Don Quijote X BeatRehab

So this review is going to be a bit unconventional. The reason for this is quite simply. I don't actually like both of the tracks. I LOVE Stwo's (pronounced "stew") remix, as I love most of his work, but this is a rare case where you get a fantastic remix born out of an original track that honestly just isn't that good. The Norwegian producer, Lido, ironically ends up getting a bit lost in his original track "Lost." Where does he get lost you might ask? Well.... everywhere really. I should preface this whole discussion by saying that I personally am a  huge fan of progressive beat structures and unconventional melody formation. As an example, the New Swoop we wrote on Baths was one of the most unanimously positive reviews we've ever written. The issue with attempting to build such a progressive track, like Lido does here with "Lost," is that oftentimes you end up doing bizarre things just for the sake of doing them. What happens here...

Super excited about this review. Alex Metric is a very talented producer based in London who focuses on building pump-up dance tracks, like his banger of the summer "Heart Weighs a Ton." Lucky for us, Vindata, the DJ duo out of L.A. saw the potential in this track and decided to create a wonderful remix released earlier this month. Both tracks rely heavily on strong beats and some seriously epic synth work. Let's start with Alex Metric's original. First off, I need to get this off my chest, the lyric "I'll carry you when you're heart weighs a ton" makes me think of Sam Gamgee in the Lord of the Rings saying to Frodo, "I may not be able to carry the ring, but I can carry you!" Sorry, I had to nerd out for a second there. The track starts almost like a conventional summer house track with a nicely built minute long build up, consisting of a simple single beat bass rhythm. As the melody is introduced, the actual volume of the track increases, ...

Pharrell makes some damn good music, especially when teamed up with Daft Punk yet again for another feel-good track. Pharrell and Daft Punk aren't exactly unfamiliar with each other, as they have a strong collaboration history. They really fell into a unique form with this track, "Gust of Wind," an electro-infused funk track that could just as easily fit into a 70's discoteque as your garden variety European nightclub of this past summer. French remixer, Prizm, tries his hand at this one and does a surprisingly good job of capturing the essence of the original and providing his own "future bass" spin to it with a lot of added production quality. The track was released 2 and a half weeks ago. Let's start with a quick analysis of Daft Punk's original. What gets me about this track is the effortlessness with which it moves through a number of different styles in a short time period. Right from the start, you're met with an exciting, yet cleanly...

In honor of the MAB show today, I decided it would make sense to feature a track from either Danny Brown or Cashmere Cat. Ironically (considering Cashmere Cat's Electro rep), the best thing I found was a remix of Danny Brown's "Blunt After Blunt" by long-time CasaSwoop favorite, Parisian DJ Stwo. I'm not upset that I found this song, in fact quite the opposite, I'm really glad we can share yet another fantastically well done electro remix of a hip hop track. Granted, Danny Brown's "Blunt After Blunt" is definitely not playing around with any lowkey electro style or catchy melodies, this is a dark banger no doubt. I really like this track, for reasons other than the obvious "Blunt After Blunt" excuse, mainly because it isn't afraid to throw some shit in your face. It relies on a standard rhythm and really no melody to support a heavy, passionate rap lyric. It sorta reminds me of the heavier rap track from the late 90s. Danny doesn...

It's been quite a while since we've written any reviews. Apologies to all of you who were waiting with bated breath, anticipating our newest review. Wait no more, hot off the grill, here's a tasty one. For me personally, I have a grown-up job now and I work 10 hour days, so while I don't listen to any less music, and I'm always finding new tracks, I don't have the time to dedicate to writing reviews anymore. Hopefully this will change. Anyway, you don't care about my life, you care about the music, baby . So, here we go. This is an old remix honestly. It was released by SMLE about a year ago. But music is unique because it never really gets old and as long as some of you haven't heard the song, then this exercise is worth it. We all know Alicia Keys (if you don't, well then there is no saving you) and we all love her 2003 (!!!) classic, "You Don't Know My Name." Damn if that doesn't make me feel old. I'm not going to describe ...