quick audio picks: 1234
It's confusing, why an artist/group like Black Devil Disco Club would go to such lengths to cover his/her/their true identity, and then further stir the blog soup with label text comparing the group's tunes to the art of Salvador Dali. It's confusing...
expand review because, while that stuff can be fun, BDDC's music is so good that it doesn't really need hyping. This third (and supposedly final) album from the maybe contemporary / maybe 70s artist contains just six songs, but those six supremely well-executed Italo, electro and disco hybrid jams definitely deliver. There are just so many things to dig in each track: those robot backup vocals in the sinister "Open The Night(1)," the subtle percussion and squelching keys on "Free For The Girls(2)," the overall haunted house vibe of "For Hoped(3)." And the uptempo opener "With Honey Cream(4)" is one of the top tunes this dude/group (see? this is tiring) has come with yet. Here's hoping this isn't really the end. Recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 123456
The mysterious Black Devil Disco Club emerges once again, this time with a full album of epic dubs for all you space disco fiends out there. I never really knew the real deal behind the BDDC - I mean, the deep disco...
expand review italo sound is so authentic, yet so futuristic I was never sure if this stuff was new or actually from the late 70's. A little investigating into the liner notes and some discogs hunting reveals the man behind Black Devil as Bernard Fevre who actually recorded all of the "Disco Club" cuts back in 1978 using only synths, a drummer, and the occassional tape loop - no MIDI or computers. Simply stunning! After laying dormant for almost 30 years, Fevre has returned in the new millenium to drop these bas ass dubs on ya'll. Check these - "The Devil In Us(1)," ""I Regret The Flower Power Dub(2)," "Coach Me(3)," and "On Just Foot(4)." Trust me, these are all top notch tracks that deserve front placement in your deep space disco crate. Highly Recommended. -snackmaster
quick audio picks: 123
I-eee want nothing. Huge song right now in the indie dance scene (they've been playing the hell out of this on Indie103). This pic sleeve 12" is executed properly with a 12" extended mix(1) and a bmore-hybrid Sinden remix(2). As a unexpected...
expand review surprise, there's also a kick-ass breaks remix(3) from DC Recordings' below the radar producer Vincent Markowski. Well done. Recommended. -the mgmnt
quick audio picks: 1234567
The Bladerunners are one of the best things going right now. Their edits are made with working DJs in mind and they're totally effective. Side A features dance edits and starts with Stardust's "Music Sounds Better With You" aka one the greatest...
expand review dance songs ever made. The Bladerunners do an admirable chop job(1) here, freaking out the original sounds. Showing some deep-ass music nerdery, they've resurrected P.I.L.'s "This Is Not A Love Song" as a Daft Punk-style dance track. The flip features hip-hop remixes of "Move Bitch(3), Throw Some D's(4)," and "Money In The Bank(5)." 7 tracks total. Recommended. -the mgmnt
quick audio picks: 1234
Folks have been clamoring for the aptly titled "Suspense Is Killing Me(1)" from London's Boy 8-Bit since big name DJs like Switch, Basement Jaxx, Annie Mac and Crookers started spinning it advance style late last year. Now the Boy is signed with...
expand review Mad Decent -- label head Diplo called him "the most unique sounding club music out right now" and dropped the track on his huge "I Like Turtles" mix -- and "Suspense" gets a super official release. Backed with the shuddering, trance-flavored Bmore of "Bulbs Burn Out(2)" and infectious bump of "The Cricket Scores(3)," plus a speaker-rattling "Suspense" remix from Drop The Lime(4), this one is, as they say, a no brainer. Recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 12
One of the most in-demand re-edits around, Carl Craig splices up the Talking Head's "Once In A Lifetime" exposing it as the spacey loop affair it actually is (while adding no new elements or effects). That song has got some mystical powers....
expand review I was always amazed when Spinna would drop this track in the middle of a hip-hop set (circa late nineties). The crowd would be like "wha," but he always knew it was dope. Flip features a re-edit of the intense electro cut "There's A Woman" by Gino Soccio. -the mgmnt
quick audio picks: 123
Yes! Chromatics first 12" single from Italians Do It Better. We got our first taste of the label just over a month ago with their tasty After Dark CD, which featured Chromatics' spacey Italo tracks "Hands in The Dark," "Killing Spree -...
expand review Suite 304 Demo," and this single, "In The City(1)"(also featured on DJ Dixon's Body Language 4). I loved it, it flew off the shelves, and I caught some collectors here in the lab picking up two copies. Here, they continue to hook you up with exclusive joints by giving you the extended version, a small ambient track(not mentioned), the dangerously sweet "Zombie Vocal Acapella", plus two tracks I've never heard. "In The Headlites(2)" continues their fascination with ultra-sparse minimal italo, with Ruth Radelet once again laying down the alluring ghostly vocals. Pretty awesome, but "I'm On Fire(3)" is the surprise track on this. It reminds me of a short rock inspired lullaby that takes it back to the soft pop sounds of the 80's - effortless and awesome! Also great for a romantic rendezvous, so now you can nookie to something else besides Mazzy Star. Recommended. -C'mish
quick audio picks: 123456
NYC's Cousin Cole & Pocketknife (aka Flagrant Fowl) are back at it, this time landing on the Philly-based Flamin' Hotz label with an EP of folk and indie rock remixes. Pocketknife leads off with "The Book of Right On(1)," throwing some tuff...
expand review electronic drums underneath the saccharine high-pitched vox of indie harpstress Joanna Newsom. Next up is the mellow, finger-picking "Each Coming Night(2)" by Iron & Wine, followed by Cousin Cole's lush edit of Neil Young's "My My, Hey Hey(3)." Cole also adds a downtempo remix of Bruce Springsteen's "I'm On Fire(4)," before Pocketknife rounds it out with edits of Beirut's indie hit "Scenic World(5)" and my personal fave, John Lennon's "Oh Yoko(6)." All this, plus DOPE artwork from Nathan Fox and Strange Attractors on both sides of a full-color pic disk. Recommended. -Larri Byrd
quick audio picks: 12345
BONUS: Included with the vinyl version of Donkey is a coupon for a free high-quality MP3 download of the full album.
Two years since they made big waves with their eponymous debut, Lovefoxx and her band of Brasileiras (plus drummer/producer Adriano Cintra) are...
expand review back at us and sounding all growed up. Gone are the dirty, frenetic dance-rock sounds of "Alala" and "Meeting Paris Hilton," replaced with the plonging Hot Chippyness of "Believe Achieve(1)" and Pixies-esque guitar on "Rat Is Dead (Rage)(2)." The result is a cleaner and catchier vibe throughout, which works nicely on tracks like the bouncy new wave "Beautiful Song(3)" and synthed out "Let's Reggae All Night(4)." There are a couple throwbacks, including opener "Jager Yoga(5)," where Lovefoxx sounds more energetic than on the rest of the album as she sneers, "We didn't come into the world to walk around / we came here to take you out." Tell 'em girl. End result: new sound, same awesome CSS. 11 tracks. Recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 123
Debut release from Curses! on Paris' mighty Institubes label. Don't be quick to group this in with all the other french-electro that's been coming out these days, 'cause this one is truly exceptional. Curses! is the mysterious alter ego of Brooklyn bass...
expand review monster Drop The Lime (who has been keeping ridiculously busy these days touring and remixing for everyone from Blaqstarr to Juiceboxxx and Dre Skull and even... himself!) and though this is his first release as Curses!, dude is obviously no noob to the game. He's been producing and rocking parties (including the infamous Trouble & Bass parties in BK) for years. I was lucky enough to witness his live show last year, and that shit was mind-blowing! But enough back story... as Curses!, DTL draws inspiration from the dance floor sounds of the past (think 90's house) and translates them for the dance floors of today by infusing it with his signature NYC bass style. "This Is The Way(1)" is a perfect example, with a screamin' diva vocal chopped and stuttered to perfection, hip-house sample drops ("Pump up the!") and jackin' bass and synths all over pumping drums. Straight slammin'. And if you REALLY want to blast the dance floor into smithereens, drop the DTL Remix(2) which takes all the elements of the original and punches them up to 11. Flipside features the strange mutant of a track "Hungry For Love(3)," which is unlike anything else out there right now. Part breaks, part dancefloor, part ambient, part prog rock, all masterful. Give it a listen and you'll see what I mean. Recommended. -snackmaster
quick audio picks: 12
Electro 101 right here, kids. This record, "Al-Naafayish," and a coal mining helmet with a strobe light on top and you're legitimate techno wizard boy #747. If I was a 50-something recovering hippie-cum-preraver or this was a Pitchfork review (same difference), I...
expand review would probably call this "a slice of electro-fried protoplasmic funk" or some stupid shit. As it is, all I'm gonna say is you need to buy this and turn your stereo up as loud as it goes and put your ear up to the speaker until you get sound induced apoplexy. Probably right around the time that wet, dirty gravel someone had the nerve to call a fucking bassline begins its 3rd crawl around your scalp. Once the first layer of your eardrums has been cut into angel hair flesh sheets and the drum track has morphed into a frozen squalid toothbrush foam brain barrier, it might be time to utilize that medic alert keychain Auntie Zelda let you borrow for the weekend. Completely ridiculous that this is getting burn just now as a Missy sample. Shit has been a fucking staple for 20 years, and best believe that it's going to sound as mind numbing in 200 years. When "Lose Control" is just that track that sampled "Clear(1)" in the dancyclopedia fagtanica, new generations of kids will still be getting turned on to Cybotron. Completely indispensable record. -Bob Bannister
quick audio picks: 12
LAB US EXCLUSIVO. Import-only pic sleeve 12" featuring two of the biggest tunes from Dabaaz's new full-length. A-Trak gets behind the boards for "Regarde-Les(1)," scratching up a Clipse sample and crafting yet another ridiculously infectious beat. Flipside features the Drixxxe-produced "Tu Veux...
expand review La Guerre?(2)" - the term "Eurocrunk" kinda makes me wanna shoot my face, but this is pulled off so nicely, it doesn't feel like a joke. Totally dark, Dirty South style production. DJ Paul & Juice would be proud. Includes instrumentals for both tracks. Limited stock. Recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
quick audio picks: 123456
DJ Eli is the DJ's champ. Most every big name club DJ has some of his remixes in their arsenal. And for good reason: Eli's remixes are unparalleled. Sometimes he'll build a completely new song from a popular acapella, sometimes he'll use...
expand review just the right amount of editing and extra drums to give a classic track some extra punch in the club. The latest volume in our Money Lotion series (for the working DJ!) features six of Eli's most requested remixes: "Juicy(1)" (Eric B & Rakim's "Know The Ledge"), a massive edit of Cassie's "Me & U(2)," "Voices(3)" (The Police's "Voices Inside My Head"), a slow-burning new disco take on Feist's "One Evening(4)," "I Will Be With You Again(5)" (U2's "New Year's Day") and "If You Need A Friend(6)," an edit of the Lab best-seller "The Promise" by When In Rome. This is the first time any of Eli's "whitelabel" remixes have been pressed on wax, and Money Lotion volumes are known for selling out anyway, so get 'em while they're hot. Limited pressing, Recommended. -the mgmnt
quick audio picks: 12345
ESG is one of those awkward moments in time where things just don't seem to fit in neatly. A girl band from the almighty Bri-donx, their sound mixed hip-hop, punk, new wave, and house simultaneously. Their original records on the Factory label...
expand review and the legendary New York label 99 (also home of Liquid Liquid) are truly rare and demand top dollar. This top-notch compilation is the definitive collection of this rare material brought to you by master compilers at Universal Sound. The sound isn't really girly like you'd think, but are hard drum driven tracks. "Moody(1)" blew up as a huge dance classic during it's release and it still rocks the dancefloor. Also included on this compilation is the alternate "Space-Out Version." Then there is track that brought them hip-hop fame is "UFO(2)." Pumped by Bambaataa and the other Union Square DJs, "UFO" found its way onto Ultimate Breaks and Beats, but slowed down to 33rpm. This brought about mass sampling which can be heard on tracks by Beasties, Wu-Tang, PE, and a slew of old-school acts. The rest of their music falls somewhere between these tracks and their punk/new wave roots. It is definitely a unique sound and one that the discerning listener will find pleasurable. Checkout the badass instrumental track "Parking Lot Blues(3)" with heavy bassline and crispy drums (the rolls!). Or the equally heavy "Chistelle(4)" where you hear the influence the drums had on Slick Rick's "Mona Lisa." What about, "Get Funky(5)" with the funk bassline and breaks, but for some reason isn't quite funk? Some may even fall for the catchy, girl vocal, new wave-type tracks like "Come Away" and "Dance." Once you get over the kitsch factor, it becomes infectious. It just doesn't sound like anything else out there. Checkout the pic of Deborah, Renee, Marie, Tito, and Valerie on the back cover and you'll be asking how they do that? Excellent quality compilation with double heavy LPs and pull-out linear notes. -the mgmnt
indepth
