Remixes are proliferating like benign viruses through the Web. I receive nearly enough of them directly here at Up All Day, but I’ve been trawling MySpace and visiting Utopia to update my stockpile. There are still plenty of good ones out there.
Allston’s golden empress of Basstown, DJ KARES, continues to distinguish herself; her new mix of “Volcano” includes a shout-out to local production hero Emjae (a/k/a Ben Johnson). The punchy bounce groove is bolstered by a wamp-thampt-wamp-wamp rhythm that that tends to promote a whole lot of head shaking. Kares elegantly moves the BPM up until we’re greeted with the all-too-familiar “SHAKE THAT AAAASS!!” refrain of Sinden & Solid Groove’s “Red Hot.” With the pitch up, she smoothes out the mix with some nu-skool breaks.
MICHAEL SAVANT has never been know for subtlety, and his Maxximum Damage Vol. 1 is no exception. It begins with some fluid post-raving courtesy of the Wighnomy Brothers before moving into the mash/crash æsthetic he’s best known for. Gems like Holy Noise’s “H.O.U.S.E.” stand out, as does the big-room sound of Tocadisco. Savant gives a shout to his producer/DJ brother, Matthew Savant, putting “DJs Don’t Dance” right in the middle of the mix. Also included is Mr. Oizo and Up All Day favorite Modeselektor. Next time, though, he needs to up the bit rate — 128 kbps is too small to house such a huge sound.
DJ BRUNO closed down his “Utopia Sundays,” but not before leaving behind a sweet sensual house mix to groove on till Labor Day, when the night is scheduled to reopen at a location TBA. His “I Love Utopia” mix jumps off with indie favorite Röyksopp, a nice surprise, plus some of the usual deep-house suspects: DJ Pierre, Louie Vega, and Lil’ Louis. But the middle is the real treat: Bruno goes back to back with Peven Everett, whose brilliant voice is so good that some sort of label trouble was bound to come his way. After being courted by the majors, he opted to stick with the indie market, and that makes his stuff hard to come by.
When DJ PAUL FOLEY handed me his Strictly Rhythm Mix at Utopia, the sharpie-written credits spoke for themselves. The mix is full of legendary NYC house tracks, including material by Masters at Work and one-time Basstone maestro Armand Van Helden. Shout-out to Paul at www.myspace.com/13164196 and see whether you can get him to send you a copy. The crackles in the wax make it all the more endearing
My Deep House delving ends with RODNEY MARABLE, who kicks it off with Malcolm X over free jazz, so right away you know where you stand. The 15-track mix is packed with saxophones, flutes, and uplifting melodies. Marable spins live on the Internet every Monday from 7 to 11 pm at facethebass.com. Tune in and shake those cares away.
DJKEITH KENE keeps the vibe going with his Stay Gold mix, another one you can find on-line. Opting for a more modern broken-beat style, Kene shuffles and pulses with marimbas and steel drums at his back. He has one of the most fluid techniques in Boston, so no wonder the man plays all across New England, having recently come back from Woodstock, New York. Again, though, given a bit rate of only 64 kpbs, you’re hard-pressed to turn this one up loud enough.
Loudness is not a problem for MISTAKER (a/k/a Mike McKay). As impresario of the underground Thunderdome parties (where this writer spins along with others), McKay is all about jamming the party with super-ridonkulous beats; one of the best is the über-anthem “Beeper,” from Sinden & Count of Monte Cristal. McKay knows his breaks, too, and he drops those thump-thump beats when he can, injecting some oomph into Justice’s summer anthem “D.A.N.C.E.” Bonus points for playing the Soulwax remix of the Klaxons’ “Gravity’s Rainbow,” which is right at the front of the pack for Dance Jam of 2007.
Special props go to our man PAT FONTES, who, as one-time owner of Satellite Records, is the best-informed head in Boston. His NuNoise podcast is brimming with the sexy, minimal techno so very much in style, and he has the technical ability you need for music that’s this subtle. It’s not all burbles and gurgles, however — he turns up the heat with Booka Shade (who’re playing this Friday at Mansion) and brings some fire from Brazilian producer Gui Boratto.
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David Day: upallday@squar3.com
