In Town : Tuesday 9/29 Mayer Hawthorne @ Great Scott

Let me start by saying that after years of putting out solid record after solid record, I will give every Stones Throw signee at least a few chances. Now it took me a little bit longer than usual to check out Mayer Hawthorne probably due to my subconscious not thinking that the guy in the picture above this had the chops to play mid 60's - mid 70's soul and funk as well as he does. After months of putting off the inevitable, I fired up "Just Ain't Gunna Work Out." I was blown away by how accurate and authentic Hawthorne's take on 70's crisp Motown tune. Hawthorne sings in a falsetto with a strong Smokey Robinson vibe and delivers an all around solid record that stands up just as well as some of the original soul tracks that influenced him.

For me, what really sets Hawthorne apart from the rest of the "retro" revival over the last few years is his obvious knowledge of all corners of soul and funk. To cut a record this tight and on spot to a time period requires countless hours of listening and digging. You can purchase A Strange Arrangement from the Stones Throw store here.

Hawthorne will be performing directly down the street from our house at Great Scott this Tuesday, September 29th. Check out the selection of tunes below.

Fever Ray - Seventh (Martyn's Seventh Remix)

Two step done so incredibly right its hard to imagine why there are so few pairings that sound this perfect out there. While revisiting Great Lengths earlier this week, I realized how well the tunes have held up since it was released earlier this year. GREAT dub/tech/wonky fuckit albums are pretty hard to come by, but Great Lengths looks like it will take a place in 2009 as one of the better complete and flowing albums of the genre. Rinse and Repeat.

Lucky We

Here's a total stunner of a mix from the Kode 9. Only there's no dubstep, just shimmering G-funk and sunny L.A. wooze-hop with a sprinkling of just about everything else stretching from Prince to Dizzee Rascal. Essential sounds taking is into this very purple fall.

Kode 9 - Hyper Lucky Mix

Sa-ra - Dirty Beauty
Prince - The Ballad of Dorothy Parker
Kleer - Intimate Connection
Cameo - Back & Forth
Herbie Hancock - Perfect Machine
Slava Tsukerman - Margrets Apartment
The Associates - Message Oblique Speech
Slava Tsukerman - Night Club
Gosub - Last Night at the Stardust
Slava Tsukerman - Seduction of Vincent
Simonetti/Morante/Pignatelli - Tenebre
Simonetti/Morante/Pignatelli - Slow Circus
Ryuichi Sakamoto & David Sylvian - Bamboo Houses
Dizzee Rascal - Brand New Day
Sun Ra - Rocket Number Nine

Shortstuff - Progression

Another big tune from at the moment producer Shortstuff on Formant Records. Purchase from Boomkat here.