We are one week away from the release of my newest mix, “The Entertainer”, and it’s release party at The Drake Hotel in Toronto on Friday, July 15th. Finishing off the mix inside my studio during beautiful summer weather has it’s drawbacks, but I love what I do! I can’t let you go into the weekend without this one remix, so get your boombox ready and let me give you some background on it.

One day when listening to “Slippin’ Into Darkness” by War, I noticed that a riff late in the song was very similar to Bob Marley’s “Get Up, Stand Up”. Sometimes these things just happen. After doing a bit of searching, I found out that Bob’s tune was actually directly influenced by it.

Coincidentally, shortly after putting two and two together, I played a show with War’s harmonica man Lee Oskar at the memorial for our friend Bad News Brown in Montreal. I asked Lee about the similarities between the two songs and he confirmed that Marley wrote the song based on “Slippin…”. They were on some tours together in the early 70s in Europe and the United States ["we played some soccer in between shows(!)"] during the spark of War’s popularity and Bob was a big fan of theirs, so he expanded on their riff to create one of his most recognizable tunes.

Summertime music! Enjoy.

Bob Marley vs War – Get Up Stand Up/Slippin’ Into Darkness (Skratch Bastid Rock Dis Funky Joint rmx) by Skratch Bastid

(Live bass by male model Devon Richardson | Artwork by Rhek http://www.sharksandhammers.com)

Only a few short months after the http://www.skratchbastid.com/video-cbc-hip-hop-summit-2011-northern-touch-encore/ in Toronto, ‘Love, Props and the T.Dot’ has been released. Bobby SIngh Brown has directed and produced a 45 minute piece on the history of the Toronto hip-hop scene.

Predominantly featuring the 80s & 90s, there is some great vintage footage of early Toronto parties, radio shows, studios, streets, etc. Plus, plenty of great stories from the artists themselves – such as Michie Mee, Maestro, Kardinal, Ghetto Concept, Choclair & more. It manages to cover quite a bit of ground in the short amount of time it runs.

Sprinkled in are clips from the summit, including many high quality clips of the 10+ min freestyle at the end of the show that DJ Starting From Scratch and I backed up. Kardinal’s verse is an off-the-top summary of the scene’s history – something I didn’t catch until watching it right now. Really dope.

Enjoy!

Friends, Family & Fans,

The Entertainer Tour is in full swing. Not a whole lot of stopping this train and it’s picking up steam from here. As a touring artist, sometimes you find yourself in a run of shows that challenges the brain & the body. “11 in 11 in ’11″. The shit-tornado destined for shitsville.

Every summer, I like to get out and see the people of my country from coast to coast. The cities and towns on the list are continuing to amass and the schedule is getting pretty tight. In the next 11 days, I will be traveling by car and plane to 10 different locations for 11 shows. I’ve got my camera with me and will be documenting the travels to show you why I like doing this every summer. Canada is such a huge beautiful country that many never get to see and I am fortunate enough to see it.

This 11 day stretch consists of the west coast, the BC interior and the prairies. And it doesn’t stop there. The Entertainer Tour started in Philly & NY, hit the Vancouver Nightlife Awards, then bolted out to Victoria & Tofino – and after this clump of dates I’ll be making my way out to the east coast later this month. Here are some pics from the road thus far:

(Check out Pics from NY @ The Rub courtesy of Kenny Rodriguez here.)

Last night was Whistler, in an unprecedented bar decor makeover, Garfinkels brought in a mini ramp for some skate action, as well as a living room setup complete with couches and a VCR. It provided a good canvas to play pretty much anything you want from Nas to Jacko to Bad Company to Men At Work (shouts out to the Aussies) to Slayer. Good times. Check a lil’ recap over at Garf’s website. Tonight, I’ll be returning to my favorite lil’ spots in Canada: Fernie! Guaranteed good time. Pics to follow.

Stay tuned for more! You never know what’s going to happen on the road. Every post, I will be linking a new favourite road trip song. Today, the unanimous winner is Nas’ “Nasty”. Salaam Remi-laced SP-1200 massacre that Nas practices gymnastics over.

Download – Nas – “Nasty” (via NahRight)

See you soon.

I’m currently working on a new mixtape. It’s called “The Entertainer“. I’ve always enjoyed making mixtapes – it’s a chance for me to show people what mixes and remixes I have been working on, songs I’ve been listening to at home, and songs I’ve been playing out live. There is no true format to my mixes – the music can be any genre, new or old, fast or slow – just as long as it all gels to create the vibe I’m going for. I like to surprise people with the different songs I can mix together and the connections I can make across different genres of music. Of course I’ve got to present it with just the right amount of cuts and scratches to make it a signature mix, but it’s all about the music. The goal is to provide a mix that anyone can play anywhere for any group of people and have a good time. The Entertainer.

Here’s a remix that I made for it. Wu-Tang Clan vs Nas & Damian Marley – “As We Enter the Gravel Pit” (Skratch Bastid Blend). Shaolin’s uptempo classic meets the Distant Relatives banger. Fast rap with a driving beat sure to fill up the dancefloor and please rap fans and rug-cutters alike. Enjoy.

As We Enter the Gravel Pit – Wu-Tang Clan, Nas & Damien Marley (Skratch Bastid Blend) by Skratch Bastid

Really looking forward to these gigs this weekend! Returning to 2 of my favorite stateside monthlies. Friday night you can catch me at The Barbary (951 Frankford Avenue) in Philadelphia alongside Emynd & Bo Bliz of Crossfaded Bacon at their “The Bounce” party, and Saturday you can catch me at Southpaw in Brooklyn alongside DJ Ayres, Cosmo Baker & DJ Eleven, and special guest DJ Tameil, at The Rub party. Peep the flyers and hope to see you there.