5 Must Have Sets from Ultra Miami 2017

Every year the world of electronic music gathers in Miami to celebrate and showcase the latest and greatest. This year was no different seeing massive performances from countless DJs, producers, hype men and everything in between. There were multiple curated stages from the tech driven Resistance Spider stage to ASOT, and of course the uber eclectic mainstage dubbed "Worldwide." And while there were several standout sets, I've decided to focus on a few I feel deserve the most praise. So here we go with my favourites, in no particular order. Also note some are just audio while others have video too.

DJ Snake
Why not start at the end with DJ Snake's closing set. The "Bird Machine" man has quickly become one of the most powerful players on the scene bringing France firmly back into the forefront. His genre bending and taste-making are on full display with guests Lil Jon, Future & G4SHI joining him on stage. Download the mix here, and get tracklist here.

Stephan Bodzin
My favourite set for many reasons: 1) the Spider stage setup 2) the way Bodzin builds the tracks with his unique live setup 3) the almost 100% Bodzin tracklist (apart from 2 IDs everything is his own). It's really had to quantify not just how good it sounds, but how cool the whole thing is. Incredible.

Justice
Fresh off their album Woman and ready to tour Justice, too, closed out Miami like their French brother, DJ Snake. But these two sets couldn't be any more different. Of course Justice is live, but their music too hits a more retro feeling whereas Snake is about being new and cool. Justice just are, and whether you're a fan of their gritty electro stuff or their more vocal driven, new work you'll enjoy their set.

Justice Live at Ultra Music Festival 2017... by traincrossin

Arty as Alpha 9
Back with trance and where else better to do it but Armin's A State of Trance stage. Another rebirth of sorts, which seems to be a bit of trend lately. It's been 10 years since "EDM" arguably broke through and with that veterans of the scene have had the chance to alter their career arc more than once. Lots of people remarked that they were happy to see Arty back with ASOT, and you can tell why with a set like this. Download it here, and get tracklist here.

OWSLA All-Stars (Jauz, Ghastly, Cesqeaux & Mija)
One of the world most popular labels, and some of their fastest rising stars came together for 40 minutes of rapid fire bass, trap, dubstep and everything in between. As I said above the main/worldwide stage was eclectic and there's no better indication of this than the tracklist these 4 put together, from 4B to Ginuwine to Kayzo and RIOT to Future in the first 4 minutes. It's hard to argue that genre-denying sets like this aren't the way of the future. More and more I'm hearing DJs do whatever they want, not worrying about smooth transitions, but blowing people's minds with track selection. Download the mix here, and get tracklist here.

I wanted to include Above & Beyond's set but it's been removed across the internet so I had to do without. If you find it please share and enjoy. Otherwise, enjoy the sets above and keep your ears/eyes open for more to be posted in the next week or so. EDIT (March 28): they've uploaded it to their youtube, so here it is in full 4K for your listening and viewing pleasure.

ValyMo & Broady - Get Funky

As part of Gold Digger's We Are Bass House year end compilation, ValyMo and Broady have teamed up to drop French bass track "Get Funky." As part of the explosion of both bass house and French artists (Malaa, Slowbody, Dombresky, LH4L, etc), we've seen a surplus of copycat producers trying to live up to the likes of those mentioned above. But there's really no questioning the quality of ValyMo or Broady; ValyMo can boast productions for OWSLA, UKF and Ultra, while Broady cannot match that list, he's released numerous quality tracks ranging from "Hunnid For The Quarter," "Go The Farthest," "Kush World," and "Never Say Never." Considering his account is only 8 months old, Broady is a fast rising talent, and this collab with ValyMo will only hasten that. "Get Funky" stands out from the aforementioned surplus of bass house tracks, with well thought out layers of production working together brilliantly. From the vocal samples, through the ratcheted bass synth and throbbing subs, the overall design of "Get Funky" leaves little to be desired. The fills are fire, its atmosphere intoxicating and the continuous progression ensures it never gets stale. If this track turns your crank, you'll likely enjoy the other 14 tracks in the compilation, but first, get "Get Funky" for yourself free, here. FOLLOW BROADY: FACEBOOK SOUNDCLOUD TWITTER
FOLLOW VALYMO: FACEBOOK SOUNDCLOUD TWITTER

Cheat Codes x Kris Kross Amsterdam - Sex

The massively debated and previously unidentified Spinnin' Records track, that's racked up over 623 thousand plays in just over two weeks has finally been revealed as a collaboration between trios, LA's Cheat Codes and Dutch Kris Kross Amsterdam, and is available for download today.

Aptly titled "Sex," has Spinnin' flexing it's label strength, procuring the rights to sample Salt-N-Pepa's "Let's Talk About Sex." The line "all the good things and bad things" immediately called me back to Akon's use of that line in Kid Ink's "Rewind." That's not the only similarity between the two either. The vibes of each elicit a warm floating feeling. Where "Rewind" leans more on DJ Mustard's synth sound, "Sex" is significantly more tropical, very similar to Major Lazer and DJ Snake's "Lean On." Furthermore, the first twenty seconds have a distinct resemblance to What So Not's "Touched." One commenter called it a rip off of Where Are U Now, Lean On, Sorry and What Do You Mean. While "Sex" no doubt seems to borrow facets from all of these tracks, it is its own distinct production. It is, at worst a mere mashup of covers, and at best, a finely crafted combination of some of the best pop music from the past year.

Of course this isn't anything new for Spinnin' Records, being the host label for chronic recyclers Vinai. A quick survey of Vinai's catalog of releases makes it seem like they've only ever started one project file and just keep minutely changing each production before sending them to Spinnin'. This seems all too common for the Dutch label which continually churns out repackaged, commercially leverage-able music, whether it's from Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Oliver Heldens or the Lost Kings, the other act many commenters thought might have produced "Sex." This isn't to say that Spinnin' is without merit, it certainly holds a different footing, philosophy and purpose than Dirtybird, Ed Banger, mau5trap or even OWSLA. Whatever the case, you can now get your copy of "Sex" now.

Bump In The Hump Sneak Peek: Rezz - Negative

Tonight I'll be premiering Rezz's latest production, "Negative," on Bump In The Hump. You can pick it up you copy courtesy OWSLA's Nestivus initiative benefiting Bridges For Music. But that's not all, I've combined the dark and filthy forces of Rezz's production with another track that packs such a punch you'll just have to hear it to believe it. Bump In The Hump airs from 6-7 EST tonight, tune live HERE.

SUPPORT: FACEBOOK SOUNDCLOUD TWITTER

San Holo - Can't Forget You (ft. The Nicholas)

The Norwegian music scene has gained tremendous worldwide attention in the past year thanks in large part to the rise of Kygo, Rytmeklubben, Cashmere Cat, Lido and San Holo, who first broke into public consciousness with his "Don't Touch The Classics" remixes, especially when his "Next Episode" remix was featured in TWRK's fifth installment. Holo's inimitable style and sound have catapulted him and his continually growing library into countless mixes and a worldwide tour. SH has his own label, bitbird, but he's also released tonnes of free music, a 3 track EP on Monstercat, an OWSLA single, big names remix credits for Tchami and Porter Robinson, and now he's picked up his very own Spinnin' release: His last release, a collab with Father Dude, was also on Spinnin', and as you might expect with Spinnin', it has marked a move to a slightly more poppy, easily consumable sound and feel for the heavenly, chiptune inspired producer. Both "IMISSU" and "Can't Forget You" lean on sparkling vocals and less on heavily tuned drops or glitchy builds, and what I feel is almost a stripped down, rather confined version of the San Holo I've come to know and love. My only hope is that, because of Spinnin's huge reach, more and more people get into San Holo and he floods us with new music; nothing wrong with that.

SCORE
Composition 2/3
Dynamics 2/2
Improvisation/Progression 2/3
Melody/Harmony 2/3
Originality 1/2
Sonic Quality 2/2
Lyrics 2/3
Vocals 2/2
TOTAL 15/20

SUPPORT: FACEBOOK SOUNDCLOUD TWITTER