Midweek Beats + Pieces Vol. 43
BeeHype, Audio Culture, Misc Other Things
Selected Works is a regular newsletter by the Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Aotearoa (Wellington, New Zealand) based freelance music journalist, broadcaster, copywriter, and sometimes DJ Martyn Pepperell. Yes, that’s me. Most weeks, Selected Works consists of a recap of what I’ve been doing lately and some of what I’ve been listening to and reading, paired with film photographs I’ve taken + some bonuses. All of that said, sometimes it takes completely different forms.
WHAT I’VE BEEN DOING:
Every now and then, I contribute to Mariusz Herma’s Bee Hype: Best music from around the world platform. This week, they’ve unveiled a special on summer songs from around the world. As they put it, “Sunny songs from 30 countries for your summer trips and to relax on the beach – or to help you survive extreme heat. If you live in the South going through winter right now, this collection might be even more helpful!” Anyway, you can check it all out here.
An Ōtara original, Herman Lealaiauloto, aka Ermehn, got his start in the New Zealand hip-hop scene as one half of Radio Backstab & DJ Payback, the duo he shared with Jeremy Toomata. From there, he became one of the original members of the Otara Millionaires Club before going solo and releasing his debut album, Samoans: Part 2, in 1998.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Herman wrote music inspired by his first-hand experience of gang life growing up in South Auckland. On Monday, 17 July 2023, Herman died suddenly in Perth, Western Australia, where he’d lived since 2018, leaving behind a substantial legacy as a family man, musician, security company operator, martial arts practitioner and coach.
Yesterday, I spent a frantic six hours writing up a full profile of Herman Lealaiauloto, aka Ermehn for Audio Culture. You can read it here.
WHAT I’VE BEEN LISTENING TO:
In the late 90s, Orin Walters (Afronaught), Kaidi Tatham (Agent K), and Alex Phountzi came together to form one of the UK Broken Beat/Bruk movement’s first super-groups, Neon Phusion. Recorded between 1997-1998, 1999’s The Future Ain't the Same as It used 2 B... saw these three deadly talents folding jazz-funk, contemporary R&B, Afro-beat, and jazzy house into a set of distinctive post-drum and bass shapes. In the process, they had the honour of crafting what many consider to be the first Broken Beat album. As they put it on their Bandcamp page, “Everything was recorded to 8 track tape and then ran in sync with the Atari 1040 st with Akai S950 and S2000 sampler going through probably the world’s noisiest desk.” For me, the standout cuts are ‘How X Fly’ and ‘Blue Tetra’. If you’re looking for rhythmic futurism, look no further.
After last year’s excellent Spacial Awareness album, Tāmaki Makaurau producer, selector, broadcaster and general jack of all trades Stinky Jim returns with Social Awareness - The Remixes. As the title implies, it’s a collection of remixes of songs off Spacial Awareness from a long list of familiar and perhaps not-so-familiar names, including Christoph El Truento, Amamelia, Seekersinternational, OoGuN and Naram. Truento’s hot-stepping remix of ‘Cry For The Ute’ is currently running up the 95bFM top ten chart, and it’s as good an entry point in the soundworld Jim has curated with this package as any. If vinyl is your thing, there’s also a condensed 12” version of Social Awareness - The Remixes. You can check it out here.
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING:
How Far Can Amapiano Go? A new form of South African dance music is thriving. A pair of twin brothers, known as Major League Djz, want the rest of the world to pay attention. Kelefa Sanneh for The New Yorker.
The Story Behind the Greatest Arthur Russell Compilation Yet: Audika’s Steve Knutson has made rescuing Arthur Russell’s unreleased material his life’s work. Picture of Bunny Rabbit, a World of Echo companion out this week, may be his best find. Philip Sherburne for Pitchfork.
'Creepy as hell' - Sir James Wallace victim describes targeting by wealthy abuser: Dudley Benson faced off against wealthy abuser Sir James Wallace in court. Now his name suppression has been lifted, he can fully tell the story of his fight for justice. Catrin Owen reports for Stuff.
Black Sunday At 30, An Interview With Sen Dog of Cypress Hill: Sen Dog is a survivor. The Cypress Hill mainstay is an indelible part of the group’s chemistry, responsible for taking songs like “Insane In The Brain” and “Hits From The Bong” from good to great with his baritone vocals, and lacing some of Cypress’ deep cuts with high energy verses that ping pong off his partner B-Real’s livewire energy. Behind the scenes, he’s a thoughtful presence, equally comfortable talking about his band’s ’90s glory days as he is discussing his passion for motorcycles. Son Raw for Passion of the Weiss.
Essential Hip-Hop Releases From The 1970s: Kurtis Blow, Grandmaster Flash, Sugarhill Gang & More: Releases from the 1970s demonstrate the many ways that hip-hop would be much more than a fleeting fad. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, revisit five releases from a decade that created the culture's framework. David Ma for grammy.com.
In Which I Try to Avoid the Subject: Vanessa Mei writes for the Pantograph Punch on violence and vantage points as an adult survivor of childhood sexual abuse. TW: Mentions of childhood sexual abuse, vomiting.
FIN.