Sour... yea, the last month has left a little bit of a sour taste in my mouth. Don't get me wrong, I am grateful for so many positive things in my life that overall, I feel pretty good. However, the loss of an old friend and two family friends this month has been a little overwhelming.

That being said, I heard a lyric in a song in this month's downtempo podcast that yanked me right out my melancholy madness. To quote Matsi... "my cup isn't half full, it's overflowing." I think that is the perfect way to look at life. No matter how tough things might be for you at the moment, I think that it is important to look around you and see all of the wonderful things that you DO have and, to thank God for each and every one of them.

I think a lot of us have been overwhelmed by the darkness that tends to make its way in to our lives from time to time. As Americans, every time we turn on the TV lately, we seem to be reminded of it. A scary economy, a wild election year, loss of jobs, bad weather...WHATEVER... it seems to be everywhere.

In this month's downtempo podcast, I have really worked to put together a show with songs that just put a smile on my face... I hope it does the same for each of you. Take some time this weekend, say a prayer for someone that needs it, do something nice for a complete stranger, snuggle with the one that you love most (it's SO good for the soul,) read a book, take a nap, pour a drink, listen to some positive music, and hang out with friends and family. Enjoy a "Happy Hour for the Soul," be happy, and remember, from darkness... comes light.

This month's podcast is dedicated to Christopher "Casper" Venuti and the friends and family he leaves behind. I hope angels dig beatboxing as much as we did. I raise my glass of Vodka Soda with a Twist of Lemon... for you. ;)

Here is this month's tracklist...

01. Beatfanatic- Cookin (Funky 7 mix)
02. Mo' Horizons- Green Day (Alister Johnson Remix)
03. Sono Rhizmo'- My House
04. Matsi- Free
05. Poncho Sanchez- Watermelon Man (Dan the Automater Rmx)
06. Louie Austen & Senor Coconut - Reality (Senor Coconut Rmx)
07. Seu Jorge- Cuidar De Mim
08. Chairlift- Bruises
09. Flow Dynamics- Bossa for Bebo (Lack of Afro mix)
10. Lefties Soul Connection- Its your Thing- Hey Pocky a Way
11. Jamie Cullum- Frontin' (Live)
12. Jose James- The Dreamer
13. The Dynamics- Feel Like Making Love
14. Sonny J- Sonnrise

This Podcast is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License to support the interests of the original featured artists.

Are you a downtempo connoisseur? Check out related reviews, articles, and links at http://www.definitivedowntempo.com

Listen to previous episodes of the Chill with The Chola Podcast by visiting my ARCHIVE!

Hello everyone, I have a very exciting Special Guest Mix this month for your listening pleasure. Chris Lindsey from Slackline Radio was nice enough to put together a fantastic mix for the "Chill with the Chola" podcast entitled "Urban Sensibility". The mix is chock full of tasty hip hop influenced, "urban downtempo," and is almost a full hour of relaxing bliss.

If you are not familiar with Slackline Radio, well, then you have not been doing your downtempo homework now have you? :) Slackline Radio is an online radio station broadcasting all things downtempo from Anchorage, Alaska. Streaming music is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, so, you can get your downtempo fix any time that you feel the need. I visit this site almost daily and tune in for hours at a time. It is a perfect place to find new artists in the genres that I love so much.

On top of owning and operating an online radio station, Chris is also a contributing writer for Properly Chilled where he writes record reviews. If you are a downtempo artist, do yourself a favor and contact Chris. He is a super friendly guy who really loves the downtempo scene, and, he is respected the world over for his taste and opinion. If you are a "downtempo connoisseur," definitely check out Slackline Radio... you will not regret it!

You can find Chris Lindsey here...

http://www.slacklineradio.com
http://www.myspace.com/slacklineradio
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=5663333049

Here is the tracklist...

01. The Jazzual Suspects- Hotpot
02. Martian Tin Can- It's Lovely Here
03. Charlie Tate- Coh Chin
04. Dubomatic- Logical Dub
05. Jon Kennedy- 110% Proof
06. Legion of Green Men- Beyond the Borderless
07. Tripswitch- Tomahna
08. Kalabi- Revolver
09. T Spigot- Squelch
10. Nor Elle- These Strange Days
11. Blackfish- Delta

This Podcast is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License to support the interests of the original featured artists.

Are you a downtempo connoisseur? Check out related reviews, articles, and links at http://www.definitivedowntempo.com

Listen to previous episodes of the Chill with The Chola Podcast by visiting my ARCHIVE!

Soooo, this month I decided to put together a nice, relaxing, downtempo podcast featuring some fantastic new chillout tunes and artists. I have found myself a little on edge the last 3-4 weeks because I am in the middle of Hurricane Central (Florida.) I really needed some music to chill out too! :)

I started digging for music for this episode weeks ago and found a TON of chillout, downtempo, ambient, trip hop, acid jazz, etc. I played around with the set quite a bit and it was tough to scale down the episode to a manageable 70 minutes. If you are "in the know" than you may have already grabbed the extended mix of this month's podcast. If you have not found the extended mix, and would like to, head over to the show's Myspace page, read the BLOG, and grab the link.

I hope this month's episode leaves you feeling as chilled out as it left me. Enjoy!

Here is this month's tracklist...

01. Trifonic- Parks On Fire
02. Amun- Red Eyes
03. Dousk- Anagram
04. Urban Myth Club- Breathe
05. DJ Nyk- Amber
06. Bedroom Lullaby- Kisses In The Rain
07. Dezarate- La Noche
08. Oceanlab- On The Beach
09. Chillwalker- Blue
10. Carpatica- Space
11. Blackfish- Delta
12. Pretz- Chapel Stile
13. Collective Sound Members- A Touch Of Jazz

This Podcast is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License to support the interests of the original featured artists.

Are you a downtempo connoisseur? Check out related reviews, articles, and links at http://www.definitivedowntempo.com

Listen to previous episodes of the Chill with The Chola Podcast by visiting my ARCHIVE!

Well I am back after taking a month off from the podcast and have decided to post August's podcast a few days early. Thanks again to Datapusher for covering me last month.

This month's downtempo podcast was inspired in part by my girlfriend's upcoming move to downtown Orlando. She found a killer deal on a "deluxe apartment in the sky," and, she is looking forward to being in the heart of the city. I must say that I am pretty excited too! It will be fun to get reacquainted with the city after living in the burbs for so long. There is so much more to Orlando than "a mouse." I am looking forward to seeking out some of the great food, music, and atmosphere that this city has to offer. It has been too long.

This episode starts off with a couple of "trip hop" tunes and quickly gives way to some stylish chillout, samba, and bossanova... ah yes, the bossas are back! Enjoy. :)

Here is this month's tracklist...

01. Peter Bjorn & John- Young Folks
02. Trifonic- Sooner Or Later
03. Airstream One- Southern Light
04. Lenny Mac Dowell- Lauch Control
05. Bebo Best & The Super Lounge Orchestra- D'Jazzonga
06. Breakout- Planet Rock (Part 1)
07. Brazilian Love Affair Project- Aquas De Marco
08. Blackfish- Pacific Harbour
09. Malena- Fried Samba
10. Dios y Patria- Un Sueno Cumplido
11. Moca- Lounge Lizard
12. Joao Battista- Chega de Saudade
13. Stereo Action Unlimited- Lovelight
14. Jazzamor - Don't Think Twice (It's All Right)

This Podcast is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License to support the interests of the original featured artists.

Are you a downtempo connoisseur? Check out related reviews, articles, and links at http://www.definitivedowntempo.com

Listen to previous episodes of the Chill with The Chola Podcast by visiting my ARCHIVE!

Well it looks like Datapusher over at Trans:verse Records must have enjoyed slowing down the tempo on his decks for the "Chill With The Chola" podcast because he has sent over a sequel to his Dubventure downtempo mix! This works out perfect for me because I would have really been pushing things to try to get a new podcast out by the ninth. Keep your eyes open for a set mid month by "yours truly," I will try my best to deliver one to you. If not, I will see you next month. ;)

This month's downtempo podcast is the second installment of Datapusher's wildly popular "Dubventure." There was a huge response to the first episode and I am glad that Datapusher has decided to put together another mix for us. It is another hard-hitting, IDM/ Electronica, bass heavy, intelligent-glitch experiment in to the world below 130bpm's.

When I asked Datapusher to explain what he was shooting for with this set, he responded...

"I was shooting with a '12 gauge pump action' for bass heavy, mid tempo breaks tracks, bridging the gap between downtempo and bassline style breaks."

Well, I would say that he has certainly accomplished that!

This set reminds me of those "eyes-half-opened" after-parties spent in dark dens after a full night of clubbing. It is a moody journey in to the sofa surfing universe.

Somewhere between full blown breaks or house music, and, what we might consider "downtempo," there is an extremely intelligent sub-genre of music created almost exclusively for "the transition." This music is not quite the club music that you were dancing to earlier in the evening, or, the more acoustic sub-genres of downtempo/ chillout that you want to enjoy when you awake, have a beer, and start that BBQ on a Sunday. However, it certainly serves a distinct purpose and there are some amazing artists working in this realm.

This is a sub-genre of downtempo music that I hardly touch these days. Datapusher can still rock the dance floors, I stick to playing sets for the couches, dinners, and bedrooms. :)

Datapusher starts his set off with an extremely "busy" set of tracks and slowly moves you towards a calmer place. When the set ends, the stereo almost begs you to wake up, put on some bossa, nujazz, or funk, and, get that BBQ started. Great job Datapusher!

Enjoy,
Chola

Here is this month's tracklist...

01. Vibesquad - Dome Piece
02. Manitee Club - Someday (Lawgiverz Remix)
03.Vibesquad - Kaleidoscone
04. Dr. Toast - Logico
05. Mauxuam - Ulezak Snakebite
06. Good Budha - Party Reserve (Tipper Remix)
07. Amb - Theory
08. Heyoka - Glibidy Glob
09. Tipper - Noise Cannon
10. Next Level - Losted Self Purpose
11. Kilowatts - Deep Sea
12. 30Hz - Innocent
13. Tipper - Re Am Ing The Light
14. Dr. Toast - Piezochromism

As always, Datapusher can be heard live online every Thursday from 8pm-10pm Eastern on NuBreaks.com and he also produces a podcast at http://datapusher.podomatic.com.

This Podcast is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License to support the interests of the original featured artists.

Are you a downtempo connoisseur? Check out related reviews, articles, and links at http://www.definitivedowntempo.com

Listen to previous episodes of the Chill with The Chola Podcast by visiting my ARCHIVE!