Last Penny Soul Club

The Last Penny Soul Club was a discotheque in Kassel, Germany. During the 1970's and 80's this place seems to have been an oasis where electronic funk, rap and disco were celebrated by locals and American GI's who were stationed in the city at the time. While searching for a track by Knights Of The Turntables I found this video of DJ "Wizard" Mark Thompson which mixes "Moments In Love" by The Art Of Noise with "Techno Beats" by the aforementioned electric boogie group. What comes out is a strange ambience that blends the beauty of both tracks into some alien other dimension. Finding live footage of a night at the Last Penny in 1986 with the Party Force Crew throwing down in a Soul Train manner and freestyle rapping convinced me that this audiovisual material needs to be shared with my fellow music citizens.

A Last Penny Revival Party is taking place these days at the THEATERSTÜBCHEN, Jordanstr. 11, 34117 Kassel behind the Gloria Kino.

Best Of 2011

So I was sitting with my pal DJ Bonzai Tarzan the other night and while sipping a chilled glass of horchata de chufa we recalled our best memories and discoveries of the year 2011. The following list was compiled for Sensación Mágica, a Quito-based music magazine focusing on new sounds from all over the world. So here it comes - in no particular order... Thank you for your attention.

– Dj Bongo Man

2011

DJ BONZAI TARZAN
Zigurat building with Anne Mei Yi
Street music of Java (super record!)
SD Batish: Om Shanti Meditation Dilruba (super record!)
Life and Fate: Vassily Grossman
Whisperers: Orlando Figes

DJ BONGO MAN
Filetti di acciuga La Golosa, Taggia.
Djo Nolo & Dassy Vala-Be: Malrhyama (Espérance/Sonodisc, LP, 1989).
Valeurs Sûres de Bruxelles - live at Casa Latina, February 25, 2011.
Bea De Giacomo: Lezedunum (book/portfolio, Rawraw Edizioni/Associazione Storico-Culturale Lezedunum, 2011)

Moemlien: Spring 2010, Amsterdam (C30, Silver Ghosts, 2011).

Etivaz Alpine cheese.
Fourth World Magazine: The Spectacle of Light Abductions (Pacific City Sound Visions, LP, 2011).
Caleuche Video blog.
Henning Christiansen: Symphony Natura (Slowscan, LP, recorded 1985, released 2006).
Adam Hochschild: King Leopold's Ghost (book, 1998).

Nudism (exhibition), Grimmuseum, Berlin, September 2011.
Francesco Cavaliere DJ set, O'Tannenbaum, Berlin, September 2011.
Indias Indios video performance, Grimmuseum, Berlin, September 2011.
Everything by Massimiliano Bomba.
DJ Cool Brocoli feat. MC Orphan Fairytale and MC Dracula Lewis, Om is Om Bowling and Sound Festival, Brussels, October 26.
Tuffo nel Ceno di Valhalla, July 2011.