SBTRKT, the masked English dj/producer who just dropped his first studio album will be at SXSW this year and I am stoked. He is responsible for amazing songs like Wildfire ft. Little Dragon and Pharoahs, both of which were featured on my latest mix. Hopefully he will be performing some of this year’s sneaky free shows. I’ll keep y’all posted on those type of events as we get closer to March. I don’t do wristbands. I do free.
The picture above captures the essence of the tribal (aka 3ball) movement in Mexico: a mix of traditional cumbia and Caribbean influences with futuristic electro house beats. Although its deepest roots are in Monterrey and Mexico City, the genre has been gaining worldwide attention the past two years, thanks largely to Toy Selectah, XLR8R and Mad Decent exposure. Like many people, I was first exposed to tribal culture in a VICE video about las botas picudas (or Mexican pointy boots) pictured here:
The musical theme in that video is a song by the best known producer and dj in the tribal movement, DJ Erick Rincon. Here are a couple of my favorite tracks by him along with a Discobelle mix of his tribal influences. Rincon, 18, linked up with a couple other tribal djs, DJ Otto and Sheeqo Beat, who are 19 and 20 respectively. Collectively the trio make up 3ball MTY, a formidable super group of young Mexican djs and producers. They recently released the first ever tribal music video for Inténtalo (Me Prende) and already garnered over 1.5 million YouTube hits. 3ball MTY are on tour now and stop through in San Antonio and Austin October 7th and 8th. No location or ticket info yet, just this twitter announcement. A bailar!
SXSW this year was the first time DJ/Producer Brenmar popped up on my radar. He did several appearances around town but what initially caught my eye was his set at the Fader Fort. His remixes and original productions tend to heavily invoke pop R+B sounds whether it’s acapellas from the 90s (Shai, Aaliyah, Groove Theory) or stuff from more recent sangers (Cassie, Rihanna, Jamie Foxx). With ghetto house influences from his native Chicago and the complex percussion aesthetics of UK Funky, his stuff is dancey, dark and always left-of-center. This guy is really talented and is just starting to tap into his potential. Last month he released a weird barbershop music video to promote his debut EP At It Again. Brenmar is set up in NYC which explains why that video feels so Brooklyn and also why he is starting to get more press coverage. To get a better feel for his tastes, I recommend his XLR8R and Fader mixes and this cool track called Paper Running. Also check out his soundcloud page. Jeah.
djjeffresh is a dj.
he lives in austin, tx.
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