Filed under: Events, Music | Tags: 213, alicia keys, amerie, Devil's Pie, freddie roach, kanye west, mashup, nujabes, one thing, pacquiao, r. kelly, remix, rich harrison, siik, step in the name of love, the meters
This Wednesday at DEVIL’S PIE, we’ll be featuring the ONLY mashup artist that I will publicly admit liking: SIIK.
Actually, I still cringe even using the word “mashup” anywhere on this blog. But that’s what most accurately describes what SIIK does. He takes the acapella of one song and combines it with a different instrumental. Seems simple enough? Wrong. What I like about SIIK’s remixes (a less-negatively associated term) is that he’s able to marry pop/rnb/rap acapellas with soulful instrumentals in a way that completely transforms the vibe of the song.
Take his Amerie remix for example. This is the one that got SIIK his 15 minutes. He transforms the original club banger, produced by Rich Harrison, who sampled the hard funk ofThe Meters, into a smoothed out head-nodder/two-stepper by surgically attaching a nice Nujabes instrumental to Amerie’s raw vocals.
DOWNLOAD: Amerie – “One Thing (Siik Remix)
Yes, I said surgical. Surgery requires training, experience, and skill. Proper “mashups” aren’t simply beat matching two different sources and smacking them on top of each other. You have to match the keys of the tracks (which SIIK is amazing at), you have match differing rhythmic swings of the tracks, you have to edit song arrangements so that musically they fit snugly, and you also have to mix the vocals just right so that they can fit sonically with the instrumental. The reason why I can’t stand mashups is because 1. their producers usually don’t take into account all those steps and end up with a terrible sounding mix and 2. nine times out of ten, they are just party songs made into more-partying party songs. I want to hear something creative and risky.
My favorite SIIK remix is “Step In The Name Of Love”:
DOWNLOAD: R. Kelly – “Step In The Name Of Love” (Siik Remix)
R. Kelly’s two step anthem (a staple record in my crate) and one of Kanye’s dopest instrumentals, used by 213 & reinterpreted by Alicia Keys, match each other like Roach & Pacquiao: perfect.
Download more SIIK remixes and dj mixes at his website: siik.org
And come through this Wednesday to hear him play live:
Filed under: Events | Tags: come up, Devil's Pie, linotype, siik, verdugo bar
WED 11.18.09
DEVIL’S PIE | LOS ANGELES
SIIK EDITION
Featuring:
DJ SIIK (The Come Up Crew)
Remixer Extraordinaire!!
And Guest Substitute:
DJ LINOTYPE (The Come Up Crew)
With Resident:
DJ PHATRICK
***EXCLUSIVE***
DEVIL’S PIE KOOL & THE GANG TRIBUTE CDs
available exclusively to folks who come to the party!
10pm-2am
FREE!
21+
VERDUGO BAR
3408 Verdugo Rd
Glassell Park, Los Angeles
90065
Filed under: Music | Tags: 6 fingers, do d.a.t., hot spitter, oakland in blue, the attik, the skinny
Whoa, The Attik must be in my stars, cuz all of a sudden, I got the fam sending me tracks left and right!
Again. I must reiterate: I love Weezy, I love Wale, I love Gucci…but, their music ain’t shit compared to this:
DOWNLOAD: Do D.A.T. – “Hot Spitter” (Produced by 6 Fingers)
Do D.A.T. comes again with the face-scrunchin’ vocals over 6 Fingers’ neck-snappin’ production. Remember the last time the two got together?
BONUS: Do D.A.T. – “The Skinny” (Produced by 6 Fingers)
From The Skinny EP (Do D.A.T., 2008)
Keep an eye and ear out for Do D.A.T.’s upcoming concept album, Oakland In Blue, which is based entirely on Duke Ellington samples. You can hear some preview tracks HERE.
Filed under: Video | Tags: amp live, gary is a robot, mr. micro, trackademicks, zion-i, zioni
Filed under: Music | Tags: do d.a.t., elefant, sandman, the art of dreaming, the attik
Ok. Why are we all geeked up over the new Weezy, when this blows everything floating in the blogs out the water?? This is what hip hop should sound like these days.
SANDMAN aka ELEFANT from THE ATTIK aka The-Greatest-Hip-Hop-Group-That-You’ve-Probably-Never-Heard-Of aka The-Same-Crew-That-Included-ThisGuy dropped off some songs from his upcoming album, The Art Of Dreaming, in my inbox the other day and I’ve had them on repeat since then.
DOWNLOAD: Sandman – “Here & Now”
DOWNLOAD: Sandman – “Superhero”
From The Art Of Dreaming (January 2011)
If you liked what you heard, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, vote for the song HERE.
Filed under: Photos | Tags: attik, do d.a.t., halloween, teef da sneak, tiffany eng, Treat U Nice, trick n treat djs
“Trick or Treat?”
OoooooooooOOO! The Halloween In The Attik house party was crazy! I haven’t dj’d five hours of straight INSANITY in a minute. At one point, around 2am (3am really because of daylight savings time), I slumped against the wall and almost gave up from exhaustion. But then Treat gave me the middle finger, threw on “Bia Bia,” and started another riot on the dance floor.
Thanks to everyone who came out!
More pics after the jump courtesy of Teef Da Sneek. See the whole set HERE.
