Whoosh! Boom! - Imitated Never Duplicated

This is a brand new release with Barry Harris and the Virgo Brothers (Andy Warren and Trypsin) at the helm. With its sassy lyrics, this one is lots of fun. The vocals by Simone Denny are just so cute. Barry and the Virgo Brothers deliver a multi-style production, dabbling in house, electro, and circuit. This will fit into a wide variety of sets. The initial release features just an edit and extended version. Additional remixes are expected to be released. For now, these versions are perfect.

Purchase the digital single here (iTunes)

Listen to a preview of the song here:
Imitated Never Duplicated - Preview Sample Snippet by Barry Harris

Grade: A

Josie Cotton - Johnny Are You Queer

This is an update of the 1981 song. The original had that new wave sound which was popular at the time. The tongue-in-cheek song created quite a debate when it was first released. Now it is back again with some new remixes courtesy of Barry Harris, Trypsin, and Donni Hotwheel. Josie also recorded new vocals for these mixes. Barry's mixes are aptly named (the Big Room Drama mixes) with the hard drums and synths and light piano keys. There are many parts which call to mind the classic Thunderpuss sound. Trypsin keeps things hard as well. The synths have a fun retro feel. Donni Hotwheel also keeps some of the aesthetic of the original with his mixes. He captures the playful vibe of the original with a modern twist. Rounding out the package is the Elephant mix which is basically a 2010 version of the original. Overall, all versions are solid, however, Barry and Donni's mixes are the standouts.

Grade: A

Adam Lambert - If I Had You

There's another uncommissioned remix of Adam's third single, and it is by Trypsin & Billy Waters. For those wanting something a bit more circuit-oriented, this is it. They manage to maintain the fun vibe of the original while making it more club-friendly.This is really great.

Watch the remix video made by DJ DigiMark


Adam Lambert - If I Had You (Trypsin & Billy Waters Mix)(DJ DigiMark Remix Video) from DJ DigiMark on Vimeo.

Grade: A

Rachel Panay - Repeat Performance

This is the followup to last year's "It's Got To Be Love", from 2006's Back To Love. This track made an appearance on a couple of WMC and label samplers prior to the album's release. Now it has become a single. There had been some buzz about this one by fans who had taken a liking to it. This song is not about a proper theater performance. It's about, well another kind of performance. The song's steamy lyrics are very well-written and don't feel vulgar the way some other songs in this vein have been. Produced by Guido Osorio, the song is a hard, thundering anthem. Additional remixes by Monster Taxi, Trypsin, Twisted Dee, Ranny and more will take this release to the top of DJs' playlists. The single is to be released on April 22. Preview some of the mixes at Rachel's MySpace. The album version can be purchased from most digital retailers right now.

Grade: A+(Clever, sexy and hot!)

Erin Hamilton - The Flame 2008

She burst onto the club scene in the later part of the 90's with a string of successful singles and an album. After a brief, 6 year break, she is back with updated mixes of her cover of Cheap Trick's "The Flame." This is the first artist/single release from MasterBeat Records, previously known for their circuit compilations. They recently rang in the new year with a launch of a new digital download store. This was one of the first digital releases on the site. While the original set of mixes were quite great, this new set is comparable. The Tony Moran & Warren Rigg and Twisted Dee mixes stay true to the mellow Circuit vibe of the original ones. The Solar City (a new mix) Manny Lehman, Jose Spinnin and Offer Nissim ones are quite good as well. A CD maxi with all of the new mixes, except one of them, was released last week. The full digital single is available at MasterBeat exclusively.

Grade: A- (overall)