Saturday 5th June

THIRSTY EAR Presents
A PEACE IN THE PARK FESTIVAL FUND RAISER
A Night of Hip-Hop, Future Beats, Glitch, Electronic, Dubstep & More.

With Special Guests

**sixAM**
[Chibuku/Skanky Panky Records]

Buddha, WhiteNoiseBoy & Dogs Pocket make up the 3-man DJ/production team of sixAM. Mangling tough as nails hip-hop beats with blazing scratches, samples, and technical wizardry has earned them some raised eyebrows. They have become some of the few that have been pushing the state-side glitch-hop sound in the UK and have been devastating dance-floors at clubs such as Chibuku and laying waste to festivals as far afield as the Lake Of Stars Festival in Africa. Back in their hometown of Liverpool they have played alongside the likes of Andy C, DJ Hype, Diplo, Caspa & Rusko, Fake Blood, Joker, Digital Mystikz, Gentleman's Dub Club, Sukh Knight & Stenchman.

Do not miss a rare chance to catch sixAM smash it here in Sheff.

With Support FromFigure of Wax & JDevious
[Throw Some Shapes]

Hailing from Brighton, these guys are involved with one of the town's freshest club nights. 'Throw Some Shapes' have hosted the likes of Stones Throw main man Peanut Butter Wolf, Paul White, Bullion, JFB, Hint, as well as teaming up with the red hot Donkey Pitch crew.

Matter of Fact & Roland Dubbs
[Thirsty Ear / tarDYboy]

Drink Promos // Free Mix CDs
10pm-3am
£3 Entry
Last Entry 1am
****************************************
PROFITS GO TO THE AWESOME PEACE IN THE PARK FESTIVAL
SAT 12TH JUNE 2010
PONDEROSA PARK,
SHEFFIELD

Saturday 29th May 2010!

Throw Some Shapes presents:

* THROW SOME SHAPES BEACHSIDE ALL-DAYER

with

SIDE BY SIDE & BIG KAIJU
ATALANTA
MATTER OF FACT
ATTAK.MEDIA
FIGURE OF WAX
JDEVIOUS & ROLAND DUBBS
JAY C
LOST TWIN
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SATURDAY 29TH MAY 2010
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FORTUNE OF WAR,157 KINGS ROAD ARCHES, BRIGHTON
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14:00 - 02:00
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£ FREE ENTRY

▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀THE THROW SOME SHAPES NIGHTS HAVE SEEN PEANUT BUTTER WOLF, PAUL WHITE, BULLION, NATURAL SELF AND HINT COMING THROUGH THEIR DOORS.
SO WE ARE LUCKY THE FORTUNE OF WAR HAVE HANDED THEM THE PUB FOR THE DAY AND NIGHT TO CELEBRATE THE BANK HOLIDAY. LOOK OUT FOR FREE CDs, SPECIAL GUEST DJs AND FUTURE BREAKS AND BEATS MUSIC.

▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
FEATURING MUSIC BY
JDILLA- MOS DEF-QUANTIC-JAZZANOVA-MIKE SLOTT-BULLION-PAUL WHITE- DUSTY SPRINGFIELD-SPANKY WILSON-STEVIE WONDER-OH NO-KOOP-GOLD PANDA-AARON NEVILLE-JILL SCOTT-FOURTET-HOT 8 BRASS BAND-NATURAL SELF-HINT-ALICE RUSSELL-JOHN BELTRAM-NIGHTMARES ON WAX-DE LA SOUL- MAYER HAWTHORN-DWELE-APHEX TWIN-SQUAREPUSHER-DECLAIME-NAS-EPMD-BIGGIE SMALLS-JOKER-KING TUBBY-PETE ROCK-RJD2-FS GREEN-SA-RA-WHITE STRIPES-JEHST-BRAINTAX-SLY & THE FAMILY STONE-STEVE SPACEK-4 HERO-ZERO DB-BIG BUD-DJ SHADOW-MILEZ BENJAMIN-JESSE ROSE-THE YOUNG LOVERS-ALAN BRAXE-DAFT PUNK-THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS-MR.SCRUFF-HIS MAJESTY ANDRE-AND MANY MANY MORE...

MEGA MEGA MEGA...catch up post!

Normally when people blog after a long absence they sign in with "Oh I'm sorry but things really got on top of me", or "I've been totally slack, sorry dudes". We read these statements and never really feel much empathy towards our fellow bloggers. Now, I'm not asking for extra Christmas cards or anything, but I do ask you to listen to my story and search deep within you for your xmas spirit and share my pain that was November and the first part of December.

November starts and some fat (technically she was pregnant, but I was angry) idiot proceeded to pull out in front of my new car for no reason other than that she is an idiot.

It was a 40mph road, so I did my best to swerve but had little chance. After much paperwork and extended phone call bollocks, I managed to persuade her insurance to fix my Audi A3 T Sport ('oooooh' I hear you say!). It has been almost 7 weeks now though, and I still haven't got it back. Total cost to her - £5k. Merry Fucking Christmas, bitch.

Then to make matters worse, the tossers that are Ofsted (big major scary school inspectors for those that don't know) decided to contact our school and tell us they could drop in anytime over the next 20 working days (4 weeks to normal people). So for four weeks everyone at work has been mad tense and overworked. Needless to say, they fucking arrived on the 20th of 20 days (CUNTS). Things went well, but it has only been this last week in which I have managed to return to normality!

Fuck, what am I on about - you people aren't arsed about any of that, you just want some music!

Right then - the important stuff...

Here is the latest episode of the adventures of Roland Dubbs courtesy of Mr. Hope! (Click to view) I've been sitting on this for a hot minute, ironic it should include my car! As friends, we constantly push each other to do better. I asked him for a new comic, he asked me to make a tune to accompany the comic. He delivered this to me - an alien themed mini story. So I created my tune "The Lonely Life Of A Misunderstood Alien".

It's very ambient, with lots of luscious sound design on my part. I must admit, I had just bought 'The Future Sound Of Russia' on Hospital's awesome label, so I dare say there was some inspiration from the likes of Bop et al. It's definitely a different sound for me, but I do love experimenting with all the styles and demonstrating what I can do! Enjoy!!

Roland Dubbs - The Lonely Life Of A Misunderstood Alien

Next on the list is another tune I made. It's very tight technically and one I'm very proud of. Again, it's the not the jacking, wonky sound of my few more popular tracks, nor is it another trip down dubstep lane. It's uplifting, and more dancey with a very catchy hook and some simply gorgeous homemade sounds that sink so well into one-another. Read "Deadmau5 on a comedown" and your about halfway there.

Roland Dubbs - Once Magnificent

NYE PARTY TIME!

As you may already know, I am a regular guest at Thirsty Ear's awesome nights at The Harley in Sheffield. Good friends of the blog, Paulo and East have been putting on slammin' shows for years now, recently featuring Chimpo, No Fakin' DJ's, Boca45, Paul White, DJ Woody, Kidkanevil and Bullion to name but a few.

They have records on the way, mashups under their belt, and recognition from some big labels, record stores and proper headz. There is also a radio documentary featuring Thirsty Ear and myself coming out in January on UK Undiscovered, detailing where we came from and how we got here. It features input from lots of people including some of my tunes! Definitely one to watch out for! Anyway, on NYE @ The Harley they are having a fucking HUGE party. It's already been featured in Exposed magazine as the best place to be on NYE in Sheff. I'll let them explain it to you...

TE say farewell to 2009 and hello to The New Decade in the only way we know how...WITH A SAVAGE PARTY!!!
We'll be taking over The Harley - And throwing the coolest, cheapest, alternative NYE bash in town. Expect the best in Reggae/Dancehall/HipHop/Funk/Soul/Beats/Breaks/Bass/Dubstep/DnB/& Everything Else Inbetween!

We'll have the Full Thirsty Ear DJ Crew playing our biggest & best tunes of the year. With some Special Guest DJs we've picked up along the way this year. Plus warm-up from Thirsty Ear Jukebox 45s!
Drink promos...Carling £2 Double Spirit & Mixer £2.80 Bottle Of Wine £7 Shots from £1 & More!
9PM-3AM (+beyond)
FREE ENTRY BEFORE 11pm! ONLY £2 ENTRY AFTER 11pm! LAST ENTRY 1am

How's that for a catch up?

Walking on the beaches...

On my last trip down to Brighton a couple of weeks ago, myself and a few mates went to see Tittsworth @ Audio. I didn't have to spend much time convincing others to go...they must trust my choices...anyway, he was pretty brill - playing everything from house to dubstep, drum & bass to full on party anthems.
Whilst having a boogie, two of my friends were discussing how "The Stranglers - Peaches" would be awesome with a dubstep remix...I agreed with them...and then worked my socks off to get a copy, and give it the treatment before they could!
You snooze you lose suckaaaaaaaaaaas!

So here it is, a grizzly dubstep remix of 'Peaches' by myself. It was quite tricky with all the tiiiiiiiiiiime stretching involved, but rewarding nonetheless. A bit of fun to liven up your dancefloors...

The Stranglers - Peaches (Roland Dubbs Moldy Peaches Remix)

(PS. As a thanks to my boy Figure Of Wax, here's his latest mini-mix, and you can catch him supporting Flevans down in Brighton on Friday May 15th @ Jazz Rooms!!)

Figure Of Wax - Mini Mix - April 09

Mood & Mood Basement R.I.P

Ok, so I wouldn't expect anyone outside of my home town to know this, but the home of alternative music in Buxton - 'Mood', and it's downstairs sister venue; 'Mood Basement', has closed it's doors for the final time. A shock to many, including now legendary manager Simon Aldous, the news came yesterday completely out of the blue that the whole venue is, basically, going to be liquidised. As of today there will be an empty shell of what was once Buxton's very BEST nightclub for House, Hip Hop, Drum & Bass, Soul, Funk, Bmore, Electro, Hardcore, Grindcore, Jungle and literally anything off the beaten track - Mood was always willing to give it a go...
And more often than not, it worked - from 2003 until 2008, here is the story of Mood, told from a personal perspective, but an entertaining one, by fellow DJ and bezzie friend of Roland Dubbs - Figure Of Wax....
(to anyone who was lucky enough to find themselves in the Basement on a Saturday night - there will be some part here you can relate to and appreciate, guaranteed!)

"From the days when doorman Tim would let us into 'Burlingtons' at 16 (we'd sneak downstairs round the pool tables so we wouldn't get caught drinking) through to working for 18 months behind the bar - not to mention our night in The Basement (April 30th 2004 - 2008)...I have a vast amount of excellent memories regarding Mood.
Mood and The Basement was and still is the ONLY thing in Buxton / Derbyshire to let open-minded young artists / DJs introduce new and exciting music to people - consider it the John Peel of the venues!
In the years which we proudly rocked The Basement (and sometimes the main bar) I have personally seen artists go from strength to strength, to name a few:

*Bob Adams' Punk Night*
Although the name of the night escapes me, the very first alternative night to grace Mood Basement was Bob's capacity-smashing punk night. Wall to wall with the likes of The Kirkz, Monkeyshuffle, Creosote, Sperm Free Nation and many more - it went off! It was the first time people realised that something different was happening in Bucco and the curiosity worked without fail.

*Emergency Services*
I remember the day Jim, Tom Speed and I approached Simon about putting on a night and offering to do the first two for free as a taster. A year later I think we had drunk himout of £1000's of stock and went back to doing it for free! It was the first DJ night at Mood and I'd like to think we did a good job of things... Through any sketchiness it has led to us now serving under several guises across the UK:
Figure Of Wax, Electrique / Roland Dubbs, .gingerbrown, taRDyboy, whataboutthebeats?...
ES played host to such acts as Paper Tiger (now running 'Future Rhythm' @ Leeds Faversham), Blessed House (live support to Verb T + Mystro), These Monsters musicians (Leeds / Reading Festival BBC Radio 1 Tent 2008) and many, many more...

*Elements / Keepin' It Dusty...*
Coop, Matter Of Fact, LA Soul - These dudes opened my eyes to the fact that there were other heads out there and we now all had a platform to work from. On our first anniversary night of ES we'd left it too late to book - these lads had pipped us to it! Rather than fanny about and cancel, we hooked up on the same night and bounced back and forth - to the point where eventually we became the same night!

*Thirsty Ear*
Easily the most focused group of DJs to take The Basement's atmosphere and let it grow into one of Sheffield's best new nights. Without doubt the best fancy dress nights and ridiculous banger DJ battles (Urban Smackdown 2005 - need I say more? ;) went off here. Always good fun and the way it should be! One of my favourite Basement memories is going mental to 'Once in a lifetime' by Talking Heads on Thirsty Ear's Christmas Eve party 2006.

*Doom*
The Marionette Records crew have roared down ear canals and pierced their drums from The Basement to the internet with releases on both iTunes and Canada's DTRASH label over the years. I've seen many sights that have mentally scarred me at Doom - mainly they involve people being naked and I'm almost certain one has involved a horse. If anyone remember Alex and his magical bumbag from Doom then I'm sure they'll be smiling ;)

*Soundboy Massacre*
Jack and Waggy kept it dutty with the hardest jungle, d+b, breaks and reggae sets under the pavement. I used to love warming up Soundboy and knew they were onto a winner whenever they organised a Main Floor bash or simply rammed the place with more people than possible. If Rick Baker had his top off and was trying to climb on top of the speakers to Woolfy's set- you knew you were at a proper party. Paid off though as Mr. WAGZ now has a safe spot at Sheffield's Detonate (playing alongside the likes of Roni Size, Goldie, High Contrast...)

Moving to the main bars - working there was without a doubt a way to make the monotony of small-town living worth living. Drunken kisses or fights made work exciting but even on cold, dead winter nights it'd still be sweet as chilling with a takeaway pizza and watching Extreme channel.
Although I've been out of Buxton for a couple of years now, Mood's always been a safe place to return to when I'm back. All I will say (and I honestly hope any heads from Buxton who either manage or own venues are reading this) Buxton will entirely lose touch of creativity unless somewhere can capture the ethos that Mood did. The last time I can remember a scene in Buxton this big was back when my brother and his friends put on raves as Black Moon Soundsystem. That was around 15 years ago!

Simon, I wish you and the family all the best and I'm very sorry to hear the news. Good luck with it all and cheers for the opportunities - time well spent. Everyone else: please continue to support and achieve the work that Mood staff have put inover the years - Buxton needs it.

-Tom "The Uncoof B*st*rd" Speak, Figure Of Wax, Willy Warm-Up.