Baltimore Club

How does one go from hating Baltimore club music to becoming the City Paper’s choice for Best Club Music Producer of 2010?  Just ask Murder Mark. As a hip-hopper from the jump, Murder Mark, aka Marquis Gasque, was more used to a certain type of flow and spoken word you normally hear in standard hip-hop.  Some of his favorites were Biggie, Lupe Fiasco, and Kanye West.  He appreciated their unique types of flow, whereas he thought the styling of Baltimore club was merely just noise.   Cut to a few years later when he took a challenge to produce Baltimore club and the rest was history.  Turns out he’s got a knack for creating something he never liked in the first place.   How ‘bout that?

But you can’t make great Baltimore club music without a vast understanding of it.  So after a doing ton of research ranging from just being in the scene, kickin’ it with true Baltimore club heads, and listening to an endless loop of 92Q Jams from DJs like K-Swift and K.W. Griff, Murder Mark turned his hatred into skill in no time.  Look at him now, ayy!
Tear Shit Up by AyoMurderMark1

He’s been praised for his old school-meets-new school mentality – more specifically, the way he uses a unique style of synths, almost like hyperactive techno at times, layered behind original, chopped and looped vocals, an old school element of Baltimore club that some producers have since replaced with Lil Jon loops. What inspired the City Paper to award Murder Mark the title of Best Producer of 2010 was his signature sound being “an absolutely horrifying buzz of synthesizers—like the sound of club’s youth scene attacked by bees—rubbing up against a surprisingly traditionalist sense of sample-chopping and looping.” Murder Mark knows what old school Baltimore club music should sound like, but this is 2011 and he also knows the movement needs to keep moving with the times.

His most notable release to date is his Party Starter EP, which features his original beats behind original vocals by Mike Mike and TT the Artist. Showcasing twelve songs of pure Baltimore club adrenaline, the Party Starter EP is just as it aspires to be – that one joint you play when you’re getting ready to go out, pre-gaming with your friends, or on your way to the club. With grimy, hyperactive tracks like “Cherry Hill and Down Ya Block” and“In My Hood”, it’s the perfect mix to play when you’re looking for the right energy to begin your night – an essential weekend jump-off.

In addition to creating club music on the regular, he’s also an innovator of Zoo On Mars Entertainment, or Z.O.M.E. for short, which is an artist’s collaboration between Murder Mark, TT the Artist, Mike-Mike, D.O.L.L.A.S., K.S., and Doug. Keep a look out for Z.O.M.E. as they’re promoting and booking various artists and gigs in the area. Also, Murder Mark is learning how to DJ so perhaps you’ll see him behind the decks a little sooner than you expected.

I had a chance to talk to Murder Mark recently. Here’s what he had to say about the state of Baltimore club, working with Mike Mike, and where you can find him when he’s not in the studio:

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King Tutt – Burnin Up by Unruly Records

Named Best Club Music Producer in 2007 by the City Paper’s annual Best of Baltimore competition, DJ King Tutt has been on the up and up ever since. Constantly pushing the boundaries of club music, electro-house music, and a fusion of the two, Tutt strives to never let his talents become stale.  A strong believer in quality of output, you can only expect the absolute best from his mixes and live performances.

If you’ve been into the Baltimore music scene for a while, you’ve at least gotta know Tutt for his tracks like “Shake My Ass”, “African Chant”, and “The Roof Is On Fire”.  Tutt’s been producing tracks since I was twelve years old and playin’ kickball at recess.  Okay, so I might be young, but he’s really been in the game so long that he’s become a respected Baltimore institution.  After “Shake My Ass” gained the approval of Baltimore club king Scottie B, Tutt became his go-to guy for productions.  Scottie B and Tutt quickly formed a dynamic duo and became an untouchable force as prominent DJs and producers for the events and releases of Unruly Records.

Tutt is all about testing his limits in the realm of music.  To hear a perfect example of his house/club music hybrid, check out his Evolution EP, released in 2008.  There are seven tracks on this EP, but two of them specifically stand out to me:  “The Future” and “Black Democrat”.  “The Future” touts this, well…, futuristic house music appeal while “Black Democrat” sounds like this epic, Baltimore club march.  Juxtaposing these two totally different vibes onEvolution says a lot about Tutt’s confidence in his skills as a DJ and producer.

Last month, he released his latest electro-house mix, Say Hello to the Bad Guy.  Nineteen tracks deep, Bad Guy quickly whisks you away to the sunniest of days with its upbeat melodies and steady grooves.  One listen to this mix and you’ll quickly find yourself in the right mindset for your evening outing or just coolin’ out at the crib.  Check my review of it here, but more importantly,download the mix and listen for yourself!  Trust me, you might need the energy for your weekend jumpoff.

If you wanna hear more of Tutt’s house mixes, why don’t you go catch him live and in action this weekend?  He’ll be playin’ some records at the Deep Sugarparty on Saturday at the Paradox in Baltimore.  Dude’s mad busy so don’t sleep on this chance to see him play!

But, I wanted to get to know Tutt a little better so I hit him up with a few questions for Cool Breezy.  I’m sharin’ the wealth!  Here he talks about Say Hello to the Bad Guy, the state of music in Baltimore, and what it takes to be a good producer.

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Aaron LaCrate did some amusing interviews lately. Check it out his video interview with dipdive over here, a readable interview at abaltimorelovething.com/blog and an interview with Milkcrate Records signee MRZ Streamz over here. Also listen to the radio rip below with LaCrate’s new discovery MDNR.

“ We don’t live in a soci­ety where… I mean even Hip-Hop’s orig­i­na­tors don’t get respect and that’s sad… A lot of those orig­i­na­tors did a huge ser­vice but for what­ever rea­son whether it was drugs or what­ever. It wasn’t as prof­itable as it is now. As far as B’more goes if you want to be con­sid­ered a pio­neer you have to be active. Any artis­tic field you have to be active.… because there’s a 19 year old kid who does it bet­ter than you who doesn’t give a fuck. Who doesn’t live in Bmore and will never go there. He’ll call it Philly Club it’s already happening.”

Brad Winter did an interview with Brick City Club hero DJ Tameil! Really interesting interview about the beginning of ‘Brick City Club Music’, producing, Chicago Juke, Antrax Records and some about the history of club music.

You can also listen to the interview via mp3! Thanks to Brad Winter who talked with Tameil on the 20th of June 2010!

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We did an interview with the beautiful Kellee Maize! Kellee Maize is a very talented girl from Pittsburgh who sings/raps over some Scottie B and King Tutt bmore beats! We did a little interview to introduce this girl to you! She also made a special page  where we can listen and download the tracks for free! kelleemaize.com/baltimoreclub

On the photo we see a good looking blond girl, in the music we hear some mix between Lady gaga, MIA and Uffy on some Baltimore club music. Who exactly is Kellee Maize?

That is quite a compliment. Thanks! I am an entrepreneur, mystic, activist, dancer, performer and obviously a rapper/singer/songwriter/poet. I am very into empowering females…..and men while in this process. I have a whole hard core world view about why it is important to empower women but I won’t get all crazy now, and it is hard to explain. (My first album would help a little

I am also very into quantum physics, creating your reality, questioning authority and staying positive despite what you find during the questioning. It’s hard but worth the try. I think we have a powerful force inside of each of us that can help transform the planet. The outside world reflects what is inside so we all have a responsibility to tune into the right frequency and add our positivity to the world as best we can. My music is the best vehicle I have found to do so and i feel like i was put here to do this I feel like everyone has a very important gift to offer the world…and I think this is my purpose.

That line specifically means I work with Unruly but I also mean that despite being around a lot of chaos, I am attempting to keep my mind clear, a vital part of transforming yourself so you can really be helpful….and the HARDEST THING for me to do! (not that unruly records is chaos but, the meaning of the word unruly…). I try to meditate as much as possible because my mind is always going. It gets easier everyday but, we are still human.

My connection to Unruly came through my company, Nakturnal. We have been helping with some events in Baltimore for the last few years, not many recently however. We helped get some sponsorship for the first My Crew Be Unruly (AMAZING PARTY!!) and I attended to help carry out the sponsorship. I met Shawn that night and gave him my first album. A month later I hit him up to see if he checked it out. He said he really wanted to help me but didn’t work with too many hip hop producers, since Age of Feminine doesn’t have any club or electronic beats. I said I wanted to rhyme over some bmore club. He asked why I didn’t tell him that sooner and the rest is history. I came to Bmore several times to build with Scottie and Tutt. I told them about all my crazy theories and they still gave me the music. I really love those guys! They let me use any tracks I wanted. Tutt and I plan to work on some new tracks soon.

You’re sharing the music for free? New business model?

Yes, that is the plan. I am just excited to let people hear the message and the music. I hope it makes people think, feel hopeful in their power and I wanna make people dance….very important. But, I want to do this full time so I have to create a revenue stream. I love performing, traveling and writing so I have been drawing from my own experience creating my company and working with a lot of close friends to formalize a plan to make it crack. We hope when people get it for free they like it and wanna support me in the future. I hope its a model that works quickly so I can eventually help other artists. I have always wanted Nak to have a label, that is an ultimate goal but I wanna do it like Ani and make music while I am helping other conscious artists.

Download and listen to the tracks