Finally Comcast came to our house yesterday to install internet. Well, I say that loosely. The tech spent three hours here and couldn’t even get our laptops to recognize the wireless router, so we were left to call Comcast directly after he left. Damn you Comcast *shakes fist*!
In celebration of having internet after almost two months in my new house, and thus being able to now post songs quickly and on a regular basis once again, I thought it was fitting to post this new DJ Kue remix that I found floating around in my inbox of Kanye West’s “Homecoming.”
I am FINALLY caught up with my emails, MySpace messages and voicemails (though I can’t account for my Facebook, I still leave that one kind of by the wayside). Mexico, Canada and California were all rockin over the past couple of weeks and I’m in the process of finalizing Las Vegas and Atlanta for the end of this month.
I have some choice photos from the trips, including the one above. That was from Tabasco, Mexico. Towards the end of my set, I saw a guy that was completely passed out on a couch so I started taking ice from my drink and chucking it at his head. Nothing. So I climbed down off stage, gave my camera to the promoter and told him to start snapping away as I stood over him. As I was laughing, I was told the passed out guy was part of Los Zetas - an armed criminal gang that operates as a hired army for the Gulf Cartel. If that was true or not I don’t know, but I booked it pretty soon afterwards.
And on to the tunes. People have been sending me lots of great stuff over the past couple of weeks, and I’m sure some other blogs have beaten me to the punch on a couple of these, but I’m posting them anyway because I love them. Things are relatively smooth here over the next two weeks so I should be able to update on a regular basis.
Every time Miscellaneous Chocolate sends me a track I feel like the quality of the tunes keeps getting better. “Fuckin’ Bitches” sounds like if DJ Funk decided to make electro. A nice basic ghetto vox sits in unpretentious synth work that, while uncomplicated, doesn’t sound simplistic.
Nadastrom pulls out another banger! I can’t stop listening to this remix - between the rolling drum patterns and the disgusting dark synths, this remix makes me want to get up and dance every time I press play.
When Dmerit first sent me some of their remixes, I was thrilled and asked them to keep me updated with all their new material. These two intrigue me. They are both high school teachers at a JROTC public charter school in Northeast DC. One teaches math while the other teaches remedial reading. Though it seems like they are very left brain/right brain, apparently the two intersect when it comes to musical tastes. Their newest is a remix of a song that is both their guilty pleasure and mine (gulp).
Pussycat Dolls: When I Grow Up (Dmerit Remix) Download
I just posted the BSBTRGDClub remix of Teen Wolf a couple posts ago and…good lord…they have another one ready to go! This one is called “Britney” and despite the title, is not yet another mediocre remix of “Break The Ice” or whatever tune it is she has at the moment. Take a listen, you might be surprised.
California’s Meterhead just sent over these two banging remixes featuring hip-hop’s finest. It’s nice to hear hip hop remixes that don’t sample the same old classics or go for the jugular of the latest top 100 on Billboard. Geez, it’s starting to look like Remix Sunday over here today.
Ultramagnetic MC: Poppa Large (Meterhead Mix) Download
Busta Rhymes: Get Down (Meterhead’s Westside Mix) Download
BONUS: Mash up of Day n’ Nite and Perculator by Shaman Koz Download
Sorry for the lack of updates. I just moved a couple weeks ago, and we have no internet in our new house until the 17th, which according to Comcast was the earliest they could come out (three weeks, really?)
I hate Comcast.
I have tons of goodies that have been piling up in my inbox as I struggle to live without internet (the horror!) and I should be able to pass them along to you tomorrow (along with some anecdotes from my travels over the past couple weeks)!
Sorry about the infrequent updates - it’s been mad. I was out in Cali last weekend playing Blow Up and Frisco Disco (much love for the Missingtoof crew), went home for two days and then I was off to Villahermosa, Mexico. I had a press conference this morning, a radio interview and then a talk show appearance…finally, some moments to myself.
Mexico is always a great place for me to play, both because I come here so frequently and the crowds are awesome, but my manager down here always has stories to tell me that he passes along so casually you would think he was reciting what he ate yesterday. For instance, the time he was eating what he thought was steak until he saw the fresh jaguar skin peeking out of the kitchen, or more bleakly, a story I heard in relation to the first time I came to Mexico. Five years ago I played in Cancun and one day, wanted to go see some ruins that were about two hours outside the city. The promoter asked his friend to take me - things were fine until the Federalis pulled us over. In short, they planted drugs in the car, held us ransom for $1,000 USD apiece (in cash on the spot of course), and the promoter eventually had to promise the cops some of the door money from the club that night. That wasn’t the crazy part. While sitting at dinner with the same promoter tonight, he said that friend was murdered a year after that day we all got arrested. He had thrown a party with someone in the Mexican mafia, they lost money, and weeks later, three men with machine guns came into the club he was working at, grabbed him by the hair and pulled him out. No one saw him again.
I never know what to say in these conversations.
I’ve taken lots of video of the trip, so I’ll put something together hopefully when I get home. I might not be able to update again over the rest of this week. I play Villahermosa tonight, Merida tomorrow, Cancun on Saturday and then Montreal on Sunday before going home. Oy. In the meantime, DJ Kue from Cali, one of my fave bootleggers of the moment, sent this Katy Perry remix for you all to enjoy.
Katy Perry: I Kissed a Girl (DJ Kue’s I Kissed a Squirrel Remix) Download
Because I can’t find your contact information on your site (it’s not listed) and I’m sure you’re going to read this:
STOP TAKING ALL THE SONGS I POST AND PUTTING THEM ON YOUR SITE WITHOUT EVEN HOSTING THEM YOURSELF OR GIVING CREDIT.
Bad etiquette. At least don’t be lazy about it and put them on your own server instead of using my direct links. While I can appreciate you love the songs here, a lot of us (bloggers) work very hard to develop relationships with these artists and build a readership.
Sorry I’ve been neglecting you guys, but I have a reason - I’ve been moving! We’ve bought a very cute house in a historic district of Chicago and I’ve been consumed by boxes boxes and more boxes. Since I’ve been driving my boyfriend nuts with everything I decided to take a break, go get a manicure (girl’s gotta look good, even when moving) and finally check my email. So while I had a moment, I thought I would take the time to post up a couple tunes that were floating in my inbox before I disappeared for a few more days. Sorry about the brief intros to these songs, but, well…you understand. Wish me luck!
Tittsworth, the b-more monster that I’ve written about for URB has a new album coming out called 12 Steps (which I have reviewed for URB - it’s awesome, trust me). The single “Broke Ass N*gga” comes with killer remixes, including this one from NYC’s The Glass (owners of Plant Music)
Tittsworth: Broke Ass N*gga (The Glass Remix) Download
BSBTRGD Club stands for Backstreet Boys Total Rude Ghetto Dancing Club - no matter which way you say it, it’s a mouthful - not sure abbreviating makes it any easier. In any case - new remix from the group, and listening to it makes me very very happy. It’s super aggressive, and in the words of my friend Katie, is the kind of track that makes you want to fuck. Highly suggest you download this one.
OH SNAP!! passed some goodies along our way, including this slamming remix of Crookers’ tune “Sveglia” which means ‘alarm’ in Italian (hence the remix title…) and a remix of one of his own tunes, “I’m Too Fat To Be A Hipster.” The man has an EP coming out soon on Sweat It Out! Records… proving his apparent penchant for exclamation points. This one’s for you buddy!!!!!
I saw this in my inbox a few days ago but didn’t have time to open it due to a very hectic schedule. Now that I’ve been listening to it, I should have probably downloaded and posted it immediately. Hindsight… The remixes, courtesy of Geek Chic Soundsystem and Louis La Roche are of “My Heart Is Set On You” by Leeds-based group Heads We Dance. The Geek Chic remix is the one I slightly favor. It’s quite nice, with long breakdowns that get dreamy with the group’s vocals, heavy pads and trailing keys that suddenly slam into peak hour programming.
The original of “My Heart Is Set On You” is part of Heads We Dance’s debut single which will also feature song “Love In The Digital Age” mixed by Simon Gogerly (U2, Gwen Stefani, New Order, etc.) and will be pressed onto limited run gold 7″ vinyl (ooh!). If you want to get your hands on one, it will be available through Pure Groove starting Monday, the 16th of June.
Heads We Dance: My Heart Is Set On You (Geek Chic Cardio Workout) Download
Heads We Dance: My Heart Is Set On You (Louis La Roche Remix) Download
Can we say BOMB? Paul Anthony, the man who brought us a Technologic boot some time ago is back with partner ZXX to drop two MASSIVE bootlegs of Inner City’s “Good Life” and another Daft Punk boot, this time of “Around The World.” If you aren’t aware of Paul and ZXX yet, you should be - these guys have been gaining major steam lately. They have their own label, Dirty Fabric, are regulars on Beatport’s top 100 chart and consistently tour around the globe. Plus, they’re from my neck of the woods (well, a little south in Indiana), so I have to send some Midwest love. The two tracks below are straight electro bangers, with the Daft Punk remix leaning towards a more Laidback Luke-ish sound. Delightful! I’m sure you’ll find these two in regular rotation in sets, the car stereo, iTunes….
Daft Punk: Around The World (Paul Anthony and ZXX Boot) Download
Inner City: Good Life (Paul Anthony and ZXX Boot) Download
Mike Gillenwater is one of my good friends who lives just over the border in Indiana. He has a background more in disco-centered house which is probably a result of his formal music training background. He plays guitar for his tracks, writes the keys, everything - he’s pretty much the man. Aside from producing, Mike is also very involved in the Nine Records camp, a label that has not only housed his debut artist album, but releases from artists like Granite & Phunk, Harrison Crump and Johnny Fiasco. So when MIke wanted to collaborate on a tune together, I jumped on the chance and spent a couple days down in Indy working in his studio.
The result of our work together is a bit of a mash of our two styles. While I came to the table with a more classic electro sound, Mike loves swing, switch-ups and has been experimenting with pulling back, instead of adding more. The track is called “The Sound Of Disco” and I hope you have as much fun listening, passing it around and DJing it as we did making it. “The sound…of disco…Berlin…San Francisco…the club…the heat…p-p-play that beat.”
The Rocky Theme has another remix out, this time courtesy of Miscellaneous Chocolate from Seattle. The kitsch is not as integrated as it is in the well-circulated “Rocky Raver” by Herve…but is centered towards the beginning of the song. This is intentional on MC’s part, as the tune is meant to be more of a set opener to get the crowd riled up. I can’t wait to play this out and test the theory - the tune drops heavy after about thirty seconds in and doesn’t let up in its brief, but packed three and a half minutes.
Bill Conti: Gonna Fly Now (Rocky Theme) (Miscellaneous Chocolate Remix) Download
