The Bag Messenger BlogBag Design and Urban Living

Tucker & Bloom recently caught up with Ed Blammo. We got a chance to ask him about the progression of his label “Blam City” and how he got to this point in his life.
Ed is hungry for sure ( the night of this interview he ate diner twice) and it shows in his work ethic.




How and when did you first get into records?

High school, maybe sophomore year. I was singing in this really terrible weirdo hardcore band but was slowly getting into rap stuff like wu-tang. One of my best friends, Terence, sold me a CD player that could pitch-bend and make loops. I had that and a belt drive record player, so I would loop up sections of songs and play hip hop acapellas over top, like Body Movin’ over Spin Doctors. Yikes right? I made an EP of my remixes and sold it to kids at my school, thought I was the man. I actually found a copy of it the other day. Wack attack for sure.  Anyway, after that I pieced together a real DJ setup. I was working room service at the holiday inn and this dude Adrian that I worked with sold me my first 1200 for cheap. I was so stoked. I eventually got another 1200 and a Vestax mixer, and me and Terence started rocking house parties. I’d also DJ between bands at indie rock shows and stuff like that. I played mostly all hip-hop, funk and downtempo, but when House of Jealous Lovers by the Rapture came out it kind of flipped the script for me, and from there I learned about house and disco backwards.  After that I moved to Philly, but that’s a whole other story.

What is Blam City, who is involved?

Blam City is the future of modern music. Nah, I’m just playing. Blam City is a record label that I started with my homies Josh and Aaron because we wanted to be able to show people how much good music is coming out of Philadelphia right now. Actually half of the label lives in South Korea and Japan, so Blam City is kind of a trans-continental music collective.  We operate on a very small scale, but we dream big.  It’s all about experimenting and trying new stuff. We do things one step at a time. If it works, we roll with it. If it doesn’t, whatever, we brush our shoulders off and try it again, try to stay frosty.

Any upcoming releases we can be looking forward to?

Our first record will be out in January. It’s an edit project I did with Josh from Blam City called Wicked Breaks. Its some funky 80s disco boogie type joints. There’s kind of a crazy story behind it.  Josh is a bike messenger, and one of his co-workers, who goes by Wicked Frame, that’s where the name comes from, was trying to hustle up some money by selling a couple boxes of records, so Josh hooked it up, and we went over to the Bike Line in Chinatown and picked up 3 crates for like 15 bucks or something.  People are forever trying to give us some corny old records, so I didn’t really pay it any mind, but Josh spent a couple days and listened to everything. Turns out Wicked Frame broke us off with some jams, so I did a bunch of cut and paste style edits of the records Josh picked out, and we chose 3 for the first release. They’re raw for sure, but I like stuff that’s a little dirty and messed up. 

What is the Sky Lab?


Damn. I don’t know how much I can talk about that one.  Basically, Skylab is whatever you need it to be. It’s a lounge, after hours party spot, spare bedroom, workshop, music studio, record label headquarters, and greenhouse all rolled into one. Tucker and Bloom even used it as an office for a few months over the summer (editors note* “thanks guys”).  It’s our home base. We just put in a disco ball, so, you know, we’re riding.

You have been busy these days, djing around, and making music. How does your day job mesh with your passion for music?


I love being busy, so balancing my jobs and DJing is actually a lot of fun.  I have a pretty nice schedule.  During the day, I teach at an after school program in west Philly.  I work with about 40-50 elementary school-aged kids.  We do all kinds of crazy stuff. Sports, computers, reading, art, science, math, acting, just about everything.  Kids have a way of putting everything into perspective, keeping your ego in check.  Like if I played a dope show the night before, and I roll into work feeling like the man, some kid will come up to me and be like “hey Mr. Ed, you’re head is a weird shape,” and I’m thinking “Word. Priorities. Stay focused dude.”  You got to keep it real around kids. They can see right through any type of fronting. They also keep me on my game, remind me that I’m not going to be DJing forever, and I should enjoy it as much as I can now, but also keep moving forward as an educator and a human being. That line of thinking applies to everything in my life, really. Do work, keep moving, and appreciate what you got.

Are you able to apply any of the same skills you learned from teaching when it comes to djing for a crowd? ( i.e lesson planning=set planning)


That’s a really good question actually. I was just thinking about this the other day, and I realized that I really do think about both in the same type of way.  When I plan lessons at work I usually come up with a solid outline of what I want the students to learn and how I’m going to make it happen. I don’t ever make anything too specific. If I see that the kids really latch on to something I’ll expand on that or if they’re not feeling it at all, then I’ll switch it up on the fly. I approach DJing the same way. I do a pretty decent amount of preparation beforehand, listen to a ton of records and think about how I want the crowd to react. Then I play around with different transitions to keep things interesting and to keep myself entertained. Same as in the classroom, if the crowd is vibing to a certain sound, I’ll keep it going. If people aren’t getting down, then I’ll change it up.  I’m not saying I’m schooling people in the club or anything; I’m just trying to rock with you.

When it comes to djing out what do you bring with you to gigs? (whats in the bag).


Man, I used to bring everything. 2 cd players, 2 turntables, 500 records, 40 CDs, a microphone, a drum machine, my buddy No Arms would bring costumes, I’d have a Panini press up in the booth. No, I’m only half serious about all that. I just recently made the switch from all vinyl to serato, so I bring that and my computer.  I still bring at least 20 records or so, just because. Sometimes I’ll rock a go-go bell, and I always bring a mic. Dam-Funk has been a big inspiration for me on that end. I love talking to the crowd and interacting with everybody, I’ll sing, whatever, its all good. 

What music are feeling when it comes to playing out?


I’ve definitely been on a west coast g-funk kick lately. I was born on the same day at Dr. Dre, so I think it’s in my astrology or something.  Basically anything with Nate Dogg on it, I’m into. I was actually looking for Nate Dogg t-shirts on ebay the other day.  A lot of the new disco stuff has been hitting pretty hard lately too. Crazy P, Classixx, Greg Wilson edits, and of course Dam-Funk. I’m working on a mix for Tucker & Bloom that’s going to have a bunch of that kind of stuff on it, so stay tuned.


Check out Ed Blammo at Recess 4th Saturdays @ Medusa Lounge

and at Kitchen Sink 1st Fridays @ The Dive Bar


Bring your records with you….or buy a few when your out.
Get the North to South messenger bag here

The Friday after Thanksgiving we do it again! Come through the Blue Bar to get your Hip-Hop Fix!
Tucker & Bloom will be giving away some t-shirts, some dj mixes, and a designer messenger bag.



Get the North to South messenger bag and keep your records close here

NEW YORK’S FINEST X LYRICS TO GO PRESENT:

“DJ extraordinaire Cosmo Baker (The Rub, NYC) and MC/Producer phenom 4th Pyramid (Toronto) jokingly came up with the concept of THE SHEEN BROTHERS one balmy Manhattan evening: A duo of slicked-out sleazestars tuned into the greasy funk and drippy disco sounds that make girls lose control and guys feel like macks hit the stage in style to turn the party out. Unbeknownst to them, the two hit on a virtual party rocking monster machine that’s no joke.

With Cosmo on the ones and twos and Pyramid on the MPD, these two have smoothed out their own brand of sexy dancefloor flavor, what they like to call Scumbag Funk, and the people want more. What can they say…it’s a Sheen thing.”

LIVE on THURSDAY NOVEMBER 19th:
PLAN B @ 339 E. 10th St. (Between A&B)
3 measly $‘s
11PM - 4AM

THE SHEEN BROTHERS - http://www.twitter.com/SheenBros
LYRICS TO GO - http://lyricstogo.net

Tucker & Bloom will be doing a drawing for a transit pass, and soaking up the funk. If you are in NYC be sure to check us out.



get the transit pass here

This Friday marks the return of The Kitchen Sink Party to The Dive Bar. If you are in Philly make sure to check it ou.
Last month the DJ’s played everything from Roots Reggae and Latin Funk to Rare Boogie, and House.



Check out the transit pass commuter bag here