The 45 Brains

It has been a week since my short trip across the bay. My lady Nelsa was in town for a short while  (it’s always too short) and last friday we visited Oakland. We were planning on getting an early dinner, checking out the scenery, and then heading down to Disco Volante to check out The 45 Sessions. Nothing but small records all night long. I really wanted to see DJ Platurn spin in addition to Enki and E Da Boss. I’ve been keeping my ears open and I knew I had to catch these cats at work. And to boot, two top-notch DJs and 45 afficianados, Skeme Richards and Supreme La Rock aka The Butta Bros., were making a guest appearance. As for dinner, Nelsa and I had ourselves some delicious vietnamese food. Unfortunately, I can’t remember the name of the restaurant. Definitely going there again though.

Me and my ever supportive lady

After dinner, we were headed over to Disco Volante. We were there way ahead schedule so we decided to take advantage of that by ordering a few drinks and relaxing. Really though, we couldn’t afford to be fashionably late because we had to catch the last BART train home to SF. Setup was still on-going but I had a chance to catch up with Skeme before people started streaming in. We talked a little about how different the Bay area scene is from the scene in our hometown of Philadelphia. And Skeme gave me some valuable insight and advice regarding collecting records.

Philly grown Sama and Skeme Richards

It was still early, but once Platurn got on the wheels the vibe instantly kicked in. I was watching from far away, taking mental notes and vibing out as much as I could. I especially did my best to pay extra attention to what Platurn and the rest of the DJs were physically doing while they were spinning and mentally jotting down any points I could make out about transitioning from one song to the next. A lot of DJs have different styles of mixing and scratching and I’m always trying to soak up as much as I can by watching intently. It’s like I learned: observation is the first step in the scientific method and it’s also one of the three fundamentals to reaching Sherlock Holmes status. On this trip, I learned a ton about using a fine touch to extend breaks by watching Enki rip it up.

But in addition to learning, I was there to have a good time with my lady. So I danced with her, did some tops when she went to the restroom, and at the end of the night I had gotten in one quick set. And one extra nice thing about this specific 45 Session was that Raashan Ahmad was releasing a limited edition clear LP. I saw Raashan with Crown City Rockers a while back at the Independent and it was a show not to have been missed. I have to support underground hip hop so of course I picked up the LP. Overall, a great night that got me inspired to rush home, put some albums on the tables, and hop back on the digging train. Can’t wait for the next Session.

I got some photos but you really have to check out the shots that Jose Lim took!

Sama Ahmed and Raashan Ahmad (Crown City Rockers)

"For What You've Lost"

Clear Edition