Mixtape Mondays: The Best Mixtapes of 2012

Words by DJ Theory—

Our regularly scheduled Mixtape Mondays program gets the hold this week to make room for a few of our top picks from the year in the reggae/dancehall/soca/tropical/bass mixtape department. In no particular order, here’s some of the mixes we’ve covered this year most likely to have turned you on to a new artist, helped you hold a morning meds before work, later got you busted at work, and then eventually soundtracked your house party or midweek cardio attempt. After covering another 150+ mixes this year, catch some of the magic all over again with these 10 essential rewinds from 2012.

Walshy Fire, Major Lazer Carnival Mix 2012: This year saw our very own Miami contributor and long-time Black Chiney Sound member Walshy Fire officially join the ranks of Major Lazer as its MC. Beyond hitting the road with Diplo and Jillionaire for a year’s worth of major festival events and tour dates, Walshy’s first official act with Major Lazer was this mix cooked up for this year’s Notting Hill Carnival, where Major Lazer have maintained a huge presence in recent years through its Red Bull Music Academy party (and which this year featured Sean Paul and Machel Montano, among otherts). This raw combination of high-energy dancehall, reggae, bashment, No Doubt, moombahton, electro, soca, Major Lazer remixes and more definitely got us (both those of us lucky enough to be there in London, and those who weren’t) hyped up and whining. Stream and download below, tracklist and info here.

Massiv Mix Vol. 1, Jillionaire Sucks: In between skating around the world with Major Lazer, our Trini representative/contributor Jillionaire cooked up this mix last spring, the first up in a mix series with clothing line Massiv. Massiv give regular salutes to island culture through their designs and blog so it’s only fitting they rostered Trini Chris for this one. Despite the title and his approach to personal branding, Jillionaire actually doesn’t suck all that much. Doing what he does best, he blends wavy dance tunes with soca, dancehall, rap, moombahton—and whatever else he’s feeling—into a bubbling tropical bass melange. There’s also an edit toward the end of yours truly’s “Real Spenders” remix, flipped up with some motto verses and Machel Montano vibez.  Not mad at all… Stream and download below, tracklist here. While you’re at it grab this fresh soca mix from Massiv co-founder Dana Shayegan as well right here.

Assassin, River Stone Buss Dem Head: Our folks at Federation Sound linked us this mixtape from Kingston general Assassin (a.k.a Agent Sasco) at the start of this year and it’s one of those mixes that will live on for years. Each tune on this 63-track mix is voiced over Dave Kelly’s timeless Showtime riddim, so if the thought of the same riddim for close to an hour frightens you this one isn’t for you.  Mixed live in studio, this has the energy of a live show, with Dr. Dre of Renaissance at the controls, a heap of sound effects, and off-the-top murderation from Sasco and friends from the Boardhouse camp. This is straight 100% dancehall business right here, and a reminder for those who may have forgotten that Assassin is one of the baddest deejays in the world. As Federation put it, “How much Showtime riddim is too much? The answer is NOT 53 minutes… at least not when Assassin is delivering a pretty much non-stop barrage of lyrics from his extensive catalog of hits.” Peep the youtube for full effect, download here.

Federation Sound, Dub Box Vol 2: Respect to the Federation fam every time.. The East Coast dancehall rulers laced the world with another free peek into their highly destructive crates of acetates and exclusives this year. The first volume of this CD was on steady repeat when I got it maybe five years ago, and Vol. 2 is no different. This is definitely a unique tape, taking soundkilling dubs from the clash setting to the studio-mixed CD format (and of course blended in fine style from the man like Kenny Meez). If you’re a reggae or clash enthusiast you would only be shortchanging yourself not to download this and play it loudly. Idiot soundbwoys beware, this one might build yuh casket… Direct download the single track here, tracked mp3′s here. HAUL AND PULL UP.

Bonus: Last May marked Federation’s 250th weekly podcast (they’re at 281 now) and they recorded a special extended edition of the show to celebrate. Grab that 250 minute episode and a ton load more here.

Orange Hill Productions, Electro Bashy: Welcome to our Sound: Next up is a mix that gave us the first full taste of England’s Orange Hill Productions, a duo made up of Ras Kwame of BBC 1Xtra fame and producer Jnr. Tubby (a/k/a Dialtone), nephew of the late King Tubby. With their self-labeled “Electro Bashy” sound, they’ve developed a remedy for dancehall stagnancy by injecting it with growth hormones from the world of U.K. bass music, electro, Grime, U.K. funky, dubstep and more.

Kicking things off with their debut single “Wine De Best,” featuring a unique pairing of Busy Signal, grime vet Kano and hypeman extraordinaire Fatman Scoop (check the video here), the frenetic mix highlights Orange Hill singles from Vybz Kartel and Mr. Lexx and blazes through dubplates and remixes of hits by Beenie Man, Capleton, Kartel, Lady Saw, Tony Matterhorn, Stylo G and more. No ordinary remixes, though: Filtered through the “Electro Bashy” blender, tunes as familiar as “Dutty Wine” and Beenie’s “Dude” take on completely new, rave-friendly life. More than just a sampler, the frenetic and tightly mixed 45-minute session never lets up, standing out as a release on its own merit as well as a candidate for your next party soundtrack or cardio workout. Download here, or stream below.

Poirier, Sud-West Mix: Last June dancefloor murderer Poirier returned with another boomshot to welcome the return of his Sud-West party in Montreal with partner Ghostbeard. A potent blend of digital dancehall and roots lead off the mix, before moving into some modern dancehall and tunes from our own Natalie Storm, Konshens, Cham, Busy, Burro, Dreadsquad, frequent collaborator Face-T and a few other Montreal folks. Sprinkled in with some original and unreleased Poirier productions, this one goes down real easy. (Now I want an extra stout…) Stream and download below.

Frank The Butcher & DJ 7l, Shoot To Kill (via Stussy): This 90’s throwback gem from Boston heavyweights and cratedigger extraordinaires Frank The Butcher and DJ 7L, in conjunction with streetwear don dadas Stussy, belongs in your iWhatever immediately. Focusing strictly on hip hop-meets-reggae classics and blends, some of my personal favorites make their way onto this appropriately titled hour-long tour, featuring timeless joints from Johnny Osbourne, Buju, Louie Rankin, Screechy Dan, Capleton, Mega Banton, B.D.P, Smif N’ Wessun, Shabba, Supercat, plus some exclusive  7L remixes. Lace up the Timbs, dust off the camo jacket, grab a pack of Phillies and bang this now. Direct download here, more info and tracklist here.

Safari Sound, It Takes A Lot to Make A Classic Vol. 1: The always clean and criss Safari Sound (Shirkhan & Sammy K) are no strangers to this column, as they stay at the forefront of reggae and dancehall music and consistently deliver some of the finest mixtapes in the game. This mix marked a fresh collaboration with Reebok Classics, which in turn spawned an uber-limited t-shirt to compliment the music. In the spirit of the classics concept— as well as Jamaica’s 50th Independence celebration this year—Safari compiled 50 of their favorite reggae scorchers from the 70’s and early 80’s affirming that the crates, culture and inspiration run very deep. Salute to Safari every time. Stream and download below, tracklist and more info here.

The Heatwave, Five Million Rewinds: In honor of Jamaica celebrating its Independence this year, our own UK contributor Gabriel Heatwave cooked up this monumental commemorative mixtape. As one of top sound systems in the UK, Gabriel has been running mixtapes, raves and generally covering Caribbean culture on that side of the pond for a minute now. The Five Million Rewind mix is a journey through the biggest UK anthems to come out of Jamaica over the last 50 years, showcasing the massive extent to which Britain’s music has been influenced by JA, from the time of gaining its independence until the present. From Jimmy Cliff and Prince Buster to Stylo G and Sean Paul, this mixtape serves as a comprehensive and quick-mixed vibe of 50 years of JA raving in the UK, with full salute to JA’s Golden Jubilee. Stream and download below, tracklist and info here.

Major Lazer Presents: Chronixx x Walshy Fire, Start A Fire: We were juiced to premiere this mix from Chronixx recently, an artist little known a few months ago, and now the talk of many Jamaican and international reggae circles. Major Lazer picked him as the featured artist to launch their new “Major Lazer Presents” series of mixtapes spotlighting up-and-coming talent, spearheaded by Major Lazer MC and LargeUp family member, Walshy Fire, and he definitely did not disappoint. Start a Fire features Chronixx singing and deejaying over a variety of original and juggling riddims, classic reggae hip-hop instrumentals and Major Lazer productions like “Get Free” and Snoop Lion’s “La La La” (a/k/a Ken Boothe’s “Artibella”). It’s definitely a strong work that will be appreciated equally by Chronixx’s fans, and those just hearing him for the first time. Stream and download the mixtape below, and get the tracklist here. And remember where you heard it first!

BONUS MIX:
Hipsters Don’t Dance, World Carnival 3: Around London Carnival time, one of the tuffest working U.K. teams came back with the third installment of their aptly titled and 100% bubbling World Carnival mix. To hype their self-promoted carnival party debut with our folks Dre Skull and So Shifty the day before Notting Hill this year, the Hipsters Don’t Dance crew cut a thick slice of that live energy into this mix to set the tone proper. Leading off with Tifa’s “Champion Bubbler” on Dre Skull’s Kling Klang riddim, it got into tunes from this guy, Murlo, RDX, So Shifty and Walshy Fire’s killer “Bruk It Down” remix, Ghanaian-champs Sarkodie and R2Bees, and a lineup of classic and future forwards from all things Carnival. H.D.D combine bashment, dancehall, soca, azonto, grime, garage, funky and tropical heat from the Caribbean, Africa and U.K., distilling the essence of what feting is all about. Stream below, download here.