I had the extreme pleasure of gettin down to the soulful sounds of Moodymann late on Saturday night (after I finished DJ-ing at 2am). Huge shouts to my Angeleno bredren Jeremy Sole & Eric Wiseacre– aka The Lift. Still one of the dopest parties in the city, celebrating 3 years young! Partly inspired by the funky stuff I heard that night, but also just from recent internet gleanings and random radio discoveries, I present you with today’s eclectic selections. The photo above (Moodymann stayed masked his entire set), comes courtesy of KCRW DJ Aaron Byrd (sorry I jacked your instagram feed homie!).

Toro Y Moi :       Say That &       So Many Details
I feel like this guy has really found his stride on this new material. I’ve been a fan for a while, but these new tunes are striking the bullseye.

Velour :       Speedway
new collabo track from Julio Bashmore & Hyetal. Wish I had a higher quality rip to share, but maybe this dope video will make up for it.

Gemini Club :       Ghost (Hey Champ Remix)
some nice 80’s boogie sounds in this production from Hey Champ.

Black Amex :       Pitch Black City
very tasteful edit of the disco classic “A Lover’s Holiday” by Change. It’s nice when you find that someone out there has already taken care of an edit that you’d been meaning to do. Props once again to Black Amex

Gwen McRae :       All This Love I'm Giving
an old classic that I somehow just discovered.

ESG :       Moody (Spaced Out)
yes, this actually got dropped on Saturday, and all was right in the world.

Sir Own :       Hooked (Kon's Nite Time Remix)
King Kon comes highly correct on this silky smooth rework of Cerrone’s “Hooked on You” from 1981. Get the 12″ if you can…

Gramatik :       Break Loose
hard to be original when sampling some classic JB, but this usage of “Payback” gets my full approval. More funky stuff from Gramatik here.

Wave Machines :       Keep The Lights On
simple infectious head nodder from these Brits

Charles Bradley & The Menahan Street Band :       Stay Away (Nirvana Cover)
slept on this one for a while… can’t go wrong when these soulful super powers combine.

Extra Classic :       Congo Rebel &       Give Them The Same (12
mellow rock-infused indy-reggae from this SF band 

Very eclectic (somewhat all over the place) 60 minute mix I recorded live on a recent Friday night in downtown LA. I was DJ-ing at Wurstkuche, which provides some serious grub, even if you’re a vegetarian like myself. Brew selection is no joke either. Some disco, some house, and plenty of funky shit that falls between the cracks.  For those of you in the Angeleno region, come through tomorrow to The Virgil where I’ll be playing similarly eclectic ass-propelling music all night.

Live at Worstkuche 12.14.2012 by Charlie B Wilder on Mixcloud

First off, if you’re a person who likes things that are visually stunning, emotionally stirring, and creatively cutting edge, then I highly recommend watching Life Of Pi. The classic “desert island” or “stranded at sea” scenario that we all use to make essential lists, gets really weird when you start to imagine the inner depths of creativity that get explored while suspended in total isolation. I can’t help but imagine what type of surreal, bugged out beats I would start to create in my head if I were in that position- forced to escape deep into bass and snares that only exist in brain waves. Anyway, today’s batch of global goodies are certainly moving in the direction of what I think that setlist might sound like.

Tuesday Born :       Kwabena
one half of The Busy Twist breaks out with this simple afro-tinged moody gem. More from TB here.

Batida :       Alegria (Extended 12
really liking how spaced out this version gets. Check the EP here.

Zuzuka Poderosa & Kush Aurora :       Pisicodelia (Nego Mozambique Remix)
my homegirl Zuzu is back spitting hot lava flows on this one. She’s staying busy, and one of these days a proper collab will happen.

Rude Boy ft. Elvis (**updated info**) :       Passa Passa (Schlachthofbronx Edit)
Potential Kidd :       A Yah So Nice (Shlachthofbronx Edit)
2 big tunes from these continually genre-defying beatmakers. You can get a nice free ep of edits on their soundcloud.

DJ Demoledor :       El Lorito Lloron
my boy Minimum Tek just got back from Barranquilla, Colombia and slipped a few bonkers champeta mixtape cuts my way. This one really stands out. Looks like this is the dude responsible.

Danny Deluxe :       Sounds Like Oyelo
real nice latin edit from another LA homie, Danny Massure.

Clap Freckles :       Aguilas del Monte
nice rootsy 3Ball flavored joint from this young producer

Gualajo :       La Gallina Culidura (Thornato Edit)
yet another beautiful mix from my Cumba Mela homie Thor

DJ X-Trio / Zahara :       Lengoma (Kaombo Remix)
found out about this Angolan producer/remixer from Boima Tucker

Mala :       The Tunnel &       Calle F
some really deep latin cuts taken from this recent Bronswood project

Chancha Via Circuito :       Hipopotamo
Gevgelis, Karpis & Papas :       Deropolitissa (Chancha Via Circuito Remix)
taken from the new free EP by ZZK’s mystical Andean guru 

Alright, sorry for the brief intermission, but I was enjoying my damn self way too much- first in tropical Guatemala, and then on the snowy slopes around Lake Tahoe. Today’s post is no best-of, but if you read this blog you already have a pretty good idea of my favorites from last year. There were a ton! Aside from the general lack of money in the industry at large (outside of the uber-pop single-slangers who monopolize most commercial radio), I really can’t complain about the state of music right now. The things I was loving that I didn’t post here, were the too-obvious ones that you probably heard a million other people raving about already (hello, Kendrick Lamar). Certainly no hater of best-of lists, check Anthony Valadez’s for a good one, I was extremely honored to see my Mystery Trip mix included on the Sasha Frere-Jones 2012 list for the New Yorker. Yeah, I was as amazed as you. Apparently I have some highfalutin fans! So here’s to another year bouncing past on a rushing river’s worth of good music.

Rhye :       Hunger &       3 Days
more from these 2 guys! If I did have a best-of list, they would certainly be on it.

Gramme :       Too High &       I Can't Resist (Leo Zero Remix)
simple and repetitive to the point where it’s almost stupid, and that’s precisely what makes it so great. EP is available here.

Late Nite Tuff Guy :       Do I Believe In God
nice rework of one of my favorite Prince songs- and it still sounds futuristic!

Psychemagik :       Dreams (Crystal Visions Remix)
while we’re on a roll of classics getting re-worked, here’s a nice tweak of Fleetwood Mac.

Kruse & Nuernberg ft. Stee Downes :       Love Can't Break You Down (Shur-I-Kan's 80's Mix)
doesn’t really sound too 80’s to me, more like contemporary indie pop, which is certainly close, but not completely the same.

Jessie Ware :       Running (Disclosure Remix)
Artful Dodger :       Please Don't Turn Me On (Disclosure Remix)
couple great remixes from one of my new favorites in the world of house music

Plezier :       Plezier Anthem
anthem indeed. This one kind of epitomizes the resurgence of 2-step / 90’s house swing that I’m loving.

Mystikal :       Hit Me
total wild card, but I was ridiculously happy to hear the No Limit soldier put this out, semi-fresh from jail.

Comin at you live and direct all the way from Guatemala– here’s a new one for you hot off the mixing board! In honor of this very special solstice, the ending of a 5,125 year Mayan calendar cycle, and the dawning of a new era of higher consciousness… I present you with this tropical tribal dancefloor heater. Cut me some slack on the artwork since I did it on the redeye flight coming down here (with turbulence & crying babies to boot). I hope you find a way to play this loudly at a holiday party, surprising the hell out of the unsuspecting guests, and then break out into some ferocious ancestral dance moves. Free download, once again…

Last night I was lucky enough to witness, first-hand, a musical experience that I had previously believed existed solely in the privileged memory of concert-goers’ past. On the same stage, performing live: Sly Stone, Shuggie Otis, Leon Ware, Zap Mama, Seu Jorge, James Gadson, Coco O. Oh yeah, George Clinton was there too, just hanging out! Since funk and soul were some of the main driving forces that lead my life into Deejay-dom and beyond, it was a magical moment to say the least. HUGE thanks and respect to Miguel Atwood-Ferguson and ArtDontSleep for making it happen. If I wasn’t leaving for Guatemala tomorrow I’d take more time to elaborate on exactly how amazing it was, and possibly even spend some time digitizing old vinyl to share with you, but… I’m on the run. In a very soulful mood, I’m sharing with you some new and old cuts that I think should help convey a touch of what it was that went down.

Courtney John & Ticklah :       Born To Fly
so happy about this collabo. Probably my favorite contemporary reggae crooner teaming up with one of my favorite producers in ANY genre- Dap Kings, Antibalas, Amy Winehouse secret weapon- the inimitable Ticklah. Get the 7″!

Bruno Mars :       Show Me
rare that I post from an artist as pop as Bruno, but this dude is doing it so much more legit that some other pop acts out there. Jus sayin…

Bomba Estereo :       El Alma Y El Cuerpo
one of my favorite bands in S. America. So good live, and this song in particular (which sounds very reminiscent to a certain K. Frimpong track), absolutely slays me. Get the whole new album here.

Sandra de Sá :       Olhos Coloridos
funky Brazilian classic, since I’m feeling inspired by Seu.

Trio Ternura :       A Gira (Mr Mendel Edit)

Sunshine Anderson :       Heard It All Before (Quantic Remix)
not new, but still sounding great.

Tommy Stewart :       Bump & Hustle
classic. Still don’t have this on vinyl.

Fonda Rae :       Over Like A Fat Rat (Edit)
early 80’s disco gem

First Choice :       Let No Man Put Asunder (Moplen Reprise) &       Love and Happiness
10 mins of pure dancefloor goodness. And the female take on Al Green‘s staple.

The Decoders :       Walk On By ft. Noelle Scaggs
killing yet another soul cover, these LA locals are someone to be watching closely in 2013

Resonators :       Surrender Dub
top notch British reggae from my friends at Wah Wah records. Get the whole dub EP for free.