Video: Live at Notting Hill Carnival 2010

The whole carnival weekend was a madness!

From the Busy Signal / Fay-Ann Lyons / Skinny Fabulous / Lil Rick / Donaeo concert on Friday to the carnival itself yesterday....tramping and dancing all around town.

Big up everyone that made it happen - Urban Nerds, Oi You, Secousse, Deadly Rhythm, Sticky, Plan B, David Rodigan and of course everyone who raved with us over the weekend!

More words, pictures and videos coming soon. Here is us at the Oi You soundsystem in carnival on Monday evening:

Posted by Gabriel_Heatwave | Tuesday 31 August 2010 | Add a comment

Natalie Storm: Queen of Funky Bashment

If you hopped into The Heatwave time machine and set the flux capacitor for 2007 you would find a world with no funky bashment. Well, almost none. One woman was creating the future, vocalling Danish house in a secret underground bunker.

Natalie Storm has been making funky bashment since before it existed. Three years ago she was working with Enur, the producers behind the worldwide floorfiller Calabria. In 2010 she is finally receiving the commercial recognition she deserves with her new tune alongside Sticky riding high on the MTV charts.

When we first heard Natalie she was voicing straight bashment with Ward 21, which was exciting enough. And when we discovered her funky house excursions they sealed the deal. Her flow and versatility showed the world what could happen when Jamaican dancehall artists were unleashed on four to the floor beats.

You can hear her guiding the audience through Gabriel Heatwave's definitive funky bashment mix from last year. When we wanted to voice a dancehall artist on Footsteps' funky anthem Worker we immediately thought of Ms Storm (below). And when Dre Skull wanted to take Sticky's Jumeriah riddim to Jamaica, Natalie was the obvious choice.

To update yourself on all the mad music Natalie has been making, download this clip from our Rinse FM show the other week:

Natalie Storm - The Heatwave Time Machine | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Big up all the Heatwave family in Jamaica: Natalie Storm, Ward 21 and the whole Badda Badda Gang. Make sure you keep your ears open for more Heatwave vs Natalie madness coming to a dance near you soon...

Posted by Benjamin_D | Thursday 22 April 2010 | 6 comments

Major Mackerel - Pretty Looks Done

Step into the Heatwave time machine a moment. We'll take you back over 20 years to listen to Major Mackerel riding the Love Punaany Bad riddim.

Major Mackerel - Pretty Looks Done | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Despite being a fairly unknown artist, Mackerel has been a major influence on two of today's biggest female MCs in Jamaica and England.

Before her noughties reincarnation which kicked off when she counteracted Vybz Kartel's Tekk Buddy, Macka Diamond was known as Lady Mackerel for over a decade. As well as borrowing his name, early Macka tunes also riffed on the Major's high pitched vocals.

Around the same time as Macka Diamond's comeback in Jamaica, ragga/garage bad gal Stush was making her name in the UK thanks to the smash hit Dollar Sign, produced by Sticky. Stush's trademark squeal, as featured on Me Nuh Run and Get Down since then, also owes a debt to Major Mackerel's eccentric vocal ticks.

Stush will be appearing at our weekly bashment affair, Hot Wuk, next Thursday (25th March).

Posted by Gabriel_Heatwave | Thursday 18 March 2010 | 3 comments

25 Years of Dancehall

Last month marked the 25th anniversary of the day that Wayne Smith's Under Me Sleng Teng was first played in a dance. Tuesday 23rd February to be exact.

To celebrate the 25th birthday of digital dancehall we looked back over the last quarter century of this brilliant music and had a quick party on our Rinse FM show. It was mad to look at how things have developed over two and a half decades.

I couldn't quite keep it to one tune per year as I was also trying to make sure that all the key artists from this period were represented. I think I did pretty well in the end but I'm sure I left out some notable vocalists. I KNOW that there are hundreds of BIG TUNES that didn't get featured.

I suppose there's always someone who gets left out at a birthday party. Big up Kiprich, Cecile, TOK, Terry Ganzie, Serani, Spice and all the other artists whose invites got lost in the post.

So here's The Heatwave's history lesson aka bashment birthday party. 25 years of dancehall. As Benjamin points out at some point, this is one for the iPod.

The Heatwave - 25 Years of Dancehall | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Tracklist

• Wayne Smith - Sleng Teng (1985)
• Admiral Bailey - Punaany (1986)
• Super Cat - Mud Up (1987)
• Ninjaman - More Reality (1988)
• Shabba Ranks - Wicked Inna Bed (1989)
• Cutty Ranks - Retreat (1990)
• Buju Banton - Stamina Daddy (1991)
• Chaka Demus & Pliers - Murder She Wrote (1992)
• Terror Fabulous & Nadine Sutherland - Action (1993)
• General Degree - Papa Lover (1994)
• Spragga Benz - Dem Flop (1994)
• Capleton - Tour (1995)
• Lady Saw - Sycamore Tree (1996)
• Beenie Man - Who Am I (1997)
• Mr Vegas - Heads High (Remix) (1998)
• Bounty Killer - Look (1999)
• Baby Cham - Man A Man (2000)
• Ward 21 - Don't Push It (2000)
• Sizzla - Pump Up (2001)
• Mad Cobra - Press Trigger (2001)
• Tanya Stephens - Touch Me No More (2002)
• Elephant Man - Genie Dance (2003)
• Vybz Kartel - Tek Buddy (2003)
• Sean Paul - Temperature (2004)
• Leftside & Esco - Tuck In Yu Belly (2005)
• Assassin - As A Man (2005)
• Tony Matterhorn - Dutty Wine (2006)
• Natasha - Calabria (2007)
• Mavado - So Special (2008)
• Demarco - She Can't Wait (2009)
• Busy Signal - Bare Gal (2010)

Posted by Gabriel_Heatwave | Thursday 18 March 2010 | 3 comments

Busy Signal - Jafrican Ting and Bare Gal

In our January chart we couldn't choose between two Busy Signal tunes and had to make both of them number one. In February Busy got even more serious with this pair of tunes on the Jafrican riddim and we were forced to give him a double number one again. He's not normal.

Last year's Da Style Deh was the pre-cursor for Jafrican, with its chanting and call and response chorus. But Jafrican Ting went further. Big up the Coppershot team for producing such a crazy riddim.

When I played this tune to Gabriel and Benjamin for the first time on the way back from a gig in Reading we had to stop the car. It got 23 reloads. Twenty three. No exaggerating.

Busy Signal - Jafrican Ting | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Then we heard Bare Gal on the same riddim and things got out of hand. Gabriel started sounding the horn on the motorway and everyone got very over excited. We had to pull over onto the hard shoulder.

Busy Signal - Bare Gal | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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We've opened our Rinse FM show with these two tunes twice and they've already been on heavy Heatwave rave rotation for a few weeks, starting to get forwards even though they're just a month old.

The irony is I haven't been able to get through the whole song in one piece yet; everytime it gets to "hey gal, me put yuh pon a block" I have to start the whole thing over again.

Posted by Dan_Bean | Monday 08 March 2010 | 2 comments

Sleng Teng - Happy 25th Birthday

Yesterday was 25 years to the day since Wayne Smith's anthem Under Mi Sleng Teng was first played in a dance.

The tune was built at Jammy's studio in Waterhouse before being unleashed during a clash with Black Scorpio at Waltham Park Road on 23rd February 1985. It flattened the dance and dominated the scene for months, with dozens (and later hundreds) of artists and producers rushing to record their own versions of the rhythm track.

Wayne Smith - Under Mi Sleng Teng | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Generally acknowledged as the first fully computerised dancehall riddim, Sleng Teng completely revolutionised Jamaican music and paved the way for all the ragga, bashment, dancehall or whatever you want to call it that I love so much.

Tomorrow night on our Rinse FM show, me and Benjamin D will be running through 25 years of digital dancehall, ragga and bashment, from Wayne Smith to Busy Signal. Expect to hear the likes of Super Cat, Ninjaman, Shabba Ranks, Buju Banton, Capleton, Sizzla, Lady Saw, Tanya Stephens, Beenie Man, Bounty Killer, Vybz Kartel, Mavado, Mr Vegas and Sean Paul.

Posted by Gabriel_Heatwave | Wednesday 24 February 2010 | 3 comments

Have a happy dancehall Christmas

Last year we featured Caribbean Christmas carols courtesy of Assassin, Delly Ranx, Elephant Man and Rihanna plus late entries from Busy Signal and Michelle Gordon.

This year there is a bumper crop of seasonal songs. Where better to start than with the two artists who have dominated 2009?

I never picked sides in the Gully/Gaza debate but I've enjoyed the many highlights from both Vybz Kartel and Mavado. However, I think that Kartel and Black Ryno have the edge on Mavado, Flexxx and Savage in the festive stakes:

Vybz Kartel & Black Ryno - Gaza Christmas | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Mavado, Flexxx & Savage - Gully Christmas | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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After taking a break from badman carols with last year's Dancing Paradise, Elephant Man returns to his classic Christmas style, placing a ridiculous singalong chorus next to HARD verses about being a badman in the winter.

Elephant Man - Badman Christmas | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Tony Matterhorn's effort is much more appropriately seasonal and annoyingly jolly. It's the kind of tune you might hear in a syrupy American movie while excited kids are ice skating in Central Park.

Tony Matterhorn - Christmas In JA | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Torch and Slu are keen to emphasise the importance of female companionship over the festive period: their 'gally' Christmas is all about candy cane and and Santa's sleigh.

Torch & Slu - Gally Christmas | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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This vocal from Mr Vegas came out in the summer and is probably the earliest released Christmas tune I'm aware of, though lyrically it doesn't have a strict Christmas theme:

Mr Vegas - Keep Your Friendship | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Perhaps unsurprisingly, the pick of 2009's Christmas bashment comes from Busy Signal. This is another one that's not about Christmas but there's certainly has a festive feel to Stephen McGregor's excellent production.

Busy Signal - Soon You Will Find Out | Download MP3 (right click, save as)

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Posted by Gabriel_Heatwave | Wednesday 23 December 2009 | 2 comments

The Go-Go Club Riddim

This is shaping up to be one of the biggest riddims of 2009 and is certainly the hottest dancehall rhythm around right now.

Tarik 'Russian' Johnston's instrumental was originally used for a one-off Vybz Kartel vocal which came out in September:

Download: Vybz Kartel - Go-Go Club

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I guess the tune was too big for other vocalists not to turn it into a riddim project!

The first batch of voicings that came out included stand-out vocals from Kartel's fellow Portmore artists Black Ryno, Lisa Hype and Gaza Kim (pictured below):

Download: Black Ryno - Bike Back

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Download: Gaza Kim & Lisa Hype - Bills

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But the rhythm wasn't done yet; more vocals trickled out one by one, underlining its ongoing and increasing popularity. You can see why Elephant Man wanted a piece of the action:

Download: Elephant Man & Ishawna - Give It To Me

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If you're paying attention you'll notice that Go-Go Club isn't your average dancehall riddim; it's got a definite hip hop feel to it.

Having said that, "average dancehall riddim" is less meaningful now that Kingston's producers are dealing in everything from minimal retro ragga to dark orchestral epics and are influenced by dubstep and electro as much as reggae and soca.

Anyway, even with what seems to be a hip hop beat, Go-Go Club is recognisably dancehall, featuring a bad boy bassline and a syncopated snare anticipating the fourth beat of each bar.

These musical mathematics got a little more complicated when lovers' rock crooner Tarrus Riley (below) joined forces with gun-obsessed Aidonia for a tune defending the herb, creating a track that falls somewhere between hip hop, dancehall and reggae:

Download: Aidonia & Tarrus Riley - Di Trees

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And still the riddim wasn't done - only last week new vocals from Laden and Flippa Mafia dropped. Flippa's is the first of the many cuts on the riddim which is anything less than good, confirming our feelings at Heatwave towers that this guy is simply not a top flight artist.

If you can't cut it on a riddim this good then there's not much hope for you. Even Leftside's slightly grating comedic creation, Gran Faada, bangs out a big tune on the Go-Go Club:

Download: Gran Faada (Leftside) - Mi Tyad

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Finally, English dancehall's most wanted Gappy Ranks has also got involved in the riddim. Watch out for him blowing up Jamaica at Sting this Christmas.

Download: Gappy Ranks - Ball Out

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Honourable mentions go to Merital, Konshens & Dario, Demarco and Nicky B - all good voicings on the riddim but too many to feature all of them here!

Posted by Gabriel_Heatwave | Tuesday 03 November 2009 | 8 comments

Demarco: behind the scenes video

Demarco's Love A Come Down (She Can't Wait) has had a really successful ride since its release earlier this year. It's such an infectious banger.

So far we've seen a smoothly directed video featuring 'swagger man' - a character that I can't help but think would have been called 'dagger man' if the Jamaican Broadcasting Commission hadn't had their way. That was followed by the expert touches of soca don Machel Montano on the remix.

But the bit we don't get to see is behind the scenes. In the video below, watch Demarco play Love A Come Down for the first time to bossman Suku from Ward 21.

Things to watch out for:

• Timberlee on crutches
• Demarco's anxious face as he plays the tune
• Suku's joke unimpressed face
• Demarco getting called 'fatty'

Posted by Dan_Bean | Monday 02 November 2009 | 3 comments

Five degrees of separation: Alton Ellis to RDX

The much loved and respected Alton Ellis (pictured below) died a year ago this month. However, his musical legacy lives on through his son Christopher, who has collaborated with Jah Cure on the Netzah riddim.

MP3: Jah Cure & Christopher Ellis - Why Can't We

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The dancehall reggae world recently lost another legend - producer Wycliffe 'Steely' Johnson - to whom Wyclef Jean paid tribute on his Patwa Swagga mixtape. It's a mixed bag of classic dancehall rhythms and Wyclef's pan-Caribbean style fitted awkardly over the tracks; the pick of the bunch is a version of the fast paced, x-rated Bend Over by RDX (pictured below).

MP3: Wyclef Jean - Sak Pase (Flatbush)

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What really makes the tune is Wyclef's use of Kassav's Zouk La Ce Sel Medicament Nou Ni.

Kassav are a Parisian band who sing in a localized version of French Creole, unique to the islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique and this track is possibly my favourite non-English language song. Listening to this you can see where the likes of Busy Signal draw their inspiration for cross Caribbean sounds such as Nah Go Dung Deh.

MP3: Kassav - Zouk La Ce Sel Medicament Nou Ni

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The sound incorporates elements of Dominican cadence-lypso, Haitian kompa (from Wyclef's homeland) and Trinidadian calypso.

Trinidad & Tobago is most renowned for it's soca and calypso. However, the smaller of the two islands, Tobago, is as keen on conscious reggae and dancehall as Jamaica is.

The strength of the influence is demonstrated in Tobagonian local boy Positive (pictured below) and his huge number one Never Let Go, which made a big impact last year in the smaller islands but rarely touched shores abroad.

A guy to watch out for, he joins the likes of other popular non-Jamaican reggae artists such as Khari Kill (Trinidad), Marlon Asher (Trinidad) and Pressure Buss Pipe (St Thomas USVI)

Check the vocal similiarities between him and Gyptian:

MP3: Positive - Never Let Go

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Never Let Go was also the title for Slim Smith's 1960s single, the foundation for the classic Answer riddim, a Heatwave favourite. That song came out on a 12" single backed by Alton Ellis's I'm Still Waiting…

Posted by Dan_Bean | Monday 19 October 2009 | 1 comment