Mike Sheffield
Author
Alex Citrin
Illustrator
NYC-based DJ and electronic musician JX Cannon has been making some big splashes in the underground party circuit. His most recent Weed Farm EP perfectly mixes hip/hop, footwork, and house into a Dionysian orgy of sweat and ass shaking. In between his busy days and endless nights, the producer made us a playlist of a lot of the tracks he's been repping lately, from the “gender-problematizing goth dance” music of Bottoms to Atlanta-based weed enthusiast Young Thug.
1. Untitled Tarraxinha (Rabit Steel Ships Blend) - Supraman
2. Pilates - Donmonique
3. Dinamarca X Busy Signal - Jail (Gil Edit)
4. Sudanim X Missy Elliot - She's The Link (JX Edit)
5. Old English (DJ Tiga Remix) - Young Thug
6. Full Metal - Normaling
7. My Body - Bottoms
8. Connective (Miss Modular Remix) - Slam Skillet
9. Silver Cloak (Ase Manual Remix) - Drippin
10. TRU-Spec (JX Cannon Remix) - Mind Dynamics
11. Piston - Alfred English
12. Fissure - Partisan
13. Ecco (Vektroid Remix) - Magic Fades
We spoke to JX about getting his start, his favorite local acts, and why you might want to skip the diner after the club.
HOPES&FEARS: How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard it before?
JX CANNON: I'd probably just call it electronic music. The new EP is a pretty good reflection of my personality, which is to say a very high energy pot smoker.
H&F: What style of clothes do you tend to rep when DJing?
JX: I like to take my shirt off sometimes when it's hot.
H&F: What are the most clueless things people have said to you or asked you while you were DJing?
JX: There's still a lot of venue owners/party promoters who are very against hip hop, which is a frustrating/corny/backwards ass racist state of mind. Also, one time someone asked if "Partition" by Beyonce was my song. That was pretty weird.
H&F: What is your favorite place to play at in Brooklyn?
JX: Palisades! Big ups to Ariel, Rose, and Leeor for all the hard work they do.
H&F: Drink of choice?
JX: Modelo
H&F: What city do you want to play that you’ve never been to?
JX: Murfreesboro, TN. They have a real chill DIY house party scene. Outside of the US, I'd probably like to play Tokyo.
H&F: Who got you into DJing? Whether it was a record or a friend, who made you realize you wanted to DJ?
JX: I started DJing for Cakes Da Killa's live shows in the summer of 2012, it kinda just grew from there.
H&F: I heard you used to throw ragers. What were those like?
JX: First party I ever threw was Cakes and Ratking performing on a rooftop in Alphabet City. We were down the block from the precinct but somehow got away with it all night.
H&F: Who are your favorite undiscovered electronic acts, at the moment?
JX: The first release on my label Sweat Equity was EP 1 by Plebeian, who also mastered my EP. His song "Spokes" is sexy as fuck.
H&F: If you could go back in time five years, what would you tell yourself?
JX: That I'm not special and that I should work harder.
H&F: After the club, what is JX going to grab to eat?
JX: Ass.