Banananananas

Anyone that has been on Hype Machine in the last week or so will have picked up on Sammy Bananas' (who?) exemplary remix of Passion Pit's single 'The Reeling'. A few current big names have done mixes for the track already (Calvin Harris, Miike Snow, Burns), but for me this remix stands out as the most effective, and the most intriguingly different from the original (although Burns' version is pretty different, I don't think it works quite as well). Mr Bananas puts a very housey/tranceish feel on it (I'm thinking Eric Prydz/ WPAHP/ Deadmau5 stlye here), slowing the pace down and lowering the pitch a fair bit. The result is a great remix, if not a classic original track - it stands out more for what he's done to the original than for it's own greatness (but it is pretty effing great). Well worth a listen.

The Aspirins For My Children got a bit of attention for their (his - is it just Mr Barker?) remix of Marina and The Diamonds, and they deserve a bit more - particularly for this more recent effort: a bang tidy mix of Frankmusik's 'Confusion Girl'. Don Diablo has already lent his talented hands to this particular track, but I think the Aspirins mix just edges it for me, by virtue of being a bit more punchy and dancey (and therefore more suited to my high-impact and intense lifestyle). Frankmusik's stuff is occasionally a bit messy and fast so I like the way Aspirins have slowed it down and drawn out/sliced up the vocals a bit more. Plus the piano stabs make it a more epic and head-noddy (if that's any kind of real term or phrase). (Credit goes to We Like It Indie for putting it up originally).

Ah...remixes. They definitely make life a little better. Metric's 'Collect Call', off their new album is a good song - all Bat For Lashes type atmosphere and mildly haunting vocals, slow builds, reverbed, echoing guitary bits, etc. Tom Wrecks version, however, is all haunting vocals, atmosphere and steadily pounding drums. Which I like. He certainly doesn't 'wreck' the original ... a-ha ... a-ha ... lol? (Ignore that). It's got a bit more dynamism to it - the kind of track you listen to while driving at night: You don't want to fall asleep, but you don't want a rip-roaring electro banger doing your head in. It's nice. Like a chilled out Tiesto/David Aussi vibe with more vocals and less synthed-up chord progressions.

I have to thank the awesome Rub-A-Dub-Dubbb blog for this last one: Nero's 'Act Like You Know'. It's an absolute screamer, and a bit more intensely raw in some parts than his much-hyped (and sick) remix of the Streets - it sounds a bit more like his mix for Boy Crisis. There's also a tasty little house breakdown about halfway through - a more direct lift from his original mix - which uses that classic 'Show Me Love' dance sound without directly sampling the over-killed melody. Then it jumps back into crazy scratched up Rusko-style synths (a little bit darker sounding than Rusko, I should point out) and powerful bass punches. Insane, and highly recommended (although the vocal does get mildly repetitive).

Passion Pit - The Reeling ( Sammy Bananas' Big Choon Mix) FG
Frankmusik - Confusion Girl (The Aspirins For My Children Remix) Theirspace
Metric - Collect Call (Tom Wrecks Remix) Hisspace*
Nero - Act Like You Know (Dubstep Mix) Buy

*Like a few other artists, he's giving away some of his remixes free on myspace. Well worth getting hold of!