Grab bag time! Gotten lots of stuff sent in within the past few days! To be quite honest, I’m incredibly picky about what I post and rarely do I get sent so many tracks that make me go hmm…

Chicago’s Steve Smooth dropped off a boot he produced along with Bad Boy Bill and JJ Flores of Journey’s “Some Day Love Will Find You.” The track was originally featured on Behind The Decks Live in 2006 but due to the fact that it is no longer planned for official release, it is now free to be passed around and downloaded to your heart’s content. My god, I can’t escape Journey this week. Not only did Chromeo cover Journey at Lollapalooza, Kanye did as well, having his backup singers go acapella. Steve and JJ’s material has always had a nice chunkiness to it without sounding disconnected and this song is no different, featuring a Twocker-esque bassline without going dark in the slightest.

Bad Boy Bill, Steve Smooth & JJ Flores: Someday
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My good friend Tittsworth sent me his new mix titled “McCain Mix 2008.” I was dubious, and before even listening to it, made him answer the obvious and impending question…Obama or McCain? Satisfied that he was, in fact, an Obama supporter, I went ahead and listened to the mix. It’s incredibly fun and enjoyable and has an intro capturing some choice moments from McCain. Grab it to listen to traditional Tittsworth beats (several tracks are his own remixes) along with unexpected picks such as an Axwell take on Hard-Fi.

Tittsworth: McCain Mix 2008
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Track list:
1. Tittsworth - John Mccain Intro
2. Will Roc & The Renaissance Man - Get Down & Party (Party Break) - Unruly
3. Will Roc & The Renaissance Man - Get Down & Party - Unruly
4. Rod Lee - Hola Back - ??
5. Jimmy Jones - Who U Wit - ??
6. Blaqstarr - Bang > Tease Blaqstarr - Throw That Ass Back - MadDecent
7. Lil Wanye - A Milli (Scottie B Remix) - Unruly White
8. Say Wut - Go Time Anthem - Unruly
9. Mike Mumbles - Crank Dat GI Joe - ??
10. Mike Mumbles - Da Last Fight Em - ??
11. Blaqstar - Get Your Handz Up - ??
12. Tittsworth - Haiku - Plant Music
13. Blaqstarr - Hands Up Thumbs Down (Bird Peterson Remix) - MadDecent
14. Tittsworth feat The Federation - Drunk as Fuck (Top Billin Remix) - Plant
15. Machines Don’t Care - Afro Jacker - Machine
16. Hi-Jack - Possessed - Potty Mouth Music
17. Fake Blood - Mars - (Tittsworth Popeyes Edit) - Cheap Thrills
18. Solange - I Decided (Tittsworth Rave Remix) - Interscope
19. Nadastrom - Pussy Soul - Dubsided
20. Subfocus - X-Ray (Tittsworth Remix) - ??
21. Nadastrom - The Way You Movin - Dubsided
22. Tittsworth - WTF feat Kid Sister & PaseRock - Plant Music
23. TIttsworth - WTF feat Kid Sister & PaseRock (Nadastrom Remix) - Plant Music
24. Estelle & Kanye West - American Boy (Nadastrom Remix) - WHITE
25. Surkin - Next Of Kin (Todd Edwards re-kindled mix) - Institubes
26. Chavy Boys - Friday Night Flu - Unruly
27. Hall & Oats - I can’t go for that (Ernest St.Laurent Club Mix) - WHITE
28. Hard-Fi - Hard To Beat (AXWell Remix) - Atlantic UK
29. Daft Punk - Primetime Of Your Life (Top Billin Remix) - WHITE
30. Gorillaz - Dirty Harry (Logistics Remix) - WHITE
31. Michael Jackson - Human Nature (Makoto and Specialist Remix) - WHITE
32. Ghostface & Neyo - Back Like That (Marky & Bungle Remix) - WHITE
33. George Michael versus Lil Wayne - Careless Lollipop (DJ Soap Mash-up)

OH SNAP!! must be excited for his upcoming Australian tour because the man has been spending a lot of time in the studio lately. Kudos to him, especially since he has been on the road (including a recent stop with DJ Bald Eagle at Lollapalooza this past week). He delivered a slamming remix of “Party All The Time” that has hints of Crookers and Nadastrom. That equals awesome. The conversational tone of the rap vox on top works so incredibly well with the accompanying production! I cannot wait to play this out.

Eddie Murphy: Party All The Time (OH SNAP!! Cover)
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Vancouver’s DJ Neoteric and I seem to always have intersecting tastes so naturally I was excited when he passed along his latest mix for me to listen to. I immediately noticed the first track was by one of my current favorite artists, The Yank. The rest was just as amazing, featuring the likes of Surkin, Yuskek, and Laidback Luke’s hot track of the moment, “Shake It Down.” Officially stuck on repeat.

DJ Neoteric: August Mix 2008
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Track list:
1. The Yank - We Can’t Be Stopped
2. Yuksek - Ugodzilla
3. The Body Snatchers Feat. Sport Yolanda - Call Me (Lee Mortimer Mix)
4. Herve - Cheap Thrills (Armand Van Helden Remix)
5. Boy 8-Bit - Wolfen
6. Jesse Rose and Action Man - Take It to the Club
7. Tittsworth - WTF (Nadastrom’s on Drugs Mix)
8. Tittsworth - WTF (Smoke & Mirrors Remix)
9. Duke Dumont - Hoy
10.Treasure Fingers - Cross the Dancefloor (Laidback Luke Remix)
11.AC Slater - Jack Got Jacked (Jack Beats Remix)
12.Nadastrom - Pussy Soul
13.Machines Don’t Care - Beat Bang
14.Sharkslayer - Bad Ding
15.DJ Rob 3 - The Chase
16.The Count + Sinden ft Rye Rye - Hardcore Girls
17.Boy 8-Bit - Ready for War (Demo)
18.VND/LSM - Ready or Not
19.Kidda - Under the Sun (Herve Remix)
20.Bumblebeez - Zulu (Radioclit Remix)
21.Laidback Luke & A-trak - Shake It Down
22.Surkin - White Knight Two (Laidback Luke Remix)
23.Sam Sparro - 21st Century (The Count + Sinden Sidewinder Remix)
24.Detboi - Jump Up and Down

“Mad At You” by New York’s The Glass has been around for some time, but the band can’t seem to resist pumping out the remixes. Arveene & Misk’s take is organized chaos with stabs, ever changing patterns and a vocal that’s been pitched up (the only part of the remix I’m not fond of). Hot Pink Delorean’s version is driving with an unmistakable peak-hour sound with crossover potential. Both are great in their own ways while sounding entirely different. Hard to do…I like it!

The Glass: Mad At You (Arveene & Misk Remix)
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The Glass: Mad At You (Hot Pink Delorean Remix)
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Lollapalooza is finally over and Chicago is getting back to normal…dammit. IMO, this year’s collective Lolla experience was not as standout as last year’s, but there were some moments to speak of. Friday’s memorable performance for me was from Louis XIV, though of course Radiohead was exceptional as well. There were complaints that Radiohead’s performance was overly mellow (such a contrast from last year’s headliner show of Daft Punk) which I could certainly see, though I don’t think anyone was expecting a thrash reprise of Fake Plastic Trees.

Day 2 proved to have some unexpected twists. My set was at noon on Perry’s stage, and I rushed to arrive early (hoping that maybe, I could start ten or fifteen minutes early). When I arrived, I spotted a familiar face already up on stage - Perry Farrell was doing a sound check, score (photo op)! I was very happy with the way I played that day and had a packed tent by the time I was done, impressive given that I was opening the tent that day and had a crowd of…no one when I started. The big hits of the day, no surprise here, were the Pilotpriest remix of M.I.A.’s “Boyz” and the Crookers remix of Kid Cudi’s “Day ‘N’ Nite.” Afterwards we caught MGMT (not as good as expected), Booka Shade (better than expected), and then headed back to the DJ stage to catch Perry’s set with the rumored special guest in tow. After a quick hi to Clayton Hauck and DJ Alena, we found out the special guest was none other than Slash. What a f***ing performance. To make the moment even more surreal, I turned around and found Mark Ronson, Samantha Ronson and Lindsay Lohan walking towards me. Samantha popped on stage for a surprise guest set which was frankly the worst thing I had heard since the last wedding I went to. I heard her set at the afterparty that night was better, but what she played at Lolla was mixed poorly, had no flow and was utterly unoriginal.

The pickup for me that evening was surprisingly, DJ AM. I have truly never seen another DJ perform as quickly, flawlessly and creatively as he did, and, no less, with tracks from the likes of Laidback Luke and Soulwax. I interviewed him afterwards for URB.com (interview up in a few days), and he couldn’t have been nicer. We chatted about the scenes overseas, his favorite artists and the discrepancy between what he has to play versus what he loves to play. I encourage you to visit URB.com this week to check it out.

Day 3 was another mess of great bands, from Nicole Atkins & the Sea to the Black Kids, and oh my god, Chromeo. Kanye’s set was expected, full of smoke, stage effects and an ego-ridden Kanye waxing philosophical about how he was comparable to legends such as Jimi Hendrix and oh, by the way, make sure to tell your unborn children about your amazing Kanye West concert experience. Gag me. No wonder NIN fans yelled “fuck Kanye” as we made our way over to the stage.

After all the excitement, sunburns and greasy food, I am exhausted. I am also spoiled, since my artist wristband pretty much let me go and do whatever the hell I wanted to on the Lolla grounds all weekend. I leave you with Biancardi’s very appropriate remix of “Killing In The Name” by Lollapalooza 2008 headliner Rage Against The Machine. (UPDATED WITH 320 VERSION).

Rage Against The Machine: Killing In The Name (Biancardi Mix)
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I almost never post mixes here, mostly because I’m just as critical of the flow and actual transitions as I am about the track selection itself. Rarely do I find a mix that has a sense of story and is put together with real mastery. My friend DLG up in Canada just sent me his mix and I have to say, I haven’t been able to stop listening to it. Unfortunately, it came sans-tracklist, but he promises to put that together over the weekend so I will update this when he sends it over. There’s an insane amount of acapellas and layering, especially impressive given that this is a live mix.

DJ DLG: Live August Mix 2008
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BSBTRGDClub sent over a new mix, this time it’s their touch on Femme’s “Crimes Because Of Late Calls.” It’s a bit more minimal for them but has lots of punch. I envision playing this at about 3am, when everyone’s drunk off their ass but not ready to go home yet. God I love that time of night.

Femme: Crimes Because Of Late Calls (BSBTRGDClub Remix)
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Just got back from the ATL last night and it was an amazing trip. First up was playing the Graveyard Friday night, which wound up being a blast. Besides the awesomeness of the Sailor Jerry art show, I got to finally play with my friend Adam Darby, which made the night all the sweeter. Saturday night was a surprise set over at the MJQ Concourse, and normally I don’t like to hype my own sets…but it was killer. The atmosphere was amazing, the staff was super friendly, and every part of the set just seemed to work beautifully! I hope I get the chance to play there again. Big big thanks as always to Preston, Ryan, Jordan and the rest of the Kissatlanta.com crew!

By the way…if you ever visit Atlanta, I know it’s touristy, but go to the World of Coke. Trust me. At the end of the tour, there is a room where you can taste Coke manufactured sodas from Asia, Europe, etc. Darby and I could not get enough of Africa’s Bibo Pine Nut (pineapple) soda. Good lord, please tell me where I can buy that.

And on to the music… got a new remix from Zombie Zombie. This time it’s their twist on Dirty Little Secret’s “Elizabeth” and contains their usual sound of big synths complimented by the vox in full. If there is one thing I appreciate about Zombie Zombie is that they really try to maintain the integrity of the original song in whatever they are remixing.

Dirty Little Secret: Elizabeth (Zombie Zombie Remix)
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Also, download this little gem from The Futureheads. Dolby Anol has remixed their tune “Radio Heart” and it’s absolutely delicious. Slightly poppy and with a lighthearted tone in spite of the thick mainlines on the chorus, it’s a wonderful track perfect to brighten up a mix.

The Futureheads: Radio Heart (Dolby Anol Remix)
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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’m baaaack!

Kanye West: Homecoming (DJ Kue Squirrel Funk Remix)
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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.

Miscellaneous Chocolate: Fuckin’ Bitches
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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.

Lil Wayne: A Millie (Nadastrom Remix)
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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)
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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.

BSBTRGDClub: Britney
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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)
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Busta Rhymes: Get Down (Meterhead’s Westside Mix)
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BONUS: Mash up of Day n’ Nite and Perculator by Shaman Koz
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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)
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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)
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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.

Teen Wolf: Fukt (BSBTRGD Club Remix)
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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!!!!!

Crookers: Sveglia (OH SNAP!! Booty Alarm Mix)
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OH SNAP!!: I’m Too Fat To Be A Hipster (Mightyfools Remix)
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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)
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Heads We Dance: My Heart Is Set On You (Louis La Roche Remix)
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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)
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Inner City: Good Life (Paul Anthony and ZXX Boot)
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