editing M.S.

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Owen kindly pointed out that Mark Stewart has reviewed the latest Portishead album for Spex magazine.

Whilst checking that out, I find he has a new album coming out in a few months, called EDIT, on Crippled Dick Hot Wax.

Also a documentary:

From April 2008, the documentary ON/OFF: Mark Stewart – from the Pop Group to the Maffia by Tøni Schifer will be gracing selected cinemas and film festivals. The film retraces the singer’s steps and paths from the early days of The Pop Group right up to the present. Schifer, who followed Mark around for a full two years, has crafted a detailed, often intimate portrait of the artist, supplemented by interviews with a. o. Mark Stewart himself, Adrian Sherwood, Daniel Miller (Mute), Nick Cave, Mick Harvey, Doug Wimbish, Skip McDonald, Keith LeBlanc, Douglas Hart (The Jesus & Mary Chain), Fritz Catlin (23 Skidoo), Jon Spencer, Gareth Sager (The Pop Group, Rip Rig and Panic) and many others, plus live recordings and music clips. The DVD will be released by Monitorpop in May / June.

In similar news, this entry on KYPP has lead Al at Greengalloway to take an interest in Mark’s work and my piece about him.

So, thank you Owen.

England, My England

An England Story - Soul Jazz

The unintentionally hilarious comment below from a neo-nazi has reminded me that I haven’t mentioned this essential new release from Soul Jazz.

If you’ve been following this blog and the mixes I’ve done for the last few years, you’ll know that I think the history of UK MC culture has been massively under-exposed – this is fantastic start to redressing that error.

The album is compiled by the comrades over at The Heatwave and is based on their excellent blogariddims mix.

Full review to follow in the next issue of The Wire, but do yourself and favour and grab your copy now – you won’t regret it. If there is a release more important than this in 2008 I will be very surprised.

The album also functions as a beautiful antidote to the socially constructed concept of “whiteness” that my correspondent seems so keen on.

Full tracklist and samples at the Soul Jazz site.

Time Out feature.

nazi stickerists, fuck off

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I discovered two neo-nazi stickers on lamp-posts the other day whilst walking to work. I found them shocking more for the surprise value than their content. In the 80s (oh no, here he goes again) there used to be quite a lot of this stuff floating about in some areas – you’d even see the odd NF sticker on the tube.

These days it comes across as real fringe nutjob stuff, I think. You know it’s some lonely geezer in a dirty mac furtively going about in the early hours with a pocket full of fading nazi propaganda. Like a dog trying to mark its territory, or a flasher.

These two items were even more pathetic because they publicised two different organisations. “Oh blimey someone from the National Front has been stickering on the same morning as someone from the neo-nazi N*vember 9th S*ciety! What are the chances of that? Wow this area must be a real hotbed of far right activity!”

The pic, by the way, is Rudolf Hess. Apparently he was killed by those horrid rotters ZOG. It’s as good an insight as any into the intellect of the master race that they think:

a) Many people will recognise Hess from his picture

b) Many people will know what ZOG is.

c) Anyone will get worked up by the circumstances of Hess’ death.

My theory is it’s just a wind up, rather than a recruitment aid. “Let them hate us, as long as they fear” and all that. I suppose I do hate them, but mainly it just all seems a bit sad.

I ripped both stickers down easily and had a wander in my lunchtime to see if there were more, but fortunately other people had already removed the bulk of the two other offending items I found.

There used to be all sorts of rumours of fascists putting razor blades under their retarded propaganda but I’ve never met anyone who has actually seen this. Or in fact, many stickers these days – it’s a bit like “I Spy” for cynical lefties.

LDN 23rd Feb: Adrian Sherwood, African Headcharge

Only just heard about this and not able to go, but looks pretty good, eh?

ON U SOUND MASSIVE
Present
REGGAE IN THE CITY

The Cock Tavern
East Poultry Avenue
Smithfield Meat Market
London EC1 9LH (opposite Fabric)

Saturday 23rd Feb
Saturday 29th March
Saturday 26th April

10pm – 6am

Admission £10

FIRST NIGHT:
African Head Charge Sound System
Adrian Sherwood
Jah Surrzema