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EDITOR'S NOTE | MAY 2023

West Coast Trip

Editor’s Note | May 2023

Growing up on the East Coast (New Jersey), and going into NYC from the late 1970’s through the early 2000’s I feel I got to see a lot of the world embraced throughout the five boroughs. A lot can be learned and appreciated through the food and song of other cultures, so why leave a place that has delightful morsels from those cultures? Some of the best of everything can be found in the Empire State.

It wasn’t until I met my wife, a Southern California native that trips to the West Coast became a major part of our world. Consistent thoughts on how great Los Angeles was but just couldn’t live there, or anywhere in California…no real reasoning, just old stubborn ways. Now I write to you from this part of town…

Shortly after arriving on the sunnier side of the U.S., I got a message from my pal the Philly jewel; Ursula Rucker singing It Never Rains (In Southern California) but insisting I listen to the Tony! Toni! Toné! version…not bad at all but is there a perfect song for the West Coast? 

My wife’s go-to was always, LL Cool J’s, Going Back To Cali but when I brought up this question, she promptly said I Love L.A. …Randy Newman…no question, settled and done.

And holé molé does California have a massive amount of record shops…..which after that ramble, brings me to where I should be, talking about the circular actions of Dust & Grooves.

Since last month, Mr. Paz and his good friend Camera have been trotting around out here snapping pics and meeting folks, they didn’t get the chance to link up with everyone on our wish list so another trip is already in the works.

As mentioned last month Paola Puente aka Double Peas was on the schedule, and turned out to be a treasure trove beyond our vinylist dreams…stay tuned for that! Melissa Dueñas aka Sonrisita shared some serious knowledge in the circular platter world highlighting her deep-dive documentary project on the East Side Story bootleg series.

We learned that Thes One collects a type of record that very few know about but will soon be revealed in the pages of Dust & Grooves Volume 2.

Dâm-Funk shared some of his audio riches and gifted us a pair of his famous shades.

A quick drive down the 710 where we hung out with Hector Waluyo of the Long Beach record shop, Twelves, this spot has really become a destination out here!

We got to sit down with an old pal from the music world, and founder of Wax Poetics; Andre Torres. This was a long time coming. 

Peanut Butter Wolf unlocked a storage facility for us, it was full of heavy cardboard cubes, lots of heavy cardboard cubes. Afterwards Eilon got to test the turntables out at Wolf’s Gold Line bar on Figueroa Street… have you been, were you there? Danny Holloway’s plastic discs proved to be just as legendary as the man himself. Rocio Wyldeflower Contreras transmitted her brilliance and grace beyond the radio dial that she’s normally heard on. 

Eothen “Egon” Alapatt of Now-Again Records and Rappcats has become a close friend since being in the first Dust & Grooves book 10+ years ago. He kindly opened his vault of treasures for one of the upcoming features…which you will have to get the new book for!

Daniela Zepeda aka DJ Xica Soul selected an earful of her favorite gems, that are sometimes heard across the California land in her sets. Jeremy Sole brings the term “world-class” to his gigs, radio shows and you will soon see in his record collection as well.  

Mayer Hawthorne has one of those peaceful voices that easily relaxes the static over the radio, what gentle records are in his collection? Adam Mansbach is known for slashing paper with sharp pens, a quick mind and author of best seller; Go the F*** to Sleep, we also got a glimpse at some precious circular sound slices! DJ Platurn, another old soul and friend, this íslenskur giant showed us around Napa Valley, revealed some of his favorite De La Soul twelves, and played some funk from the Land of Fire and Ice.

This marvelous couple of Fabian & Jess will be joining other married teams of serious collectors and curators, keep an eye out for them. 

You may have seen Majoo & Ruffy of Discodelic on recent posts, but witnessing the wall of 45s from all over the Latin world is something of a magical dream. Some of the hardest-to-find Latin psych and funk records ever. 

Elisse Locomotion and Jose Trujillo run the Caja Mágica radio show on KXSF broadcasting their love for rare grooves, psych and Latin soul. They schooled us on the vinyl collecting scene in the Bay and showcased some weighty goods. 

We also ventured down south to San Diego, spending a few good hours with Mark Cruz and his amazing collection of portables. Is there a new book project bubbling in here??

Finally, Robert Mr.Big Happy Garcia and his wife Erica filled our ears and hearts with a full day of 80s funk, drinks, homemade Molé and a roomful of their vinyl-collecting pals, perfect setting for all.

 

This was a full-packed trip with not nearly enough time, nor enough belly-filling nourishment from the multiple taco carts that were visited. Dust & Grooves will return, if you have a tip, you know what to do! Good day and goodnight! 

-Noah Zark

*Special thanks to Paola Puente, Oliver Wang, Peanut Butter Wolf, Jen Uman, Platurn, Egon for making this trip possible, hooking us up with awesome people and showing me around, hosting me and making sure all is well.

-Eilon

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