So it's been a while (like always), but I have something quite compelling to present: Boston-based M. Constant's Bugged EP... four originals, three remixes, and a bunch of funky punch. This man's style treads a wobbly line between beats and dance, getting your head nodding and your booty shaking, usually at the same time. Its a bit like rubbing your stomach and patting your head, but even more satisfying. These beats (?) are creative and organic, morphing style and feeling right underneath your feet... but M. Constant keeps it all tied together in a very musical way. I could go into more detail, but I'd rather let him speak for himself below.
Salva is the man. Runner of cutting edge music label Frite Nite and producer of great music that runs runs the gamut from intense bass-driven dance bombs to chilled, textural arrangements of very original synth sounds. The Complex Housing LP was soundtrack to my summer, and as the seasons turn, I keep finding [read: looking for] Salva all over the place. He's all over XLR8R, which cant be anything but a good thing. Here is a collection of his remixes, plus a ridiculous bonus track that lovers of CC are sure to enjoy.
BONUS TRACK: RAR ONLY I Be Everywhere (Mumdance Remix) - Gucci Mane Gucci Mane gets turned into a sitar-laced wobble whomp. Definitely a complement to the jonwayne joint.
THIS DUDE IS ONE OF MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE BEAT PRODUCERS. GO GRAB DAYPASS, OR NOMAPS IF YOU WANT A LITTLE MORE BANG FOR YOUR BUCK. BUT SERIOUSLY, PEEP THIS DUDE'S WARES
SOME REALLY NEAT EXPERIMENTAL ELECTRONIC SHIT FROM THE DUDE WHO CO-PRODUCED THE DIRTY PROJECTORS' BITTE ORCA. REALLY DIGGIN HIS STUFF LATELY, GRAB THIS MIX HE DID FOR ALTERED ZONES IF YOU DIG
Levert - Davis Serengeti (left-field rap shit) dropped mad rhymes on some matthewdavid (experimental/ambient/beat shit) tracks, and you can get a whole album of this awesomeness for a mere $7. I suggest you do, if you consider yourself a connoisseur of the strange like ourselves...
Bastille produce bangin'-ass house music. They also look infinitely better in skinny ties and suspenders than you ever will, and while carrying a pooch to boot.
We've been fans of them for some time now, as well as of their incredible EDM blog, Apes With Barrels. I can safely say that I got into electronic music mainly because of their gargantuan archives, which you should probably go raid right now. Seriously, leave this page and go do that.
Nah, but in all seriousness, they've been dozing a bit on the whole blogging thing recently. But not without good reason: they've been playing mad shows in the L.A. club scene (including one last night, I believe), as well as releasing a few new jams.
Who needs to wait for an official release? Clubs want this track now, and Bastille have done them an impeccable favor with a tasty edit of this surely-already-baller disco house track. VOTE FOR IT ON HYPEM (it's currently #12)!! [download...right-click/save-as]
Bumpin - Free Download in Description by Bastille Original. And man, is it good. They pick a perfect sample, and turn it into an unstoppable dancefloor weapon: funky, catchy, and dancey. Really impressive work.
Oh what up. This day-month-year combo is crazy awesome.
Here's a sampler of what I've been digging lately, with links to larger acquisitions that I recommend you make. Some require money, some are free. Enjoy!
The newest addition to the illustrious WEDIDIT Collective, and MAN is he good. Absolute fucking fire. This shit is straight up future-crunk, my guess is they're finna be playin this in the clubs circa 2055. [GO GET HIS FREE EP]
That's right, the boys over at the Mecca of EDM blogs, Apes With Barrels, have done it again. Sickest productions I've seen from them yet, and of course they're all disco house. Funky, fresh, and dancey as all hell. Can't help but get down to this. [GET THE BUMPIN EP FOR FREE]
Mexicans With Guns is an impressive fucking producer. He makes really neat dubstep/hip-hop/beat shit with a shitton of Latin influence (read: percussion up the wazoo, and even a quasi-moombahton track). Nocando burns it up on this joint. [GO BUY HIS ALBUM, CEREMONY, AT STONES THROW RECORDS]
Kuhrye-oo is no stranger to you if you've been to a Gobble Gobble show (he's the dude on stilts playing the SP-404 strapped onto a shovel). But when he's not dancing around like a maniac in a tutu, he makes gorgeous, ethereal indie-electronica. He chops breaks like no other. You need to check him out. [GO RAID HIS SOUNDCLOUD, LOTSA FREE TRAXX. GET EVERYTHING]
Some chiller vibes. Got this mp3 from dublab about a year ago, and recently decided to purchase an album of his, First Narrows. Gorgeous ambient electronica. [GO BUY FIRST NARROWS]
Patkins and I have been banging our heads non-stop to this heavyweight jam for the past month. Jonwayne is the most exciting producer of the past year, and there's so much more to come (including a rap album). If you don't have Bowser yet, you need to cop that shit. He also did a badass mix for the Hit + Run Crew, you need it. Those guys put on a killer show this past weekend that the wayniac pretty much singlehandedly destroyed, see this dude live if you get the chance. [GO BUY HIS SWEET MIX FOR HIT AND RUN]
From the new mndsgn joint, NoMaps. This cat is probably one of my favorite beat producers, like, ever. Comes with bomb synths, groovy atmosphere, and swagger out the wazoo. Worth $8 and then some. [GO BUY NOMAPS]
1. First of the Year (Equinox) 2. Ruffneck (Flex) 3. Ruffneck (FULL Flex) 4. Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (Dirtyphonics Remix) 5. Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (Phonat Remix) 6. Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (The Juggernaut Remix) 7. Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (Kaskade Remix)
Yeah, feel obliged to do this. First original sounds like a carbon copy of his iSquare remix except without all the, well, iSquare; second two tracks sound decent. The remixes, on the other hand, sound frickin boss, and pretty diverse to boot (Phonat and Kaskade?? tiiiiiight). And that Dirtyphonics remix is off the chizzain...Skrilly + DnB/Drumstep has been a long time coming. In fact, you should check out/grab that FACE-SMASHER of a track HERE.
And although I was a bit lackluster in reviewing his new productions just now, I can hardly blame the guy; he lost the hard drives with all of his (probably epic) new material earlier this year, so it looks like he wound up having to start from scratch.
Also, I love that he's badass enough to suggest that you torrent it if you can't buy it...what a G. We will surely aid you faithful readers in that quest when the time is right.
"@ZEROHG7 | LIGHT SOURCE | LOVER | PHILOSOPHER | SOUND SHAMAN | BLAQBIRD | W.D.I.C. | N 0. V8 R | EVOLVER | HEALER | TRILL ASS RHYMER"
So proclaims the ressurrected tumblr of legendary Long Beach underground rapper and producer 0., who now appears to go by the name of Zeroh G7. It's relevant because he just released a new (FREE) tape, G7 University, and it does those descriptions justice.
Lacing beats by both well-established beat scene names (Flying Lotus, Teebs) and up-and-coming producers (Juj, KNX), Zeroh is absolutely on FIRE here...literally. Full of references to his favorite psychoactive herb, G7 University is Zeroh's most cosmic, intricate effort yet.
His work has expanded brilliantly with regard in detail and scope. These aren't just hip-hop instrumentals: here there be FlyLo jams. That means crazy experimental beat scene shit, and Zeroh rides these waves effortlessly, matching the often uneven beats with equally trippy vocal production techniques and deftly written, agile lyrics. The result is a novel, innovative synthesis of rap and beat, one that maintains a beautiful sense of aesthetic unity. In my opinion, this is the closest thing I've heard to a rap Cosmogramma, excepting its length.
But at the same time as it's big, it's also brilliantly focused: lyrically, Zeroh has always been brilliant. But here I perceive more purpose in his writing, more of a higher mission, if you will (pun semi-intended). He's acquired an eye, an ear, and a tongue for speaking about our generation, and although truly appreciating his wisdom takes some sifting through layers of wordplay, it's an enjoyable quest, high or sober, and the tape lends itself to repeated listens.
That is, however, my only caveat regarding this album: it's an extremely new sound. Spun of both cannabinoid and lyrical magic, it may lose you on the first listen, or even offend you. But keep at it. The dialect may be "intellectual-neo-hippie-with-soul," but the wisdom is universally human. Habituate yourself to the language and sounds, and the knowledge will shine through. This is a beautiful and inspiring work, currently on repeat in my iTunes. But I understand that it may not click with everybody, at least not immediately.
The future is at your fingertips...just click the link.
UK Funky is, as I understand it a particularly fast, drum-driven genre of house music. A lot of the time I find it repetetive, but here are a few select tracks that really got me movin'. Props as usual to Apes With Barrels and XLR8R.
BANGER BANGER BANGER. Opens with these intense tribal drums, then drops into a super nasty house groove, complete with squelchy bassline. It even has a dubstep breakdown at one point. This sucker really moves.
Joy Orbison is a champion of this whole Funky/post-dubstep/whatever-the-fuck-it-is-they're-calling-it-now sound, and I dig his stuff. This is a really cool track, very chill and deep but with a sub bass that could melt faces, not unlike that Subwave liquid track I posted a while back.
He's been going through some personal drama of late, nothing too serious, but enough to stress the guy out, which is not what he needs. I mean, the man is working simultaneously on two degrees, as well as writing for this blog, going to concerts...you know, actually having a life.
So I figured I would make him a mix, seeing as it's been awhile since I've done one for the blog anyways.
And besides, what else soothes the soul like hard-hitting Electro House bass?
Hardly a perfect mix: a couple fuckups and some embarassingly basic transitions, but undeniably amazing tracks. I'm proud of the selection, especially in the first half. It's fun when you find 4 songs in relatively the same key that all sound AWESOME.
[obligatory Apes With Barrels plug. I get most of this stuff from them]
Drum & Bass is a genre of dance music I've only recently gotten into. Aside from being hands-down the most awesome music to run to (and definitely the most dangerous to drive to, makes you feel like you're in an action movie. don't do it kids), it's incredibly high-energy, and there's just an awesome diversity in sound throughout the genre. Here's a sampler post. Got all of these from Apes With Barrels, as usual. Get all your dansemusik fixes there.
(sorry, no divshare players for this one. did it on the fly, so just download links)
Get Shakey (Matrix & Futurebound Remix) - The Ian Carey Project The original is already a great track, but this version is just downright epic. Great chords, vocals, beat, and one of the most solid drops ever. I pretty much listen to this at the peak of every run I'm ever on.
I Need You - Subwave Favorite track here, it's DnB but sounds so close to something you would hear Garth Trinidad or Raul Campos play on KCRW late at night. Like the Get Shakey remix above, it's part of a subgenre of DnB called Liquid, which I think is basically like progressive house is to electro house: there's more emphasis on musical aesthetics than on just making bangers. Which both of these nonetheless are. Get this if you get nothing else. And make sure to listen to it on a system with adequate bass, otherwise the drop seems really underwhelming. Suuuper subby.
Helium - Engage The fellas at AwB described this as "tech DnB." They're pretty dead on; it's very dark and atmospheric, with all these techy, machine-esque sounds. Really awesome. Chase scenes should be written and filmed specifically for this track.
Act Like You Know - Nero You've all heard the dubstep version of this. Honestly I like this one about the same, obviously the two have totally different feels, but that fucking bass kills pretty ubiquitously, whether it's half-time or double-time. AVE NERO!!
WHAT? ELECTRO WITH LYRICS? well, okay usually it winds up being rap. and yes, there are many instances of electro with lyrics. i just wanted to find some sort of theme to bind this post together and give me an excuse to post this stuff. so here you go.
Forever (Nero Remix) - Drake Another rap/pop dubstep track, but with the production quality you would expect from Nero. Fat ass bass, a good one to drop in a live set.
Oh lordy this is a trip. Cosmic rhymes over a Cosmogramma beat ("Nose Art"). Trippy as hell but god I love it. 0. kills it. Every time. You should read up on him. The dude's supposedly got a tape coming out in the near future, but until then the world waits with bated breath...
Hellooooooooooo here's my latest mix. Its called an eclectica mix because it has some pretty random things.. and the mood changes a lot. should be good for homework, and stuff.
I've just had some tunes kicking around my head of late, figured I should share em with y'all. Mostly Indie Rock, with a dance jam and some experimental/beat stuff packed in there at the end for good measure.
Bloc Party are probably the first band I became seriously obsessed with. This is off their stellar debut, Silent Alarm, which should be mandatory to have in your music library. The other albums are good too, but they never really topped this one; they just went in different directions and tried new things, which is totally respectable.
Freaking obsessed with this band/record. Expect a post in the near future detailing why I am so obsessed with Modern Memory. And their past, and their future, and everything else related to the brothers Faler. But just vibe with this jam in the meantime, and keep your eyes on this blog.
People hate on Death Cab a lot. And while I can see why (cf. the lyrics from Plans...), I can't help but love them. They have an undeniably pop quality to them that I think some people find distasteful, but there really is so much there in the music and lyrics, I dunno. Fuck it, I like em. Though on second thought, the bridge to this song is pretty awkward. They pull that sound off better on the bridge to "Tiny Vessels." (youtube link)
I most certainly was not into Fleet Foxes back when everybody else was two years ago. That was my Electro/EDM phase, I had other things on my mind. But after hearing an acapella group here utterly KILL this song, I had to go back and see what I was missing. And man, was I missing. Gorgeous lyrics, wonderful songcraft, and vocal harmonies that will lift you high above this plane... Another essential album for y'all's music libraries.
Jam Jam Jam. Super awesome synths, very spacey feel, then in come the drums and this shit gets tribal. Fuckin HudMo. What a boss. "Report to the dancefloor, honey..."
It wouldn't be our blog if we didn't post something related to Will Weisenfeld, aka Baths, aka Geotic, aka the bee's tits. But here's a track from his earlier moniker, [Post-Foetus], from the release The First Will Weisenfeld EP. Warning: EXPERIMENTAL AS HELL. I fucking love it, though. Spoken word lyrics over epic handmade soundscapes, touches of the pop sensibility that we love so much about Baths, not to mention the song is about not being able to talk to someone you love from a distance, who can't relate to that!?
BONUS!! (zip only!!): Baths - Mecha Joy(youtube link). An early Baths track that was a BITCH to track down in 320, as it isn't officially on any release that I can track down. SO GET ON THAT SHIT!!
^ That's some gnarly shit. You know what that bear probably listens to? Bangin-ass House music. Not like his disembodied friend there. He listened to Lady Gaga. I think we can all learn something from this.
1) Don't Let Me Down (David Tort Mix) - Eddie Thoneick feat. Michael Feiner 2) Sweet Disposition (Axwell & Dirty South Remix) - Temper Trap 3) I Stand Alone (Jean Elan Remix) - Voodoo & Serano feat. Plastic Inc. 4) One 2.3 Four (Auditiv Remix) - Martin Solveig 5) Do It (Ian Carey Mix) - Prom feat. Katherine Ellis 6) 3 (Wolfgang Gartner Remix) - Britney Spears 7) Are U Ready? (Laidback Luke Remix) - Joachim Garraud 8) Set Me Free (Aviici Remix) - Phonat
I'm particularly proud of the *EPIC-ASS TRANSITION* about 15 minutes in. You'll know the one. It's like those two buildups were made to be together... Also, there's one buildup in there that literally just cuts out for four counts. You'll notice. It might even ruin your day. Sorry.
I was talking with a friend at prom last night, and dance music was brought up. She said that she doesn't love techno, although she does like house. It's the vocals, she said, and the lyrics. I'm inclined to agree. House vocals get ripped on a lot, but I think they're the shit. ESPECIALLY Progressive House/Trance vocals. Nothing makes me feel the way I do when listening to an ethereal, layered voice singing absurdly dreamy lyrics while accompanied by the most beautiful, synthesized chords imaginable. So here are some Vocal tracks for y'all, mostly progressive with a bit of Electro House in there for kicks. HUGE shout out to Apes With Barrels, the blog where I got most of this stuff. Those dudes (aka electro house duo Bastille) went to my high school, and their blog is pretty much what got me into EDM (electronic dance music) in the first place. AMAZING archives, they have everything. They also have a post on vocal tracks, and although I tried not to plagarize it completely, I couldn't avoid posting the first two songs here...they exemplify house vocals.
~ ~ ~
I Remember (Vocal Mix) - Deadmau5 & Kaskade
Probably one of my favorite tracks ever, such gorgeous vocals. You probably have it, but if you're new to house music/EDM in general then GET IT. Deadmau5 is a god among producers, nailing everything from gorgeous Progressive House to heavy-ass bangers. Go buy Random Album Title if you don't have it already, it's worth it (Beatport//iTunes). Kaskade is a beast too, though I know much less of his work.
Move For Me (Extended Mix) - Kaskade & Deadmau5
Love this one too, such great chords and vocals. And the lyrics, of course ("where do we come from/do I know your name?/doesn't really matter/in this life we're all the same"). Don't ask me why the artist names are switched here. I think it's because the mau5 released "I Remember" on Random Album Title, while Kaskade got to have this track on his album, Strobelight Seduction. (btw the vocals on both these tracks are by Haley Gibbey, who has a collab with Kaskade called Summer of Space.)
Out There (Original Mix) - John Dahlback feat. Basto!
Really weird buildup, not gonna lie, but this track DROPS. Gotta love Dahlback, and those vocals..."I need you in my life/I need you in my life..." I like his tracks a lot, it's hard to pin him down with one genre.
Do It (Ian Carey Mix) - PROM feat. Katherine Ellis
LOVE this song (I love em all, in case you haven't noticed). More Electro House, with GLORIOUS vocals. So raw and soulful, definitely contrasts with the more heavily-produced style of the above tracks. Ian Carey is freakin' awesome, another master of genre flexibility (though it's all House, as a rule), definitely do a search for him on AwB.
Day By Day (Vocal Mix) - Paul Anthony & ZZX
Really neat Prog track...the chords shift quickly and in interesting ways, definitely a cool change from the usual Progressive House fare of four bars Cmaj7, four bars Am9, etc (though it's still tried and true). Great vocals, awesome synths.
I Will Be Here (Wolfgang Gartner Remix) - Tiesto & Sneaky Sound System
A good note to end on. More Progressive vocal goodness. Wolfgang Gartner, aside from being a total fucking G, is another one of those producers capable of making a badass track in pretty much every dance genre (Electro, Electro House, Dutch House, Progressive)...he is indeed, as the good chaps at AwB have been propounding for a while now, the Holy Saviour of dance music. Amen.
Alright, let's be straight here. This is a music blog. We share music. Sometimes by giving it away for free. But we try to maintain some sense of ethics while doing so.
Music posted here is for promotional purposes only. If you have any copyright-related objections please comment or report or whatever and we'll take down the offending link.
On music submissions: email links n shit to dr.dr.musics@gmail.com or shnaily@gmail.com