Born Herbert Swaby in 1954, Augustus Pablo was an orientalist before orientalism was uncool. The minor-chordal “Far East” sound the reggae auteur favored as a composer, producer, and no-frills melodica master may have been inspired by the Skatalites’ Don Drummond, but it didn’t take long for prolific Pablo to spread…
Let’s face it: Rappers don’t have great reputations when it comes to community accountability. The image of a rap star on television involves a nice car, nice clothes, lots of jewelry, but not much substance beyond that. That’s not to say that rap artists don’t ever donate to charities or…
Depending on your demographic, Toby Keith is either a big redneck or the biggest thing to hit country music since Garth Brooks. The reality is, he’s both, and most casual music fans don’t know what to make of him. He’s famously pro-American (if that wasn’t already clear, check out “The…
Lil Wayne is not batshit insane. Let’s be clear about that. Despite the fact that he regularly refers to himself as an extraterrestrial, seems to have an utter disregard for authority or his own health, and kisses his surrogate father on the mouth (a practice that has the rampantly homophobic…
There’s a sense when you’re watching Punchanello perform that he’s simultaneously the most loved and hated MC in the room. Watching him onstage instantly puts a smile on your face. And his long, Samsonesque locks and ability to freestyle story raps better than most people can write them is impressive…
It’s always a tragedy when a young person dies before his or her prime. In the music industry, the preferred age for dying young tends to be 27. A host of rock legends including Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain, and even bluesman Robert Johnson are all in the Forever…
In an interview earlier this year with the Independent, Seun Kuti bluntly stated, “I’m crazy. My father was too.” There’s something heartening about the progeny of a famous musician clearly stating an alliance with his elders, but the youngest son of Fela goes even further than simply picking up the…
One of the best things about Midwest hip-hop is that it’s not beholden to any one sound. Detroit-based lyricist Asylum 7 and his production partner, Eddie Logix, recently dropped a solid 16-track album that purposely shifts among various beats and rhyming patterns without even remotely sounding like they’re jocking anyone’s…
In a fond tribute to his hometown, producer Ramon “Radius” Norwood dedicates each of the 11 instrumental entries on Neighborhood Suicide to an area in the Windy City. Unless you’re Radius, his productions won’t paint a portrait of Chicago for you, but Neighborhood’s sample-built blends of chimes, strings, and vocal…
Sometimes rap music is like an ice cold glass of lemonade on a hot summer day. If you’re going to be out cruising around in the sun, it’s best to have some driving music by your side to help you not think about the heat. Fort Lauderdale’s Swazy Styles recently…
The L.A. quintet Rooney has not exactly suffered from its Hollywood-style connections or good looks. Frontman Robert Schwartzman is the brother of actor (and occasional rocker) Jason. (This also makes him son of producer Jack Schwartzman and part of the extended Coppola clan that includes his mother, Talia Shire, uncle…
They’ve got perhaps the best DJ-collective name of all time. That alone is reason enough to pay these guys some attention. And when you think about it, if you’re an audiophile, what else turns you on more than good music? Based in England, Johan Karlberg and Etienne Tron have been…
When it comes to basketball-arena announcers, nobody in the country is as good at it as the Miami Heat’s DJ Irie. While a lot of b-ball fans are familiar with him only through his job with the Heat, he’s also made a strong name for himself as a club DJ…
Coldplay has a lot riding on its fourth release, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends. Not only is the band’s viability at stake; the survival of EMI (Capitol’s parent company) depends on its sales. So perhaps that desperation to move units aided in the decision to hire…
On weekends, after the dinner crowd goes home to sleep off the food coma, Tequila Ranch gets clubby. The tables are pushed away, and the dance floor emerges. It wraps around Tequila Ranch’s most popular attraction, the mechanical bull. And there I am. It’s 2 (or 3) in the morning,…
Miami/Hialeah punk stalwarts Guajiro are never ones to shy away from a little controversy. The band’s affable frontman, Will Lopez, has been talking for months about recording a pro-Obama song because he feels like no other local acts are doing anything to get people stirred up for the presidential race…
Motley Crue are fast, cheap, and easy… Uh, the tickets to see them are, at least. Attention cheap (I prefer the terms “clever” and “thrifty”) music lovers who wish to attend any of the marquee-name shows coming up at the Cruzan Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach. Today, and today only…
Here’s something to get you excited for tomorrow’s IHEARTCOMIX/Scion tour shebang at the Vagabond tomorrow night. On the bill are Radioclit, Drop the Lime, and of course, IHEARTCOMIX founder Franki Chan (who’s no stranger to Miami decks). Download Franki Chan’s mix for the new Iheartcomix two-disc sampler for free, by…
If you were part of the Revolver scene back in early part of the decade, you know Lazaro Casanova, who we picked as “Best Local Electronica Artist” in this year’s Best of Miami, very well. Then again, if you haven’t heard him spin in a while, you probably don’t know…
Since we’re on an old Miami dance trip here at Crossfade today, I’ll throw my hat into the ring with this old gem: “Journey into Bass” by DJ Laz. Somewhere between freestyle, electro, and bass, this is a prime example of Miami-fying a sound by adding some tinkly synth and…
Logan Fazio Modest Mouse with The Dirty Dozen Brass Band Friday, June 23, 2008 The Fillmore, Miami Beach Better Than: The mental meltdown scribbling in your seventh-grade diary. Modest Mouse and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band kicked off their North American tour together last night to a packed, enthusiastic audience…
So I’m definitely coming late to the party on this one, but wow. I’m digging through the archives of some old Miami bass videos and I just came across this one from Disco Rick called “The Nasty Dance.” I’m admittedly not from South Florida originally and didn’t grow on this…
