I'm feeling this shit right here

http://soundcloud.com/stonesthrow/steve-arrington-blow-your-mind
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and i'm wearing a VERY cheesy grin.

Dam posted it over at Prince.org and called it a preview
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bring on the album!

>Dam posted it over at Prince.org

can you blame him for staying clear of this place lol

check the posts below for exhibit A
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>can you blame him for staying clear of this place lol
>
>check the posts below for exhibit A

they been tweeting back and forth about working together.

It's going down.

that's another cat I've been wanting to see him work with
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I mean, I'm happy to hear new music from Steve Arrington but Dam's beats don't have enough texture or weight to really challenge him. It all sounds like warmed-over G-funk to me (as has already been said, you expect Kokane or Snoop to pop up any moment).

stuff he was making a couple years ago.

one groove sounds like the next 12 minute one.

fairly bland. And honestly, this sound doesn't really fit for SA.

There's no real musicianship in it.

Just beats and synth textures... It strikes me as a 21st century update of Warren G.

and i can understand those that don't feel Dam but i take issue with you saying there is no musicianship. staying in the pocket doesn't = lack of musicianship.

this is actually one of the things that bothers me most about what we do on this board sometimes. we take something with a style that doesn't move us and go beyond just saying we don't feel it.... we start inventing various reason why it's "not good" to justify our stance.

You know there are times things just aren't for us... doesn't mean there is anything wrong with it though. That's pretty much my stance on King. But I am careful to make it clear I just don't care for the style instead of taking potshots at their ability.
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"texture"

and for want of a better word, "virtuosity"...

No... I shouldn't use that word as it conjures a certain connotation. But I just don't hear any kind of distinct "voice" anywhere in his beats (and yes, I call them "beats").

There just isn't a feeling that's dynamic or organic like you could hear in even a lot of more electro-oriented boogie.. It sounds "programmed."

this sort of thing really bothers me .... and let me be the first to say Ive done it too.

and see it doesn't sounded programed at all to me... nor does it sound like G Funk in that the shit is being played and not looped. This is more in line with something like Bryan Loren than it is Warren G.
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I said that I personally can't get excited by it.

And I don't like when Dam-Funk's music is called "boogie" because I don't think it is at all... and maybe that sort of disappoints me because I first encountered Dam-Funk as a DJ and not a producer. He turned me on to a lot of heavy boogie cuts and was actually a major factor in turning around my feelings about the artistic relevance of 1980s R&B (you remember well how I used to feel about it).

So after hearing the kind of records that Dam-Funk was spinning and then hearing his own music that was being toted as being of the same tradition (I don't know if he actively presented it as such himself, but that's the way it was sold)... the contrast was too jarring for me. It just does not hold up at all.

For example, here's a track Dam turned me on to (or at least reminded me of):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gi5FINfzqXo

and then I hear his own rack:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7TrJMeO57g

He just doesn't have that energy, the distinct voices in various music parts, the instrumental solos... Hid shit fades into the background for me.

The comparison to Bryan Loren is interesting, but Loren has that dynamism and that "live" feel I need from boogie even when it is electronically derived. Hell, Kashif has it.

were over the top and somewhat elitist to be honest.

i mean who am i to tell you how you feel but i think both were totally off base. you since rephrased the musicianship critique so maybe we're having a pointless back and forth on that part... but if you really hear this the same as most G Funk I think you're being kinda shallow. You may not like or respect that fact it's being played but I can honestly tell you it struck me the first time I heard Dam-Funks music that this wasn't just some slapped together beat for someone to rap over.

As for the boogie thing... I've never once heard Dam say he's trying to make boogie music. He's pretty clear he's a modern funk act (im sure you can find an issue with that as well) who draws his inspiration from Roger and Prince among others. As a DJ I can tell you I play all kinds of styles I wouldn't play if I was actually making music.

I personally think it's an insult to Dam to look at him as a retro act. I don't think he sounds like one nor has ever tried to... it's a new spin on old sounds and I dig it. Those that don't aren't right or wrong just not moved by the same things the rest of us are.
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Which I don't.

I'll admit that I was not a huge fan of 1990s G-funk, but I didn't think it was bad music. It just was not music that appealed to me personally.

I already said that I can't say for sure that Dam ever called his music "boogie" but it was often being sold that way in write-ups about him, including those by his label... I'm not saying that he has to make music that sounds like the shit that he was playing as a DJ, only that his DJing appeals to me more than his own music.

And I have heard him make comparisons between his music and Prince... and I'm sorry, I just don't hear it. Or maybe it's just that the aspects of Prince's music that I like are not the ones he seems to be drawing from.

(You're right that I do take issue with him being described as a "modern funk" act, too... but of course we've already established that I'm not a fan of most of this "modern funk" stuff to begin with!)

and I think comparing Dam's music to G Funk is like comparing Sinnamon Love to Halle Berry because they are both light skinned black women. I really think there's much more to Dam's music but we might as well put this to bed because it's clear we hear this differently... and that's cool.

I hear the Prince influence... it's just not overt like The Dream & Carlos Mckinney. He's not so much trying to remake Prince (or Roger) records as he is bringing parts of their sounds in as a seasoning... Dam-Funk himself is the "meat".

And really this is bottom line here

"but of course we've already established that I'm not a fan of most of this "modern funk" stuff to begin with"

I respect that you feel that way too... but see you commenting on something like this Dam track really is like getting a steakhouse review from a vegetarian.


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which is what I need my funk to be lol

point AFKAP
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>There just isn't a feeling that's dynamic or organic like you
>could hear in even a lot of more electro-oriented boogie.. It
>sounds "programmed."

as my ear got tuned to the likes of Herbie, Dukey, and Chick when I was younger... I became more aware of how one "plays" their instruments of choice. That they had an identifiable "voice", and it didn't just extend to virtuoso performers (actually, it was with drummers that I first picked this up -- as anyone who has read anything I've said about Jeff Porcaro and/or Steve Gadd can attest).

R&B wise, you could tell it in some of my favorite producers (not surprisingly it's the keyboard-based cats like Kashif, Paul Laurence, Leon Sylvers, Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis/Monte Moir, etc) ...I liked when you could "identify" a player just by listening.

it's kind of this reason I didn't really pay attention to the music of "my" generation ('90s - '00s) that wasn't hip-hop, because I didn't get -that- feeling from those playing it. the innovation/"voice" style play was more on the hip-hop side.

with Dam, I think he might be emulating more than he might be expressing which might put some folks off, but for me, it's the whole experience, not just how he plays leads.

so of course their "voice" is going to be what hits you right off when you listen to their records. I've said for a while now Dam is better suited to working with a real song writer/vocalist than he is as a solo act. I mean I love a lot of his shit but I think he's a producer more than an act. Funny you mention Jam and Lewis because I feel much the same about them. And like J&L their playing style doesn't step on the toes of the people they work with... it's a subtle style that is taylor made for writing/producing for others. I feel they both have a signature sound too... I can hear a Dam or Jam and Lewis groove and know right off who it is.
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>so of course their "voice" is going to be what hits you right
>off when you listen to their records. I've said for a while
>now Dam is better suited to working with a real song
>writer/vocalist than he is as a solo act. I mean I love a lot
>of his shit but I think he's a producer more than an act.
>Funny you mention Jam and Lewis because I feel much the same
>about them. And like J&L their playing style doesn't step on
>the toes of the people they work with... it's a subtle style
>that is taylor made for writing/producing for others. I feel
>they both have a signature sound too... I can hear a Dam or
>Jam and Lewis groove and know right off who it is.

I like the idea of Dam working with more singers...

and LOL, yeah. Unless they were in "that" group, Jam & Lewis I couldn't see bringing out records under their own name despite being able to craft entire songs by themselves. (I know they did that once, but it was a one-time deal)

>and LOL, yeah. Unless they were in "that" group, Jam & Lewis I
>couldn't see bringing out records under their own name despite
>being able to craft entire songs by themselves. (I know they
>did that once, but it was a one-time deal)

There was a lot of talk of a Jam & Lewis solo album back in the day (under the name The Secret) I for one am glad it never happened. It would have only tarnished their legacy.

Dam is coming at this from a totally different place. He had to get his shit out there by any means necessary. Even if he really is more of a producer he had to get noticed to have a shot at working with other talented people. I look at the last few years as him publicly dropping demos and now we're just starting to get into the "real" shit.

I couldn't be happier with the results I've heard with Steve so far... can't wait to hear what the stuff with Jody will sound like.
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>There was a lot of talk of a Jam & Lewis solo album back in
>the day (under the name The Secret) I for one am glad it never
>happened. It would have only tarnished their legacy.

wasn't that just supposed to be "that band" minus a certain someone (or a couple of people)? I couldn't imagine Jam & Lewis actually doing the "lead" singing parts, but probably putting Alex or someone like that in front.

which reminds me, I'm going to get that Centerfold album soon.

>Dam is coming at this from a totally different place. He had
>to get his shit out there by any means necessary. Even if he
>really is more of a producer he had to get noticed to have a
>shot at working with other talented people. I look at the last
>few years as him publicly dropping demos and now we're just
>starting to get into the "real" shit.
>
>I couldn't be happier with the results I've heard with Steve
>so far... can't wait to hear what the stuff with Jody will
>sound like.

wait. He's doing work with Jody Watley?

the thing is, I think Dam can really do "songs". He just can't sing them. Case in point: "I Want To Thank You", "The Sky Is Ours".

and I personally can't wait for the Steve project myself. Because it's been 10 000 years since I've heard anything Steve Arrington as it was. I liked how in that interview Based Kid posted up how Steve even remarked about how his second album versus his third album solo was received, and where.

This will really be the record where we see how versatile Dam is. I just can't hear Jody over these same grooves he's using for Steve. If ever he was going to dip into the "boogie" sound this will be it.

And you know Steve had an album out last year right? Wasn't bad actually... it was mostly faith based music but it had a few cuts. Right on Time was a straight up jam imo. I'll zip it up and send it over to you sometime this week.
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The 'group' with computer jay isn't enough. Part of me wants to say it's also in part a lazy cali thing which is perhaps a recent phenomena. But I've noticed that with a lot of cali players, getting by is good enough. (I may regret those last two sentences)
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lazy?

i mean let's keep it real in here now
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it's pretty easy to hear he doesn't
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i'm more familiar with his name than his work at this point, so i can't critique the dude too much.

By example imagine a ?uest Arrington project. He'd go the extra mile. Dam'll stay in his lane and let the collab work on Steve's legs.
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But I don't need to hear him trying to work with a funk act.... ever
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Is his own limitations, and he would then enlist the talents he needed to make the project work. Even further, if he couldn't do it true justice (ie get the people he needed) he wouldn't do the project at all. Dam on the other hand won't acknowledge his limitations, and as such they become glaringly evident in the results.

I can't see how you don't see how he needs to play with others. It's like Prince would have never been Prince if he didn't form a band with musicians that could see his vision but also challenge him musically.

He's a soloist that hasn't shown he knows how to play with others, especially others of equal or more musical talent. He's got an audience that doesn't give a fuck, so he can ride that into the sunset... that would be where my lazy comment would come in. But again I'm not really trying to call him lazy. He's talented. Could be much better. Doesn't have to.
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sometimes i think hes too much of a 'thinking' musician to really vibe and jam more intuitively in the way you would need for funk but theres 1 or 2 songs on that last al green album near the end where he gets funkier (i would say the dangelo tour from 2000 but a lot of that was too clinical imho).

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hes a good musician, the lack of texture afkap talks about is prob just down to modern technology which is too slick for its own good, but the thing about his music is that its a one man band, except hes not a one man band, he only plays one instrument! (and ok a bit of programming). and thats all you hear in his songs. so it gets really (really) samey.

*rolls eyes*

seriously it's like you cats are just pulling pages out of the lesson hate book at this point
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You have no idea how much I WANTED to love Dam's stuff and how much I tried to force myself to...

Just didn't work.

making demos

(with all that implies, ie the reduced vision, purposely/not purposely limited sound/palette, not much ambition, etc etc)

except the music hes making is 80s synth funk

which is kinda unusual for someone to be doing within that sort of aesthetic

the main thing i find about dam is that hes good, i like the sound, the genre, but his songs have no dynamics. its just drum machine - turn ON, press record, and PLAY! again and again. hes got chops but hes not exactly herbie hancock when it comes to keeping you on your toes.

he really needs to find at the *very* least, a good rhythm guitarist. that would add a lot to his sound. i mean, jesus, even ant banks and those guys used to get guitarists in (iirc). im sure dam could do it.

*throws up hands*

I'm officially done for the day

I'll check back tomorrow to see if there's anything worth responding too... right now yall's sour patch kids act has wore me down to the point I'm going to end up saying something I don't really mean.

Peace



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when the '70s turned into the '80s Herbie needed an outside producer (or two) or a songwriter to help his grooves. I've written enough about how I wish he had done an entire album with Ray Parker Jr. as co-writer/co-producer. If it had dropped in 1981 or so it would have at least been a cult classic.

Dam is fine how he is. Yes, he can get kind of "samey" if you listen to his own offs and the instrumental side of TOEACHIZOWN, but I think it's in the instrumentals where he shines most.

but I'm the kind of person who hears that "cough" of the Linn drum and just keep listening... so *shrug*

Everyone has a right to their opinions but we need to take those opinions into account when we weight input on certain topics.
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>Everyone has a right to their opinions but we need to take
>those opinions into account when we weight input on certain
>topics.

He was pretty much money as a producer (New Edition, Cheryl Lynn, etc). His track record w/Herbie was pretty solid ("Ready or Not", "Stars In Your Eyes", etc)... which was the basis of that commentary. He basically brought the "Raydio" sound to other's records.

As a solo artist, it's a mixed bag that went into "Beige" territory real quick

ie if they made an album... they'd be called hacks too.
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A well loved and respect one too... no matter how people try and spin it now. It wasn't until the solo years that the name Ray Parker Jr meant anything but good music.
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but yeah... that's what i mean. a jam and lewis album would have had the same affect.

I know at least three or four times I've played some Stevie boot videos with Ray on guitar from people and pointed him out and they're like that's the Ghostbuster's dude?
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>I know at least three or four times I've played some Stevie
>boot videos with Ray on guitar from people and pointed him out
>and they're like that's the Ghostbuster's dude?

even the "Pryor's Place" theme song was better than "Ghostbusters"

I guess you gotta get your fame from somewhere

>the main thing i find about dam is that hes good, i like the
>sound, the genre, but his songs have no dynamics. its just
>drum machine - turn ON, press record, and PLAY! again and
>again. hes got chops but hes not exactly herbie hancock when
>it comes to keeping you on your toes.

yes.

>he really needs to find at the *very* least, a good rhythm
>guitarist. that would add a lot to his sound. i mean, jesus,
>even ant banks and those guys used to get guitarists in
>(iirc). im sure dam could do it.

YES.

Maybe because I'm kinduva guitar-centric person... the lack of rhythm guitar irks me.

I don't mind the drum machine (though the way it's programmed is uninspiring to me) but I just need to hear some more musical colors in there... some strong rhythm guitar, some thick piano (not "keys"... piano) etc.

I just don't like the "keyboardiness"... It sounds "lazy" to me.

im not even being facetious.

well ok maybe a tiny bit.

but really, i think dam wtth chromeos songwriting ability (though i think they sold out a bit on the last one) could be great.

both could draw good things from that
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>as my ear got tuned to the likes of Herbie, Dukey, and Chick
>when I was younger... I became more aware of how one "plays"
>their instruments of choice. That they had an identifiable
>"voice", and it didn't just extend to virtuoso performers
>(actually, it was with drummers that I first picked this up --
>as anyone who has read anything I've said about Jeff Porcaro
>and/or Steve Gadd can attest).

and especially YES to this:

>it's kind of this reason I didn't really pay attention to the
>music of "my" generation ('90s - '00s) that wasn't hip-hop,
>because I didn't get -that- feeling from those playing it. the
>innovation/"voice" style play was more on the hip-hop side.

I was never impressed with the whole "THEY'RE PLAYING LIVE INSTRUMENTS!" thing during the neo-soul era because apart from maybe ?uestlove, it was often hard to find a single instrumentalist on any of those records who expressed anything even approaching a distinct voice... and a lot of times, the "live" music sounded programmed to me. (A lot of times it was... like, yes, a bass player DID play that bass line but then it was sampled and looped to produce the actual song).

I guess I just want to hear more interaction between the musicians even when I know they might have recorded their parts independently. Hell... even Prince playing by himself on his earliest shit still interacted with himself instrumentally.

>with Dam, I think he might be emulating more than he might be
>expressing which might put some folks off, but for me, it's
>the whole experience, not just how he plays leads.

I don't even think he's actually emulating them. He's drawn inspiration from a certain vibe those records had and applied it to hip-hop beats but I don't think he's really playing or producing in the same tradition.

People like this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzYH4qG0FxU

and this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AUFZajGSkc

THYEY are emulating classic boogie.

>I guess I just want to hear more interaction between the
>musicians even when I know they might have recorded their
>parts independently. Hell... even Prince playing by himself on
>his earliest shit still interacted with himself
>instrumentally.

and I've always wondered how that worked with "one-man-band" arrangements. Prince, Stevie, Todd Rundgren and the like.

but I get you. I think Dam does a little, but it's way deep in the groove of those instrumentals. My favorite shit he ever did up to this point has to be the trio of songs that starts with "Flying V Ride"... three tracks, but it's like one groove that flows together, and in the middle, it's like one keyboard is talking to the next one.

his music is pretty much all texture...

the difference btwn Dam and somebody like Roger or even Kashif is songwriting and arranging chops...even DJ Quik does this type of thing better...

Even though Roger's songs/grooves we're long and repetitive, he knew how to structure the song to make all of those 7 or so minutes interesting...and somewhere in there he would throw in a very sweet middle 8/bridge...but even when Roger was out of funk mode, he was very good at traditional songcraft...

Dam does grooves...not songs...he's a musician, and if he teamed with a songwriter and serious record producer(NOT beatmaker or programmer)to shape his sonic concepts, he could put out some ill ass records...

there's a difference between coming up with a groove and writing a song....just like there's a difference between making a "beat" and producing a song....its the reason why when you watch a movie, one person may be credited with the story but someone else will be credited with the screenplay aka script...

Dam's production technique is very informed by beatmaking...the parts of his songs are laid on top of each other but dont necessarily interact to paint an aural picture....and the structure is extremely loose...

this is the reason why the general public likes pop music, because it is manufactured specifically to keep the listener's attention throughout....other music like jazz or dance music are for listeners who are more appreciative of music an an art form and have a longer attn span...just the same way you have "popcorn movies" and you have other types of films like art house films or documentaries...

Dam seemingly has all the tools--classic sounds and the ability to play but the reason some people are left cold is because underneath all that classic 80's West Coast sound, deep basslines, and snappy "wet" drums there isn't much of a song there...at least that's what I hear and what I hear from other people...

While Im thrilled to see Steve (Slave and Steve Arrington is special to me--still hurt abt Mark Adams) doing something new and getting attention for it, he's the wrong fit for Dam's sound. Steve never did electric funk...all the Slave hits were done with traditional instruments (bass, drums, Rhodes, guitar, horns...Steve didnt even get synthy until Positive Power???/Dancin In The Key Of Life, and even then it wasnt the West Coast sound.....Steve's sound is very midwestern

As a producer, your job is to find out what will work best with an artist...what fashion suits them, so to speak....

while this song isnt bad...Im willing to reserve judgment until the entire album drops....

Maybe I'm just having a bad day but some of the shit that was just being thrown out there was really starting to bug me... I was all but gone from this post to preserve my own sanity and then I saw this. a post with fair and accurate criticisms.

props scorp


yeah I even agree to a certain degree about the song thing. He does have a few cuts I think work as songs from beginning to end but I've said for the longest that is not his strong suit. That's the main reason I've been riding so hard for him to work with other people.

Now where we will part ways is over what is trying to be accomplished in this project with Steve. I don't think Steve wants to try to recreate his old sound any more than Dam is capable of making that happen. It's not Weak at the Knees or Watching You nor does it even aspire to be that. To me this is a joint project from two dudes I enjoy and think compliment each other very well.

But I agree with you Dam needs to up his song game... I just think this is a good first step in doing that.


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more than anything, I just want this to be a big win for Steve...

*******
www.windimoto.com

at least the way we used to view sales

I'm just happy dude is laying his voice down over new tracks. Whatever I get I will be thankful for.

And at the very least I will always respect Dam for making this happen.
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I was having a pretty traumatic morning so my powers of expression were a bit shaky

There's definitely a lack of songwriting there above all, but I also think there's a lack of dynamics, of color... You're right that he is all texture... he does the kind of shit that 1990s music critics pretentiously referred to as "soundscapes."

And that kind of description was most often applied to stuff like Dr. Dre and Warren G, which is why I made that comparison.

Do you think this track here falls into the "not really a song" category too?
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It just doesn't excite me.

I would have loved more instrumental parts, more changes, etc.

But I know you can't always get what you want... Dam never said he was setting out to make a Slave record with Steve and I doubt Steve would even want to turn the clock back in that way.

I just wish it had that kind of dynamism of Slave/HOF records.

But that's just me.

I don't hate this rack, btw.

I don't have a problem with folks not liking what I like at all... I just like to be clear on the reasons. But sometimes there isn't any more reason other than it just doesn't satisfy your ears. I guess where I take issue is when I think someone is discrediting someone's talent as a reason to not like it.... because I remember those posts about not respecting musicianship just for the sake of musicianship (which I agreed with btw) But the point being it's a little hypocritical to me that we start calling out someones musicianship now as a reason not to like a record. I know that isn't exactly what you're saying but that's what you said right out the gate. I think that's what set me off a little.

But again don't ever think I want and expect everyone to think and feel like I do. In the end what others think don't have any impact on what I enjoy.
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>I don't have a problem with folks not liking what I like at
>all... I just like to be clear on the reasons. But sometimes
>there isn't any more reason other than it just doesn't satisfy
>your ears.

True. But this is a situation where I probably COULD have just said "it doesn't satisfy my ears" but I also happen to know precisely what makes it unsatisfactory and what could have been done to make it more satisfying for me.

I guess where I take issue is when I think someone
>is discrediting someone's talent as a reason to not like
>it.... because I remember those posts about not respecting
>musicianship just for the sake of musicianship (which I agreed
>with btw) But the point being it's a little hypocritical to me
>that we start calling out someones musicianship now as a
>reason not to like a record. I know that isn't exactly what
>you're saying but that's what you said right out the gate. I
>think that's what set me off a little.

Okay. I... *guess* I can see that.

But I know you recognize that not liking musicianship for musicianship's sake is not the same thing as not appreciating or desiring musicianship at all.

I'm fine with whatever tools a musician chooses to use as long as the end product is dope to me. When I talk about "musicianship" it's really less about whether or not Dam is actually manually playing a bunch of live instruments... It's more about HOW he uses what he has.

Scorp focused that I am probably talking more about songwriting, but it's not just that... it's dynamics. It's the arrangement of various musical voices that's not really coming together for me.

>But again don't ever think I want and expect everyone to think
>and feel like I do. In the end what others think don't have
>any impact on what I enjoy.

No doubt. I'm not particularly feeling this, but I am not dissing it either or questioning the taste of people who do like it. It's just not for me.

But I am still looking forward to hearing other tracks.

Because as I said I'm fine with people liking what they like.

But I will admit I ride hard for Dam. I just really like the way the cat carries himself and respect what he's trying to do. I'm very aware of his shortcomings but I think we tend to go in harder on someone trying to come at things a little differently. Just because we don't understand where they are going or feel what they're feeling doesn't mean there is anything wrong with the shit the are putting out. If he was some pandering artist chasing radio play and looking for mass approval it might be different.... but dude is taking music that hasn't been all that hot or popular and reviving it with a modern twist. Again I don't expect everyone to dig it but I do feel the need to defend him when I feel he's unfairly criticized.
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So I don't like him.

But that has nothing to do with my evaluation of his music, though.

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I just remember someone posting the interview here and me coming away with a sort of negative feeling.

I think it was some thing where he was gushing about how great 80s black music was, but he took special care to note that he doesn't respect Michael Jackson because he was "just an entertainer chasing hits" or something like that.

It's nothing you don't hear in any number of Prince vs. MJ arguments, but it still annoyed me and I haven't thought about Dam the same way since.

I can admit to being that petty.

>I think it was some thing where he was gushing about how great
>80s black music was, but he took special care to note that he
>doesn't respect Michael Jackson because he was "just an
>entertainer chasing hits" or something like that.

At least not the way you just represented it. That doesn't sound like the way Dam talks at all.

*edit*
A google search of "Dam-Funk Michael Jackson" returns nothing but references to Dam's 80s influences. I see nothing like what you said above. I'm sure you read what you read but I have a feeling the context isn't right.
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http://www.beatnikonline.net/features/dam-funk

And note that the article refers to him as "the ambassador of boogie funk"... So you can't blame someone like me attempting to view his work through that lens.

"I don’t really understand why people compare the two. He was so much more then Michael. Michael, rest in peace, was more off an entertainer who chased the pop hit. Prince was more of a musician and innovator in the true sense if the word."

Where does he say he doesn't respect MJ? He is saying they came at shit from different places.... which is true. I've always said it's dumb to compare them. There's nothing here I see as disrespectful or inaccurate.
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I think it wasn't even on this site that I read it, but rather at the Org.

(Don't ask what I was doing there... I think I was actually searching for info on Dam and thank link showed up. And after reading through the responses to it that you can expect to get over there, I came away from it feeling quite negative.)

That said: I think it IS rather reductive and dismissive to sum up MJ as "an entertainer who chased the pop hit."

Not that MJ was NOT very interested in hits, like most professional recording artists... and not that MJ was NOT an entertainer (Prince is, too).

But in these Prince vs. MJ debates, when people evoke the term "entertainer"... we both know that it's code for a very specific--and inaccurate--notion about MJ that they are trying to express.

Other than that, I don't care whether he likes MJ or not... we've all got the right to our own preferences.

meaning the shit he's saying is pretty much how we felt out here on the west coast around that time. Prince was placed right in there with the electro-funk shit like Egyptian Lover, Tyrone Brunson, LA Dream Team, etc at the parties we went to. Something like Billie Jean would be thrown on more for the girls to dance to... that doesn't mean we didn't like MJ but he wasn't making that down and dirty type shit we were really into back then. We were raised on George, Bootsy, Rick, Ohio Players type shit and the stuff Prince was doing in the early 80s was an advancement of that to us. So I totally get what he's saying when he talks about that... you don't have to feel that way but he is reppin a pervasive mindset among young men on the west coast at that time. It's sort of related to the "sings for the bitches vs sings for the niggas" type discussions we had a few years back. Yeah females loved Prince too but he was very much a masculine act in a musical sense... yeah I know it sounds funny to call P masculine under any conditions but musically he was much more "manly" than MJ.

You'd have issues with a lot of people I grew up with out here because that's just how most of us felt.
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I'll never forget the waves of disrespectful commentary from Prince fans when MJ died, so when people say certain things in this vein I automatically mentally file them as one of "those people."

I didn't like some of the comments either after MJ's passing

But what Dam is doing here is just honestly representing a point of view a lot of us had/have
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>this is actually one of the things that bothers me most about
>what we do on this board sometimes. we take something with a
>style that doesn't move us and go beyond just saying we don't
>feel it.... we start inventing various reason why it's "not
>good" to justify our stance.
>

If everyone said "I just don't feel it" as opposed to explaining *why* they don't feel it, there's not much point in discussing anything in these types of discussions. The problem is when people hold their viewpoint as some objective truth and use it to dismiss the viewpoint of others who may not share the same preferences.

and a lot of times I don't feel it's even an honest discussion (not talking about AFKAP in this case)

for the most part people post with agendas and then look for excuses to justify those agendas

there isn't one person here that enjoys every musical genre equally... to me it's important that we stay truthful about what it is we want and don't want out of our music.
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does this mean you don't wanna hear why i think this song is pretty terrible?

>does this mean you don't wanna hear why i think this song is
>pretty terrible?

The lesson has sapped all the joy out of me I can spare today

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have you heard it?

http://innatesounds.bandcamp.com/album/tomorrows-not-promised-ep

I dig it

The Saadiq stuff I heard so far hasn't moved me

But really right now I need to pause

Be back tomorrow

*edit*

Oh they have a song together? I haven't heard it. Let me check and get back to you.

Peace
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>Oh they have a song together? I haven't heard it. Let me check
>and get back to you.
>
>Peace

it's an EP.

I heard the song and was like where is Raphy on this? lol

I had no idea there were two Saadiqs
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________
Big PEMFin H & z's
█▆▇▅▇█▇▆▄▁▃

RIPL - http://www.rhythm-incursions.com/category/podcast/presented-by-primus-luta/
Read me write - http://themoshi.tumblr.com/

silk.later Reunion radio with Old P. & Silk http://reunionradio.blogspot.com/

"i'm talking about *Balls Deep*....In Love (c)Cleveland Jr.

He was cultivating a fine nigga farm (c)Goldmind.

I like this "future funk" shit.
It's like cats finally found out how to get "that sound" out of modern kit.

we are now hitting the point we've been wiaiting for. and as more producers turn to 'playing' over producing... just watch.
________
Big PEMFin H & z's
█▆▇▅▇█▇▆▄▁▃

RIPL - http://www.rhythm-incursions.com/category/podcast/presented-by-primus-luta/
Read me write - http://themoshi.tumblr.com/

But you're right in that it's going to become more prevalent
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i know hes all about the 80s, but he does seem to be stuck in one lane. i should prob investigate his album more but once i got over my excited nostalgia it all seemed a bit one note. damn funke is a great musician, he has no momentum in terms of songwriting.

http://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=5&topic_id=2505915&mesg_id=2505915&listing_type=search
________
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thanks
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Dam's collaborative efforts move me more than some of his solo stuff....the stuff with Steve....heard some snips of stuff he did with Jody Whatley....and his stuff he's done with the Hawthorne Headhunters...


he's definitely doing it on the production side right now..

I'd have gone back and done an in depth reevaluation of the track. For the most part we are looking for the same thing out of a project like this.
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I just now could listen to it...
the vocals seem like they're mixed off track (ahead of the beat if you get what I'm saying).

But it's a great thing to hear Steve doing this kind of music...

Of course it sounds like what Mega Man should be cappin' Metools to in 2011, but IDGAF, 3 seconds into this shit, I was all the way in.

I mean it's exactly what I envisioned a Dam-Funk Steve Arrington collab would sound like... Steve's vocals on this are as floaty as the groove.
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>
>the vocals seem like they're mixed off track (ahead of the
>beat if you get what I'm saying).
>
>

that really bothers me. REALLY. it makes it sound like a demo, imo.

but it's not. :/

thanks.... i guess lol
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Dam's that dude. he personally recommended a rareish Steve Washington album to me n i ended up using "Please Don't Go" as the final song in my 80s fonk mix. i luv pretty much anythin the dude makes lol.

honestly? the only minus is Steve's voice. i'm listening to this other track on YouTube called "The Way I Feel About You" >>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChHqmFRqZyc and he sounds fuckin TERRIBLE lol. music is tight as usual, but man, Steve. doesn't sound as good as he used to.

V.

But yeah this track you posted he's sounding a little like he did on some of the tracks from his last album.... as Silky said to me once last year "He sounds full" lol

Can't say that I'm feeling this track right here though
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His singing aside

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqlbhY-faUk&tracker=False
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this is co-produced by JT Donaldson & Tim K

As much as I've enjoyed Dam's work up to this point I'm happy to see he's expanding his sound and moving in different (even if just slightly) different directions.
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TF? JT was just over my house 2 days ago lol. I didn't know he actually worked with Dame. Nice.

>this is co-produced by JT Donaldson & Tim K
>

I know I sound silly throwing Jody's name out there when she did one of the first rap/r&b collaborations but like others have said, he is less boogie and more G Funk.

Now I would like to hear DJ Quik working with Arrington, Watley, or any mid to late 80s artist trying to make a comeback.