Besto 2010: The L.A. Beat Scene for Dummies (Starring Teebs, Asura, Lorn, Shlohmo, Take)

That's a double helix by Teebs. Get yr DNA right.

Los Angeles. So much reason for so much pride right now. This city had an unbelievable year in music, and nothing’s slowing for 2011. Mark my words. Just as the noise scene grew up this year with more “mature” releases from No Age, Wavves, Abe Vigoda and others, the next two will be marked by increasingly sophisticated and beautiful releases from the local beat fam. But you don’t want to wait for Rolling fucking Stone or Paste to tell you that, do you? Nah. Get on the train now, and check out five future classics that came out this year, but which didn’t make it onto the A.V. Club’s year-end list (which is why Baths and Lotus are excluded).

Click here, then scroll down ’til you see:
THE L.A. BEAT SCENE, FOR DUMMIES (ya dummy!)

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Beat (Scene) Beat: Aquacrunkgate 2010, Mars Volta Meets Low End Theory, Tokimonsta vs. TAKE, Asura vs. Ana Caravelle, Glitch Mob’s in ‘America’s Got Talent’ Semi-Finals

Teebs does not make aquacrunk music, but you should still buy his 'Ardour' LP.

I make no attempts to hide my reverence for the L.A. beat scene. Just when I think I’ve got it pinned down, someone like Teebs will come along and flip the script by making something as rich and subtle as Ardour, or Flying Lotus will go ahead and release a new EP, like Pattern+Grid World, that sounds nothing like the incredible album he released a couple months previously. That’s why most of the links below are to MP3 debuts — shit happens so fast, the best you can do is channel it. Oh, and then there’s …

  1. FEATURED: Aquacrunkgate: L.A. Artists (Flying Lotus and Others) Take to Twitter to Protest Latest Blog-Made Microgenre*
  2. Omar Rodriguez Lopez Records a Electronic Album w. Nobody
  3. Beat Scene Babe Tokimonsta Remixes TAKE
  4. Asura Remixes Ana Caravelle (Think Lotus Meets Newsom)
  5. Glitch Mob Makes Semi-Finals on ‘America’s Got Talent’
  6. Sumsun Channels Four Tet and Neon Indian on ‘Call It Home’

* “Early in Drowned in Sound’s screed, the author identifies the late J Dilla, an extremely hallowed name in L.A. and in hip-hop production overall, as the father of aquacrunk.

(all stories via West Coast Sound, via L.A. Weekly)

News: DJ Kutmah Returns, Meet ASKA, a Beat Scene Megamix, ScarJo Covers Steel Train

Kutmah's much needed passport?

Quick blog bits from around the L.A. underground (and up). Share ’em.

  1. FEATURED: New Kutmah Podcast Ft. Fugees, Flying Lotus*
  2. Check Out ASKA’s Stunning ‘Love Trance,’ on Manimal Vinyl
  3. Proximal Drops L.A. Megamix Ft. Dâm-Funk, Daedelus, Baths
  4. Scarlett Johansson Covers ‘Bullet’ By Folk-Rockers Steel Train

(all stories via West Coast Sound, via L.A. Weekly)

* After being expelled from the U.S., DJ Kutmah delivers a fifty-minute mix featuring a ton of unreleased gems — including a Flying Lotus track and a Fugees remix by Jonwayne.

LA Weekly Cover: Flying Lotus’ Cosmic Drama

Steven Ellison, a.k.a. Flying Lotus (Star Foreman)

The story is pretty thorough, so I’ll keep the introduction brief. I had the pleasure of profiling Steven Ellison, a.k.a. Flying Lotus, for the new issue of LA Weekly, on stands today. Ellison was kind enough to invite me into his home on two occasions, to share some very “special” snacks with me, and to more-or-less grant me unlimited access to his personal Rolodex. Cameos come from an international cast — Mary Anne Hobbs, Ravi Coltrane, the Gaslamp Killer, Daddy Kev, a man named Thundercat — but this is, at its core, an L.A. story. So if you live in that fair city, pick up a hard copy to read. If not, click here to dive in.