Daily Dope: Champagne Facials

Michael Imperial: Secret Drugs Volume 2

The perpetual search for finding 'new', 'dope' music can be a treacherous task that can lead you down holes and back-alleys full of mediocre, nondescript tracks, EPs, Compilations and 'exclusives' leaving you wondering and asking what you are doing with your life as you have wasted yet another night trawling through the information super highway and getting nothing. To consistently be coming up with the next best shit requires 'rain man-esque' determination and skills, of which we frankly don't have the time and patience for (at a 24/7 level).

Nevertheless, once in a while we do come across things that instantly blow our minds and we ask ourselves why the rain men bloggers out there are not making a bigger deal about something. Michael Imperial is that one instance. He's come along way from Secret Drugs Volume 1 which we found and posted about. He has just released his second release: Secret Drugs Volume 2 which is now out on Subwell as of today. Long story short is that this does not disappoint. Give it a listen and show some support by purchasing a copy from his bandcamp.

Today's Track: Bublé Rap

Luckyme is doing a 12 day advent calendar till New Years giving us free tracks from their artists. Behind today's day is Bublé Rap by Baauer. check a snippet above and go over to thisisluckyme.com for the free dl.

Metro Zu X Lambo

Metro Zu painted a Lambo during the Miami Art Basel 2012. Check it out.

Daily Dope: No Gold Anything

Great parody of the "All Gold Everything" track from Trinidad James.

Today's Track: 1Train

Kendrick Lamar, Joey Bada$$ Yelawolf, Danny Brown, Action Bronson and Big Krit all on this new ASAP Rocky track off his debut album. DAMN!

Bleeder by Jared Clark

This really doesn't warrant a write-up, but if you really need to know more. Click here.

EVERYWHERE

Everywhere is a short documentary about the work and the origin of the Toaster, an idea between 3 friends. Since 1999, the toaster has become an iconic symbol in the street art culture but as well it has made its appearance on music festivals, football stadiums and even bicycle races such as Tour de France. So take half an hour of your time today, or bookmark it for later, to watch this documentary of one of the first street art projects.

Sum Times

Aakash Nihalani, known for his tape art installations, did these two great humorous pieces at Nuart Festival in Norway.

Today's Track: Let Me Go

New cut by Viennese indie RnB (is that what they call it nowadays?) crooner Milo Mills. Homie is on that 90's deep house vibe. YUS.

Drink 'n' Draw

If you live in Vienna, Rabbiteyemovement or REM for short should be a familiar name. They are a street art collective/concept that was started in 2005 by Vienna's artist Nychos. Now after 6 years they will be opening a new artspace in the city where it all started. The opening show entitled "Drink 'n' Draw" is this Thursday, 6th of December, will be an exhibition of new works from a diverse group of artists. If you are a fan of graffiti and the street art culture make sure you come down to Gumpendorferstrasse 91 to celebrate the opening of the Rabbiteye Movement Artspace.
More info on this event here.

LemLem Talks To: Amir Alexander

Tonight on Afromullets: Chicago-based DJ, producer and label founder AMIR ALEXANDER goes deep with LemLem for another exclusive installment in our interview series.

Amir Alexander's tracks bridge the gap between the early acid house sound of his home city and the more melodic, laid-back vibe of deep house; the result is a skillfull concoction of bootyshaking wizardry spanning two generations of electronic music.

In addition to his existing label, Vanguard Sound, AA recently brought to life a sister label, Anunnaki Cartel, on which he and fellow Vanguard member Chris Mitchell have released tracks. Today he talks to LemLem about club culture in Europe and record shopping in Chicago, and offers some valuable career advice for young independent artists.

LL: As an artist, producer and DJ, who are some of your influences?

AA: First and foremost, I would have to say my life, and or the human experience. A secondary set of influences would be all of the dedicated artists throughout history whose works have moved me. Be it Bach as a major influence musically from the pre Renaissance, Jean Michel Basquiat as a modern painter, Julia Child in the culinary … anyone who is able to externalize the higher aspects of their being and manifest that which is within into the physical realm.

DJ-wise I am most influenced by the crowd I'm playing for at the moment

LL: What would you say are the main differences between US and European techno (and club culture)?

AA: The first and most gigantic difference I have witnessed is the utter fervor and passion for the music on a much larger scale. U.S. heads are some of the most dedicated in the world, but we are far outnumbered by our European counterparts. The music is firmly entrenched in the everyday fabric of European culture in a way that we could only wish for here in the States …. and this is why you see the artists who are able, flying the 7 plus hours over the Atlantic Ocean to be where the vibes are highly concentrated.

I was at a house party in Paris where we had nothing but an iPod going through a home stereo, and that party went off harder than 75% of the club events I've ever been at here in (modern) Chicago. Overall, there is a higher appreciation for the fine arts in Europe, so I am not surprised. U.S. culture is pop culture. Media induced fads to sell a product or image. By its very nature it must change every season. That's why the U.S. invents artforms, lets them go out of fashion for the greater world to truly discover (and then to represent them to the U.S.) Like Jazz or Jimi Hendrix. Many North Americans still think that House and Techno came from Europe … Hey, but it's all good. Our generation(s) finally have the chance to get things back on track.

LL: If you could pick one piece of hardware, what would it be and why?

AA: MPC 3000. That or the MPC 2000. Most Bang for the money. It's a sampler/sequencer midi production center so you still need sounds, but with just that and records (combined with a shit load of talent) you could go on to one day rock shit like Moodymann, or Early Theo. Once you get a synth or drum machine you can take advantage of the midi capabilities and start slaving things.

Of course the implicit, yet unstated piece of gear is a solid computer with nuff memory. If you've got something to say and a computer, put in work and learn a reputable DAW. Don't wait till you get the right gear to wait to start. Start learning now and adapt your knowledge to new work environments as your skills progress.

LL: You have been in the game for a while now. What was the best year for music?

AA: Excluding this year which has been excellent in my opinion, I would have to say 94-95 was pretty good. Both for me personally in my Club Life, as well as being a young DJ buying records. I lived in a town where we had the best DJ's in the world coming through every weekend, and the hype monster had not really been born yet. It is my hope that the best years are yet to come though. I think that many of us do, or we wouldn't suffer so many hardships for the art form.

LL: What was your craziest club experience?

AA: My craziest club experience may or may not have been a chemically induced pseudo orgy in a dark corner back in the early 90's. There have been quite a few, but that one ranks near the top. People will have to wait for the autobiography to get the specifics on that one LOL.

LL: How has your music career changed since you founded your record label Vanguard Sound?

AA: Very general question … let's see. How has my career changed since I founded Vanguard Sound? Before it was a label it was a website and a hub of information about the true origins and history of our culture. That, and a place to host my mixes. Vanguard Sound officially became a label in late 2010/ early 2011. There were a lot of changes going on, but I cannot directly tie them to the launch of the label. In general, the changes are that I have records out, but I was beginning to put them out on other labels. In fact I have only just recently released my first solo record on my label. It is my belief that my label(s) lend a sense of legitimacy to me as a creative entity. As humans, we are always more attractive to others when people perceive that we don't need them. Nobody wants to take on anyone else's burden(s), so when you are independently making your own moves, people are more willing to reach out because you already have a track record of success. Does that make sense?

LL: What was the first record you ever bought and how big is your record collection?

AA: I think that the first record I bought was a 45 rpm story record. It had the 3 little pigs on it. Another one of my first records was mary had a little lamb. I got my first turntable at age three, so that was the type of record I was listening to back then. Compared to most DJ's who have been at it for a long as I have been I have very few records. Perhaps somewhere between 1400-2000. I recently got rid of about 250 right before I moved into the place I live now because I had double copies, or they were just records that I would likely never play again. I thin out the herd as they say every few years. Combine that with the fact that I stopped shopping for records for about 10 years, and it's not hard to understand why I don't have too many. The upside of having a smaller collection is that I know all of my records in and out. I also play all of my records. They are not just taking up space..

LL: I would love to visit Chicago someday! If I had one day to see/do one thing in Chicago what would it be and why?

AA: I would say go record shopping and have sushi for lunch. There is an amazing all you can eat sushi restaurant about a 10-15 min walk from Gramaphone which is where you'd go to shop for records after your meal. You could take a break from shopping and hit one of the local bars for a few drinks and then you could go back and shop until closing time. Or you could come over my house and I'd make us some food and then we could work on some tracks while we had some beer and a spliff or two.

LL: Praterei is my favorite club night in Vienna. What have you heard about it as a party and a label? How excited are you about playing in Vienna?

AA: Not very much … Just some general info that I've come across in my research since I was booked. I am very happy and excited to be playing in Vienna because I am a serious student of music.

Since I was around 12 years old I have dreamt about performing in the same country that my heroes Haydn, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, Mozart, and Strauss lived in. For that reason I am very excited. I am also eager to meet Didi and Felix in person as they seem like my kind of people.

LL: Ok last one :) If you could collaborate with any musician from any era, who would it be and why?

AA: Only one Musician? That's tough … I would have to say Billie Holiday. She had the most distinct and beautiful voice I've ever heard. A project with her on vox and me producing the tracks would be a winner for sure.

For those of us in Vienna, Amir Alexander will be stirring up the club scene this Saturday at Pratersauna. Come along and treat yourself.

And of course as always, special thanks to LemLem for arranging this interview. Make sure to subscribe to her status updates for your daily dose of Lemtertainment.

Daily Dope: RUDOLPH, C'MON!

H&M for Brick Lane Bikes

After some highly successful collaborations with high-fashion names such as Maison Martin Margiela, Karl Lagerfeld and Lanvin to name a few; H&M is now targeting a younger, urban crowd with it's upcoming collaboration with Brick Lane Bikes, a bike store that has become quite an institution in the British Fixed Gear scene. Hopefully there will be some more detailed looks into this collection that seeks to combine form with function.

Sunday Streaming: Machotaildrop

This is the trailer for Machotaildrop. An indie skate movie that is very reminiscent of Wes Anderson's work if he made skate movies. Enjoy.

The best thing is that you can watch the whole movie HERE.

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