Posted by: Matt

First, Adam Freeland was after your soul. Then Benny Benassi needed satisfaction. In 2010, England’s Cakeboy steps up to fill the chantable, disaffected robot vocal gap with Swamp Thing.

Surprisingly often the A-side of many singles end up in the shadow of any of many remixes that may follow (or were deliberately solicited to maximize commercial viability). In this case though I think the original version holds ground quite firmly as a sunny electro-breaks jam that doesn’t break any new ground but hits all the right notes and sweet spots you would want/expect from this well-flogged territory. The JFB remix turns the lights down a bit and staggers into Dubstep territory, but don’t let that scare you away. The crunch is all still there along with a few new melodic phrases that add a nice darkness to the track that is missing in the original (hey, it’s about a monster after all!).

Cakeboy - Swamp Thing (Original Mix)

Cakeboy -Swamp Thing (JFB remix)

Buy the full release and more remixes on Beatport

Posted by: Cor

Ready for another beautiful summer weekend? I sure as hell am. And to kick it off right, here’s a (relatively) fresh Krafty Kuts mix to get you in the mood. Enjoy!

Krafty Kuts - Fresh Kuts 2010 (right click to download)

Posted by: Matt

The debut album from Dutch Drum n Bass trio NOISIA (VISION flipped vertically, if you can picture that) is a curious beast. Though known primarily for their slew of DnB 12″s, they branch out quite a bit into Electrohouse, Downtempo, and Dubstep on their long player. This type of spread is generally common among acts crafting an album for home listening, however what makes Split the Atom an interesting experience is that while the styles vary greatly, they didn’t adjust their toolset much (or at all), really.

The end result is an enjoyable listen, but also an interesting experiment in genre definition. Is it all Drum n Bass but at wildly varying tempos? Can we still call slow tracks Downtempo if they have dirty, crushing basslines? Is this visionary or lazy?

Soul Purge (feat Foreign Beggars)

Square Feet

Alpha Centauri

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Would You Like To Know Moar?
Noisia on Myspace

Posted by: Cor

Hey, remember Propellerheads? Their 1997 album ‘Decksanddrumsandrockandroll’ was, for my money, the greatest breaks album ever to grace my ears*. Start to finish, the album is fun, funky and has a ton of variety. After achieving such critical and commercial success, they followed this amazing debut with… nothing at all. Despite the occasional rumor of the duo** heading back to the studio, it’s been 13 long years and nothing has materialized. At least one member has moved on to other projects. I’ve given up hope.

However, for those of us that remember the album fondly, we have a special treat today. Beatery favorite Elite Force recently remixed the breaks classic Take California for his album ‘Revamped’, a full set of remixes of classic breakbeat tracks. The update beefs-up the beat for the modern breaks era and after paying homage to the original in the first half, takes the track in a tech-funk direction for its finish. Personally, while I certainly appreciate revisiting this fantastic song, I just don’t think the remix can compete with the original. I’m posting both. What do you think of the new version?


Propellerheads - Take California

Propellerheads - Cali Sk8r (Elite Force Remix)

Revamped is available for download on Amazon HERE. Longtime fans of the breaks genre should definitely check it out.

*With the possible exception of Plump DJ’s ‘A Plump Night Out’.
** Looking appropriately guilt-ridden in the photo above.

Posted by: Matt

Lawgiverz, two masked British dudes, melted my drug-addled brain a few years ago by dropping a savagely techy breaks set just before sunrise from the bow of a pirate ship.

Let’s let that sink in for a second.

Anyway I left the playa that year so excited about these two masked mystery men that I told everyone who would listen about how great they were, what a bright future they had, and so on. And then….kind of nothing. They followed the great Breaks Migration to SF and played a few sets around town, but nothing really seemed to click the way it did that one night in the desert. They released a single or two, but nothing very unique or forward-moving, and lately I haven’t heard much at all out of their camp. Maybe they are busy with other things, or maybe they just ran out of creative juices.

However, what made them great was that they played “live” in a way that few duos can manage. They had an energy and vitality to their laptop and deck antics that felt so much more fresh and hands-on than most DJ tag teams and button pushers out there, and you can hear it in all their sets from that time. They may have faded away, but their quick flash was so bright. It’s still inspirational to me, to have seen what’s possible, and also a lesson that many great things just aren’t meant to last.

Their live sets seem to be somewhat hard to come by but I found this recording that is supposedly from a music festival in Spain from 2006. The quality is excellent, so it must have been a soundboard recording. Enjoy!

Lawgiverz - Music to the Core (Live in Spain 4/14/2006)