Monolake - Macau

Macau, from 1997, is the earliest piece of Monolake's I will post. Warning: This one will cause involuntary foot tapping, head nodding and possibly funny face making to the beat. Rolling beats and big ping pong reverbs in all the right places along with the steady dub beat in the background makes it a solid winner.

Monolake is an open project dedicated to computer generated music, birthed in Berlin and founded in 1995 by Robert Henke and Gerhard Behles (who created the software company Ableton in 2000).

Monolake - Infinite Snow

To show Monolake's diversity I am going to post multiple selections of this great music all sounding quite different from one another and spanning the last 15 years. This one, Infinite Snow, is a really beautiful beat driven piece with thick bass and a zither type instrument combining to make it nicey nice.

Monolake - Gobi The Desert EP in FULL!

This is a very happy post for me. Artists and songs from my listening past float in and out of my head and sometimes when they float out they don't return for a few years. Though this is unfortunate, they always return, usually at fortunate times. I digest a lot of media and sometimes some of my proven personal favorites get relegated due to the room I need for new storage and constant consumption in my bird brain. Today, while listening to the crickets in my yard, at long last Monolake flashed back into my mind's ears. I haven't posted Ambient for a while and it is the perfect time of year for this particular EP called Gobi - The Desert EP. All 37 minutes of it sounds great on a fall night when the crickets are singing their late summer songs (Seriously, put it on when you can hear a cricket/insect symphony and it is an amazing audio experience that will sound different every time you listen in this manner).

This EP, (and much more music) helped get me through some really dark times. The times when people can no longer help you any further, that's when music means the most. In my experience, I notice people traditionally reach for singers and more familiar music when they are hurting (probably due to them wanting to be comforted and familiar music often equals comfortable music). Personally, I always found that when I am hurting there is usually a fair amount of confusion in me and familiar music makes me well...almost angry. When nothing is normal anymore and the world as I know it has been flipped upside down, the last thing I want to reach for is something normal, familiar or expected (there is no comfort there for me, it only makes my head scream in the face of all the confusion). There is an element of naivete in my head scream that says, "Remember last time you felt comfortable, yeah, it was right before "said fucked up thing" happened." When things are abnormal I want music with at least a slight element of WTF, I feel less naive when I listen to it I guess. Familiar, especially vocal, music in these times is often far too direct for me and doesn't allow for interpretation or contemplation near as much as certain abstract or ambient music (of course this may differ depending on how much hurt and in what situation I find myself in). Gobi - The Desert EP really allows for mental space that a lot of music, event a lot of ambient music, does not allow for and I am grateful it exists. I hear elements of silence, confusion, chaos, contemplation, meditation, anger, innocence, laziness, struggle, past memories and future questions. To sum it up: the sound of blunt existence and all that comes with it. I wish you Zen-filled listening.

PUMPED UP KICKS|DUBSTEP

It's been a while since I posted some fresh dance moves up and I thought it was about time for that. So here is a man freaking it to some dubstep better than you can do.

Contakt & Mayster - Korak (Matt Shadetek 3ball NYC Remix)

New tribal banger from Contakt & Mayster with the formidable Matt Shadetek on the remix. Wicked badman!

Deam - Square Love

Deam - Square Love EP sampler by Concrete Cut
Brand new, UK bass sounding chune from Deam, one of the six tracks from his upcoming Square Love EP.

QP - Soul Jerk (Norrit Remix)

qp - Sol Jerk (Norrit Remix) by Norrit
Ill, sick, feverish, bed-ridden? new remix by Norrit. 

Norrit - N Gbekinho

This track by Norrit is just weird and disorienting enough to make the cut on my dance floor. Loving the world electronic vibe.

Dubbel Dutch - B Leave (remix by Nguzunguzu)

'B LEAVE' SINGLE - FORTHCOMING UTTU w/ NGUZUNGUZU RMX (96kbps) by dubbeldutch
New ish from Dubbel Dutch, I really like the remix by Nguzunguzu. Dig it like graves.   

Ayshay - WARN-U (Nguzunguzu Remix)

Here is a rather ill Nguzunguzu remix. It is your daily dose of Wha happened? Wha the ffff? Why? Whoa. If it doesn't make you feel quite that way then a sure fire way is to light some candles, smoke some Chuga del Diablo and listen to the original while watching the video. That should at best melt your skull or at least awaken dormant spirits that live in your residence. 

Ini Kamoze - Here Comes the Hotstepper (Booyaka Remix)

I know you were sick of this song already in 1977 or whenever this came out but this remix is jungle fire and had to be shared. DREAD AT THE CONTROLS!

DZA - Zoo Keeper (Salva Remix)

Another quality Salva remix but this time on a funky glitch vibe as he remixes DZA's Zoo Keeper (which is good in its own right).

Salva - Sumn Bout Dis Girl

SUMN BOUT DIS GIRL ("That Girl") by SALVA
Snoop rhymes with Juke, Pharrell is fantastic and now Salva has created a fantastic Pharrell & Snoop Juke. Dig it. (I would have posted this with the slew of Juke I posted last week but only just discovered it.)

Dj Mehdi - Signatune (T. Bangalter Edit) (Official Video)

DJ Mehdi died in a rooftop collapse today. Rest In Beats DJ Mehdi. Thank you for leaving us your greatness to pass on to others. It is not fair that you were taken so soon. Sending positive energy to your friends and family so that they deal with this mountain of crushing grief a little bit easier.

Hip Hop + Moombahton = Moombahop

Moombahop Mix - DJ MadCoins

Moombahton is a new genre of music that has been getting mixed reviews lately. Some people love it, some yawn, others hate it. I personally don't so much like the repeated high pitched synth tones that have been present in a lot of it, I do however like the sound of Hip Hop remixes, beats and samples when used with the Moombahton sound. So this is my mix of Moombahop with some melodic, Latin feeling Moombahton mixed in between. The link above will take you to the mix.  

Crossroads Records Compilation - Bass, Deep, Ambient, Downtempo

CRSRDSFREE01 by crossroadsrecordsmusic
I am impressed by the textures of some of these tracks from Crossroads records. This is a new compilation of artists from the U.S., U.K., and The Netherlands. From 2-Step and on to the deeper side, this compilation is focused on Bass. These tunes are packed with low frequencies that will please the desires to not only hear good music, but to feel good music. Nice ambient soundscapes and bass is delivered throughout the compilation with each track often quite different from the last. Scroll down to 10 or so if you want to hear more 2 step sounding textures. 

DJ MadCoins - Labor Dub mix

DJ MadCoins - Labor Dub mix 

A smooth mix of Dub Reggae classics I mixed on Labor Day to help ease your labored mind.

Little Dragon - After the Rain (Gifted & Blessed remix)

Best remix you will hear today. Little Dragon + Gifted & Blessed = Slept on win

Jamie xx - Far Nearer

I liked Jamie xx's early work a lot, then he did legendary work with Gil Scott-Heron months before he passed away... now I love his work and want to send him a note that says I love you, do you love me? If you do will you go to the dance with me? Check yes or no and return.

Sonido Profundos - Tiro al Blanco

Tiro al blanco (Sonidos Profundos rmx) by Sonidos_Profundos
Here is some drum & bass cumbia for your Saturday. Unique sounds abound.

DJ Spinn - LOL

Absolutely lovely production on this wavy, blissful sounding Juke by DJ Spinn. Chicago!