podcast: electric relaxation monthly mix, episode 2

It’s a new month, and that means it’s time for a new mix! After last month’s trance-heavy set, I wanted to make something a little more accessible, so this mix is packed with chart-toppers, mostly from the last month or two. Remix-wise, I’ve also thrown in a little bit of every genre — some electro (case in point: Afrojack’s anthemic Leona Lewis remix), some house (Chuckie’s euphoric, piano-heavy remix of Rihanna’s “We Found Love”), some progressive (Thomas Gold’s epic rework of Adele’s “Set Fire to the Rain”), and even a bit of dubstep right at the end. That said, I think my favourite track might be the very first: the DJs From Mars remix of “On the Floor” and “Destination Calabria” is truly a mash made in heaven.

You can download the mix here (password: okayama). Tracklist is after the jump. ENJOY!

setlist: tower underground dj set

So even though Bangers and Mash had over 20 gigs together, it turns out we only remembered to press the record button once. Luckily it was during one of our most memorable DJ sets, at Tower Underground in January of this year. I got sick from spray-paint fumes, far too many people were wearing far too few items of clothing, and then the fire alarm went off… Twice.

The full MP3 is over 2 hours long, but here I’ve cut it down to just the half-hour peak of the night. The mix captures pretty accurately the electro-fied pop sound that characterised our DJ sets together and includes several of our all-time favourite remixes, including the anthemic Wideboys remix of “Break Your Heart,” Kaskade’s relentless edit of “Womanizer” and the bone-crunching Vindata remix of “OMG.”

Download link is here (password: underground); tracklist is after the jump. ENJOY!

podcast: electric relaxation monthly mix, episode 1

First, an apology: I’m sorry that Electric Relaxation has been rather quiet as of late. Two months without posts! Kind of ironic for a blog about dance music — a genre that prides itself on being up-to-date — to fall so far behind… The reason I’ve been lax about posting recently is that I’ve just moved to Japan, and so have been busy settling in and adjusting to this very new life. But just because I’m living in Japan doesn’t mean I’ve stopped listening to music — quite the opposite in fact! Which brings me to my second point…

To make up for the lack of posts over the past few weeks, I’ve got a gift for you all; I’ve decided that every month for the next year, instead of writing pithy blurbs about the music I’ve been listening to, I’m going to put my efforts into crafting a DJ mix of my favourite tracks. Because, let’s be honest, who really wants to read about dance music? No one!

The first episode (which you can download here) is heavy on progressive house and trance, because that’s what I’ve been listening to over the past month, but I expect that over the course of the coming year the podcasts will evolve along with my musical tastes; so maybe next month will be dubstep, or maybe it will be electro, who knows? I’ll try to put an emphasis on tracks that have been released within the last 6 months, and craft the mix like a live DJ set. This month’s podcast starts off with some poppier, accessible tracks (Florence and the Machine!), picks up the pace with some more aggressive trance in the mid-section, and finishes up with something nice and euphoric, courtesy of Super8 and Tab. ENJOY! Tracklist after the jump!

mash up: you used to hold me (promise land mash up)

David Guetta’s latest (and frankly, rather awful) chart-topper is remixed with Calvin Harris’ wonderfully laconic vocals… A mash made in heaven.

flashback: revolution 909

“Stop the music, and go home!”

Some smooth, old-school Daft Punk to get the weekend going…

song of the day: back to earth (arty remix)

Another textured, pulsating remix from Russian trance producer Arty. This track was one of the highlights from Cosmic Gate’s recent Essential Mix on BBC Radio 1… Love it.

song of the day: tupac back

I have no idea what this song has to do with 2Pac — despite its name, “Tupac Back” bears little resemblance to the late rapper’s music, either lyrically or stylistically. But man, if you want to give your speakers a good work-out, this banger will definitely do the job. This might be Rick Ross’ best trunk rattler since last year’s street anthem “Blowing Money Fast.” FEEL DA BASS!