Vancouver has that tendency to attract artistic types from the East Coast, it’s what happens when your weather sticks to something above zero at all times.

Some of the finest music being made in this city is by one of the wandering vagabond. Arching a steady progress east from the Maritimes, the artist formally known as Sixtoo and Megasoid seems to have found a new home and a new identity here as Prisongarde.

The sound has progressed, from the early hip-hop experiments that him getting beat props along the likes of Anticon to the sound of Montreal in the fall invoked in the gritty last Sixtoo records. Megasoid went all hyphy bass, sound system culture and explosions of mutant bass fluctuations.

The Prisongarde is still fluctuating with the shattered repercussions of a mutant sound system culture, but alongside the like of Lunice, Ango, Lazer Sword, they continue the progression of a dance floor hype. It’s unlike anything and it’s distinctly Vancouver, warehouse crunk for your mom to get twerk to.

The story of Cameron Reed’s success is almost too good to be true. Local boy done good as it is, the latest signing to the legendary Warp Records could be the tipping point Vancouver has been waiting for.

Reed’s Shaved EP as Babe Rainbow just dropped on Warp and it’s a shimmering mass of sub bass and skeletal dubstep overtures that sounds like it was made somewhere in a swamp of weed and broken delay pedals. It’s a treat then to find out that Cameron has no background in electronic music, taking a DIY approach to a copy of Ableton live and a love of aggressive punk noise and crunk to make something very different.

For one of the co-founders of Vancouver’s legendary Music Waste festival, it just makes sense. Music waste was always the alternative to the now AWOL New Music West festival, a home to the city’s true underground sounds and as beautiful a DIY congregation of events we’ve ever seen. Duck the usual conventions, take a swing at interpreting the sounds in your head and this is what comes up. If you happen to be a web 2.0 guru as well then it helps that much more.

The Babe Rainbow tendency to duck convention is reflected in the recent BR mix-tape release mixed by local icon Rico Uno. Stitching together a selection of Reed’s bootlegs and remixes with the Shaved ep’s best tracks and then topping it off with crunk, reggae and r&b accapella, its as unique a listening experience you’ll have all year. You don’t expect Sizzla to sound so depressed and you don’t expect r&B to sound so future bound at the same time.

With their being a lot of distinct interest in Vancouver’s up and coming underground, it’s happening like the rise of Babe Rainbow that give us hope that we could be in the midst of Vancouver becoming the next Montreal.

Ghosts on Tape is a one-man dance jam powerhouse from San Francisco whose unique tropical-booty-crunk sound defies categorization. In his own words, Ghosts on Tape is “live PA with no laptops on some janky ass ghetto equipment that no one would be caught dead using in the 21st century.” This means that he does his whole performance live on two blinking mixer looking things (no turntables involved) that look straight out of the early ’90s.

Ghosts on Tape

He did an xlr8r mix in November 2009 and some hot remixes that are gaining some serious attention (for Lemonade and Rainbow Arabia), but I can’t really understand why this dude is not blowing up. He’s put out a bunch of releases on Wireblock. Plus he’s a super nice guy and even agreed to do a live set at my birthday party for a hundred bucks. Labels/booking agent/promoters take note! And just when I thought he couldn’t possibly have any more street cred, he takes a sample from this widely acclaimed/cult youTube video.

Supposedly he is roommates with one of the guys behind Lazer Sword, a two piece half in San Francisco and half in New York whose sound is more hip-hop infused with more of a glitchy/electro/bass thing going on — but the influence both ways can definitely be heard. (Lazerword also did a mix for xlr8r.)

Lazer Sword

I saw Lazer Sword last year them with the similar and equally awesome Megasoid, from Canada — and their live show was pretty banging, even though it drew a crowd that was 90% sweaty dudes. Lazer Sword also done some pretty cool remixes, like the Larytta remix released on the innovative Friends of Friends label/project.

Their concept is to do a series of split digital-only releases where one artist chosen by the label in turn chooses a friend to join them on the split (thus “Friends of Friends”). Instead of CDs, you buy a limited edition t-shirt that comes with a download code. I want to see them repping Ghosts on Tape next!

Megasoid

]]> http://www.scoutnetworkblog.com/2009/12/1556/ghosts-on-tape-brings-the-tropical-booty-crunk/feed/ 0