Month: December 2006

I’ve got a million things to do, so this will be a quick one.

First of all, a bunch of you enjoyed the mash-ups that I played at our Yule gathering, so I’ve grabbed a few good ones for you: One that I played at the party, one that I mentioned in conversation, and a new one.

The one I played: I consider this to be the best mash-up I’ve ever heard. It was done by Butch Vig (producer on Nirvana’s Nevermind, and founder of his own band, Garbage), and mixes The Doors with The Cult: “Sanctuary’s Over (Butch Vig Mix)”

The one I mentioned: I’ve posted this one here before, but it deserves a replay. An absolutely amazing mix of Wham’s “Careless Whisper” with Bon Jovi’s “Dead or Alive”, which manages to sound like it was always meant to sound this way: “Careless or Dead (Kleptones mix)”

The new one: DJ Earworm takes the indie band Under The Influence Of Giants and mixes them with David Bowie, Queen, Steely Dan, Steve Miller Band – and adds a bit of Common. Descriptions do no justice. Just listen: “Over The Confluence of Giants (DJ Earworm mix)”

Next up — James Brown died this past week, and yes, that means posting a JB tune. Instead of posting “I Feel Good”, “Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag”, or any other of the usual tracks that filled mp3 blogs in tribute, I decided to go with one of the less obvious tracks, but one of my favorites. This is the one that featured the immortal line “I don’t know karate, but I know cuh-razy.” James Brown – “The Payback.”

Earlier in December, I went to see Guy Forsyth here in Lawrence. If he tours anywhere near you, go see him. This is one of my favorites by him, and I’m sure that it will speak volumes to folks who are about the same age as me (and Guy), not only about our upbringing and development, but about how the current state of the country makes us feel. Give a listen, and then go to his website and buy the CD. Guy Forsyth – “Long Long Time.”

Some interesting news out of the UK today: It seems that Johnny Depp will be playing Freddie Mercury in the forthcoming biopic. Good choice, in my opinion. In honor of this announcement, here’s one of my favorite songs by Queen, from the last album released before Freddie’s death: Queen – “Innuendo.”

Lastly, a new composition by Yours Truly, noodling around with my new tools. Every instrument on this, from the programming of the drum patterns to the violin pizzacato to the guitar, was played — no loops were used. Think of it as a piece from a soundtrack to a spy film that doesn’t exist. @nubis – “The Lion’s Share.”

Happy New Year, kids. More music in 2007.