Archive for the ‘Bjork’ Category

Transcontinental Remixes

Tuesday, December 16th, 2014

I’ve bought so much music the past two weeks I don’t know what to do with it. I mean, besides listen to it. I know I should probably listen to it. But you know what I mean.

Busy times! Apparently Japanese people want to learn English before New Year’s. At least that’s what it feels like, as I am hella busy with work at the moment. There was also an election this past week, so everyone was talking about it.

And when I mean “it” I mean they were talking about the “big erection.” I heard how the “erection is mostly for show” and that “older people mostly care about the erection.”

Pronunciation is important people! Just last week I was trying to teach how to schedule meetings and one of my students kept saying “I have a slut available around 1pm.”

The best is when their English is good enough so I can actually explain what they’re saying, then they get a laugh out of it too. While those kind of mistakes are fun, I do remember that these people can speak English far far better than I can speak Japanese, and that I can make my own pronunciation mistakes as well. For example, last week I was trying to say “you are good looking” in Japanese, but instead I ended up saying “you got a nice pussy.”

So yeah, mistakes happen.

Speaking of mistakes, I wrote about Seven Mary Three and Paw last week.

Björk
Bachelorette (RZA Remix)
Bachelorette (Mark Bell “Blue” Remix)
Bachelorette (Mark Bell “Zip” Remix)
Bachelorette (Mark Bell “Optimism” Remix)
My Snare
I got these mixes from a CD-single/VHS tape box set that I bought for about three bucks. That means that since I arrived in Tokyo I’ve bought CDs, LPs, VHS tapes and even a pair of cassette tapes. I know it’s just a matter of time before I go full dumbass and buy a freaking laserdisc or betamax tape. Sigh. Someone stop me before it’s too late.

Madonna
Bye Bye Baby (N.Y. Hip Hop Mix)
Bye Bye Baby (Madonna’s Night On The Club)
Bye Bye Baby (Tallahasee Pop)
Bye Bye Baby (Rick Does Madonna’s Dub)
I own over 60 Madonna singles now. Japan’s been a great place to find some of her lesser work, like this forgotten single from the Erotica album. I really love the effects they put on Madonna’s vocals for this tune. She sounds like she’s singing through a tin can, but in a cool way. I enjoy the club mix the most, although all the dance beats and effects layered onto it really make the vocals sound out of place.

Yellow Magic Orchestra
Firecracker (Main Mix)
Firecracker (Beats Mix)
Technopolis (The Readymade Darlin’ Of Discotheque Track Dub Version)
Okay, real talk. These remixes aren’t that great. But I was really committed to this “three continents of remixes in one post” idea that it got the better of me. Sorry.

Kinky Go
Gimme The Love (Vocal Version)
Gimme The Love (Instrumental)
Gimme The Love (Radio Version)
Special italo disco request for the Pope. Well, a dude named Pope. Not the pope. At least not yet.

Posted in B-sides, Bjork, Kinky Go, Madonna, remixes, YMO | 2 Comments »

Obscure Remixes for Social Justice

Friday, December 5th, 2014

I took a week or so off because the world was too horrible to write about music. But here we all a week later and yo shit’s still horrible so I guess I’ll just keep plugging away at this silly little site

But seriously, I’m not depressed.

The fact that I’m not depressed kind of worries me, but hey, gotta live I guess.

I also realized that I’ve posted nothing but wrestling albums, Prince and Madonna for like forever and that it’s time for me to mix that shit up a bit.

Franz Ferdinand
Take Me Out (Naum Gabo Remix)
Take Me Out (Daft Punk Remix)
One of the funniest things I’ve seen in recent history was in 2013 when several reputable news outlets reported on this Daft Punk remix like it was brand new when it was, in fact, from 2004. I love it when shit like that happens, because it shows that the majority of online “news” reporting done these days is just site after site ripping each other off in a quest for the most hits possible. Original research be damned.

Anyways, I guess I really couldn’t blame them all for covering it once they discovered it. It is a pretty solid remix after all. The “Naum Gabo” one ain’t half bad either. I got these both from a 12″ single.

Bjork
Hunter (μ-Ziq Remix)
All Is Full of Love (In Love With: Funkstorung Mix)
Apparently you can’t upload a file via FTP if it has the “μ” character in it. Things you learn.

Posted in Bjork, Franz Ferdinand, remixes | 1 Comment »

I Still Have Too Many Records

Wednesday, September 25th, 2013

A little over three months before the big move and I already feel entirely overwhelmed with stuff to do. Fun times ahead for sure.

I did make time to review the massive new In Utero box sets though. They totally blew my mind.

Oysterband
One Green Hill (Chumbawamba Remix)
Nothing like a little Celtic house/punk to unwind.

Björk
Joga (Alec Empire “Empire State Of Emergency” Remix)
Joga (Alec Empire “The Destroyer” Remix)
Joga (Alec Empire “The Planet Of Ice” Remix)
I think I have posted the “Empire State Of Emergency” mix on this site at least three times before this, but I don’t care. It’s an absolutely incredible mix, probably one of my favorite mixes of all time. Remixes that can take a song, transform them entirely, and create something that is just as amazing and wonderful but in an entirely different way are really few and far between. It’s just a great track, and I never get tired of listening to it.

The other two mixes are new though, off of a 12″ single I found while in Portland. “The Destroyer” mix is exactly what I expected, another experiment into digital hardcore insanity, a non-stop barrage of ear-drum shattering noise – I love it, although not as much as the original mix.

The final mix, however, is entirely different. It’s so out there and bizarre that I don’t even really know how to describe it. I guess it’s kind of ambient, maybe drone-like? It’s very different, especially coming from Alec Empire, a man who I imagine just walks around listening to Lou Reed’s Metal Machine Music on loop 24/7.

Posted in Bjork, Chumbawamba, Oysterband, remixes | 4 Comments »

80s Synthpop, 90s Electronica and 00s Trance – Not in that order

Monday, August 20th, 2012

I have to head to the lovely (not really) city of Toledo, Ohio next week. So I’m going to churn out a few quality blog posts this week and get a few in the can for the following week before I take off. I have a feeling that once I find myself in Toledo I’ll be too busy seeing family/drinking to get any meaningful work done. Yay.

Tears For Fears
Mothers Talk (Extended Version)
Apparently Tears For Fears really wanted people to know their opinions on the talk of mothers, because there are a ton of different versions of this song. Obviously there’s the album version, but there’s also a single edit, a US remix, the Beat Of The Drum Mix and finally, this version, which is the only mix of the classic tune that has not seen a re-release on CD or digital platforms. It’s a shame, as it’s probably my favorite take of the song, since it’s pretty much just a longer version of the already great album mix. I still have no damn clue what the hell the song is about, however. I assume it’s something depressing thanks to the phrase “when the wind blows.”

Hybrid
Burnin’ (Breakbeat)
I haven’t posted some trance/dance tunes in a while, so I thought I’d finally share this tune, which I scored from a compilation called Koma & Bones Present: Y4K – Next Level Breaks EP3. I’m going to cop to my trance ignorance here and admit that I have no idea who Koma & Bones are, I just got this EP because it had a Hybrid track on it. I love me some Hybrid.

I’m not sure where the original version of “Burnin'” first made an appearance. I only have a live version from the 2CD version of Wide Angle, as well as another remix that’s a bit shorter than this eight-minute monster. Regardless, it’s a great song and an excellent remix; my favorite kind of trance music, complex and hypnotic, so good that you don’t need the assistance of recreational medication to make it better. And I write about electronic music for a living (kind of) so trust me, that’s really saying something.

Björk
Pagan Poetry (Infusion Mix)
Pagan Poetry (Music Box)
Sun In My Mouth (Recomposed by Ensemble)
And rounding out today’s clearing house of stuff that’s been in my backlog for way too long are these Björk remixes. Like most Björk tunes, I love these mixes even though they don’t really fall into the realm of “easy listening.”  Well, I guess the Music Box version of “Pagan Poetry” could, as it is literally a music box version of that song, but I digress.

I got the “Pagan Poetry (Infusion Mix)” from a bootleg 12″. It was available for a bit on a few different Björk singles, but they’re all out of print now. Both “Pagan Poetry (Music Box)” and “Sun In My Mouth (Recomposed by Ensemble)” are available on Amazon, but as only part of a three-track single for “Cocoon” that costs nearly 20 bucks, so I really don’t feel bad about sharing them here. That shit is nuts. Björk really needs to go ahead and release a proper box set with all her various remixes and B-sides. Sure, it would be about 100 discs, but I’d buy it and I’m sure other idiots like me would too.

Posted in Bjork, Hybrid, remixes, Tears For Fears | 7 Comments »

Radio Friendly Pop Music

Monday, June 20th, 2011

It is day two of “Mavs Victory Lap” week at Lost Turntable, where I post almost everyday in celebration of LeBron James’ lack of a four quarter.

Today, music that one would never associate with professional sports.

Squarepusher
4026 Melt 1
4026 Melt 3
4026 Melt 4
4026 Melt 5
4026 Melt 6
Die-hard Squarepusher fans have my utmost respect, because that dude changes genres more often than I change clothes. He’s done acid house, acid jazz, IDM, drum and bass, glitch, ambient and industrial/noise – sometimes all on the same album, or even the same song. Shit, he even has an album that’s nothing but electronic bass solos. Appropriately enough, said album is called Solo Electric Bass 1, (the “1” is somewhat troubling).

One of his more critically-acclaimed and somewhat more accessible records was his 2006 release Hello Everything. Some versions of this record included a bonus 3″ CD EP called Vacuum Tracks, which is where the above songs originally appeared.

Now, while Hello Everything is a diverse and at times very melodic album, Vacuum Tracks is not. Do you like drone? Well then, you’ll be in monotone heaven with these five cuts. If you like, oh I don’t know, melody, notes, beats, anything resmbling something that might be considered music one would enjoy listening to on a regular basis, then you might want to pass on these oddities. (I listened to this EP once, I don’t think I ever will again.) Still, someone out there loves this shit, and for that person – I am here.

Björk
Where Is The Line (Fantômas Mix)
Where Is The Line (Matmos Rubber Band Remix)
Where Is The Line (Soft Pink Truth Glow Stick Museum Remix)
Who Is It (Vitalic Mix)
One of my friends is moving and she’s trying to unload some of her records (blasphemy!). When anyone I know (and several people I don’t know) attempt this, I am usually called in to go through the lot and determine if they have anything of value. Most of her records, while totally fucking awesome, weren’t of note to serious collectors.

But near the back of her crate were two white-label Björk 12″ with no identifying markers. These weren’t for sale, but she wanted me to record them. After noting that the singles consisted mostly of “Where Is The Line” remixes, I was able to use their running times to figure out the song titles. These remixes were never “officially” released outside of these 12″ singles, which were limited to about 400 copies each. Now, my friend is not a die-hard record collector like me, so I had to ask her where she found these records. Her response: “fucking Iceland.”

So the moral of this story is that if you want crazy rare Björk, then you have to go to the source.

Side note: the Fantômas mix is by Mike Patton and fucking sounds like it, so adjust your volume accordingly.

Posted in Bjork, remixes, Squarepusher | 1 Comment »

I’m not typing any more umlauts unless Lemmy makes me.

Wednesday, September 15th, 2010

Björk
All is Full of Love (Funkstorung Exclusive Mix)
All is Full of Love (Strings)
All Is Full Of Love (Live in Brussels)
Human Behaviour (Close To Human Mix – Speedy J.)
Human Behaviour (Underworld Mix)
Human Behaviour (Dom T. Mix)
Human Behaviour (Bassheads Edit)
Cocoon (Retangled by Ensemble)
It’s In Our Hands (Arcade Mix)
It’s In Our Hands (Soft Pink Truth Mix)
So Broken (Live on Jools Holland)
This is the second all-Björk post by me this month! It’s crazy. Maybe I should add umlauts to the title graphic? No, fuck that, I hate typing those fuckers. I either have to dig out a macro key or find one I already wrote and cut and paste it everytime I want to use it. I don’t know how the Icelandic, Norwegian and Swedish bloggers handle it without going insane. I posted a couple of these mixes before, but I still recommend downloding them even if you have those old versions because these are rips from CD singles. As I said before, I think it must be a rule that all Björk vinyl sounds like shit. I have never bought a used copy of a Björk 12-inch that didn’t look like it was handled by someone who had steel wool for hands.

BTW, “rectangle” cannot be made into a verb. I don’ care what Ensemble wants you to think.

Posted in Bjork, remixes | 8 Comments »

I hate pösts with umlauts.

Tuesday, August 24th, 2010

Everyone have a good weekend? I had a sinus infection that made me feel like someone ripped off my nose in the middle of night, covered the inside of my face with rubber cement, and then punched me in the head when they were done. So, yeah, fun times. Anyways, I’m feeling much better now (DRUGS!) and hope to have at least one more post this week. Got good shit tonight too.

But before that, important business to attend to! I need help. Well, of course you all knew that already, but this is a specific call for help. Have any of you, my regular visitors, had a hard time finding the site? I know some of you use those RSS feed things, are those working? I just updated my Hype Machine listing, so hopefully I’ll get back on there soon. Are they any other aggregators I’m on that you all know about? I’ll need to let those mothers know about the new adddress too. I still don’t know how many people are accessing this site everyday, I haven’t yet installed a counter yet, mostly because I’m kind of afraid to find out!

I know the fucking spammers have found the site. In the month or so since I’ve relocated I’ve gotten close to 200 spam comments. I’m saving ones from a repeat offender/scam site for another SEO-content heavy rant. So that should be fun. But in the meantime, Icelandic awesome!

Björk
Big Time Sensuality (The Fluke Magimix)
Big Time Sensuality (Dom T. Growly Dub Mix)
Big Time Sensuality (Morales Def Klub Mix)
Big Time Sensuality (Justin Robertson Lionrock Wigout Mix)
Big Time Sensuality (Morales USA Mix)
Big Time Sensuality (The Fluke Minimix)
Big Time Sensuality (Nellee Hooper Extended Mix)
Violently Happy (Masters At Work Dub)
Alarm Call (Alan Braxe Et Ben Diamond Remix)
Alarm Call (Teasmade Dub Swag)
Alarm Call (Alan Braxe Et Ben Diamond Edit)
Hey, I hit the Bjork motherload! And all these tracks are just from two singles (3 records in all). Good times. Some of these tracks sound a little scratchy. I did what I could to clean them up, but it’s a tricky balancing act. It’s hard to de-click and de-scratch any track that has a lot of hi-hats and other treble-heavy effects in it. The result usually ends up removing both. And then it just sounds like shit. I’ve noticed that any Björk record I buy usually has some pretty major problems with it. I assume that is because the people who buy Björk listen the fuck out of it. I’m surprised I ever find any Björk used at all, so I’m not going to complain that much. Also, if your anal retentive like me, you’re going to want to fix a mistake I made with the tracklisting on the Big Time Sensuality tracks, change the total track number of the record from eight to nine. I just noticed the mistake and I’m not going to reupload all the tracks to fix something that meaningless. I’m not THAT insane. Well, maybe I am, but it’s late and my Nyquil is kicking in.

Posted in Bjork, remixes | 10 Comments »

Bjork’s Book Of Blondie Love

Wednesday, September 9th, 2009

Holy shit I’m back. Sober! Oh well. That might not last all week though (sorry mom)!

I’m also not feeling very talkative tonight, so I’ll be keeping things brief. I’ll be back to my ranting misanthropic self in a day or so. It’s late.

Book Of Love
Boy (Peter Rauhoffer Club Mix)
Boy (Headrillaz Extended Vocal Mix)
Boy (Headrillaz Dub)
Boy (Dubaholics Mix)
Boy (Dubaholics Dub)
Boy (Peter Rauhoffer Dub)
Boy (RPO Remix)
I have a feeling this song is big with “the gays.” I have no basis for that other than the fact than the lyric “I wanna be where the boys are” and the fact that one of my gay friends LOVES Book Of Love. Educated and mature I know. These are from a 2LP 12” that came out in 2000 for som strange reason.

Bjork
I Miss You (R.H. Factor Lovely Mix)
This mix is quite good, although I think proclaiming it to be “lovely” is a bit egotistical of the remixer. I have more remixes of this song on vinyl, and if I ever get that record to play without skipping like it’s on jello in the middle of an earthquake, I will share them with you all.

Blondie
Rapture (Guru’s Fly Party Mix)
This is a very weird remix. I’ve had it for a very long time, so long that I forgot where I found it. It is however the only remix of “Rapture” you can’t buy on iTunes, so I’m featuring it tonight. Much like the “lovely” mix, I think proclaiming this mix to be “fly” is a bit bold. It wouldn’t got that far for sure. It’s quite…groovy though.

Posted in Bjork, Blondie, Book Of Love, remixes | 8 Comments »

Blogging in Rhythm & Sorrow

Tuesday, March 24th, 2009

To the person that wanted “Party Animal,” sorry, I couldn’t fit it and I can’t find the record either. Trust me, I’m more upset about that than you are.

This might be my only post this week, so I am definitely making up for that with quantity and quality.

The Sugarcubes
Birthday (Icelandic)
Regina (Icelandic)
Regina (Propellor Mix)
Regina (Jet Mix)
Dragon
Traitor (Icelandic)
Birthday (Demo)
Polo
Organic Prankster – This is just another version of “Delicious Demon”
Fucking In Rhythm & Sorrow (Live)
Cowboy (Live)
Coldsweat (Live)
Christmas Eve
Christmas Day
Christmas Present
Petrol (live)
Coldsweat (Meat Mix)
Coldsweat (instrumental)
Motorcrash (Live)
Blue Eyed Pop (2nd Mix)

Yay early Bjork! All of these are from one massive box set that I picked up last week. The front cover calls it 12-11 (since it features 11 12” singles), while the spine and back cover call it The Box. I stuck with that title on the ID3 tags mostly because I like it better. The back also has the following notice: “Contains all the 12” recordings by The Sugarcubes from October 1986 to October 1989. This catalogue is now deleted.”

They leave out that it also includes a 10” single. But that’s the least of this box’s typos. The tracklisting is riddled with massive fuck ups. For example, the back of the “Cowboy” single says that an Icelandic version of “Traitor,” but it’s really a “Polo”. The tracklisting for “Motorcrash” is fucked too, listing “Polo” when in reality the track is the English version of “Traitor.” Then there’s the intentional clusterfuck of the “Christmas” single, which features a double-grooved side, so you don’t know which version you’re going to get whenever you put the needle down (pray it doesn’t skip.) I posted that single a while ago, but I was not aware of the double groove, so everything was fucked up and mislabeled. I also previously posted the songs from the “Cowboy” single, but I’m posting them again since this rip is better and “Fucking In Rhythm & Sorrow (Live)” is one of the best performance of any song you’ll ever fucking hear. I want that song played at my funeral.

Basically my point in all of this is that you shouldn’t blame any fuck ups or mislabeled tracks on me, instead blame Einar (that’s the dude who “sings” with Bjork). Also, there were more tracks on this set than I’m posting tonight, but I’m not posting them because they were album cuts or are now on greatest hits/deluxe editions that are easily available.

This is very rare box set, after I bought it I wanted to compare the price I paid with what it was going for on Amazon and eBay, but I couldn’t freaking find it. That tells me that it’s pretty obscure and that my $65 was money well spent. I couldn’t even find good pictures of the thing, so I took some, enjoy the day-glo.

Posted in B-sides, Best Song Ever, Bjork, live, Sugarcubes | 7 Comments »