Hot on the heels of a brilliant rework for The Good Natured, it looks like Crystal Fighters have picked up the phone and found their calling as remix connoisseurs. Their latest is a tribal balearic rework of Alex Winston's "Velvet Elvis", previously remixed to bits by RAC in another seriously winning effort. The jubilant London five piece uproot the rustic leftfield pop of the original and ship it off to some faraway tropics to get some color, blowing over the vocals with just the right amount of dicey echoes and hums while going hammer on the wind chimes and shakers throughout. And by the time the synths wash over the chorus and fall back into the rhythm of the second verse, you half expect to taste that salty seaside air and feel the sand between your toes. Good stuff, this.
When you think of sprightly indie pop gems, Brussels usually doesn't rush to mind as an A&R goldmine. But all that's in the past. After close to two years of recording and mastering, Great Mountain Fire have dropped their debut album and with it, the shiniest debut single we've heard in a minute in "Late Lights". Like a plot device, the unassuming whistle flutters innocently about, distracting you from an epic bassline that you're about to get real familiar with over the next three minutes. Without hesitation, Great Mountain Fire let loose with a vocal attack from frontman Thomas de Hemptinne that quickly brings to mind that of another Thomas of the same native tongue. His delivery accents the track with an ethereal serenade that often breaks character to go falsetto over masterful instrumentation that, with each listen, only further reminds us of It's Never Been Like That-era Phoenix.
As soon as the second verse and pre-chorus wraps and warms you up, respectively, the chorus unfurls its magnificent wings and takes off, armed to the teeth with a choppy guitar riff and a conniving, unrelenting bassline. Then it's that charming flute whistle that returns to the scene like a welcome pick-me-up and you're airborne, with each passing line delivered like a match striking over and over until, at last, it catches on and the band lives up to their name. Great Mountain FUEGO.
MP3: "Late Lights" - Great Mountain Fire [exclusive]
So there's a new thing. It's called Neon Gold TV, and it'll be coming your way next month as the latest expansion of our lil' empire with a launch party popping off September 28th at Tammany Hall, because the only thing we love more than new ventures is the launch parties that accompany them. Plus, with next month's Popshop not arriving until CMJ week in mid-October (well worth the wait though, TRUST), throwing you another amazing show to tide you over in the meantime was the least we could do.
We love music videos more than life itself, so we've started to commission a few of our own as part of a new series of Neon Gold TV sessions that we've been working on over the past few months. And what better way to celebrate than with a launch party starring Reptar, the subjects of our first ever NGTV session in their first ever NYC headline play. They'll be coming straight over from Terminal 5 after their early set opening for Foster The People to do it even bigger in the headline slot at Tammany, with support coming from our beloved Savoir Adore and DJ B-Roc of The Knocks on the ones and twos all night long. And of course it wouldn't be a Neon Gold party without an open bar deal, so get down early to take advantage of complimentary vodka from 9pm-10pm.
It's all going down Wednesday, September 28th at Tammany Hall, with $5 advance tickets now on sale HERE. Or you could hold out for $10 tickets on the door, but with a bill like this and an advance sale price like that tickets are bound to go fast. Our last launch party with Grouplove in June was a sell out and one of the most special shows we've ever put on, and this one has all the makings of another epic so run, don't walk, over to NeonGold.tv and cop your tickets before they're all gone.
We still don't know who or what they are exactly, but with each passing day we find ourselves falling more and more head over heels for Ms Mr's mysterious pop charms. Pardon our French, but there's a certain je ne sais quois about their wholeheartedly nostalgic pop-noir that's just fucking incredible. Take this new video for "Ash Tree Lane", edited by the visually gifted David Dean Burkhart, for example. With a brilliant cinematic intro, it soon plunges headfirst into an Alice In Wonderland rabbit hole before taking off on a journey into the heart of the American dream. Again, it's the mystery girl's vocals that effortlessly tug at your heartstrings, while taking you by the hand and guiding you through a slideshow of familiar images of American life, so nostalgic they feel like a far-off fairytale.
The constantly moving visuals are perfectly suited for the high-hat heavy beat and ominous, weighted keys that howl beneath the song's surface and steadily build up like Jenga bricks before coming crashing down in the chorus like a synthwave attack. It's a massive drop for a massive tune, and we're more than excited to share the mp3 with you below, along with the exclusive premier of the video above. Have at it.
It's been amazing how quickly Foster The People have gone from next big thing to biggest new band in the world, and equally amazing how many remixes they've picked up along the way. We've heard and acknowledged the universal collective groan whenever a new "Pumped Up Kicks" mix is pumped and dumped - mainly because the Captain Cuts effort is impossible to top right? - so to avoid any more "Pumped Up" remix fatigue, we've got something completely different for y'all.
Enter Lenno, the 16-year old envoy for Finland's underexposed club scene. From start to finnish, Lenno blows the lid off "Helena Beat" with an entourage of lush key arrangements, nu-disco beats, and ziplining electronic flourishes. The chorus is still intact alright, with a growing synth growl that ultimately leads to a drop that literally lasts for two minutes of bliss. Whoever decided to include Lenno in the official Foster remix bundle on Spotify clearly made a great Neon Gold-approved life choice. The stream's been circulating the blogs for a minute now, but the powers that be have given us the go ahead to share the HQ mp3 as an exclusive download below. Move over Madeon, Lenno is the new kid on the blog.
As a band from the heart of hurricane-prone south Florida, ANR have put their homegrown survival instinct to use in the force majeure video for our latest release, "It's Around You", which was fittingly conceptualized during Hurricane Irene. This cinematic work of art from the brilliant minds of Jillian Meyer and Lucas Leyva contextualizes the various layers of the track by juxtaposing piercing images of frantic swimmers with human cyclones and interpretative dancers. The visual accompaniment successfully makes natural disasters seem more human and bodily movements more fluid in the interlocking ebb and flow of life.
Meyer and Leyva (of Miami's prolific Borscht collective) are also responsible for the hauntingly spot-on music video for ANR's "Big Problem", which launched ANR into the national consciousness earlier this year. While the original song was already an apocalyptic pop gem in its own right, the acoustic version - an extra from the deluxe edition of ANR's masterful Stay Kids LP - is a lush orchestral masterstroke, complete with an elegiac string section that softly hums over the unthreatening strums-and-drums combo. It's an incredible change of pace that's perfect for all those lazy mornings following long nights, and we've got an exclusive premiere of this beautifully raw reimagining for your listening pleasure below.
We've talked up St. Lucia quite a bit ever since we first laid ears on "The Old House Is Gone" at the onset of the summer sun, and now their impeccable debut EP looks set to keep the fire burning well into autumn. Now that summer's unwittingly winding down, HeavyRoc's resident partystarters The Knocks have gone and remixed "Old House" into a segue banger that immediately transports you back to the endless summers of young love and all night beach parties for those not quite ready to let go just yet.
On what's possibly their finest remix to date, B-Roc and JPatt have painted a pretty trippy picture of Ibiza on Saturn, where everyday you party like you're ringing in a new year. They beef up the original arpeggio with some meaty bass and stacks on stacks of balearic synths, transforming St. Lucia's single version from blissed-out summer staple to club-ready floorfiller. St. Lucia may have laid down the architectural foundation, but The Knocks are the swagged out interior designers that arrive on the scene to upgrade this old house to full on crib status.
Our love for Grouplove truly knows no bounds, and we've had their debut full length Never Trust A Happy Song (released TODAY) stuck on repeat on the office stereo since they sent it through earlier this summer. Now, as a proper salute to the finest group of musicians on the left coast, we're throwing their official album release party Wednesday night after the band headline their biggest NYC play to date at Bowery Ballroom. Immediately after the show's conclusion, we'll be taking things back to our second home at Tammany Hall around the corner to indulge in a well-deserved celebration for the ages, complete with DJ sets from Xaphoon Jones, Captain Cuts and Grouplove themselves.
Furthermore, we'll also have the live debut of a brand new band by the name of Stay Gold, an oven fresh project from Kris Menace and Max Cooke, former mastermind behind the UK's late great GoodBooks and essential fixture in Ellie Goulding's touring band. Joining him on live drums will be everyone's favorite beatsmith, Xaphoon "You Crazy" Jones, before he swaps the sticks for the decks to close out the night on the ones and twos. And to top it all off, it's completely FREE. All you have to do is show up with your rageface on and a government issued ID saying you're 21+.
And in case all that wasn't exciting enough, to ring in the occasion we've got another very special exclusive from Xaphoon for you. Many of you may remember the "Colours" remix of Grouplove we premiered in June, but in an effort to come up with "something to scare people at festivals with", he went back into the lab and created a whole new beast of a bootleg edit "scrounged from the chasm-like depths of [his] hard drives". The result is the brand new MEGA EDIT of the mix that he's been tearing crowds in half with all summer long, complete with earth-shattering new bass surges in the chorus, dancehall snares and new vocal effects. Harder. Better. Monster. Stronger.
In case you didn't already know, in the United States of Neon Gold Captain Cuts are pretty much a household name and house party staple. Their newest offering is a daring remix of Young The Giant's "Apartment", which serves as yet another prime example of their production brilliance. Forget what you heard, because what was once a headstrong indie rock anthem is given a space age facelift and it's a ravishing new look for the California rock outfit.
As synth ships set sail across an ocean of noise, Sameer Gadhia's impassioned vocals cut in and leave a trail of emotion in their wake as the beat gradually starts to pick up steam. The verses are relatively straightforward at first, before it all gets sucked into Captain Cuts' electronic whirlpool on the chorus and the song comes to life. But it's merely a hint at what's to drop, as the last minute of looped vocals and self-affirming chord progressions make it feel like you're truly on the ride of your life. You can cop an exclusive download of the remix below, and keep an eye out for a full remix EP from Young The Giant - featuring the likes of Two Door, Tokyo Police Club and more - dropping on their Facebook page next week.
Hot on the heels of a brilliant rework for The Good Natured, it looks like Crystal Fighters have picked up the phone and found their calling as remix connoisseurs. Their latest is a tribal balearic rework of Alex Winston's "Velvet Elvis", previously remixed to bits by RAC in another seriously winning effort. The jubilant London five piece uproot the rustic leftfield pop of the original and ship it off to some faraway tropics to get some color, blowing over the vocals with just the right amount of dicey echoes and hums while going hammer on the wind chimes and shakers throughout. And by the time the synths wash over the chorus and fall back into the rhythm of the second verse, you half expect to taste that salty seaside air and feel the sand between your toes. Good stuff, this.
