All the DJs & producers are at home now, here’s a run down of some of our favourite lockdown mixes so far…
There’s no two ways about it, none of us are going out to see any live music or DJs in the near future. But, as is so often the case, people have stepped up to produce all kinds of great musical content to keep us entertained. There’s been all manner of live streams and sessions, like the huge United We Stream party over Easter weekend (& everyday), the Band On the Wall’s live-ish shows, Alex Paterson’s 24 hour sets, the Positive Vibration live DJ sets and the Chill Out Tent to name just a few. But as everyone’s at home very many DJ’s & producers have had the time to turn out new sets or finish off sessions that life got in the way of. So here, for starters, are a few we’ve enjoyed, you can check out our own Adrian Sherwood / Andrew Weatherall shaped contribution to the genre here.
Rebel Skum – Enter The Skum
A Rebel Skum mix is always a thing of wonder, not just DJ mixes, these are carefully crafted productions – with re-rubs of classic cuts, scratches and vocals, the attention to detail is phenomenal, all the way down to this Wu Tang flavoured session being exactly 36 minutes long . If you enjoyed RZA vs DJ Premier battle over the weekend and you haven’t heard this yet, get involved right away!
Steve Cobby – 30 Years Of Fila Brazillia
Fila Brazillia are, for our money, great unsung heroes of UK music. In particular the “Brazillification” compilation ranks alongside the “K & D Sessions” as one of the all time great remix compilations, taking tracks bending them into fabulous new shapes. Steve Cobby has built a reputation as an outstanding DJ and his mixes are always worth checking. The other good news is that he and David McSherry are collaborating again, producing the first new Fila Brazillia material for 16 years, some of it features on this mix. At 4 hours you may think it’s a long one, but with tracks this good and a master craftsman on the 1s & 2s the time flies by – a real tonic for the soul.
Manudigital – Exclusive Dub Mix
One of France’s finest digital bass producers Manudigital did this dub mix as a live stream from the studio last week. It’s packed with unreleased tracks & exclusive remixes and is performed with an infectious enthusiasm that’s hard to resist, terrific stuff!
Phil Charnock – No Nightclub Today
Two and a half hours of simply impeccable choices from champion selector, Chibuku resident and past Funkdub guest Phil Charnock. The tags on the mix say House & Hip Hop, but there’s so much more than that including soul & and some breakbeats redolent of the lush era of Good Looking Records & Moving Shadow and closing out with the marvellous Michael Kiwanuka. Either way if you want some fresh and lovely selections to brighten your day, this is the one. (and we think the title is a cheeky reference to this infamous incident from a couple of years ago!)
Adam Prescott – 100% Production Mixtape
Nottingham digital roots producer Adam Prescott & has long been a favourite here at Funkdub. As a treat for lockdown he’s dropped this mix of exclusive forthcoming releases and dubplates, turn up the bass!
Dub Defenders – Stay At Home Mix
Whilst you have the bass turned up dive into the this selection from Merseyside’s finest bass heads – Dub Defenders, they’ve been playing some outstanding sessions and had a raft of shows lined up for spring & summer including the Dub Pistols Mucky Weekender in September, fingers crossed that event will still be able to go ahead. This lockdown session starts steady and gets heavier & heavier – on point as ever.
This is likely to be an ongoing project as more & more DJs produce sessions to keep us all sane & entertained, Hit us up here or on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram with any suggestions and we’ll add to this article.
You can check out our mixes here or on Mixcloud, in common with everyone else there may well be more from us to come. In the meantime, stay at home, stay safe & bless up the NHS.
1 Comment
Don’t forget of course Gentleman Kush’s very own lockdown mix too > https://funkdub.co.uk/2020/04/09/mix-sherwood-x-weatherall-dub-electroniks/