Stereocool - Simple (ft. Ace)

Funky and bassy and I love the bright synth pads this song.

Apparat Organ Quartet - 123 Forever (Robotaki Remix)

Leave it to a Montrealer to take a good song and make it better. I feel warm and nostalgic inside.

Tesla55 - Gets You Down (Hit and Run)

Love this new disco with a funky 80s feel

Update: I won a Midi Fighter 3D!!!!

Wow, I'm blown away! For the second time, I won a free Midi Fighter! Only this time, it's the crazy awesome Midi Fighter 3D. It's a brand new arcade button-based, motion-sensitive midi controller from DJTechTools.com.  I came in second place, but in a last minute move of generosity, DJTT decided to award four Midi Fighters in the contest. FUCK YES!!!!!

They launched this contest to win one of the first Midi Fighter 3Ds. I had to use their set of sounds in the form of an Ableton Live Pack and create a controllerism routine under two minutes in length. Their sounds were mostly oriented towards hip hop, dubstep and drum and bass.

Here's my cue point juggling routine from 2010 that won me my first Midi Fighter.

Miami Nights 1984 - Ocean Drive

 I love the Dreamwave genre and how those artists create their own music videos by setting songs to the same 80s films and anime that inspire the retrofuturistic style of music.

Miami Nights 1984 -- a band from Victoria, BC -- released their second album "Turbulence" on Saturday and posted this video just a few days ago. It's their song Ocean Drive set to the 1983 anime film Golgo 13 The Professional. Here's how their label describes the album:

Spanning 12 tracks, Turbulence builds upon the synth-pop charms and synthesizer solos from Miami’s first album with more character: orchestra stabs, percussive rushes, slow motion bends and epic interludes distinguish the album. So does the album’s more intense moments which promote the Outrun electro sound we have championed for many years.

Sounds pretty awesome to me! If you like it, the album's available on their Bandcamp site, iTunes and Amazon (coming soon).

The Midi Fighter in 3D

This is a really cool new midi controller. The Midi Fighter 3D is a better looking Midi Fighter that allows you to control additional parameters by tilting the device or rotating it. So you could turn on a bitcrushing effect by pressing one button, then tilt the Midi Fighter sideways and the effect would get more intense. Or whatever! You can set the parameters or use the included mapping.

Unlike in the video, you don't have to go swinging the thing around to make it work. You can just casually tilt it off your table, and the feet are curled to make that easier.  He uses a simple electro house song to demonstrate the Midi Fighter 3D, but I can imagine all sorts of possibilities with a whole range of music.

Plus it just looks so damn cool. There's something about LEDs and arcade buttons. The MF3D goes on sale in April for $249.

Over the past three years, I've been watching DJ TechTools grow up into a real consumer electronics company. This device got them more attention than ever from the tech press. Here are some short writeups.

Synthtopia: DJ TechTools Introduces MIDI Fighter 3D, ‘The Most Expressive Compact Controller On The Market’
CNET: MIDI Fighter 3D, the BFF for ADD DJs
Engadget: Midi Fighter 3D has arcade buttons and motion control, still can't throw fireballs
The Verge: MIDI Fighter 3D brings motion controls to DJing

Dual Citizen - Club Action mix

I took this picture at a Yo Majesty show in Austin a while ago. Yo Majesty will tell you all about the club action. They appear early in this mix of 80s electro, club rap, disco house, and other assorted electronic dance music I've been listening to lately. You can grab the mp3 from the Soundcloud embed below. Track listing:
Russell Dabney - In the Middle of the Night (Instrumental)
Yo Majesty - Club Action (Dual Citizen acapella)
Akasha - Thunder in Your Love (Instrumental)
Lil Kim - Crush on You (Dual Citizen acapella)
Louis La Roche - F.U.B.A.R.
Britney Spears - Radar (Dual Citizen acapella)
Shook - Hold Tight
Penguin Prison - Don't Fuck With My Money (Penguin Prison Club Mix)
Moon Boots - Off My Mind
Bernban - Midas Touch the Sky (Midnight Star vs. Kanye West)
Theophilus London - Girls Girls $
Break Machine - Break Dance Party (Dual Citizen edit)
Justice - Helix Yacht - Psychic City (Classixx Remix)
Goldroom - City Girls Sander Kleinenberg - The Healer (Shazam remix)
Dual Citizen - You Got Me Feeling Emotions
Fred Everything & 20for7 - Friday (Crazy P remix)
NWA feat. Snoop Dogg - Chin Check (Dual Citizen acapella)
Maximum Balloon feat. Theophilus London - Groove Me
Lorenz Rhode - Back
Treasure Fingers - Rooftop Revival
Moulinex - Lover in Me
Quakers and Mormons - New York Town (Lenno remix)
Robotaki - Visual Dreams (Instrumental)
Madeon - For You Miami Horror - Holidays (Lenno and Jesse Oliver remix)
Mitzi - All I Heard Junior Boys - A Truly Happy Ending (Keljet remix)
MSTRKRFT - Bounce (LA Riots Unreleased remix)
George Duke - Brazilian Love Affair (Zimmer edit)

Will Nile Rodgers help Daft Punk bounce back?

Daft Punk's "Discovery" is one of those albums I would bring with me if I were trapped on a desert island. The songs created an imaginary futuristic land that I think about all the time. The record was so undeniably influential, and it got a whole lot of people interested in electronic dance music.

Lately, however, Daft Punk's music has not lived up to it's reputation, especially the lackluster Tron: Legacy soundtrack. The hooks weren't there. The structure was weak. I was very disappointed by that album, to say the least. Yeah, yeah it's a movie soundtrack. Whatever, it fell flat.

Now there's fresh hope! Legendary producer Nile Rodgers of the disco band Chic is supposedly working with Daft Punk, at least according to this interview in Houston Culturemap.

"Those guys are great,” Rodgers said. “They're coming to my apartment on Monday and we’re going to talk about making a new record together."

Holy shit! I really hope so! Rodgers has exactly what Daft Punk has been lacking these days: the ability to create a catchy song people want to listen to again and again. The ability to get people out onto the dancefloor.

Rodgers has produced a shit load of albums, including Madonna's "Like a Virgin", David Bowie's "Let's Dance" and records by Duran Duran, Grace Jones and Diana Ross. Hopefully he his magic can propel Daft Punk back to the heights they haven't seen since Alive 2007.

Dual Citizen - You Got Me Feeling Emotions

Happy New Year! Here's a new song from the Dual Citizen laboratories. Special thanks to Mariah.
   Dual Citizen - You Got Me Feeling Emotions

>>> DOWNLOAD <<<

Magic Machines - Hey Mister

Who doesn't love a good animated gif? This music video, created to promote Los Angeles-based Magic Machines new song Hey Mister, is made entirely from animated gifs! It's pretty rad.

Destiny's Child - Say My Name (Dual Citizen remix)

I rewrote the music to this song to give it more of an indie dance feel, and pitched the vocals lower to make it sound a bit creepier. Hope you like! Download it through the SoundCloud player below or grab it here.

Destiny's Child - Say My Name (Dual Citizen remix) by dualcitizen

Grum - Through The Night [VIDEO]

Happy fucking Friday friends!

I gotta hand it to Grum. He releases entertaining music videos, even if they are sometimes mildly disturbing. He played a couple blocks from our home in May, but we had to miss it because it was super late on a Sunday night and we had to get up early the next day to like, you know, work?

Anyway, here's a touching cop buddy themed video for his song Through The Night. Not exactly what I pictured when I first heard the song, but it totally works. (I've already got cop buddies on the mind in anticipation of Will Ferrell's new movie.) [UPDATE: Will Farrell's movie sucked.]

Check it out!



Here's a mashup I made in May of Grum + Durrough I called Wired To This Feeling.