10 Seconds: Sam Jones
If you've ever caught Sam Jones ("The theme here is gonna be musical slaps to the face. Simple. Unforgiving fuckeries. No prisoners. No bullshit." ) play, you know he's one seriously in the pocket drummer. You also know he brings jokes...
1. Troyka - Clint (4'32" - 4'42")
From
Troyka – Troyka (2009)
"This is just too hench. I love anything that sounds like a cowboy. This is guns blazing, slow thunder. Nothing like it. A real semi-country gut punch. Big respect to Chris Montague on that face-melter of a guitar solo."
2. Andy Stott - Violence (5'29" - 5'39")
From
Andy Stott – Faith In Strangers (2014)
"This now is one of my favourite producers. Utter joker. Super nerdy dude from Manchester. That being said he’s greasy as. Undercover badman. This tune is filth. As I’m finding with a lot of these tracks, there’s much to be said for the build but here I am doing my best to give you 10 seconds of pure flames. Here you go."
3. John Coltrane - Sun Ship (2'50" - 3'00")
From
John Coltrane – Sun Ship (1971)
“This has got to be the closest thing to a drive-by in jazz. Tyner is driving. Elvin is that annoying dude making a bag of noise in the back trying to rarl everyone up. Garrison is blazed in the passenger and has no idea where he is. They pull up on some marks in South Central LA, backseat window winds down, Coltrane pulls out a TEC-9 with the fat extended clip and proceeds to spray caps directly at said marks. Brutal."
4. Petrushka: The Shrove Tide-Fair - Igor Stravinsky- Robert Groslot, Belgian Radio and Television Orchestra (3'43" - 3'53")
"Curveball now. I’m not going to pretend I’m that cultured guy who knows loads about classical music and that. I’m not gonna pretend I’m not either. This is hench. Man like Igor Stravinsky. Any man that can start a legit riot with his music is a gangsta in my books. Something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time is get the LSO to book me to play airhorn exclusively on all the Stravinsky bangers. Catch me at the peak of the Firebird suite daggering a chair with a Jamaican flag bandana bussing airhorn repeatedly."
5. Led Zeppelin - Since I’ve Been Loving You (6'39" - 6'49")
From
Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin III (1971)
"I first heard this tune performed by Bilal out in Amsterdam. My wig was split. I was thinking “what the fuck is this black ass shit?”. After finding his guitarist backstage, Randy Runyon (badman), I discovered it was Zep and was floored. Then I listened to the original. Holy fuck. This has to be some of the blackest sounding white shit I’ve ever heard. It’s outrageous. Bluesy as. Well done Crackas."
6. Kanye West - I’m In It (1'18" - 1'28")
From
Kanye West - Yeezus (2013)
"Kanye is without a doubt my favourite artist of all time. He’s got to be one of the most complex, hated (sometimes fairly), misunderstood, under-appreciated artists of all time. I’m gonna put the politics aside for now. This tune is outrageous. Slap bang in the middle of what could be his most polarising album, Yeezus. This album is brutal, barbaric, crude and fucking raw. And this specific clip is just too jokes.
Kanye: “I think this track needs a Jamaican dude”. Yes, Kanye I think so too. There is nothing like a Jamaican guy on a drop to get me dashing chairs and flipping tables."
7. Traxman- Blow Your Whistle (1'10" - 1'20")
From
Traxman – Da Mind Of Traxman Vol 2 (2013)
"Footwork, Juke, Ghetto Booty House, whatever you want to call it, you know what the fuck it is when it comes on. This shit is pure energy. Normally sitting at 160 bpm this stuff knows what it’s trying to do from the word go.
This music originates from Chicago where dudes dance battle fiercely to these erratic and tense rhythms. I, on the other hand, sit on my fat bum with a Stella trying not to spill it all over me when the beat drops."
8. Nubya Garcia - Source (5'00" - 5'10")
From
Nubya Garcia – Source (2020)
"Ok now. If you didn’t see this coming you clearly haven’t met me. How could I complete this list without a tune with ME on it?
I’m not a shy man, this tune is badass (humility dashed out the window). Nubya and I bring shellers. Bombs. We’ve been playing this tune for about two years, yet every time we bring some kind of spontaneous heat to it. This is why Nubya is one of my favourite improvisers. Rhythm, thematic development, sound for days, language, she’s got the whole ting. Definitely one of those players that rewards her band for listening intently."
Additional mentions to:
Quickly, bun Rodigan. No idea how his name came before Footsie and Double. Anyway, this one clearly demonstrates why D Double is indeed “that lyrical father”. There’s something undeniably infectious about how he spits. Still the only artist I’m aware of who can get a reload for saying “Uh” twice"
"This is an old friend of mine. I used to teach Samba drums with him in east London and spent many years as a student of his. If he’s reading this, I want him to know he’s a poomplex. That aside this tune bangs - one of my most played tracks at 140 BPM. It always works well in the mix and never fails to give me a massive screw face.
Jo Wills aka Old Man Diode is not actually a poomplex."
