Remix Radar 002: Diplo, A-Trak, Yolanda Be Cool & More


Week 2 of our Remix Radar is here to spice up your Tuesday with some tail-wagging tunes! We had quite a few releases this week from some of dance music’s heavy-hitters. This includes, of course, Diplo’s dipped toe into country music—an “Old Town Road” remix leapfrogging off the original viral sensation and into the front of your weekly playlists. Alongside such monoliths, we’ve also uncovered some hidden gems. There are a few rising acts, as well as a rediscovery from the vault—an early masterpiece from an Australian act who’s making major waves in the industry right now.

Lil Nas X – Old Town Road (Billy Ray Cyrus and Diplo Remix)

Have you noticed that they add a horse to the ‘Old Town Road’ artwork each time a new version is released? We’re up to three horses with Diplo’s drum n bass laden take of the viral hit. It was originally released a week ago in conjunction with Diplo’s closing set at Stagecoach Festival where the superstar DJ was joined on stage by Lil Nas X and Bill Ray Cyrus. Diplo has promised more country-inspired music in addition to this remix and his single with Cam. We are very curious to see what Diplo has up his sleeve.

Axwell – Nobody Else (A-Trak Remix)

The MVP of the decks, A-Trak serves up a delicious take of Axwell’s ‘Nobody Else’. A-Trak infuses the original with funky brass work, shimmering piano chords, and wobbly undertones transforming ‘Nobody Else’ into a soulful house jam. Not the right track for powerlifting, but perfect for sipping Coronas on a yacht.

Purple Disco Machine – Body Funk (Yolanda Be Cool Remix)

Purple Disco Machine has been a revelation to house music with his disco-tronic and funk-dripping tunes. He burst onto the scene with his interpolation of Sylvester’s ‘Do You Wanna Funk’ and Hot Streak’s ‘Body Work’, better known as ‘Body Funk’. It became a massive, massive club hit and was one of the most played tracks of Ibiza’s 2017 summer. He recently re-released the hit with new edits and a star-studded remix pack featuring Carl Cox, Claptone, Dom Dolla, and concluded it with Yolanda Be Cool. The Australians elevate ‘Body Funk’ with a spicy piano melody and a hypnotic vocal chop. Yolanda Be Cool does right by the original.

I also suggest giving a listen to the other remixes. They’re all really cool in their own right.

Felix Cartal ft. Lights – Love Me (Felix Cartal’s Chill Mix)

Felix Cartal teamed up with fellow-Canadian, Lights, unleashing a glittering dance bop onto the world known as, ‘Love Me’. The song has served as a festival anthem being belted out by dance music lovers from South America to Asia and back again. Cartal offers his new take on ‘Love Me’ with his Chill Mix. Cartal peals back his production simplifying the instrumental into a delectable, rhythmic beat and an enchantingly soft piano melody that surrounds a distorted version of Lights’ vocals. The culmination is an impactful bundle of emotion that will invoke “the feels”.

Spada – Hear Me Now (Ferreck Dawn Remix)

Ferreck Dawn has been around the club scene for over 16 years. In that time, He’s served up some juicy club mainstays and made appearances at many of Europe’s top Clubs and festivals including Ministry of Sound, Tomorrowland, and Creamfields. Dawn provides the prelude to Spada’s ‘Hear Me Now’ with a deep house cut that has a dark, yet beautiful sound design with a crooning vocal and an enchanting guitar melody.

Spada has not released the original of ‘Hear Me Now’ and instead is spotlighting his new track via Ferreck Dawn’s remix and soon-to-be released remix by Moscoman (May 10) with the original following. Give Ferreck Dawn’s take a gander in the run-up to the original.

Sigma (feat.Louisa) – here we go again (Just Kiddin edit)

British duo, Just Kiddin, provides a transformative remix of Sigma’s ‘Here We Go Again’. The original is a commercial dance track that is focused around Louisa’s anthemic vocal, perfect for a festival DJ set. ‘Here We Go Again’ goes through a metamorphsis at the hands of Just Kiddin and unleash an energetic, up-beat dance track that is full of uplifting, happy vibes. It’s easy to envision oneself dancing with a special someone as confetti flies and jubilation consumes the dance floor.

Jorn Van Deynhoven – We Can Fly (Cold blue Remix)

Fast-rising Trance producer, Cold Blue, provides an ethereal take on ‘We Can Fly’ by Jorn Van Deynhhoven. Cold Blue weaves a cosmic chord progression that transplants listeners deep in the depths of space, on a journey across the Andromeda Galaxy. The remix is a nice entry into the trance world.

DONT BLINK – GET DOWN (Jamie Roy & Jay de Lys Remix)

Jamie Roy and Jay de Lys team-up to construct an imaginative tech-house remix for DONT BLINK. The newcomers provide a fresh take of ‘Get Down’ utilizing dynamic sound bytes, inventive synth progression, and bass driven funk that gives the remix a quirky, yet delightful vibe. I recommend this to fans of Claud VonStroke and the Dirtybird crew.

ONE FROM THE VAULT

Miss Velvet – Cincinnati Street (PNAU Remix)

Today I bring you an absolute monster of a track from the vault. PNAU has been making quite the name for themselves with highly successful tracks: ‘Changes’, ‘Go Bang’, and ‘Chameleon’. Before these hits, the Australian trio released a remix of, relatively unknown artist, Miss Velvet’s ‘Cincinnati Street’. The remix is very different from what we hear from PNAU currently. It’s more raw and rowdy vs. pretty and upbeat. Even so, there is still a very clear PNAU feel with tribal beats and jungle vibes. I would love to hear PNAU release more raw sounds like this remix.