Triple Feature!

Today's post is considered a triple feature because it focuses on three things:

1. MSTRKRFT's Broken Crossfader Mix
2. My own (!) Buzz Cuts Mix
3. Hamdi's vinyl rip giveaway!

Rather than posting three times in the same day & confusing everyone, I have divided the post into these three sections.


Hamdi's vinyl rip giveaway!

Robbie Williams - Lovelight (Soulwax Remix)


For those of you who are unfamiliar with the UK pop icon, imagine an unappetizing cross between Britney Spears, Sting, & David Beckham, and you already know his discography without having even listened to him. Yet somehow he appeals to me. I don't like anything about him aside from his actual music.

Seeing as this Soulwax remix, is, however, 85% Soulwax & 15% Robbie, you don't have to like him to rave to these-

A1 Lovelight (Soulwax 'Ravelight' Vocal Mix)

B1 Lovelight (Soulwax 'Ravelight' Dub)

YET, to highlight the amount of tinkering on the part of the boys from Ghent, here's the original.

Thanks Hamdi!


Masters of the Universe

MSTRKRFT - Broken Crossfader Mix

After Much delay, I finally present to you the MSTRKRFT mix that I've been raving about (get it?). Unfortunately, though I have yet to find a proper Track Listing, I know about 1/4 of the songs- so feel free to hit me up if you have any requests. There is, however, one track that you're sure to recognize...

While many have compared MSTRKRFT, Justice, & Daft Punk in all possible permutations, I personally think that the true successor to Daft Punk doesn't exist. No, I don't say this in a there-will-never-be-another-Daft-Punk way, but rather, that you can find the true DP 2.0 somewhere between MSTRKRFT & Justice. Justice has the French aesthetic, work ethic (ie don't produce alot), & artsy-ness, but lacks the house roots to be critically acclaimed & accepted by house music forefathers. MSTRKRFT has the hit-making power, has weight in the electro world & house world, & are actual musicians, but lack the true innovation of Justice.

Anyways, without further ado-

The Broken Crossfader Mix.

and ME!
Buzz Cuts.

Is it better than MSTRKRFT's? Just Kidding. See 'lyrics' in iTunes for the tracklisting.

DJ Chinua - Buzz Cuts

Happy blogging y'all!

Hamdi & I Go to A1 Records!

The legendary NYC waterhole for DJs, producers, and music artists, A1 Records is the spot for anyone into vinyl. Truly a historical sight, many famous DJs & rappers have passed through here, particularly when they were not-so-famous. For a record store of such monumental significance, A1 Records is actually small. Nevertheless, I was impressed by the amount of quality records for sale. A1 Records sells used records, and not much else, so if in search of new records, this is not the place. Otherwise, merely looking at the ceiling is a history lesson:


This is A1 Records

10 songs that made me go house

What Happened.


I went to Spain to study abroad for an entire school year, that's what happened. In my young, angsty fervor to absorb as much Spanish culture as possible (which meant avoiding all things American), I widened my horizons. It was in Spain where I started my transformation, where I went from listening to whatever the radio belched at me to an audiophile & decent DJ. But what actually happened?

Did I go to some awesome eighteen-hour rave in the arid outskirts of Madrid? No. Did I find the unifying powers of house music while on ecstasy in the back of a sketchy Barcelona club? I'm sure half of my classmates did. Did I lose all my socio-aesthetic inhibitions while dancing knee-deep off the coast of Ibiza? Pending.

It was MTV. MTV España was what started it all. I watched MTV while in Spain, using it's quirky electronic music videos as a compass to Spanish and European hipness. Accepting MTV España meant rejecting USA's (read: culture) MTV, so I was all for it.

And so, plopped in front of my host family's television when no one else was watching (i.e. after the La Liga match), I slowly became infected with the house virus.


The Songs.


10. Benny Benassi - Satisfaction

You have to start somewhere. This was a starting point for alot of young Stateside househeads. Although today I pretend to stay clear from loud, commercial stuff like this, I still listen to 'Illusion,' 'Every Single Day,' and 'Rocket in the Sky' every once in a while- good music is good music.


9-7. Mylo - In My Arms/Daft Punk - Technologic/Armand Van Helden - My My My

In house music videos, the 3 main approaches that the directors take are:

1. A short story with an 'intriguing' twist that you'll only pick up on if you're paying attention so that the song isn't important in case it sucks (In My Arms).
   
2. Wierd, pointless crap that's supposed to make hip people feel all warm and 'postmodern' inside (Technologic).
3. Completely OD-ing on sex (My My My).
   

6. Alter Ego - Rocker

What happens when you combine all three?


5. Erasure - Don't Say You Love Me

The first time I saw it was with the volume almost mute, so you could understand how I thought it sucked. The video resembles a slow-motion Lego Star Wars video game, except uglier. When I heard it again though, that blasted chorus got me. I still don't like the song too much, and it isn't actually dance music, either. All it proved to me was that I was getting into electronicky stuff.


4. Mylo - Drop the Pressure

Honestly, honestly, honestly, this song hit me from nowhere. Somehow the bass line would end up on repeat in my head, and I spent a long time wondering what the song was. It was similar to one of those songs- the ones you hear on the radio growing up and you always completely ignored, but now you just disintegrate with excitement when you find out their names because they give you your nostalgia fix. Take that concept to the 5th power and you have the story of the hipster.


3. Reflekt ft. Delline Bass - Need to Feel Loved

I recall the very first time I saw this video. What really got me hooked was the clever combination of 1) the long, tear jerking strings at the chorus, and 2) the stunning Ibiza backdrop with the existential 'fast-forward' style cinematography. Yes, I get emotional if the song is right. Take those two elements out, though, and it's just another sappy Balearic song.


2. Eric Prydz - Call on Me

Finally, my generation of American high school and college kids had a song so high-powered, so corny, that dancing to it was the only way to show how ridiculously 'gay' this 'techno song' was. The last time this happened was during the Jock Jams phase. And alas, they weren't able to stop themselves before it was too late- they liked it, though secretly. The people mocked the song, and Eric went to the bank. I was in Spain at the time, and I was pleasantly surprised that people were listening to it when I returned.


1. Depeche Mode - Enjoy the Silence (Mike Shinoda Re-interpretation)

Liking Depeche Mode was most instrumental in my path to house-headedness, seeing as 2/3rds of all electronic dance music DJs grew up listening to them, and the remainder end up remixing them. It was weird- I downloaded more Depeche Mode songs, waiting to hate them, but it didn't quite happen. To date, Depeche Mode is my biggest guilty pleasure. How could I still claim my masculinity after liking David Gahan's deep, nasal, vocals & outrageously corny lyrics?


So ends my list. Of course, there were definitely other songs and other 'streams of influence,' but these videos were the launchpad. Maybe I have sparked your interest. Still curious? Start here.

Tha Non-80s Mixtape!

Welcome back!  This is a 40+ minute mix I crafted using primitive computer software.  The concept for this mix was to create an 80s mix sans songs that were actually produced in the 80s:

1. Jaimie Fanatic & Party Squad - Krush Groove
2. Justin Timberlake - Sexy Ladies
3. M.I.A. - Paper Planes (DFA Remix)
4. Snoop Dogg - Sexual Eruption
5. Kelis ft. Too Short - Bossy (Alan Braxe & Fred Falke Remix)
6. Michael Gray - Borderline (Neon Wave Vocal Mix)
7. Tiga - You Gonna Want Me
8. DJ Mehdi ft. Chromeo - I Am Somebody
9. Eric Prydz - Voices (Steve Angello Remix)
10. Eric Prydz - Call On Me 
11. Hollertronix - The Almighty Unruly Simon Joint
12. Kanye West ft. Dwele - Flashing Lights (Diplo Remix)
13. Justice - D.A.N.C.E. (Alan Braxe & Fred Falke Remix)
14. Gwen Stefani - Crash

True, it has Call On Me, but it also has the Diplo Remix of Flashing Lights, not to mention two, yes two Alan Braxe and Fred Falke Rerubs.  Did you know that they are officially no longer working together?  That means that those two tracks are practically history. Practically 80s.

Tha Non-80s Mixtape

Rocker

A song with alot of bells and whistles. And other noises. If you like organized noise for the sake of organized noise, then you should try groups like Blackstrobe, Alter Ego, Para One, Surkin, and Boys Noize (surely you wouldn't have guessed by their name).

My comments on 'Rocker.'

Alter Ego. “Rocker.” Rocker LP. Klang Elektronik, 2004.

Push Me.

Don't act like you don't know this one. It's still, production-wise, a marvel. If you put on your DJ ears, can hear what I'm talking about in my...

commentary on 'Satisfaction'.

Benny Benassi. “Satisfaction (Isak Original).” Satisfaction LP. ZYX, 2003.

Enjoy the Silence

Mike Shinoda did a good job of reinterpreting Enjoy the Silence. Although he made more rock-oriented, it still rests in its electronic roots.

My thought's on Enjoy the Silence (2004).


Depeche Mode. “Enjoy The Silence (Reinterpreted by Mike Shinoda).” Enjoy The Silence-04. Mute, 2004.