Today is a good day. Part of the reason is that I am basking in the sun on the beach of Kiawah Island, South Carolina. But, its mostly because Tiesto released Kaleidoscope Remixed. One the remix album, there are 20 new official remixes. The original Kaleidoscope is one of my favorite techno albums EVER and this remixed version is definitely no disappointment. There are remixes from a variety of DJ's (both big and small) and they range from more house to trance. Alot of them are even more dance-riffic than the originals. I know, it sounds impossible, but, I kid you not. The only thing better than hearing new, raging takes on these new songs would be a new Tiesto album. That won't happen for a while, so find a LOUD sound system, blast these tunes and start a raging dance party ASAP.
Buy the album HERE. You won't regret the purchase.
It's official: Wolfgang Gartner and Deadmau5 have teamed up to make this rager of a beat- Animal Rights! Check it out below. It will be available for official download on Sept. 6.
Hopefully there will be more to come for this new duo. They are two of my favorites and the fusion of these two talented DJs is sure to bring some awesome music. Also, they would be amazing in concert. Deadmau5's show with his anamorphic cube is quite the trip and when I saw Wolfgang at Lolla he played a great show (even though I was in a strange place). So cross you fingers and keep an eye out for more from these two.
Speaking of Deadmau5 live, check out him at a show in Paris- he debuts a special new jam after Strobe:
So this is a sweet mash up I found randomly. Folsom Prison Blues against some Eazy E song I'm not familiar with, but I like it. The song blew up just a few days ago online. I did some research; it's by DJ Topcat (not to be confused with DJ Top Cat from the UK) from Seattle. He does tons of mash up stuff, but a lot of it on his site focuses around hip hop with classic rock dating back to the 50's. Here are some of the choice tunes:
I've been a fan of Ra Ra Riot ever since I heard the single "Can You Tell" off of their first album, "The Rhumb Line," last year. They are an indie rock band from New York-- what makes them unique is their use of stringed instruments (they have a bassist, cellist, and violinist). Some of their songs are slow and sentimental (emotion is heightened by the strings) while other songs are upbeat and pop-ish. The strings add a unique sound to all of their sounds and the lead singer's great voice fits in perfectly. Their new album, "The Orchard," is one of my favorite albums thus far this year and its definitely worth a listen.
If you like the below songs, buy the album on Itunes.
I love having musically talented friends. This clip is from an epic night in Chicago and at the end of the night, my boy Robbie, and a few others had a jam sesh. Of course, K Flo broke into to some freestylin when they started playing Toxic. Check it out.
Bassnectar's new EP, Timestretch, offers some really heavy, deep, and chill dubstep. Timestretch literally seems to stretch time with often heavy bass that churns dynamically throughout each song. The bass changes naturally so that you are swept up in Bassnectar's dubstep timewarping journey. His music is not upbeat like more partyriffic dubsteppers (see Rusko) but rather it sticks to the slower bassiness that is more appropriate for a chill sesh than a party rager. Even in "Here We Go" which starts off the album, the beat is slow and Bassnectar uses his mastery of dubstep bass beats rather than shifts in tempo to power his music. The effect is awesomely chill dubstep which has just the right amount of womp to feel in the gut. Let Bassnectar stretch your time the next time you are up for some dubsteppy chillness.
This is my first post here, and I beat the other new contributors to it so I'll just go ahead and call that a win. I heard this song on a weekly NPR broadcast called Hearts of Space. It plays mainly various forms of ambient music, often electronic. Each week has a certain theme, and this was off of one called "Bayou Moon". Hammock is a two-piece out of Nashville. Give the song some time, it is seven minutes. Its made for one of those calm nights or some shit. I'll hit you up again later in the week with something with a beat...maybe.
Cee Lo Green (lead singer of Gnarls Barkely) released an amazing single off of his new album last week. It has the most amount of energy and pizzazz than any breakup/ fuck you song I've heard. I think it is better than anything that Gnarls Barkley did (including Crazy). The album is coming out later this fall and it is sure to be quality.
I haven't gotten a chance to post hardly at all this week because I am at school and am partying like crazy. However, I did get a chance to make a weekend playlist. Enjoy this last bit of summer with this musical dankness.
Check out my dude, Constant L. Burts. Constant's got some tight rhymes and sweet beats produced by Johnny Yayo. You might recognize Constant's flow from Audiodax's hit "Uh-Oh." If you enjoy it, look him up on Itunes and buy it up. He is going on a college tour starting in February, so make sure to check and see if he's playing at a school near you by following him on Facebook.
So you might have heard the new Kanye track on the Weekend Playlist. If you did, you would know that it is awesome. What you may not know, is that Kid Cudi has also leaked two songs from his upcoming album. One of them has Kanye in it and it is dank. These guys are probably my two favorite rappers, and so I'm excited. You should be too. Enjoy!
Music of Manny is taking a big step in providing reader's the best in music blogging. Four new collaborators will now post on Music of Manny and they will each provide a unique perspective both from a musical knowledge standpoint and bring different tastes to the mix.
First, we have both the members of Audiodax writing for Music of Manny. Temble, the producer and singer of Audiodax, is going to write on Music of Manny from a producer's standpoint to give reader's some insight into how songs work to create dankness. Then, Matt "KFlo" just knows alot about music, has been creating music for years, and has great taste.
Next, we have Robbie. Robbie is an electronic music expert. He is starting to make some of his own music and will probably post some of that music in the near future.
Finally we have Hogan (aka Belushi). Belushi listens to some crazy shiit. He will provide a variety of far out music in multiple genres, so look for some really unique music from him.
Audiodax has been hard at work. It hasn't been two months since the release of their first mixtape, "The Annexation" and they are already well on their way to finishing another project. The upcoming EP is currently titled "Vampire Castles: Our Take", and will set out to honor their favorite bands and songs of the year that didn't quite blow up like they should have.
This first single, "Thoughts" takes the music from the Crystal Castles' song, "Empathy," and mixes it up like only Audiodax can. K-Flo's raps flow with the chopped and screwed mashup of the beat and of course Temble's angelic voice rocks the chorus. This song is a step in a different direction for these guys as it is less poppy, but it definitely works and I can't wait to see what other dankness is on the mixtape. Empathy is one of the best electro songs of the year and they've for sure done it justice.
Audiodax is going on a college tour this fall-- check to see if they'll be at a place near you at Audiodax.com and follow them on Facebook.
Also, if you have downloaded The Annexation yet, then you're a damn fool.
I just found this DJ this morning, BetaTraxx, on The Hype Machine. This first song by him is like if Ratatat decided they wanted to make a rager. In other words, it is mind-blowing.
A lot of Vampire Weekend remixes have been floating around lately. They are one of the my favorite bands and I can't wait until the day they release a new album. Until then, these remixes are all we have:
I am a sucker for techno remixes of classic rock songs. It doesn't get much better than a refreshing techno take on an old classic. So, here are some great ones. Enjoy!
Also, if you know of any great remixes- send them along!
I'm not going to go on and on about Lollapalooza, but it was awesome. I was able to see almost everyone that I set out to see and made a great decision to see the Strokes instead of Lady GaGa on Friday. I was able to rave, I was able to chill, and I was able to rock. What could be better?
Here are a few tidbits about my favorite show of each day.
Friday: The Dirty Projectors- They were amazing because even though their music is so complex and purposefully off-kilter, they played to a tee and their musical talent definitely stood out.
This video portrait of Kanye West's new beat is one of the coolest things I've ever seen. His new album is going to drop this fall and according to Pitchfork some of the songs are being produced by RZA, Pete Rock, and Q-Tip and one of his influences for the album is Thom Yorke. So, who knows what it will be like. It definitely will be different, but if the songs are anywhere near as good as this first single, it will be another great Kanye album.
So, the epic Lollapalooza festival is this weekend and this year, I'm lucky enough to be in Chicago and experience this music-packed event. There is someone I want to see almost every hour of the festival and although I'll probably miss out on alot of shows, I decided to put down my intended itinerary for the record.
FRIDAY:
In the morning, I am going to sneak out of work (two blocks from the fest at Mich and Lake) at 10:45 in order to make it to see B.O.B. at 11:30 at the adidas stage.
Then, I'll go back to work and then make it back to the fest by 4. Luckily, these next four shows are all on the Budweiser and Playstation stages (right next to each other) so I'll be able to catch them back to back.
The the next show is an extremely controversial decision and some of you might even stop following this blog out of shock, awe, and disgust. I am going to see Lady GaGa instead of the Strokes and 2ManyDJs. Yes, you heard me correctly. There are two reasons for this decision. 1. Epicness- Lady GaGa's performance/stage effects ($150K's worth) will be way more epic than the Strokes who will just play good music. 2. Bad Romance- gotta rage to Bad Romance, simple as that.
Then, I might catch a bit of Spoon, but I going to head over to Perry's and rave to Rusko, Kaskade, and Empire of the Sun. Unfortunately, I'll miss out on Phoenix, but fuck it, I just wanna RAVE
I've been feelin the dubstep all day ever since this morning when Swagga by Datsik shuffled up on my Ipod. Luckily, I found this new Canadian dupstepper duo, Zed's Dead, and they are just plain filthy. They've got some womping beats and dank remixes. Plus, Pulp Fiction allusions are always appreciated.
Pretty Lights is one of my favorite artists today. Every one of his songs has so many different parts but they all weave togeth with churning grooves that you can feel in your gut. The music can be jazzy, trippy, relaxed, and intense all at the same time as he balances electro with funk and jazz and samples with live instrumentals. Its the balance that makes it all work and Pretty Lights the most inventive electro artist today.
His songs are long but they rarely drag because they are always shifting and taking you along like a groovy riptide. This new EP (as he puts it) implements "the transitioning between something pretty and organic to something heavy and electro. A sort of a dimension flip." This dimension flip is the secret to how his music works and it makes this EP a jump in the right direction for Pretty Lights. Take a listen and let him take you on the journey that is "Spilling Over Every Side."
You can download the full album at prettylightsmusic.com and I highly recomend that you do. But, here are a few highlights.
So this previously unkown DJ, My Sick Uncle, came out with this sick Lil Wayne mixtape, "(500) Days of Weezy." It is filled with really inventive mixes that constantly catch you off-guard because the songs (the 500 Days of Summer soundtrack) he mixes with are completely unexpected but yet they still work and sometimes even better than the originals. They definitely change the way you see each song which is why I think good mixes and mashups are worthwhile. As a Weezy fan on Weezy-withdrawal, this mixtape comes at the right time. (500) Days of Summer is also a great movie. You can get the mixtape at 500daysofweezy.com.
I've always wished that there were more techno remixes of classical music. Thank you to Wolfgang Gartner for making this dream a reality. Wolfgang's remix of Mozart's 5th is unbelievable.
Yesterday, I went to the madness that was the Wicker Park Music Festival. There were tons of people and I went late and only got to see LA Riots. His shit was awesome. I couldn't find anything online that fully does it justice, but here's some stuff that comes close.
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