An update on musical happenings etc

Hello, all!

We realize we have not updated this blog in ages.  There are actually some valid reasons and some not so valid reasons for this.  First, life has been extraordinarily busy these last few months.  Balancing overtime at the day job with travel and preparing for father (and mother) hood is a difficult chore for anyone to handle.  But the biggest reason is this:

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!

Yours Truly is hard at work on a brand new novel.  The new novel, currently untitled is a sequel to Era Sinistra, which we have mentioned a time or two on this blog.  This time the journey is more personal for Reggie St. Clair.  Eleven years ago, the man responsible for the height of Reggie's turmoil escaped.  Now 17 years old, his daughter has turned up missing.  The villain Art Rassine quickly emerges as the prime suspect.  Now Reggie must risk everything to find Rassine and rescue his daughter before it's too late!

With all that having been said, exactly what are we up to in the music world?  I have been listening to lots of new music.  I have at least a dozen new albums ready to review.  Hopefully I will get one posted next week.

I have also been compiling a best-of-2013 so far list of the many albums I have enjoyed so far this year.  There are some fantastic albums on that list.  We have talked about a few of these albums already.  I have not yet decided if I will publicly announce this list, as it is ever-changing with new releases.

Lastly, there are a few highly anticipated albums to be released in the near future.  Here are some we are most looking forward to: Deadlock, Fleshgod Apocalypse, Within Temptation.  Hopefully there will be many more. 

Alas, I am out of words.  But we will see you here next week with a brand new album review!  As always, huge thanks for reading and enjoying what we have to say. 

-brad

Seven Remixes you gotta hear

If you are not familiar with the term 'remix' it is possible you have lived under a rock for the duration of the computer age (just kidding).  For those of you uninitiated, a remix is an original song that another artist rebuilds.  I prefer remixes to covers in most instances because I find that the process of remixing a song is much more creative than just performing a cover version.  Thankfully, there are a lot of great remix songs out there today.  Here are seven of them.

Omega Lithium-This Croatian alternative metal band writes synthy, dancy rock tunes with electronic sounds to add flair.  Perfect target to remix.
Dance With Me (Darkstep Remix):


Active Child-Active Child is an indie electronic musician who specializes in incorporating the harp into his music. 
Playing House (Chad Valley Remix):


Bush-Bush reeased a remix album in the late 90s called "Deconstructed."  Some of the tracks were throwaways, but some were excellent.  Among the better ones was this gem.
In a Lonely Place (Tricky mix)


David Bowie-Bowie dabbled in electronic and synth music himself for part of his career.  As part of the deluxe edition of his album "Heathen", there was a second disc with rarer recordings.  This track was on that second disc.
A Better Future (Remix by Air)


Deadlock-Deadlock is a German extreme metal band that incorporates lots of electronic and dance beats into the grinding metal.  Their latest album "Bizarro World" includes two remixes.  This is the better one.
State of Decay (S.U.N. Project remix)


Natalie Walker-She is an excellent electronic jazz/trip hop artists.  Her EP "Quicksand" contained the original single plus four alternate version remixes.
Quicksand (Bautista remix)
Quicksand (Bautista Remix)

Sybreed-This Swiss metal band is sometimes referred to as deathwave music, which intends to mix extreme metal with new wave music.  I really like this band.  Their EP "Challenger" includes the original version of the track and four different remixes.
Challenger (Voician remix)


Thanks for reading and enjoy!