio show was highly influential on me and my own Suite Delight radio show. My weekends basically started with his show. I would do whatever I could to be home to listen.



Aside from the shopping and record crate digging, the night I met Mark Ronson was the highlight of my CMJ 2011 trip. The only downside was that the photo of Ronson and I turned out so poorly. I was pissed off about that for quite some time. The only thing that calmed me down was my repeatedly telling myself I have the experience to remember as opposed to not.

Before we parted ways, I asked when the fourth Ronson album will be ready.  I believe his answer was that he was working on it.  You can believe that I am looking forward to enjoying that album when the time arrives.

I was very happy to learn he was featured in the Crate Diggers documentary series. Check it out below.

Nice & Smooth - Ain't A Damn Thing Changed (1991)

Like most people of my generation, Nice & Smooth were introduced to us through Big Daddy Kane's classic second album. 

From there, we learned the duo would release classic material of their own. 

The first two Nice & Smooth albums are classics. I can’t state with definite certainty which of the two I prefer. I remember buying the debut album as a teen. Yet, the second half of Ain't a Damn Thing Changed is especially crazy.



Let this be my moment to thank Nice & Smooth for the years of more & more hits.

If you haven't already, please make yourself familiar with the link below for more of your favorite show and mine.

The Suite Delight new time slot is Tuesday morning 1-2am EST on www.ckut.ca & 90.3 FM.
Below are some archived podcasts to bring you up to speed.  

Click here to download more podcasts.

http://suitedelight.podomatic.com



DJ Solespin - The Goods (July 2014) Playlist:

1. Damian Marley – Welcome to Jamrock
2. Koushik – Be With
3. Washed Out – Feel It All Around
4. The System – Don’t Disturb This Groove
5. Loose Ends – Hanging On A String
6. Erykah Badu – Bag Lady
7. Feist – Mushaboom (K-os Mix)
8. D’Angelo – Feel Like Makin’ Love
9. Mark De Clive Lowe – Restless
10. Marley Marl – Hummin’ feat. Roy Ayers
11. Charles Bradley – Heart of Gold
12. DJ Spinna – Surely
13. The Pharcyde – Drop
14. Masta Ace Incorporated – The I.N.C. Ride
15. Busta Rhymes – Turn It Up
16. De La Soul – Plug Tunin’
17. Nice & Smooth – No Delayin’
18. MC Tee & Lord Tasheem – Gangster Nine
19. Gang Starr – Code of the Streets
20. Pete Rock – Back on the Block featuring C.L. Smooth
21. Souls of Mischief – Make Your Mind Up (Rock On Mix)
22. Biz Markie – Nobody Beats The Biz
23. Digable Planets – 9th Wonder (Blackitolism)
24. Doug E. Fresh & The Get Fresh Crew – Everybody Loves A Star
25. MF Doom – Dead Bent

The Suite Delight - 2014-07-08 by Dj Solespin on Mixcloud

The Suite Delight - 2014-04-08 by Dj Solespin on Mixcloud

 

The Suite Delight - 2013 CKUT Funding Drive Podcast by Dj Solespin on Mixcloud

Lyrics Born

Just as I’m not too big on the more experimental of electronic music, I had my share of trouble with the Definitive Jux and Quannum style of hip hop of the late 90s & earl;y 2000s.
 

It would take me nearly a decade to warm up to the DJ Shadow, Cannibal Ox and Latryx sounds.  Lyrics Born, by association and quality of his hip hop, suffered the same fate as the aforementioned artists and labels.

Diverse’s One A.M. is an album I was happy to have discovered and have yet to find on vinyl/CD on my music purchasing path.  Lyrics Born makes an appearance on Explosive and it is the first time I got to really be introduced to him as an MC. 

To my surprise, Lyrics Born recorded I Changed My Mind.  The song is what I still consider to be my favorite of his discography.  I didn’t expect or imagine the MC would sing or be on the track with a funk group. 

Good fortune graced me with a ticket to the Lyrics Born Montreal International Jazz Festival performance at the SAT.  

When I arrived at the venue, I was slightly surprised to see what appeared to be a set list prominently on display at the ticket booth.  It is rare for me to see a set list for a concert.  I almost thought it was an accident or negligence on someone’s part for that proverbial cat to be out of the bag.  What struck me about the set list was the number of James Brown song titles listed.  All would be revealed to me by the time Lyrics Born took the SAT stage.

Lyrics Born’s recent collaborations with funk bands like The Bamboos along with the set list made everything clear that the crowd was truly in for a funky good time.  The passionate renditions of the Godfather of Soul’s discography were a welcome surprise that night. 

What was also surprising was that the performance Lyrics Born and musicians gave to the small SAT crowd was tantamount to one he could have given if he performed for a Metropolis-sized audience. 

Lyrics Born and company gave Montreal nothing less than 100% on stage and rocked the house that night.  It was no surprise they returned for an encore.  It is no surprise I am looking forward to another Lyrics Born show regardless of the venue.

Sealab 2021

I had the chance to buy the first few seasons of Sealab 2021 on DVD, but made mistakes every step of the way. One day I found all five seasons of the show on DVD at a nearby second hand library and music store.



I put the first two seasons aside hoping I could borrow the second season from the BANQ library to make sure it was as funny as the first. I never did borrow the second season from the library.



When I went to the store to buy the first season, it was sold. Naturally, I was pissed at myself, the store and the library for what happened. In my frustration, I bought the second season.

I never watched the second season again and contemplated selling it back to the store or exchanging it for a CD or something. The laughs were too few to mention. The main reason for the disappointments is that Harry Goz, the voice of Captain Murphy, died after the first season.



The bonus features had a feature about the actor's passing. I almost felt it was a joke until I realized that the Captain Murphy voice is not the same as Season 1. You know you're in trouble when the show makes references that it sucks. R.I.P. Harry Goz and thank you for Captain Murphy.

I'm happy that I learned about and laughed at the hilarity of the first season of Sealab 2021. Do the same.

Magneto

I love Marvel Comics and their movies. Anytime I hear or learn of a Marvel Comics film being released, I clear my schedule to see it at my earliest convenience. From 3 Spider-Mans & X-Men films, 2 Hulks (one being better than the former) & Fantastic Fours to even Elektra (not too happy to state that but Jennifer Garner’s hot), I’ve been there when Marvel Comics movies call.



When I heard they were giving the X-Men movie franchise a reboot, I was slightly apprehensive. The trilogy of prior X-Men films are my favourite in the Marvel Comics repertoire and I firmly believe that if Bryan Singer had directed The Last Stand, it could have been my favourite comic book adaptation movie of all time, Marvel or otherwise.


With the X-Men movies so near and dear to me, I was going to see First Class regardless.



When I was collecting comics in the late 80s/early 90s, the X-Men and Wolverine books intimidated me because of all the characters and mini-series that I knew little to nothing of. That didn’t stop me from collecting some X-Men books at the Extinction Agenda storyline, of all times, due to the artwork and hype surrounding the series.



I may have known little about the series at the time but knew that Magneto was a force to be reckoned with. He has always fascinated me even if I never owned a book with him in it. My imagination ran along with the idea that he was one of the series’ most powerful mutants. Matched with his dogged determination to see his ideology about humans and mutants come to fruition, he was simply one of the most dangerous villains in the Marvel Universe.



I mentioned Magneto’s ideology about mutant superiority over humans to be unfortunate a few paragraphs back. It’s truly a shame to be on the other side of the fence with a character that I admire so much, especially an opponent as powerful as Magneto. However, there is something magnetic about his character to me.

I can identify with the part of the movie where he was provoked into unleashing the power he barely understood he possessed. If I had discovered I had a fraction of Magneto’s powers and some people took something as precious to me as young Erik’s mother, the scene would have been different if I were in that situation. I would not be the one yelling like Erik in the movie. I would make those that took from me do the yelling.


Good people do bad things sometimes and bad people do good things sometimes. We can naturally disagree with his ideology but I respect him for it and his conviction to see it through. While some people are more talk than action, Magneto is more than ready to take matters and anything magnetic into his own hands to make things happen.

The Magneto Manifesto Mix from DJ Solespin on 8tracks Radio.

Haul of Records Anniversary Celebration

Can you tell I've been a busy little bee lately?

Blog content has been posted since last year and it's all been leading up to this moment. 

All of this brings us to one of my most sacred times of the year where my blog is concerned. I'm celebrating my 18th anniversary of blogging online.

Over the last 18 years, I have changed radio stations, time slots, DJ name, show names and blog names but it has always been me.

Believe it or not, I have had a history of planning my anniversary show playlists months in advance. My main goal was to surprise the listeners while I did the radio show.  I stopped doing radio broadcasts in 2023 and started blogging again in 2026 after years of inactivity. 

By all means, check out the Haul of Records blog to find out how I celebrated years of broadcasting on Concordia University's radio station, CKUT, DJing & cratedigging as whole.

The blog’s Anniversary Celebration time is upon us!   

The blog originally began in August 2006 as a means for me to promote my radio show and revisit my love for writing. 

As of now, my blog has had over 400,000 hits!

Not too long ago, I wondered how and if I would ever see this day. I was frustrated at not making enough of what I thought was an impact here. It looks like I don't need to worry about that anymore. The fact that people have indeed been visiting my space on the blogosphere is reassuring and a blessing.

I have everyone who has visited, visits and will visit my blog to thank.

Keep an eye out for the Anniversary Celebration all through the month of August.

Click here to download other podcasts.

Grand Funk Railroad

I never knew what rock song was sampled on Master Ace’s Music Man but wanted to.  

From the moment I learned it was Grand Funk Railroad, I opened my eyes and ears to the band. 

I have picked up many of the Grand Funk Railroad records that crossed my path in the hopes of finding the sample. 



The album cover at the top of the post represents one of my favorite classic rock album covers of all-time.

I was pretty happy to have found the On Time album at a Puces Pop Record Fair years ago. 

Local musical mentor Dubny told me about their Phoenix album one night while we were at Death of Vinyl record store when the subject of the group came up in discussion. It was rare or not easy to come by. In an incredible twist of fate, or diggers’ destiny, I found that Phoenix album in New York during my day trip for the Afrika Bambaataa Record Exhibit.  

Tha Alkaholiks

Like The Pharcyde and Souls of Mischief, Tha Alkaholiks sounded so East Coast that I was slightly disappointed I couldn’t claim them as my own.

The first album is fantastic but the second one not so much. I remember being in New York in the summer that Likwidation was to drop. 

The group appeared on Funkmaster Flex’s radio show and the nearly the whole album was played on air that night. 

I was going to buy it for Hip Hop Drunkies alone but their track All Night had be impatient to get to the store.

Fitz and The Tantrums

 

 

I was listening to one of Mark Ronson's Authentic Shit podcasts one day and tripped off the first song played.

I did some quick detective work and discovered the song was recorded by Fitz & The Tantrums.

It sounded like Daptone Records, The Rumble Strips or something Mark Ronson would have produced.

I can identify with the message of the song while I groove my ass off!



I like the blue eyed soul angle of the song too. I especially love the video and the way Fitz dances. There's a funkier Robert Palmer thing going on in his moves.   For as much as I Love the song and played it many times on my show, I've never had as many technical problems while playing a song like I did for Breaking the Chains of Love. I almost thought the song was cursed. I could count nearly 5 times I played it and something would go wrong! I take pride in being the first to play their music at Concordia University's radio station. I look forward to hearing further Fitz. 
 

 

Santana ‎– Santana (1969)

 

Santana’s blending of Latin rhythms and rock music may not have interested me in the past while I was listening to hip hop.  

Within the last 11 years of hosting my radio show, rock music from 1964-1975 has been a primary focus for me.  

The first Santana album lays down the foundation for what we are to expect from the group.  What an introduction!  

On the subject of introductions, hip hop was in its infancy in the early 1970s.  

It is impossible to think the late Jimmy Castor and crew were not influenced by the sounds and work of West Coast wonder Carlos Santana.

Kelis

I’ll always have a place in my heart and music collection for Kelis.



Who knew the multi-colored haired young woman screaming at men like me a decade ago would be so near and dear to me?




She exploded on to the scene with Milkshake and I couldn’t resist her Tasty album.

That forced me to revisit Kaleidoscope and seek out Wanderland.

There is a possibilty that people don't know how great a song Acapella is.



Like Erykah Badu, I respect her creativity & eccentricities and check for her anytime she has something new.

The Suite Delight new time slot is Tuesday morning 2-3am EST on www.ckut.ca & 90.3 FM.

If you haven't already, please make yourself familiar with the link below for more of your favorite show and mine.

Below is a podcast to bring you up to speed.  Click here to download it and more.

The Suite Delight - April 15, 2014 Playlist:

1. Valique – Taking Your Seat
2. Pleaser - Bateria Virtual (DJ Enredo Remix)
3. Greenwood Rhythm Coalition – Rise Up
4. Tim “Elder” Lee – Disco Insert
5. Mr. Scruff – Get A Move On
6. William Onyeabor – Better Change Your Mind
7. The Souljazz Orchestra – Ya Basta
8. Ikebe Shakedown – Tame The Beats
9. Kelis – Glow feat. Raphael Saadiq
10. The Clonious – Emora
11. The Boombap Cats – Interlude (Dilla Tribute)
12. Tall Black Guy – Mon Amie De’Troit

The Suite Delight - March 4, 2014 Playlist:

1. Kokolo - Soul Power (Lack Of Afro Remix)
2. Kelis - Trick Me
3. Nickodemus – 2 Sips & Magic (Second Sky & Thomas Blondet Remix)
4. The Souljazz Orchestra - Celestial Blues
5. Fabolous - So Into You feat Tamia
6. DJ Honda - When You Hot, You Hot feat. No I.D. & Dug Infinite
7. Fashawn - LIfe As a Shorty
8. Oh No - Beware feat. Cali Agents
9. Brand Nubian - Punks Jump Up To Get Beat Down (Remix) Featuring Diamond D
10. Souls of Mischief - Good Feeling
11. De La Soul - Afro Connections At A Hi 5
12. Moka Only & Chief - Crickets
13. Grand Analog - Take It Slow (Spaces & Places)