Aussie duo BITROK have come a long way since meeting in the front row of an Australian festival crowd in 2005 and deciding to make music together. They’ve voluntarily been locked away in the studio for a well over a year, writing their first studio album “Smoke & Mirrors” producing tracks in the spirit of deep electro, thumping basslines, and stadium guitar smack-downs – all built around the sort of choruses summer festival anthems are made of.

To get an upfront sample of what to expect, check out the album on their website, http://bitrok.com. Look out for the album coming soon.

The boys have put together a classy one-hour mix featuring some unreleased gems and some classic goodies, and they’ve also sent us a new bootleg featuring Miike Snow and Crookers. Grab it from the widget below.

Stream: Crookers vs Miike Snow – Remedy Search (Bitrok bootleg)

…and check the mix here.

Bitrok’s ‘Technology Lies’ Mix by Bitrok

A Short Film by Cara Stricker and Midnight Juggernauts from Midnight Juggernauts on Vimeo.

“The Crystal Axis” is the MIDNIGHT JUGGERNAUTS second album, their first since Dystopia launched the Australian trio into a vortex of global intrigue. For those who’ve arrived late, like me with this post, Andrew Szekeres, Vincent Vendetta and Daniel Stricker had pursued an organic course through multiple indie EPs, singles and retro-futurist videos before they found themselves hailed as de facto pioneers of a perceived new frontier of indie-dance circa 2007/08. The video at the to showcases all of the above.

For those who prefer things a little less experimental the band has these on offer.

MP3: Midnight Juggernauts – Vital Signs

MP3: Midnight Juggernauts – Vital Signs (Istanbul Kebab Juggernaut mix)

MP3: Midnight Juggernauts – Vital Signs (KIM mix)

MP3: Midnight Juggernauts – Get Connected

MP3: Midnight Juggernauts vs Dilemn – Tombstone (Elite Force revamp)

The band is also touring. Check them out if you can.

7/22/10 Santos – New York, NY
7/23/10 Voyeur – Philadelphia, PA
7/24/10 Brooklyn Bowl – Brooklyn, NY
7/26/10 The Echo – Los Angeles, CA
7/27/10 Cinespace – Los Angeles, CA

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Midnight Juggernauts on twitter

KNIIFEPRRTY

Maybe drop a little coin for this if you dig it. Speaking of digging and being dug, my buddy and fellow Albertan KUMON PLAZA was recently featured on FORKCAST! Yeah boy! It feels like I know Drake or something… Go download the tune Final Boss, and check out this edit I did for an art opening mix CD of his tune Hans Kruger… Nothing too fancy, just shaving off 3 minutes to make it a little more of a pop-tune…

Kumon Plaza – Hans Kruger (Bonnaventure James Art Opening Edit)

For all y’all wanting something with more kick to it, mr. BASSNECTAR sent over a MASSIVE ATTACK bootleg to enjoy the solstice by. I believe Bassnectar played this tune (or a version of it) when I saw him at Shambhala a few years back, but can’t say for sure due to my state of mind at the time…

Bassnectar – Massive Attack bootleg

If you get a chance, go see Massive Attack, very cool show as can be seen by… THIS VIDEO

Since their first release on FINGER LICKIN’ RECORDS in 1999 Lee Rous and Andy Gardner have been slamming dance floors with breaks solid enough to bring an aircraft carrier to a halt in seconds. PLUMP DJs are at it again, this time they’re sharing one of their coveted bootlegs in what seems to be a breaks resurgence – not for them, but for danse music in general.

This one’s deadly. I had the chance to play it out and was flooded with people asking what the track was after the room started to blaze.

MP3: Kelis vs The Beatles vs Plump DJs – The Volcano Coalition

“I decided to embark on a whole new extension of the re-edit idea looking at creating a number of brand new tracks out of components taken from older tunes… proper mash-ups. Some were born out of simple live jams that evolved into finely tuned studio creations, whilst others were ground-up rebuilds where I was effectively writing new pieces of music using samples from other tracks. There was no fixed way of working and no sacred cows that went un-plundered.” [Elite Force]

I seriously need to work on some self-promotion. ha. Don’t we all. THE SHAKE started a weekly night of dancing. LOTEK and I are trying something a bit different with CHECK YR PULSE here in Winnipeg by catering to the origins of electronic dance music. The opening night was a hit but last week I think the frigid temperature got the best of most people.

Anyway, this week we’ve got some great djs. KHEMLAB and CHRIS KOMUS will warm the dancefloor with some techno, minimal, and tech house (or haus if you’re feeling the German roots).

I’m not sure what I’ll play but it might involve something like this bootleg from NUNZI.

MP3: Dennis Ferrer vs. Butch – Hey Hey (Nunzi’s Disco Booty)

The last time METERHEAD sent material this way we were just getting into the swing of summer so this latest package has been received with the glee of a coffee addict who’s been without its joyous flavour for three months. It’s not as if the duo from Los Angeles have been slacking – if you’ve read these pages you would have known that other projects have been keeping them busy.

Among the three remixes is a melancholy version of ACID GIRLS and FRANKMUSIK‘s summer anthem. METERHEAD appropriately muted the bright colours of the original with something a bit dark and brooding which is suitable for the loss of daylight in these northern parts.

MP3: Acid Girls feat Frankmusik – Wake Up (METERHEAD remix)

They also take on WALE and LADY GAGA‘s club tune, keeping the energy high but manipulate it for those who would shy far away from that kind of fodder. You might remember Wale from his version of D.A.N.C.E. which incidentally was chosen by JUSTICE as the best (out of the hundreds) of bootlegs they heard.

MP3: Wale feat Lady Gaga – Chillin (METERHEAD remix)

If I might dare say, none of these tunes would distinctly fall into any of METERHEAD’s previous patterns of production. There’s some familiarity with their work for THE BLACK LIPS, however. It’s partially due to the undertones of electro and grinding synth combined with the hip hop influence from GZA.

MP3: The Black Lips feat GZA – Drop I Hold (METERHEAD remix)

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BONUS
(It’s too bad this never got a proper release.)

MP3: Justice vs Wale – W.A.L.E.D.A.N.C.E.

I don’t know how many times I’ve heard “Ghosts n Stuff” over the past couple weeks. It seems like every time I spark up my iPhone, some version of this tune manages to shake its way into the playlist. Maybe it’s some sort of charmic action for copping out and leaving during DEADMAU5‘ set last week.

Well, here’s one I that’s fresh from Bedford, UK via GASHUPS who blend IAN CAREY‘s “Get Shaky” and well, the smash hit mentioned above into a club smasher everyone will love.

MP3: GASHUPS – Shaky Ghosts (Deadmau5 vs Ian Carey)

Burns has also been extra busy in the studio turning out mixes for Ladyhawke, Frankmusik and Jack Splash feat Missy Elliot with amazing results. I hope to be able share some of them soon for now here’s what I can give you, followed by a review of the show.

MP3: Burns – In My Eyes (His Majesty Andre remix)

MP3: The Toxic Avenger – Toxic is Dead (Burns remix)

Give Burns love from somewhere like beatport.

REPUBLIC is, without a doubt, the best sounding club in this city – another reason this show kept its appeal despite falling on a Tuesday. The early week show didn’t stop hundreds of people from getting their party on, many of whom did it with their jaws clenched and pupils dilated so it became quite clear early on that this night would be a bit bonkers. By the time Burns made his way to the stage the venue had filled up nicely – something I hadn’t seen in a long time.

A little while earlier Burns noticed the opening dj laying down some really heavy material which we both thought was odd for how early it was. We discussed flow and etiquette and came to the same conclusion. For better or worse, djs can and will play anything they want now. While there are still some who plan the direction and track list for the entire set, Burns confessed that at most he would select a track to open with and go into a set with a direction in mind, but nothing was ever concrete. Picking up on this, Burns opened with some housey material that sparkled with a little 80s glitz, playing some of his own tunes and remixes. He kept the dancefloor moving with a dynamic set that flowed from nu disco to indie-dance-whathaveyou, and ended by preparing the crowd for Deadmau5, laying into some heavy thunder. One point to note too – Burns isn’t a laptop dj. He played a flawless set entirely on CDJs.

Before I knew it, Burns was done and sound technicians had moved his gear to make room for Deadmau5. I was ready to go, but stuck around to see what was going to happen.

When Deadmau5 started, the crowd went bananas. He immediately gave them what the wanted to hear but I thought it was a bit odd that he played hit after hit to open things up. He did it well, using Ableton (I think) and a Native Instruments Maschine and a Lemur by Jazz Mutant. His Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger bootleg was the first track I heard by the Canadian so I was happy to hear it as it was intended to be played, loud.

I really wasn’t that into it though so I left. (Plus there’s the fact that I have a demanding day job that needed my full capabilities at 8:00 in the morning that pulled at my conscious.) I heard afterward from a number of people that Deadmau5 kind of blew his load early with the heavier material and progressed into a bit of a techno set. That would have been great to see, although for this old man it wasn’t suitable for a Tuesday night.

MP3: Deadmau5 & MC Flipside vs Kool and the Gang – Jungle Friend (Mark Starr’s Jungle Boogie Beatz Mashup)

MP3: Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger (Deadmau5 edit)

Seriously, if you’re in London this weekend, get to this party! By grabbing your tickets here, you’ll save yourself £12, so don’t hesitate. (Sorry, discount tickets are sold out.) All four stages look pretty sick – so the only downside to this would be deciding who to watch. Taking place at Clapham Common on Sunday 30th August (no work Monday!), Get Loaded in the Park is your one-stop festival shop, right in the heart of London. No 1 hour treks to the site, no mud, no camping, no re-mortgage plans needed to finance your fun… and just about every electronic genre is covered across 4 stages in the glorious sunshine! (Good weather not guaranteed.)

MP3: Felix da Housecat – We All Wanna Be Prince

MP3: Sneaky Sound System – I Love It (Fred Falke remix)

MP3: Freeland – Under Control

MP3: Pendulum – Propane Nightmare (VIP mix)

MP3: MSTRKRFT – Bounce (lightsoverLA remix)