This year’s podcast section blew up like never before, and it’s a testament to the power of the DJ, we suppose, who brings all the fanfare and flourishes of a hot night out to the banal locale of our desktop. Out of the 50+ mixes that premiered on our website over the year, the 10 below are not only the best executed, most unique, and wholly memorable (even controversial at times), but also the sets we personally keep returning to when in need of a solid DJ mix. Enjoy.
For those of you who’ve been playing out YouTube audio rips of South African kwaito producer MZO Bullet’s “Casablanca,” your murky set moments will soon return to crisp clarity. On December 27, London’s New State Music will release “Casablanca” in both vinyl and digital formats, and packaged alongside a remix from sweat-inducing duo Hot City. If you haven’t seen the dance-move-inspiring (watch for the lone “mzungu”) video for “Casablanca,” take a look below, and then check out the Hot City remix from New State‘s Soundcloud.
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We’re not entirely sure if many elements of “Cash and Carry Me Home,” the lead single from burgeoning UK wordsmith Ghostpoet‘s forthcoming full-length debut, actually made it into this remix by Londoner Alex Patchwork, but the quality of the deep bass production certainly speaks loudly enough in their place—not to mention that it’s one of the official remixes coming out on January 24 via Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood label. Patchwork nabbed a few of Ghostpoet’s injured utterances from his touching hip-hop tune, and applied them to a swirling mix of gelatinous pads, crescendoing synth melodies à la Joy Orbison, skittering percussion, and plenty of sub-dedicated sounds. The vocals in “Cash and Carry Me Home (Alex Patchwork Remix)” aren’t necessarily integral to the pulse and trajectory of the song, but we’re happy to hear them nonetheless. Regardless, if we want to hear the original, we can always peep the video, which we premiered back in October.
Ghostpoet’s debut LP, Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam, drops on February 7. The album artwork and tracklist are below.
1. OneTwos 2. Run Run Run 3. Us Against Whatever Ever 4. Finished I Ain’t 5. Longing For The Night 6. Yeah Pause 7. I Just Don’t Know 8. Survive It 9. Gaaasp 10. Cash and Carry Me Home 11. Garden Path 12. Liiines
Late last month, London DJs Elijah & Skilliam represented grime’s new school with an exclusive mix for the XLR8R podcast series. This week, we’re bringing in grime grandaddy Terror Danjah, who’s been in the game for nearly a decade, but still has plenty to bring to the table. We profiled Terror Danjah in the current issue of XLR8R, and his still-fresh album, Undeniable, released last month on Hyperdub, showcased the prolific producer’s unmatched ability to consistently re-write the grime formula in new and interesting ways. As for this mix, Terror Danjah leans heavily on his own productions, but also weaves in efforts from like-minded beatmakers such as D.O.K, Royal T, and TRC. It’s also not shy about vocal tracks, as the hyperactive flows of Wiley, Tempz, D Double E, and several others all feature prominently. Things do begin on a mellow note with a few rhythm’n’grime selections, but those sexy sounds melt away over the course of 35(!) tracks, as the music becomes more upfront, the energy increases, the beats bang louder, and the silky singing gives way to in-your-face raps. All in all, it’s a top-notch grime mix, and one that covers all the stylistic bases—exactly what we’d expect from a wily veteran like Terror Danjah.
01 Terror Danjah feat. Badness “What Would I Do” 02 Terror Danjah feat. Meleka & Tinie Tempah “You Make Me Feel” 03 Guido “Mad Sax” (Punch Drunk) 04 Terror Danjah feat. Sadie Ama & Kano “So Sure” 05 Katy B “On A Mission” (Rinse) 06 Teddy Music “Sambucca” 07 D.O.K feat. Sir Spryo “Missing Step” (Hardrive) 08 Mz Bratt & Redlight “Selecta (Terror Danjah Special)” 09 Redlight “MDMA” (More Than Alot) 10 P Jam Vs. Tempa T “Anger Management Vs. Next Hype” 11 Emalkay “Crusader” (Dub Police) 12 Terror Danjah feat. Bruza “Leave Me Alone” (Hyperdub) 13 Spooky “Spartan (Terror Danjah Remix)” (No Hats No Hoods) 14 Admiral Bailey “Jump Up (Terror Danjah Remix)” 15 Terror Danjah “Power Grid (D Double E Special)” 16 Royal T “Orangeade” 17 Marco Del Horno feat. P Money “Ho Riddim (DJ Swerve Remix)” (Black Butter) 18 Joe “Claptrap” (Hessle Audio) 19 Terror Danjah & D.O.K “Peanut Punch” (Rwina) 20 Wiley “Joombi” (Launchpad) 21 Terror Danjah “S.O.S” (Hyperdub) 22 MJ Cole & Wiley “From The Drop” (Prolific) 23 Swindle “Mood Swings” 24 TRC “Oo Aa Ee VIP” 25 D.O.K “Jam Down” 26 Magnum Force “Little Rider” 27 D Double E “Street Fighter (Terror Danjah Special)” 28 D.O.K feat. Terror Danjah “West Coast” 29 Terror Danjah feat. D Double E “Undeniable” (Hyperdub) 30 Terror Danjah “Bipolar VIP” 31 Terror Danjah “Minimal Dub” (Hyperdub) 32 D.O.K & Magnum Force feat. Crazy Titch “I Can See You” 33 Terror Danjah “Reloadz” (Planet Mu) 34 Terror Danjah feat. Triple Threat, Funsta MC, Shabba D, D Double E, Skibadee, Bruza, Melo D, Hitman Hyper & Ragga Twins “Creepy Crawler” 35 DJ Hazard “Selecta” (Ganja)
It’s unfortunate that Berlin’s Marc Houle is probably best known for “Techno Vocals,” his cheeky 2007 stab at the trend of pitching down vocals in minimal dance music. The plodding parody of that piece lies in direct contrast to the stark, depressing tones of most of the tracks on Drift, his fourth full-length for the Minus imprint. The glassy longing of Pantha Du Prince’s Black Noise is a nice reference point for this eight-song collection, but Houle dives into darker, more claustrophobic territory than Hendrick Weber ever has.
Thus, while the delayed guitar lines on a track like “Sweet” allow for feelings of longing, the piece is quickly followed by the album’s title track, a searing, near-terrifying club workout that recalls a more refined Pom Pom, or a more intense Robert Hood—deep pads ride below wormy bass and high-frequency, siren-like scrapings. The sweaty nightmare continues on tracks like “The Next,” which contains bass that is so heavily delayed, it brings back memories of bad acid trips. While pieces like “Hitcher Man” and “Hammering” are more straightforward minimal tracks, Houle bleeds the album’s pieces so seamlessly that such pedestrian moments don’t take away from the overall feeling of dark paranoia, and dirty, sweaty club spaces. Drift is most certainly Houle’s best work to date, as well as the perfect compliment to the alienating cold of wintertime.
For the latest addition to its surprisingly impressive single series, which has already included the likes of Todd Edwards and Juan MacLean, car company-cum-culture hub Scion A/V has released a brand-new tune from old-school freestyle/Hi-NRG artist Corinne (who has only recently returned to the spotlight, thanks to NY’s On the Prowl label), along with four remixes from Mugwump, Runaway, Midnight Magic, and Harkin & Raney. Here, the original version of Corrine’s song, “Dream a Little Dream,” reminds us of the salad days of Miami’s club scene while simultaneously flexing a contemporary sheen to its retro-futuristic production. Analog synths dance lightly around the machine-gun stutter of a vintage drum-machine beat, and Corinne croons innocent verbiage about fantasies, dreams, and “the one” with the grace of a soft-spoken diva who’s done it all; the song might as well be from the ’80s. And if you’re curious enough to find out what the remixes sound like, head here to download those for free.
Starting the new year off with a sizzurp-slow bang will be the first-ever compilation of the spuriously named “witch house” genre. The compilation, titled ISVOLT, will be released in January by East London’s Robot Elephant, but is ultimately a snapshot of artists signed to early witch house champion Robert Disaro’s label, Disaro Records. The comp is available now in physical 12″ vinyl and CD forms but will be released into the worldwide digital ether on January 17. Below is a preview of three tracks from the record by artists White Ring, Raw Moans, and Mater Suspiria Vision.
Tracklisting: 1. †‡† (Ritualzz) – Misery Walk 2. Party Trash – Sky Clad 3. Fostercare – Cold Light 4. //TENSE// – Versus Man 5. Modern Witch – Your Life a Movie 6. Mater Suspiria Vision – Ritualz of the Crack Witches 7. Horse MacGyver- Nod 8. White Ring – IxC999 9. Raw Moans – Nectarine
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Belgian duo Mustang is made up of DJ Renaud Deru and Andy Faisca, a collaboration between two Italo-disco obsessives. Mustang’s second EP Apocalypso, released yesterday on Abracada, features the title track and a song called “Dick Reverse.” Despite the dubious titling of the aforementioned track, this remix of the EP’s title track from Acid Wash does exactly what the alias implies by injecting Roland’s signature 303 sound into all the cracks and crevices of the original. Layered in lush pop melodies that rise and recede throughout, the only thing missing are well-paired vocals to highlight the track’s vintage whimsy.
On a normal day, seeing a mix put together by a PR firm would prompt us to click the delete button as quickly as possible, but when the folks over at Tailored Communication (a Berlin-based PR company) sent over this X-Mas mix with a slew of excellent artists and 2010 favorites, it was hard to write off as PR fodder. Featuring standout 2010 tracks from Shed, Mount Kimbie, Martyn, Scuba, Space Dimension Controller, and many other quality acts, Tailored Communications’ Xmas Mega-Mix 2010 contains about as much holiday cheer as austere Berlin techno can provide. Though it’s definitely not the soundtrack to your ornament-hanging party, put this on when alone or in the company of few, and make sure a fire is burning—if not from your hearth, definitely from a bottle of self-gifted bourbon. Both the tracklist and mix are below.
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01 Shed – STP2 / Ostgut Ton 02 Sideshow – Dub It all / Aus Music 03 Scuba – Before (After) / Hotflush 04 Emika – Cooling Room / Ostgut Ton 05 Exercise One – Prowl / Wagon Repair 06 Margret Dygas – Hidden (nsi mix) / PowerShovel Audio 07 Guillaume & The Coutu Dumonts – Can´t Have Everything feat dOP /Crircus Company 08 Martyn – Miniluv /Ostgut Ton 09 Peter Van Hoesen – Irrational X (Exercise One Remix) / Exone 10 Scuba – Tracers (Deadbeat Remix) / Hotflush 11 Will Saul & Mike Monday – Sequence 1/ Aus Music 12 Joe – claptrap / Hessle Audio 13 Shackleton – International Fires / Fabric 14 Sendai – Northeast / Time To Express 15 Mount Kimbie – Carbonated / Hot Flush 16 Space Dimension Controller – Temporary Thrillz / R&S 17 Phantasmeano – Vowels / Exone 18 Bloody Mary – Arabesque (Jin Choi rmx) / Dame-Music 19 Greie Gut Fraktion – Wir bauen eine Stadt (Alva Noto remodel) / Monika Enterprise 20 Massive Attack – Paradise Circus (Gui boratto remix) / Kompakt (from Michael Mayer’s Immer 3) 21 Mathew Jonson – when love feels like crying / Wagon Repair 22 Mount Kimbie – Between Time/ Hot Flush
Apple Pips has just announced its next release, a 12″ single by Bristol bass head Orphan101. The forthcoming record follows a couple releases from earlier this year on Saigon and the producer’s own DECA Rhythm label, and features two brand-new experiments in the realms of dubstep and techno, called “Propa” and “Disemble.” You can check out the 12″ label before it drops this coming January, below.
