Saturday, April 10, 2010

When Electronica Remixes Happen to Popular Songs

Sometimes, a popular song on the radio can be made better with a great remix. So is the case when some DJs try their hand at remixing popular songs. Some songs aren't even remotely close to what you'd hear at a dance music party or whatever. The thing is, some electronica remixes (regardless of its sub-genre) of popular songs offer a new character to the original versions. Remixes often come from people like Todd Terry or Hex Hector (among others). Whether the remix is a light dance remix or the most hardcore trance remix, various songs are given new life and are made better (or sometimes worse) with an electronica remix of that song. I will demonstrate in the next section. Please enjoy my blog entry here.

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--- Pop Meets Electronica Remixes: Classics ---
Through YouTube, I will share with you some songs based on their original version followed by remixes of each song. You be the judge as to whether the remix is better than the original song. I'll try to give you a video of the original song followed by a hand-picked remix of the song. I won't kid you. I've personally pick good remixes of songs I've heard before. The point of this section is to show you what happens when a popular song has a great electronica (regardless of sub-genre) remix. Having said this, have a look at the songs and videos I've provided (that I can get a hold of on YouTube, anyways). I'll begin with some '90 classics.


Deborah Cox - Nobody's Supposed to Be Here.
This is a good R&B song, but it's made better through a good remix. The song has somewhat of a gospel feel to it during the chorus. The dance remix Hear for yourself:

(original of "Nobody's Supposed to Be Here" by Deborah Cox)


(electronica remix - dance remix)


Tamia - "Stranger In My House."
Tamai has a beautiful voice. This classic of hers has an awesome remix. Maybe you'll agree with me when you see these videos:

(original of "Stranger in my House" by Tamia)


^ (electronica mix - Thunderpuss club edit)



Toni Braxton - Unbreak My Heart.
I am a BIG Toni Braxton fan. While "Unbreak My Heart" isn't one of my absolute favorites, it is a great song to listen to. The dance remix by Hex Hector makes this song really come alive.

(original of "Unbreak my Heart" by Toni Braxton)


(electronica remix - Soul Hex Anthem Vocal)


Everything But the Girl - Missing
Before I got to hear the original song, I've heard Todd Terry's remix of this song quite often. That remix is one of my all-time favorite '90s dance songs. Hear the difference between the original and Todd Terry's masterpiece:

(original of "Missing" by Everything But the Girl)


(electronica mix - Todd Terry mix)


Aretha Franklin - "A Deeper Love."
I never heard this song before until getting one of those ThriveMix CD packs. "A Deeper Love" was part of the soundtrack to Sister Act 2. This song was remixed by C&C Music Factory. Here is the original version followed by C&C Music Factory's remake.

(original - "A Deeper Love" by Aretha Franklin)


(electronica mix - C & C Music Factory mix)


Whitney Houston - "It's Not Right, But It's Ok."
More like the Deborah Cox and Tamia songs, here is another good mix of an R&B-type song. I've heard the original a few times, but I've heard the remix not too many times.

(original to "It's Not Right, But It's Ok" by Whitney Houston)


^ (electronica mix - Thunderpuss Remix)


Olive - "You're Not Alone."
I've remembered hearing the remix to this song a lot of times until hearing the original. This is an original dance track just made better with a good mix.

(original to "You're Not Alone" by Olive)


(electronica remix - Dmproject Trance Remix)


Sneaker Pimps - "Spin Spin Sugar."
Another 90s classic, I've heard the remix MANY more times than the original. The remix is epic for most of us in electronica culture.

(original to "Spin Spin Sugar" by Sneaker Pimps)


(electronica remix - Armand's Dark Garage Remix)


That's only a bit of '90s remakes. Now let's go a bit further.



--- Pop Meets Electronica Remixes: Others ---
The ones above are classic remixes of awesome songs. This one pertains to many other electronica remixes and remakes of classic songs.

Jennifer Lopez - "Waiting for Tonight."
In a song exciting enough to ring in ANY new year, "Waiting for Tonight" is one of my other favorite '90s songs of any genre. There was even a little play on the whole Y2K deal. Y2K was the fear that all of the world's electronics would not function anymore once January 1, 2000 rolled around. There wasn't really a remix to this song that I liked the most, so I picked one that you may probably like more.

(Original to "Waiting for Tonight" by Jennifer Lopez)


(electronica mix - Hex Hector Remix)


Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me.
Maybe the hottest song from "Fearless," Taylor Swift had people rocking to this song as Taylor did nothing but pick up award after award for Fearless. I'm not a country music person at all, though I admit to being a Taylor Swift fan. The country version is first followed by the most epic remix of Taylor's hit song I've ever heard. Other good songs from "Fearless" that would make good dance remixes include "Love Story" (which DJ Igor also remixed), "Forever and Always," and "White Horse."

(original of "You Belong With Me" by Taylor Swift)


(electronica remix - DJ Igor's Techno Hard Dance Mix)



Kings of Leon - "Use Somebody."
Here is a song that I liked from last year or two. I always figured this song would make a great remix if someone did it just right.

(original of "Use Somebody" by Kings of Leon)


(electronica remix - CHEW FU Festival Mix)


Jay Sean - "Down."
Jay Sean is an artist I've started to respect since hearing "Down." The respect continued with "Do You Remember?" This song was one of those other songs that would sound awesome with a good remix. Maybe not my favorite remix, but Jason Nevins supplied the remix.

(original version of "Down" by Jay Sean)


(electronica mix - Jason Nevins Mix)


Miley Cyrus - Party in the U.S.A.
Would you give me a negative reaction if I told you that I secretly like this song? Reason I ask is... because I do. Not in love with it, but it catches on. I'll only link to the original video followed by the remix.

(original to "Party in the U.S.A." by Miley Cyrus)


^ (electronica mix - Club Remix) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJxrjVOPMuI





The moral of this story is... good songs can be made better with a hot electronica remix of some kind. Doesn't matter if it's a dance remix, a trance remix, drum 'n bass remix, or anything like that. Some songs just sound worlds better with a great remix. It takes the right kind of remix to make a song much better than its original form.

I hope you enjoyed this blog entry. I had to make these necessary changes to make this blog entry run faster on your computer. Thank you for reading!

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