http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9kosGdq4sY

I’ve been obsessed with t-shirts since high school. Memories of tee’s gone by read like a nostalgic photo album of close friends and family. From stripy rave tee’s to pictures of hip hop bands, from Acid Jazz branding to cool graffiti, from cryptic logos to gig listings, from lashings of fluro to morbid black, from retro sports tees to strange artworks, photos of friends (yes, believe it or not!), record labels, places I’d been, labels I’d loved, and finally to my own t-shirt line, my chest has borne it all.

It’s little wonder then I was excited to bear witness to the launch of FABNOB – set up by a good friend of mine from Melbourne, Rohan. Check out the site – a brand new home for tee’s – plus it features an interview with me!!! What more could you ask for? Read below, check it out, and wear a t-shirt. Lots of them!

In their own words:

“FABNOB is a new Australian online t-shirt / streetwear retailer that specialises in distinctive men's tees that are yet to penetrate Australia's mainstream. We stock a range of upfront labels including Local Celebrity, Deter, Freegums, and Glamour Kills. The FABNOB.com.au website also features a Fabulous Nobodies Blog exploring the digressions of the FABNOB Crew.”

And check out the interview here:

http://fabnob.com.au/blog/2009/03/keeping-it-fresh-the-kid-kenobi-interview

Yes, believe it or not, I have a t-shirt range out! Inspired by a ‘mutual vision, friendship, and commitment to producing something fresh’ the range was designed in conjunction with Sydney based label ‘Love Jungle’ who originally spotted me wearing one of their t’s at a gig at Chinese Laundry in Sydney. Aside from looking wicked - and being some of the best actual t’s to wear ever - they are also represent (visually) some of the things I’m involved with in my musical life: Klub Kids, Two Fresh, and myself (Kid Kenobi) among them.
Anyways, enough talk go check them out for yourself at lovejungle.com (http://lovejungle.com/store/index.php?_a=viewCat&catId=6) or the photo shoot here on myspace. And remember, the T’s are limited to 250 all up – that’s each only 50 of each so go get ‘em yo!

Smashing it in its native New Zealand (going Platinum) and now making its presence felt in OZ is the single 'Everything ' by P Money. Currently sitting at number 3 on the ARIA Club Charts in Australia are the club mixes of 'Everything' featuring our own Two Fresh mix. We're super happy with it, especially as we grew up listening to New Jack Swing and early R&B. We're also quite stoked as this was the quickest we've ever done a mix, turning it around in a couple of days. Anyways, have a listen and see what u think.
In other Two Fresh news we've had some awesome gigs in Brisbane, Canberra, and especially Perth recently so big respect to all who came down and supported our shit. WE LOVE YOU. It's been especially rewarding as 50% of our sets are currently composed of our own music. Speaking of which keep an ear out for our Tone Loc remix and a brand new original called 'Too Fresh' coming sooooon. How, when, and where will be a big surprise for 2009. Much goodness to look forward to in the fresh new year yall. Bo!

Well, not really. I was, however, asked to design a 'level' (with the aid of a programmer named James Carlton) for the new PS3 game 'Little Big Planet'. The game is based around a character named 'Sackboy'. With Sackboy as your guide you can either play the levels included with the game, design your own levels, or play levels designed by other people online. Indeed that's the strength and beauty of the game – you get to build your own worlds from scratch and then play them.
I've included a 'playthrough' of my level below. But in case you can't tell what's going on the story goes a little like this: my Sackboy is a DJ. He's innocently mixing at home (characterized by the big smiley face on his house) when some 'evil Aliens' from the planet 'Cheese' come to take his music (symbolized by a 'mixtape') back to their own world. In retaliation he hitches a ride with the Aliens to Heaven where God gives him a jet pack to get him up into outer space. From here he has to avoid asteroid belts, jump meteors, scale Jupiter, destroy the evil Aliens on their own soil (a planet looking like its made of Swiss cheese), rescue his music, and celebrate with a rave (with him DJing of course). Sackboy keeping it real!
The result was also visually quite cool. The 'materials' available to build the worlds in LBP are all quite 'craft-like' so there was a nice contrast between the 'space vibe' I was going for and the craft style materials used to build them e.g. planets made out of rough cotton, stars composed of hanging light bulbs, and meteors swinging from a string.
The game is out now and my level should be available to download and play soon alongside some of the other peeps who were asked to design them for the launch – Andrew G, Mike Hammond, Pia Miranda, and Giancarlo Mori among them. I will keep u posted. Vice magazine also dedicated an issue dedicated to the adventures of Sackboy, which is quite cool. I've put the Vice interview below as well as a 'playthrough' of my level. Hope you like! Rave on Sackboy!

    I gotta admit Myspace and I haven’t had much quality time of late. But it’s all been for the greater good. I’ve been a studio hermit most of this year and finally I’ve got a chance to post some brand new tunes on my page (and hopefully re-kindle my relationship with my Myspace in the process). There’s quite a bit of music actually - as well as two new side projects to introduce - so I’ve detailed each new tune with a bit of a spiel below. Hope you enjoy! Big love, Kid Kenobi

 

 

1. “Rackhunters (Two Fresh Remix)” – The Jump Off

This is the first remix of a brand new project I’ve started with my brother (DJ Hugga Thugg) called Two Fresh (check the Two Fresh blog). This remix was inspired by the lines “88 was acid… 92 the pills…” Yes, it’s back to early 90’s rave! It’s back to the exact music that inspired our love of dance music in the first place. Needless to say we went to town on this one: old school vocal samples, whistles, hardcore stabs and a big ravey breakdown all on somewhat of a fidget house tip! Hardcore will never die! This is out on Bam Bam Music and available through Beatport and all the usual suspects as of October 27^th.  Keep your eyes peeled for “I Love Rack” stickers and T’s!

 

 

2. “Party People (Kid Kenobi’s Back To Breaks Mix)” – Splitloop

Yes, as the title of the remix suggests it was back to breakbeat for this one! And a lot of fun it was too. This one should be out on Against The Grain worldwide soon.

 

 

3. “Peace & Love (Two Fresh Remix)” – Resin Dogs

Another Two Fresh remix. This time we’ve gone on a dub fidget tip. My brother and I grew up on reggae so we begged, borrowed, and stole many things to get the opportunity to remix this one. It features the vocal talents of the awesome Demolition Man (needless to say we just had to leave the whole vocal in!). Check the old school breakbeat cuts and siren stabs in there too - lots of fun. This remix should be out on Hydrofunk real soon. Sampology has also done a dope mix so make sure you check that as well.

 

 

4. “Thump (Kid Kenobi’s Kosmic Kids Remix)” – Bertie Blackman

Yep, the launch of yet another side project of mine: Kosmic Kids! Kosmic Kids is about my love of deeper music (those of you familiar with my Ministry CD’s will probably be familiar with the fact I always had one ‘club’ orientated CD and one for all my ‘deeper’ stuff). Kosmic Kids is an extension of that, with Kosmic Kids covering my deeper, slightly more experimental, and certainly more ‘musical’ auditory explorations. Indeed this split between club and dub goes right back to when I first started buying records: I’d buy three records for me, and two or three more experimental pieces of music for me just to kick back and bliss out to. Anyways this is a remix I’ve done for the incredibly talented Bertie Blackman. It’s my personal fave as all involved gave me free reign to do whatever the hell I wanted (and go as deep as I pleased in the process). Nothing beats pure creative freedom. And yes, it is a ‘journey’. This project is still in its infantile stages but keep your eyes open and ears peeled for more Kid Kenobi ‘Kosmic Kids’ mixes and a taste of something a little bit different in the not too distant future.

     Claiming top position in this weeks Top Friends chart is a brand new side project I’ve started with my brother (Hugga Thugg) called Two Fresh. We’ve just set up a brand new Myspace too so go check it (and some more super fresh tunes) at myspace.com/doublethefreshness. Get fresh yoll!

 

     “Two Fresh is about two brothers - Jesse Desenberg (aka Kid Kenobi) and Myles Desenberg (aka Hugga Thugg) - finally deciding to get off their ass and write some music together. Two Fresh is about cassette tapes and mock radio shows, it's about being teenagers at early 90's raves, it's about explaining to people what the fuck techno was, what the fuck a rave was, it's about hip hop and New Jack Swing and realizing there was more to music than rock and pop, it's about editing radio shows on a tape deck, it's about hearing 'The Power' by Snap for the first time, it's about wagging school to buy records, it's about falling asleep in the band rooms of their Dads gigs, it’s about acid jazz, DJ Shadow, trip hop, big beat, jungle, drum and bass, breakdancing (at family dinners), DJing, clubs, raves, festivals, main rooms, side rooms, bars, beakbeat, house, reggae, techno, funk and finally it's about putting it all back into their own music. Two Fresh: taking it back to where it all began for it all comes back again”.