Getting to Know Garrett David
In which we get to know Garrett David, resident DJ at Queen! every Sunday at SmartBar. The twenty-two year old wunderkind has just released what may be the best slab of wax cut by...
In Residence with Uhuru Afrika, Boston
5 Magazine's residency spotlight features Adam Gibbons and Uhuru Afrika, the incredibly unique Boston club night deeply rooted in the music of Africa and the Diaspora.
"When someone walks in the door, I want them...
Harry Wolfman & Laurence Guy: The Lone Grazer EP
Having just heard the sad news that the brilliant Lost My Dog Records are to close their doors in 2015, I must confess that writing this review feels bittersweet to say the least. Young...
Listen to Mystic Bill’s Ferocious Throwback “U Won’t C Me”
Nothing sensitive or subtle about this one. Mystic Bill - the man who DJ'd for your favorite DJ's DJ - teams up with German label Snuff Trax for the forthcoming EP U Won't C...
Victor Simonelli: A 5 Mag Mix vol 15
One of the founding fathers of House Music, Garage and dance music, period! The legendary Victor Simonelli contributes a live mix to 5 Magazine ahead of headlining our 10 year anniversary this October 17...
How I Play: Joey Negro on the Culture and Craft of DJing
DJs today are confronted with an astonishing number of choices, from vinyl to digital media, controllers, mixers, and the unending stream of more music being released for consumption than at any time in history.
It's...
Derrick Carter and Chez Damier, Live at the Apple Store
In the 1990s, Derrick Carter and Chez Damier formed two of the most influential labels in music history, right here in Chicago. Twenty years later, they are celebrated at home and internationally as two...
Brawther: The Underground Is Alive
Years before I knew him, I heard about him - this guy from France who made these incredibly sensual and deep records that each found their way as the "secret weapon" in the bag...
Marshall Jefferson: The 5 Magazine Interview
Whether you remember him as Virgo, Hercules, On The House, Jungle Wonz, the producer for Ten City or simply Marshall Jefferson (website, discogs, facebook, myspace), he has been in the crates of DJs from...
Broadway and Wilson: Four Play Music Sessions vol 2
Welcome to the second installment of Four Play Sessions, a new monthly mix series from Chicago's Four Play Music and featuring the talents of Mr. Andrew Emil & Friends, exclusively for 5 Magazine.
Four Play...
Fred Everything Interview
FRED EVERYTHING might have a funny name, but there's a very good reason for it. He originally earned his moniker because he played "everything" in his live sets at events in his native Canada,...
Jenifa Mayanja and Dakini9: Heading Into Tomorrow/Polarity Shift (Sound Warrior)
Hakim Murphy turned me on to a ton of great records in the year he was writing for 5 Magazine. His review of Jenifa Mayanja's full length Walking In The Shadows LP was such...
Lee Mills – Hands Together (Fresh Meat Records)
I can mark time by Fresh Meat's records. I've written more about this label than any other, and the last five or six years has seen the beginning and end of relationships, friendships, personal...
Aiby and The Noise: Four Play Music Sessions vol 14
Four Play Sessions is a mix series from Chicago's Four Play Music and featuring the talents of Mr. Andrew Emil & Friends, published each month exclusively for 5 Magazine.
Curated by Andrew Emil, this month's...
Gene Farris: The 5 Magazine Interview
ONE OF THE MOST accomplished DJs and producers of House Music's "second wave" of the 1990s, Gene Farris picked up himself and his Farris Wheel Recordings imprint last October and returned to Chicago, the...
Theaster Gates’ New Art Space to Host Frankie Knuckles’ Record Collection
We heard about this earlier this year but the cat is out of the bag. ArtNews posted a story about Chicago artist Theaster Gates, who we'd been informed discretely was working with the late...
John Morales: The Return of the Disco Legend
In music, and especially in underground music, the word "legend" is thrown around to the point where it loses all meaning.
What is a legend? It's someone who broke the mold - someone whose sounds,...
Album Review: Retromigration brings jazz & house together on Straight Foxin’
Retromigration drops Straight Foxin' for Wolf Music, an organic-sounding, musically rich album full of jazz-flavoured club and club-adjacent jams.
Gari Romalis and Barce: The Web (Melodymathics)
Melodymathics is a new-ish label with a mission to "showcase newcomers" alongside established artists. Mission accomplished. I've heard at least four records from Gari Romalis this year, and though his EPs on Hizou and...
Lee Daley: New Mix Monday vol 192
Manchester house fanatic Lee Daley mixes volume 192 of New Mix Monday, 5 Magazine's weekly guest mix series.
Lee Daley's roots run deep in the storied Manchester music scene: from his early days playing local...
MUST READ!
Brutal layoffs at Bandcamp as new owner slashes 50% of staff
A week after promising to preserve many of the site's most beloved features, Bandcamp's new owner has gutted the company's staff. The writing team at Bandcamp Daily is reportedly down to just 3 people.
