Usher - Climax (prod. Diplo) (Paper Diamond Remix)

I don't normally share mainstream music, but I do when some of my favorite artists - and other talented downtempo producers - do remixes of whats popular. Here's an example: Paper Diamond (on Pretty Lights Music) remixes Usher's Climax. I love Paper Diamond's original work and his remixes are always very steady and funky, and this remix is a deceptively basic, chilled out head nodder. Definitely something for any electronic music DJ or fan to add to their library.

Monday Mix 1: Junior X - Temple of Gnosis Dub Mix

Today kicks off a new feature at Downbeatscape - the Monday Mix! Every Monday, I will post a mix that I've been listening to and loving over the weekend, to make sure it's a worthy mix for you. That means you'll be getting 52 amazing DJ sets via Downbeatscape every year!

To kick it off, I was immersed in and inspired by the Temple of Gnosis Dub Mix by Junior X - a live recording of his hypnotic trip into dub and Goa-flavored downtempo at the Aurora Festival on Samothraki Island in Greece. Junior X is Greek and plays the outdoor European festival circuit. His next gig is the Tree of Life festival in Turkey in just three days.

OHM Dedication Series #3: Ahu presents Blossom Dearie

Ahu presents Blossom Dearie is an endearing, funny, relaxing and classic jazz mini-mix for a Sunday of chilling and recovering from whatever you got yourself into Saturday night. This mix is by Ahu, a Turkish singer on OHM who has worked with Flying Lotus and other legends in progressive and downtempo music. Her mix honors Blossom Dearie - an American jazz singer with an incredible voice and great sense of humor, which is a major part of her songwriting, live jazz and bebop performances. She was a staple in the New York supper club scene in the 60s and 70s, and this mix makes me want to travel back in time, drink Manhattans and see her live.

Most of what I blog about has a strong electronic component, but I love to share other classic downtempo sounds that have been an inspiration for today's music and lately its come in the form of jazz. This mix is the 3rd in OHM's Dedication Series, where OHM Label's artists and DJs share their love of artists that have inspired them.

DJ Chicken George & J Boogie - Jazztronic Boogie Mixtape

DJ Chicken George (the Austin-based DJ and master curator of all sounds jazztronica) and J Boogie (the San Francisco-based downtempo and boogie fusion producer and DJ) come together to commemorate their summer tour with this great mixtape collaboration. These two mainstays in downtempo have crafted a great mix of funk, soul and jazztronica sounds. Chicken George curates the massively popular "Peddlin Jazztronica" podcast and J Boogie is a featured OM Records artist. Check out more J Boogie and DJ Chicken George.



And if you're in Canada, please see them live!

Canadian Summer tour:
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6.21.12 | 9One9 | Victoria
http://on.fb.me/MPhVFS

6.22.12 | Tall Tree Festival | Port Renfrew
http://talltreemusicfestival.com

6.23.12 | Fortune Sound | Vancouver B.C.
http://www.fortunesoundclub.com

6.24.12 | Hi Fi Club | Calgary
http://www.hificlub.ca

The New Law - Jiri

The New Law are back with an incredible glitch hop single that, in my ears, sounds like a continuing journey of the unnamed hero/outlaw from their last three albums into a Middle Eastern or old Eastern European underworld. "Jiri" is an ethnically-inspired song created entirely from samples and, according to The New Law, was inspired "by a street musician in Prague named Jiri Wehle. He plays the hurdy gurdy and sings epic Czech folk songs." The samples originate from the following songs: Jiri Wehle-"Pisen pro Barsinu", 4 Strings-"Take Me Away" and Styx-"Mr. Roboto". Stream & download the song here:

Show Review, Pics & Video: Ghostly International artist Shigeto live in NYC (Le Poisson Rouge, June 10, 2012)

I saw a side of Shigeto that I didn't quite know existed at Le Poisson Rouge in NYC. He was trained in jazz at the New School in New York and his studio work has an ambient, jazztronica vibe. But his remixes and original samples lately have been layered with ruptured electronic music that seem influenced by other Ghostly International artists like Mux Mool and Com Truise. His foray into other sounds was awesome live, and I was able to snap some photos and take a short video of his performance. The last 30 seconds of the video is a glimpse into Shigeto's new world, of deep broken beat electronic music that blew my mind. Definitely see Shigeto live (here's his tour schedule), listen to his tracks and check out the video and pics from his performance below:

Interview w/ Friendly Intentions, remix artists behind Gotye - Somebody That I Used To Know ( Friendly Intentions Chill Remix)

Friendly Intentions is a remix and producer duo in Toronto, Canada. They shared their latest remix - Gotye - Somebody That I Used to Know (Friendly Intentions Chill Remix) - a fresh downtempo version of a great but arguably overplayed song. This track pushed me to check out more of their remixes and original productions that range from chilled dubstep to chillwave to progressive house. One theme I noticed in their work is they apply the best elements of a genre without over-use, which can be a risk especially with dubstep these days. Another theme I enjoy is how they adjust tempo and rhythm through songs. This is a nuanced and often underused production tactic that really keeps people listening. Check out an interview with Friendly Intentions below and listen to a selection of their work (and follow them on Twitter!):





Downbeatscape: What does "downtempo" mean to you and how does your style of music fit in?

Friendly Intentions: This is an interesting question...I'm just going to throw at you what I view as downtempo. Generally, the rate at which the snare drum hits dictates the tempo. So, music that's below 80 bpm is downtempo. Of course this can encompass an enormous variety of music, each with difference energy and atmosphere. The shuffle of the drums is very important to the general atmosphere and relaxed feel of a song. The more irregular the shuffle on the drums and percussion creates more of a lagging and "down" feel. For example, dubstep has that really slow headbobbing vibe. (Let's assume dubstep is 70 bpm due to the half step drum pattern).

DBS: How do you select a song to remix, and what is your approach to remixing?

FI: When choosing a song, we pick those that have an interesting base, yet have the potential to be improved. For example, Gotye - Somebody I Used to Know has a great vocal line, but we felt the instrumental was lacking. We added our own personal twist and are very happy with the result. So far the remix has been received better than expected.

DBS: Your work ranges from chillwave to dubstep to prog house. How has this range developed?

FI: Our foray in electronic music has been an exciting journey, learning about the intricacies of sound design and sound itself. Every time we set out to create a piece from a genre we've never worked with, it's full of discovery. Each and every genre has specific elements and challenges that are often unique to it. Our goal is to push the boundary of sound design, yet keep our songs aurally pleasing. Extending our musical vocabulary allows us to borrow elements and techniques of other genres and incorporate them in our production giving a more original, less cookie cutter sound. Look forward to some new downright dirty electro and drum and bass songs in the works.

DBS: As a duo, how do you work together to create music? Do you each have "specialties" or roles?

FI: Individually, we are good at creating parts of songs, but struggle to finish complete ideas. However, when working together in our small home studio, we rarely run into creativity problems. We can sit through hours and get plenty of work completed. We have been friends for many years before we even made music together, so our chemistry is great. We have similar mindsets and personalities, which helps workflow tremendously.

DBS: How is the Toronto music scene compared to others you have experienced around the world?

FI: The Toronto music scene is amazing. We travel frequently for our jobs and its hard to find a great city like Toronto in music. There are music events for even the most obscure sub genres almost weekly. Perhaps that's why we are not genre bound, but rather set out to make whatever seems to work at that point in time.

Mister Rogers Remixed | Garden of Your Mind | PBS Digital Studios - in downtempo fashion

I had to post this - it's going around the internet and it is absolutely beautiful. A wonderful tribute to Mr. Rogers with an incredibly innocent, pure and spirited message that we must never forget. Not to mention the song is quite good and it's actually in the downtempo vibe that I love to share. So please, enjoy this if you haven't seen it already and let it take you back to a time where the garden of your mind did blossom incredible things, and may we all allow ourselves to tender that garden for our lifetimes.