2 Many DJs

2 Many DJs

Soulwax

Soulwax in mode Dia de los Muertos

Friday night, October 31, 2008. The weather was crisp, the girls were mostly naked, and the streets were lined with youths waiting to get into the HARD Haunted Festival. After a very thorough security search (including a pat-down on the chest), I was finally admitted in. One hour later the entire place was jam packed with smelly, sweaty bodies and loud sounds of amazing music vibrating throughout the festival grounds.

Navigating this place was a nightmare! There were four stages, and to get to two of them you had to go through one. People were scrambling and stumbling back and forth all night in a constant stream of, “I need to get to this stage where so-and-so is playing next!” while attempting not to trip over the semi-lifeless bodies of candy kids rolling like the ’90s still existed.

I ended up seeing 2 Many DJ’s throw down a killer set for my first show. Amazing. The crowd was enjoying it so much that even girls with too many rolls to be naked started peeling off their shirts and throwing them on stage! Fast forward to behind a different outdoor stage…
The Soulwax boys were getting dressed up for their show, and donning their white suits. There was velcro present and masks reminiscent of Dia de los Muertos. Justice was running around in the midst of it all trying to keep from being vandalized by a 16 year old girl with braces and a penchant for going overboard on drugs and screwing headliners. The Crookers gave me lessons in Italian, Simian Mobile Disco was wrapping up on stage, and my own search for booze went incomplete.
Their show in a word: fantastic. The kids were jumping, singing along, and the vibe was, for a small amount of time, pure music enjoyment.

After their set was done I followed the Belgians back to their tour bus and jumped into champagne, a Lucky Strike, and an interview to discuss their docu-film “Part of the Weekend Never Dies”. To put it into perspective for those of you unfamiliar… Take the energy of rock and sex appeal of electro, put it in a blender and that is SOULWAX, the Belgian group composed of David Dewaele, Stephen Dewaele, Stefaan Van Leuven and Steve Slingeneyer.

Most of us are familiar with Soulwax by their work as related to the band, 2 Many DJs, Radio Soulwax, and most recently, their docu-film “Part of the Weekend Never Dies“. It was an incredible film that captured the essence of life on the road, life in the party, and everything that encompasses the in-between. Commentary in the film includes the likes of Justice, Busy P, LCD Soundsystem, and the editing is done so well that when watching, your adrenaline shoots up and you feel like you’re back in the show with killer music and crisp colors.

And now, a brief discussion with Soulwax…

bisouK: How long did it take to edit “Part of the Weekend Never Dies”?
David: I’d say six (6) months.

bK: What has the reception been like thus far from audiences and fans?
DD: One of the things about the way the industry is changing is that I don’t think you get any bad response because now there’s so much output from everywhere that people who don’t like it just won’t see it.

bK: How did your performance ensembles come together?
DD: We think when people go on stage they should make an effort. And because it’s white it’s a source of light because when you put light on white, it reflects. And the tuxedos is because we like things to be classy.

bK: The girls shown in the film kind of give off a 60’s free love vibe, was this intentionally shown or is that really the feel?
DD: Honestly I don’t know the answer, we are visually influenced by so many things from that era, but it wasn’t a conscious effort.

bK: Are you guys feeling more of Soulwax right now or 2 Many DJs as far as work is concerned?
DD: Right we now I’m feeling food…but yeah it changes every day. Things happen, you don’t know why things happen…We don’t pretend like we know what we’re doing.

bK: Is it safe to say this film was your way of doing a film like a DJ set, based on the editing of the images and sounds? Was this the goal?
DD: Great. Thank you, that’s an intention. That’s actually, when we had all the footage of 18 months of this, it’s very hard to make something exciting that would stand the test of time and cover all the bases of what we wanted to explain… the show the boredom.. we wanted to show the other sides.. All these kids are here and they’re watching Justice now and they must think “Wow, to only be in that position would be incredible”. We tried to show that it’s not that incredible… It’s heavier, maybe, than people imagine. Especially the way we do it… There’s not many people that produce and DJ and play all at the same time. But, it’s logical.

bK: Who are you currently remixing and when can we expect those out?
DD: Honestly, it’s tough but we had to turn down some people that we really would have loved to have remixed and we turned down some really big names that would have been nice to remix.. but we did “Night Versions“, which is remixes of ourselves… basically the last two years all we’ve done is remixes. We’re a little remixed out, but who knows maybe in three months we’ll come out with something.

bK: What are the basic energy level differences in the crowds of the different countries you play in?
DD: Not that big of a difference. I’ll say that there are two exceptional ones: States and Japan. Not good or bad, exceptionally different.. for example here I feel like it’s really something of it’s time. For example, if we do a Radio Soulwax gig in Barcelona, it’ll be sold out and there’s a sense of understanding. These people know where we come from they’ve supported us from the beginning, and they’ll probably be there in two years time. But here in the States it’s like all of the sudden, they’ve seen footage of how kids in Europe are doing it, and they think, “This is how we should do it”. That makes for something you don’t really trust that much. I have a feeling we could come back in a year and people will be like whatever. And in japan it’s almost the reverse in respect but also similar in that it’s new. But they’re so obsessed in every detail. It’s not a bad thing, though.

bK: Who was most involved in editing with Kurt Augustyn?
DD: Steph did most of the editing for the whole film and then Steph and I did the music.

bK: Did he have more or less free reign or was there a specific set of parameters? Or he start editing and then you came with Yes or No?
Stephen D: A little of both. There was a lot of stuff I said no. At one point Kurt had done something and I had really really liked it. And we used that as a starting point and just went from there.

bK: Outside of music, what art/fashion influences what you are doing and/or who you are as a band?
DavidD: The truth is that everything influences you. It’s hard because we have, Steph and I, absorbed so much pop culture. We buy so many DVDs and books that it’s hard for me to say just one thing.

bK: If you had to give advice, after doing Soulwax, Radio Soulwax, POTWND, and 2 Many DJs…what would you say to those out there aspiring to be on such a level?
DD: Don’t do it! We don’t know anything about how it happened, things just happen. Either you go ‘once upon a time’ or you have no idea how things came to this.

bK: So after 120+ shows, one camera, editing, premiers, etc. is there the possibility of another Soulwax film?
DD: Nothing like this, nothing about us. We really want to get into multimedia. In fact, old media is what we’re interested in.

And with that the tourbus took off to Mexico.

Can’t get enough of HARD Haunted Mansion debauchery? Check out these fun photos by LA kid Caesar Sebastian…

deadmau5

Justice

Boys Noize

DJ AM

*Special thanks to the Soulwax group, Michel, Hugo for the Luckys, Maarten for helping me get around, Dana at Biz3 PR, and Caesar Sebastian for the use of his photos.

This is what Trash Menagerie was throwing down during the month of September. Features, interviews, parties, and plenty’a mix and MP3 download. We’re snuggling in for the busy month of October. Have you started thinking about your Halloween costume yet? We’re looking for ideas, so please hit us up and let us know if you’ve got any. Last year we gave you a heads up on how to MAKE YOUR OWN DAFT PUNK COSTUME. Hipster Runoff offered up a bit of inspiration, “WTF SHOULD I B 4 ALL HALLOW’S EVE”, But is it “ok” to be a Justice this year, if you were a Daft last year?

A truly scary option, the United States Vice Presidential Republican
Candidate and current Governor of Alaska - Sarah Palin.

Hmm, I guess she didn’t get understand the memo regarding last year’s Halloween Party. It was a Nordic theme. Looks like she still won anyway, even though she didn’t really come close to qualifying.

Sarah Palin 7 Months Preggers “I can hide my belly in a sexy, yet sophisticated, little black business suit.”

Goodness, her belly is HUGE, she looks like she’s going to pop any day now, right?

This is what Demi Moore looked like when she was seven months preggers . . .

Photo: Vanity Fair

Sarah Palin’s Witch Doctor . . .

Other potential options - “Sarah Palin Mayor of Meth”, “Sarah Palin Miss Alaska”, “Sarah Palin Soccer Mom”. Wow, and to think, the election isn’t even over yet, we’ve still got a few weeks to go . . . goodness, i’m sure we’ll have so many more choices to choose from. Maybe i’ll pull off one of those “couple costumes,” and we can go together as “Foreign Palin Policy“. One of us will be Russia, and the other Alaska, and we’ll stand on opposite sides of the room and say “I can see ya over there, behave yourself!”

“Sarah Palin Miss Alaska”

Anyway, Sarah, this song is dedicated to you . . .

Disco Villains - Move Bitch
Get more Disco Villains

TRASH MENAGERIE SEPTEMBER FEATURES

NEW MIX - TALIESIN “VIRTUAL LIGHT”
2008 End of “Summery”
Division Kent - Gravity in Your Face
Dskotek Emerges From the Rabble of LA
Why Republicans Should Go Down!!!
Bloggers Beware!
Bass Welterweight Kanji Kinetic
Revolver Disco
On A Mission
ROW ROW FIGHT THE POWAH
London Airwaves Festival Line-up Announced!
The BOX is ON
This Juan’s for You
Sarah Palin Beauty Queen
Diesel 30th Anniversary Parties!
Mystery Jets - Half in Love with Elizabeth - Delorean Remix
The Presets & The Aria Awards - They are like . . . GRAMMY’s, YO!
Midnight Juggernauts - Into the Galaxy - DANGER Remix
Charlie Ash
Miss OddKidd - Don’t Be Afraid To Sweat - Remixes - Drop The Lime & Goldielocks
Salem - Dirt Video
Rewind Chicago 1990’s Rave - Hardcore Jungle
Uproot Andy-The Great Migration
Spitzer’s - Rainy winter in Sydney
New Madlib Album & J Rocc Podcast on Stones Throw
Death Set Live at Studio 1087 pt 1 of 2
FOOLS Remixed GOLD
The Rapture !K7 Mix - Unmasterd
Crying Blood Ties in VV Brown, Holland, Weatherall, Death In Vegas, !!!
Little Boots - Meddle - Designer Drugs Remix
Yo Majesty Makes it Clap
Hold On! Hot Chip Touch Too Much
PLAYBACK - Episode 1 - Andy Butler - Hercules and Love Affair
Krudmart-Steve Kream’s Autumn Love Mixtape
Hey! Hey! Its Hey Champ!
MSTRKRFT - Fist of (oh my) God Tour
Micachu live at DURRR
A Black Hole is Opening
Bang! Bang! Eche!

TRASH MENAGERIE SEPTEMBER MIXES

Bite This! Robotic Mix From Montreal’s DJ Spaz
Little Boots - Computer Fairyland Mixtape
A Very Vanilla Mix from London’s Lesser Panda
4AM Jess vs. Proper Villians
Ruffneck DJ Set @ Brockout! Chicago, 1995
DJ Trace w GQ & 5-0 @ Psychosis - Chicago, 1995
Uproot Andy - Guacharaca Migration
The Toxic Avenger Live at Piknik Electronik - Montreal
Jon Hillcock Xfm Mixes

TRASH MENAGERIE SEPTEMBER LISTINGS

NY’s New Favorite Place to be on Friday’s
N.A.M.E. festival 2008 - Edition n° 4 - France
NewPop + Dj Mehdi, Local Hero - Chicago!
MSTRKRFT Fist of God Tour
Somewhere In The Universe There Must Be Something Better Than Man’ 2nd Birthday - Brighton
Sinden at LOVE 9/20/08!
POP MONTREAL 2008 FINAL LINEUP ANNOUNCED
Atmosphere on Tour & on Kimmel
2008 DECIBEL FESTIVAL : FULL LINEUP & PROGRAM ANNOUNCED
Italian Invasion - LA

GET IN TOUCH WITH THE TRASH MENAGERIE CREW - CONTACT@TRASHMENAGERIE.COM

With all this talk of the LHC creating a black hole that will envelop the earth I think it’s about time that I write about the latest of up’n'coming Chicago producers, Black Holes. They are rather new to the scene here but they show little sign of n00biness. They are clearly some of the best producers to arise from our fledgling electro scene and certainly a welcome change from the mash-up and b-more that dominates the city’s hipster nights.

I’m not trying to belittle their abilities here, but describing their sound is rather simple. They sound like Crookers. So here’s where you think to yourself, “Why would I listen to this if I can listen to Crookers?” Well, firstly, Crookers is good and these kids are almost just as good. Two Crookers is better than one, my grandfather always told me. Secondly, I’m not sure if you guys are old enough to remember but about a year and a half ago (feb 7, 2007; about 8 years ago in blog years) I remember the fluokids posting a little tune called “Massive” by a then unknown duo called Crookers (later released on Pottymouth Records) that was somewhat overlooked because the general consensus was, “Oh, no big deal, they are just trying to sound like Switch.” Well, look where that got them. And I feel like Black Holes are capable of the same thing in the near future if they keep plugging away and develop their own sound so, when you download and play these tunes out now, you will have future ammunition for when they get big and you want to assert your authenticity. Although, now that I’ve said that, does it negate ones ability to use this as snob-fodder?

Anyways, they have certainly caught folks ears here in Chi and elsewhere. They were tapped to open for MSTRKRFT on their upcoming Chicago tour date. They also happen to be the winners of the Trouble & Bass Little Jinder remix contest that recently took place. Here’s a couple of their tunes to whet your appetite and you can hear their winning remix on their myspace.

Black Holes - War Drums

Black Holes - I’m A Beast

Hollywood Holt - Caked Up (Black Holes Rmx)

It’s official – we are currently salivating heavily at the sight of the tremendous line-up for London Airwaves Festival on September 19th!

Running across 9 venues around London and with loads of scrumptious acts playing such as The Whip, These New Puritans, Metronomy, Crookers, Autocratz, David E Sugar, Herve, The Teenagers and Skull Juice just to mention a few – you will need to go equipped with your best disco shoes on!

The event will take place Friday 19th September in Shoreditch London, get your tickets here for a reasonable sum of £20!

We have nicely put together a list of venues and whose appearing where below:

Bar Music Hall – Moshi Moshi Party
Florence and the Machine
Thecocknbullkid
James Yuill
Fontan
Breakbot + Moshi Moshi DJ’s

93 Feet East – Kitsune Party
The Teenagers
Cazals
Autokratz
DJ Jerry Bouthier
Special Secret performance

Hewitt Street Carpark – Trailertrash vs Deadly Party
Crookers
Bart M More
Hannah Holland
Skull Juice
Deadly DJ’s

CARGO
PNAU
Poney Poney
The Whip
Familjen
Steed Lord
Gus Gus DJ set

Hoxton Bar and Grill
Metronomy
Silent Film
VV Brown

Old Blue Last
Black Cherry
Hearts Revolution
Pacific
Sam Isaac
My Toys Like Me
Plus special guest DJ’s

Vibe Bar Live (1st floor)
Young Knives
These New Puritans
Robots in Disguise
Wild Beasts

Last Days of Decadence
Herve
Andy George
FM Belfast
Disa

View this video of Metronomy and warm-up for Friday’s festivities!

Metronomy - ‘Radio Ladio’

Record Label, Fools Gold is about to make this summer even hotter with a slew of new releases scheduled to come out in the next few months.

If you have been living in a cave or maybe some how stuck in time back in Soviet Russia, Fools Gold is the new indie record label started by Nick Catchdubs (who was just featured here on Trash) and A-trak. The label, so far is famous for bringing the world rapper Kid Sister and rapper Kid Cudi, who surprisingly are not related but both amazing. They have also introduced Canadian powerhouse producer/dj duo, Jokers of the Scene and Sammy Bananas a member of East Coast phenoms, Certified Bananas.

This is the kind of thing Fools Gold is about; introducing and breaking new talent to the scene and keeping things fresh. Not to mention the artwork is astounding because creating it is super designer, Dust La Rock.

They have recently released a Kid Sister remix ep with mixes by Simian Mobile Disco and JFK from MSTRKRFT. Head over to RCRDLBL to hear a preview.

Next up is the KAVINSKY picture disc vinyl “BLAZER”.

And it keeps getting better and better.

Atlanta’s Treasure Fingers is releasing his hit single “Cross the Dance Floor” with huge remixes by Laidback Luke, Curses! and lifelike.

Then Canada invades the scene with “Acid Bagg” ep by Jokers of the Scene. Almost everyone has been waiting to get there hands on a copy of “baggy bottom boys” and this will be the chance. Brodiniski and Destroy Disco will also be appearing on the ep remixing “acidrod”.

And speaking of Jokers of the Scene, they have just teamed up with NYC clothing company MISHKA for their new mix tape series “Keep Watch” – listen to the mix tape here – MISHKA explains, “Mix tapes have always been an integral part of NYC’s underground culture and burgeoning music scene, and as such, Mishka is proud to carry on the tradition with the launch of Keep Watch. Featuring top DJs hailing from every genre and geographic corner, Mishka’s Keep Watch party-mixes celebrates one of the most widely practiced American art forms. Released on a semi regular basis (usually to accompanying party), the mixes will be available for free download through our site, the Bloglin and very shortly podcast on Itunes.” The mix features a track from the “Acid Bagg” ep and one from labelmates, Nacho Lovers, ep.

other scheduled releases are:

FGR011 - Four Color Zack & Pretty Titty Sing Sing Breaks
FGR012 - Sammy Bananas Braids & Fades
FGR013 - Jokers Of The Scene Acid Bagg EP
FGR014 - Nacho Lovers Go On / Acid Life
FGR015 - Bag Raiders Big Fun EP
FGR016 - Trackademicks Enjoy What You Do
FGR017 - Crookers EP
FGR018 - Congorock EP
FGR019 - LA Riots EP
FGR020 - Malente I Like It

So keep a look out and be aware!

Also if you’re in the Chicago area on August 23, 2008, co-owner of Fools Gold, A-trak will be performing at Subterranean. It’s a 17+ show, so buy your tickets here. And grab those two tracks of his off his blog here.

Nick Catchdubs was nice enough to give us his new mix AND an interview. He is one of my favorite New Yorkers and his label with A-Trak, Fools Gold (maybe you have possibly heard of it?) is killing it right now.

4AM: How and when did you meet A-Trak?

Nick Catchdubs: Roxy used to do Friday night parties on Bowery - I want to say the club was BLVD? Dust La Rock, who would later go on to be the Fool’s Gold graphic designer, did the flyers, it looked like the back of a dollar bill with a Debbie Deb quote about “fog machines and laser rays” on the top. One night, A-Trak and I DJed together, we got booked to do shows in San Francisco and LA soon after, and over the course of hanging out we realized we had a lot in common with music, humor, and haberdashery. From then we just stayed friends, sending mp3s back and forth and talking shit.

4AM: How did you and Trizzy eventually come up with the Fools Gold idea?

NC: He ran the Audio Research label in Montreal for almost a decade with his brother Dave, and realized it had such a strong history as an underground/indie hip-hop label that his new, more electronic-influenced stuff wouldn’t fit. He decided to do a new label and asked me to start it with him. I had already helped out with the launch of Mad Decent (I designed the logo and some of the original Bonde Do Role art, and was brainstorming a lot with Diplo in the early days) and this was an opportunity to get more deeply involved with putting out new, original music. We came up with the name and concept, and then just went from there putting out records.

4AM: Did you have any idea it would take off like it has?

NC: I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t always part of the plan!

4AM: How many hours a day would you say you listen to music?

NC: I’m going THROUGH music constantly - mostly just to check out all the new songs that came out that day, find stuff to play when DJing, or give people a once-over on MySpace. But as far as actually sitting down to fully digest albums and mixes, I only get to do that when I’m traveling or in the car. But I do try to schedule chores around the house around particular radio shows - taking a half hour to do the dishes during DJ Enuff or Mr Cee’s Old School At Noon.

4AM: Best gig ever?

NC: Hmmm - there’s been a bunch of really good ones. “End Times” with Caps N Jones a year or two ago (Switch was randomly there and introduced himself at the end of the night, I was geeked) and the recent Wale “Mixtape About Nothing” release party are two local ones that come to mind right away. Whenever I play with Diplo it’s always fun - just this Sunday we did the Mad Fools party in Central Park and the afterparty at Santos Party House, and over the past year we rocked New Year’s Eve in San Francisco, the New Yorker Festival (old folks get loose!) and a Mad Decent party at Studio B that was the first NYC Blaqstarr show. They were all great.

4AM: Worst gig ever?

NC: Not gonna hurt anyone’s feelings by naming the corporate event in question…

4AM: Most glamourous star studded models and bottles gig ever?

NC: Do “hipster celebrities” count? Lets keep that bag of snakes closed, I’m gonna go with this private Rihanna show at Highline Ballroom that ended up being really fun and unpretentious. I was worried about having to corny it up but I mostly played dancehall.

4AM: Best request ever?

NC: A girl asked for Outkast “Bombs Over Bagdhad” during a set of fast tracks. Yes, of course I can do that!

4AM: Worst request ever?

NC: Bee Gees.

4AM: First record ever bought?

NC: The first records I bought with my own money were Guns N Roses Use Your Illusion 1 and 2, but the first record I ever picked out in a store was the Garbage Pail Kids soundtrack. I couldn’t tell you any songs that were on it, I just loved the Garbage Pail Kids. Who doesn’t?

4AM: Last record you bought?

NC: The Syclops I’ve Got My Eye On You CD. The last mp3 was Lee Jones “Aria” on Beatport.

4AM: First DJ mix that made you say “this is what I want to do” to yourself?

NC: I was collecting records and listening to DJs on the radio all my life, but it wasn’t until the summer I graduated college that I realized it was where I wanted to go with music (which is pretty late in the scheme of things - I had been playing in bands and things like that up to that point). There were a few mixes I heard all around the same time that made the lightbulb go off - Spinbad’s ’80s tapes, Mark Ronson’s promo mix for Digiwaxx for his Here Comes The Fuzz album, and most blatantly, Hollertronix’s Never Scared. They were each presenting music that I liked in new combinations - I figured it would be fun to do that on my own.

4AM: Describe the perfect weekend

NC: Friday night getting real paid, Saturday night going to someone else’s party as a private citizen (but still drinking for free), Sunday walking around (no rain), catching a movie and a good meal.

4AM: Favorite place in NYC to DJ?

NC: My apartment. Sorry, city, but you are going through a “transitional period” right now.

4AM: Favorite DJs/producers right now that are not on Fools Gold?

NC: DJ Eli (though he did do a remix for us), Laidback Luke (ditto), Claude Von Stroke, Fake Blood, Hercules and Love Affair (though I guess it’s really just Andy Butler and Tim Goldsworthy), DJ Sneak, The Dream, Sean C and LV… I could name people for days.

4AM: What song have you played out so bad that you never want to hear it again?

NC: There’s always a time and place for Calabria horns. ALWAYS.

4AM: Best live show you have ever seen?

NC: Portishead sounded amazing at Coachella but the show had no atmosphere. For me, the best shows are always the ones where the artists defy nature and technical difficulties to pull through, that “oh shit!” factor is unbeatable. Feist played at the Fader SXSW tent in 2005 and the wind nearly knocked her over but she just got more and more psyched by it, almost possessed. Peedi Crakk played at the Fader CMJ space two years ago after getting lost in Chinatown, pulling up to the spot minutes before curfew, and still killing it.

4AM: You used to be the editor of Fader correct?

NC: You like that segue right? I was an associate editor there for three years, before leaving to DJ and work on Fool’s Gold full-time last July.

4AM: What was the important thing you learned from working there?

NC: I had no magazine or music industry experience whatsoever when I started - I wasn’t even trying to be a writer, I was just asked to do some stories and interviews, they liked my style, and the job sprouted from there. It was total school for me. I got to travel for the first time in my life and see different artists operate in their home environments. I witnessed records go from creation to label to PR to magazines to stores (and got to learn from other people’s mistakes for free!)

4AM: What should we look out for in the Nick Catchdubs future?

NC: I just finished a mixtape for Timbaland’s new artist Izza Kizza , and an all-Fool’s Gold mix for a 2xCD compilation we’re doing with Scion. I’m really slow on the production side, but I’m working on remixes for El Guincho (out on Mad Decent) and U-God from Wu Tang Clan’s new solo single. I did a remix for MIA’s “Bamboo Banger” that is supposed to (finally) come out as well on XL. I’m working on some original music too, so I can actually put out a record of my own on my label!

4AM: What shoud we look out for in the Fools Gold future?

NC: Tons of records - Kavinsky, Treasure Fingers, Sammy Bananas, Four Color Zack and Pretty Titty, Jokers of The Scene, Nacho Lovers, Trackademicks, Bag Raiders, Congorock, Crookers, LA Riots, Malente, Kid Sister’s full album, that Scion comp, and some surprises of course…

4AM: Favorite Simpsons episode?

NC: Just one? That’s un-possible! I love them all. 22 Short Films about Springfield is my favorite now, but it always changes. Itchy And Scratchy And Poochie is up there too.

Nick Catchdubs - Slick

01. Pase Rock “Get Money Kids”
02. 50 Cent “I Get Money (Catch On 45)”
03. Trap House “Step Into”
04. Bad Yard Club “In De Ghetto (GrandTheft Remix)”
05. Dukeyman “Shine”
06. DJ Sega “Everybody Handz Up”
07. Machines Don’t Care “Juggs”
08. Mr Vegas “Round Of Applause”
09. Moby “I Love To Move In Here (Crookers Bass In Here Mix)”
10. Nacho Lovers “Acid Life”
11. Jamie Anderson and Content “Body Jackin”
12. DJ Big Red “Jakybodi”
13. DJ Will Roc “Replay Again”
14. Loco Dice “Pimp Jackson Is Talking Now!!!”
15. Lil Bo Tweak “K Rizzle”
16. 2 Bad Mice “Hold It Down”
17. Bassbin Twins “Woppa”
18. Loefah “It’s Yours”
19. Big Tuck “Not A Stain On Me”
20. Busta Rhymes “I Got Bass”

NC: I didn’t want to add to the pile of “new music” mixes with interchangeable tracklists - some of this is brand new, some of it isn’t out yet, some of it is “recent vintage” (or old as hell but new to me), but it all has a nice swag to it. Retro? Not retro? Most of my current favorites have similar elements (throwback house/rave samples, fast raps, dancehall vocals, breakbeats, sometimes all in the same song) so I figured, why not put a bunch together for a picture of where my head is at this summer? I hope you enjoy the listen, I had fun connecting the dots.

Pase Rock “Get Money Kids”
50 Cent “I Get Money (Catch On 45)”
“Get Money Kids” is far and away my favorite song of the past few months, it’s like Pase and Eli sat down at the computer and said “Man, the Juice soundtrack really needs more hip-house…” I usually mix it live into some sped-up Serato loops of 50 and Milk Dee to keep the $$$ theme alive.

Trap House “Step Into”
Way too many WUBBA WUBBA WUBBA basslines lately, but this one still manages to stand out - a crowd-pleaser that breaks the formula juuust enough. Thanks, Australia.

Bad Yard Club “In De Ghetto” (GrandTheft Remix)
On the school bus everyone knew chants from club songs like “Beat that bitch with a bat…” and “It’s time for the percolator…” from the older kids, but no one really knew it as “house music.” It wasn’t until a party in 6th or 7th grade when this girl played “Witch Doktor” and “In De Ghetto” on cassingle that I realized a whole separate thing was going on. Sammy Bananas hit me a few weeks ago with this new mix of “In De Ghetto” by DJ GrandTheft of the Eh! Team, it chops up the original without getting too flagrant.

Dukeyman “Shine”
Shyne finally gets out this year. You know he converted to Judaism in prison? L’chaim!

DJ Sega “Everybody Handz Up”
As we continue on with the Bad Boy flips, this track is a MONSTER. I think it is gonna be on the “DJ Sega Saves Hip-Hop” EP that’s coming soon.

Machines Don’t Care “Juggs”
Lots of goodies on the MDC album, but this one is a particular favorite. Best dancehall song on the subject since Vybz Kartel “Breast Specialist”?!?

Mr Vegas “Round Of Applause”
Moby “I Love To Move In Here (Crookers Bass In Here Mix)”
The Vegas song really just a vocal and some handclaps, so it’s a lot of fun to loop other shit up on top, and Crookers made it easy with their open drum intro (PS - excellent remix package on the new Moby single!) I cut the Grandmaster Caz verse with cue points but that’s not because he isn’t awesome - a few years ago Ayres and I hung out with the legend himself at the Heineken “Amsterjam” festival on Randall’s Island, where Caz was MCing the mash-up tent, also starring Diplo, DJ P, Princess Superstar and Matt and Fancy from Fannypack. Viva 2005! I think I bought Fantastic Four “Thing Hands” at Target when we got back to Brooklyn that day.

Nacho Lovers “Acid Life”
Obviously I’m biased, but this is one amazing-ass record. Something old, something new…lots more from Toronto’s premier techno scholars on Fool’s Gold very soon.

Jamie Anderson and Content “Body Jackin”
DJ Big Red “Jakybodi”
I didn’t know about this remake until A-Trak started playing it on the last label tour. It’s been in my rotation ever since, with the DJ Big Red track batting clean-up.

DJ Will Roc “Replay Again”
Dance music took so heavily from Baltimore club over the past few years, and now the veterans are going off in new directions of their own. It’s inspiring to see a label like Unruly reinvent themselves - the recent King Tutt and Chavy Boys EPs and this hypnotic, electronic Will Roc track are some of their best.

Loco Dice “Pimp Jackson Is Talking Now!!!”
I know absolutely nothing about Loco Dice, but this has been a late-night sureshot of mine, it bumps like a less zany Detroit Grand Pubahs. “We in Brooklyn baby, this is how we get down!”

Lil Bo Tweak “K Rizzle”
2 Bad Mice “Hold It Down”
Trevor Loveys and Co’s stuff as Lil Bo Tweak manages to feel incredibly current while referencing jams of yesteryear with all the samples and even the name (Lil Mo Yin Yang, anyone?). Conversely, the 2 Bad Mice came out in 1991 and sounds like it could have been made this morning.

Bassbin Twins “Woppa”
Loefah “It’s Yours”
I wish more dubstep felt like these two instead of zzzzzzzzzz.

Big Tuck “Not A Stain On Me”
Had to drop straight out of the Loefah with this. The beat is just a Beastie Boys loop, but goddamn! Another recent favorite that never really broke in NYC. Dallas rappers’ haircuts are too crazy for us.

Busta Rhymes “I Got Bass”
This isn’t a half-assed “A Millie” - Bangladesh is doing some neat shit with the Chuck D sample chorus and oddly-timed edits, and Busta’s flow is off the wall. “This shit be soundin like a thousand mosquitos buzzin/ Like hmm hmm hmm, hmm hmm, hmm hmm…”

There’s no denying that the latest MIXES have been keeping our ears extremely happy and have caused some serious dance fever action! Each mix is sure to bring out the inner wild side of you! If you’ve missed any of the recent 6 listed below, do yourself a favor and work your way up from the bottom to the top and have a listen. Before you know it, they’ll be over far too quickly and you’ll be begging for more! With the exception of the smooth, minimal Acid Girls mix, these are the bass heavy sounds of the summer season! Peep the MIXES section to the upper right for more JUNE MIXES and keep checking back for more!!

Drop The Lime at Fabric
Foamo’s Summer Mix
Crookers Radio 1 essential Mix
A1 Bassline
Acid Girls - NLLR Mix
Tomb Crew - NLLR Mix

Very few tracks these days can have such a great effect on the crowd to where people are immediately running up to the dj and asking for a song id. Destroy Disco has created one of these “must have songs” and its called “fly or bounce“.

Destroy Disco is a trio of djs from Sydney, Australia. While they have a long history as djs they have less than a few years as producers. It didn’t stop “fly or bounce” from being one of the hottest tracks around with crappy camera phone recordings of the tune popping up all over you tube. It even got the remix treatment from Laidback Luke and frequent plays by malente and crookers just to name a few. It is a crucial track for summer. It crosses fidget with enough elements of big room house to make a great crossover track and flexible enough to play at Pacha and crobar to studio b and cinespace.

And now we’re in luck because the track was officially released on June 18th on Secure Recordings packed with some heavy duty remixes by Jokers of The Scene, Bart Bmore, RogerSeventytwo and kruh.

And its available now through beatport for you to purchase and enjoy. Click here or here. Rest assured that it is worth every cent of your money, with the original track being amazing and the remixes are even more crucial. My personal favorite being a tie between the Jokers of The Scene remix and the Bart Bmore remix. The whole thing just creates a great excitement for the future of Destroy Disco.

And to celebrate the release of this monumental record, the Destroy Disco boys sent Trash Menagerie some tracks as a thank you to all their fans.

Destroy Disco - Ready for the Floor

Destroy Disco - Hello

Photo credit: Crookers

Saturday, June 21st saw the Big Apple debut of no less than three of 2008’s most blogged about and lauded upcoming European dance music talents, the mysterious masked Frenchman DANGER, fellow countrymen SPITZER and Italian wonk scallywags CROOKERS. This one night only event unfurled to a sold out crowd of fourteen-hundred excited individuals in the main room of the city’s venerable, Webster Hall.

The evening kicked-off in fine style around midnight with an appropriately hyper set of wobbly bassbin havoc courtesy of Trouble & Bass stalwart THE CAPTAIN. Any opening set that includes freshness like FOAMO’S “Rockerman” and the generally upfront sounds that the Trouble & Bass crew are known for purveying, is sure to get people moving.

Following the wobbly mayhem of THE CAPTAIN, Chicago’s Grey Goose guzzling godfather of Ghettotech DJ FUNK, took to the decks. FUNK’S two-hundred mile an hour blend of jackin’ Juke whipped the already excitable dance floor into an even sweatier pool of smiling faces.

Next, the pulsating sound of Electro-tinged Techy-Trance heralded the arrival of SPITZER, who drove head first into their smooth Trance-not-Trance set, an admittedly jarring change of pace from the three-hundred beats per minute, booty bass of DJ FUNK, but this duo from Lyon (sorry for misspelling - fixed!), France quickly had the happy sea of up-for-it punters eating out the palm of their hand. Indeed, anyone smitten by SPITZER’S handful of original productions like the excellent “Rainbow Warrior” or their quality remixes of KYLIE MINOGUE’S “In My Arms” and SALLY SHAPIRO’S “Time To Let Go,” would have been more than happy with the set they played this night.

By the time SPITZER’S set bubbled nicely to a close, it was 2am and finally time for the Phra and Bot (aka, CROOKERS) to take to the CDJ’s.

Photo credit: lastnightsparty.com

Despite the positive buzz generated by CROOKERS DJ stints elsewhere around the world — download their superb BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix and Gatecrasher Sound System mixes, from our MIXES section, for a taste of their established exploits elsewhere — expectations and excitement for their performance on this particular night was tangibly high. So did this much hyped Milanese production and remix team deliver the goods? Without hesitation I would have to say a hearty, yes! While not quite on par with their thoroughly brilliant, masterpiece of an Essential Mix, their Webster Hall set had the room in an utter frenzy, hundreds of people bouncing all around them on stage, feet stomping fists pumping until their last beat was dropped. Kudos to Webster Hall for allowing everyone to freely vibe and get up close and personal to the artist they’d waited so long to see perform in person. Finally CROOKERS had arrived stateside!

Photo credit: Phil Xander

Anyone left breathless by the finish of CROOKERS thunderous set around 3:30am, barely had time to recalibrate their eardrums before arguably the line-ups most exciting and certainly most fascinating artists appeared out of nowhere in his trademark “alien creature” mask. It was time to experience DANGER and what better time than 3:30am in the morning!

With DANGER’S appearance the lights in Webster Hall dimmed, about half of the fourteen-hundred strong crowd dissipated and a very low-end rumble started to throb from the sound system. Fluttering images of a jungle suddenly appeared on a massive screen behind the masked DJ, through the jungle a charatcter runs fantically from an unknown danger. For an hour DANGER won the hearts and minds of those who had committed to staying late to witness his unique brand of what can only be describe as cultish, Prog-Electro Soundtrack-Techno! Think VANGELIS meets THE PROXY meets secret society paranoia. DANGER left little doubt that much bigger things are in-store for his hypnotic, if still somewhat lo-fi stage show. The eye-popping, staccato VJ storytelling concept alone will capture the imagination of clubbers, artists and industry types alike and the mind simply boggles at how impressive it all might become with a real budget thrown at it. Time will hopefully tell.

So there we have it, three very different but equally spot-on debut performances that drew seemingly everyone involved with dance music in New York City to the same venue for one night. It was definitely one of the most interesting and eclectic nights of electronic music the city has seen in quite some time. There is little doubt that when DANGER, SPITZER and CROOKERS make their respective return journeys to spin in New York again, they will each have a swollen army of dedicated follows to call their own, in part thanks to this impressive showcase.

If you happen to be in New York this week you can catch DANGER and SPITZER again on Wednesday, June 25th at BODEGA, 1089 Broadway, Bushwick Brooklyn. Also, check out an interview with Vin of Midnight Juggernauts on music and NYC over at TheMusic.FM!!

Previous Spitzer on Trash Menagerie
Spitzer
Spitzer Is Blowing Up!
Spizter Gets Around
Spitzer Hits The Disco!

Holy Shit! There aren’t two better words to say when hearing a JACK BEATS track. These gentlemen’s jaw dropping introduction came through the Trouble & Bass released Boy 8-Bit ep, “Fog Bank” (buy it here), a track that made many heavy weight dj’s top ten list before it was even released for purchase by the general public. Since that release they’ve had a steady flow of top shelf, high quality remixes ranging from grime punk rapper, Trip, to The Black Ghosts and fellow bassmaster AC Slater (hear that on the crookers essential mix) and more. It makes one need to know who these super producers are and why are they so amazing.

Turns out Jack Beats are veterans to the scene with insane credentials. The duo is comprised of Dj Plus One from the Scratch Perverts and Beni G from Mixologists, both award winning turntablist crews from London and world renown djs. At 19 years old, Dj Plus One, won the 2000 Vestax DJ World Championship in Tokyo and placed 2nd to A-trak in the ITF World final in LA. A year later he went on to win the ultimate title, 2001 World DMC Champion, beating Kentaro and Klever, to become the first triumphant UK contender since 1989. Beni G is currently grime rapper Plan B’s tour dj and a former DMC & ITF DJ Champion and 2-time Urban Music Award (UMA) winner.

Even with credentials that amazing and awe inspiring they were able and willing to provide Trash Menagerie with an interview and the premiere of their remix of White Williams “Violator“!!!

sirhan: So you 2 are from scratch perverts and mixologists respectively but how do you come together and make “jack beats”?

Jack Beats: We come together to make jack beats through a mutual love of rave music, cups of tea and a fair amount of beer!

sirhan: Whats the inspiration? And who’s influencing you?

Jack Beats: The inspiration is hip hop and bassline based club music mainly- we’ve been hip hop and jungle kids for years- but we’re also big into our house and electro, dubstep and grime- we just like to put all those things in the pot and see what comes from it… Its a simple concept really.. Its not really so much who, but what- old school rave, 80s hip hop, dubstep, jungle are all big for us right now!!

sirhan: How are things going so far?

Jack Beats: Almost too well. Jack beats was an accident in all honesty. We started making some crunked hip hop type beats a few years back for a laugh- We got into hybriding that with the fidget and dubstep shit that we were feeling, and that formed the basis for sound we have now.

We chose a name we thought was fitting as an alias because we had a remix coming out and we needed to. Then we set up a myspace under that name, with no information on it- just music, in order to see if anyone actually felt the tunes…

We didn’t want any preconceived ideas of what we’d sound like as plus one and beni g - as we wanted to do something fresh, and different from what we were known for and we wanted honest feedback! Fortunately people seem to be really feeling it and we are busier than ever, and we’ve not even really got started yet. We’ve been fortunate enough to have had good support from key heads like boy 8 bit, touche and sinden, and that has really helped us.

sirhan: The remixes have been on fire, you playing shows? and when you do, what will be the set up?

Jack Beats: Yeah we’ve started to get shows booked in as jack beats, i guess cos our remixes have been bubbling away, although we never really started this as a means to be in the clubs, as we tend to live there anyway!! However it’s wicked to start playing out fully the sound we produce… since were both pretty busy with our other dj work, its only ever gonna be 1 of us doing the gigs though. We both push the boundaries as dj’s, for a living, so i guess regardless of who you will see playing as jack beats, you can be sure we know what we’re doing!!

sirhan: Where do you look forward to playing the most?

Jack Beats: Any gig with seb chew or martelo…fabric always a great place to spin too.

sirhan: Since Jack Beats is a duo any solo work you plan on putting out?

Jack Beats: Jack beats is a still side line project for us- so we’re both working full time on the other things we are affiliated with, and also now and again on solo projects- though there are no scheduled solo releases right now, just jack beats releases.

sirhan: What will the orginal work sound like?

Jack Beats: The sound we have through our remixes is the sound of jack beats- so expect the original material to follow suit… We are just aiming for it to be one louder.

sirhan: Tell me about Ahead of the Game?

Jack Beats: Ahead of the game is a label we set up originally as a stable for quality hip hop and grime music hybridized with other genres such as jungle, dnb, dubstep, house etc. We’ve had 3 releases so far, and we are planning more. So far its simply always been about putting out quality and not quantity with aotg- and we want every release to be really hot- so that’s why we’ve taken our time with it.

sirhan: Any producers or djs we should look out for?

Jack Beats: Boy 8-bit, martelo, fake blood, duke dumont, proxy, skream, caspa and rusko.

sirhan: Any funny stories?

Jack Beats: If you play fake blood records backwards on 45 they reveal his identity!

and as promised…

White Williams - Violator (Jack Beats Remix)

and for good measure they also gave us their remix of Does It Offend You, Yeah?

Does It Offend You, Yeah - Epic Last Song (Jack Beats Remix)

Alan Hostage is a man that truly captures that DIY spirit! Along with all of the music he produces, he also has a knack at whipping up homemade graphics that accompany said music. Some of this art happens to be of food, but usually the visual is a play along to the track title.

If you’ve ever browsed through the graphics on Hostage’s page, perhaps you’ve seen some of these images – A man yacking for “Sick”, toilet paper for “Rip Shit Up”, a pile of knives for “Stab Up”, a large stadium filled with people for “Stadium”, a snake charmer for “Snake Charmer” and the one that just had me snarking was his remix for “Make it Clap” with an image of a dog wearing a jheri curl wig. Okay, maybe I’m just a bit mad or have an odd sense of humor, but it’s these little things in life that people do that make me grin. Head over to Alan’s page and humor yourself too.

So in other exciting news, a little bit o’ sunshine shining down on Hostage (which can be heard on his latest mix that I hope to be posting soon) as well as his latest tune “The Next Level” created with the Roccodisco Crew. Yayyyyy Hostage!!!!!

Hostage & the Roccodisco Crew - The Next Level

Title: Tommie Sunshine - Limit Of Your Mind (Tocadisco/Nic Sarno/Hostage Remixes) (Alphabet City)
Artist: Tommie Sunshine
Label: Alphabet City

“On one of his many trips to Germany playing alongside Marc Romboy, Tommie Sunshine dropped by the studio of 45 Rocks and heard this tune they had been working on. 20 minutes later he had the lyrics and 30 minutes more they were put to tape sending him and Marc out the door in less than an hours. The track first saw the light of day in its original form on Tommie’s Ultra Rock Remixed in America and has now been transformed into a powerhouse package for every possible taste. On vinyl one, besides the original Tocadisco was chosen to send this track into outer space after he and Sunshine collaborated on ‘Chaos In The Streets’ on his last album. He has delivered both a remix and a dub that is destined to receive both massive worldwide club play and constant island rotation throughout the season. On vinyl two, Sunshine has been given the A&R reigns and has groomed this package for the fringe and beyond. First up is Alan Hostage from Edinburgh, Scotland who has a stranglehold on the blogosphere and delivers his Ravemix to delightful results. This is serious pumping madness and not for the faint at heart. Next up is Milano, Italy’s Nic Sarno (ESP/Tirk Records)! This is Fidget madness done proper and no less than fellow Milano man, Bot from world renowned Crookers to master his remake to assure full-on dance-floor destruction. This is peak-hour done right and takes your set in a whole other direction in all the best ways. Crookers featured Nic’s mix both on their 25000 strong downloaded may 2008 mix tape and their upcoming Essential Mix for Pete Tong’s show on Radio One. The flip is Tommie as his own Brooklyn Fire moniker delivering the secret weapon of the package in the form of a spaced-out exercise in acid-house restraint. This Odyssey pt. 1&2 is both a vocal and dub stretched over 9 minutes of madness.

Tracklist:
1. Tommie Sunshine - Limit Of Your Mind (Original) (Alphabet City)
2. Tommie Sunshine - Limit Of Your Mind (Tocadiscos Beach Club Mix) (Alphabet City)
3. Tommie Sunshine - Limit Of Your Mind (Tocadiscos Beach Club Dub) (Alphabet City)
4. Tommie Sunshine - Limit Of Your Mind (Nic Sarno Remix) (Alphabet City)
5. Tommie Sunshine - Limit Of Your Mind (Hostage Remix) (Alphabet City)
6. Tommie Sunshine - Limit Of Your Mind (Brooklyn Fire Odyssey) (Alphabet City)

Coming soon to all good record shops and online music shops yeahhhh!!!!”

Canada is known for many things like beer, hockey, deep freeze winters and socialized health care. And 2008 might be the year Canada is known for amazing dance music. While France, Australia, the UK and even Italy is gaining exposure for there contributions, Canada is hiding quietly like an assassin waiting to strike.

One of those ready to strike is producer/dj, Alias, out of Toronto. Expect to hear some deep bass, crisp claps, and massive amounts of influence from disco, dancehall and other forms of mind bending music influencing his work and dj sets. With his tunes have being played by some of the big boys like Drop the lime, Rene van muster, and Scott Copper. He’s also going to be co-producing tracks with UK act, Foamo.

It’s no suprise that he is already rumored to be releasing an upcoming ep on fidget house label, Potty Mouth, who have already brought us great releases by Crookers, Santiago and Bushido, and Dj Fame.

Keep your eyes and ears open for Alias.

And check out “Hot Feet“.

Alias - Hot Feet

and the smooth housey “think again”

Alias - think again