Aurgasm

dance // tropical // reggae

You’ve probably heard this. Either you’ve danced to this in a club, or you’ve heard the bastardization of it that Pitbull and Lil’ Jon did, “The Anthem”. But here’s the real story: the instrumental was done by Danish DJ Enur in 2003. It blew up in Ibiza but stayed cool everywhere else until late 2006 when it was mashed together with vocals from Crystal Waters into a track called “Destination Calabria” which hit the charts hard. Last year Enur takes the track and throws on vocals from Dannish reggae queen Natasja Saad, who sadly died of a car accident before she could see its absolute success. And now? You dance.

The summer jam of 2008.
Enur feat. Natasha – Calabria
Enur – Calabria (music video) (warning: scantily clad ladies)
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My good friends at Betahouse, a coworking space in Boston, asked me to put together a mix for their latest party. I was delighted to do so. My mate Tom Kershaw and I boiled down our fave tracks to a solid set.

I continued in the same vein as the Breeze & Sweat mix from 2006 – a sultry, funky, jazzy, chill to hot mix of tunes.

A few funky ones have debuted on Aurgasm before (Bahamadia, Flevans & Freddie), Kraak And Smaak deliver both the hot Max Sedgley and their own brand-new track, and Boston-natives Soul Clap close with some techno heat.

Mix available here as a 104mb zip

Tracklist:

1. Bahamadia – uknowhowwedo (Ski Remix)
2. Freddie Cruger – Pushing On feat. Linn
3. King Britt – Superstar
4. Beanfield – Re-ac-tion
5. Peace Orchestra – Meister Petz (Beanfield Remix)
6. Mr. Scruff – Donkey Ride
7. Max Sedgley – Devil Inside
8. Barakas – Kes
9. Flevans – 12 Apostles
10. Kraak And Smaak – California Roll
11. Soul Clap – The Giraffe

brazilian broken beat // soul-jazz // dance

There are a lot of things happening in the Balkans’ music scene: in most cases unheard and unknown widely. While there’s an obvious lack of coverage on Eddy Meets Yannah in the blogosphere, the Zagreb-based duo was praised by Gilles Peterson of BBC’s Radio 1 and has remixed musical pieces of such artists as Elisabeth Shepherd and Bobby Caldwell. With Eddy at the decks and Yannah’s vocal and arrangement talents, the two experiment in mixing sweaty broken beats, nu-jazz and soulful house. Unless you listen closely to the lyrics, you might not even recognize “Can’t Hide Love” is a futuristically-retro version of the classic Earth, Wind and Fire track.

Blending energetic fusion and the seductive quality of sound.
Eddy Meets Yannah – Can’t Hide Love
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nu-jazz // lounge // downtempo

By bringing together musicians from around the globe and of varying generations, Germany based Maxim Illion & Kitty the Bill’s Club des Belugas brainchild is both contemporary and classic at the same time. On a luscious, beautiful day, Swedish singer Anna.Luca will croon your fancy, before Brenda Boykin’s California energy gets you swinging the night away. Other guests include Iain Mackenzie from London, Dean Bowman from New York, and Fred Astaire, whose “Puttin’ on the Ritz” gets remixed for their latest album, Swop!

Irresistibly enticing, relaxing and swinging, jazzy hipness.
Club des Belugas – It’s A Beautiful Day
Club des Belugas – It Don’t Mean A Thing
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lounge dance // chill-out

Legendary Serge Gainsbourg’s works have been interpreted, sampled, re-recorded and used as inspiration by countless talented artists. Focusing on the dance floor enjoyment, French producer, musician and DJ, Minimatic a.k.a. Pascal Houpert remixes “Chez Les Yé-Yé’s”, celebrating his fatal love for stylish tunes and retro soul-funk. Reworking the 80′s music, Minimatic’s cover of successful A-ha’s synth-pop hit “Take On Me” is more about finesse: laid-back grooves of the beach and the sunny coast, smooth arrangements, sleazy hints and romance. [via]

Efficiently and excellently produced.
Serge Gainsbourg – Chez Les Yé-Yé’s (Minimatic Remix)
Minimatic – Take On Me (With A Martini)
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