Duck Sauce - It's You

The duo is back with another quirky new single. This isn't as bizarre as their last outing "Big Bad Wolf." The Motown-esque vocals coupled with the swirling electro production make for an unlikely marriage of sounds, but it manages to work. There are nearly a dozen remixes, but none manage to come close to the original version.

Watch the music video here (YouTube)

Grade: B+

Joi Cardwell - Music Saved My Life

The always soulful House veteran's latest single speaks of the power of music. Joi is in fine form vocally. Maurice Joshua, Wayne Williams, and Azza K provide the mixes. Maurice's Disco/Tribal mixes are stunning. They sound straight out of the early 90s recalling the flavor of David Morales and Masters At Work's productions from that period. Wayne's are in a similar vein, though they are more Discoey. Azza K's is far more contemporary, adding a techy element to it. This is a solid release with every mix being well-done.

-Purchase here (TraxSource)

Grade: A

Antigen feat Andrea Martin - So What

Antigen is a collaboration of House heavyweights Gomi and Hani. This song originally came out in 2005, however, some brand new mixes have been completed. The 2005 versions have been remastered. They are delightful throwbacks to the heyday of Disco from the orchestra to the bassline to Andrea Martin's warm, divatastic vocals. The new Extra Sauce mixes are deeper and softer. They lose much of the Disco flavor of the earlier versions. These are great as well. 

Purchase all the mixes here (Beatport)

Grade: A

Daft Punk feat Pharrell Williams - Lose Yourself To Dance

This is the followup to the surprise international success that was "Get Lucky." This also features Pharrell Williams on vocals. Given his return to the music scene with a number of production and vocal appearances, this should also do fairly well, though not quite on the same scale as "Get Lucky." The repetitive nature of the vocals and production will necessitate a succinct edit. The funky song's tempo is a bit slower, but that would really help it to stand out on radio.

Listen to the song here (YouTube)

Grade: A-

House of Wallenberg feat Jwl B - Love Yourself

This throwback Hip House track from Sweden is part of a campaign to raise awareness for getting tested for HIV (Love Yourself Test Yourself). The song sounds straight out of the 90s with the handbag house piano sections and the female rap a la Shawn Christopher and Technotronic. The lyrics about loving oneself will resonate with almost everyone in all parts of the world, as would the message about getting tested. Stonebridge's remix hardens up the song making it a little darker, but the original is the best version.

-Watch the fun music video here (YouTube)

Grade: A

Beyonce - Grown Woman / Standing On The Sun (Remixes)

Remixes for two songs that were to have been performed during her recent tour have been serviced.

Grown Woman
The women's empowerment anthem has been remixed by Monsieur Adi, Nervo, Ralphi Rosario, and Psyko Punks. Monsieur Adi's Electro/Disco mix had a great concept, but it ends up being a little too noisy. Nervo's is a little noisy too, but it centers around a main riff and plays up the African chants. Ralphi Rosario's mixes work the best, playing up the anthem feel of the song to maximum effect.

Grade: A- (for the Ralphi Rosario and Nervo mixes)


Standing On The Sun
This Summery song has remixes by Dizzy Bell, Mr. Vegas, Tiesto, and WAWA. The Dizzy Bell's Deep Touch mix is aptly titled as it is in a soft, deep house style. Mr. Vegas' reggae mix is a nice downtempo mix that is close to the original. Tiesto's Electro/Trance mix unfortunately has too many noisy parts ruining the mix despite a few pretty sections. WAWA's melodic big room mixes are the best of the bunch. They keep the lush vibe of the original but make it harder.

Grade: A- (for the WAWA, Dizzy bell, and Mr. Vegas mixes)

Freemasons feat Katherine Ellis - Tears

The British House duo's new single, previewed nearly six months back is finally here. The Electro Disco/House song is just as catchy as their earlier work. Katherine's vocals have a haunting feel to them, reminiscent of the ones in Red Carpet's "Alright" by Ramona Korber. The Futureretro mix is a throwback to the 80s with its Human League sound. The Pegasus mix has that early 90s Balearic House sound. The Pegasus 6AM mix is a softer, uplifting take, excellent for starting off the evening, or ending it.

Grade: A 

Ron Perkov - Basura

The circuit singer's latest single is not just about the trash ('basura' is Spanish for trash). It's about throwing your troubles and problems away and celebrating instead. The festive party song has remixes by Eddie Baez, Gustavo Scorpio, and Mike Lorello. Eddie's mix is perfect for peak hour play. Gustavo's is a nice Latin/Circuit mix. Mike Lorello's mix is the one that works the best. It's a full on Latin production.

Grade: A-

Enrique Iglesias - Turn The Night Up

This is the latest single from his upcoming new album. Produced by The Cataracs, Enrique is trying something a little different from his usual, though it ends up not really varying all that much. The majority of the song isn't sung in a traditional way. Enrique talk-sings the verses. The pre-chorus immediately calls to mind the one in Kylie Minogue's club hit "Timebomb" from last year. The lyrics are terribly boring and the production sounds dated and generic. Remixes by Martin Solveig and Ralphi Rosario will be coming soon.

-Listen to the song here (YouTube)
-Pre-order the song on iTunes here

Grade: C

Club 69 Back Catalogue Now Available For Purchase!

Club 69 was a production team comprised of the late Peter Rauhofer, Eric Kupper, and Georg O. Luksch. They had a number of hits with their own productions as well as the many remixes they did. Up until recently, only the Best Of Club 69 compilation comprised of the singles and select album tracks from the Adults Only and Style albums was available for digital download. It is unknown when it happened, but all of the Club 69 CD maxi singles, the 2 albums, and the ReStyled remix album released in the U.S. are available now. Some of the remixes, dubs, edits, and DJ tools found on the vinyl singles, promos, import editions have not been made available at this time. and iTunes is the only digital store selling these at the moment. Hopefully other stores like Beatport will carry these so DJs and collectors can purchase them in WAV format.

Here is what is available (the links are for iTunes and will let you hear clips of every track and purchase if you wish to):

Singles

• Diva / Fantasy
• Sugar Pie Guy / Warm Leatherette
• Let Me Be Your Underwear / Always Unique
• Much Better / Drama
• Alright
• Muscles
• Diva (New Mixes)
• Let Me be Your Underwear (New Mixes)
• Warm Leatherette (New Mixes)

Albums

• Adults Only
• Style
• ReStyled (Remix Album)
• Best Of Club 69

Darth & Vader feat Laura Brehm - Power Trip

This is a collaboration of Brazilian DJ Hugo Castellan and singer Laura Brehm. The song's lyrics about not being silenced are timely in light of some of the recent protests happening around the world over various issues. Laura's vocals call to mind those of the lead singer of Aqua as they have that same cute quality. The main versions are straightforward Electropop. The Scoon & Delore mix with its hard, jump up style production suits the song better. The Lush & Simon mix is also in a similar aggressive style as the original. The Scoon & Delore mix is the best of the bunch.

-Listen to clips and purchase the single here (iTunes)
-the original version's music video (YouTube)

Grade: A-

Blue - Break My Heart (Tracy Young Mix)

The British R&B/Pop group's comeback album was released in April. This is the 4th single. The electro/pop influenced R&B song calls to mind Rick Astley's "Together Forever" during the verses and Madonna's "Celebration" during the choruses. The vocals are really great as can be expected.

Tracy Young has done a club remix which makes the midtempo into an atmospheric floor filler. The "Celebration"-esque production is nicely played up. An edit of this version could easily make this song more radio friendly as an alternative to the original. The remix is really pretty.

Listen to Tracy's remix here:


Grade: A-

Asher Monroe - Hush Hush

Asher's latest single is a sensual midtempo R&B song with some dubstep elements. Vocally, Asher calls to mind Usher, especially with the chorus and all the falsetto and layered vocals. The production is reminiscent of Justin Bieber's hit "As Long As You Love Me." This manages to be an even stronger single than his last one "Here With You." With the right promotional push, this should be a top 40 Pop hit.

Listen here:



Grade: A

Orjan Nilsen feat Fader Lima - Violetta

The instrumental Trance with a bit of Electro track was released a couple of months back, however, singer Fader Lima has recorded some vocals for it. The result is amazing. The song has the catchiness of the recent Krewella hit "Alive", but this one is far more memorable and exotic because of Fader's Jan Johnston-esque vocal performance. This is a lovely song.

Listen here:    

Buy the original instrumental versions here (Beatport)

Grade: A

Robin Thicke - Go Stupid 4 U

Based on several online articles, this brand new song is planned as the followup single to "Blurred Lines" in the U.S. This song is also on the sexual side as have some of the other album tracks. The "get stupid, get stupid" chant straight out of Madonna's 2008 club hit "Give It 2 Me" feels totally out of place after the choruses is an unfortunate interruption.

Listen here:


Grade: B+

Agnetha Faltskog - Dance Your Pain Away (Remixes)

The remixes for the former ABBA member's new dancefloor anthem have been released. Cahill, Patrolla, 7th Heaven, and Smash Mode. Cahill's mix is their usual, but they kept it a little softer, delivering a mix that maintains the Disco vibe of the original but makes it contemporary. It has a slight 80s Hi Nrg feel too. Patrolla's mix is uplifting with strings and piano elements. 7th Heaven's mix beautifully recalls the halcyon days of the Disco era. Smash Mode's is basically a slightly harder take on the original. Every mix is well done, but 7th Heaven's is easily the best of the bunch, along with the original of course.

Streams of the mixes on YouTube:
-Original
-Cahill Mix
-7th Heaven Mix
-Smash Mode Mix

Preview on Amazon UK
-Patrolla Mix Edit

Grade: A

Justin Timberlake - Take Back The Night

This is the lead single off of the second volume of Justin's The 20/20 Experience album that will be released this Fall. The Timbaland produced song is a retro inspired track recalling the work of Michael Jackson circa the Off The Wall era. The song instantly calls to mind the lead single from the first volume of the album, "Suit & Tie", but this goes much further. It's far catchier and has a better hook. This is sure to be another hit.

Listen to the song here (YouTube)

Grade: A

Dezrok - Souls In The After Life

Known mostly for his hard, big room-oriented productions, Dezrok is offering something different in the form of an epic two and a half hour continuous mix consisting of 21 new age and ambient productions that represent different parts of his life. These productions could be categorized as being in a similar vein as Dead Can Dance, Deep Forest, Enigma, and Vangelis' work. He has done this type of production previously, most notably on his debut double album The Journey Of Life. Just as life has its ups and downs, the mood can be mellow and calm on the downtempos to frenetic and rapid on the uptempos. Countless hours went into the creation of this masterpiece and it really shows. This is essential listening even if this isn't the style one usually listens to.

Listen here:


Grade A+

Warren Nomi - My Love Is For Real

To celebrate the recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings regarding same-sex marriage, Warren Nomi has covered Victoria Beckham's unreleased single "My Love Is For Real" which was co-written by Cathy Dennis. The song's main riff bears a striking resemblance to Inner City's classic "Good Life." Goh Hotoda (known for his work with the legendary Shep Pettibone) produced the main mix, delivering something that sounds like it could be from the 90s, which is really nice considering that throwbacks to these classic styles has been in lately. Warren does a superb job with the vocals. The layering of his lead vocals with the harmonies and backing vocals are really lovely too.

Listen to and download "My Love Is For Real":


As a bonus, Warren is offering a bonus remix by Parralox of his earlier single "This Summer I". This update makes it more contemporary sounding.

Listen to and download the "This Summer I" remix by Parralox

Grade: A (for both)

Henrik B, Niklas Gustavsson, Peter Johansson - Echoes

The atmospheric track has been doing well on Dance radio stations in the U.S. for the last few weeks. With its unrelenting hook and hands in the air electro/pop production, this one has the potential to cross over to Pop radio with a proper promotional push. Signed to Avicii's record label, this could have similar or greater success as his own "Levels."

A nice bootleg tribal mix retaining the essential elements of the original by Deep Influence was made available recently. It takes the song to the next level.

-Listen to the original here (YouTube)
-Purchase the original versions here (Beatport)

Listen to the Deep Influence mix and download here:


Grade: A

Kaptn - Ricky Ricardo

This song is poised to be a huge hit this summer with its blend of rapped whimsical lyrics referencing the classic I Love Lucy show and the simple dance/pop production. Recalling the Hip House of the early 90s, this song is actually a lot of fun. Kaptn is a pretty good rapper giving some established artists of the genre a run for their money.

-Watch the music video here (YouTube)

Grade: A-

Dana International - Loca

After a brief hiatus from recording, the former Eurovision winner's newest solo single was released in June. Dana has released a few duets and other collaborations during the last few of years including an electro/pop song "Ma La'asot" ("what to do" in English) which was released just a couple of months back. "Loca" has Dana going back to some of her earlier work which contained traditional Israeli sounds combined with the hard beats of European club music. This song also references her own song "Power" from the mid 90s with some of the spoken parts appearing in the song. This is one of her best songs in a long time.

-Watch the music video here (YouTube)
-Buy the song on iTunes here

Grade: A

Robin Thicke feat Kendrick Lamar - Give It 2 U

This is the followup to the number one smash hit "Blurred Lines." Produced by Dr. Luke, this toe-tapping number is a bit of a departure from the mostly R&B and Hip Hop artist. This may be a tad jarring for fans of his traditional music. Hot artist of the moment Kendrick Lamar is featured on the song delivering a good verse.

-Listen to the song here (YouTube)

Grade: A-

Agnetha Faltskog - Dance Your Pain Away

The former member of the legendary Swedish group ABBA released her latest solo album a couple of months back. The second single is a feelgood, throwback that evokes memories of her work with her former group. It's a lovely song. Agnetha still sounds great. There are remixes by Cahill, Smash Mode, and 7th Heaven (the Cahill and 7th Heaven ones are not yet released). Smash Mode toughens up the song's bassline, but retains the lush Disco vibe of the original. It's very good.

-Listen to the original here (YouTube)
-Listen to the Smash Mode remix here (YouTube)

Grade: A