Five Fire February Finds

Last night was lit, partying with the FUXWITHIT fam to celebrate their fourth anniversary, and while I recover today I'm turning to a handful of tracks I discovered this first week or so of February. From personal favourites (Maddmon, LigOne and Jessie Ware) to new names (Opiuo, Zilverstep, and Mist), there's a solid mix of funk and fire. Stream them below and get the first two for free download.The Mist/Jessie Ware track is only available on Soundcloud GO, but can be streamed via Spotify here.

Top 100 Tracks of 2017: 100-76

Starting today, through Friday, I'll be revealing my list of the "Top 100 Tracks of 2017." The following is my disclaimer, as I feel it important to preface this kind of list with some insight into its creation and the reasoning behind it. While I spent a lot of time seriously pouring through this year of music, this is not really a serious endeavour. It is merely my fun way of further sharing the tracks and artists that made my year better. The rankings may not be scientific or even fair, rather they are simply a reflection on how strongly I felt these tracks and how much praise I felt they deserved.

As with last years list (starting here), you'll see that I included multiple tracks from my favourite artists. You'll also notice that the thread of disco/funk runs strongly throughout, as it is without question where I found myself going most this year. I did however try to touch on a variety of genres, while of course sticking to what I really like and felt warranted inclusion in such a list. Again mirroring last year, you'll find a relatively low amount of 'club' music, certainly in comparison to the amount of time I spent within them. But that's just me, I tend to listen to and enjoy so called 'headphone' music as much as big, banging, sub-woofer throbbing, beats. That being said plenty of this list would pulverize a club and I'd love to hear any of these tracks on a big system.

Finally, I will once again say that this is by no means an exhaustive list; there are without a doubt exceptional tunes that somehow failed to make the cut. However, onward and, in this case, downward, from tracks 100 to 76 we go. See the soundcloud playlist here and at the bottom of the page.

LigOne - Mindfuck

French DJ and producer, LigOne has appeared on this blog a number of times, so it should come as no surprise that his latest "Mindfuck" found its way into my heart. Out now on Point Point's Record Record label, this fire future bass number furthers his sensational work in producing anything but ordinary tracks. Being the genre of the moment there's a lot of mediocre stuff out there which, as many have noted, emulates Flume among others. And while I just wrote about "Wall Fuck," the commonality in titles is about as much overlap as you'll find between LigOne and Flume. What I love about future bass is the human, almost live-play nature of the productions. They're not as mechanical and repetitive as tech house for example. However playfulness alone doesn't make a track good, there's got to be strong sound design too.

There's no questioning the quality throughout "Mindfuck." LigOne leads the track out with some scintillating piano amidst growing atmosphere. The synths are then added, like a drip brewed coffee, it gets stronger by the second. Continuing the coffee metaphor, LigOne stirs in cream and sugar, as vocals and bounding bass round out the full bodied production. The commingling of elements is done with utter expertise, making the whole greater than the sum of its parts. While I love the majestic musicality of the piano-led intro/outro, the middle section between drops is a wonderful reprieve, keeping the energy up while allowing both the listener and the track a chance to breathe.Hopefully reading this has prepared you for the "Mindfuck" which you can find on Spotify and iTunes.

FOLLOW LIGONE: FACEBOOK SOUNDCLOUD TWITTER

Top 13 for Friday March 10th

Artwork for Juke Ellington - Sexual Healing by Uncle Reezy

Fridays explode with great new music and today is no different. So in the interest of showing off as much of that new stuff as possible, in the most compact way, I put together a playlist of the best tracks that came across my soundcloud feed. No genre barriers just good music. Many free downloads too.

Note: I didn't include any of the BADLQQK RQQKIES release because I've already covered it on Discobelle, nor did I include Grandtheft and Sam Spiegel's remix of The Weeknd, because it's not available for stream, but my pal Colin covered it over on FUXWITHIT if you want to check it out there. Jilbare x Future Magic - Fire (ft. Izzy Salinel)*
Third release from Future Magic in a week and a half. Another sensational production, playing beautifully with vocals, getting all emotional with wicked future bass synths, and those drum fills. Wow.

Gumball - Color Coded*
My kind of adventurous blend of future bass with other seemingly conflicting subgenres. Big triumphant arcs, perfectly placed effects and sublime vocal work. Super smart production.

Kehlani - Gangsta (Parker Remix)
Beautiful bed for Kehlani's vocals that's at once heartening while also ominous in its delivery. Doesn't seem to be any slowing this one down. Good strong G vibes working with the lyrics brilliantly.

AC Slater & Taiki Nulight - Super Doopah Legend
Another stellar, shot-in-the-arm kind of track from Night Bass boss AC Slater. There's no knowing what this track is doing or where its going. Twisty-turny and full of surprises.

Stooki Sound ft. Latroit & Lliam Taylor - Echos (R3LL Remix)
Gotta have me some jersey club for my weekend, and not many do it as well as R3LL. Full of feels but also bouncy as all hell. Plenty of pump up in this one.

Alison Wonderland & Lido - Messiah (Havok Roth & Kayoh Remix)*
First I need to say that Lido's mix is another instant classic, and early choice for remix of the year. That being said this remix is stupid good. Like five minutes of soaring fire. GOLD!

JayKode - Roll Out
Even though you can feel the bass coming right from the get go, there's no being prepared for the waves of tweaking electro that lies ahead. Add a little ivory tickling & you've got one bad-ass banger.

LigOne x Holly - Lazy Social*
Somehow this one snuck into the my feed despite being 4 months old. But it's LigOne and Holly so it's damn good. Oozes with originality as expected. A little laidback, but groovy as all hell.

Dex - Images (edit)*
Ridiculously wicked and wild Tchami-like sound design. Haven't heard house done like this in a while, and its got everything I want. Groove, piano, vocals and a menacing bassline. Love it.

Juke Ellington - Sexual Healing*
Vocals, drums and energy all so on point. Even with the onslaught of future bass at the moment, this one still sounds fresh as anything. A beautiful banger, no doubt.

Jetique - Love On My Mind (ft. Terri B!)
Lead by beautiful vocals, this is deep house at its best. Instantly commands your attention, delivering a divine groove, demanding you dance. Transforms all listening spaces into the coolest of clubs.

Anamanaguchi ft. Hatsune Miku - Miku (Carpainter Remix)*
Pure pleasure pop. Couldn't be any more bubbly or brilliant. Feels like you're floating in an 8-bit version of outer space, soaring above all cares and worries. Unapologetic easy listening.

Childish Gambino - Do Ya Like (Mark Melgo Remix)*
Warm weather is right around the corner and I'm looking forward to listening to more music like this, rounding out all day dance sessions, spinning in the summer breeze. Good vibes all around.

* indicates that track available for free download

12 Best Releases of February 14, 2017

Each day I scan through my soundcloud feed looking for a specific kind of track. One that I like, one that has a generally low number of plays, and preferably one that hasn't been covered by other blogs yet. Today however I seemed to find more than normal, actually an even dozen. So instead of writing a longer piece about one track, I've opted to showcase all of them with a brief sentence or two, detailing why I like them so much. Check them out below and grab the free downloads where applicable.
Hero - Dirty Work
Calgary's Hero has been on a role lately, producing a number of breathtaking tracks, including his VHS Pop EP. This one excels with a Daft Punk vibe alongside some truly touching lyrics and a godly groove.

Realmind - Malta (Billboard Remix) [FREE DOWNLOAD]
This is some Montreal on Montreal mixing here. It's got a ton of guts and some wild future bass mentality. The sound design of each element is extraordinary, and the progression is perfect.

Malaa - Bylina (Lick Remix) [FREE DOWNLOAD]
The latest Malaa production is already making waves around the world, and while I appreciate its vocals and much of the design, Lick's remix speaks to me even more. I prefer a fuller drop than what the original offers and this one has just that, there's no boring bits or points in which I desire more.

Kream - Love You More (Nate Lowpass Remix) [FREE DOWNLOAD]
As he notes in the track description, the vocals have an immediate allure, and Nate Lowpass's mix suits them brilliantly. The bass plays perfectly and drives along with the tuned drum fills.

SL.Y - F.U.N. ft Hesk
Toronto's Bedroomer collective have themselves a new club focused compilation called Mainroomer. Along with tracks from Kare and a collab between Internet Daughter and Eytan Tobin, this one shows sensational synth work and awesome vocal chops. Its furious pace is as exciting as it is enjoyable.

LigOne - Choose The Flow
This one sparkles right off the bat, and only gets brighter and bouncier as it goes along. It shows off LigOne's incredible ability to bring together so many elements and have them work in sync superbly.

Anna Lunoe - Radioactive (Masayoshi Iimori Remix) [FREE DOWNLOAD]
After dropping off six official remixes Friday, Anna's added another five including this from Masayoshi, as well as G-Buck and Vices. This mix once again proves that there's no one that can truly match Masayoshi's production style. His almost schizophrenic treatment makes this a psycho club killer.

Tennyson x Mr. Carmack - Tuesday
Easily the most laid-back track in this list, the seemingly opposing styles of this collab actually work wonderfully. It's got the jazzy feel of Tennyson guiding the movement, while Carmack's club qualities shine through. Stay tuned for Wednesday and Thursday forthcoming via Red Bull Sound Select.

Shawn Wasabi - Spicy Boyfriend
The cuteness of Shawn Wasabi's productions cannot be overstated, nor can the quality of his sound design in this track. Its youthful play makes me overflow with an unbridled feeling of freedom. I highly recommend checking out the video of him performing it live from his bed, here.

The Kount - You Glow
This is some kind of Kaytranada, Anderson .Paak stuff, and boy am I glad to have found it. The groove and feels it exudes are extraordinary. It meshes live performance and electronic production seamlessly.

Coolights & Element - Show U (ft. NKOLO) [FREE DOWNLOAD]
How a track can simultaneously be so banging yet so beautiful and full of feels I'll never know. It reminds me of two of my favourite tracks at the moment, Rytmeklubben's "Like That" and Indiginis' "Get Ur Frk On." I fully expect this to be one of my go to early morning tracks that gives me life.

Terror Jr - Come First (Kid Froopy Remix)
Can you sense a theme here? This too is what I like to refer to as a beautiful banger. It's emotional with its combination of chords and vocals, but what Kid Froopy has done with the drop is sure to have your heart skip a beat. I'm truly speechless. I don't want to do anything but listen to this again and again.

Filet Mignon Volume 4

The time for massive compilation from French label Record Record's Filet Mignon series has finally arrived, with it's fourth installment, including tracks from Madeaux, DZZ, Dombresky, Masayoshi Iimori and Birdy Nam Nam, among others. I've been waiting for this ever since I first heard, what I called at the time, the track of the summer, Point Point's "True Summer." The aim of this series is to shine a spotlight on "tomorrow's new talents" with the backing of more experienced artists, through a coherent and clear artistic direction. There's no question Record Record has achieved this feat, as they've lead me to discover talents like LigOne, Araatan, Aazar and Valy Mo. They were able to get my attention by giving San Holo's "BWU" a place in their third installment, and it was because of it's inclusion that I found two of my favourite tracks, the aforementioned LigOne's "Uprising," and the Little Freaky Things, L'homme aux 4 Lettres' "in2." Once again they've compiled a great combination of tracks, working together to create a consistent and thematically succinct 15 track album. I can truthfully say there are no holes in this massive compilation. Each track works both on its own but truly together in the album. When you can start with a Madeaux, DZZ collaboration and only build upon that foundation with each following track, you know you've got greatness on your hands. Devoted To God's "Burning Bridges" is worthy of worship not only for its pious production quality but Goldilox's voluminous vocals.

The following track from rising star Dombresky is yet another awesome track from him, and perhaps my favourite of the collection, with its swinging strings, soaring in loving beauty. Nomak's "What About Us" showcases a naughty and nasty touch that feels as though the couple in question is bickering in some infernal give and take. Pyramid follows that up with a rave worthy get down track, that just begs unsuspecting listeners to cry out, "Damn son, where'd you find this?" Asan & Halpe's "Amber" is an incredible piece of production prowess that's cinematically cool and sure to sweep you off your feet.

The enigmatic Masayoshi Iimori once again delivers a track that seems miles ahead of anything even the most future forward producers are making. You can be sure DJs the world around will be adding "Down" into their sets for surefire screwfaces and cries of "What in the world is this?" The following track from Birdy Nam Nam is perhaps the best example of the importance of track placement, there is an inevitable let down following Masayoshi's mastery and "Sad Boys Club" emotes that so brilliantly with the downtrodden, depths of his sorrowful synth work.

The aptly named "Don't Let Them Stop You," leads the compilation out of despair, before BeazyTymes "Get Hit" beams it back into oblivion, and in my opinion ought to be named "Get Lit." Once you are indeed 'lit', the best thing for you is a refreshing, cool breeze, and there's no track that better elicits that feeling more than Point Point's "True Summer." The following track from Brunelle, "Chemistry," rivals Dombresky for my favourite of the collection. As though crafted by a scientist in a lab, it truly lives up to its name, as a perfect mixture of so many of the elements we've heard in this massive compilation; groovy, beautiful and as dance-able as anything in Filet Mignon.

The penultimate track from Araatan, "Zereglee," utilizes a guitar and piano better than any electronic track I've heard and runs so brilliantly into the final boss track of Ateph Elidja's "TRRN." Things turn violent as it seems even the artists don't want the compilation to end. Once again utilizing cinematic sweeps, "TRRN" seems to be a triumphant and beautiful finale that caps off an amazing collection of tracks with an echoing slamming of a door, until the next installment.

I'm truly in awe of Record Record and this incredible album, not just because of the sheer number of great tracks, or their unbelievable cohesiveness, but the way they've been so thoughtfully compiled and showcase so many talented artists in a way that other labels can only dream of. You can stream or download Filet Mignon 4 on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, Apple Music, Deezer and Amazon.

SUPPORT RECORD RECORD: FACEBOOK SOUNDCLOUD TWITTER