Posted by: Jay

I don’t think it’s gonna make quiiiite as much money as The Avengers, but there’s another movie out that throws together established superheros into some kind of ad-hoc collaboration, hoping that the sum of their parts will turn into something transcendent, something greater than any of them could have achieved on their own. In “Re:Generation”, a documentary brought to us by The Grammys and directed by Amir Bar-Lev*, our five superheros are Skrillix, DJ Premier, Pretty Lights, Mark Ronson, and The Crystal Method and their mission is to reinterpret five traditional genres of music with their on unique style and flair.

* I had no idea “The Grammys” presented anything besides The Grammys. And Bar-Lev also directed “My Kid Could Pint That” & “The Tillman Story”

As a big fan of genre bending in general I was all in when I heard about the project, and with one exception* all the tracks turned out great. As for the movie itself, it ranges from “well worth watching” to a “must see!”, depending on how much you follow these modern day musical superheros. As a super fan of all these guys it was thrilling watching them so far out of their element and really having their sound pushed to the limit.

*Crystal Method, I’m looking at you.

I appreciated all these tracks more after I watched the whole movie so really I hope you’ll make the time to do that, but let’s just take ‘em for a quick spin:

Skrillex vs. Rock (and featuring the living members of the Doors*) - “Breakn’ A Sweat”

Mark Ronson vs Jazz (featuring Erykah Badu, Trombone Shorty, Mos Def, Zigaboo Modeliste, and Members of The Dap Kings) - “A La Modeliste”

DJ Premier vs Classical (Nas and The Berklee Symphony Orchestra) - “Regeneration”

Pretty Light vs Country (featuring LeAnn Rimes and Dr. Ralph Stanley) - “Wayfaring Stranger”

To watch the movie and get all these tracks check the official website:

http://regenerationmusicproject.com/

Trailer and re-mixes from Bonobo and Zedd after the jump:

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: Jay

Speaking of comebacks, blog favorite Gramatik is back with a hot new EP on the Pretty Lights label! And while I love “Talkbox Intended” like this cat loves him some boxes the rest of the EP left me thinking: “Et tu, Gramatik? Et tu??”. Yup, our down tempo/hip hop hero has fallen prey to that wicked temptress know as “dubstep”. No one, it seems, is beyond her seductive reach.

So, if you like dubstep you’re gonna LOVE this EP. If you don’t, it might be worth a listen anyway. Some of the tracks are a bit more “glitch-hop” than pure dubstep, and no matter the genre Gramatik always brings top notch production a touch of soul to his work.

Gramatik - “Talkbox Intended”

Gramatik - “First Up”

Gramatik - “Illusion Of Choice”

Gramatik - “23 Flavors”

Buy these tracks of the whole EP!

*****

PLAY ALL
*****

I know Cor’s gonna freak out, but what do you think of Gramatik’s new sound? Natural evolution or sad pandering to the hot sound du jour?? If you forgot what Gramatik used to sound like, check out Cor’s full break down over here.

Posted by: Jay

Dubstep has taken an interesting path. Usually as EDM sub-genres gain popularity they transition from these fun, accessible sounds to deep, techy, glitchy grooves that only appeal to the most die-hard fans.* But it seems dubstep is on the opposite path.

* Just ask Sasha or the Plump DJs about this.

Born out of the glitchy bass wobble dubstep defined itself by being inaccessible, yet as it has gained popularity we’ve seen a slew of far more melodic and less dirty dubstep tracks and remixes. This warming trend has culminated with a budding sub-genre called “Lovestep” or “Luvstep” (it’s so new they haven’t even settled on a name yet).

Big, sweeping melancholy melodies over slightly glitchy bass laden beats? Having come up a trance lover you know I’m all in. So in our Friday Five format here’s a little taste of EDMs newest melodic sub-sub-genre. Enjoy! <3

Hella Beats - “Lovestep” (right click and “save as..” to download)

Track list:

1. Band Of Horses - “The Funeral” - Butch Clancy Remix
2. Ellie Goulding - “Your Song” - Blackmill Dubstep Remix
3. Gladkill - “Take It Slow”
4. DWNTWN - “Transition” - Dillon Francis Remix
5. Owl City - “Fireflies” - Capt and Cooked Luvstep Version

Posted by: Jay

Once again I was up way too late last night, randomly strolling around the internet, window shopping for beats and popping in on old friends. This deft avoidance of sleep was thoroughly rewarded when I happened upon these last two releases from Colorado’s finest, Pretty Lights. I’ve always been a passing admirer of his genre defying glitched-out-funky-bass-step*, but it seems I may have to become an all out fan. With his “Summertime” mashup and “Country Roads”** remix Pretty Lights has officially reached Next Level status at Casa de Jay.

* No, this is not an official EDM sub-genre. But it SHOULD be.

** The greatest Country & Western song of all time. Or at least my favorite. Wait, those AREN’T the same things?? How dare you.

Peep:

Pretty Lights vs Summertime (Free Download) by prettylights

Country Roads-Pretty Lights Remix 320kbps FREE DOWNLOAD by prettylights

Pretty Lights on SoundCloud

Pretty Lights on Tour

Posted by: Matt

Hey hey hey! It’s podcast time once again and this week a local friend of the Beatery is gracing us with his presence. SF superstar-in-the-making DJ KidHack recently scored a major coup recently by landing a slot in the Subsonic Tent at this year’s (always) epic BFD festival at the Shoreline Amphitheater. Sharing the stage with great artists like Wolfgang Gartner, Blaqk Audio, and Innerpartysystem (among many others), KidHack dropped a slammin’ set of Dubstep, Drumstep, DnB, and just really some sick ass bass pounders. He’s generously allowed us to podcast it and we certainly aren’t going to pass that up!

Peep photos from the event and a tracklist below the jump. Download the mix from the Soundcloud player, KidHack’s website, or why not subscribe to our very own iTunes Podcast!?

If you love this and just need, need to hear more, check out KidHack’s SF collective Future Universal on Facebook. They have a pretty happening page going over there right now.

DJ KidHack - Live @ Live 105 BFD 110605 by KidHack

Hit the ‘more’ link for the tracklist and epic photos! Read the rest of this entry »