Dope Jams

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Strictly Nervous’

Disc 1 : Strictly Rhythm (141 MB) Disc 2 : Nervous Records (93 MB)

First it was Electro, Italo and Chicago House. Then it was Disco & Garage, Detroit House & UK Hardcore, each unique movement in dance music’s storied history turned fodder for our collective music retrophilia. Maybe we’ve run out of new ideas; perhaps the past has more to offer than the present could possibly muster. Whatever the reasons, the truth is that our modern day “underground” postures itself on the feats of past. As of late, it’s been all about NY/NJ House, as so many pubescent laptop producers shift their gaze to the early 1990’s, desperate to make their records swing just like the formative days of yore. In the midst of it all, a lot of the actual musical record is hidden in the shadows of this new will to revision. 

Determined to set the record straight on just one front, Dope Jams founders Paul Nickerson and Francis Englehardt follow up their King Street Sounds showcase with this ode to the two biggest pillars of NY House Music. We are speaking, of course, about Nervous Records and Strictly Rhythm. Between these two labels, whole artist’s careers were launched and eternalized in a nigh five year time span. 

Wayne Gardiner, Armand Van Helden, Masters At Work…the list is prolific and indisputable. These institutions---entirely free of the financial sway of the majors---promulgated and disseminated the real soundtrack to one of the City’s most vibrant subcultures with the consistency and passion of true devotees of the creed. 

Strictly Nervous is styled in the vein of the vintage house and hip-hop mastermixes that were once the musical lifeblood running through the veins of New York City’s interlocking melting pot. This 2xCD showcase is Nickerson and Englehardt’s latest and arguably finest exposition of early 1990’s club culture, a deeply personal salute to two of the most important labels of their musical upbringing. The boys have assembled a masterful, quick-fired assault on the senses that asserts in classic Dope Jams gall the vital importance of these formative staples---a real-life aural documentary of one of House Music's most important chapters. Strictly Nervous offers up a dose of reality back into the contemporary discourse on early 1990’s club music, while reminding us of the importance of our collective commitment to the future of underground dance music.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘An Atheists Guide To Gospel Music’

Volume 1 (165 MB)

If you feel that the world has become a godless place beyond redemption and this pandemic is divine retribution for all the transgressions, trespasses, calumny and flagrant, writhing, steamy, impossibly-debauched, unrepentant, and relentless fornication in which we have shamelessly engaged then you’re obviously mired in sin, as well as being absolutely no fun whatsoever. However, all is not lost; those boys at Dope Jams, who themselves were once tragically lost, but now are found — they were behind the sofa in their store looking for an Ashford & Simpson cassette…single — have the perfect antidote to all that ails your conscience, my child.

That remedy is a one hour and nine minute mix of euphoric and energizing gospel, gospel-inflected soul and even rock; The Byrds 1970 classic “Jesus Is Just Alright” fits in nicely alongside towering, gospel anthems such as, “Like A Ship” and the gorgeous “Nobody Knows,” both by Pastor T.L. Barrett. These wondrous examples of the genre are replete with rousing rhythm and blues grooves and choral accompaniments that spiral high above the lead vocal.

Barrett was a troubled individual himself and strayed from the path of righteousness a number of times. However, his congregation included soul legends Maurice White and Philip Bailey of Earth, Wind and Fire and Donny Hathaway, as well as jazz pioneer and Sun Ra Arkestra member Phil Cohran. The inclusion of these Barret-penned gems alone makes the whole mix worthy of a listen or ten. The Dope Jams crew embrace the sacred, then stray tentatively towards the secular by including the truly beautiful, and (Lord forgive my worldliness and profanity) rare AF “The Time Is Right” by Joy. It’s funk-based, and bassed, gospel with a rousing, sensual vocal and terrific, choral accompaniments.

The deviation (The Dope Jams lads are deviants, lest we forget, and we never should) towards the temporal is manifested in the inclusion of The Staple Singers cover of “Slippery People” by Talking Heads. The Staples family members performed as a gospel act for decades before they tackled the Heads’ paean to the tribulations of dealing with slick and sleek individuals. Decrying the godless works of the well-greased via the cover version of a song by a bunch of over-educated, New York, intellectual types could well be construed as an earthly endeavor, but someone has to do it, and The Staples Singers do it in an exceptional and non-sacrilegious manner.

This set is composed of 21 songs in total and is a mix in the sense that the songs are segued together seamlessly, but there is no blending to detract from these fantastic pieces of work as they detail the journey from iniquity to restitution and rapture.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘CORE 1993’

Core 1993 (171 MB)

Before slow to speak’s Paul Nickerson & Francis Englehardt were full fledged adherents of deep house’s cultish following, the two teenage accomplices thirsted for a different musical elixir. “CORE–1993” is a tour-de-force of unadulterated soul from the glorious second wave of early 1990’s RNB.

Special Thanks to Sean Gonnick, Adam Walsh, Mark Auclair, Phil Miller, Shawn McClelland, Eric Jalbert, Mike Ladd, Chris Turner, Mark Lees, Mark Evelyn, Marco Hodges, Shawn Fisher, Chris Norris, The Batters Box & Ted's Cards.

Inspired by Gary Cannavo & Neil Petricone.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Classic House Grooves : Dope Jams NYC’

Classic House Grooves : Dope Jams NYC (102 MB)

King Street Sounds is synonymous with NYC house music. Since it’s inception in 1993, the label has embodied the epicenter of international dance music, borrowing it’s name from Manhattan’s celebrated side-ally, King Street, nestled in the midst of Manhattan’s West Village and home of the legendary Paradise Garage club—DJ Larry Levan’s stomping grounds and the eternal symbol of Gotham’s revered underground nightlife. The likening in name goes beyond appearance; King St., along with the vanguard of 1990’s house music, carried the torch from these first pioneers and brought the ethic & aesthetic of classic disco & garage music into the creatively exhilarating era of the Sound Factory Bar, Underground Network, Shelter & Body & SOUL; no label remained so prolific, so steadfast, so consistent & forward-looking than King Street’s and it’s ever-fertile sublabel, Nite Grooves, championing esoteric deep house tracks and full-fledged vocal garage alike with the same unwavering commitment and unquestionable taste that earned them the unequivocal status of NYC dance music mogul.

While labels like Prescription, Transmat, Metroplex and Cajual were busy defining the new 90’s avant-garde of the Midwest experiment, King St. championed the style & approach that would define NY house for the next decade and beyond. Embracing both rave-inspired deep house and four-to-the-flour vocal anthems, King St. became the literal equivalent of underground New York, a stable fixture on the wall of any self-respecting dance record store and a force to be reckoned with on an international scale. Early on the label released a slew of highly-influential and breathtakingly original tracks and songs from early masters Kerri Chandler & Mood II Swing: from Chandler’s raw signatures on Tears of Velva’s “The Way I Feel” to the Afro-inspired masterpiece “Koro,”; from the anthemic Mood II Swing masterwork “Closer” (featuring Carolyn Harding) to their instrumental cult classic “Sunlight In My Eyes,” these early exercises in dance music genesis are generously dispersed across King Street’s miles-deep catalog, foundational landmarks to the ever-maturing sound of NYC house. Continuing this tradition, King Street was always willing to experiment in championing young talent and pushing the boundaries of house music forward. Chris Brann, founding member and leading inspiration of the Wamdue Kids, discovered his new home with King Street in the latter part of the decade, going on to release his seminal and timeless “Cascades of Color” —a masterpiece of our time. Indeed, King Street was always a label capable not only of staying in toe with the trends of the ever-fickle present, but a force determined to lead the pack into the future with impeccable selection & time-tested taste.

Devoted to the unabashed confrontation of NYC’s gritty underworld, Paul Nickerson & Francis Englehardt are no strangers to “the other face” of Gotham’s splendor. Rooted in the subversive artistic warfare of the legendary Manhattan art and music subculture, these lifelong partners have faithfully championed vinyl culture, using their Brooklyn based record store, Dope Jams, as an operational home base for their escapades on the edge of New York’s underground. In their dimly lit, warmly inviting enclave, nestled amid fine mahogany woodwork, enticing esoteric oddities, a superior dance music selection and one of the finest soundsystems in NYC today, Nickerson & Englehardt have built their own home for all things funky, off-kilter and utterly inspiring in dance and beyond: dedicated guardians of the music they have committed their lives to. Taking the legendary label head-on with reverent gusto, Dope Jams’ founders combine the funky eccentricities of The City’s artistic avant-garde with a lifelong knowledge of & dedication to underground dance music, a balanced reflection of what NYC was: home of the downtrodden, out-casted & creatively unique, the beautiful shadow to the city’s affluent gloss. A culmination of over 35 years combined experience, Classic House Grooves: Dope Jams utilizes the classic deep house sound of America’s cultural epicenter & infuses it with an uncompromising artistic militancy that screams through the mix’s full-forced party-rocking fervor. Featuring seminal work from aforementioned masters Kerri Chandler, Mood II Swing & Chris Brann, as well as highlights from the likes of Roland Clark a/k/a Urban Soul, Roger S., Kenny Bobien,Dj Pierre,Johnny Dangerous and many more, Dope Jams’ ode to King Street sets aside the delicate programming niceties of restraint & conservative listening in favor of all out party warfare, setting the correct context for the label’s brilliant output & using the music to it’s maximum effect. Classic House Grooves: Dope Jams is the definitive collection of King Street Sound’s monumental contributions—a testament to what NYC once was, and what it can be once more.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Dope Jams - Harness The Magic : 5 Year Anniversary’

Harness The Magic (90 MB)

It was half a decade past when the haggard, slouching frame of Myrtle Avenue's finest (and only) dealer of fine antiques and vintage pornography approached the shop, proclaiming Bed-Stuy's latest exercise in experimental entrepreneurship would not make it to its fifth year. The Green Goblin, as he was not so affectionately known in the neighborhood, came from the old school, a time when his street's namesake was more commonly referred to as "Murder Avenue," when rich kids shit their pants at the thought of traveling to Brooklyn and the word "gentrification" had not yet become one of the first 10 words to be uttered from lips of every toddler East of Manhattan. What he could not see, what he did not take fully into account, however, was just how far the boys over at 580 were willing to go to see their labor of love through. Sitting on the front steps with no money for construction, sharing a $5 sandwich and engaging in endless and unabashed people watching, the original Dope Jams nucleus must have seemed destined for valiant failure. After all the trials and tribulations, they may still be. But despite the incessant bullshit that comes with posing as cultural ambassadors and dealing with self-identifying dance music professionals, the journey has been worthwhile. Dope Jams remains a fixture of NYC dance music, one of the last remaining 12" record specialty shops and a permanent fixture in the neighborhood. In spite of this, they've managed to have some fun. In every loss, there really is a win.

Obviously, the surroundings have changed drastically since construction began in 2005. Bed-Stuy/Ft. Green, now known universally and nefariously as "Clinton Hill," has gone from borderline workers' ghetto to a respectable colony of Manhattan's petit-bourgeoisie to settle down and raise a family or spend $100 at the new "bistro" every night, drinking their miseries away. It's telling that with all this influx of money and traffic, Dope Jams has only become more of an alien where it once was at home with the freaks, weirdos, crazies and crack heads of just 5 years past. And yet, despite Brooklyn's existential deterioration, the shop still manages to attract the solitary NY rejectee, incapable of inserting themselves into the rackets of self-promotion that have become the norm in the new New York---culminating in the now monthly "LIFE" parties, debauched and intoxicated affairs hosted in a transformed store space full with club-calibre sound-system.

“Dope Jams - Harness The Magic : 5 Year Anniversary” is the second annual anniversary mix tape showcase, offering a glimpse into the backstreets traversed and chronicled at Brooklyn's headquarters of underground dance music over the past 5 years. Vintage tape vocal house, floating synth-laced rave, demolishing Howitzer techno, dream-spawned electronic psychedelia---all driving head on into one another with the unwavering fanaticism of a suicide bomber. Miniature theses sown throughout the mix open a window to the off mindset at the shop---perpetuated by years of absurdity and repetition---a glimmer of the very real unreality of the twilight zone that is Dope Jams. Released in conjunction with the 5 Year Anniversary party, October 15, 2011, Dope Jams is a big lugie in the face of the Green Goblin and all the other haters that have been rooting from day one for Dope Jams to fall by the waste-side. Unfortunately for them, and fortunately for the strange march of social rejects, abject lunatics and ball-busting, silver-tongued smart-asses, the shop is here to stay---propagating its beautiful and deranged aural agenda for as long as people are willing to stop thinking and start listening.

“I don’t understand that shit, how you can be off-key and it works!” - Mike Ononaiye

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Dope Jams - Tap The Force : 4 Year Anniversary’

Tap The Force (92 MB)

A labor of love and devotion to the culture of underground dance music, Dope Jams was opened in 2005 with an awareness of NY's storied club legacy and a clear intent to continue forward with the historical project by any means necessary. Aware of the absurdities of the city's opportunism and resolved in circumventing the beaten path, store founders Paul Nickerson & Francis Englehardt embarked with but a few dollars in their pocket and dreams that stretched beyond the city's confines, building from nothing a legitimate institution of creation, excess & revolutionary conciousness that has endured the economic hardships & fickle trends of dance music, a triumph of D.I.Y. resolve & self-created magic. Determined to break down the fragmentation that has kept the various fractions of electronic music under strict segregation, founders Nickerson & Englehardt set about constructing with painstaking care a free space of creative limitlessness that could host the most redeeming & cathartic manifestations of their beloved medium under one roof. Wooden cabinetry hosts a bizarre melting pot of fine esoteric oddities, literature on the occult & the avant-garde, and of course innumerable recordings falling squarely on the left side of the bank, Dope Jams has settled into its own on the lively & diverse Myrtle Avenue, located squarely in the heart of NY's historic & working-class Brooklyn. A safe haven for the outer-fringes of Gotham's oddest citizens, dejected & caste out, Dope Jams stands for everything that this massive metropolis once was, and can most certainly be once more. Well stocked with a generous sense of humor and critical but well-intended fanatics for the art & culture of programming & vinyl collecting, their institution has become Brooklyn's own, and continues to strive for the same boundary-pushing & mind-opening discoveries it originally set out for.

In honor of their 4 year anniversary, Paul & Francis have assembled what can be safely described as their most absurdly eclectic mix yet, an across the board free-for-all resembling what you might hear on a lively day in the store: a beautiful disaster of seductively cryptic techno, impenetrable deep house obscurity, joyous vocal garage, glory-era classics & electronic infused pop, hip-hop & ambient. Favoring balls to the wall overstatement over sleep-inducing, dragging programming niceties, the duo unleash a violent assault of creativity and hardened experience spanning over 3 decades of repetitive mesmerization. Totally free to explore the entire range of electronic music without the fetters of mixing conservatism or narrow genrefication, "Dope Jams : 4 Year Anniversary" rests free play & expression through music from the wretched claws of status-quo mediocrity and reallocates it back into the hands of the grassroots of NYC & the entire underground dance music community at large, the same chosen few that have enlivened Dope Jams' march forward on the shining path of righteousness into a future as yet unknown-may it sound a little something like this...

"Luck isn't some mystical energy that dances around the universe randomly bestowing people with satisfaction and joy. You create your own luck" -Jay-Z

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Guidance’

Guidance (178 MB)

“Deep House” is probably the most misused & misconstrued phrase in the dance music vernacular. It has been exhausted, distorted & erroneously applied to virtually every form of electronic music that has a 4-to-the-floor beat and a few key synthpads, a term that implies a sophistication, esoterism & general “deepness” that lends itself to the wholesale rape and pillage of just about every dance music apologist & skilled musical revisionist seeking to legitimize their specimens with a quick-fire labeling and associative justification. Practically every commercial knock-off of established underground trends gets spruced up with wild proclamations of deepness, attempts to paint over the glossy polish of wealth & hallow insincerity with a legitimate claim to the “underground.” But beyond all the assertions of a “deep house revival,” there was a time when the term referred to an real community disseminated across much of the Western world, a vibrant musical trend sprung from the flourishing possibilities of the 1990’s house music scene—one whose effect is still being felt to this day.

Concentrating on the instrumental abstraction of early electronic tracks, Prescription Records literally shook the very foundation of house music and opened an entirely new path to a new generation of producers who had never lived through the heyday of the Garage, Muzic Box or Zanzibar, a group of dance music enthusiasts who were determined to forge an entirely new aesthetic out of the ashes of disco and garage. Arguably more than any other label, Chicago’s Guidance Recordings symbolized this new obsession with conceptual instrumental expression, championing a slew of early forays into the domain cryptically ordained “deep house.” With releases from stalwarts suck as Larry Heard, Dana Kelly a.k.a. Callisto, Abacus and many, many more, the D.I.Y. styled, free-formed label focused on an anti-dogmatic approach to the art of A&R’ing, releasing a slew of new and unestablished talent as well as immortal legends, all in search of an identifiably new underground aesthetic centered around this new expressionism. Whether inspired by the classic deep instrumental styling of early NY and Chicago house or the otherworldly explorations of Detroit’s avant-garde, Guidance Recordings—especially during its critical early years—stood at the fore of the legitimately deep, melodically driven tracks of the latter 1990’s.

Eventually falling prey to the vapid promises of mass success and lounge-rooted mediocrity, Guidance Recordings fell by the waste side in the early 2000’s, leaving behind a plentiful and often-times contradictory catalog spanning close to a decade. Lately the great historical revisionists of electronic music tend to either entirely ignore its impact as a label, or conversely praise it categorically without in-depth knowledge of its legacy. Veteran deep house fanatics and dance music devotees Francis Englehardt & Paul Nickerson, a.k.a. slow to speak, have set out to justly chronicle this fabled label, determined to unravel the myth and translate the catalog into a tangible musical dissertation of quality deep house music—setting the record straight once and for all on this widely misunderstood and misrepresented label. Many of these tracks have been lost in the ceaselessly morphing trends of electronic fad and fancy, lost in the chasms of sealed-up closets, dusty storage spaces and damp basements. Resurrected, put to the test of time and delivered with the sincere underground enthusiasm of slow to speak’s sagely mastery in the art of dance music programming, let the distortions, confusions and misrepresentations cease once and for all with the concrete chronicling of this vital label: the definitive Guidance Mix.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Large’

Large (90 MB)

One of the premier deep house labels of the 1990’s, Large Music epitomized the “2nd wave” of U.S. house music, releasing dozens of records from established deep house artists as well as breaking a plethora of new talent with a constant output that kept the institution at the fore of the dance music community’s collective mind. With the gradual refocusing away from the classic NY soulful sound, marked by a broadly musical palate & a patently vocal disposition, labels such as Large have faded from the electronic world’s memory—despite their being major players in the niche universe of underground house music. Of course, Large did not release soulful house exclusively; Kerri Chandler’s popular Digital Soul series speaks to the label’s acute interest in the more starkly electronic dispositions handed down from the earliest experimentations of classic-era Chicago. But certainly many of the label’s strongest releases fell in with the “Body & SOUL” sound more than any other---a style of house that, at least in the mind of the dance music “critic,” has sunk into distant obscurity.

'slow to speak’s' Paul Nickerson & Francis Englehardt spent much of their musical upbringing collecting, dj’ing & partying to the seminal dance releases of the “lost decade”—after the extravagantly fetishized 1970’s/80’s dance culture and before the conveniently categorized world of present day electronic production. The 1990’s are 'slow to speak’s' alma matter, a time when these now historic landmarks were the fresh fuel for so many exceptional journeys into the heart of the creative & liberatory spirit of dance music. Resolved to break down the barriers of historical distortion and analyze this music objectively, Nickerson and Englehardt have diligently picked through the varied and frequently inconsistent Large Music catalog and selected the most seminal, timeless and relevant classics of this lost era to assemble this definitive Large Mix: as much a historical artifact as a seamlessly sculpted and aggressively executed deep house mastermix. Featuring releases from deep house legends Kerri Chandler, Dana Kelley and Ron Trent, as well as a few gems that fit in snuggly with the broader feel of this exceptional time in house music, Large Mix sets in stone what is now only weakly speculated on: the universal appeal of soulful deep house at its very best. Presently it is more convenient to profess an admiration for the “original” soulful house sound—but much less to actually champion a fully-developed house music that can explore its full musical potential while retaining a raw, unmediated, cathartic sincerity. Casting aside dogmatic praise or criticism for this often-times overrated label and selecting only the strongest releases, 'slow to speak' take the catalog out of relegated obscurity and testing it against today’s standards of quality house & techno music, 'slow to speak' does us all a favor by refusing to forget the past that shaped our present—using it as their building blocks to reflect & reuse, revalue and reinterpret one of the most influential labels of the 1990’s.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘CORE 1994’

Core 1994 (125 MB)

Every metropolis had their mythical center of musical worship; we all know the institutions whose influence are repeatedly asserted, the genealogical epicenters of underground club culture that birthed, in one or another, the thing we know as "house music" today. To name them again here would be, to say the least, a redundancy. And while these birthplaces fully deserve their kingly titles and stature, dozens of smaller nuclei helped nurture the dispersion of the new electronic sound of the 1980's and 1990's with equal---albeit smaller-scaled---fervor. This is one story, from one town, one of surely thousands that still endure in burning hearts, minds and memories.

Gravitating to the irrefutable pulse of urban sprawl's ever-expanding soundtrack, Paul Nickerson and Francis Englehardt were teenagers when they began their love affair with clubs and club music, and in Boston there was no temple more revered than "The Loft". What it lacked in namesake's originality it made up for in raw atmosphere and unmatched programming prowess, having been founded by the now legendary Armand Van Helden and Boston veteran mastermixer DJ Bruno. One of the innumerable elements that made "The Loft" in Boston so special was its embrace of an entire range of new electronic influences, from the jazz-keyed, sample-driven tendency once commonly referred to in guarded whispers throughout the netherworld simply as "underground"---the true NY/NJ sound---to the far more dystopian prophecies of Detroit and Chicago's new paths down the rabbit's hole. While the former held sway with the predominately young, straight crowd of underage fanatics and seasoned club children that dominated the 1st level of the club, the upstairs became host to the murkier, starker, harsher and debauched progressions of the midwest's finest alchemists. Take these two generalized movements and add the warm, disorienting winds of drugged-out Northeastern rave culture, and you have a whole cluster-fuck of brilliant, then totally revolutionary dance music. Without direct allegiance to any of these scenes, and with its own burgeoning though tiny circle of young, highly talented producers, Boston became them all.

This radio mastermix from the very early years of slow to speak's story captures a struggle to fully process, digest and reinterpret the sensation of first being exposed to a totally new aesthetic and culture---that sublime shock, soon overtaken by the unstoppable urge to create and participate. It's quick, it's fast, it's full of attitude, testosterone and hard-earned mastery of practice that only the green newcomer can muster. From the urban anthems of Uncanny Alliance, Lidell Townsell and Simply Red to the incomprehensibly obscure local favorites hammered by Armand, Bruno and so many more unsung heros who, every week, propagated house music with the aggressive, relentless enthusiasm of having stumbled upon the greatest and possibly last cultural revolution of the 20th century---underground club music when it was still worshipped by and ingrained into the psyches of city youth from adolescence onwards. This latest mix-tape-turned-CD from slow to speak's CORE staple is impatient, tangible, breathing house music and mixing,the latter probably birthed from having to compete with the quick mix turntablism of hip-hop programmers, as well as a simple case of teenage attention span. There are 37 tracks crammed into this nearly hour and a half mix; but the flow is surprisingly coherent. "CORE-1994" reminds us that the naivety of youth might just be the greatest tool of creative output. A perfect window into the heart and soul of two kids caught in the orbit of their scene, the mix owes its origins to those forgotten or metamorphosized club heros of yore that established institutions, like "The Loft" and so many others, in the early days when "making it" in NY, LA, London or Berlin took second place to the duty and desire of your city's underground cell.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘CORE 1996’

Core 1996 (114 MB)

Continuing to document the glorious past of house music with their popular “Core” mixtape/mix-Cd series, slow to speak’s Paul Nickerson & Francis Englehardt are deeply familiar with remaining in the present when it comes to collecting & DJ’ing dance music. As teenagers throughout the promised years of the early-to-mid 1990’s, the two spent most of their time scouring the then vast universe of Boston vinyl establishments in search of the eternal victory of any self-respecting DJ: the discovery of that special record that, unbeknownst to the rest of the world, would become the secret weapon of an entire arsenal of DJ sets, radio shows, mixtapes in the near future to come. This was the ultimate sign of supremacy: not just knowing, but successfully acquiring and subsequently hoarding those gems of special obscurity that had slipped through the hands and attention spans of the competitors in the tightly nit DJ communities scattered across the Northern Hemisphere.

Many of the phenomenal tracks on this impressive “Core – 1996” original outing are rooted in the outer limits of dance music obscurity, where few DJ’s dared to venture, the fertile ground of so many crucial and vital discoveries. Records such as CJ Mackintosh’s masterful dub of United Black Men, Nathaniel X Project “Get Up,” Deepsoul’s “The Rhythms”—these were the most exciting elements of these formative years in mixtape experimentation and execution. Of course, the hits were just as vital—many would say more—as these rare and unnoticed masterpieces, standards comprising the roots of any credible and successful DJ set or mix. This was still a time when droves of youths, mostly from the urban epicenters of America, Europe, South Africa and beyond flocked to their club of choosing to hear the records that had, more or less, gained the status of “anthem” —jams that had to find their way into the line-up lest the night descend into a rather boring exercise in obscure track one-upping. A simple gander of the diverse track-listing of this latest “Core” installment will direct the eyes to indisputable anthems such as River Oceans timeless “Love & Hapiness (Yemaya y Ochún), Joe T. Vannelli’s “Play With The Voice” or Shawn Christopher’s U.K. hit “Make My Love” —necessary requirements of any self-respecting deep house mixtape during that special time. Still, part of that very real, almost physically tangible excitement of that time were the sweet treasures of the victorious hunt, precious stones to adorn the crown of deep house supremacy by those steadfast warriors of the grand pursuit. “Core – 1996” captures this impassioned mixture of established underground hits & tracks whose secret have been guarded to this very day. The excitement and enthusiasm surrounding the latter contributed to a lot of the raw energy that fueled the fledging underground dance scenes of the 1990’s, the same excitement that continues to push our gaze backwards from time to time to marvel & draw strength from those formative years.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Stamp The Wax’

Stamp The Wax (74 MB)

Slow To Speak is the DJing duo made up of Francis Englehardt and Paul Nickerson, two ex-New Yorkers who run the famed record store Dope Jams. After seven years of trading, they closed in Jan 2013, only to reopened in a small town upstate, with a population of just 376 (circa the 2000 cencus). Not the best environment to run a record store you might think, but that would both be underestimating the high esteem in which Dope Jams is held and, also, how little Francis and Paul care about convention. A life in music spent setting their own agenda has won them a few enemies, but also marked them out as respected opinion-makers, at a time when people all too readily tell others only what they want to hear. They put together a mix for us, which we’re told, involved a bubbling cauldron and sacrificing seven virgin sheep.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Congo Bongo’

Congo Bongo (74 MB)

Before Erick Morillo was blowing lines with Puff Daddy and Armand Van Helden was making odes to Barbara Streisand, they were responsible for one of the most important subgenres south of the border: Latin House! Discarding the subtle overtures of any attempts at refinement and pomp, a whole roster of cocky young producers responded to the new dance movement of the 1990's with a hip-hop swagger, generous machismo and latin music's festive flamboyance in synthesizing a party-rocking philosophy aimed at oscillating every conceivable ass on the dance floor (especially that fly Spanish girl you'd been crushing on since freshman year). This was music that was truly impossible to resist: from wall-street traders to back-page call girls, from the most self-righteous house heads to green club first-timers, Latin House sought the universal element that guaranteed to jerk bodies and make babies.

"Congo Bongo" is slow to speak's faithful salute to the era of "Witch Doktor," Reel 2 Real, platinum selling Strictly singles and all-age club nights. If the Latin Rascals decided to abandon freestyle in 1991 and focus on rocking High School gymnasium parties in Sunset Park every weekend, this is what their mixing style would sound like: rapid cut and mix transitions, reverberating Spanish chorus refrains, ear-piercing horn wales, and unashamed rap versus to get all the fellas off the wall and onto the freshly waxed basketball court floor. If you thought that the afro-latin diaspora's sole influence on House was to be found in the back catalog of some mediocre chill-out compilation series, think again: "Congo Bongo" is here!!!

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Fact Hallowe'en’

Fact Hallowe'en (85 MB)

Dope Jam bosses / Slow To Speak DJ duo Paul Nickerson and Francis Englehardt will be playing their “spookiest, most spine-tingling salutation to the dark spirits of house music yet.” For a taste of what’s to come, check out their special Halloween mix below. After dropping in seasonally-appropriate tunes like DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince’s ‘A Nightmare on My Street’, Twisted Sister’s ‘Burn In Hell’, and Nicki Minaj’s verse on ‘Monster’ (why not?), the two really go to town.

In their own words: “This ancient moss-covered rat-chewed mix has been discovered, repaired, smuggled out of America (for a king’s ransom), re-recorded, electronically enhanced and is now offered for the first time, pristine as Christine in her nubile virginity, to a waiting world!”

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘LIVE : Disk Union Vol. 1’

Disk Union Vol. 1 (190 MB)

This 80-minute live recording offers a candle-light glimpse at the vast wall of Slow to Speak's live in-the-mix hieroglyphic musical code; a powerful narrative of deep acid/Chicago idolatry, rave-inspired neo-house hybridism, garage-rooted vocal anthems and the infallible golden era of classic hip-hop---all this and so much more in a night's work at LIFE. As a specimen it faithfully portrays the peak time euphoria and indocile hysteria that these parties become, all punctuated, stressed and enriched with the controlled isolator frenzy of Slow to Speak's no-prisoners-taken programming style. The closest you'll get to tasting the sweat off the brows of party people without actually being there, this mix-tape captures the high, and higher, points of one of the last truly free and underground parties left in the legendary City.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘LIVE : Disk Union Vol. 2’

Disk Union Vol. 2 (100 MB)

The monthly is known simply as LIFE. It's made its presence felt in New York City as one of the still pure dance music labors of love of that storied metropolis, a forward-thinking and historically conscious continuation of the city's underground club culture carried out under the banner of the surreptitious DJ collective Slow To Speak. Tailor-made, carefully constructed and devotionally programmed, these gatherings, hosted at the duo's longstanding 12" vinyl haven and Brooklyn dance music institution, Dope Jams, are the direct extenuation of an overarching musical philosophy: challenging, uncompromising, but above all participatory and culturally tangible art. It is the actualization of a project that began in the early years of youth and continues under the multifold tentacles of Paul Nickerson and Francis Enlgehardt's undying devotion to their life's love.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Waxxx’

Side A (55 MB). Side B (56 MB)

It would be fair to say that U.S duo Slow To Speak remain one of New York's best-kept secrets, despite the success of their house, disco and left-of-centre re-edits. As DJs, they're renowned for a rocking a party with an action-packed style that effortlessly flits between genres. Here, though, they wander off-piste spectacularly, delivering a mix for Russia's eccentric Waxxx Mixxx series that impressively joins the dots between the drowsy electronica of James Blake, the liquid ambience of Lord of The Isles, the early jungle of 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the paranoid dubstep of Burial, and an impressive range of past and present house and techno treats. In this regard, it's a lesson in on-point, open-minded eclecticism.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Christmas’

Christmas (34 MB)

That majestic time of the year has arrived, once again, like a newborn savior abandoned at our doorsteps: whether we like it our not, we're all obligated to nurture the collective fanaticism of cheer and optimism that consumes each December of our years. That's right kids, Christmas time is here, and you best believe Santa has been watching. No one can deny that all the holiday cheer and plasticine carols can't hide the fact that we're headed for a much darker time than we've possibly ever witnessed before, a shadow that is sure to cast its spell far forward over future solstices and holidays alike. Slow to speak invites you to take a break from your shopping, release those muscles held tense since pondering the prospect of spending time with your psychotic family, and join them as we travel down the rabbit's hole. Come help us aim our sites on self-release and communal transcendence for one more time before the new year is upon us, and we're forced to face (un)reality once more. Happy birthday Jesus!

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Samhain: Hallowe'en’

Samhain: Hallowe'en (666 MB)

slow to speak pays homage to the darkness & impulsivity of the human spirit, pillaging the lowest chasms of dance and rock sin/depravity, raising them from the graveyards of esoteric musical lineage, and assembling the most grotesque, menacing & unholy collection of sounds the netherworld has to offer: a celebration of the unspoken darkness of our world, a beast that is very much present, and only grows more powerful when ignored---and yet, it is a tamable beast, one that need only be harnessed for it’s explosive energy & set to the task of releasing & expanding pleasure. In this sense, “Samhain” is very much serious; serious in it’s complete denial of the grave falsity of the never-ending assault of the degenerate cheer of “the future”---and serious in it’s demand for the this cheer be replaced, at least for one day, by the dirty, filthy and overall joyous celebration of truth that is Hallowe’en.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Fact Mix 351’

Fact Mix 351 (130 MB)

FACT mix 351 is by New York’s foremost guardians of house music and culture, and its most vocal, vital malcontents: Slow To Speak.

Slow To Speak is the duo of Francis Englehardt and Paul Nickerson. They are the proprietors of Dope Jams, the most iconoclastic dance music store on the planet, located on Myrtle Avenue in Brooklyn. A visit to Dope Jams won’t just see you walk away with an armful of incredible purchases (if you arrive with half a brain), it will also leave you in no doubt of the disdain in which Nickerson and Englehardt hold so many “rated” DJs and producers – just ask Francois K, Vakula or Nicolas Jaar. They do not suffer fools gladly and they have no reservations when it comes to making mincemeat of sacred cows. In the back-slapping, masturbatory wold of contemporary house and techno, Dope Jams’ rebellious attitude is as valuable as it is rare. More importantly, they’re negativity towards what they hate is dwarfed by their enthusiasm for that which they love and hold dear.

Dope Jams is more than a record store; it’s the nerve centre of numerous labels and related operations. The best known is probably the Slow To Speak bootleg series (aka Celebrate Life): high quality 12″ pressings, in glorious screen-printed sleeves, of classic tracks by everyone from Talking Heads and Kraftwerk, to Van Morrison and The Cure, via Alice Coltrane and Steve Reich; occasionally Slow To Speak’s own edits feature. Far from being an incognito operation, Nickerson and Englehardt print their own names on the sleeves, along with all the appropriate recording and copyright credits from the original releases; in legal terms, these guys hide in plain sight. In parallel they run CORE, an apparently wholly legit series of house reissues, and other more short-lived or erratic imprints include Preserved Instincts (Chasing Voices), Gay Records and Alice B. Toklas.

Having grown up in Ipswich, Massachusetts, they were turned onto house at Armand Van Helden’s Loft parties in Boston, and eventually started their own legendary night in Boston, LIFE, which lasted three years. Since moving to New York the shop and various label operations have been their main focus, though you’ll still find them DJing like their lives depend on it at irregular parties in the store. Englehardt and Nickerson have put together a special mix for the FACT series. Almost needless to say, no tracklist has been provided, but we can tell you that the likes of Legowelt, Current 93, Burial, Plastikman, Beige and Atoms For Peace feature; even more needless to say is what an exhilarating listening experience it is. Dig in.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘NTS Radio’

NTS Radio Live (62 MB)

Slow To Speak hosted a guest show live on 6 September 2014 on NTS Radio in London. Choices from Animal Collective, Phil Collins, Hall & Oates, Legowelt and a bunch else. Brought to you by the one and only Ben Kreeger!

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Afterlife’

Afterlife (92 MB)

A small but enlightening glimpse into the live programming wizardry of slow to speak’s Paul Nickerson & Francis Englehardt, captured mid-party, the night of 03.21.2009—and eternalized here for mass appreciation and utilization. Building the proverbial bridge over a chasm of immense ideological divide, Nickerson & Englehardt incorporate the sonic assaults of demented sci-fi techno, indiscreet vocal house music and drug-induced rave classics to amass a conceptually seamless procession of early-hour dance music magic. Less a cohesive mix-tape, more a totally unplanned pronouncement of slow to speak’s musical convictions, “Afterlife” affirms the creative versatility of the first hours of a party’s lifeline. Indeed, it is these crucial moments of inception that make or break the best of DJ’s, a fragile timeframe that must lay the groundwork for the proceeding ascensions to take place. It’s always easier for a DJ to fly at the peak of a party, much less so to build with painstaking exactitude the foundation for ultimate cathartic release. It is these minutes of delicate but potentially limitless creative expanse that have been captured on this brilliant mix, demonstrating the militant eclecticism of slow to speak’s undertaking and providing a rare peak into the effective amassment of momentum that makes up the most engaging beginnings of any dope party. A seemless weaving of warm, soulful repetitions and funky electronic otherworldliness, “Afterlife” is an isolated but deserving temporal specimen of slow to speak’s endless nights of tireless DJ’ing over two decades, a moment in time that should help open the door to even more limitless universes of dance music self-education, appreciation and ultimate ascension.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Dope Jams - Preserved Instincts : 8 Year Anniversary’

Preserved Instincts (147 MB)

In 2005 we opened our doors to a not-yet-entirely-gentrified Myrtle Avenue, with fire in our breast and dreams of glory casting long shadows into the uncertain future. Eight years later, we find ourselves still at the helm of an institution devoted entirely to the music we have given our entire adult lives to—albeit under slightly different circumstances. Long removed from turmoil of the tug-of-war that characterized our existence in New York City, we find ourselves among the isolated, eccentric haunts of the Kaatskills, spacious and removed enough for us to continue our project without the constant frustration of fighting a battle that will simply never end. In the context of this new chapter, we’ve made the difficult decision of bidding farewell to our old banner, to make a break with our past while still honoring our lifelong mission of fighting for and disseminating quality dance music to those still willing to listen with open ears, hearts and minds. No environmental shifts will ever change our core principles. We still believe, and we want you to believe. Despite the overwhelming mediocrity of the cultural status quo, those few exceptions to the rules are what we live to hunt down, cherish, and champion in the only way we know how. This June 28th, our 8 Year Anniversary Party will be the final celebration under the old banner of Dope Jams. What will take it’s place will honor our latest incarnation while continuing to push forward with the same mission we’ve undertaken from day one. Thenceforth the shop will be known as Preserved Instincts. Always Forward.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Prescription’

Prescription (62 MB)

Part 1 of a 3 part series chronicling the master works of Chez Damier & Ron Trent and those whose music they released on the peerless Prescription Records.

SLOW TO SPEAK ‘Elektion Propaganda’

Elektion Propaganda (84 MB)

Guerilla musik & elektion propaganda by Francis Englehardt & Paul Nickerson. Dreamt, morphed, melted & manipulated at the Nebula Sound Chamber: Brooklyn, NY. on November 4, 2004 - The Eve Of Returned Darkness.