LeAnn Rimes - Dance Like You Don't Give A...Greatest Hits Remixes

The Country star has had a string of chart hits throughout her nearly 2 decade career. A number of her singles were remixed for the clubs and she had success on the Club Play chart. An album consisting of both previously unreleased and released mixes was released last week. It is completely unmixed and features remixes of some of her biggest hits as well as a few other selected singles that didn't quite get the attention they deserved. Every single one of these remixes is melodic and is a good match for the original song. The highlights include the remixes of "Gasoline And Matches", "You've Ruined Me", "Can't Fight The Moonlight", "I Need You", "How Do I Live", "Strong", "Nothin' Better To Do", and "Headphones." This is an outstanding collection of remixes.

Tracklisting:
01. Gasoline And Matches (Dave Aude Remix)
02. What I Cannot Change (Kaskade Remix)
03. Crazy Women (7th Heaven Remix)
04. I Need You (Digital Dog Remix)
05. Help Me Make It Through The Night (Fear Of Tigers Remix)
06. Spitfire (Fagault and Marina Remix)
07. Can't Fight The Moonlight (Alias Remix)
08. You've Ruined Me (Dave Aude Remix)
09. How Do I Live (Cahill Remix)
10. Strong (Cicada Remix)
11. Nothin' Better To Do (Soul Seekerz Remix)
12. Headphones (Headspinners Remix)
13. Grace (LeAnn Rimes and The Crystal Method)

Purchase the remix album on iTunes here

Grade: A

Adam Lambert - Never Close Our Eyes (Remixes)

This is the second single from his Trespassing album. The Electro-Pop original is pretty good but an unusual choice for a single. Adam's vocals are wonderful as can be expected. The production feels a little generic. However, there are some remixes by Almighty, Digital Dog, and Sunship. Almighty's mixes are light and uplifting. Digital Dog's have a harder electro edge. Sunship's house and breaks mix is really fitting. The Sunship mixes are the best of the bunch.

Watch the music video for the original here (YouTube)

Grade: B+ (for the original)/A- (for the Sunship remix)

The Wanted - All Time Low

The UK boyband has been signed in the U.S. They made their debut in the UK nearly a year ago with this song and now they are set to do the same here. The semi-dramatic strings based Dance/Pop song is a fun, well-sung song. The song has been slightly remixed for its U.S. release with some more prominent beats. There are some club mixes of this by Digital Dog, Frank E, and Ralphi Rosario. Digital Dog's mixes are funky house, keeping some of the feel of the original. Frank E's mix feels like a slightly dancier version of the original (or the single mix in the U.S.). Ralphi Rosario's big room-oriented mixes have a slight electro feel. Overall, all of the mixes are really well-produced.

-Watch the music video for the original UK version here (YouTube)
-Purchase the U.S. Single Mix here (iTunes)
-Purchase the remix EP (includes Ralphi Rosario, Digital Dog mixes) here (iTunes)

Grade: A

Sun - Fancy Free (Remixes)

First reviewed on 9/28/09

Nearly three months after the initial release of the song come the remixes. As has happened with earlier singles, there are plenty of them. Dave Aude, Digital Dog, DJ Escape & Johnny Vicious, Mike Rizzo, Wawa, Pete Tong & Paul Harris, and 3 Amigos provide the remixes (so far, there could even end up being more later on). Dave Aude and Mike Rizzo both maintain the swing beat of the original. Both could easily pass as clubbier versions of the original. They don't stray too far from that and they sound great. Digital Dog's is their standard funky house mix. The bassline is killer. DJ Escape & Johnny Vicious provide a big room treatment that works pretty well. Wawa's is somewhat electro/funky house-ish like the Digital Dog one, but this has a fresher feel. Tong & Harris opt for a lighter, more soulful sound. Very pretty. 3 Amigos go in a minimal, afterhours direction. There's a little something for everyone.

Buy the original version of "Fancy Free" here (iTunes)
Watch the music video here (YouTube)

Grade: A

Utada - Dirty Desire

This is the latest single off of her second English language album. "Dirty Desire" is much racier than some of her earlier singles. It has a sleazy, naughty feel that may be a bit much for some of her fans, but it's nice to see Utada doing different types of songs. There are some remixes of this song for the clubs by Digital Dog, Mike Rizzo, and Razor N' Guido so far. Digital Dog provide a funky electro house mix with some light synths. Razor N' Guido offer some dark circuit-oriented mix that take the sexual aspect of the song up like 100 notches. This song lends itself well to remixes.

Listen to the original here (YouTube)

Grade: A

Plumb - Hang On

This is the lead single off of her next album entitled Beautiful History. Having found success on both the Christian and Dance formats, this is sure to be another hit. "Hang On" is just as beautiful and powerful as earlier releases. There are plenty of remixes of this by Digital Dog, Dave Aude, Pete Hammond, and Bronleewe & Bose. Digital Dog's is funky electro/house. Dave Aude's is also in a similar direction but a bit more chilled. Pete Hammond's is old school-sounding as can be expected. It immediately calls to mind the production on Dead Or Alive's "You Spin Me Round." But it works. B&B deliver an electro/house, chilled mild big room mix. Overall, the entire package is solid.

Buy the remix package here (Amazon)

Grade: A

Cascada - Perfect Day

This is the third U.S. single off of their album of the same name which was released last year. For the most part, the album version is in their indelible energetic Trance/Jump Up style. It's pretty good. The beginning part with the light Pop/Rock sound was good. It would have been nice if the whole track had been like that. Perhaps that Rock Mix on the single will be something like that. But the real gem is the remix by Digital Dog. It takes some of the edge off and really highlights Natalie's great vocals.

The physical release of the CD maxi single will happen on March 3.

Grade: A-

Taylor Swift - Love Story

This is the first proper single from her second album Fearless. The midtempo original is absolutely stunning. The song's title is perfectly descriptive of what she is singing about. The original is a nice traditional Country/Pop track. A Pop Mix was done, toning down some of the Country elements. It is a bit more Pop/Rock. It preserves the integrity of the original though. This is a good thing. Those who may have refrained from trying out Taylor Swift's music will want to give this a listen. They may get into her non-remixed songs.

Some Dance remixes for the clubs have been done by Digital Dog and J-Stax. Both emphasize the vocals, however, the J-Stax one does it a lot more effectively.

-Listen to the album version here (YouTube)
-Listen to the Pop Mix here (YouTube)
-Listen to the Digital Dog mix here (YouTube)
-Listen to the J-Stax mix here (YouTube)

Grade: A