With his spiky mohawk, cluttered canvas of tattooed skin and punk rock music pedigree stretching back to childhood, Travis Barker isn't exactly pleading to be taken earnestly as a hip-hop head. A previous drummer for the multi-platinum-selling power pop trio Blink-182 who also has done turns behind the kit for rock outfits including the Aquabats, +44 and Box Car Racer, he boasts faultless Warped Tour credentials and critical props as i of modern rock's most exciting, exacting percussion players.
But a laughable thing happened when Barker posted a video of himself on YouTube final September drumming thunderously in time with Southern rapper Soulja Boy's smash make single "Crank That (Soulja Boy)." Almost immediately, it began to spread virally among hip-hop heads. Fast-forward a class: The clip has been streamed a whopping 17.5 jillion times, and no one is more surprised than Barker, world Health Organization says he put it online as a means to a much simpler end.
"You might have heard some of my remixes but never known it was me," he said one blindingly hot good afternoon at his North Hollywood recording studio. "I thought, 'If I want my remixes to be popular, if I want people to even know I'm doing them, maybe I should habit YouTube.' I never thought we'd have as many views as we did. I was tripping!"
And merely like that, the greyhound-thin Fontana aboriginal has become one of the to the highest degree sought-after musicians in rap music, having disposed his patented rock "remix" once-overs to a constellation of tap and R&B luminaries' songs. Among them, Barker's label-sanctioned remixes of Rihanna's "Umbrella," Busta Rhymes' "Don't Touch Me (Throw Da Water on 'Em)," the Game's "Dope Boys," Flo Rida's "Low" and Wale's "G Told Me."
"He's the dopest drummer alive," said Compton gangsta knocker the Game, summoning hip-hop's highest praise. "He does it so effortlessly. Travis is addicted to it. He loves good euphony but hardly happens to be a punk rocker."
Moreover, Barker seems to be drifting even further from the stone flock by teaming up with in demand, genre-hopping turntablist DJ AM to cast a devil-may-care rock-hip-hop hybrid known as TRV$DJAM (you can download its new mixtape, "Fix Your Face," for resign at www.trvsdjam.com).
The duo -- a kind of beat-driven version of the revolver rock collective Camp Freddy that already has hosted such high profile guest stars as Paul Wall and Warren G -- testament perform its third of three sold-out shows at West Hollywood's Roxy Theatre tonight earlier going on to dish out as planetary house band for the MTV Video Music Awards on Sept. 7.
Three years ago, in the final countdown to Blink-182's acrimonious breakup, Barker reached out to DJ AM to cooperate after comely inspired by the performance of a hip-hop DJ and a percussionist in New York. The L.A.-based disc jockey was ab initio skeptical.
"I was kind of apprehensive at first," DJ AM aforementioned. "I was thinking, 'Less is more.' Me juggling two records at the same time can be a lot for people to handle. Drums on top could have been besides much."
He continued: "I hadn't heard his remixes and didn't know how awesome a drummer Travis is. But we got together, I threw on James Brown's 'Funky Drummer,' unitary of the most sampled beats in hip-hop, and 'I Know You Got Soul' by Bobby Byrd. His face would just open up; he would match the beat perfectly. I thought, 'Damn, this is merriment.' It's like a skeleton you get to put the clothes on. And one time the wearing apparel are on, you yank out the spine."
Although both Barker and DJ AM already have solo transcription contracts with Interscope Records, the two, who too have performed together a handful of times at the club LAX in Las Vegas, plan to record an album together and enlistment as TRV$DJAM.
A longtime tap music devotee with a huge tattoo of a boombox on his abdominal cavity, Barker endured the rock press' slings and arrows for professing his making love of hip-hop in mag interviews during his seven-year tenure with Blink-182. He says he veered off from pop-punk after decorous frustrated with rock music's time-consuming transcription process.
"It's awing when you're in a band, merely what normally happens is you put down down the drums start, then the bass, and then guitar, so vocals. Damn, that's like a six-month to a year march," the drummer said. "With hip-hop, you can make a birdcall in a day. To make beat generation, for me, is genuinely natural. So that's what I naturally migrated towards."
Barker's embrace by hip-hop comes at a moment when rock frontmen such as Coldplay�s Chris Martin and Adam Levine of Maroon 5 ar being tapped by the likes of Jay-Z and Kanye West to record book rap tracks.
But the drummer's rising within the genre is largely predicated on his close participation with hip-hop dating back to 2004, when Barker contributed beats to a remix of Southern doorknocker Bubba Sparxxx's "Back in the Mud."
From there, Barker's reggae-rap-punk side project the Transplants lED him to do a collaboration with Texan gangsta rapper Bun B, followed by sway remixes for hip-hop all-stars including T.I., the Black Eyed Peas and Rich Boy in 2006.
Lately, Barker has been hard at work producing and recording his solo album, a guest-packed project he says will feature film contributions from Damian Marley and Willie Nelson only also volition include between six and eight rock remixes, due in record stores former next year.
A feverish multi-tasker world Health Organization owns and operates the street clothes line Famous Stars and Straps, he has to be more selective these days around which tunes he'll leave the aggressive-sounding, monster stomp rock drum treatment to.
"Now, any remix that gets thrown to me, I have to love the song sufficiency to make a video recording for it," the soft-spoken Barker aforementioned. "I off down some things I don't think are me, that I don't think my drums will lend a helping hand to."
He added: "Figuring out where there aren't a lot of dynamics on a song, that's one of my strengths. Hearing, 'Oh, the verses could be closed up here.' Or, 'Oh, the choruses could be super freehanded, powerful thither,' or whatever."
According to DJ AM, it's something to behold live.
"Watching him is stunning," DJ AM said. "People get fixated on him. It's like he's performing in Blink but there's no breaks. It's a 45-minute birdcall with super-aggressive drums the whole prison term. You've got to be in ridiculous shape to pull it off! God knows how many calories he burns."
chris.lee
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Thursday 28 August 2008
Monday 18 August 2008
Mp3 music: Afrob
 Artist: Afrob: mp3 download Genre(s): Rap: Hip-Hop Afrob's discography:  Hammer Year: 2005 Tracks: 17  Made In Germany Year: Tracks: 15 Seeming a bit of infrequency, Afrob is an Italian-born rapper/hip-hop creative person transplanted to Germany. His music vocation did not start, even so, until that move to Stuttgart. He low began performing in 1994. Two albums followed, the low existence Role With HipHop. He performed with Flavor Flav of Public Enemy, giving a definite legitimacy to his rather strange roots. His following sack was Larva in Germany. |
Friday 8 August 2008
Thursday 19 June 2008
Tuatara
Artist: Tuatara
Genre(s):
Jazz
Rock: Pop-Rock
Discography:
Cinemathique
Year: 2001
Tracks: 11
Trading With The Enemy
Year: 1998
Tracks: 12
Tuatara is matchless of the more than surprising and slimly idiotic supergroups in stone history. Comprised of Peter Buck (R.E.M.), Justin Harwood (Luna), Barrett Martin (Hilarious Trees), and Skerik (Critters Buggin'), the quartet formed in 1996 to pursue euphony that their guitar-based alternative stone groups could non do -- namely, worldbeat, lounge-pop, and unfreeze jazz. After performing several concerts on the West Coast of the U.S. in the devolve of 1996, Tuatara recorded their debut album, Break the Ethers, which was released in April 1997. Trading with the Enemy followed in 1998, and several songs from the record album plant their way into pic soundtracks. It would be tetrad years until more recorded output signal from the band saw the light of day, simply in fountain 2002 the Cinemathique album found tone ending on Fast Horse Records. More orientated toward succulent and gossamer tones, the record was followed by a little U.S. tour of duty. Two more than albums on Fast Horse were issued, 2003's Consignment Program and 2007's East of the Sun.
Friday 13 June 2008
Crazy Jay-Z Suit Demands Serious Hush Money
Jigga what? A guy wants $88 million bucks out of Jay-Z not for a lyric he jacked, or a sample he stole -- but for stealing that ultra-exclusive technique of ... rapping in a low whisper.
We're not kidding: Mitchell Rose, who tells us he's a boxer/lawyer/rapper, has filed suit in Brooklyn alleging that he created the technique of "whisper rapping." Rose says that Hova subsequently adopted the technique without properly crediting him -- and now he wants to get paid!
The same Mitchell Rose once wrote a book called "Mike Tyson Tried to Kill My Daddy." Jay-Z's rep didn't return our call for comment.
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We're not kidding: Mitchell Rose, who tells us he's a boxer/lawyer/rapper, has filed suit in Brooklyn alleging that he created the technique of "whisper rapping." Rose says that Hova subsequently adopted the technique without properly crediting him -- and now he wants to get paid!
The same Mitchell Rose once wrote a book called "Mike Tyson Tried to Kill My Daddy." Jay-Z's rep didn't return our call for comment.
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Sunday 8 June 2008
Noll's drugs, drink and rebellion
SHANNON Noll has confessed to rebelling against a wholesome upbringing by taking drugs and drinking after his father's death.
"My dad never drank and he never smoked," the 32-year-old pop star said of his father Neil.
"He worked his fingers to the bone. You can be a good man and, still, things can go wrong.
"So I thought, bugger it, I'm going to live life, try things, have a bit of fun. I don't want to live my life worrying about what might go wrong."
Noll smoked marijuana regularly to help cope with his father's accidental death on the family farm in 2001.
"I didn't let myself think about him when I was smashed," he said. "Consequently, I found myself getting smashed a lot."
The birth of Noll's son Cody later that year forced the singer to quit.
"I got to a stage where I had to own up to it," Noll said. "I'd turned into a zombie on the lounge. I wasn't doing anything useful. I wasn't going to do that to my son."
Noll, who was raised in Condobolin, NSW, said he should not have to apologise for having fun.
"I am a normal Australian bloke. I do love a beer," he said. "But I'm no different to any young bloke you'll meet who's playing football, or surfing, or working. I want to enjoy my life and have a good time."
In March this year, he was criticised for a drunken performance at Thredbo, NSW.
Punters claimed Noll staggered and slurred through his set.
And while Noll said he took antibiotics for a throat infection and drank only three beers before the show, he would not make the same mistake again.
"I threw down the last beer and then the alarm bells went off," he said.
"I knew I was teetering. I was on the borderline of being gone.
"I came offstage thinking, 'Damn!' I should've known better.
"I am aware of how easily it can happen and I'll never go near that realm of possibility again."
Noll lives at Lilli Pilli, on the NSW south coast, with his wife, Rochelle Ogsten, and their children, Cody, Blake and Sienna.
A relaxed Noll said he was training with a local Australian Rules team for fitness.
"I started playing last week -- just to get a hobby going," he said.
Ogsten said her rock star husband was getting better at work-life balance.
"And not just for the time we need together, but for the kids," she said. "They need their dad around. The boys go wild after 10 days."
Ogsten said their children had distinct personalities. Blake, 5, and Sienna, 20 months, were extroverts, while Cody was like Noll.
"Deep, a real thinker," Ogsten says. "I can always see Cody's mind ticking away."
Noll owns a small home in Condobolin, which he uses as a getaway and said he wanted his city-raised children to have country values.
"I'm always quoting things Mum and Dad said to me like learn to acknowledge a compliment, because there's not many of those going around these days," he said. "Treat people like you want to be treated. And don't judge anybody until you've walked a mile in their shoes."
Noll will perform at Horsham Hotel, June 11, Doncaster Shoppingtown Hotel, June 12, Ferntree Gully Hotel, June 13, Chelsea Heights Hotel, June 14 and Hallam Hotel, June 15.
"My dad never drank and he never smoked," the 32-year-old pop star said of his father Neil.
"He worked his fingers to the bone. You can be a good man and, still, things can go wrong.
"So I thought, bugger it, I'm going to live life, try things, have a bit of fun. I don't want to live my life worrying about what might go wrong."
Noll smoked marijuana regularly to help cope with his father's accidental death on the family farm in 2001.
"I didn't let myself think about him when I was smashed," he said. "Consequently, I found myself getting smashed a lot."
The birth of Noll's son Cody later that year forced the singer to quit.
"I got to a stage where I had to own up to it," Noll said. "I'd turned into a zombie on the lounge. I wasn't doing anything useful. I wasn't going to do that to my son."
Noll, who was raised in Condobolin, NSW, said he should not have to apologise for having fun.
"I am a normal Australian bloke. I do love a beer," he said. "But I'm no different to any young bloke you'll meet who's playing football, or surfing, or working. I want to enjoy my life and have a good time."
In March this year, he was criticised for a drunken performance at Thredbo, NSW.
Punters claimed Noll staggered and slurred through his set.
And while Noll said he took antibiotics for a throat infection and drank only three beers before the show, he would not make the same mistake again.
"I threw down the last beer and then the alarm bells went off," he said.
"I knew I was teetering. I was on the borderline of being gone.
"I came offstage thinking, 'Damn!' I should've known better.
"I am aware of how easily it can happen and I'll never go near that realm of possibility again."
Noll lives at Lilli Pilli, on the NSW south coast, with his wife, Rochelle Ogsten, and their children, Cody, Blake and Sienna.
A relaxed Noll said he was training with a local Australian Rules team for fitness.
"I started playing last week -- just to get a hobby going," he said.
Ogsten said her rock star husband was getting better at work-life balance.
"And not just for the time we need together, but for the kids," she said. "They need their dad around. The boys go wild after 10 days."
Ogsten said their children had distinct personalities. Blake, 5, and Sienna, 20 months, were extroverts, while Cody was like Noll.
"Deep, a real thinker," Ogsten says. "I can always see Cody's mind ticking away."
Noll owns a small home in Condobolin, which he uses as a getaway and said he wanted his city-raised children to have country values.
"I'm always quoting things Mum and Dad said to me like learn to acknowledge a compliment, because there's not many of those going around these days," he said. "Treat people like you want to be treated. And don't judge anybody until you've walked a mile in their shoes."
Noll will perform at Horsham Hotel, June 11, Doncaster Shoppingtown Hotel, June 12, Ferntree Gully Hotel, June 13, Chelsea Heights Hotel, June 14 and Hallam Hotel, June 15.
Monday 26 May 2008
Miley Cyrus - Cyrus Defends Stolen Song
LATEST: Teen star MILEY CYRUS has hit back at accusations she ripped off a Los Angeles band's song - because she doesn't write any of her own music.
Los Angeles band Lustra fired claims Cyrus' song Rockstar is a carbon copy of their Scotty Doesn't Know tune on Wednesday (14May08).
The band - whose track appeared on the soundtrack to 2004 movie Eurotrip - was alerted to Cyrus' song-similarities by fans, and has since determined the tunes are virtually the same, despite mismatching lyrics.
A spokesperson for Cyrus insists, "She doesn't write the songs - she sings them. We have referred this to Disney."
According to The New York Post, the band "is considering various options to rectify this situation".
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