We get down to business with Max Essa and a wonderful remix by Mark Seven of Uptown Vibration that - in my mind at least - has an intro that continually makes me think it's going to launch into A Certain Ratio's cover of Shack Up. More of them later.
audiobooks are Evangeline Ling and David Wrench. Wrench has a mightily impressive CV but I first heard of him via his link to Julian Cope. audiobooks are remixed here by Bruise, a duo featuring Darren House, better known to me as Diesel of Rocky & Diesel, Ballistic Brothers and X-Press 2 fame.
There was a lot of love for Blancmange over at The Vinyl Villain this week, so it would be remiss of me not to include Pete Herbert's remix of one of their finest moments from the 1980s. Living On The Ceiling is possibly their finest song, but it’s a tough call.
Coming in at the tail end of the 1970s, A Certain Ratio were smashing it in the 1980s and, like Blancmange, have been enjoying a purple patch this decade. 2021's Loco Remezclada saw a bunch of artists remix their album Loco, with deeply satisfying results. Featured here is Manchester-based DJ and producer Kirby Halliday aka Muddy Feet, delivering a cracking version of Always In Love.
Speaking of cracking tunes, Hifi Sean and David McAlmont have released a whole album of them with Happy Ending. All In The World was remixed by Hifi Sean himself, a pulsing, energetic tune that retains just enough of David McAlmont's vocals to hit that sweet spot (though the vocal-free dub is excellent, too).
afterlife is a one-man act, Steve Miller, described in the Resident Advisor bio as "the sunset phenomenon, purveyor of romantic and melancholic mood music". Who better to guide a tune through the night and blinking into the sunrise than Sean Johnston in his Hardway Bros guise? This is kind of how I imagined a Slam remix of Ultramarine might sound, very 1990s yet perfect for a 2020s winter weekend too.
Jezebell should need no introduction if you're a regular visitor to this blog as I've featured them many times. Like A Certain Ratio, Pete Bones turned over his album Hyena Hopscotch to a clutch of creatives and the results were impressive. Jezebell have only been releasing music for a couple of years but have hit the mark each and every time. My regular stream of Bandcamp mailing list updates included the good news that there are more Jezebell remixes coming out next month, which will undoubtedly feature in future posts.
Abstract Incognito is also known as DJ Pants and to friends and family as Aditya Mehta. His music is inspired by "his love for bright sunny weather and warm coastal breezes" and I first heard of him last year, following Max Essa's trail to his Jansen Jardin label and the rather fine Collection Number One compilation. Another track with a strong 1980s vibe, this time a little swingbeat soul.
Speaking of the 1980s…cripes, I hadn't twigged the underlying theme when I was stitching this selection together! Mark Rae - taking a break from Rae & Christian - released The Tracks Of My Psychedelic Soul in 2021, containing a very familiar sample from one of my favourite bands underpinning a very satisfying mash-up.
I know very little about Unu' Marika aka DJ Marika aka Florin Marica, other than they are based in Romania and run the Selectro Records label, this track appearing on the 22-track compilation Free Download in 2021. Much of it made up of hit-and-mix remixes of artists as varied as Echo & The Bunnymen, Cardi B, Dead Or Alive and Massive Attack. This remix and accompanying dub by Romanian producers Sakdat & Balaur aka Paul Andrei & Loko Trashman are the highlights.
I've been following Nicolas Laugier aka The Reflex for many years, from his early outings with unofficial/bootleg reworks to the present day with official 're√isions' for the likes of Róisín Murphy, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds and UNKLE. Here, he returns to a stone cold classic from the Bar-Kays, teasing out 1978's Holy Ghost to a satisfying eight and a half minutes.
Resident Advisor states that Deo'Jorge is a "well-known figure in New York's infamous underground off-location party scene". Sadly for me, being located in rural Gloucestershire in England, there's a distinct lack of an underground off-location party scene, but I can still appreciate Deo'Jorge. I originally bought his Robotic Souls EP in 2021 on the strength of featured remixes by Hardway Bros and Prins Thomas but the other tunes were pretty darn good too, as evidenced here by Do Androids Dream.
I like Jane's Addiction but haven't particularly bought their albums and have even less sense of Perry Farrell's other work with Porno For Pyros and as a solo artist. Therefore, I can only describe his 2021 compilation The Glitz; The Glamour: Remixes as an impulse purchase. It was a good one, though. Oh The Sunn! is a collaboration with The Avalanches and provides today's post and mix titles. Oh, and I've included the lyrics below if you want to sing along.
Hola Estrella are another act that I know very little about, apart from the fact that they are an Italian duo who appear to share my love of "obscure and psychedelic disco sounds and cosmic emotional tracks" - I mean, what's not to love? I believe Velax is Russian born but residing these days in Mexico City. As for AGD, you've gotta be kidding me, I haven't a clue! However, I will say that I'm very glad that they all come together for the closing track on this selection, Les Etoiles.
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!
1) Uptown Vibration (Mark Seven Downtown Mix): Max Essa (2022)
2) The Doll (Bruise Remix By Christian Campbell & Darren House): audiobooks (2021)
3) Living On The Ceiling (Pete Herbert Version Darkness): Blancmange (2021)
4) Always In Love (Muddy Feet Remix By Kirby Halliday): A Certain Ratio (2021)
5) All In The World (Hifi's Electro Flux): Hifi Sean & David McAlmont (2022)
6) Resistance (Hardway Bros Remix By Sean Johnston): afterlife (2021)
7) Submissive Background (Jezebell Remix By Jesse Fahnestock & Darren Bell): Pete Bones & The Stones Of Convention (2022)
8) Me Gusta Dancing: Abstract Incognito (2022)
9) The Tracks Of My Psychedelic Soul (Redux): Mark Rae (2021)
10) Stelele (Sakdat & Balaur Remix): Unu' Marika (2021)
11) Holy Ghost (Reborn) (The Reflex Re√ision By Nicolas Laugier): The Bar-Kays (2021)
12) Do Androids Dream: Deo'Jorge (2021)
13) Oh The Sunn!: The Avalanches ft. Perry Farrell (2021)
14) Les Etoiles (Velax Cosmic Dust Reix): Hola Estrella ft. AGD (2021)
Oh The Sunn! by The Avalanches ft. Perry Farrell
The entertaining lightsWhen the sky and stars at nightFashioned by divine light
DivineDivine designerUnder lights, suicide
No, we don't understandWhy they treat us so meanNo, we don't understand it at allBut we'll do our bestTo stand the testAnd we'll never turn back no more (the big, big, beautiful lights)
No, we don't understandWhy they treat us so meanNo, we don't understand it at allBut we'll do our bestTo stand the testAnd we'll never turn back no more (under lights, suicide)
The music of lightThe music of lightThat's our songLove is our songIt's what we've known all alongLove is our songBig, big, beautiful lifeLove is so powerfulLove is so strongLove is our rightBut we've known all along
No, we don't understandWhy they treat us so meanNo, we don't understand it at allBut we're doing our bestTo pass the testAnd we never turn back no moreLove is our right
No, we don't understandWhy they treat us so meanNo, we don't understand it at allBut we do it our bestTo pass the testAnd we never turn back no more
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