MTV Sound Trippin (Dub Sharma) - ‘Tung Tung’

Made for MTV India as part of the Sound Trippin series this Bhangra Dubstep track is simply the frikkin B.E.S.T!! The program is all about different Indian musical culture’s & states being explored via a ‘found sound’ paradigm.

Gotta give props to my boy Dub Sharma who made the track, and who the FRICTION show has been supporting for the last 3 years…we just seem to pick them!

In my opinion this is infinitely more interesting & might even be better than ANY Bhangra released in the UK over the last few years.

Outlandish - ‘Warrior/Worrier’

The return of Outlandish see’s them embrace their emotional side to such an extent I was left in floods of tears the first time I listened to this.  I’ve been championing them since the beginning of their career, and with this track I feel like they’ve personally paid me back with THE song they were ALWAYS destined to write.  How have they managed to reach into my bone marrow with such force, just by expressing themselves?  This is 21st Century Male Soul Music…

Zameer - ‘Tatti’

Is this a comedy satirical/political track making important points about the state of Bhangra Music in 2012? Or is it, as the artist behind the track triumphantly declares a pile of steaming shit (Tatti) ??? Whatever you may think, I know for a fact that a community, people, or industry than can laugh at themselves are standing prouder & more secure than the ones that cant!  Wait for the closed minds & the proverbial “shit” to start flying…

Harvi - ‘Who Am I’

If you remember the late 1990’s “Asian Underground” days & the dirtier side of those times, you will no doubt have heard of a brilliant band called Charged.  They were the punky young upstarts from the Midlands of the UK who just didn’t give a f*ck!  The self styled ‘Electro Punjabi Dakoo’s’ dealt in feedback, noise, aggressive South Asian samples & the swagger of Gubbar Singh with a Rocket Launcher.  It was watching this band, that introduced me to a very young Nerm from the Shiva Soundsystem who at the time was their dancer.

The main creative force behind the band took a sabbatical of about 12 years (how long!?) and is now back with a vision, a sound, and a look that can only be described as ‘Jubilee Year Psychedelia.’  Watch the video, sing the song & fly the freak flag with pride.