7/6/2010
Plus Two Minus One, Live At The Chopin Theater
Link To Post
To make up for last month's epic fail of not posting a new tune, we humbly offer you ingrates this ... a free live EP for the downloading. That's about right ... 5 tracks, 2 new compositions and 3 group improvisations all recorded live at Sketchbook X on June 17, 2010.
I brought a portable recorder and a handful of mics to the gig hoping to capture whatever happened, and the result is some pretty electrifying group playing that teeters between the Sun Ra and Lee Perry schools of music. Drastics' Tenorman Tom couldn't make the gig so we asked our good friends Charles Gorczynski and Nate Lepine to sit in. That left us dub-less and forced the focus onto individual improvisation.
Check it out on BandCamp and preview the songs, download individual ones or the whole album! This music is definitely charting some abstract territories so fare-thee-warned it's not for the faint hearted.
Charles Gorczynski: Alto Sax; Nate Lepine: Tenor Sax; Andrew Zelm: Trombone, Melodica; Brian Citro: Guitar; Chris Merrill: Double Bass; Anthony Abbinanti: Drums.
4:54am | said Anthony | First Tuesday, Live At The Chopin Theater, Plus Two Minus One, Reggae
6/2/2010
Where's My New Music ???
Link To Post
So the First Tuesday of June has come and gone and there ain't no new Drastic track.
What gives !?
WHAT GIVES !?
Why you ingratefu ... well, we are on the verge of finishing not 1 but 2 albums Mr. Smart-In-The-Mouth so shut it and sit down and finish you fried liver pate or you can't watch the Timothy Van Patten marathon on TBS!!! Since we were asked to be part of this year's Sketchbook in Chicago, we took it upon ourselves to write a bunch of new material ... and we'll be dropping 2 albums that couldn't be more different .. one strikkly dubwise inna rub-a-dub style and the other some modern avante-garde dub freakout shizzz .. ya heard!?
FEAR NOT THOUGH .. we will be releasing something shortly to keep you nice boys and girls satiated, and it's a first for us .. Gonna take one song from the Drastics catalog and split it up by instrument so you can dub it, remix it, deejay it and version the hell out of some Drastics ... it'll be posted here in the next day or two and if we get some good response we will consider keeping it going (releasing another one next month)
In the meantime, if you live in Chicago get to the Charleston on Thursday to get a slice of Bassie and Drummies record stacks .. yes, Chris and myself gonna be throwin that hot wax like a scented candle from 10pm to close ... no cover! (note: scented candle may be sandlewood, those with allergic conditions please bring the appropriate shots)
The annual "I Want To Eat Steve Guttenburg" contest has been moved from Thursday at the Charleston and will now be held around the corner in that one guys van. Present proof of entry in the contest to the bar and get sucker punched by Chris!
11:51am | said Anthony | First Tuesday, Missing Songs, Steve Guttenberg, Sucker Punches
5/4/2010
Here Comes The Bass / Earl Warren
Link To Post
Cover photo by Nic "The Graduate" Gourguechon
Let's go kids, time to get back up off yer outside playing around and get back inside in front of the damn computer screen! Cause we got a MASSIVE SOUND for you this month .. and until we release it on the iTunes you gotta listen to it online! Save the CDs and Damn the bandwidth! Yes, this month we got a big tune featuring our regular vocal partner in crime MC Zulu .. Here Comes The Bass with accompanying instrumental version Earl Warren Ska!
This tune does require a bit of the 'ol backstory ... See, we here in La Casa de Drastique don't really "do the ska" too often (though we get labeled and thrown on ska bills cause we're white dudes playing Jamaican music, but that's a rant for another day) but we do appreciate the hell out of The Skatalites, Desmond Dekker, et. al.... because of that we do keep one trad ska tune in the repertoire. That one tune was titled "Jack Ruby" and was written by our old cohort Mr. Corey Dixon. The version recorded and put up today is slightly different than the original in that the whole melody has been reinterpreted.
Corey wrote "Jack Ruby" as a sort of response to the Skatalites tune "Lee Harvey Oswald" ... See, when the Skatalites perform live, it is not uncommon to hear Lloyd Brevett say "Who killed JFK?" before the band drops into the Oswald Ska. So Mr. Dixon thought it clever to start up a tune with "Who killed Lee Harvey Oswald?" .. "Jack Ruby" ... Then we thought it even MORE clever to start our version of the tune with "Who Killed Jack Ruby" ... well, the answer to that would be lung cancer .. and, frankly "Lung Cancer Ska" doesn't have the ring to it we'd like .. So we settled on "Who prosecuted Jack Ruby under the LBJ appointed commission to investigate the assassination of JFK?" .. Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court Earl Warren .. that's who!
Anyway, enough of the past, on to the future! MC Zulu took the riddim and spit hot-double-time-fire on it inna dancehall style! I know this phrase get's used alot on this blog, but we're pretty sure you t'aint heard nothing like this before (unless you've been to our live show) ... Turn up the bass and let it rip brother!
DANCEHALL + SKA = BRAIN OVERLOAD
1:53pm | said Anthony | First Tuesday, MC Zulu, Ska, Here Comes The Bass
4/6/2010
Monday Morning & Striped Curtain Dub
Link To Post
The track might be titled "Monday Morning" but it's getting released on a Tuesday ... cause it's been 30 days and it's time for yet one more installment of our First Tuesday New Music Series! Featuring MC Zulu, this track is built on the Drastics' own "Strikeback! Riddim" (off of our third release "Waiting" .. you can check out the unreleased dub of Strikeback! on the player above .. entitled "Counterstrike!"). "Monday Morning" comes with its own dub and immediately follows on the player .. appropriately titled "Striped Curtain Dub".
8 MINUTES HARD LABOR
DRASTICS LIVE
THIS THURSDAY!
We got conscripted last minute to help out our friends The Pinstripes at The Cobra Lounge .. This Thursday, April 8 .. part of a big night Ska Brewing has going, we'll be playing a 50 minute instrumental set early in the night .. around 10pm or so, but the music continues throughout the night with 2 sets from The Pinstripes ... no cover! Ska Brewing will have 8 taps going as well as limited edition and unreleased cans .. if yer into beer, be sure to check it!
4:17am | said Anthony | First Tuesday, MC Zulu, Dub, Monday Morning
3/2/2010
Lightning Train & UV Rockers
Link To Post
We're more than pysched to announce this month's new single: Lightning Train featuring Drastics long-time collaborator and semi-permanent frontman MC Zulu. A bouncy rocksteady/gospel joint with slave-spiritual inspired lyrics. The B-side features the original instrumental version of the track; UV Rockers.
BIG TUNE!
TAKE THIS TRAIN TO FREEDOM
NEXT WEEK!
We'll be dubbin' it on up at The Whistler in Chicago ... 2 Sets .. No Cover. Enjoy fancy cocktails and this. Instrumental set, MC Zulu set. Nice!
3:18am | said Anthony | First Tuesday, Gospel, Rocksteady, Music
1/7/2010
Blue Note Dubs
Link To Post
Good evening all you bonzai buckaroos out there on the vast parched mesa that is the world wide web. Just here to give a little update. Though there was no notification, we did make our First Tuesday New Music deadline and uploaded a brand new instrumental to the ol' myspace listenin' box! We took McCoy Tyner's ballad "Search For Peace" and put the rocksteady treatment on it.
Originally recorded on Tyner's "The Real McCoy" in 1967, the track featured legends Joe Henderson, Ron Carter and Elvin Jones. The album was his first release on Blue Note Records as well as the first record appearing as a leader after leaving John Coltrane's group. Basically, it's an amazing disc. This our little homage to it's greatness featuring Andrew Zelm on trombone.
You'll also notice we added some tracks to our lil' ol' mp3 player up top. Moved some songs from the myspace player there and added a couple new ones ... so press play already!!!
VAN GELDER DUBS
Live Dub
We also got some cool shows palindromey shows coming up in Chicago on 1.13 and 3.11. First off; next Wednesday we're doing 2 sets as part of the Q4 Wednesday Music Party and then March we'll be throwing down at new-ish Chicago spot; The Whistler (which I'm pretty sure will be their inaugural reggae event). We're also planning a week out to the East Coast in April so keep your eyes on the big board!
3:26am | said Anthony | First Tuesday, Jazz, Dub, Music
7/7/2009
first tuesday/new music + vinyl pre-order promo
Link To Post
And here we go once again ... We got another brand spankin' new cut for your listening pleasure up on the MySpace wax cylinder, this month we present "Marionette Rock". This is for all you Fela, Femi, Mulatu, Ethiopiques, etc fans out there who have been left stranded in the no-mans-land between reggae and afropop. Another Drastic innovation ... maybe? Featuring the guitar work of Brian Citro and solos from Tom Riley and Elliot Ross. I feel like I type this a lot, but you've prolly never heard something like this ...
UNDER CONSIDERATION TO BE THE NEW ANTHEM OF PIANO TUNERS LOCAL 382!
BIG NEWS/7" PRE-SALE EXTRAVAGANZA!
Holy crap have we got one sweet sweet deal for you when pre-ordering both of our newly minted 7"s ... Love Is War and Lonely No More, both featuring MC ZULU ...
All orders received on or before July 31 will receive free shipping (US only) ... and there's more! On top of free shipping there's free CDs and Vinyl for the first 50 orders!
CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE/ORDER
2:28am | said Anthony | First Tuesday, Marionette Rock, Vinyl
6/2/2009
First Tuesday, new music!
Link To Post
Ok, so we're on a roll now ... our second update in a row that was ON TIME ... Looks like all that money I spent keeping Thomas Ian Griffith on retainer as my life coach has finally paid off... Up for your hearin' eyes on the ol' Myspace player this month is a brand-spankin-new-cut featuring MC Zulu: Lonely No More with the "b-side" Dub Me No More. Just in time for summer ... We are gonna be on a performance hiatus until our return on August 23rd at the Glenwood Avenue Arts Festival in Rogers Park, Chicago ... we will keep droppin' our usual new tracks each month (next months track is gonna be like nothin' you ever heard before) and mixtapes and record reviews, book club meeting minutes, haberdashery tips, mellified man recipes, Greenland Norse midden stratigraphy, gyrfalcon mastery, cantaloupe rind chucking contests, latest square dance calls, etc ...
THE SOUND RON REAGAN Jnr CALLED "SWEETER THAN A JELLY BEAN"
10:04am | said Anthony | First Tuesday, Lonely No More
and i find, the drastics be the ill funk freakers ... and i find, the drastics be the ill funk freakers ... and i find, the drastics be the ill funk freakers ... and i find, the drastics be the ill funk freakers ... and i find, the drastics be the ill funk freakers ... and i find, the drastics be the ill funk freakers ... and i find, the drastics be the ill funk freakers ... and i find, the drastics be the ill funk freakers ...