Martin Flex is guest presentin’ on Join The Dots tonight (FBI 94.5 from 9pm) while I hang out with interview Ed Kuepper at the Basement.

The most reductive thing local record shops – though not the ones I visit – stick on their section heads has always been ‘world music’. It means nothing – it basically says the sum of music from Brasil, Serbia, Japan, South Africa and (maybe?) France and Germany is no more than a single western genre, say, indie rock.

Time for a new definition. And as usual, a travel-lagged Jace slash Rupture has the goods.

world music is music with truly global reach. Think U2, Beyonce. So, 50 Cent is one of my favorite world music artists right now.

With all those guys squashed in the world section, maybe there’ll be space to let the Australian indigenous cats out of the bag.

My last mix (for Radio Waves From Space) is diasporising. I know that’s not a real word, but I’ve been getting hits from edmsets.com and now Blentwell’s got it linked, which is amazing.

I’d better start thinking about the next installment.

Only 16 and a grime stalwart for three years already. Check the personal dynamics in studio towards the end…

Brutal’s on the airwaves, but the focus is very much on the MC edging his way towards the mic.

Next Australian election’s been announced; if only there was someone fighting to replace the incumbent. The only one with a bit of character – Bob Brown – has nowhere near the electoral traction needed, at this stage, but the conservative-green coalition model’s worked in Europe

Surry Hills Festival is on today. It’s never been the same since it moved from Crown Street – at Prince Alfred Park (next to Central Station) it’s barely Surry Hills in geography or vibe. It’s a bit of a mess too.

But the 2SER stand gets lots of great DJs involved. We soaked up some Sub Bass Snarl dubstep/”future dub” along with a crowd of Saturday afternoon reclining masses (and a disturbingly large hula hoop contingent).

“Not better than face-to-face contact; it’s only better than nothing” – Clay Shirky, NYU, in the NY Times.

Street press/fashion publisher Oyster mag and 3D World was sold to Destra for $1.75m and $0.5m equity – Destra also owns Central Station Records, Fashion TV and thescene.com.au, and is likely to push these mainly print titles further down the digital/broadcast path they’ve tentatively explored.

The founders, editorial staff and management team of these market-leading youth media mastheads will continue in their current roles.

destra will expand the distribution of 3D World, on a phased basis, as Australia’s national youth street press. We will also continue the expansion of international distribution for Oyster.

It’s another example of the broad consolidation in Australia’s street press scene – Street Press Australia (Drum Media/Inpress), Furst Media (Brag, Beat, Fashion Journal, Stu), Fairfax (XPress Perth) – responding to shifting record company promotional budgets and online incursions into the street press space.

I’ve written for 3D and Oyster, and it’ll be interesting to see where this takes them – especially as far as the writers go (once upon a time poorly paid freelancers could at least sell articles interstate). Equally interesting is the pressure this must place on other independents (Mess + Noise, inthemix.com.au, etc).

Dinosaur Jr – Crumble
J. Mascis – Everybody Lets Me Down
Thurston Moore – Wonderful Witches – Language Meanies (feat J Mascis)
Menstruation Sisters – Lemonia
Scott Horscroft Ensemble – 8 Guitars
Sun – Help Yerself
Robert Wyatt – Alifib
Talk Talk – After the Flood
Oren Ambarchi – Remedios the Beauty (edit)
Sun – Make It (Mapstation remix)
Jesus & Mary Chain – You’ve Been a Friend
Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions – Drop
Delays – Ride It On
The Cocteau Twins – Violaine
Massive Attack – Teardrop (feat Liz Frazer)
Elizabeth Frazer – At Last I Am Free

Sonic Youth is doing a compilation for Starbucks featuring SY covers from Marc Jacobs, Portia de Rossi and others, according to this Thurston Moore interview.

Well, the reason is because a global corporation called Universal Records can’t distribute our records to places where people actually go anymore.

I like the idea of Sonic Youth records being in a place where they’re not supposed to exist. And I think it’s funny that people have a problem with it. Going up against political correctness will always be a punk rock gesture.

SY’s always financed experimental records with major label/multinational love. But this is something different. Not just a multinational, but one that makes awful coffee.

There’s more to Sydney two-piece Sun than the languidly optimistic pop they’ve peddled over two albums in three times as many years.

Oren Ambarchi, drummer and guitarist extraordinaire – he’s also played with Fennesz, Pimmon and Sunn O))) as well as orchestrating the sadly missed What Is Music festival – is guesting on Join The Dots this Thursday night (FBI 94.5 from 9pm).