Yellow Sox: "Flim Flam" 12" single

Nice job by Diesel on this mid-tempo, very X-Press 2 stylee, funky bassline guitar dub builder. Great for an early set selection as exemplified by Scotland's Justin Robertson amongst others (aka "Lionrock"). Mix 2 takes a more wah-wah guitar route similar to Hustlers Convention or maybe Outrage. Flanging synth chord stabs end up giving it a more melancholy feel though.

On the flipside, the Original mix presents a much more disco-influenced, cheery, almost bouncy house guitar builder. Even this, though, promises more in the build-up than it delivers in the crescendo, despite it being probably the best mix on the disc. Good for a set starter record, but not one to dwell too long with. Bonus beats at the end are good for fun.

Label:	Nuphonic
Catalog#:	NUX 109
Format:	Vinyl, 12"
Country:	UK
Released:	15 Apr 1996
Genre:	Electronic
Style:	Deep House
Credits:	Arranged By, Producer, Written-By - Diesel Artwork By [Design] - Paul Allen , Tom Hingston Engineer - Ben Mitchell (tracks: A2 to B2) , James Brown (3) Guitar - Wilkingswood (tracks: A2 to B2) Mastered By - Paul Solomons
Notes:	Engineered at State 51 Studios. Mastered at Porkys Mastering.
Rating:	4.3/5 (63 votes)
Submitted by:	tom

Tracklisting:

A1		Flim Flam (8:17)
A2		Flim Flam (Faze Beats by Faze Action) (3:30)
		Remix - Faze Action
B1		Flim Flam (Faze Action Live Guitar Dub) (6:39)
		Remix - Faze Action
B2		Flim Flam (Faze Action Mix #2) (6:24)
		Remix - Faze Action

Divine inspiration for green homeowners and first-time homebuyers

Paul Daly is best-known as the home improvement hunk from W Network’s Divine Design and will be the main attraction of the Canadian Home Workshop Show in Toronto next March. However, he is also an integral part of the Canadian Home Energy Conservation Council (CHECC) Advisory Board, a body established by EnWise Power Solutions to provide Canadians with advice on environmentally-friendly home improvements.

We interviewed Paul during his busy filming schedule to give Ontarians the inside track on what to prioritize when greening your home or looking for a new one.

NC: Regarding energy inefficiency, what’s the worst case you’ve seen?
PD: “I have many horror stories. The worst was a home with windows so old that they rippled in the wind. The house only had a wood-burning fire, so the temperature in the winter was almost the same inside as out. We raised the indoor temperature by 20 degrees by simply upgrading the doors and plastic-wrapping the windows. For me, this is the big thing about EnWise – if you don’t know where to begin then in under an hour of auditing, they can advise what to do that’ll make an immediate difference to your home, and your pocket. They’ll get the work done for you too, which removes a lot of hassle.”

NC: Thanks to the Australian and BC governments people tend to think about low-energy, CFC light bulbs as a first environmental step, but does it end there when it comes to lighting?
PD: “Badly-planned lighting is one of those mistakes that affect any size home. If everyone in Canada switched just one bulb in their home to a compact fluorescent one, Canada would save over $73 million in energy costs that year alone! Before they install light fixtures homeowners should also consider how many, and what kind they really need. Some places have three times the quantity of lights they need. In addition homeowners should follow my simple rules: 1. Use dimmer switches where you can so you’re not maxing-out your electricity bill every time you switch on. 2. Check the voltage – you probably don’t need as much as you think. 3. When positioning lights, keep them at least 16 inches from the walls and 12 inches away from TV cabinets or other light sources. This will make sure light bounces back into the room, make it more even, and stop any from being wasted.”

NC: What would you recommend first-time homeowners and prospective buyers check to ensure their homes are energy-efficient?
PD: “You’re fairly safe with a new home but with older ones head down to the basement. Check that the walls are finished and insulated rather than just exposed concrete, which leaks heat like a sieve. Also check that the rest of the walls and the roof are properly insulated, preferably with blown insulation. If it’s wintertime then check the outside walls and the roof of the house; if there’s any melt, it means heat is escaping. Remember though, when it comes to home improvements, don’t start any projects you can’t finish. Or make it easy on yourself and contact EnWise.”

Word count 524.

You watched ‘An Inconvenient Truth’. You changed your light bulbs. Now what?

Tired of being told to go green but not being told how? Phil Winters understands. He is one of two conscientious entrepreneurs at the heart of EnWise Power Solutions, a company created to help foster a culture of energy conservation. EnWise provides a one-stop-shop for Ontario homeowners to protect the environment, reduce home energy bills, collect government administered energy-saving rebates, and improve the value, comfort, and re-sale of their home. EnWise offers homeowners the following energy conservation tips as a good start towards reducing their ecological footprint:

Tip #1: “To make one change that’ll cause a big reduction in the quantity of energy you consume, proceed directly to your furnace,” explains Winters, president. “More energy is consumed in the average home by heating and cooling than anything else – 44 per cent to be exact – with the next largest being a 30 per cent combination of lighting, cooking, and all other appliances.”

Tip# 2: Still got that under-utilized, clunky ‘beer fridge’ in the games room? Is your cottage kitchen dominated by a wheezy, old 1970s Coldspot? It’s time to let it go. Replacing a fridge bought before 1997 with an Energy Star-approved model could save you $120 per year, and $150 or more if it’s older than that.

Tip #3: Are you missing a basketball? No need to check the roof of the garage – hypothetically, it could have disappeared through the wall of an average Canadian home. Make sure that all your weather stripping and caulking around doors and windows is properly applied – if not, then the combined holes and gaps could add up to form a hole in your wall the size of a basketball, and you could be paying 25 per cent more on your heating bills than you need to.

EnWise offers more energy conservation tips on the web at www.enwisepower.com or call 1-888-8-BE-WISE.

Word count 318.

Ask not what your planet can do for you…

Even before the summer heat wave arrived the environment was in the media again. In June, Premier Dalton McGuinty subsidized the automotive industry with $650 million to investigate green cars. Around the same time, Mayor David Miller spruced up his plans – pun intended – for a greener Toronto, and all Ontario schools received a free copy of Al Gore’s hard-hitting documentary ‘An Inconvenient Truth’. A short time later, the Ontario government announced its commitment to match the federal government’s energy-saving rebate program, making homeowners eligible for up to $10,000 for their home efficiency efforts. This was an appealing incentive for Ontarians who were being challenged to meet McGuinty’s ambitious 2020 environmental targets, which require a 30 per cent improvement in efficiency. Clearly, there was the political will, but the way remained a mystery,

Ontarians were taking a keen interest to increase their knowledge around environmental issues. More importantly, they were also taking action by incorporating reusable canvas bags into their shopping routines, replacing standard light bulbs with CFC light bulbs, cycling to work and more. But, even for the keenest of wannabe environmentalists there were no tangible solutions between Al Gore’s “ten things to do [to help stop global warming]” and high level dreams of wind turbines and solar farms.

Only the voice of an altruistic upstart Ontario company, EnWise Power Solutions, presented a solution that would not only educate southern Ontario homeowners, it would turn their education into action. Like similar companies, it offered a ‘home energy audit’ that demonstrated in just 60 minutes where and how energy was being wasted. However, only EnWise went beyond this by introducing a truly turnkey solution, offering homeowners best-in-class recommendations to counter energy inefficiencies, installed those solutions, and even provided financing if homeowners want to fast-track their environmentalism beyond their current means. Homeowners now have access to an easy and affordable solution which can also get them up to $10,000 in those government rebates – another reason why now, a season later, EnWise remains in the words of its CEO, Peter Hwang, “…the only company in Ontario providing a convenient solution to an inconvenient truth.”

Word count 360.

Panini: "Star" EP

A1 Beats mimicked from Donna Summer's 1970s/80s disco "I Feel Love" given a housey update with sharp string stabs and a wandering string melody. A dreamy, slightly urgent, quizzical progressive house track is the result.

A2 Emptier dubbier version given a breakbeat, truncated vocal sample but little else, and never quite seems to get going as a result.

B1 Fuller version with complete, although debatable, female vocal and piano highlights with stronger strings to support.

B2 Probably the best of all the other three into one track. Teasing, gradual build from the start uses flanged vocal loops rather than the whole lyric, strings are used almost as improv but there's enough balance between the Donna Summer bassline and a better, funkier beat. Mainly instrumental but a good, curious, toe-tapping house builder all in all.

Label:	Not On Label
Catalog#:	FRUG 4
Format:	Vinyl, 12"
Country:	?
Released:
Genre:	Electronic
Style:	House, Trance
Notes:
Rating:	3.0/5 (1 vote)
Submitted by:	elisel

Tracklisting:

A1		Untitled
A2		Untitled
B1		Untitled
B2		Untitled