Enlightened Listening for April 10

This week I've whipped together a can't miss edition of Enlightened Listening. Each of the 15 releases here are exceptional and I have to recommend a full play-through from the new Gorillaz to the latest godly Local Dialect in "Perseus" to Apashe's magnum opus Renaissance and finally Nina Las Vegas' "Impossible." However, I'm not going to do the full rundown as I'm cramped for time today. Instead I'll provide a bit of a road-map through the playlist below.

Funky, disco and house grooves rule the first third with strong, sample-driven tracks from Diplo, Wax Motif and Discotron closing out said section. Turning more-tech driven, EPs from the duos of each Cowboy Rhythmbox. BSOD (Steve Duda and deadmau5) and 29 Palms (Boreta and Ooah from The Glitch Mob) are amazing, Orbital's remix of Joris Voorn is simply fabulous and, as mentioned above, Local Dialect are once again divine. In the final third, Morgan Geist leaves me agape at the utter brilliance of his Caribou "Never Come Back" mix, as does the work of both Squarepusher and Apashe. Finally X&G's EP powers us into the almost Tokyo Drift quality of Nina Las Vegas' "Impossible." Enjoy!

Gorillaz - Aries (ft. Peter Hook and Georgia)

Coucheron & Pasha - Lighthouse (ft. Soul Gem)

Kiesza - Crave

Diplo & Wax Motif - Love To The World

BSOD - No Way, Get Real

Joris Voorn - Never (Orbital Remix)

Local Dialect & Las Von - Perseus / Flote

29 Palms - Nobody Horizon

Cowboy Rhythmbox - 6AM Cowboy

Caribou - Never Come Back (Morgan Geist Remix)

Squarepusher - Lamental

Apashe - Renaissance

X&G - Losing Myself

Nina Las Vegas - Impossible (ft. Thai Chi Rosé)

Ninajirachi - Gardenia (ft. Oh Boy)

Did you know that Nina Las Vegas isn't the only Nina on NLV Records putting out quality music? Also from the land down under, Ninajirachi has been sharing singles from her forthcoming Lapland EP, with the latest "Gardenia" featuring Oh Boy appearing late last week. As the Aussies are seemingly apt to do, Ninajirachi imbues this track with an incredible allure and wild sound design that captures your imagination right away. Painting a scene unlike any you've experienced in this world, "Gardenia" comes across like a dream: a safari with droves of animals singing and dancing in unison. Even though the dreamy nature of this track is obvious, there is something in the back of your head that makes it feel too good to be true; as though it were manufactured. It is this sneaky, uneasy feeling that moves "Gardenia" from potent plaything to captivating craftwork. Mystifying and masterful, get it now here and follow NLV Records below for more information on the full, forthcoming release of Lapland.FOLLOW NINAJIRACHI: FACEBOOK SOUNDCLOUD TWITTER
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13 New Tracks I Found On Soundcloud (Under 10k)

Soundcloud has been on tongues, minds, fingertips, and search bars more than ever lately. Google Trends are incomplete until July 22nd, but it's nearly twice as high as any time in the last year (see here). Whether Soundcloud has the reported 50 days of cash left, Chance The Rapper already saved it, or something else entirely, I hope it survives for days like today: when I can wake up, scroll through my feed and find a dozen new, and in some cases, previously unavailable tracks.

[Rant] Of course the age of technology leads to the ability to create this kind of music, but that's just half of the benefit of advancement. The other half is the internet, and it's social, sharing environment. And music is nothing if not social and shared? Therefore the service Soundcloud provides is almost essential. It's the people, for the people. I know money has to be made, but a balance has to be drawn. No matter what, the need will remain. If SC falls, another will rise in its place.

However enough of the rant, please enjoy a concise 13 tracks from my scan this morning, each quality in their own right, genre and use aside. I've done my best to mix from light to heavy, smooth to rough.Strayframe - Crimson (ft. Spence Hood) FREE
Coolest Crimson known to man. Smooth and intoxicating, with a pair of absolutely crushing drops.

Gromo - Reaction (ft. Breana Marin) FREE
Slow burning, deep, nuclear core reaction. Strong vocals make the lyric "keep coming back to it" true.

Heads2 - Up N Down
Warming things up with funky, swooning future bass. More great vocals, but the chops steal this show.

NatashaMichael - Fuego FREE
Drums light the fire with even more alluring lyrics. However, the vocal effects and sonic flourishes rule.

Blvk Sheep - Falling 4 U (ft. Rahn Harper) FREE
Massive mood. Screaming yet tender trap. Added synth in the second drop caps it perfectly.

GNDR - It's The Future FREE
Power pop future bass. Flying piano fingers, wild vocal chops and soaring synth - need I say more?

Fransis Derelle x Hopsteady - Imaginary Friends
Don't let that opening fool you this track is explosive. Say goodbye, you're catching a rocket.

Nina Las Vegas - Freeze
Frosted tip vocal chops, fight with a flurry of drums and room filling bass. Nina brings the frostbite.

Dualmind - One Day FREE
Wild, turn it around, double-bass blinder. If this is what Future House is, I like it.

The Weather Underground - Existence
Intelligent techno everything (Minimal, Avant-garde, Noise, Experimental). Hypnotic.

brxken drevm - deicide FREE
Only thing ground breaking here is the bass. Just a beat, but effective enough to strike a blow.

Her Mind - Blossom FREE
I've never heard a drop as absolutely, and quite literally, smashing. Period. And this one works. No matching that in the second half, so instead it's triumphant future bass. 5 star success, no doubt.

Markus Aurelius - Solipsism FREE
Robots rule reality in this roaring epic depiction of a dire heavy metal future.

Anna Lunoe - Hyperhouse Tour Megamix

The number of quality tours going around this fall is perhaps unprecedented. Whether it's Mija's FK A Genre, Destructo's Renegade, or Anna Lunoe's Hyperhouse, the slew of DJs on each is absolutely awesome. In anticipation of her tour starting next week, Anna just dropped a 35 minute mega mix, overflowing with some of the hottest tracks from her incredibly deep roster of DJs, including Vindata and Sliink who will both be at The Hoxton, Saturday November 5th. Of course the mix also includes Lunoe's latest, "Radioactive," Sleepy Tom's breakout banger, "Be Right There," and their collaborative effort, "Pusher." Then there's some magical Mija, including her remix of A-Trak and Tommy Trash's "Lose My Mind," Vindata's "Own Life" and their smash hit collab, "Better." The 12 city tour starts October 13th in Santa Barbara and works its way up the west coast through Vancouver before restarting in Washington DC, November 3rd, with a few east coast stops before heading to Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas. The line up varies for each stop, so check out www.itshyperhouse.com to see who of Cray, Sliink, Dombresky, Ducky, Madeaux, Mija, Nina Las Vegas, Rickyxsan, Sleepy Tom, Uniiqu3, Vindata and Wuki will be joining Anna. I've linked the facebook event for the Toronto stop, here, if you want more details and/or tickets.

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A-Trak - Best of 2015 Mix

When A-Trak drops a mix, the world listens, and did they ever listen to the tracks he's included in his 2 hour mix for his Beats 1 radio show "Day Off Radio." He's compiled a list of the best tracks from 2015, but not just the biggest and brightest but rather some of his favourites, and he's got good taste!

Beyond the superb song choices, there's the expected yet always unparalleled mixing ability from A-Trak that makes this mix one that will surely get played over and over. And of course A-Trak's always the genre bender, meaning the mix isn't just the best of 2015 in electronic music, or pop music for that matter; it's rife with tracks that you may not have heard before even if you consider yourself highly in tune with this scene or that scene. Not many people are in tune with the world of music as Canadian music royalty, Alain Macklovitch. It's because of tastemakers like A-Trak, Annie Mac, Zane Lowe, Anna Lunoe and the now departed, Nina Las Vegas (to name but a few), that radio still holds some kind of sparkling magic, drawing in it's listeners and maintaining a relationship of trust, wondering just what these soothsayers will play for us next. I highly recommend checking any and all of them out, there's so much music in the world that will truly change your life. Go out and find it, if you don't have the time, find someone whose ear you trust and hold on tight, the world of music moves ridiculously fast.

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Best Mixes Of 2015

One of my favourite things about electronic music is the prominence of mixes and the curating that comes along with being a DJ. There are so many different kinds of mixes, some that are heavily pre-produced and others that are created organically, on the spot, both are valuable and can serve different purposes at different times. I love listening to them any time I'm doing anything, whether it be at working, working out, travelling, playing video games, washing the dishes or doing yard work. Over the years I've become a fan of a variety of different programs, podcasts, annual festival promo mixes or just whatever live set I can find. After the break, I'll be posting a large number of my favourite mixes from a variety of places. But to whet your appetite, check out this one from Alison Wonderland at The Mixmag Lab in Los Angeles.

Her set at the Hoxton was definitely one of the best I saw all year, the most energetic and intense DJing, that's for sure. I always feel like the more into the music the DJ is the more the crowd gets into it, Alison get top marks for this. Always really appreciate DJs not sticking to one genre or sound, especially when more than an hour long.