mystkmixtape

[mystkmixtape]

[mystkmixtape]

One of Toronto’s longest standing deejays, diggers, selectors of the finest rare-groove on the planet is none other than A Man Called Warwick (AMCW). Movement crew was (and still is in my mind) totally prolific, and stands out as a resonant force that really puts Toronto on the map in terms of providing some of the finest purveyors in top notch music. Aki, Nav, John Kong, Jason Palma and this here brother Warwick really shined as a team in the early 2000′s. Most moved on to do their own things that are still very relevant to this day. You can still find AMCW throwing down at the legendary Turning Point parties..... I truly hope we get to see more of them in the not so distant future. But for now, here is yet another awesome tasty cassette shared by brother Rednote and brought back to life. It may be the only thing you need to listen to today (other than your parents or partner telling you to turn it down because you want to share it with the whole damn neighbourhood) Cheers to the pillars of Toronto’s deeply dug record and rare groove aficionados. Hats off to you all for showing us the depths of musical realms from all over the globe. 

[mystkmixtape]

Steve Ruffneck’s style would continue to morph into what we now refer to as ‘classic or old school Ragga Jungle. This cassette hit it hard....nail straight pon da head. I grew up loving reggae as a kid. One of my best friend’s parents were of Jamaican descent and they liked good music... there was always slick tunes coming from any given room in the house....we lived on the same street. It was a home away from home for me. We met Shawn’s family when I was only five after moving to Ontario from Calgary. He was a great friend to grow up with and was a year and a half older or so, so he was kind of like a big brother to me. I was so fortunate to grow up in an ethnically diverse neighbourhood. There were good and bad things that came out of the Brampton burbs and I’ve grown to cherish them all alike. In having friends whose parents (and sometimes my friends themselves) coming from many parts of the globe, I was exposed to so many beautiful things... perspectives, music, food, culture. We used to play soccer in Shawn’s basement, or crack the table playing dominoes, and he had a great home stereo down there with floor speakers that delivered some serious bass. Some of those basslines just blew my mind. I was in love with the sound; the soul of reggae; how it was punchy....right to the core of your body, yet rolled with smooth thickness.... and vocals that would straight up give you the chills. I definitely credit Shawn for exposing me to reggae music and If it wasn’t for spending so much time hanging out with with him and his family all the time (particularly his Father, uncle Silly, and cousins who were very into music), I don’t think I would have ever been exposed to a lot of artists and styles. It was this doorway that deepened my curiosity and desire within me to further explore music and analyze sounds and the cultures that were so closely intertwined..... including the rap music that was emerging in the 80′s. Ragga Jungle just naturally resonated with me and this style just gave it a new freshness and energy that brought my childhood experiences and memories to another level. Now, as for the cassette itself, I think it might have been a Word Up exclusive. I remember it saying volume 8 on the original cassette that Ken dubbed, hence the ‘8′ i put on the actual cassette. This mix is found nowhere on the Toronto Rave Mixtape archive and does not coincide with ‘ruffneck volume 8 1995′ on the site....so its my best guess. Regardless, this tape got many hours of continuous play, and many a lighter were flashed over the years in salute.

[mystkmixtape]

Every insatiable rush inevitably gives birth to a cool-down. Chillout rooms at parties were times to take a break, connect with people, sign their books, and re-up your vitamins. When the party was over and everyone had to leave, DJ Czech took us home to a reasonable level. This here one is yet another magical cassette coming from the vaults of Rednote Selector. I’m willing to bet that every raver in Toronto, or maybe even on the planet, had on numerous, if not countless, DJ Czech trip-hop mellow times. As a peak time DJ, his breaks were monstrous, and during the relaxation times he proved that he was also a master at bringing you to a good place; one of peace, reflection and recovery. I was, and still am, and will always be a fan of chunky, funky hip hop beats, and his delivery of the tripped out variety was always an excursion I was ready to take....over and over again.

[mystkmixtape]

Another golden classic from the vaults of the Rednote Selector:

“The guy who I went to my first rave with...him and Jamie McKeown,  I was so excited to be bringing those records home to play. Old skating buddies of mine, still around today.  23 Hops were my first raves and Fil brought me to them. We would often just throw down in a bedroom at his house...all records from PlayDe.

He was part of the Heartlake massive which was huge in the early rave scene. Sniper, Mystical, Ruff Rider etc.. Fil just never really took it that seriously... Original grassroots skate team member.  Dude always had the freshest and newest stuff and music was no exception. He liked his bass to pop as high as his Ollie's and when the rave scene landed, he was first to start sharing the music with me. We used to pump this tape from his pearl painted volkswagon Jetta. “

[mystkmixtape]

Nev (Jungle PHD) continued to prove to me that there was no limit when it came to journeying. The jungle techno sound was getting darker and more mysterious. This journey was indeed a departure from all realities and realms known to me. It was also a grand escape from the monotony of the suffocating suburban agenda. I still remember that afternoon when I bought this cassette from X-STATIC. It was a beautiful day spent with one of my best mates, Dave. He and I were on the journey together....true jungle brothers. He was the lucky one that managed to score enough cash to buy turntables and a mixer... we would spend hours listening to music together and perfecting our mixing skills in his parent’s basement with whatever records he would score (mainly from Traxx records Shoppers World) he had two technics turntables. One was a model 1400 that had no pitch control, and the other was a 1200 model with dial control..... but back to the matter at hand.... Hyped with excitement that sunny day, we headed downtown T.O.; hitching a ride with his mom. From the short listen I had, I knew the rest of this cassette was going to be a total head rush. I’ve kept it in immaculate condition over the years but decided to give it some remastering touches for clarity’s sake. I still remember that night when we got back to Brampton, we headed over to a mutual friends house that night for a small gathering. I was the tape deck high-jacking master in my youth, and I was always eager to share these underground findings with all of my friends. It was interesting to note how some would be totally enthralled; while others would just continue on through the storm as if a hurricane of sound was in the room; barely taking any notice whatsoever. I mean wow!....I generally couldn't believe what I was hearing!  With a little help from Mary Jane, I was unprepared for the mind-melt that would ensue from diving deep into this. Full on couch mode...it was as if the couch had turned into massive purple dunes...I was gliding along, through the sky, on these crazy ass dunes, then submerging.... lost deep in the darkest jungle I could had ever imagined, then re-emerging again up into the dark starry night sky. I think I played it twice that night....I barely moved an inch, but in my mind I was on the longest journey through time and space I had ever been on.  

[mystkmixtape]

I’ve been granted the pleasure to provide a window of Toronto’s musical history courtesy of Rednote Selector; one of Toronto’s most humble unsung heroes, slick selector, and just down right solid cat. This is the first one I’m putting up from his collection as it coincides with the timeline; and this tape sure took a beating and is on it’s last leg so I’m happy its getting a rip before it’s too late.... One Love and big thank you to the mighty Rednote. Here are a few words he had to say about Toronto’s Rave Lord .... DR.NO :

“ Many good dj’s in my travels but none as Notorious as the legendary original Toronto toaster and D.J. Extraordinaire DR.NO. I remember going to parties where he played not knowing who he was. I finally saw him in Brampton of all places at the roller palace. Waiting in line to get inside, some dude in a fancy car full of women hoped out and was almost like floating alongside the lineup being ushered into the dance with a hush going over the crowd, and people saying do you know thats’s Dr.No?, dude was dressed in black shiny leather with a huge Hat and matching combat boots with people just hanging off him...the sound of his bass could be heard through the wall. I finally put the voice to the music to the man and his reputation to his sound and energy. It finally all made sense. This tape has been passed around a few times and made its way back to me somehow. The blends, chops, intro’s, track selection were simply inspirational and are ridiculously creative when you think many of these records had just come out. People still talking about these tracks and or have spent a lifetime trying to track them down, never to recreate the magic it was hearing his approach to them. Always imitated, never duplicated, Straight legend.”

[mystkmixtape]

The hardcore rush continued..... This delivery was a super long journey that includes many rave classics and anthems. The mixes were tight but I found a lot of the cassette to lack lustre when it came to blending of songs. Regardless, this tape stands out as a sublime cut of the hardcore sound that UK was delivering to us from overseas. I can’t say that I ever got to hear Tommy UK live as a dj, but this tape had heavy rotation when i got a hold of a copy from the notorious X-STATIC shop at 162 John St. I still remember climbing up stairs with graffiti ladened walls for the very first time and entering the official rave headquarters of Alan Stephenson and Ben Ferguson. One of my best friend’s Mother worked downtown so we would often hitch a lift and hang out downtown for the day, hit up the Eaton Centre and X-Static for our essentials. Even though many raves were all ages events, we didn’t actually live downtown, so its not like at the age of 13 we could just get permission form our parents to hop on a bus to get to the party bus at Nathan Philips Square to then get to the all-night parties...and it’s not like our our parents would drive us to one.... no way in hell; and we didn't even really have real jobs yet; apart from delivering newspapers, so it really wasn't even feasible. As such, we remained on the peripheral sidelines of a scene we adored; totally embedded in the music, but never truly immersed in what was going on at that time. As a teenager growing up in the burbs, where everything was cookie cutter same, Rave culture was cool and gave us a heart-beat and an identity outside of the norm. Peace, Love, Unity, and Respect was the embedded mantra and everyone seemed to care about each other by investing their energy into the experience. It was a grand departure from most people just trying to look and be cool by being hard and edgy with callous disregard. Hardcore gave being hardcore a totally new meaning. It was hardcore niceness!, with an abundance of energy and care for your friends and like-minded community of ravers who were in it with you! and that was f’n cool. Curiosity was our closest friend and the soundtracks that she delivered to us along the way fuelled our bourgeoning sprits. Puberty was great.

[mystkmixtape]

Rolling down the line.... and appearing on the same physical cassette as the previous Jumpin’ Jack Frost cassette in my last post/upload, Jungle PHD drops in like a camouflaged bird deep in the jungle. I had some room left over on the Jack Frost so I got what I could of the mix onto there. Eat it up for what its worth as I only managed to dub a bit more than 20 minutes of a cassette many moons ago. Out of all the sounds and styles that were hitting the air and pounding the floors, this sound still rings true to my deepest sensibility. (Neville)Jungle PHD was psychedelic, he was jungle, he was hardcore, he was techno. His mixes were always edgy, aggressive and well calculated. I still get such a rush when I hear his mixes. A few years ago, it had put me on a bit of a quest in search for more directly from the source, but it came to a halt. I had one cassette that fell victim to either being lost or stolen before I could ever have the chance to digitize it. Maybe it will come up during this journey of digitization and regurgitation. But who knows? The sound and style he brought to the forefront in the 90′s hit everything I loved; Dub reggae, techno, hip hop, r n’b and fuelled with the energy of hardcore. Toronto has many legends, but also many underrated unsung heroes. Musically, as a dj, with razor sharp skills the music and delivery and the ability to take you on the most thrilling journey, I personally feel that among my close circle of friends, Jungle PHD likely didnt get the credit he deserved in and amongst the circuit of pioneering jockeys in Toronto even though he and his brother ran Bees Wax Records for a time on Queen West.  Through my discourse in unearthing the past, it came to light that the timing wasn’t right when I had hoped to reach out to him for a retrospective interview. It just never happened. At this time, all that that this amounted to  in my life is the impact this dj made; which is probably the most profound among any others during the foundational period of underground exploration for me in 1992. Nev, If you’re out there and reading this right now I’d like to thank you from the bottom of my heart and send a huge big up for dousing me with inspiration. I rarely got to hear you play, and in the early 1990′s i was still a young stick.....but it was this sound that lifted me to another dimension of possibilities and you served it on a plate to me, so thank you. I hope you all enjoy this short snippet as much as I do to this day. There is nothing quite like it and nowhere online have I been able to come across this mix, or the elusive cassette that got lost somewhere in the jungle. I can only hope that one day, a treasure trove of sound might emerge courtesy of the Doctor. peace and power.

[mystkmixtape]

Let’s take a step back for a second or two. In 1992/1993 i was super young and still riding the wake left from the generation of friend’s siblings that were a few years older than I was. I was fascinated with a culture that was still too young to really be truly a part of. It was frustrating. I would find the music and dub the cassette so I could relish in being at a party dancing my ass off without actually really being there. The fact that these parties were recored allowed people to re-live the moment (if you could remember it in the first place) I had to learn how to dance to this music without any teachers. There was no style guide; just pure unexplored energetic movement. You could close your eyes and instantly be at the party (minus a TON of bass....but still). Hardcore was still heavy in that techno feel as it was evolving... and quickly did it ever! London was pushing the boundaries of what it meant to dance and experience a true rush. It enlivened the spirit and made you fall in love with the energy of it. Plus it just sounded cool af....or shall I say...kris. Emcees were still all about toasting and had a way to get the crowd hyped without going off on ridiculous lyrical tangents that eventually would often get in the way of just getting down to the dj and the music. Not to discredit the skill that many emcees brought to the floor...it was necessary for them to evolve too; bringing with it their own unique lingo and character to add accent, and of course, to get the crowd’s energy bubbling over the top. But for me, I still have a soft spot for emcees that would allow room for tracks to breathe a bit (or a lot). Getting your body to move with the music was a meditation of sorts. You could get get lost in the music....or find yourself situated in another dimension riding along with it. And emcee’s would largely act as an anchor to keep you present to an extent and that could sometimes get in the way of really going off in exploration. The sound quality of  original recording of this set was even worse than what I’m presenting here. The levels were out of control on the gains going into the mixer that night. Jumpin’ Jack Frost was heavy...and would get even heavier (and darker) over time....like a true heavy weight champion in the arena. His sound and style was always big and bold, and the drum tracks were always at the forefront of his selections. It must have been a wikkid party...wherever it was. I’m still scratching my head about the origin’s of this mix; so if you know anyone that can shed some light on it, please feel free to reach out so I can paint a clearer picture. To date, I haven’t been able to find any more info on it. I’ve searched all the archives and online mixes.....zero...... so get lost in a moment of time and in a dimension that was equally as elusive and unknown to me when I discovered it what I was only around twelve years old.

[mystkmixtape]

Another ten bucks in my pocket and a heart filled with excitement gave birth to round two of my visits to Word Up fashion in Bramalea City Center to visit Ken’s culture cart in in the mall. This wasn’t very long after I bought the Mystical Influence tape. You can note that it was the same batch of JVC dubs and the same time period; as it may have only been a week or two that I let pass by before returning for another cassette. I went straight to the black cassette doc and began my listening and selection process. I had heard part of this cassette during my first encounter with the booth and initially didn’t have much time before the mall closed during my previous excursion. I remembered it being amazing at the time, and there were tracks on it that i just needed to hit my ears again. This was also my first introduction to the absolute finesse and technical skills honed by Chris (Sniper). He would come to deliver a very distinguishable format to his cassettes that became more apparent in future mix deliveries that I’ll get to in future uploads, but for now I’ll just say that his mixing mastery and style was uncanny. One thing of mention here is that this was the first time I caught wind of Ray Keith’s Terrorist track....and if you were a jungle junkie like I was...you know the score! Sniper would become a staple in our Toronto scene; pushing alongside Mystical Influence as they came hand in hand as acts appearing together on pretty much every damn jungle flyer that was ever produced. Pioneers hands down....    

[mystkmixtape]

Visits to the malls were a regular thing as a teen growing up in Brampton. It was a way to go out, hang out in the arcades or at the billiards, flirt, buy the newest sneakers and fresh gear, kill time, sit by the fountains, or eat at the foodcourt.  One day my dad and I were shopping at Bramalea City Center (so flirting wasnt an option this occasion) and on the top deck, i remember being drawn in to what I thought I heard was someone playing jungle aloud on a boombox. There were a few cart vendors on the top deck near one of the escalators. I got pulled in like a magnet. Low and behold....the sickest culture cart of the burbs; seling dope hats, cool shirts, rave tickets, stickers, and a small wall of cassettes. A brother by the name of Ken was peddling hard! I said to myself holy shit!, theres too many tapes here for me to buy, so he let me listen to a bunch of them and this was the very first cassette I ever purchased from Word Up. It was magical. And say what you want about Ken slinging bootlegs, but the fact of the matter is, he was pushing culture and trying to make a living out of it. Even if the deejays didnt get paid directly through their mixtape sale (as these were dubbed by him on premise), the promotional value to get you to go to parties with the that DJ name on the flyer of an event has to go for something. I mean, at the end of the day, even the producers weren’t getting any royalty from the records being played on a packaged and sold mixtape; and its largely still like that to this day. So, yah. I supported Ken and he became my dealer for many years. As for Mystical Influence himself (Patrick), as many of us know, he was yet another pivotal Pioneer in our scene who operated the legendary Toronto division of UK’s Eastern Bloc Records at 224 Adelaide St. West. That outfit served our rave community here in Toronto for many years. His style was just that....Mystical. It was always a heavy journey; as if you were being guided by Mystics through the pyramids of Egypt somewhere deep in the futuristic lands of time. (if anyone can tell me what cassette volume this is, I’d love to update the description)

[mystkmixtape]

Growing up in the burbs was mentally tough. We all wanted a way out of the monotony. Looking outside of the cookie cutter frames of life and boring mundane associations. The answer for some was this new and emerging music. Something we had never heard before. Our sibling’s generation showed us that there were these things called raves, where everyone danced and became ecstatically as one through the hypnotic rhythms and sounds that were largely emanating from the UK. I was introduced to yet another local hero who went by the name Ruffneck (who also happened to have the name Steve). At that age, we were mainly introduced to the underground sound while getting rides to school and around town from our friends older brothers and sisters whom some had installed killer soundsystems in their cars. The intrigue led us to a magical place called X-STATIC. We took any and every opportunity to find our way to 162 John Street. Luckily, one of my best friend’s mothers worked downtown at City Hall, so we would get our fix.....but it was never enough... we were totally hooked on the rush.    

[mystkmixtape]

When I was 15 years old and going into grade 9, it was the beginning of the school year and on a warm evening that September of 1995 one of my best friends and I went to our very first and only highschool dance at Centennial Secondary in Brampton Ontario. We had been into the underground sound of UK and Toronto for a few years already, as his uncle was a club dj from London, and this was our first time experiencing jungle on a decent sized soundsystem (something other than a boombox, home stereo or headphones. To my surprise, a slick brother by the name of Shane Hockett (aka Rednote Seletor), a very good friend of my friend’s older sister, was playing a slick set of amazing ragga jungle and other hardcore gems to a gymnasium full of people who were more into it than I would have ever expected. He instantly became a hometown hero to me and I later managed to acquire a dubbed copy of this cassette form my friend. He told me that this was Shane’s mix. Today I’m uploading it not only to share this story, but also to verify the validity of the source. Even if it’s not his mix, I’m happy to share the origins of the cassette and the associations I have with it and the sounds that were swirling around at that pivotal time of my life. I still find it surreal that this was the kind of music that was being dropped at my highschool that magical evening....of all places. What a time it was to be alive and in the passenger seat of this new sound sweeping the underground in my hometown.  

[mystkmixtape]

the ins and outs of creating  the perfect mixtape 

is a personal and magical journey... 

one that involves, patience, skill, passion, love and dedication

let me break it down for you from this here perspective....