RemixGalaxy Blog

We’ve already written about UK’s hottest ’80s synth-pop revivalist, but perhaps we were a bit ahead of the curve. La Roux has been steadily growing in popularity for the past several months, especially here in the U.S. Part of the reason for the burgeoning buzz is her current North American tour, though she did irk some fans for postponing her Chicago show. Regardless, there’s no denying that there has been a flood of the ginger lady’s remixes hitting music blogs and clubs everywhere. There’s just something about La Roux’s algid, fawnish ten-story voice that attracts attention nearly as much as that caught-in-a-hurricane haircut. All the while, the voice’s intrigue doesn’t inhibit its malleability. Case in point: London’s Boy 8-Bit’s remix manages to seamlessly meld steel drum into “Quicksand,” while (also) London’s Jack Beats adds precious piano strokes and irritatingly bouncy beats usually found on a junglist’s iPod. Not surprisingly, it still works either way.

La Roux - “Quicksand (Boy 8-Bit remix)”

La Roux - “Little Secrets (Jack Beats remix)”

Fever Ray (aka Karin Elisabeth Dreijer Andersson) is known for her work with her brother in the seminal electro-pop duo The Knife, but has recently been touring under her solo moniker. It’s not very surprising she decided to branch out on her own a bit, as she has already lent her steely, celestial, never incongruous voice to several Röyksopp tracks (with fantastic results). However, the mix she provided for Resident Advisor proves to be a real treat. Fever Ray manages to channel all of The Knife’s spookiness (excluding the viscerally passionate “Heartbeats“, of course) and actually amps it up a bit. So, a mix with Yo La Tengo and Neil Young is quite the surprise.

Tracks:

01. Neil Young - Guitar Solo 1
02. Yo La Tengo - Everyday
03. Journey To Ixtlan - Corpse On The Mesa
04. Jad & David Fair - Nosferatu
05. Zola Jesus - Devil Take You
06. Bruce Haack - Mean Old Devil
07. Krause - Duo Canopolis
08. Burial Hex - Will To Chapel
09. Suicide - Ghost Rider
10. Amadou & Miriam - Ja Pense À Toi
11. Shackleton - Death Is Not Final
12. Entombed - Night Of The Vampire
13. Maddalena Fagandini - Interval Signals
14. Burundi: Musiques Traditionnelles - Chant Avec Cithare

[Download] Fever Ray Halloween Mix

It never ceases to amaze us here at RemixGalaxy just how many talented musicians are out there. Hell, it’s one of the main reasons for launching the whole RxG community. Still, once in a while, we stumble upon some local-grown troupe that knocks us back like a shovel to the head. Such was the case last Saturday night, when the RxG staff attended (and sponsored) the Chicago.com/music launch party at Lasalle Power Co. in Chicago’s swanky River North neighborhood. The huge, triple-tiered bar/venue isn’t necessarily known for booking the freshest talent (Mandy Moore, Lez Zeppelin) and the dress-shirt-and-jeans bros the hot spot attracts is often more concerned with downing shots than enjoying live music. However, this was not the case last weekend. The crowd consisted of a connected group of music industry professionals and serious music geeks. Even those latching on to the complimentary spread of classy grub quickly detached during performers’ sets.

The lineup consisted of a solid, yet motley, collection of performers. However, the real standouts of the evening were Coltrane Motion and Loyal Divide. CM’s jaunty ’60s-tinged elctro-pop was truly a delight to experience as it morphed from creamy falsetto-propelled numbers to a wide-eyed, discombobulated hip-hop throw down to a serrated, throat-shredding Death From Above 1979-style ripper. Equally as impressive was Loyal Divide’s murky electro psych-pop, which fluttered along in the guise of booming swells and angelic shuffles. Look out for these guys to blow up soon, as they’re opening for the massively hyped Chromeo and Crystal Castles Congress Theatre Halloween show. Lastly, it wouldn’t be a proper post without some remixes:

Loyal Divide - “Vision Vision (R.S.S. remix)”

Abiyah - “Rise (Coltrane Motion remix)”

Yea Big and Kid Static’s music has been tagged with more labels than a discount-rack bathing suit in November. Whether it’s goofy, spazzy, sci-fi, fierce, or glitchy—fans and critics alike have utilized a plethora of motley adjectives in an attempt to pinpoint their sound. Not that the duo cares. Instead of worrying about all that noise, the rhyme-spitting dyad is more concerned about ripping it up at shows (like this summer’s Pitchfork Festival performance with The Mae Shi) and partying it up during these volatile times. Hell, who can blame them? Remix Galaxy spoke with Yeah Big and Kid Static about their 2009 release, music trends, and rocking out to Taylor Swift.

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One of the funnest parts about being a music fan is stumbling upon up-and-coming artists that have a knack for gripping the listener. With an endless barrage of media permeating society, finding uniquely genuine music can occasionally feel like navigating a labyrinth littered with stale, uninspired wannabes. However, this would not be an apt description of Chicago’s own Violetness. Though only performing for a few months, she has already scored respectable gigs at Beat Kitchen and Empty Bottle, and is set to open for the Very Best on October 29^th at Bottom Lounge. The crooner’s music is a hodgepodge of snappy hand claps, trudging drum beats, swelling melodies, steadfast cadence, and spellbinding (almost elfish) lilting. Violetness has previously discussed the Peruvian-tinged tribal influences in her music, but there’s also an undercurrent of neopagan magnetism that evokes urges of dancing in front of a bonfire in the tenebrosity of night. With the remix of “Nazca,” London’s Tommy Tempa made sure to retain the measured yet propulsive pace, but added a bubbly 8-bit beat and percolating background harmonies. The result is a fantastical ditty that is sure to linger in your head.

Violetness - “Nazca (Tommy Tempa remix)”

Violetness - “Nazca”

NYC’s Yeah Yeah Yeahs is slowly but surely positioning itself as one of the biggest rock bands of the decade. Remaining consistent is only part of the equation. Without slowing down like the Arctic Monkeys or The Strokes, the trio has cooly collected accolades like a #2 spot on NME’s Albums Of 2006 list, a #6 spot on Pitchfork’s Top 500 Tracks of the 2000s list (“Maps”), and a headlining gig at last summer’s Lollapalooza festival. Cambridge-based Passion Pit isn’t exactly a small-town act either. The group has toured extensively this summer, including festival appearances at Lolla and Bonnaroo, and apparently even dabbled in some remixing. While it’s cool that they’re trying new things out, they should probably still stick to crafting falsetto-fueled pop numbers. Pashy Pit’s remix of “Heads Will Roll” simultaneously amps up and also muddles an already aptly paced number and merely duct tapes some sped-up vocals to it.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - “Heads Will Roll - (Passion Pit remix)”

File this one in the “Why Didn’t Someone Come Up With This Sooner” category.

Waves, maker of industry standard plug-ins like C4 Multi-Band Compressor and L-3 Ultramaximizer, debuted a new plug-in at the 2009 AES NY show called Vocal Rider.

Anyone who has done any mixing before knows how tedious and time consuming it is to automate volume on a lead vocal, keeping it at the perfect level in the mix. To make the process simpler, the Vocal Rider plug-in is inserted on the vocal track and then it automatically monitors the non-vocal parts (via a sidechain input) in order to keep the vocals at a preset level in the mix. As it adjusts the level of the vocals, you can see the large fader moving up and down.

Check out a video demo here. The product is scheduled for release in November. If it works as advertised, this will be a huge time saver.

Nipping at the heels of Vampire Weekend and Amadou & Miriam, the Very Best are probably the third-biggest Afropop band around right now. After releasing an acclaimed mixtape last year (Esau Mwamwaya and Radioclit are The Very Best) the trio scored a high-profile gig closing out Chicago’s Pitchfork Festival on the B stage (The Flaming Lips were busy spewing glitter on the A stage). The troupe’s debut album, Warm Heart of Africa, just hit the shelves stateside, making it an opportune time for New York City’s Violens to crank out a remix. Having toured with Deerhunter, Grizzly Bear, and MGMT, Violens definitely knows good music. Still, who knew that splashing some reverberating ’80s flavor and some snappy beats on “Warm Heart of Africa” was such a great idea?

the Very Best - “Warm Heart of Africa (Violens remix)”

The globe-trekking youngster known as Uffie sure has a bright future ahead of her. Anna-Catherine Hartley was born in America, grew up in Hong Kong, and currently resides in Paris. Somewhere along the way, she developed an affinity for music and quit art school to pursue her new career. After signing to French powerhouse label Ed Banger, her single “Pop The Glock” tore through the internet. With lines like “I’m gifted, ain’t gotta sell sex,” and “Pick up the pace with your cracked out face,” the 21-year old has swagger to spare. However, the word’s still out on whether a star-studded career is in Uffie’s future. The video for “Pop The Glock” came out nearly three years after the single and her debut album, Sex Dreams and Denim Jeams, is due out in 2010. Until then, this remix by Paris’s DJ Medhi might have to hold you over. By turning down the voice distortion, the track comes out sounding like it belongs in a Knight Rider movie.

Uffie - “Pop The Glock (DJ Medhi remix)”

It was a tough choice because there were so many tracks that were creative and well executed. The judges even asked us to help break a tie.

So congratulations go out to users Euneek and trulygrimy for winning the 2009 Presidential Remix Contest.

Euneek used the mixStudio application to create a smooth track that had a great bass line and a creative use of some inspirational Obama clips. Take a listen here.

Trulygrimy created a moby-inspired (at least in my mind) track that made great use of an interest sound pallete, precise edits and of course, a few Obama-isms that fit in perfectly with his track. Take a listen here.

As contest winners, both of them will receive an Apple iPod touch from RemixGalaxy.com. Congratulations!