Filed under: Miscellaneous
So what the hell has happened to FDB in 2009? Well, as I’ve commented on several times one of the major changes in my life this year has been the purchase of my first property. This has been stressful and time-consuming but worth it given I’m now on that infamous ladder. Solicitors + estate agents + insurance companies = no time for blogging.
More significantly, I’m also on the brink of leaving the UK. Back in January I went through a relatively grueling interview process for a job at the United Nations International School in New York City. The beginning of the year was fraught with preparation and worry, as were the following couple of months as I waited for news on whether I had got the job or not. I did. In just over two weeks I will be in New York City on the hunt for apartments and gearing up for the greatest adventure of my life. Needless to say this is hugely exciting but incredibly daunting particularly given that I leave behind my girlfriend (only temporarily), family, and a network of friends who I have had in Bristol for nearly a decade. Evidently FDB, blogging, and the internet in more general terms have been way down my priority list for some time now.
So what lies ahead for this modest little corner of the internets? To be honest, I’m not sure. Imagining myself in New York City is still a pretty abstract concept in itself, so the thought of sitting down on a Tuesday night and rattling off something about a drum break is bizarre to say the least. It may be the case that living in the mecca of all things hip and hop means I have an insatiable desire to share music and musings with you; it may also be the case that the city and life is so absorbing that I don’t. Right now, I just can’t tell.
I want to thank everyone who has regularly (or irregularly for that matter) visited this spot over the last few years and want to give a particular shout out to my internet brethren without whom running this blog would not have been the life enriching experience that it has been. You know who you are and we’ll stay in touch. If you have voyeuristic desires to see how my personal life in the US progresses you can do so at Five Borough Brits, a blog I’ve set up to keep track of my movements in the greatest city in the world.
But let’s mark this moment with some music, shall we? Here’s some recent stuff I’ve enjoyed and recommend you check.
Chris Read presents The Legacy: World’s Greatest Jackson Tribute Mix
Read the bumpf and download the mix here
This does what it says on the tin. And then some. If you’re not already familiar with Chris’s sensational mixes then why not start here: The Legacy is technically and musically masterful and my hands down favourite piece of post-Jacko tribute material currently available. You done did it again Chris.
5 O’Clock Shadowboxers – The Slow Twilight
If you’re at all in tune with the internet hip hop blog scene then you can’t have failed to notice this release from my boys Zilla and Douglas. Dudes even picked up a review in HHC digital this month. The Slow Twilight is a brilliantly put together little package that brings something genuinely original to the table and although not all of it is to my taste this is as refreshing and innovative as hip hop gets in 2009. Kudos fellas.
Prafit – ‘New York Swing’
Third installment from this duo hailing from Long Island and a truly bangin’ track that’s already featured on Hot 97 care of Peter Rosenberg. It’s so rare that something new gives me that old hip hop ‘buzz’ without feeling tired but ‘New York Swing’ does so with aplomb. Rolling keys, big drums… nothing to complain about here so get familiar.
I’m outta here for now. Thanks again.
FROM DA BRICKS 