SENSIBLE DANCEHALL AUSTRALIA

I was in Greece on a family tip (thoughts with all the Greeks voting today, as wikipedia says, you are experiencing a current event). So left the studio in the hungry and capable hands of Sensible Family Barnikoff and Jesse, two of the guys behind Svelt, and they took us on a  nice coast from cumbia, to grime, to footwork, and of course, ‘our spirit music’, jungle war.

Linking with Balkan Riddims’ Mr Kentro in Athens. They’ve got a slew of new releases blowing up on their bandcamp.

Of course while in Greece I took a moment to link up with Mr Kentro from Balkan Riddims at the 420 bar in Athens where he’s a resident. These guys are all over the map at the moment, producing collaborations with artists from Jamaica, UK, and Brazil, their latest a nice Brazilian number Supersan featuring Soraia Drummond:

Lastly I’d like to shoutout Cowley Carnival, which took place this weekend in my other homeland of OX4. It’s a few years since Sensible Dancehall dominated the return of the carnival to Cowley Rd, and one of the Sensible founders Ollie Castell sent me this radio excerpt of my handling a somewhat conservative presenter, prosletyzing for ‘the vibe’ of carnival.

She say her name Karen, then she reach and shake my hand,

when me shake her hand, you know me see her wedding band,

so me look behind me fast to see if me see di husband

she start to laugh and say 'wha happen Sheldon?'

don't worry the man off deya Afghanistan. 

Trust me, have a listen:

The imagery throughout is just simply off the chain, some of my personal favourites are: 

'bambaclaat me nearly shit inna mi brief', 'haffi stop off the corner store, two box magnum in case mi score' and

'house spacious like her two titty so'.

The Afghanistan conflict was also timely reminder that that conflict is still definitely going - with the UK, the US, Australia and Jamaica all having had troops there. A lot of us do know people that are there, have just gone, or have had their relationships end while they were away. I remember with crystal clarity one reluctant jaunt to OX1 (shark end no less) from OX4 where a gal flirtatiously told my mate 'my man just got locked up', whereupon looking behind her we saw 10 staunch fellas polishing fists and waiting to see how the situation would develop - a different kinda 'last night' but a common outcome nonetheless.

For me, it really has been ages in any genre since we had such a story-song from an artist, it's not just the comedy angle, it's the way the whole narrative is built. L.Razor doesn't just say 'but her man was in Afghanistan', he shows the audience, and describes the scene so you  feel like you are living it.

I caught up with him in a chat (the juiciest bits are for radio play so you can hear it from the Razor's edge). I asked him if the story and lyrics were in the bank for ages, and he was just waiting for the right riddim, but he assured me he got sent the riddim, and only then started working on it, in fact knocking it up quite quickly. 'I'm a song writer, and a writer - I write that's what I do', he assured me, and his regular output means he has the skills to pay the bills, and adapt this wordsmithery to the tune. He also admits it 'came to me right away', just the right riddim, at the right time, for the right artist. He wasn't sure he should release it at first, or hold on to it, in case someone might bite the style, and try to bring back the story, but upon completion, he realised it was 'too big', and I've got to say, I feel the same. If I had just voiced this tune, I'd be proud, we need more storytelling back in the game. The proof is in the pudding - you simply cannot cut this tune halfway - the dance always demands to know 'wha happen Sheldon'. 

Hilariously, L.Razor admits the song is based on 'real, actual experience'. Wondering if he had a slew of military mans after him for a lifetime of philandery (he emphasises  his veteran friends find the tune funny also), he explained actually it was a case of gal's Father coming home early, and pops was a military man. It's real life experience like that, hiding in a room, fearful, caught in the act, that separates a charlatan from a champion in this business.

Tune in to Bondi Beach Radio to hear the full interview and a crate of L.Razor's tunes - this Saturday 10am-12pm Sydney, 8pm-10pm Friday NYC, 1am-3am Saturday UK.

Coming to the end of a gruelling four month tour which has taken him from West to East in Europe, to Singapore, into the mountains near Jakarta, twice to the Solomon Islands, to the Torres Strait Islands, and fresh as of Wednesday from Brisbane, Conkarah has lost none of his enthusiasm for reggae and for life.

I asked him about how you survive on a four month tour around most of the world and he pointed at my beer and responded: 'I learnt a lot of things this tour'- most particularly about my health'. Fair enough - four months on the road and I would be reaching for the herbal tea myself - there's no doubt that road-time is hard time. His next educational lesson concerned his sudden realisation in an outta control gal-swarm in Brisbane that he was 'a big hit with the ladies'. Conkarah says 'it's not just the music, it's about connecting', and he realises that in these diverse places, some of which aren't English speaking, it's a blend of straight English and patois that cuts through, so people get a jist of the lyrical intent, alongside the musical vibe.

Conkarah is riding out with this heavily skewed female fan base tomorrow night in Sydney's premier Jazz venue tomorrow night. He's accompanied by 7 piece live band Tamasa Creole - but no probs right because they've rehearsed together for years? Well, not quite. On a tour this diverse, Conkarah challenges himself to perform with a new band and a new vibe. He reckons he can teach any (competent) band a one hour set of his tunes in only 45 mins - which to me sounds like a good concept for a reality TV show, like the Bachelor, but only one band gets to keep the big man at the end of the series (and $10,000 cash - perhaps not enough to change ya life but enough to have a real big night).

You sense that gelling with new bands isn’t a challenge, but that he feeds off the collaboration taking in the different nuances that each band brings to a song that Conkarah has sung 1,000 times before. Would you expect anything less from someone who laid down a mixtape collaboration with artists from Indonesia and the Solomon Islands, and who is organising a regional reggae network across the Pacific? I was in Indonesia earlier this year representing with some shell-downs in Yogyakarta, the vibe there is mad, but I must admit I was totally one-upped by Conkarah who was playing in the mountains outside Jakarta with Ras Muhamed accompanied by a gamelan orchestra. Fair 'nuff. Sounds like the gig went well as the next day Conkarah had 7000 new FaceBook fans, and when I heard that all I could think was 'Bijaksana Indonesia'.

Conkarah and Ras hanging out in Jakarta

Conkarah and SD hanging out in Sydney

Like all tours, musical or otherwise, he's had a few less than ideal experiences - some which taught him the importance of contracts. One promoter told him he'd be on a flight, and then just handed him a bus ticket across Europe. For many artists, this would’ve been a deal breaker but Conkarah, undeterred, took it in his stride and waived his fee so as to be able to get air-transport to spread the reggae love to a new destination.

There's no rest for Conkarah on the horizon, it's not just a case of back to yard and slap down the patties and curry goat, (although no doubt there'll be some of that), he's going straight into a recording session with a big new management deal that he can't talk much about now, but if it's what I think it is - it's gonna be big.

If you wanna see the 'first Jamaican to visit the Torres Strait Islands' (and sail straight into judging a local talent show - big up yaself Conkarah), then get down to the Basement tomorrow night to see him alongside Tamasa Creole from 8pm to take care of bidness.

Naturally in the UK and Australia, when we think of the Caribbean, we think of Jamaica, St Vincents, St Lucia, Barbados, Grenada, and all the rest of the anglocaribbean archipelago. However, strictly speaking, the closest geographical Caribbean nation to Australia, is, bizarrely, France. Les Bleus are represented in the Caribbean by Martinique and Guadelope, and in the Pacific by New Caledonia.

While that's a great geography refresher, what's my point? Well, zouk music is huge in both France, the French Caribbean, and the Caribbean in general, and naturally so in the French Pacific. As a result, there are a bunch of promoters in New Caledonia that are bringing in big artists, like Conkarah, and then it's easier to reap the benefit of their proximity by slapping them on a quick flight to the biggest island in the region: Australia. An example of this which was news to me,  recently Conkarah and Demarco (of nuff gal fame) hooked up for a gig in New Caledonia. Wild, right? Might have even considered flying in with a bit more notice, so perhaps they should flyer exit traffic at Good God with the latest gigs in Noumea and see if they can collect a couple of stray Jetstar-hungry punters.

For those without the travel budget, you can catch the vibe this Saturday a bit closer to home. A good potential gig for 'first time' reggae punters, since it's more of a cross over jazz vibe, and it's in the date-friendly venue of the Basement, where you can also grab a feed, a 'premium beverage package' and some high-roller romance vibes. Conkarah's accompanied by the 7 piece local Zouk band, Tamasa Creole, who rehearse a little bit like this:

Conkarah's biggest hit to date is Island Girl, and he's sure to shell down the basement this Saturday with that and a few other classics. Island Girl has a high budget vid and is definitely his biggest crossover hit, huge in Fiji and the rest of the Pacific, especially towards Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands:

Anyway, bottom line is Conkarah is doing a whirlwind tour of Australia, but not just the usual whirlwind of East coast metropolises. He's just played the Torres Strait Islands, so massive Sensible hat tip to Conkarah for supporting indigenous Australia and bringing a taste of Jamaica to Australia's own Island Girls.

Prescription Show Crew - Koolbreeze, phatmatt, and Fasmwa

I'm excited to be running my own show with that Sensible Dancehall carnival vibe, and hopefully tippy toeing across a load of genres while keeping the party hype. Bondi Beach Radio is a great little team, and the station just keeps going from strength to strength, an amazing studio with beach views all year, and a great camaraderie among the DJs and artists. Being fully honest with you, my Western Sydney bias had always assumed that Bondi was built on tourists and wankers, but the truth is, there are loads of people who have lived in Bondi for generations, really love the place and are committed to building a huge vibe in Bondi, so I've totally changed my tune. Big up to all the crew and managers at BBR for having faith in me, and to DJ Fasmwa for giving me a start. Also, it is ridiculously beautiful.

First show is tomorrow at 10am, starting with the dancehall, cruising past some balkan bangers, perhaps a few jungle licks, and then we'll see where in the Caribbosphere we end up. Tune in here! You can also catch up on the show mixcloud:

In other Sensible news, we finally finished our portable soundsystem the 'batik badman'. This is a tight little unit that is powered by the latest in Class D amplifier technology from China, using ACR speakers from Indonesia, and a sexy little batik piece of luggage from Yogyakarta. It goes like a rocket, and will make its debut this Monday morning during the world cup final.

insides featuring Yuan Jing Class D amp and active crossover.

Melbourne's long been regarded as the dancehall capital of Australia, and after holding mic with Naram earlier in the year, as well as a lot of back and forth with Unsoundbwoy, I was keen to check out the turf. I only had the Saturday free (despite big dancehall night on fri), and the best option was the heavy duty Heartical rig running out of the new, succinctly named, Sub Club

It's good to see bass oriented venues springing up, and the Heartical soundsystem filled the venue nicely, although maybe a bit of work needs to be done on the aircon system, as it looked like it was about to rattle itself down during some of the low rollers. Cheap drinks before 12.00 with $3.50 pots of Carlton Draught (Melbourne style, you know it 300 mL at a time). I wasn't sure if it was going to get a bit more jump up or badman, but seemed firmly set on roots and the crowd was loving it. I saw a few flyers for the next weekend featuring an encounter from System Unknown, who visited us in Sydney earlier in the year and with whom I had ridden a few versions on the mic. One of the selectas confirmed when asked that it was strictly roots until 5am. Great for roots lovers, but considering I'd been up since 5am to watch the Brazil match, and was trying to make it to 2am to watch the Argentina-Belgium match, the roots wasn't going to cut it to get me to the match.

Heartical Hi-Fi's first selecta holds court.

Faced with the same conundrum, some of the punters had clearly resorted to that great Australian pastime: goey. I've never seen two guys more thoroughly chewing their faces off to extremely chilled reggae roots music in my life, but I guess they needed something to get themselves out the door in the first place.

Next day we managed to make a quick sidetrip to 'το οκλί', or Oakleigh, basically the Greekest place in the Southern Hemisphere. People were speaking Greek to us when we walked into shops, and as soon as I got out of the car my olfactory senses were assaulted by smoked meat. Highlight was seeing a crew of old fellas slapping down midday ouzos at the cafeneio, chased by Australia's finest: VB. We munched on a few large koks for dessert.

Meanwhile in Oxford this weekend it was the legendary Cowley Carnival, with Sensible Dancehall holding down the pole position soundsystem of the Carnival in conjunction with Kingdom of Jamalot. It was sheer vibes from what I've heard so far, but I'll write a bit more about that, as well as some breaking news about moves on the radio front, after the semis of the World Cup.