Kung-Fu Music

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I luv MUSE, Max Headroom, and Kung Fu Cyborg chicks. I luv this.

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Just get to 0.40 sec.

Is Taylor Swift into Kung Fu movies? Because I'd watch My Young Auntie with her any time. Maybe it's Kendrick's influence, but I'd much rather hang with T Swizzle.

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No pic but there's a vid behind the link.

Watch Maynard James Keenan Spar, Talk Love of Martial Arts
Musician ties Brazilian jiu-jitsu training to artistic endeavors

Maynard James Keenan spars and discusses his love of Brazilian jiu-jitsu in "The Art of Work."
By Jon Blistein
6 days ago

Tool's Maynard James Keenan discusses the intricacies of Brazilian jiu-jitsu and his lifelong attachment to martial arts in the final installment of Revolver's four-part video series with the musician, "The Art of Work."

While Keenan spent previous episodes discussing his vineyard, "The Fight" offers a look at his martial arts training regimen. Keenan credits Primus drummer Tim Alexander with introducing him to Brazilian jiu-jitsu, though he also recalls the lessons he learned from his father, who doubled as his high school wrestling coach. "His take was always, 'You either win or you learn,'" Keenan said.

For Keenan, martial arts is as much about "personal growth and personal understanding and reflection" as it is about self-defense. "Maybe it'll never happen, but if you're in a situation where you have some drunken, blithering idiot, or somebody's crazy — I do it for that purpose," he said. Still, Keenan seemed most enamored with the mental and physical intricacies of top-level jiu-jitsu.

"The chess part of it, on the mat, in the gi, is very mentally stimulating," Keenan said. "If you watch some of the top-level black belt guys competing, it's half-inches. They're making adjustments that are half-inches and you're watching them try to out-chess each other, like six moves ahead to shut off where the guy's heading for the checkmate."

Towards the end of the clip, Keenan tied his jiu-jitsu training to the notion of becoming complacent and overly confident as an artist after reaching a certain level of success. He urged anyone pursuing a craft to do so with a combination of intuition, experience and constant hard work, but also cautioned: "Understand that you are on your ****ing own."

Keenan added, "Big fan of Chris Cornell – did you think about Chris Cornell this week? I didn't. I love the guy. Alan Rickman, David Bowie, there's a bunch of posts on Facebook and then you go about your way. That's what's gonna happen to you. People are gonna be upset that you're gone, and then they're gonna move the **** on with their lives. So be happy with what your decisions are. You are on your own, you don't owe anybody anything – but if you're doing your job and you're doing it accurately enough, and you're expressing from the heart, from the core, from your experiences and your intuition, other people are going to resonate with that."

Here's a celebrity from the music world.

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I used this article to launch a new got qi T-shirts thread, but I posting it here too because got qi? T-shirts + music works =

Plus Tom was kind enough to forward this article to me personally. That's super

By JUDY LYON OCTOBER 10, 2017 12:38 PM
AN INTERVIEW WITH PHILLY’S STELLARSCOPE



Stellarscope’s latest release, ‘Standing In The Shadow Of Your Ghost’, is infused with what could easily be found in your early 80’s alternative scene with bands like The Sisters of Mercy, Joy Division, Bauhaus and The Jesus and Mary Chain. They’ve masterfully taken bits and pieces from the Post Punk era and brought them forward into today’s realm. They are Tom Lugo (guitar/vocals), Robert Deflaviis (bass), and Robert Forman (drums).

Lyrically and sonically this album shines a flashlight on humanities dark shadows that roam the horizon at dusk and puts you face to face with all of it’s ill’s, such as fear, pain and loss. “We use music to express our disappointment, our fears, our anger, and sometimes the feeling of love. It’s our way to channel our aggression, our confusion; get through depression, and be at peace with the things that we cannot control.”



They have consistently played the East Coast of the USA & Canada for many years as well as coordinating festivals like the Popnoise Festival and the Walls of SoundFest. Their discography includes several albums, EPs, and participations in various worldwide compilations and tribute albums including Jesusland (a tribute to The Jesus and Mary Chain), Blue Skied, and Clear (a tribute to Slowdive), and many more. Their music has also been featured on MTV, Sci Fi Channel, A&E, and Discovery Channel. (stellarscopeband.com)

Torched Magazine is pleased to have had the opportunity to talk with Tom Lugo and the members of Stellarscope about their latest release ‘Standing In The Shadow Of Your Ghost’, their own record label ‘Patetico Recordings’ that, as of recently, has been releasing humanitarian efforts, and where they find inspiration plus more…

TM – Who or what are some of your creative influences?

Tom Lugo – First, thank you for interviewing us. It really means a lot to us. Our creative influences are drawn primarily from life experiences; the issues that plague us both on an individual level as well as a collective. We use music to express our disappointment, our fears, our anger, and sometimes the feeling of love. It’s our way to channel our aggression, our confusion; get through depression, and be at peace with the things that we cannot control.

Do you have any hobbies outside of music that help to rejuvenate your creativity?

Tom Lugo – Bob Forman plays tennis and hits the gym often to keep in shape and to keep him focused. Our bass player, Bob DeFlaviis, is into canoeing for its meditative properties. I have practiced Martial Arts all my life and it helps maintain me balanced, mentally and physically, and clear headed.



TM – Are your lyrics generic or based on real experiences? Could you expand on your answer?

Tom Lugo – The lyrics I write are based on particular events or situations. When I was young I had a lot of trouble focusing due to suffering from severe ADHD and a behavioral therapist gave some guidelines on how to cope with the illness which included keeping a journal. I tried to keep a journal with no avail however I found myself writing down my thoughts in a poetic way so I started using them as lyrics. In a way, every album I have written is my diary, a window into the inner depths of my mind and my feelings. When I hear any particular song we have recorded I can feel the emotions that brought me to write the lyrics in the first place.

TM – What kind of advice would you give to a newer musician who is just starting out?

Tom Lugo – Learn as much about the business side as you can; being educated in these matters will help you avoid issues later in your career. Don’t focus on money, celebrity, or immediate success. If you do, you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Music is what is there for you when everything else fails, when things go right, it’s the spark to life. There’s a quote by Bernard Shaw that summarizes it all: “Music is its own reward.”

TM – What was your inspiration behind your latest release ‘Standing In The Shadow Of Your Ghost’? Could you briefly describe the music-making process?

Tom Lugo – The album is about dealing with the aftermath of long term relationship coming to an end, dealing with the sense of loss, the despair of an uncertain future, and the sense of hope. For this album I wrote the primary ideas on bass and then jammed them with Bob Forman on drums. Once we had a general idea of how we wanted the songs to sound like I took the song skeletons to my home studio. I then I laid the guitars and recorded the vocals. The mix down and mastering was the process that took me the longest.



TM – How has your music evolved since you first began playing music together? When and where did it all start for you?

Tom Lugo – We are more structured now than we were when we started almost 20 years ago. In the initial stages we developed most of our songs from jams we had done not necessarily focused on the song structure per se. Now we are more mindful of the song structure and the melodies. Our sounds continues to evolve with every new album, sometimes it work and sometimes it doesn’t, but we continue to push ourselves to do better than we have done before.

TM – I understand you also have your own record label ‘Patetico Recordings’ where you’ve released your own work amongst many other artists from all over the world. Can you briefly go into this venture?

Tom Lugo – Patetico Recordings started as a vanity label to release my own music. As the years went on I decided to help out other artists in different parts of the world and serve platform for them to get more visibility. I used a similar model to what I had done with the Popnoise Festivals, which primary focus was the exposure of the participating bands to a varied audience. Lately the label’s focus has been releasing disaster relief compilations to benefit victims of natural disasters around the world which include “Rock Back for Japan”, “Rock Back Animal Rescue”, “Rock Back for Ecuador”, “Rock Back for Nepal”, and we are about to release “Rock Back: Stronger than the storm” that will benefit those affected by Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Maria, and the earthquakes in Mexico.

TM – Is there anything else that you would like to share that I may have missed?

Tom Lugo – I will have another Panophonic (my solo project) full length album released in October and it will be titled “Endlessly”. I have released two singles and the reception has been positive thus far.

Again, I would like to thank you for kindness and the interview. I wish you and your readers success, happiness, and inner peace.



All photos and album art by Tom Lugo

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Lupe Fiasco's Martial Arts TV Series Scores Asian Distribution Deal
7:18 AM PST 12/7/2017 by Patrick Brzeski


Studio SV
Lupe Fiasco

The Grammy winner's debut docuseries 'Beat n Path' follows him as he explores his twin passions of kung fu and hip hop on a cross-country tour of China.

Hip-hop star Lupe Fiasco's music and martial arts docuseries Beat n Path has been picked up for primetime broadcast in Asia by Celestial Tiger Entertainment.

CTE will air the show on its entertainment channel, KIX, which covers Southeast Asia and Hong Kong, beginning in March 2018. KIX caters to action fans with a programming mix including combat sports, blockbuster action movies, action TV series and edgy reality shows.

Beat n Path should be right at home on the channel. The show follows Fiasco as he drops everything to embark on a cross-cultural journey across China, pursuing his passion for martial arts by practicing with kung fu masters throughout the Middle Kingdom, while also taking the opportunity to dig into China’s emerging hip-hop scene.

"Beat n Path is a unique Asia-centric journey and story that we feel can strongly connect with a wide audience," Fiasco said in a statement. "The CTE and KIX team have outlined a masterful marketing and distribution plan that will allow the series to perform very well throughout Asia."

Beat n Path is the first show from Studio SV, a new Los Angeles- and Hong Kong-based content studio co-founded by Fiasco and Hong Kong entrepreneur Bonnie Chan Woo in October. The partners say the venture will seek to produce other high-end TV programming, digital content and films for an international audience, with an emphasis on projects that are edgy, disruptive and consistent with Fiasco's hip-hop persona.

“The Celestial Tiger team have a keen understanding of the audience that will love this series and are astute at reaching them in unique ways, resulting in great connectivity with viewers and a mutually beneficial relationship for our companies," Woo said of the CTE deal. "They have been down this road before, and hit home runs with many programs so we’re excited that ‘Beat n Path’ is in their fold.”

Forgive my naivete about hip hop (sad, I know, because I moonlight working in the music world), but I don't know Lupe Fiasco. Anyone into him?

thread: Beat n Path
thread: Kung-Fu Music

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Music or martial art? READ KUNG FU – The Band, Not the Martial Art by Gene Ching

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Drunken Kung Fu blends rock, hip-hop, reggae into unique sound
Corina Gutierrez • February 19, 2018 • Leave a Comment


Photo courtesy of Holly E. Renfro - H.E.R. Photography

From left, Sam Phelps, Jacob Gleason, and Matt Klee make up Drunken Kung Fu. The trio will return to Sac State Feb. 21.

Drunken Kung Fu, an “Afro-beat funk” trio, will be playing a free show at noon on Feb. 21 in the Redwood Room of The University Union.

The Sacramento-based band consists of three members: Jacob Gleason on guitar and saxophone, Sam Phelps on vocals and keys and Matt Klee, the drummer. It has played gigs as far as San Francisco, Las Vegas and Portland.

“We’ve always appreciated the support of Sac State,” Gleason said.

Having played on campus a handful of times before, he said the band is looking forward to coming back.



“There was a time I applied to Sac State but I didn’t have the foreign language requirement so they didn’t take me,” Gleason laughed.

The three met around 2009 while playing for other bands and have tried to develop a unique sound. While Drunken Kung Fu was nominated this year for a reggae Sammie (Sacramento Area Music Award), Gleason said that he doesn’t necessarily see the band as reggae.

“We keep things funky and danceable; we weave in and out of different genres: hip-hop, reggae, jam, classic rock, ’90s music — there’s a lot of different influences at play,” Gleason said. “We’re all jazz musicians so there’s a jazz overtone plus a rock ‘n’ roll rawness to how we play. We make big sound with three people.”

Because of their eclectic style, the dynamics between the three band members are often in flux and they are forced to improvise and make alterations on the fly.

As the lead singer, Phelps said he writes a lot of the music.

“I’ll bring a song to the table as a Sam Phelps song,” he said. “We’ll hash it out and turn it into a Drunken Kung Fu song.”

Phelps said everyone in the band has an equal say and the chemistry between the three is unique.

“There’s moments in our sets that are structured and moments of just jamming and looking at each other like, ‘This is awesome,’ ” Gleason said. “It’s a lot of fun to play with these guys; they’re not just always lost in their instruments like some bands can be.”

Leaving space for improvisation during their performances allows for the creativity to flow, Phelps said.

“We want to take people to a higher place with the energy; you can feel it in the room and just like, ravage and lift off,” Phelps said. “It’s always a risk, doesn’t always take off, but that’s our goal — that’s what it’s all about.”

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Sacramento-based funk band Drunken Kung Fu grooves in the University Union.

10:36 AM - Sep 6, 2017
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Even though Drunken Kung Fu typically identifies as an “Afro-beat” band, the trio incorporates many other styles and genres into their music.

“I think the music defies racial boundaries,” Gleason said in response to an inquiry about negative responses from crowds considering the group is an Afro-beat band with no people of color. “I don’t think any person should limit what they listen to or play based on the color of their skin.”

Gleason said the band talks about serious topics in some of their songs, such as politics and war.

“There is a heavy, revolutionary commentary on the political stuff going on,” Gleason said. “Overall, we take opposition on war; I consider myself a conscientious objector of war.”

Looking toward the future, Drunken Kung Fu has some new songs it plans to release soon as well as shows lined up for later in the year.

“We’re currently working on a new record, we have a bunch of festivals lined up this summer,” Gleason said. “We test things out and see how the audience reacts — what it comes down to is how to make the audience dance. Hopefully people feel inspired to dance it out and feel free.”

A Cali reggae jam band named Drunken Kung Fu? How is it that I don't know these guys?

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Rob-Nasty Rocker
ENTER THE DRAGON 2: Revenge of the B-Boy Break



"Theme For Enter The Dragon" written by Lalo Schifrin
Recorded on Bandhub.com
Mixed by Robert Creer

Rob Nasty Rocker (Bass Guitar)
Tony Hearn (Guitar/Keyboards)
Darryl Oriold (Trumpet)
Robert Rothbard (Percussion)
Bobby Breaks (Drums/Percussion)

Great fodder for my talk at RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom - Oakland Museum, on June 30 2018

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THREADS
Kung-Fu Music
The **** Legend of Kung Fu Kenny by Kendrick Lamar

I'm scheduled to work Kendrick Lamar's show this week.