Archive for the mix tag

Dave Tompkins: How To Wreck A Nice Beach

A few weeks ago or so, Ned Kirby of Stromkern posted this on my facebook wall, and...well, it's way too good not to share.

Music journalist Dave Tompkins wrote the book How To Wreck A Nice Beach as a history of the vocoder--you know, that thing that makes everything sound like robots. It's the first book to be released on Chicago's own Stop Smiling Books and, without reading it, I'm pretty sure it's going to be a synthesizer nerd must-have this year.

There's also a mix that accompanies the book. It is, obviously, completely full of vocoders, but it's also a rather weird and sometimes surprising journey through music and soundscapes that I can't even really do justice by attempting to describe. You'll just have to listen to it.

Download How To Wreck A Nice Mix from the How To Wreck A Nice Beach website, complete with what is the most detailed playlist I have ever seen in my life.

Stop Smiling Books website

Stop Smiling Storefront
1371 N. Mikwaukee Avenue
Chicago, IL 60622
773-342-1124

Miss Kittin: On The Way To San Jose

It's from last year, but this mix deserves a post. Recorded for Death Disco Radio, the megatalented French musician and DJ Miss Kittin (of Miss Kittin and The Hacker fame) reaches back to her roots with this perfectly executed freestyle-heavy retro mix. Yes, Miss Kittin doing freestyle. I'm not even much of a fan of the genre, but I love this mix. You have to hear it. She drops some Ebn-Ozn, Yaz, Anne Clark, New Order, and Exposé in here, if that gives you an idea.

Available (for free!) on the Death Disco Radio Podcast or on Podfeed, for the less iTunes-inclined. Also check out the other mixes and live recordings; they're quite good as well and include a stellar list of djs and producers.
Death Disco Radio on MySpace

Atomic Halloween Mix 2009

I made a quick mix this afternoon, loosely based on my sets at our costume contest Thursday night. Have a great Halloween!

photo by Jason Ernst, wildharedesigns.com

Tracklisting:
Human League: Darkness
Anne Clark: Sleeper In Metropolis
Cabaret Voltaire: Yashar [John Robie Mix]
Ministry: Everyday is Halloween
Animotion: Obsession
Duran Duran: Wild Boys
Depeche Mode: Personal Jesus [Pump Mix]
Michael Jackson: Thriller [DiscoTech Remix]
Front 242: Welcome To Paradise