I was lucky to catch an exhibit of Nick Cave’s Soundsuits (above) when I was in NOLA a couple months back. I keep going back to images of them for inspiration. If I could DJ a party and have everyone in the crowd dancing in one of these, I think there’d be nothing left to desire from life. Someday… In the meantime, some funky sounds to fuel your weekend shakedown.

Faraon Bantu Soundsystem :       Macaco (Novalima Remix)
Novalima :       Mamaye
both of these are from Novalima’s new album. High quality material as always from this Afro-Peruvian future roots collective.

Palenke Soultribe :       Choroni (Palenke Remix) &       Te Veo
saw these guys live at the AfroFunke party a while back and they put on an extremely high energy show. Deep trance-inducing tribal rave from the Jungle. Check it out.

Ikebe Shakedown :       Tujunga &       No Name Bar
really love the classic sounding production on the debut record from this Brooklyn-based afrobeat group. And the fact that they cover one of my favorite slow jams by Sparrow’s Troubadours (“No Name Bar”) earns them extra music nerd cred.

Analog Players Society :       I Can't Wait
my homie Amon (who’s played percussion with me a few times) has put together a kickass band and their first release on Redbud Records is a handful of top-notch steppers reggae covers. Here’s the studio he runs in Brooklyn. Can’t wait to heat more.

Jimmy Cliff :       Guns Of Brixton
superb Clash cover by one of the originators.

Grace Jones :       Well Well Well (Dub)
glad to hear the 80’s party godess coming back around to her dubby roots.

Started off the year with a massive hangover and a nasty cold that has left me coughing up lung butter a full week later. I know, it’s gross. So I’m taking it easy with some slow burners right now, while chain-drinking tea and running through handkerchiefs like it’s my job. Props to my friend Marlee for hooking me up with today’s visual inspiration, which apparently has been floating around the web for a while. You can print one up yourself and watch as the R&B fans line up for their little piece of Lionel. 

Also, big shout out to Anita Brenner at DMX Music for naming my album “Cookin’ Gumbo” the #1 World record on her best of 2011 list! Wow.

Woolfy :       Odyssey
classy, smoothed out mid-tempo disco from an LA band that somehow I’d never heard of until recently.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. :       Simple Girl (Tiger & Woods Remix)
epic slow builder in a spacey 80’s boogie style. I’m now a fan of these guys.

Jesse Boykins :       B4 The Night Is Thru
if you aren’t already familiar with this cat, don’t stop at this track, get acquainted.

Washed Out :       New Theory (RAC Remix)
I think this guy wins the award for most appropriate name. The music sounds exactly like it should, with ever-busy RAC stepping in to make this one a little more head-nod-able. Perfect food for daydreaming.

Gardens & Villa :       Orange Blossom
Heard these guys live on KCRW when they performed this track live. Slow bubbly indy-funk hybrid with an excellent usage of what sounds like a bamboo flute. Well done.

Coco O :       Sleep
the voice behind Quadron (and a bunch of other side-projects), Coco O shines here on this very organic retro soul cut. Peep the release.

Chunking :       Voodoo
while we’re in this mellowed out downtempo soul vein, why not throw in an oldie but goodie. Here’s Chungking

Freddie Cruger & Anthony Mills :       Serious Drug &       Come Closer
awesome collabo here. Props to my homie Freddie for making the first and BEST drunken-lounge-singer ode to cocaine.

Chromeo :       I Can't Tell You Why
really nice to hear the pre-eminent torch bearers of 80’s electro soul come correct on a straight slow jam.

Are you ready for the end of the world as we know it? In case you haven’t heard- tonite at midnight, the great Mayan god Quetzalcoatl will descend upon Earth and usher in a new age of elevated consciousness. I, for one, am quite excited. I decided I’d better prepare by making a playlist that will surely please the white feathered snake deity. Long time readers know I usually shy away from doing “BEST OF” lists, but I decided to take a crack at it anyway. Not necessarily in order of importance, certainly very eclectic, possibly scattered, and would most certainly look different if I did it tomorrow or the day after (that’s why I think these lists are pretty crazy to begin with). So without further blabbering, here’s my top 25 releases of 2011 (the ones I actually listened to the most). A lot of songs from these artists have already been featured on here, so I’m giving you a few tracks from the ones who’ve slipped through the cracks, as well as some winning material from artists who didn’t quite make the list, but are deserving of shine nonetheless.

MIXTAPE RIOT TOP 25 of 2011

SBTRKT – S/T
Mayer Hawthorne – How Do You Do & Impressions
Little Dragon – Ritual Union
Boom Clap Bachelors – Mellem Dine Laeber EP
The Weeknd – House Of Balloons EP
Theophilus London – Timez Are Weird These Days
James Blake – S/T
Holy Ghost! – S/T
Benny Sings – ART
Captain Planet – Cookin’ Gumbo (I put out 2 albums this year, had to include one!)
Gotye – Making Mirrors
Atropolis – S/T
MUNK – The Bird & The Beat
Ocote Soul Sounds – Taurus
Los Chicharrons – Roots Of Life
Cut Copy – Zonoscope
J-DaVeY – Evil Christian Cop
Beastie Boys – Hot Sauce Committee Part 2
Tune-Yards – W H O K I L L
Tom Vek – Leisure Seizure
Kris Kasanova – War Paint
Jay-Z & Kanye West – Watch The Throne
Hollie Cook – S/T
Penguin Prison – S/T
The Black Keys – El Camino

honorable homie mention:
Outernational – Todos Somos Illegales. Dope band & the album is free. Go get it!

AND NOW some music for you…

Theophilus London :       Stop It

Tom Vek :       A Chore (Re-Edit)

Rihanna :       We Found Love (Solidisco Bootleg)

Young Empires :       Enter Through The Sun

Cut Copy :       Take Me Over

Mayer Hawthorne :       The Makings Of A Lover (Pillowtalk Edit)

Escort :       Cocaine Blues

Tune-Yards :       Bizness

The Echocentrics :       We Need A Resolution  (Aaliyah cover in Portugese?!? YES)

Kris Kasanova :       Ready To Die

Happy holidaze to all! Hopefully you’re able to spend a little extra time this week with fam and friends, enjoying good food & booze, and working on your dance moves rather than work itself. I’m gonna try to put together some form of “best of” list before the year is out, but in the meantime, here’s some big tunes to help kick off your party and keep it going til the sun is up. I got heavy doses of inspiration last week thanks to the legendary DJ HARVEY (absolutely insane!), DJ Revolution (killing it), the Subsuelo crew (which includes my homie Farah Sosa whose pic is featured above) and DJ THC Electra who does all things debaucherous at the Alvarado House– lots of parties last week. Also, for anyone in the Bay Area, this is your official warning that I’ll be dj-ing New Year’s Eve with my blood-brother Murphy Lawless and my other brother from another mother Elegante (Soul Imperial massive) at this cool spot in San Francisco’s Mission district named after the muppet band. There’s no cover, which means no excuse not to be there.

Unicorn Kid :       True Love Fantasy
I’m not a “raver”, never have been, but this monster is too epic to be confined by swirling glow sticks or baby pacifiers. It does however make me want to find some MDMA.

Breakbot ft. Ruckazoid :       Fantasy
French house funk pop awesomeness from this man.

The Rapture :       How Deep Is Your Love (Sidechains 90's Rework)
a great song just got even better for the dancefloor, and we have Sidechains to thank.

Max Sedgley ft. Tor Cesay :       Sound Boy (Kraak & Smaak Remix)
Godbless my dudes Kraak & Smaak for keeping the wah-wah pedal alive and well. Disco hip-house banger.

Siriusmo :       Simple
My boy Tony turned me on to this dude recently and I’m now a big fan. Haven’t had a chance to test this one on the floor yet, but I forsee very good things.

Chris Lake :       Secrets In The Dark (Hector Couto Remix)
Good ole funky house music. Some things simply are.

Diesler :       Buzzin'
Something tells me that I’d get along with Diesler quite well. The man clearly loves afrobeat horns and breakbeats as much as I do.

Martin Solveig :       I'm A Good Man (Mousse T Breakbeat Mix)
a little something for the funk heads

Wahoo :       Make Em Shake It
I used to have this 12″ and I played it til the groove wore down. Happy to have it on mp3 finally!

Beni :       It's A Bubble (Round Table Knights Remix)
possibly as gay as “Is It All Over My Face”, and that’s half the beauty of it. Props to The Knights who keep killin it.

Ed Solo & Skool Of Thought :       When I Was A Yout
stole this one from the Afrolicious bros. Classic reggae roots meet breaks and HEAVY electro synth bass.

Lana Del Rey :       Blue Jeans (Penguin Prison Remix)
2 of 2011’s hot names come together on this remix and it really works. I can’t even front like I’m not crushin hard on Lana, and you already know I’m feelin the work of Mr. P.P.

Christmakwanzikah just came early! Two really cool record labels (who happen to be homies of mine) are celebrating big anniversaries. Tummy Touch, the home of Tim “Love” Lee and a slew of highly respectable musical innovators, is turning 15. Bastard Jazz, run by THE DUDE (sorry Lebowski) Dj DRM, is now 10 years old! Crazy, I know. Expect really big things from both of these labels in 2012. To set the combined bday party off right, the 2 labels combined forces to release this compilation of remixes, available for FREE! Artists from Tummy Touch remixed artists from Bastard Jazz, and vice versa. Of course I had to be a part of the action. Here you can check my remix for Los Chicharrons (who I have been a fan of for a while now), but what you need to do is head over to the Bastard Jazz bandcamp page to check out the whole album – and download it for FREE. I repeat… FREE.

Ma Do Nar (Captain Planet Remix) by DJ Captain Planet

Iris Chacon, you haunt me from another era. Your perfectly placed eyebrow mole, like a mysterious third eye staring directly into my lusting soul. I’m actually not including any of Iris’ spanish power-ballads in todays playlist, although I definitely should at some point since I think I own all her records. Instead, I offer some soul, some psychedelic sounds, and a hearty portion of organ funk- basically a well rounded meal including most of the essential food groups.

Michael Kiwanuka :       Tell Me A Tale
British soulster with Ugandan roots, on a mission to keep Bill Withers spirit alive. I fully approve.

Tame Impala :       Why Won't You Make Up Your Mind?
Not new, but new to me, and I’m very grateful for the discovery. Probably the best example of modern psych I’ve heard since Black Moth Super Rainbow. The entire album is a winner.

Cookin’ On 3 Burners :       This Girl (ft. Kylie Auldist) &       Cars
You know if it’s related to cookin’ I’m down. Some remember I had an early love of Organ Funk (one of my first ever t-shirt designs!), and that passion has not faded in the least. This breakbeat cover of Gary Numan’s “Cars” is pretty much perfect. Props to these guys.

Mr. Chop :       Greedy G
speaking of organ funk covers… how bout this tripped out JB interpolation? Not sure if I could ever dj this one out, but it gets a great reaction in my private mind garden every time it spins. Check the rest of the album here.

Booker T. Jones :       Progress (ft. Yim Yames) &       Rent Party
The man who helped put organ funk on the map (did he invent it?) has returned with the ever-prolific Questlove. The album has been out for a minute, but I slept on it. Friends don’t let friends sleep on good music.

Katalyst :       Day Into Night (ft. Stephanie McKay)
So happy to hear my old friend and early collaborator Ms. McKay sounding fresh as ever on this old school reggae track provided by Katalyst. Some of my first shows in NYC were alongside this lady, and we even made a couple Beatards tracks featuring her. Oh the memories…

Incarnations :       Make You Mine &       Let Love Find You
these guys! Same funky NY’ers behind the truly Phenomenal Handclap Band. Sounding extra smoothed out and tripadelic on this record– just how I like it. “Let Love Find You” is a slow burn, but let it catch fire and you’re toast. This one’s a late night lady pleaser for sure.