Hobby Horse

Somone (probably John Medd) mentioned Fila Brazillia the other day. 

I don't often do requests, even implicit ones, but their name started bouncing around in my head until I succumbed to the urge to compile a Fila Brazillia selection, celebrating the great remixes that they've produced in the last 30 (!) years.

Fila Brazillia appeared to be rested in 2006, Dave McSherry and Steve Cobby following other pursuits not limited to making music. Except they never really went away, reactivating the FB name for a series of remixes in the 2020s, not least for shoegazers bdrmm, who also happen to be fellow citizens of Hull.

In a nod to the more recent past, I've included a track from Offshore Sunsets, the rather wonderful EP released last year by Steve Cobby & Third Attempt aka Torje Fagertun Spilde.

As I was in the midst of uploading this selection, and typing a dedication to the aforementioned Mr. Medd, I belatedly realised that I've done the very same thing in March 2023! 

Fortunately, I've only duplicated two of the eight songs on each selection, so I hope you will overlook this dereliction of due diligence on this occasion. 

Forty six minutes of phat beats and summer vibes, with a lil' bit of chill. Raising a glass to you, John! 

1) Forever Broke (Fila Brazillia Remix): The Seatbelts (1999)

2) Nepalese Fish Dances (Remix By Fila Brazillia): The Irresistible Force (1999)

3) Wild Party (Remix): Fila Brazillia vs. A Certain Ratio ft. Denise Johnson (2003)

4) The Sign's Alive (Fila Brazillia Dub Mix): Lypid (2000)

5) Be Careful (Fila Brazillia Remix): bdrmm (2023)

6) Golden Brown (Fila Brazillia Remix-Ambient) (Cover of The Stranglers): Better Daze (1997)

7) The Spy From Ankara (Fila Brazillia Remix): Snooze (1996)

8) Feeling Seen: Steve Cobby & Third Attempt (2024)

1996: The Man In The Shadow: 7

1997: Remix Project: 6

1999: Cowboy Bebop: Remixes: Music For Freelance: 1

1999: Fish Dances: 2

2000: The Sign's Alive EP: 4

2003: Fila Brazillia Versus A Certain Ratio EP: 3

2023: Be Careful EP: 5

2024: Offshore Sunsets EP: 8

Hobby Horse (46:24) (GD) (M)

You can find my previous Fila Brazillia selection, A Gazillion Brazillians, waiting for you here.

And whilst I'm name checking talented music makers, check this out.

A Shot Of Equanimity

Another dip into the shopping bag for an hour-long selection of purchases from last Friday.

 

Topped and tailed by David Holmes, all but one from this decade, a mix of legendary and new(ish) names, all committed to delivering some top tunes, bending the original music into new shapes.

 

Enjoy! 

 

1) Yeah x 3 (Rich Lane Remix): David Holmes ft. Raven Violet (2024)

2) PoPoPoPom (Keith Forrester Remix): Stylic (2024)

3) If.... (Ditz Remix): bdrmm (2020)

4) You Ain't Seen Me (Black Octopus Remix): The Shaker (2024)

5) Leave House (Motor City Drum Ensemble Remix): Caribou (2010)

6) Game (Mezey Remix By Benjamin Boeldt): Martina Topley-Bird (2022)

7) Camouflage (Pattern 2) (Remix by UXB aka Peter Morgan): Campbell / Mallinder / Benge (2022)

8) Sugar High (Saint Etienne Remix): Iraina Mancini (2023)

9) Sylvia (David Holmes Remix): Lisa Moorish (2024)

 

2010: Swim Remixes: 5

2020: If.... EP: 3 

2022: Clinker (Expanded Edition): 7

2022: Game EP: 6

2024: Beyond The Wizards Sleeve / Saint Etienne Versions EP: 8

2024: Blind On A Galloping Horse (Remixes Vol. 1): 1

2024: Shelter Me: In Crisis: 2 

2024: Sylvia EP: 9

2024: You Ain't Seen Me EP: 4

 

A Shot Of Equanimity (1:00:23) (KF) (Mega)

Brain Is Burning From Losing

After a week of looking back, Friday's selection brings us back up to date with an 8-track trawl through the last couple of years, heavily weighted towards music from 2023.

Private Agenda is Sean Phillips and Martin Aggrowe. "In their teens," says the bio, "[they] dipped in and out of musical projects with their peers, swapping instruments, records and literature along the way. What united these early efforts was a growing fascination and exploration of a multi-genre, interdisciplinary approach to musical projects. If Private Agenda didn’t exist in name, it existed in spirit from an early stage." Private Agenda released the excellent Submersion EP on Lo Recordings in 2021, closing with a remix by label boss - and one half of Seahawks - Jon Tye under his Ocean Moon moniker.

From Ocean Moon to Moon Ocean, one of a series of top notch EPs released by Justin Robertson this year. Confluence Of Torrents is one of five tracks on this EP, featuring music dusted off from the vaults, which speaks to the quality and volume of Justin's work that sometimes there's just too much good music to release all at once.

I was certain that I'd previously featured at least one version of Iron Warrior by Revival Season here, but apparently not. I've gone for the Dubstrumental, one of three Raf Rundell remixes of this standalone 2021 single. Revival Season is Brandon Evans (B-Eazy) and Jonah Swilley (Mattiel) and their debut album is landing in early 2024.

in 2021, Steady State produced the rather excellent Ofra Haza-sampling Shake Up Your Mind. In turn, those wonderful people at Paisley Dark Records commissioned around two dozen remixes. Most of these were compiled for Shelter Me: Beats For Beds: The Remix Album, proceeds going to the housing and homelessness charity Shelter. No longer available to buy, this extract from the album is by Clandestino and amazingly, the quality of the remixes is that good throughout.

The Machine Soul aka Robert Folkesson released the Engineered State EP in the summer, another solid release on Paisley Dark Records. The bio on Resident Advisor reads, "Robert was part of the early rave and house scene in Stockholm, DJ-ing at various underground warehouse parties and legendary clubs like Deep in Bleep, Monday Bar and Le Garage under the DJ Robo moniker. The Machine Soul is Roberts’s brain child for producing deep and groovy tech and deep house" and Engineered State delivers and then some. I've included the original mix here but the remixes by Högt I Tak, Ian Vale, UFO and Jay-Son are also highly recommended.

JP Buckle is Jason Peter Buckle, perhaps better known as a member of The All Seeing I and collaborating with Jarvis Cocker as Relaxed Muscle in the early 2000s before becoming a core member of JARV IS... at the turn of this decade. Redefining prolific, Self Respecting Unobsessed is a track from the album Radio Silence, the seventh of ten (so far) albums and EPs this year alone. 

bdrmm is Hull-based four piece comprising Ryan Smith, Jordan Smith, Joe Vickers and Conor Murray. bdrmm was born as a solo bedroom project by Ryan and after a demo got interest from Radio 1, Ryan roped in his brother and mates to flesh out the band and the sound. bdrmm's music is typically described as shoegaze though you wouldn't know this from listening to Daniel Avery's superlative remix. How much of bdrmm's original music is left in the mix is debatable, but it's a cracking tune all the same.

After the previous song's brain burning beats, some cool water to quell the flames with A Place To Bury Strangers remixed by Annie Hart of Au Revoir Simone. Sonically, the songs is very reminiscent of the latter; vocally it's all the former, Oliver Ackermann's lyrics left intact. Another gem from this year's See Through You Rerealized remix album.

With the exception of the Steady State song, all of today's selections and their parent releases can be found and purchased on Bandcamp.

 

1) P.S.R (Ocean Moon Mix By Jon Tye): Private Agenda (2021)

2) Confluence Of Torrents: Justin Robertson's Deadstock 33s (2023)

3) Iron Warrior (Raf Rundell Dubstrumental): Revival Season (2021)

4) Shake Up Your Mind (Clandestino Melt Up Your Mind Mix By Joe Morris & Nick Smith): Steady State (2021)

5) Engineered State (Original Mix By Robert Folkesson): The Machine Soul (2023)

6) Self Respecting Unobsessed: JP Buckle (2023)

7) Port (Daniel Avery Remix): bdrmm (2022)

8) Nice Of You To Be There For Me (Annie Hart Remix): A Place To Bury Strangers (2023)

 

2021: Iron Warrior EP: 3

2021: Shelter Me: Beats For Beds: The Remix Album: 4

2021: Submersion EP: 1 

2022: Port EP: 7

2023: Engineered State EP: 5

2023: Moon Ocean EP: 2

2023: Radio Silence: 6

2023: See Through You Rerealized: 8

 

Brain Is Burning From Losing (45:21) (KF) (Mega)