Operation: Zombie Nation is the second LP from North London Hip Hop group DefDFires; a conceptual album set in London 2012, making devastating observations about a society on the brink of collapse.  Key Skills’ flawless production fuses elements of Grime, Dubstep, Hip Hop, Drum & Bass and Classical to create the perfect assault course for DefDFires to unleash their most controversial, forward-thinking accomplishment to date.

DefDFires’ commentary portrays the views of an outspoken, confused and frustrated generation; expressing the the insanity of modern life, whilst narrating a complete breakdown of order in the city and how its populous deal with the apocalyptic anarchy that follows. More than a socio-political thesis it is a story told through the perspective of an everyday citizen; drawing from a pallet of sci-fi and zombie references to make a picture that is witty and tongue in cheek, but also profoundly personal and brutally honest.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGr9HYaR0Sw

Under its surface of mass culture mockery and electronic filth, the words and sentiment touch on far deeper subjects; examining the effects of living in a control based system alongside man’s obsession with forecasting his downfall. Part babbling conspiracy theorist, part ancient wisdom and universal truth ‘Operation: Zombie Nation’ is both the soundtrack to armageddon and a manifesto for what can come after.

“Some welcome imagination.  Check DefDFires if cinematic sounds and huge production values tickle your fancy.” – Hip Hop Connection

“Bringing some refreshing drama and lyrical content to the game” – UKHH.com

Find out more:
http://defdfires.co.uk
http://www.o-zn.com

In his own words…

A general social misfit and drop out. Jed Rabid is a self taught music producer hailing from the bottom tip of South Africa. His daily mantra is intoxication and music producing. A self proclaimed psychonaut, Jed Rabid’s music is an experimentation and exploration of the grey area of Dubstep, mixing different beats and bass to create something unique. Most of the sounds you will hear are dark and deep, though at times the music is very layered and dense. This is emotional bending, melodic mending, music for the thinker and genius alike.

Download your free tracks and listen to more

http://www.facebook.com/jedrabid

Poor Vinyl!!

A blend of border pushing beats and fun-yet-meaningful lyrics runs through the album like a current.  Whether it’s “Break up Song” featuring Gift of Gab or the provocative “After the Lights On” featuring The Grouch, each track highlights the ever-expanding abilities of Lostribe as more mature, seasoned artists.

Lostribe’s sound has cultivated greater sophistication due to the substantial personal and professional growth each has experienced since their last effort, and the evidence is inherent throughout Sophie.  A prime example is “Live Like a Rebel,” a track that pays homage to following your dreams while incorporating a dubstep/grime influence with what might normally be considered a simplified Hip- Hop beat.

The group’s talent was recognised in 2008 when JustLuv and Agustus ThElefant were asked to score the Namco Bandai video game “Afro Samurai,” featuring Samuel L. Jackson and RZA. Ten tracks were featured on the game, with Agustus rapping on six and JustLuv co-producing eight.  “Afro Samurai” sold 420,000 copies across all gaming platforms.

1.    Know the Name
2.    Come Down (feat. Casual)
3.    No Other Word (feat. Talib Kweli / Maryann Hunter / N8 the Gr8)
4.    Live Like A Rebel
5.    Over Before You Know It (feat. Mayhem Xclusive / MLB)
6.    Gettin Back (feat. Deja Solis)
7.    Breakup Song (feat. Gift of Gab)
8.    Interlude
9.    Futuristic Fly (feat. The Cuf)
10.  Boombox
11.  After the Lights On (feat. The Grouch)
12.  Find Some Meaning In Your Life
13.  Outro

Their philosophy is easy “People have been sharing mix tapes forever, and the reason they do it is because they love the music and want to turn their friends on to it…..so if you’re a dj, artist, label, sound system, whatever – get in contact!”

The quality of mixes on Subnav.com is very high and you can clearly see the musical education behind the creation of the mixes.

Check out Subnav.com

These masterclasses will be headed up by Jimi Crayon, Mr K, Stika, Jamie Brown, Jiggery Pokery and Hit + Run and promise to be as fun as they are insightful.

Jimi Crayon says:
“We want to give people a chance to have a go at something they might not have tried before and see if we can get them hooked on a new skill”

There will be music, a freestyle art room for anyone to turn up and draw and of course some free chicken.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWMfd3elfMY

Trying something new is what Nando’s xPERimental Sketch is all about! After the massive success of the Skate Jam design-a-deck comp last year, we realised there are a loads of budding artists out there looking to get their first taste of live art – which is exactly why we’ve created Sketch. This event will bring together top street artists from the UK and South Africa to help young people learn all about street art and improve their artistic skills.

With help from our friends at street art collective Monorex we’ll be hosting a day of Sketch sessions and workshops so you can get involved in creating your very own masterpiece. There will be a host of talented artists to watch and learn from, including South African based artists Rasty Knayles & Kutzanai Chiruai and of course, Nando’s will be there serving up enough PERi-PERi to fuel your creativity throughout the day.

The Nando’s xPERimental Sketch event will be happening on the 22nd May 2011 between 9:30am-6:00pm at the Bargehouse, Oxo Tower Wharf, London, SE1.

Glade Stage Lineup:
Trentemøller – Full Live Band
Drumcode feat Adam Beyer, Joseph Capriati, Slam, Paul Rich (Live)
Global Communication (DJ)
Andrew Weatherall
Photek (live)
Skrillex
Elite Force
Dreadzone (live)
Krafty Kuts
The Losers (live)
London Elektricty
Dirtyphonics (live)
Hybrid (live)
Engine Earz Experiment (live)
Dub FX & The Flower Fairy (live)
Dirty Vegas (live)
Dub Pistols (live)
Ben & Lex (live)

—-

Origin Stage Lineup:

LIVE ACTS

Ajja
Allaby
Antix
Atmos
Atomic Drop
Broken Toy
Dickster
Electrypnose
Førm
Headroom
Logica
M-Theory
Man With No Name
OTT
Prometheus
Quantize
Sonic Species
The Commercial Hippies
Tristan

DJs

Edoardo
Emok
Hamish
Ipcress
Liquid Ross
Lucas
Regan
Shane Gobi

—-

Overkill Stage Lineup:

LIVE ACTS

Bad Mice
Eprom
Drumcorps
Young Montana
Subhead
Koreless
Africa
Broken
Note
Loops
Haunt
Current Value
Spongebob
Hi Freqs
Gothtrad
Hitech
Squarewave
Parasite
Machine Drum
Kanji Kinetic
Rrritalin
Droid
Squire Of Gothos
Baconhead
Pirate
Soundsystem
Dankle
Moova
Lone

DJs

Ed Rush
Luke Vibert
Shitmat
Jacky Murda
Mustard VS Gunn
Cloud Kid Boy
Current Value
DJ Summer Donna
Das Boot
Anxst
Becket Vs Barker
Voltek
Noisyboy
Threnody
Bashout Allstars
Racknruin
Warrior One
Warlock
Revolva (Buf b2b Ghettozoid)
Silverman
Punksi
MC Serocee

—-

InSpiral Stage Lineup:

LIVE ACTS

Gaudi
International Observer
Echaskech
Hypnophonica
Slackbaba
Sysephe
Mbuki Mvuki
Dan Arborise
Metaphra
Young American Primitive

DJs

Mixmaster Morris
Dick Trevor
Ans
George Barker
Tripswitch
Antonio Testa
Fiord
Alex R
Andy Rushton
Couscous
Irie
Katty Grooves
Ishq
Little Thoughts
Manasseh
Alok
Aliji
Naked Nick
Moon
Nova
Ekanta
Justin Chaos
Noodreem
Lewah

PERFORMANCES

Flurotrash

—-

The BETA Stage Lineup:

LIVE & DJs:

Untold
Space Dimension Controller
Om Unit
Mosca
Midland
Mark E
Hyetal
Blawan
Ben UFO & Pangaea
Maxxi
Soundsystem
Royalty
Sketchy
John Monkman
Futureboogie
Elphino
Just Jack DJs
El Diablos Social Club
Count
Chocula
Bonar Bradburry
Bobby Gandalf
Bicep
Another Amit
Alembic

—-

NANOSYSTEM CLUB TENTS

Bassment Stage Lineup:

Hosted By Beats & Bobs, Rinseout

Atomic Hooligan
Disco Of Doom
TQ Scoundrel
Chinna
Stanza
Fred V B2B Grafix
MR Nice
Maxxi P
Tuskan
Spinna
Richmond
Ben & Lex
Lewah
Subindex
Sharkman
Don Johnston
DJ Pharma.

—-

The Fuse Stage Lineup:

Hosted By Psy-Trance Legends Liquid, Illuminaughty, Planet Shroom, Wildthings, Planet Zogg And Toadstool

Earthling
Tron
OOOD
EVP
Beardyweardy
Greg Zogg
Chameleon
Hedflux
Monk3ylogic
Insomniscene
Johnny M
Mazieg
Nosf
Recreation
Sabretooth
Morph Vs Lurk
Sean Shift
Boris
Ben Edge
Toad
Mikey

—-

Gouranga Stage Lineup:

Tim Sheridan (Veryverywongindeed)
Miguel Campbell
Malcolm Murra
Nisekey
Mam
Alexander Kaas
Isaac Ferry

—-

ETA Stage Lineup:

Lazersonic
Hugo Heathcote
Adrian Forster
Jimmy V
Cedric Maison
Eric Volta
Thirdculture
Philip Tomlin
Matt Field
Josh Silver
Silvio Pacini

Now he’s about to release his debut LP, Versionen on limited 12″ vinyl and digital download this summer on Tangled Talk Records. The album consists of eight remixes from an eclectic range of artists including Rolo Tomassi, Eleven Tigers, Thunderskank, Kerouac and more.

We’ve checked the tunes out and they really do stand out, some great deep tracks on this LP.

http://www.tangledtalk.com/promo/assets/tracks/TTR014-Gutter.mp3

Having already performed on countless recognised urban stages including NOTTING HILL CARNIVAL and the circuit in AIYA NAPA, Twissman came to prominence in March 2010 when his self-funded video to track ‘THE WAY SHE MOVES’ achieved the coveted Number 1 spot on MTV Base and Flava charts, both of which are compiled by public vote.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlX1OZ3loAQ

A live session with DJ CAMEO at BBC 1Xtra followed where Twissman was given the chance to show everybody that he had the talent to freestyle with the very best. He didn’t disappoint and naturally record companies came calling so it was no surprise when in June 2010, Twissman signed a deal with independent label ZY Records.

Immediately, he was sent into the studio to work on his stunning debut album ‘THIS IS TWISSMAN’, which features collaborations with SWAY and G-FRSH and is produced by the acclaimed and award-winning LAURENCE ‘Woo’ ALLEN (10 years DEATH ROW USA / SUGE KNIGHT / DESTINY’S CHILD). The album, set to drop in 2011, is full of hooky urban pop yet still manages to maintain an edge with integrity that only Twissman could bring given his background in the UK Grime scene.

This is all summed up perfectly in the first single taken from the album. With its electronic synths, a contagious vocal from Ginny B and Twissman’s unmistakable rapping skills, ‘SUMO’ and its stylish video to go with it, is hotly tipped to take radio and television by the horns!