With his fondness for classic breakbeats, dusty vinyl, The Wire, nerding out on hip-hop, and hate, DJ Twohands (Daniel Lambert) journeys from Tainan to Taipei this weekend for a High Heels & Hi-Tops show at Revolver.
Twohands is the definition of a true school hip-hop DJ. “When I was 10 or 11, I used to breakdance at my local metro station,” he said. “Back then it was all about electro mixes like Planet Rock by Afrika Bambaataa and Breakers’ Revenge by Arthur Baker.”
While he now begrudgingly uses Serato, the system that lets deejays play their MP3s from their computers, Twohands has always been an avid record collector. As this show will be his last for a while because he will be having surgery next week followed by six months of rehabilitation, he’s got a surprise up his sleeve.
Photo: Steven Vigar
“I am thinking of rocking the wax and leaving the Serato at home,” Twohands said.
Over the past year, Twohands took his devotion to The Wire, a show about the hardscrabble way of life of drug dealers, thugs, politicians, and cops in Baltimore, Maryland, to a whole new level by making seven mixes, each dedicated to a different character.
“The Wire is the best TV show I’ve seen,” he said. “I like to try to suit the mix to the character, but I usually just drop the tunes I am feeling the most at the time.”
Photo Courtesy of Organik
All of Twohands’ mixes, as well as other hip-hop geekery like crossword puzzles dedicated to dead MCs, can be found at Rapnerds (rapnerds.blogspot.com), a blog Twohands runs with fellow rap nerd Agnew.
On the blog and in real life, Twohands is the uncle that always thinks music from 20 to 30 years ago was much better than anything put out now. He despises Drake, doesn’t want to listen to Kanye West, and especially can’t stand all the gimmicky songs that dominate today’s hip-hop clubs.
“I hate on lots of stuff that really deserve it,” Twohands said. “There is no love without hate.”
Twohands recently made a trip to see his family in England. “I went to a great party with funk and old school hip-hop and people were getting down all night. There was no wack commercial hip-hop,” he said. “We do this in Tainan already. I want to do it in Taipei.”
■ High Heels and Hi-Tops tomorrow at Revolver (formerly known as the Source), 1-2, Roosevelt Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路一段1-2號). On the Net: www.revolvertaipei.com. Admission is NT$350, which includes a drink and a shot. (See story above)
Smoke Machine had a very successful 2010 by bringing over acts such as the Italoboyz and @llen and focusing on the sound and feeling of each of its events. This party crew celebrates the first anniversary of its series of parties titled Organik at Pipe tomorrow with Singapore-based producer, Xhin. This “sound designer,” who enjoys playing the piano and making techno beats, will not be using turntables, CDJs, or a laptop. Instead, he will be playing his set on two iPads, which is probably a first for Taiwan.
■ Smoke Machine presents Organik’s first anniversary party with Xhin tomorrow at Pipe, 1 Siyuan St, Taipei City (台北市思源街1號), tel: (02) 2364-8198. On the Net: www.pipemusic.com.tw. Admission is NT$600 at the door.
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