Recent Posts by djabstract:
May 5, 2009 by djabstract
Pocka and I are at it again. This time around we played to our mutual love of reggae and dub. This 78-minute mix off is chock full of bassy goodness and is my favorite of the three mixes we've done together so far. Juicy.
01 Barney Bigard - Sweet Marijuana Brown (Abstract's Echoedit)
02 10 Ft Ganja Plant - Midnight Landing
03 Dub Colossus - Azmari Dub
04 Dub Incorporation - Metissage
05 Eek-A-Mouse - You Na Love Reggae
06 Ranking Ann - Love On A Mountain Top
07 Yellowman - Duppy Or Gunman
08 Easy Star All-Stars - No Surprises
09 Bim Sherman - Love Forever
10 Sly & The Revolutionaries - Marijuana
11 Prince Far I - Big Fight Dub
12 Horace Andy - Money Money
13 Lady Ann - Informer
14 Derrick Morgan - Conquering Ruler
15 Roy Richards - Freedom
16 Prince Douglas - Sunshine Dub
17 Scientist - Night Of The Living Dead
18 Mad Professor - Moving Dub
19 Michigan & Smiley - Diseases
20 The Jamaicans - Ba Ba Boom
21 Apache Scratchy - Gal Lose The Work (Version)
22 Tino's Breaks - Toasted Dub
23 Barrington Levy - Money Makes Friends
http://mtrec.com/blogshots/DualDubsided.mp3
May 4, 2009 by djabstract
It's 3am and it's always raining outside, the neon splashed and beaded. There's a haze over everything and every step echoes off brick walls, glass, and steel. It's that alone time where your best home is in your head, locked up safe with thoughts and dreams. All is quiet before the morning's mad dance. A cab strolls by, but the walk feels better. Turn up your collar and take in the night. Welcome to Vapour City.
01 Twine - Endormie
02 Cellula - Onca
03 Peter Gabriel - Sketch Pad With Trumpet And Voice
04 Underworld Skym
05 Nudge - Blue Screen
06 Ingrid Chavez - Whispering Dandelions
07 Eivind Aarset - Changing Waltz
08 V.V. - Track 5
09 Terminal Sound System - Duchamp Falls
10 Muggs - Far Away
11 Krister Linder - Mixed Blood
http://mtrec.com/blogshots/Vapour%20City.mp3
April 11, 2009 by djabstract
Music can be very polarizing. There are folks who like only one type of sound and consider everything else not worth a listen. There are an unfortunate number of people whose ears are only feed by EmpTyV and Top 40 radio, so if it ain't pop, they don't like it. I've found that electronic music in particular suffers due to this. Comments I've heard include "Music made with machines has no soul", "It's just not... organic", or my favorite, "I only like music with lyrics", which is astounding because a) a great deal of "machine music" has lyrics and b) by the same "logic", they shouldn't like jazz, classical, or a host of other genres (which may, unbelievably, be true). Well, regardless of this mutant strain of human (or perhaps just to fly in their faces), may I present a mix of purely electronic music. I could even call it "electronica", if I didn't absolutely loathe that term. I've been picking up a huge amount of free, internet label material and the Planet Boelex track started growing a mix inside my head. There's a lot of glitchy, ambient stuff here and a lot of it is achingly beautiful (at least in my opinion). I wouldn't be able to understand if anyone said that tracks like "Forever And Always" or "Living Line B" have "no soul". And as for the parting track... I suppose it doesn't really fit with the rest, but that's the segue my ears gave me.
01 Jacen Solo - Forbidden Medicine
02 Planet Boelex - Forever And Always
03 Abyssal Plains - Daybreak In Roatan
04 Ulrich Schnauss - Knuddlemaus
05 Koordinate Of Wonders - Living Line B
06 Autechre - Nine
07 Single Cell Orchestra - Explore Your Mind
08 Sleepy Town Manufacture - Latatoo (Tao Calm Mix)
09 Apparat - Foward / Backward
10 Breaks The Blank Day - I Am Glad To Know Nothing
11 David Kristian - Bad Mood No. 3672
12 Building Castles Out Of Matchsticks - Kiss Me
http://mtrec.com/blogshots/Sine%20Rider.mp3
March 31, 2009 by djabstract
As corny as it sounds, I've always loved cloud watching. Big groups of puffy cumulus floating gently along. Shoals of razor thin cirrus soaring high in the sky. Towering cumulonimbus blocks pouring forward, bringing the rain with them. There's quite a palette of formations to be seen and the right music gets me right up there with them. "Surfing The Stratosphere" was birthed while walking across the Brooklyn Bridge on one of our first real days of spring here in NYC. The sky was bright and full of fast moving clouds. I was, as always, plugged in and Jesu's "Farewell" completely clicked with the scene. And the rest is right here.
There's a lot of different styles in this mix, from blissful shoegazing (Jesu, Curve, MBV) to glittering ambient (Austere, HPOT... Moby?) to beat driven drone (Bowery Electric, Sinewave) to simply towering and destructive (Godflesh). And the final track, while seemingly out of place, reminds me of watching the red skies of dusk over the Wolf Rocks in Middle of Nowhere, Pennsylvania, some 30 years ago.
Call it a quirk, but for me it fits.
Surfing The Stratosphere
01 Jesu - Farewell
02 Curve - The Colour Hurts
03 David Bowie - Heroes
04 My Bloody Valentine - To Here Knows When
05 Bowery Electric - Fear Of Flying
06 Austere - Dwine
07 HeadPhoneOverTone - Crazy
08 Pink Floyd - Obscured By Clouds
09 Anonymous - Really Low Fi
10 Godflesh - Flowers
11 Sinewave - Shapeshifting Space Lizards
12 Moby - God Moving Over The Face Of The Waters
13 Beef Terminal - Knife In The Table
http://www.mtrec.com/blogshots/surfing.mp3
March 23, 2009 by djabstract
Yeah - very John Peel or 4AD. I still relish those times. Let me know which trax you like but are unfamiliar with. May be we can swap some stuff.
March 23, 2009 by djabstract
Nice one, LD. It is indeed Ofra Haza. The track is "Im Nin'AluIm Nin'Alu" (that was the tricker part). Flad you like the mix.
Mr. Rabbit, could you kindly get in touch with our winner about art?
March 21, 2009 by djabstract
One of the most challenging things about DJing is bending your will to that of whomever hired you. Spinning a solid block of played-out 80s hits when you're really in the mood to hit the crowd with a vicious blast of dubstep can pain you deeply, but you always have to remember who's footing the bill. Likewise demo CDs that you distribute. Most club owners aren't wild about demos that wander all over the place because they're usually looking for consistency.
Therefore, when I'm not working on piecing together something related to my DJing business, I tend to go a bit hog wild. I'll start with an idea and run with it, no matter where it ends up going. Case in point: Blind Eyes And Tired Smiles.
This particular beasty was initially inspired by the opening track. The Organ was an all too shortived band that modelled their sound around some of my favorite 80s bands - The Cure, Joy Division, The Smiths, etc. I assumed that the mix would continue along in that vein and it did... at least for a bit. Then Johnny Marr and Morrissey did their thing and the tempo was all blown to hell. Tones On Tail ran with the dark, slightly loungey feel and then Beme Seed reduced it even further. Then Clock DVA arrived.
What the hell was that about?
Anyway, I ended up slipping further down the proverbial sprial with the help of Swans, Xmal, and The Cure and then added some additional weirdness with This Mortal Coil. Just an odd stretch. I managed to pull it back some with the Cocteau Twins, but by this time I was pretty much exhausted, so I slipped out the backdoor with some help from Mr Reznor.
It's noisy and ugly in the middle, but, at a slight touch over 58 minutes, here it is, scars and all.
01 - The Organ - Brother
02 - Joy Division - Disorder
03 - Bauhaus - The Passion Of Lovers
04 - The Sisters Of Mercy - Adrenochrome
05 - The Smiths - Rubber Ring
06 - Tones On Tail - Happiness
07 - Beme Seed - Slide
08 - Clock DVA - Dark Encounter
09 - Swans - Speak
10 - Minimal Man - Show Time
11 - Xmal Deutschland - Mondlicht
12 - The Cure - One Hundred Years
13 - This Mortal Coil - Firebrothers
14 - Cocteau Twins - Wax And Wane
15 - Nine Inch Nails - Help Me I Am In Hell
http://www.mtrec.com/blogshots/bets.mp3
Click the image below for the full sized cover.
March 21, 2009 by djabstract
It's always a ball to do a mix with someone who's musical taste is similar to your own, but divergent enough that they take you places you did not expect to go. Case in point this mix compiled by the marvelous avocadorabbit (mighty in both ear and eye) and mine own humble self. This is quite a lovely jumble of tracks spanning all types of genres and accepting no boundaries. Once we'd fit this all together, the pièce de résistance was provided by avr himself; it's gorgeous - click on the pics below to see full versions. He also floated the idea of quizzing y'all about the content. First to guess the answer gets a free copy of the art!
Challenge: Name of the female vocalist and song sampled in "Paid In Full (Seven Minutes Of Madness Remix)".
Tracklist:
01 Stockfinster - All Becomes Music
02 Derrick Carter - All Dreams Collide
03 Gui Boratto - Mr. Decay
04 Once 11 - My Real Face
05 Burial - Archangel
06 Flying Lotus - Beginner's Falafel
07 Apparat - Multifunktionsebene
08 Mocean Worker with Jane Monheit - Float
09 Plumbline - Circle 09
10 EQ - Tongue Got Your Cat
11 LFO - Think A Moment
12 Masri Mokkassar - High Alert a'al Geddu
13 Freeform - Blue Movies
14 Mujaji - Belgian Cappuccino
15 Eric B. & Rakim - Paid In Full (Seven Minutes of Madness remix)
16 Soul Hooligans - Algebra
17 MF Doom - Hey
http://www.zshare.net/audio/573071688ac4d48d/
March 19, 2009 by djabstract
BdG is awesome. Link please!
March 16, 2009 by djabstract
Thanks, LD. Glad you like. Credit should go to my compatriot, Pocka, as well. If you want to check out some of my more downtempo mixes, give my website a visit and pick based on the mix description.
http://www.mtrec.com/abstract/set.asp
March 11, 2009 by djabstract
Ribbit.
March 3, 2009 by djabstract
Heya. Here's the second mix I just finished with Brad aka Pocka. This mix is filled to the brim with jazz, hip-hop, funk, etc. Really all over the place, but most part, it's fairly laidback.
The Heliocentrics - Intermission
Bluebridge Quartet - Spektrum
Roni Size - Ballet Dance
Otis Jackson Jr. Trio - Bitches Brew
Hagans - Animation/Imagination
David Axelrod - It Ain’t For You
True Detectives - World Dance
The Pharcyde - Officer
A Tribe Called Quest - Youthful Expression
Fat Jon The Sample Soul Physician - Repaint Tomorrow
Paris - Mellow Madness
The Heliocentrics - Once Upon A Time
Dragon Ash - Deep Impact (DJ Krush Remix)
Koushik - Be With
People Under The Stairs - Days Like These
Clutchy Hopkins vs. MF Doom - Air
http://www.bradsmitchell.com/mp3/djabstract_pocka/tothedistantstars.mp3
February 28, 2009 by djabstract
Hello, all. Been awhile, I know. I've been super busy, but managed to throw together two mix-offs with my buddy Brad Mitchell. This is the first. It's a mix of dubstep, dancehall, and some other bass heavy styles.
Vybz Kartel - Teacher Intro
Skream - Rottan
Propa Tingz - Babylons Scared
Appleblim - Fear
BreakBeatBuddha - Dissent
Buraka Som Sistema - New Africas Pt. 2
Bounty Killer - Fifth Element
The Bug - Angry
The Qemists - Dem Na Like Me (King Cannibal Remix)
Shackleton - Majestic Visions
Sub Dub - Sub Tool 1
Winnie The Shit - Awkward Silence
Apparat - Multifocus
Kromestar - Zion Dub
Cardopusher - Cockpit
Zinc - Film (Skream Remix)
Babylon System - Dancin Shoes
http://mtrec.com/blogshots/CrossContaminantDub.mp3
February 25, 2009 by djabstract
Oh oh oh! So good, so nice. Adore that K&D mix. So how do I get my hands on a copy?
December 21, 2008 by djabstract
Wow. Most of this stuff I don't even know. That's just crazy. Where do we get to listen to this? Did I miss something?
December 21, 2008 by djabstract
For some reason, my embedded vid vanished. Here it is again.
December 21, 2008 by djabstract
It's rainy and cold here in NYC today, but I don't care because I'm warm and looking out the window whilst listening to this.
December 20, 2008 by djabstract
Hey, y'all. A couple of days back, I was walking to work. I looked across the street and saw an elderly gentleman shuffling along the sidewalk, walking a fairly decrepit looking dog. Then, out of nowhere, the guy hopped into the air and clicked his heels! It put a smile on my face which stayed there pretty much the whole day. It was odd and sweet at the same time. Anyway, I'd been futzing around with a new drum/drill and bass track and the image of the old man popped into my head and snuck it's way into the song. So here is "Mr Fuddy's Morning Walk", inspired by a heel-clicking octogenarian.
http://mtrec.com/blogshots/MrFuddysMorningWalk.mp3
Cheers,
Ben, disguised in this post as Puzleboy
December 19, 2008 by djabstract
I'd love to see the list of songs that didn't make it...
December 18, 2008 by djabstract
Oh, ho! The Jr. League! Thank you! Well sorted, kind sir. Well sorted.
December 18, 2008 by djabstract
You excluded "London" by The Smiths? Deeply disappointed. Just kidding. This is great stuff. Thanks for a delicious, geological adventure. P.S. Floyd's (i.e. Waters) "Southampton Dock"... one of my faves ever. "Final Cut" is so completely underrated. Where can one get a copy of these CDs? For goodness sake, you include Arab Strap! That's worthy of a download on it's own.
December 18, 2008 by djabstract
December 18, 2008 by djabstract
This too. Lickle old skoool. Working this into a mix for my soon-to-be wife.
December 18, 2008 by djabstract
Used this in my last dnb mix... Gorgeous.
December 18, 2008 by djabstract
That Boreta track is SO nasty. Love it.
