Loving Linus and the Devilish Don

Linus Loves has been a favorite producer of mine for a while now. Sure he does some stuff that I don't really approve of at times (Britney Spears remix, anyone?), but overall, his production is always amazingly smooth and they feel well-composed, rather than some tracks today where it seems like the producer just got on the a laptop and midi controller and started throwing things together like an episode of 'Will it Blend?'

Linus is dropping a new single, 'Prom Night' (out now on Beatport and iTunes), and remixes from Don Diablo and Linus's label-mate BURNS have been, well, burning up the web the past few weeks. But I haven't discussed them yet, and this is my blog, so goddammit I'm going to do it! The original mix by Linus Loves is flat-out awesome. It starts off much choppier than many of his earlier songs, like 'Rock Chk,' but the sound becomes fuller as the song progresses, with the Simian Mobile Disco-style blips and beeps backed by strings. The buildup and break after the 3 minute mark ensure that 'Prom Night' can rock it on the dancefloor, too. It also has a great video, made of cut and spliced clips from the 1976 prom night horror/sci-fi movie 'Carrie.' Look for a very young John Travolta.

linus loves - prom night from Thomas Bachellier on Vimeo.

Don Diablo's mix focuses on the bass guitar, dropping some funk in place of the more electronic elements of Linus Loves' production and filling your need for MORE COWBELL, turning the song into a rollicking piece of bass-heavy disco. It's my favorite mix yet from Diablo, who has blown up this past year through his prolific production (which is accompanied by mass emails to blogs for every track). He didn't really do much for me at first, but now as his work evolves, Diablo seems to be getting smoother and more sophisticated, moving away from more distorted, banger-ish sounds. Get more of his tracks on Beatport here.

Linus Loves - Prom Night (Don Diablo remix) [divshare]

Also check out Diablo's new track 'I Am Not From France.' While James Murphy states very early on in LCD Soundsystem's 'North American Scum,' "And for those of you who still think we're from England, we're not," Don Diablo just puts his disavowal of his alleged nationality right in the title of his single. The song gets a remix from Louis LaRoche, who, in spite of the song title, adds a little French Touch with his synth work, layered over another heavy Larry Graham-esque bassline.

Don Diablo - I Am Not From France (Louis La Roche remix) [divshare]

For a little more from Linus Loves, check out his great glitchy remix of British one-man band The Energies and for another Louis La Roche mix, here's his take on one of the early songs by Heads We Dance.

The Energies - Born Again Runner (Linus Loves remix) [divshare]
Heads We Dance - My Heart is Set on You (Louis La Roche remix) [divshare]

Bonus: While I wasn't a huge fan of BURNS' remix of 'Prom Night,' I do love the video for his 'Turbo,' which is made up of clips from the seminal '80s movie 'Breakin'.' So many great and absurd dance moves here.

burns - turbo from Thomas Bachellier on Vimeo.