Back To The Old School Hip Hop party returns to the Rumpus Room in West End after a bit of a hiatus this Saturday, 28 March.
This time the event will be headlined by the host of Groove Therapy Radio show on 2SER Sydney, and super-special homeboy, Shan Frenzie.
Frenzie is no stranger to Brisbane either; as a regular on the early hip hop and beats club circuit, he also held down the Phat Tape Hip Hop show with Seany B and Dee Jaye Katch for several years.
To get you in the mood, Frenzie selects five of the freshest, old-school jams.
1. Word Of Mouth feat. DJ Cheese - 'King Kut', 1985
Produced by the legendary Duke Bootee who was one of the in-house musicians for the Sugarhill label, and also wrote 'The Message'. After that period he was involved with his label Beauty And The Beat Records, where he produced a series of really hard-hitting, street records, most of them edited by The Latin Rascals that makes them even more dope.2. Whodini - 'Funky Beats', 1986
Before RUN-D.M.C. redefined hip hop, Whodini were one of the biggest groups in the game, and were produced by Larry Smith who was pretty much hip hop's first super-producer. A huge street-record with menacing stabs and subtle machine gun edits.3. MC Mitchski - 'Brooklyn Blew Up The Bridge', 1987
A lot of people hate on this record, but for me it holds a real, special place that takes me back to the Bridge war feud between Boogie Down Productions and The Juice Crew. I don’t even think Mitchski was even affiliated with BDP. I think he just wanted to be down. The b-side has another dope track called 'Red Alert Is A Great Man', which might just be pushing the bandwagon a little too far, but it’s equally as dope in my opinion. I was so happy when I found the original in Brooklyn a few years back.4. Kool Chip - 'Jazz It Up', 1978
Kool Chip was a collaborator with New York radio DJ Chuck Chillout, but on this release he hooks up with '80s songstress Toni Smith for something that sounds reminiscent of Chaka Khan with huge DMX beats and a infectious synth groove. It’s a club track but sublime nonetheless.5. Mikey D & The LA Posse - Go For It (1987 Elite records)
Produced by my all-time-favourite producer Paul C, who samples The Eagles and turns it into a rugged street record. Mikey D doesn’t let up on the microphone proving that he was worthy of standing up with some of the greatest lyricists of the era.Back To The Old School Hip Hop Party plays Rumpus Room Saturday, 28 March.
