Infamous musical maestro and Chic guitarist Nile Rodgers has been confirmed as the scribe of the official International Music Summit (IMS) anthem for 2013. Rodgers, who spilled the beans on collaborative duties with Daft Punk during his keynote speech at last year’s conference, looks to build on the hype stirred by his involvement in the duo’s first album single “Get Lucky” with British house evangelist Eats Everything providing official remix duties.
Krewella‘s “Alive” has escalated to become one of the biggest dance tracks of 2013; from the original mix that has been featured on national television to Cash Cash and Kalkutta’s remix that has dominated the early days of festival season. As the temperature is soon to be cranked up and summer events to be full swing, the Krew’s renowned single is slated to reach new heights. Teased by Hardwell at Coachella and the inaugural I Am Hardwell show, his own remix of “Alive” has been debuted by Pete Tong for this week’s Essential Selection, a likely indicator of an imminent release. Hardwell builds an uplifting presence around the vocal but swaps the melody for a profound drum-driven beat after the hook, giving the track yet another outlet amongst the dance scene.
Officially kicking off his born-again solo career this month, Axwell is finally making way for a production that has been in the works since 2009. Premiered by Pete Tong on last night’s Essential Selection, the remode of “Center of the Universe” remains constructed by the paralleled piano and vocals of the original while offering an all new groove with the percussion. Modernizing his longtime secret weapon, Axwell produces his forthcoming single with stylings similar to his recent remix of Discopolis’ “Falling,” finding a vintage dance vibe through a balance of easygoing and hypnotic rhythm. Due for an Axtone release, the remode of “Center of the Universe” has yet to receive an official release date.
This past Friday, Maya Jane Coles returned to the Radio 1 decks for her second appearance on the legendary show. MJC is one of my very favorite producer/DJs, so I was thrilled to learn I’d be able to digest another mix of hers less than two years after her debut in July of 2011. Her production style has that certain je ne sais quoi – quirky instrumentation, major grooves, and an undeniable sex appeal. In live sets, her DJing has always struck this perfect balance of emotional and danceable, introducing me to new material while playing the deep stuff she knows her fans want to hear. On top of her jaw-dropping number of accomplishments at the tender age of 25, she also emanates this air of effortless cool, DJing her way around the world with her stylishly cropped coiffure and docile demeanor.
In a world where the dividing line between “underground” and “commercial” dance music is often contentious, there are few tracks that seem to easily fit in both worlds. Enter Italian DJ Francesco Rossi’s pop friendly deep house tune “Paper Aeroplane,” a cover of Angus & Julia Stone’s song of the same name. Rossi electrifies the jumpy guitar licks and weighty vocals, not only transforming the soft indie song into a punchy four-on-the-floor favorite for late nights or early mornings. It’s already been quite heavily rotated on Radio 1, and Maya Jane Coles even selected it as one of the tracks on her most recent Essential Mix. It’ll be available on D:vision on May 14th.
With the recent influx of dance music veterans venting over what the American movement means for the industry, none is as well versed or qualified to offer an opinion than Mr. Pete Tong. The man has been a part of the culture for more than 30 years, involved in everything from A&R to mixing to producing globally influential radio shows such as Essential Selection and Essential Mix, leaving a far-reaching legacy behind him. Tong sat down with music publication The Daily Swarm to discuss his views on the recent phenomenon.
Pete starts out by explaining the three elements he believed contributed to the movement’s explosion including the influence of festivals, the often-cited track “I Got A Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas with David Guetta’s production expertise, as well as Daft Punk’s performance at Coachella:
In a special Miami edition of Essential Selection, Pete Tong showcased the best in dance music while catching up with Jamie XX, Sebastian Ingrosso, and Flashmob. Hand picking his Essential New Tune of the week, he turns to Armin van Burren’s sultry lead single, “This Is What It Feels Like,” coming off his upcoming artist album.
Would it be an Essential Selection without homage to Eric Prydz? Pete provides us with a world exclusive of the new Pryda single, “Powerdrive,” which made waves as an ID on Epic Radio 007 and in his popular Essential Mix last month. The track has been “driving the blogs crazy,” according to Tong – we concur.
After the announcements of UMFTV streaming all six days of Ultra, and UMF Radio bringing Miami Music Week coverage to Sirius XM, listeners can already experience the South Beach festivities from their laptops or cars. Clear Channel Media and Entertainment have taken another step in that direction with the launch of Evolution 93.5 Miami, a twenty four seven EDM-dedicated radio station that is slated to broadcast its inaugural live show from the All Gone Pete Tong party on March 22nd, hosted by Pete Tong himself.
Russ Chimes‘ “Turn Me Out” is already one of the most anticipated songs of the year and to follow the release, there will be quite the remix package in tow. The track initially earned Special Delivery status on Annie Mac’s Radio 1 show, and last Friday, her DJ cohort Pete Tong debuted the first remix of the bunch. Belfast native Ejeca takes on the soulful nu-disco cut and adds his rolling and deep touch to the already feel-good original. In stripping the track down, Ejeca loops the vocal over a set of organic house undertones, using a driving chord sequence to create an all-around dance floor masterpiece. “Turn Me Out” is set to release April 29th.
On Pete Tong’sEssential Selections last night we were treated to a world exclusive first play of “This is What it Feels Like,” the first single off Armin’s upcoming Intense album. The angelic vocals of Trevor Guthrie float perfectly over a piano-laced melody. Before playing he stated,
“The track was written about a year ago. Quite an unusual structure for a dance song, I had an idea for a piano line. The vocal was recorded in Vancouver, Canada by a guy named Trevor Guthrie. I’m very proud of the song. My new album Intense will be released on the third of May. I’m very excited about it and worked on it for three years. It’s a combination of more housey electro stuff and of course trance and some rock influences, even a little bit of dubstep and classical music. It’s been a big project, worked with quite a number of artists and this is very first single from the album”
