James Murphy has resurrected “The DFA” remix moniker for an unexpected mix of a Justin Timberlake hit from 2006.  Getting rid of the signature skittering Timbaland production and TI vocals, the remix goes with a backing track that fits more in line with what fans of LCD Soundsystem and DFA expect from the label.  The bassline is absolutely killer and the disco sound suits the track perfectly.  In their tweet about the track DFA Records referred to it as part of Throwback Fridays.  I think we are all hoping this will not be the last remix in that series.

Holy Ghost! has been carefully teasing their upcoming album for a month now.  The only full track from the record we’ve heard is the 8-minute epic “Dumb Disco Ideas”.  Now we have the second full track from Dynamics and it was worth the wait.  The first half of “Okay” almost sounds like a straight reincarnation of the NYC duo’s boss’s “I Can Change”, but if you’re going to copy someone LCD Soundsystem is archetype to follow.  The guys really bring their synthpop sound into the mix around the 3:30 mark as synths and “Oh’s” swell filling all the gaps left by the sparse arrangement.  This has us really looking forward to the full length release due out September 10th on DFA Records.

Missed in 2012

Kindness’s “House” was one of those tracks that I fell in love with immediately.  It easily ranks as one of my favorite pop songs, ever.  Ended up being one of those situations where I waited too long to post it and soon it I’d gone too far.  Well now I can tell you “House” has that simplistic feel that might take actual musical genius to write.  It ranks right up there with LCD Soundsystem’s “All My Friends” as the most unassuming greatest song.  The track was part of World, You Need a Change of Mind which could have easily sat on the DFA Records shelf but was rather released this past year on the excellent Terrible Records.  Enjoy!

Kindness – “House”

Let’s be honest first off, Converse has done the “3 artists, 1 song” collaboration several times, and every time the outcome is forgettable at best, if not just bad.  I guess it’s time to forgive them because after all the missteps they managed to wrangle three of the coolest artists in the music biz into one studio.  Seriously, there might not be a more cool–and credible–combo than this.  Not only is the song good, but you can you can actually hear the individual inputs on “Do Ya Thing” .  The music sounds exactly equal parts LCD Soundsystem and Gorillaz, while the quirky chorus must be directly ripped from a Love Below outtake–that is until Mr. 3000 decides to absolutely unleash on the track leaving everyone with the insatiable desire for new Outkast.  If you haven’t heard it yet, give it a go.

Gorillaz, James Murphy, Andre 3000 – “Do Ya Thing”

This may be Gunnar Bjerk’s debut single but he is hardly a beginner.  Bjerk moved from Arizona to New York with hopes of becoming a studio engineer.  Landing a job at DFA he’s spent the past few years helping sculpt some great records under indie icon James Murphy (LCD Soundsystem).  Fortunately for us he found himself the recorded in his spare time.  ”Back Then” is starry-eyed song reminiscent of a time when love was a little simpler.  The backing track “Stay” is an excellent counter written while dealing with the struggle of a long distance relationship.  Head HERE to DFA Records to buy one of the 500 10″ vinyls.

Gunnar Bjerk – “Back Then”

Gunnar Bjerk – “Stay”

In honor of Record Day this past Saturday, Franz Ferdinand released a 12″ of covers by a mix of artists.  According to Franz themsleves it is an “EP of covers of [their] songs by people whose music [they] love”.  Recently deceased LCD Soundsystem contributed this cover of 2009′s “Live Alone”.  In usual fashion James Murphy and crew made the track feel original by taking it and making it their own.  The Covers EP will be released May 2nd, see the tracklist after the jump.

LCD Soundsystem – “Live Alone (Franz Ferdinand Cover)”

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New Artist, Fav Tracks

Can you go wrong with influences like Justice, LCD Soundsystem, and Daft Punk?  If you ask The Pass, you’d get a resounding NO, with some poppy synth in the background.  Setting up shop in Louisville, KY with sonaBLAST! records, The Pass have already wowed us this year with their Colors EP.  The catchy dance hit “Crosswalk Stereo” left us hungry for more.  They’ve delivered.

“Trap of Mirrors” is the brand new single from Burst, the debut full-length album due out this fall, and it doesn’t disappoint.  We can’t wait for more.

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Download Trap of Mirrors MP3

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Download Crosswalk Stereo MP3

Purchase and listen to the rest of The Pass at their bandcamp site.

Show Review

Your friends here at slapthebass were able to break away from their demanding social schedules to attend the 2010 Pitchfork Music Festival.  Held annually in Chicago’s Union Park, Pitchfork is known for consistently bringing stellar artists of all genres.  Due to overlapping schedules of so many great acts in a short three day timeframe, decisions had to be made.  Here is what we saw.

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