Girl Talk

At the risk of revealing myself as A) behind the times, and B) a complete tool, I’m going to share that I’ve recently gotten back into heavy exercise. At the gym, I usually listen to (here’s where the “complete tool” part comes in) This American Life or some other talky podcast where I don’t have to worry about (tool again) consistently high-energy beats. But praise be to Pittsburgh’s Greg Gillis, whose Night Ripper from 2006 is a (the behind the times part) mashup masterpiece that (tool) keeps my adrenaline PUMPED, man! For my money, Z-Trip is still the high-water mark of such guerrilla hip-hop-classic-rock-punk-pop-whatever mixing, but what Gillis does with the riffs from The Pixies, the Strokes and Weezer in “Hold Up” helps me burn 500 calories in two minutes. Girl Talk’s newest, Feed the Animals, is available here for whatever price you want to pay, which I’ve already done so that I can take my workout to anotha level of behind-the-times toolness. Join me and feel the burn!

Hold Up [MP3, 5.9MB, 283kbps]
Bounce That [MP3, 7.4MB, 296kbps]

myspace.com/girltalk
www.illegalart.net

Santogold

I know I've been taking the "summer hours" concept a little too seriously, but it's hard to do anything but enjoy summer when you have something stuck in your iPod like Top Ranking, Diplo's "mixtape" treatment of Santogold's debut album. Diplo's dub-bass-electro-hop concoction provides a textured playground for Santi White's angelic and sassy brand of new wave. Unreleased mixes of Santi tracks bounce in and out between cuts from Three 6 Mafia, Benga, B-52s, Ratatat, and Sir Mix-a-Lot—there's a smile around every corner. (If this sounds familiar, Diplo did the same for the last big indie "it" girl, M.I.A., on the eve of her debut album with the 2004 mixtape Piracy Funds Terrorism.)

Now, if you're picturing me just swaying away in a shady hammock you're only partly right. Top Ranking also got me off my butt and running every morning (five weeks and counting!). And it's been the soundtrack to some spontaneous summer grill action... I don't mean to overpromise but I guarantee it will make your life better—even if that means you forget to update your blog for over a month.

These tracks are some tasty Santogold remixes featured on Diplo's Mad Decent label, though they're not even on Top Ranking. For that, you'll want to head over to turntablelab.com and drop $12 for the 75-minute mix.

Starstruck (Diplo Remix) [MP3, 6.4MB, 160kbps]
L.E.S. Artistes (Grahm Zilla Euromix) [MP3, 11.9MB, 320kbps]

http://maddecent.com
http://www.myspace.com/diplo
http://www.myspace.com/grahmzillamusic
http://www.myspace.com/santogold

Chromeo

Four years later (look how short our posts used to be back then...) and Chromeo are still making us feel touched for the very first time with their naughty '80s dance funk. Their latest release offers their sophomore album, Fancy Footwork, plus a bonus disc of greatest hits, videos, and remixes (though there are at least twice as many still floating out there in clubland). Get your tight white pants on for this action.

Previous post (from 6/21/04): A faithful homage to '80s processed funk phenomena (Jesse Johnson's Revue, Timex Social Club, Oran "Juice" Jones, et al), "Needy Girl" could be my not-so-guilty pleasure of the summer. (This post updated on 09.16.04 with a couple of swell "Me & My Man" remixes.)

from Fancy Footwork: Deluxe Edition (2008):
Bonafied Lovin' (Yuksek Remix) [MP3, 8.2MB, 256kbps]
Me & My Man (Whitey vs. Chromeo Fly Whitey Mix) [MP3, 5.7MB, 192kbps]

from Fancy Footwork (2007):
Tenderoni [MP3, 6MB, 192kbps]

from She's in Control (2004):
Needy Girl [MP3, 5.9MB, 192kbps]

Miscellaneous remixes:
Fancy Footwork (Guns 'n' Bombs Remix) [MP3, 8.1MB, 192kbps]
Me & My Man (The Juan Maclean Mix) [MP3, 9.2MB, 192kbps]

www.vice-recordings.com
http://www.myspace.com/chromeo
www.chromeo.net

Cannonball Jane

Whenever I hear the name Jane I can't help thinking about a high school friend of mine (spelled "Jayne"). She was one of maybe three people from my school I hung out with my senior year. When I attended a reunion recently my wife asked me, not facetiously, "Are you even going to know anyone here?" The only person I could think of was Jayne, but I knew she wouldn't be there. Like me, Jayne was slightly anti-social. As I expected, no Jayne. But you know how high school reunions put you in that nostalgic mood/mode? Thus affected, I did some internet sleuthing and actually tracked Jayne down, an entire continent away, hoping to say hello and catch up. I left two awkward voice messages (it's impossible to sound casual, as if I hadn't talked to her for a week when in fact it had been years). Did Jayne call back? Nope. Made me feel even more awkward, like I was some creepy internet stalker!

I think if Jayne's personality were more like Cannonball Jane's music we would've had a nice conversation, shared a few good laughs, and traded our latest listens and reads. See, Cannonball Jane is playful, colourful (Jayne was from England—she made me use British spellings), and obviously up for some fun. By day Cannonball Jane teaches elementary school. By night Jane, aka Sharon Hagopian, fires up the beatbox, guitars, synths and gadgets and records a groovin' pastiche of hip hop, new wave, and sixties pop. A mix of Soul Coughing and Luscious Jackson, Mary Tyler Moore and Solex. This is the kind of woman I'd trust to educate my children and school me in the ways of beats and breaks and dance party extravaganzas. Hey, sounds a lot like Alisa, the woman I married. Who, by the way, tracked down one of her old high school friends during a reunion year. And he called her back! Who wouldn't? She's fun like that.

The Secret Handshake [MP3, 3.3MB, 128kbps]

Stream the Knees Up! EP

www.myspace.com/gaddycatrecords
www.cannonballjane.com

Ratatat

Since I first posted Ratatat four years ago all the original MP3s have been taken down. See, you gotta grab the goods while there are goods to grab (you can still download their second mixtape here). You'll notice also my short and sweet review. I stand by it. Ratatat remains one of the tastiest instrumental groups groovin' on U.S. shores. Their first two albums are in regular rotation in Alisa's car as the beats and riffs of Mast and Stroud work magic soothing our three savage beasts. She's gonna go giddy when I tell her about new Ratatat. Hey, the new album is out June 8th, the same week as her birthday. I'm gonna hold off on the news until I can wrap it up in fancy paper and bows. Shhhhh. Don't say anything to her. No, I don't need to worry about her reading this. She never does. 3hive to Alisa means her husband butt-planted in front of the computer for hours listening to music too loud while she's trying to get some shut eye. Though, when I dig up gems like this for her 3hive's a bed of roses...

Mirando [MP3, 5.5MB, 192kbps]

Original posting 05.06.04:
Ratatat is to American Bedroom Beats what Daft Punk is to French House.

www.ratatatmusic.com
www.xlrecordings.com

Martina Topley Bird

I was surprised to find these tracks in my in-box. They're quite the weekend treat. As you might imagine I spend a fair amount of time scouring the web for new music and I haven't heard a peep from the Independiente label since DeeJay Punk-Roc's '98 release of Chicken Eye. Obviously I'm not listening closely enough. They're Travis' UK label. OK, so I've got some catching up to do. And besides the occasional David Holmes or Diplo track she sings on, I haven't spent quality time with Ms. Topley-Bird. That's gonna change too. Today. String theorists searching for other dimensions just may find what they're looking for if they'd get strung out on some MTB. Topley-Bird's voice carries me to other worlds, worlds I first discovered listening to Tricky's Maxinquaye where she played the beautifully haunting foil to his gravelly trip-hop hero. Topley-Bird herself is off on her own inter-genre exploration with co-pilot/producer Dangermouse. Whether it's the dusty after hours slow-mo of "Valentine," the playfully seductive "Carnies," or this bumpin' club remix of "Poison" Martina Topley Bird's buttery-rich voice easily lilts your soul enough to keep you just on this side of an out of body experience.

Poison (Van She remix) [MP3, 4.2MB, 128kbps]
Valentine [MP3, 4.9MB, 192kbps]

Buy from iTunes
www.independiente.co.uk
www.martinatopleybird.com

Rench

Nope, I didn't mess up on those genres up there. Rench is a Brooklyn-based producer who mixes old bluegrass and country samples with a standup band that includes slide guitar and fiddle, and he pulls it all together with hip hop beats and splits vocals between country guys and gals and underground emcees from around the way. If your head's about to explode, join the club. The mere thought of it in abstract made me think of those fun but mostly throwaway "crossovers" like Hayseed Dixie and The Gourds' "Gin & Juice." But hey, if Snoop Dogg's gonna show up at the CMT Awards and Clinton and Obama are gonna keep fighting over who really has his or her finger on the pulse of America, we may as well get down to mashups of extreme urban and rural. And you will get down. It doesn't all work, but when Rench hits it, which is done particularly deftly on "Street Soldier" and "Oh Sleeper," you can truly imagine Gangstagrass blasting from Escalades on Flatbush and F-150's in the Appalachians. As for "Come Back to Brooklyn," it won me over by capturing the spirit of my former borough and the downhome hospitality of my new southern environs. It's a toe-tapper and a window-rattler.

Street Soldier (Deep Thoughts) [MP3, 3.1MB, 128kbps]
Oh Sleeper [MP3, 5.2MB, 192kbps]
Theme from Mean Season [MP3, 4.9MB, 192kbps]
Get On It (Deep Thoughts and Kaz Mir) [MP3, 2.9MB, 128kbps]
Come Back to Brooklyn [MP3, 4.6MB, 192kbps]
Download Full Gangstagrass Mix [ZIP, 72MB]

www.renchaudio.com
myspace.com/renchaudio