sunny songs for a rainy day

I can't think of anything more enjoyable on a shitty rainy day than sitting here basking in the loving glow of my iMac, as I hunt down some new choons, with the Olympics happening in the background.  So thank you rain. Maybe that can be my new excuse for not blogging lately...? its just been too damn hot!

Going to kinda ease my way in with this cute little remix from Ron Basejam.  He's appeared here before, at least once.  So far most of what I've heard from him is a little bit soulful and a little bit playful.. and this one is pretty much right on both of those marks. Plus theres a line about the sun and warmth etc and thats kinda what I want to hear you sing about on a rainy day.

The White Lamp - It's You (Ron Basejam Remix)

Do you know who John Barry is? I really think you should. Especially if you're a movie fan, a music fan, or even more so a fan of the way music is used in film.  John Barry scored the Bond films(as well as countless other films)...actually a master at setting a mood with a haunting score.  I'm not sure how it's never dawned on me before but Gui Boratto is so similar it hurts. The style, the sound...very few people, and I've heard a lot, can give chills with dance music the way Gui Boratto can. Exhitbit A: this remix of the Battles track "Wall Street".

Battles - Wall Street (Gui Boratto Remix)

So I show up at my friend Charles's house last week and as I walk in i see a flyer for a party in a couple weekends. Lee Foss, Matthew Dear, Soul Clap, Juan MacLean, Nitin and a few more that'll probs be the undercard.  Thats easily the tightest lineup I've seen not at a dance music festival this year. Even better was he fact that as I was looking at it I was actually listening to Matthew Dear... who I completely love. On top of making pretty much every kind of music you could think of and making it well.... hes not exactly hard on the eyes.  Plus his label has one of the cuter logos out there (Ghostly International).  The guys responsible for this remix of Matthew Dear's "Her Fantasy" have appeared before as well...from remixing Neil Young(amazing) to their own productions they turn out stuff that sounds exactly how you'd expect someone by the name of Poolside to sound like... sun soaked, breezy summer beats.

Matthew Dear - Her Fantasy (Poolside Remix)

And now what a rainy day really sounds like.... Another find courtesy VisionQuest... and the rather whacky names of their seasonal collections... this one from the Teen Collection Hot Jam 96.  The title doesn't exactly make me want to run out and buy it but once I knew it was VisionQuest I was fully on board. It sounds a lot like Trentemoller who I was a titch obsessed with back in the day... only a bit more dancefloor friendly.

QBeck feat. Julia Govor - Alice

JuJube Eyeballs.

So in my last post it was Pride weekend here in Toronto. A weekend of, to quote Pirupa, "party non-stop".  It also coincides with the annual dispersal of NPAP(No Pots and Pans), an annual collection of a hundred or so of the years best dancefloor ready tunes and remixes and a few hour long sets from some local and sometimes International DJs put together by my friend Charles and disseminated to the masses via flash drives to the couple hundred of us lucky enough to get our hands on one....before passing it on to others to keep on "playing it forward".  I thought thats in this post I would give NPAP a shout out and drop my favourite off of this years collection.  It has quite literally been on repeat on my iPod since I heard it. 

Crazy P have had a few different incarnations and I remember coming across them for the first time about 13 years ago on a John Acquaviva mix when they still went by Crazy Penis....its a bit of an attention grabber. This is pretty far removed from that sound... having said that, I havent heard the original.. but well.. just enjoy it. Its a good'un.

Crazy P - Beatbox (PBR Streetgang Remix)

And secondly, one of the best tracks of the entire weekend... after the Frankie Knuckles one from the last post of course.  Dj Jamal dropped this lil beauty which actually wound up being officially the last track of Pride weekend as he wrapped up Gay Day (or Canada Day to some) at CZ on the Monday following Pride.  It took a little while for it to sink in what we were actually listening to.  You know those times your there singing along to a track and you have no idea what it is.... or why you know the words... but for some reason you do.  It takes a lot of balls to do a remix or a cover or any kind of rendition on a Beatles track.  When you've got a catalogue like they do of popular music that is engrained in the conscience of pretty much everyone from just about everyone spanning 50 years, its kind of hard to better it. I won't say this betters the original.... but it is easily the best dancefloor interpretation of any Beatles work I've ever heard.

South of Roosevelt - Over Me (Original Mix)

an offer I couldn't refuse.

The Godfather of House touched down in Toronto last night to help kick off Toronto's Gay Pride closing weekend, at an absolutely off the hook party in a cute little park that totally came alive with fantastic music (and great lighting too!). I've heard Frankie Knuckles before.... about 7 years ago I think at Sonic, and just like that time it was a master class in fusing styles and genres from all over the shop into a pretty damn fine set. There was one track that really stood out so off I go onto my Shazaam... and damnit. nothing. I HATE THAT. Luckily there was a very friendly former staffer from Stereo-ereo-ereo standing beside me who saw my frustration and leaned over and showed me the track name already in his iTunes. Nick from Stereo(formerly) you saved the day :) I've been listening to this little nugget all morning/afternoon trying to kick this wicked tequila hangover.

Sorry for the delay, and I cant really explain having the time or inclination pride weekend to get this post out... but there you go :)

Happy Pride ladies and gents!  Now its off to check out some Guy Gerber (live) and Richie Hawtin etc etc playing at Ontario Place for Digital Dreams.  This hangover isn't getting any better. ooof.

Frankie Knuckles pres. Director's Cut feat. Jamie Principle - Your Love (The Shapeshifters remix)

Shiny Plastic People

As most anyone I know will tell you, I get quite quickly and easily distracted onto different tangents.  Whether it be while I'm searching for something online or as is most often the case, while in the middle of a conversation.  Like a puppy.  I'm yours until something shiny goes by.  So its not that surprising I got incredibly distracted today while searching for......something. I don't even know what it was anymore because I got lost on this tangent of amazing spacey disco edits and blissful stoner music.  And it was all thanks to this chap named Mark E.  The tracks are long ones, with none on this collection coming in under seven and a half minutes.  Its the kind of stuff you put on while you're at home in your underwear playing video games, or maybe cleaning the house in solitude one happy sunny afternoon.  I checked out a few of his remixes via youtube as well and its all pretty consistently wicked.  Disco influenced, bumpin' soulful electronic music. It has a pretty mature sound so why not make yourself a Manhattan, roll up your sleeves and get down to business.  He reminds me A LOT of Motor City Drum Ensemble who I posted on here a while ago, and who I also love.  Turns out hes from Birmingham. huh. How about that? On a label called MERC Records. Seemingly gone are the days where you can presume to know something about a certain style or sound hailing from a certain spot.... Music Without Borders. Yeah buddy!

Im going to go back on what I said about cleaning the house and video games.  Its perfect for all-day, all-night listening. I promise.

I couldn't decide on one track to play for you so I'm going with three.... simply because posting the entire album would be silly.  So here..in order of how much they make me wave my pointed index finger around in the air while I try to type:

Mark E - Plastic People(MEdit)

Mark E - You(Full Vocal Mix)

Mark E - RnB Drunkie

Be Yourself.

Ugh what a week.  My first time putting in a full weeks worth of work in four months, and it had to come on the heels of having a friend and his boyfriend in town last weekend- turned out to be a heavy weekend. Anyhoo... no parties this weekend. just work :( I was really enjoying the whole unemployed thing but being broke, as my grandfather would say, is a damned inconvenience!

I was going to say my "fellow blogger" Vince sent me this guy's soundcloud, but since he never posts anymore I'll just call him Vince, and yeah, Sascha Braemer you sound pretty dope.  Good bunch of remixes there and the set I heard its pretty wicked too.  Both of these little nuggets come via him.

Adana Twins - Strange (Original Mix)

and this beauty is a remix of Sarp Yilmaz's Downtown.  That snare is pretty vicious, and it totally reminds me of another track but I can't quite place what song that snare reminds me of. Body Monster by Leon???

Sarp Yilmaz - Downtown (Sascha Braemer Remix)

Lastly, it would be just plain wrong if I didn't mention Danny Tenaglia here.  The Maestro announced the other week he would be taking an indefinite leave from touring.  Not retiring, but resigning, as he reiterated several times through his facebook profiles.  I've seen Danny 3 times live. Once at Guvernment, once at the now defunct CiRCA, and once at Space Ibiza... I know he isn't everyone's cup of tea and that his marathon sets don't sit well with everyone but come on... the guy is 51 years old and when it comes to producing a show the edits and shit he pulls together are some pretty genius bits of programming even if you don't like his crazy goofy antics with flashlights and whatever.  Hes been doing this for 30+ years, and compared to so many of his contemporaries who are total divas or stern as hell with attitude problems galore, Danny brought personality, flare and uniqueness to our scene.  He's one of the very few who seem to actually give a shit about the movement that was(?)/is(?) house and if I never get to see him play another marathon 9+ hour set... what I heard in Ibiza was WELL worth the trip... even if he didn't remember our brief period of correspondence when we spoke for a bit after the show.  A pretty simple message from a very complex and talented man from Brooklyn.

enjoy your time off Danny!

Celeda - Be Yourself (Part One)

100% for 0% - a Black Velveteen Fur Coat.

Ok I have no excuse for being lazy with posts.  So I might try and cram this one with some sweet little nuggets.  First off, I went to my first Zero Percent party last weekend, Zero Percent volume 8 with Nathan Barato, Joee Conns & Pauze.   I've known Alex who is one of the guys responsible for these parties for a little while but just couldn't make it to any of the previous ones.  The fact that Mr. Barato was playing was extra incentive, I won't lie.  The space was fantastic! A bit on the hot side but who doesn't like a little sweat with  their bangin' beats? The sound system was unreal... a worthy investment that did not fall on deaf ears at all, and a super fun crowd.  If you haven't been to one of their parties before... go to the website I linked to and get on their mailing list or check them out on facebook to get info on upcoming gigs.  Now I'm sure you all know "Last night a DJ save my life".... well it came on my oldies radio station I listen to at home not 2 days before the Zero Percent party, and I thought to myself: "Why have I never heard a remix or edit or anything interesting done with this?".  Enter Joee Conns.  In terms of knowing what you're in for when Joee is playing there are few that are as consistent in the Toronto scene that I've heard on a regular basis enough to comment on... consistency is only a good thing if you're consistently good.  And he is! He dropped this edit of it and it was pretty awesome! so I asked him about it after he finished playing and.. ya. It's his own.  I FUCKING LOVE IT when that happens. So, should you be ready to support a little CANcon again, please go over here to buy the track from Beatport, which is getting some International support from Chus & Ceballos(and I'm sure some others). Nice.
Some Jennnifer Hudson weight watchers commercial came on as I was tinternetting away this morning,  and she was doing a screechy-accapella version of Lenny Kravitz "Believe".  I hadn't listened to Lenny Kravitz of any description in a very long time so I hopped into iTunes and put on his greatest Hits album, and after a couple tracks on comes Black Velveteen.  I don't think a lot of people either A) know this song or B) liked this song, because its such a huge departure from EVERYTHING he had ever produced....I  just love it and figured it was deserving of a post spot.

Lenny Kravitz - Black Velveteen

A couple posts back I mentioned how a local Dj surprised the hell out of me by completely changing his style.  Chris Larsen who normally plays a particularly sludgy brand of minimal brought out this bad boy to which the entire club erupted into spontaneous applause when he finished playing it..

Fur Coat feat. Cari Golden - You And I (Original Mix)

One of my favourite tracks ever. Yeah thats some lofty praise. Its pretty timeless, its catchy as hell, got a sultry black woman singing how she been done wrong by some no-good man. Its about love, and loss and in the past month I've heard 5 new remixes or edits or whatever of it. Angie Stone's Wish I Didn't Miss You. Here are two of the better ones I've heard. 
This first version comes courtesy of Vince who played it for me on Easter weekend but its taken me this long to get around to.

Indigo Souls - Same Old Story

And this version via the fantastic Sander Kleinenberg..

Electronic Youth - I Wish

I think it was Johnathan Rosa that played this.  I've been hearing this Etta James vocal sample pretty constantly and in everything from Pretty Lights to Avicii (hmm thats not actually that much of a departure...) .  This is way more up my alley.  Makes you wanna throw your hands into the air with a full blown glory glory Halleluiah!  And then followed up quickly with a few twirls.

Audiowhores - Sometimes (Original Mix)

I've already posted the original of this one, but heard this remix today and LOVED it.  And its a pretty good way to close things out.

Aquarius Heaven - Can't Buy Love (Future Sounds Remix)

Satan that I used to know

That Gotye track Somebody that I used to know has been in everyones ears for the past month or more and to be honest I'm kinda over it.  But I heard 3 great remixes of it over the Easter weekend.  I really have to say that I had a pretty great weekend of tunes.  I usually do, but this one was pretty sweet.  Chris Larsen played pretty fantastically at CZ which was a pretty big surprise as I typically am not a huge fan of his sound but man what a set so props to him for sure for that. And during his set he dropped one of those 3 great remixes I heard of Gotye which, as it turns out, is his own edit and low and behold its on his Soundcloud as a free download! Nice one.

In a taxi on my way home from a party and still having not heard enough, I popped on my headphones to listen to a little Kaiserdisco set I had on my iPhone, which I never seem to get all the way through, and on comes this little beauty. wow. Its an instant mood setter and I really love it :)

Terry Grant, MSMS - Closer

Carl Craig has got to be the most prolific producer ever. For real.  The guys has had his hands all over absolutely everything for, what seems like forever.  And I can't think of anything of his that I've heard that wasn't pretty cool and ranging from techno, electro, sexy deep house... he does it all.  So I'm listening to this 5 hour Stacey Pullen mix the other day and BOOM this track comes in.  Part of me is scared, part of me is laughing, and the other part is dancing around the livingroom.  Its a few years old and its one of Carl Craig's alter(ed) egos, Tres Demented.  Sounds like some honey gone and done him wrong...that bitch better run for cover!

Tres Demented - Shez Satan