The fight for diverse and conscious voices

A couple fun things and then some selected mashes from the Bootie top-N list. More of those probably next week.

http://audioporncentral.com/2011/11/duran-duran-girl-panic.html
http://www.duranduran.com/wordpress/
Duran Duran are still around and kicking, with approximately the same sound as ever. This is linked mostly for the video which is a self-parody. The band got several of the models they're friends with, and who have appeared in earlier Duran Duran videos, to make this piece with the models playing the parts of the band members. Each model mimics certain of the affectations and attitudes of the band members in mock interviews that are woven around the basic "Girl Panic" tune. The Duran Duran blog linked above has some background and making-of material if you think that sort of thing is fun, which I do.

http://audioporncentral.com/2011/11/the-good-natured-skeleton.html
http://www.myspace.com/thegoodnatured
The Good Natured are a UK-based electronica trio fronted by a young singer/guitarist named Sarah McIntosh. They self-identify as goth but the couple of tracks I've heard of theirs - "Be My Animal" a while ago and now "Skeleton" - are brighter and more upbeat than your typical minor-key/downtempo electro-goth productions. When I first blogged them last year I noted that McIntosh's vocals were better than the electronic production was showing. The live performance of Skeleton doesn't kill the way I think she's capable of, but it gives you a much better feel for her.

http://bootiemashup.com/top10/nov2011/Titus%20Jones%20-%20Bad%20Things%20Will%20Roll%20With%20The%20Devil.mp3
Another spectacular mega-mash from Titus Jones. Start with Marily Manson and go to Mike Oldfield. Yes, really. Along the way, sample at least four top pop divas and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, plus one unforgettable movie line (am I the only one who recognizes it instantly?)

http://bootiemashup.com/top10/nov2011/The%20ECC%20-%20Stairway%20To%20Britney.mp3
Evolution Control Committee was doing mash-ups before the term was even invented. I remember them as culture jammers and as the authors of "Rocked by Rape" (http://www.myspace.com/video/the-evolution-control-committee/rocked-by-rape/515952). This tune, "Stairway to Britney", has been a staple in their live shows for years.

http://bootiemashup.com/top10/nov2011/davicii_guetta_where_dem_levels_at_djsfrommars_mashup.mp3
DJs from Mars remain one of the best acts in the remix business. They're not as technically proficient as a Lobsterdust or Titus Jones, but they have an instinct for what makes a fun dancefloor tune good. Listening to this tune you can hear their influence in three clear stages: 0 to 0:50 is 'ok here are two pop tunes'; 0:50 to about 1:35 is 'here are some pop tunes with some clever mixing'. And at about 1:35 it's like "OK, now get out of the way and let us show you how it _should_ be done".

No Art of Noise this time. I promise, soon. However, APC published some _awesome_ stuff this week that I want to share with you. First up, another video story...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkx9vxu4UW8&feature=player_embedded
A couple weeks ago I pointed to You Say Party in particular their video for "Lonely Lunch" which told an sf-nal story with the song as soundtrack. Now comes WAX TAILOR feat Charlotte Savary with "Dragon Chasers", which is a brilliant bit of noire down-tempo sound and video. Like all good noire, it's dark and mysterious and gets by less on action than on the way people _look_ at each other and things. Also, nice nods to the graphic novel form.

http://audioporncentral.com/2010/11/simon-iddol-fogashaz-minimix.html
Simon Iddol did a little five-track minimix to promote a party in Budapest that he was DJing. The track list is there and all are pretty rocking. I have a problem listening to Jay-Z's "99 Problems", but the rest of the mix is good, with some really brilliant combinations including two surprising Beatles remixes. I guess getting their stuff on iTunes means we'll hear more Beatles mash-ups in the coming months.

http://audioporncentral.com/2010/11/the-good-natured-be-my-animal.html
Another original+remix pairing, but this time I'll take the original over the remix. The song "Be My Animal" is by The Good Natured (http://www.facebook.com/thegoodnatured) and part of what makes it pleasing to my ear is the way the lead vocalist, Sarah McIntosh, is featured. She's got a potentially powerful voice, and though it's a bit too autotuned and clipped here, you get the sense she's got some power to show off. The remix loses a lot of her vocals; it's not bad on its own - just not as good.

http://audioporncentral.com/2010/11/illegal-sunday-lobsterdust-down-unda-club-vj-brewski-video.html
I can't remember if I blogged DJ Lobsterdust's amusing mash of Men At Work vs 50 Cent before. The mix is a couple years old, but it's gotten a new video treatment, so it's worth a (re)visit.

http://audioporncentral.com/2010/11/illegal-sunday-mixtape-caveirao-dance-1-2.html
It's been a long time since Bootie was good. It's been nearly forever since they were this AWESOME. These are two hour-long dance mixes that contain more clever blends and neat mashes than you can shake a stick at. I started playing this and narrating some of the great combos for MizA who eventually got enough time to play the mixes and started naming combos back to me. It's a blast. Sadly there's no tracklist I can find to verify against.