It's January, so it's time to start obsessing about Shambhala. A Wishlist.

2017 brings the 20th Anniversary of the legendary Shambhala Music Festival. It will be my fifth and the second for Rags Music. As the calendar turns, it's time to start obsessing about who we're all going to get shake our asses to. The following are acts that have been in my ears constantly throughout the past year and, apart from Wick-It, acts that haven't appeared on the Farm before (As far as I know, at least). It doesn't really matter what I say, the Shambhala family has impeccable taste, year after year bringing the tastiest grooves of all kinds from around the globe. But whatever. I'm still going to throw my voice into the void and cross my fingers. So, here it is, my wishlist for Shambhala XX.

(Tickets are completely sold out, but keep your eyes open and you might be able to find yourself one. Please, use caution when buying resale tickets though!)

Fractal Forest – Jimi Needles

There is no one I want to see at Shambhala more right now than the mighty Jimi Needles. The guy is damned near untouchable. His production is top-notch, his song selection is of unqualified taste and his scratching is totally on point. His Needlewurk mixes have been staples of my listening diet since I first heard them, his singles are never-ending glory parade. Following in the footsteps of my DJ hero, Featurecast, Jimi Needles is doing thing that I admire most in a DJ – all of the things. He moves between genres with liquidy ease, seamlessly blending any ideas and sounds he sees fit. It might be good if Jimi Needles doesn't appear in Fractal Forest, because there would be so many melted faces, but I'm still rooting for it. With all of my heart.

Read More

Thoughts on Blitz the Ambassador, on the eve before "Afropolitan Dreams" drops.

Ghana's only, Ghana's finest, Blitz the Ambassador is set to release his highly-anticipated Afropolitan Dreams and with that in mind I take a look back at what this Afro-Hip-Hop titan has meant to me in the short time I've known about him, in hopes that the ears and hearts of others will take notice. The world would be a better place if everyone rocked out with Blitz. 

Read More

The only art that speaks to me is music-related. Typical.

"No one really does packaging like this anymore because no one even buys records anymore. Well, maybe if the records were packaged a little better, people would buy them. When I was a kid, buying records, it was as much about the album cover. I didn't hear Led Zeppelin on the radio, I just thought the album covers looked really cool and I just wanted to know what it sounded like. And it turned out to be Led Zeppelin." -Patterson Hood

I've seen some amazing pieces of art. I've seen Michaelangelo's Creation of Adam. I've seen Picasso's Guernica. I've even seen Da Vinci's Mona Lisa. I can't say I felt anything worth mentioning when I gazed upon any of them.

Read More