About
Rhythm & Culture Music is a locally brewed record label that reflects Washington, DC’s eclectic influences and organic music scene. With a talented roster of local and international artists, the label strives to harness sounds from around the world and challenge conceptions of what is considered dance music: Tracks put out by the label can be enjoyed while driving down DC's Rock Creek Park or dancing into the late morning hours in a an energy-filled club. This artist owned-and-run label was created by Farid Nouri, resident DJ and one of the founders of Eighteenth Street Lounge and Red (a dance club in DC from 1997 to 2005), and Thomas Blondet, a DC staple of world-class deejaying. The label strives to invigorate today’s music community with sultry infusions of soulful and exotic melodies. Combining this concept with acclaimed productions, the label is poised to create a genre of its own.
PRESS
2008 THOMAS BLONDET : ECHO CHAMBER
Gonna close things out this month on a dubbed-out vibe with Thomas Blondet's Echo Chamber EP on Washington, DC's excellent Rhythm and Culture Records. A bit of everything on this one, from crisp house to sunny tropicalia electronico, but I keep coming back to "Echo Chamber" itself. With a big, bouncing beat, a rolling chat from Zeebo on the mic, and an expert blend of the digital and the acoustic, this cut packs a serious punch that belies its easy groove. It's the "Steel fist inna velvet glove" single of the month!
Peter Nicholson/XLR8R
2008 THOMAS BLONDET : ECHO CHAMBER Rhythm and Culture
DC's Rhythm & Culture label is back with their seventh release. This label's style can be likened to ESL with its classy, refined stilo that merges downtempo, dance, jazz, and worldly sounds. Like previous releases on the label, Thomas Blondet liberally mixes up the styles here, opening with the deep disco track "My Baby(1)," then going dropping the ragga-dance track "Echo Chamber(2)," followed by the latin beats track "Samba Soul(3)" and ending with the downtempo track "Walney Road(4)." Quality once again.
Turntable Lab
2008 THOMAS BLONDET : ECHO CHAMBER Rhythm and Culture
Thomas Blondet made a name for himself in the 90s club scene of Washington DC, and when you were out playing a range of sounds from house, downtempo, dub and hip hop, there was probably no better place to be. After all, this was a decade that kicked off into the thick of worldwide Rave and Trance culture. It saw the birth of Triphop and was the era of the "chillout" room. Grunge rock notwithstanding, electronic music ruled strong. All these things have given Thomas Blondet a solid education which he's definitely applied to his new EP Echo Chamber. Blondet's Echo Chamber EP starts off with some deep house beats that have been given a soft, disco edge and a title of "My Baby". The style might remind you of a few Scandinavian productions, but added to the crisp, clean sounds that embody Swedish or Norwegian dance music is a deep warmth. It's largely instrumental but has a looped vocal sample that adds to the persistent percussive flow. After that, the selection mixes up into a smooth, dub infected, downtempo groove that's also the title track "Echo Chamber". This one really taps into the DC downtempo sound of Thievery Corporation and is sure to take you back to Thievery's classic "Sounds From the Thievery Hi-Fi". In part, it's because this song features the vocals of Zeebo, who is well known for the work he does with Thievery Corporation. It's thick with bass and really nice mellow breaks, that are blanketed with Zeebo's trance inducing vocals and a variety of softened synth bleeps and vibes. Though you might expect a return to the deep house kicks at this point, Blondet switches it all around once again with a lush, Latin lounge rhythm called "Samba Soul". The beats will remind you of some Nicola Conte work, while the drifting synths will tap you straight into a kind of 60s mod futurism that will have you reaching for an egg-shaped plastic chair and a swank martini, so you can sink back and jump with the rhythm. Finishing out the EP is a track called "Walney Road". This one drops you straight into a fluffed out bed of synths that lead you right into some tough, slow beats. And I mean tough in a "straight to the pleasure center of your brain" kind of way. As the synth keys circulate you into hypnosis, it's an occasional sweeping synth ambiance that pulls you out just long enough to make you realize how beautiful it all sounds when it gives way to the clean keys and beats again. If I were a woman's hips, I couldn't just sit there motionless to this...I'd have to move it all around for sure. "Plush" is the word I'll use. Echo Chamber revives and freshens up a kind of classic downtempo sound that so many have tried, unsuccessfully, to capture. It's just the right blend of electronic and live sounds. This is the real rhythm.
Properly Chilled
2006 BROWNTEMPO : I AND ISIS Rhythm and Culture
Global-looking leftfield soul from Washington, D.C. Desmond Williams and Phil Brooks' Browntempo project returns with a lush, diverse three-tracker, from the horn-heavy jazz of the title track through "Road to Mamuka's" bossa-house, and onto the eastern vibes of "The Nightingale." Classy Stuff.
SH/URB
2006 FARID : MAIN INGREDIENT Rhythm and Culture
A washingtoni Rhythm & Culture kiadó legújabb kislemezén Farid foglal helyet, méghozzá Main Ingredient címmel. A címke vezetoi egyben a washingtoni éjszakák lovagjai is, hiszen küldetésüket teljesítve hétrol-hétre pumpálják a kiváló muzsikákat városszerte a klubok hangfalaiból. Farid új megjelenése a dubos lüktetésu Kashmire címu nótával indul, Thievery Corporation-t idézo profizmussal pakolja egymásra az indiai vokált, a lounge témát és a füstös atmoszférát. Side Car címmel futunk bele a második darabba, amely groove-os és bossa-s stílusával perdít ki a rossz hangulatunkból, vagy fokozza a jókedvünket. A harmadik szám a Sound Champions, melyben közremuködik egy kiváló MC is és ezzel egy kristálytiszta ragga-dub-ot prezentál a kedvencünkké vált Farid mester. A Winter Woman-nel záródik a lemez, mely egy vokál house darab; nem olyan ütos, mint az elozo három szám, de még ez is boven a léc felett teljesít. Mindent összevetve az utóbbi idok egyik legkeményebb lounge lemeze Faridnak ez a tizenkét inches fekete korongja, mellyel elérte, hogy az ESL kiadványok szintjén emlegetjük a kiváló producert.
Afrozsiraf
2006 KID GUSTO : MOVIN' ON Rhythm and Culture
A Rhythm & Culture kiadóhoz igazolt Kid Gusto új kislemezzel jelentkezik. Az amcsi címke lounge muzsikái közé pontosan passzol Gusto grooveos, dubos, downtempo világa. A Troubled Times-szal indító lemez kellemes bemelegítése a korongnak, noi vokálok, guruló lüktetésu ritmus és bensoséges hang hatja át. A Gange egy indiai dobokkal és hangszerekkel megpakolt elektronikus lounge nóta, vibráló keleti vokállal megfejelve. A címadó Movin' On darab tovább repíti a hallgatóját a megfoghatatlan lounge világ, csodás tájaira. Végül a Spy Bossa címu remek következik, mely kiugrik testvérei közül formás jazz-bossa stílusával, valamint elragadó hegedu betétjével. Igazán ízletes EP elso hallásra is, ráadásul többszöri hallgatásra egyre jobban belemerül az ember!
Afrozsiraf
2006 THOMAS BLONDET : EUROPEAN COASTER Rhythm and Culture
Sexy guitar and keys by the Shecter Brothers made this the hit of the night up at Vail, CO-the bunnies were hoppin' and the beats were tight.
Toph One/XLR8R
February 2006 FARID : MAIN INGREDIENT Rhythm and Culture
By now you have heard of Thievery Corporation? Well they often DJ at the Eigthteenth Street Lounge, which is owned by this producer Farid. In fact label founder and Eighteenth Street Lounge's longest running resident, following 2 releases on E.S.L. Music Farid comes with another serving of his dubby dance floor business. Indian vocals,dub style drums as well as elements of the classic dance flavour running through this EP. Also check fellow artists like Thomas Blondet (Dj Tom B.) and Kid Gusto creatinga buzz in and around Washington DC's nightlife. 4/5
Pathaan/DJMAG
January 2006 THOMAS BLONDET : EUROPEAN COASTER Rhythm and Culture
This fall, longtime 18th St. Lounge resident DJ Farid's Rhythm & Culture label finally reappeared like Gandalf after a 2004 (and most of 2005) hiatus. And much like Gandalf, while we're not sure why R&C went M.I.A., we're sure glad maestro Farid + company are back in bizness. Coming off solid singles from Kid Gusto (check the "Spy Bossa Cut" cut for an au natural, jazzed-up espionage jamboree) and Browntempo, the 7th and latest release is from DC house legend (and R&C cofounder) Thomas Blondet, a.k.a. DJ Tom B. "European Coaster" is a sexy lil' bossa nova chugalug with a pitter-pattering of latin piano that packs enough punch to not slip into lounge cheeseland, instead making it a dancefloor no-brainer. On the flip, "Dugi Otok" is of a similar vibe, but goes a bit more into deep house territory by sprucing up the bassline and letting loose the tweaks on the warm'n'fuzzy keyboard stabs for a nice late-nite sofa romp. Keep 'em coming, boys.
BL/ReUPMAG
May 2003 BROWNTEMPO : HOMAGE Rhythm and Culture
Eighteenth St. Lounge associate Desmond Williams and Avatars of Dub's Philip Brooks launch their DC-based Rhythm and Culture imprint with two smoking Latin jams. "Homage" runs a deadly downtempo rhythm under the salsa, while "Querida Vida" goes the percussive uptempo route with solid results. An auspicious debut.
