Yes, it's been a great month so far. Here are some highlights:
Attended Sleazefest in Chapel Hill N.C. for a Funk-free Rock and Roll vacation. Hung with our friends The 9th Wave, kings of Connecticut surf music and mixed drinks. They’re really good so buy their CDs. Also helping us drink and party were The Blind Pharaohs from Brooklyn, NY, another excellent band. They had a substitute drummer who was fantastic. I believe he was Mike Smith, formerly of the Ex-Husbands (ex-Ex-Husbands). Got to watch some BBQ action as there was a whole pig cooked each day. Pulled pork w/ hot pepper/vinegar sauce NC style, yummy. Also the usual bands played including Southern Culture on the Skids, The Woggles (my favorate), and The Swingin Neckbreakers. Excellent Rockabilly action from Paul Galaxy and the Galactix, and the Paladins!! Hooray!! The Sleazefest page does not have the line up but I found it here. Also some love for Dexter Romweber (formerly of Flat Duo Jets) and The Loners, who rocked. I heard a rumor that my wife got in the Go-Go cage but I can’t be sure.
The lack of funkyness was allayed by a trip to the record store where I procured some choice beats, including the superb Roots Manuva- Dub come save me, some Tech House in the form of Luomo on Forcetracks (Ft46), some Filla Brazillia , and the new Antibalas record. Also got some choice used LP ephemera.
Wonder of wonders, I finally got to DJ somewhere again. I went as Uncle Eric and opened this thing at Selam. It was very cool and a big thanks to DJ Moose for letting me get on, and to my “posse” for showing up and dancing. Played some Dub, Hip-Hop, Funk, and Downtempo. It was a lot of fun. I would have hung out to hear the rest of the DJs but I have to wake up at 630am the following morning and BBQ.
For all you Yankees out there this doesn’t mean I woke up at the crack of dawn to cook steaks, dogs, chicken and burgers on the grill for breakfast. Myself and my intrepid team of meat cookers did BBQ, i.e. smoked meat cooked low and slow. Team Meat assembled and cooked a pork butt, two pork shoulders and eight racks of ribs as well as 7lbs of chicken for my brother-in-law’s annual party. We pulled the pork and mixed it with my secret hot pepper/vinegar sauce, NC style. The ribs had a dry rub of secret spices and then a Bourbon sauce put on at the end. Team Meat was so inundated with smoke that we couldn’t taste how good it was till the next day!