DJ Teridactyl

Since I've been enjoying looking for cool remixes of contemporary songs, I started to wonder if I could find updated remixes of older songs. With the celebrated return of Blur to the music scene, and their having just been given the Brit Award's 2012 honor for Outstanding Contribution to Music, I thought it would be appropriate to start with their party classic, "Girls and Boys." Check out this awesome House inspired remix by DJ Paul Beer.

Pianoman - Blurred (DJ Paul Beer 2012 Remix) by DJ Paul Beer

Sleigh Bells sophomore album Reign of Terror, dropped today, and it does not disappoint. The 11 track album is an overall solid effort, although I can't put my finger yet on any standout songs that match up to what was offered on their previous album, Treats. The one that has come closest, and my immediate favorite after listening to every song for the first time today, is "Crush." Listen below, and if you like that then I recommend you check out the entire album on Spotify!

Crush by Sleigh Bells

Came across this awesome new track by Skrillex today. It's upbeat, without the usual beat distortion normally associated with dubstep. This is why he won 3 Grammys people!

Tom Vek has a new remix out for his song, "Aroused". The first half isn't really dance friendly, but it does kick in with a cool beat by the end.

Aroused (Ulterior / Zlaya Remix) by Tom Vek

I had been searching around for sometime for a good remix of this song by Gyote featuring Kimbra, and finally came across this 80's inspired mix by Miami Nights. It maintains the integrity of the song, while adding on a beat that's worth dancing to.

Gotye-Somebody-Miami84RMX-check details for download;) by MIAMI NIGHTS 1984

Thanks to KROQ radio here in LA, I was able to attend last night's Hollywood premiere of Re:Generation. In the film, 5 DJ's are given the challenge to reinterpret a different music style, either Rock, Jazz, Country, Motown, or Classical, into their own sound. Some are naturally paired, such as Mark Ronson with Jazz, while others found themselves with a larger learning curve, as did DJ Premier with Classical music. All of them however, rose to the challenge and created awesome tracks, the process towards which, is documented in the film.










Immediately following the screening, all the DJ's who participated in the project were on hand to answer questions and discuss their experiences with the project. Each of them expressed that it was a privilege to be able to work with music legends who have come before them and work on this project not for the sake of fame, but simply to make good music. Here is one of my favorite tracks from Re:Generation: Skrillex's Rock contribution, "Breakn' a Sweat" in collaboration with The Doors.

Skrillex - Breakn' a Sweat (RE:GENERATION) by CRUSK

Now this is how I like a debut single off a new album to sound! "Big Mouth" is Santigold's first offering off her upcoming sophmore album, Master of My Make-Believe, due out later this year. Unlike M.I.A.'s track, this one has got me eager to hear more.

After hearing all the criticism of Lana Del Rey's Saturday Night Live performance, I had to find out what all the fuss was about. She may not be the most engaging live performer, but I found her songs off her debut album Born to Die, rather lovely in a stripped down kind of way. Which also just so happens to be the perfect platform for a great remix. Here's one I found of one of my favorite tracks, "Video Games."

Lana del Rey - Video Games (Jussbert Remix) by Jussbert

I didn't understand why Madonna would be performing at Superbowl's halftime show in 2012, but I've now found out why. Looks like she's gearing up to release her new album MDNA next month. This first single's cheerleading chorus doesn't really work for me, but Nicki Minaj and M.I.A. do add to the track, other than to keep Madonna relevant in today's music landscape.

Thanks to this video, I think this track is now growing on me a little. But as a debut single for a new album, I would have hoped for more from M.I.A.