Liner Notes: Boy Crisis "L'Homme" (Trackademicks Remix)

From "The [Re]Mixtape Vol. 3"

"I'm feeling like a monster truck at a botanical garden."

Ummmm... How can you NOT love this...

I've been around long enough to realize everything happens for a reason. This remix is just another notch on that tree.

Awhile back I was checking my myspace, as I do from time to time, when I received a message from this group called Boy Crisis. At the time I was unfamiliar with them. However, after reading the message one of the members sent, I realized I was more familiar than I knew. Apparently, the author of this particular myspace message was none other than my old school, high school patna, Victor. This is crazy because he is from my hometown, when to my high school, AND was in the same after school program as most of the HNRL. In fact, he even drew a mixtape cover for Tap.10's first DJ crew, The Golden Plate Warriors.

Unbeknownst to us, he'd been in pretty busy in Brooklyn as frontman for Boy Crisis and his other group Das Racist. So when he and the label approached me for a remix, I was down. I thought all of our mutual friends would get a kick out of it.

After all is said and done, my this is one of my favorite remixes. This is about as Breezy as it gets.

And for the record... Boy Crisis' "Ganglion of Lightnings"... Ohhhh Weeeeee!!! (Although the Jesus beard is a little scary...)

HILARIOUS...

Liner Notes: Zero 7 feat. Eska "Medicine Man" (Trackademicks Remix)

*Swipe from previous post, Trackademicks x Zero 7

I've come to learn that it's extremely funny how things work out. The universe tends to foreshadow happenings in ways that you may just miss them if you're not paying attention.

Back in '05, Tap and went to London and got a chance to kick it out there for a brief stint. During that time, we got a chance to connect with Eska . At the time she was really making a lot of noise in London. Just in case you're unfamilar, her voice is the $h!t. Since that time, she's gone on to work with one of my favorites, Matthew Herbert . Wow.

When I got commissioned to remix Zero 7's upcoming single, I was speechless. I've been a fan for a minute. I remember hearing Bugz in the Attic flip "Distractions"... Sia's voice was amazing. I had the pleasure of catching them at the Hollywood Bowl along with Matthew Herbert and Gotan Project. That show was off the hook.

So when I got the parts for "Medicine Man", I heard a familiar voice on the track. It turned out that Eska was the featured vocalist. It also turns out that she is on more that a few songs on the album. After meeting her, we never got the chance to do any music, so this remix kind of brings everything full circle.

Enjoy!

Available NOW in the UK Exclusively!!!
Zero 7 "Medicine Man" (Remixes) - EP
iTunes UK

[RE]Mixtape Vol. 3 Release Party Photos

Overpacked venue.
Hour long line.
Mayer Hawthorne
Donwill.
The HNRL.

This past thursday's [Re]Mixtape Release Party at PST was epic to say the least.

Photos:
Mr E. (Papalote)
Scott La Rockwell

Shout out to EVERYONE who came out and celebrated with us!


And if you couldn't make it... Don't trip. There will be plenty of HNRL release to make up your attendance!

[Re]Mixtape Vol. 3 Release party This Thurs @ PST in SF!!!

You already know.

Its going DOWN.

There's no where else you should be.

Liner Notes: PPP "On A Cloud" (Trackademicks Remix)

Swipe previous post, Chillin On A Cloud With PPP

The first time I ever got a chance see Platinum Pied Pipers was back in '04 at Milk in San Francisco. They had already dropped the "Ridin' High"/"Open Your Eyes" 12", but I still wasn't sure what to expect from them. At that point the group was more hype than buzz in the Bay, but after seeing the show it became evident that PPP was something to pay attention to. And to put icing on the cake, the show introduced us to two women who have proven they to had something to offer the game: Tioimbe Lockhart and Georgia Anne Muldrow. I officially became a fan it all.

I finally got to meet Waajeed at Magic in '06. Dope dude. His only advice on the industry was simple. "Get Your MuthaF#@$%& Money!".

How insightful.
No really.



The fact that this remix actually happened shows that Tap and I actually have the power to will things into existence. I can't explain it, but somehow, through a string of events, I knew this would happen. When I finally got the acapella, I instantly fell in love with Karma's vocals. I decided to bring the track into my realm, while still preserving its funk roots. The horns in my version arent the same horns from the original. I wanted to mimic the original, while bringing a sampled element to it. The only request/guideline I recieved about the direction of the remix was to keep it on the dancefloor. So I had to keep it electric.

Go and buy it.
Buy it now.
The wax is available in stores.
It's on Itunes.

Get that, Get that!!!!

Trackadeezy.
Holler.

[Re]Cover Art.

"Is that your studio on the cover of the [Re}Mixtape?"

I am asked this quite frequently, in which I reply, "Why, yes, it is!"...

Then I am flooded with a range of questions/comments...

"Nord Lead. I got one too."

"KRKs eh? Got those too."

"IMac. Couldn't afford a Mac Pro?"

"An Mbox?!?! Is that it?"

And while I don't respond to all of them, here's the answer to one question i really don't mind answering:

Q: "Nice Cover Art. Who did it?"

A: She Did.

http://nevertoomuchnevertoomuch.blogspot.com/2008/06/cover-art.html

Holler!

RMXTP2 Liner Notes: "That Girl"

Pharrell “That Girl” feat. Snoop Dog (Trackademicks Remix)

This was the first remix I did after reviving the Band Room from the fire in late ‘06. This remix is funny because I knew exactly how it was going to sound two months before I made it. At the point I decided to make the remix, I hadn’t even recouped my equipment yet. I beatboxed the arrangement on to my PDA while driving. If you ever have the pleasure of rollin’ up beside me on the freeway, prepare to be entertained; I put on a good show… The car is where most of my ideas stem from.

When I finally got most of my equipment back and everything setup, I made a couple beats and started working on it. Snoop is one of the fre$hest out there, super consistent. I really wanted to hear Snoop on another hype, so I took it there. I did the track with the Juno-60 and the Nord Lead, finally finishing it up with some help from my brother on guitar.

Pharrell- That Girl (Trackdemicks Breeze Mix).mp3

RMXTP2 Liner Notes: "Let It Go"

Keyshia Cole “Let It Go” feat. Trackademicks and Josie Stringray (Trackademicks Remix)

DJ Tap.10 is a funny dude. As the official A&R of the Honor Roll, you can hear his ideas at work through a lot of the music we do. He is a vital part of the crew’s creative process. With that said, he never really lets the power go to his head by making outlandish demands. But when it comes to Oakland’s own Keyshia Cole it’s a different story. He a was like, “J, you HAVE to do this remix! Keyshia’s from here… It only makes sense!” I already knew it was hard for Tap to resist a good flip of the classic Mtume break. I didn’t need too much convincing since “I Changed My Mind” was one of my favorite remixes off the first [Re]Mixtape. I laced this remix in the same vein as the original. I wasn’t trying to too far off with this one, just stay right in the pocket. In order to finish this one, I had to get Josie to “let it go”… ¡Voila! ¡Holla!

Keyshia Cole "I Changed My Mind" (Trackademicks Remix) .mp3

RMXTP2 Liner Notes: “I Want You Back”

I usually don’t touch songs I love this much. I went back on that rule more than a few times during this [Re]Mixtape. When first heard this song I was instantly hooked. At the time, I was going through it. Raphael Saadiq is one of the best producers, if not the best, from of the Bay. This was by far the most mobbin’ song on the album, an offering already full of slap. “I Want You Back” was one of the two songs on the album featuring Teedra Moses, the other being “Chic”. Teedra’s debut album Complex Simplicity was pretty much my favorite album of 2004… It definitely got more burn than any other record I was listening to that year. On that project, Saadiq produced and featured on “Take Me”, where his signature strings and guitar provided the PERFECT cupcakin’ soundtrack.

I really did this remix to pay homage to two of my favorite artists. When approaching this remix, I wanted to bring that “future-throwback” sound, on that new millennium Cherelle & Alexander O’Neal steelo. Eventually I would love to work with both of them. Rephrase that. MUST work with them. Both. This isn’t the first time I remixed either of them. Check out my rework of Saadiq’s “Rifle Love” on the first [Re]Mixtape. I also did a remix of Teedra Moses’ “Be Your Girl”…

Raphael Saadiq “I Want You Back” feat. Teedra Moses.mp3

RMXTP2 Liner Notes: “WesternSlapademickTenderSmobbinCosmicMusic”

The first time I heard OutKast in middle school, I couldn’t get it out my head. “Players Ball” and “Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik” were the probably some of the most important records in my musical foundation. The musicality appealed to my love of west coast hip-hop at the time. The way Dre and Big Boi bobbed and weaved in and out of that good doubled-up rhyme style was similar to how rappers got down in Oakland. Everything from the music, to the image, to the message was so deliberate. The term “Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik” was such a fresh and articulate way of describing a sound so multifaceted. Not to mention it ushered in a new era for southern hip-hop.

So when it came to inevitably having to throw my brand of music in a category for the sake of explanation, I took a cue from the best group in hip-hop (yes, I said the best), and threw my own term together. I could breakdown all the slanguage in the term “WesternSlapademickTenderSmobbinCosmicMusic”, but I'll let the music speak for itself…

Outkast “Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik” mp3.

FREE DOWNLOAD!! TRACKADEMICKS [RE]MIXTAPE 2 mixed by DJ TAP.10

The [Re]Mixtape Vol.2 is FINALLY HERE!!!!

After many, MANY months of waiting, The [Re]Mixtape Vol. 2 is finally here! If you haven't had the pleasure of catching us at a show or in traffic, then get ready...

In the upcoming days I will be posting a series of liner notes right here about each of the tracks on he The [Re]Mixtape Vol. 2, so check back frequently... I'll also be posting exclusive mp3s to go along with them...

Treat this link like a some good gossip and SHARE it with EVERYONE you know (or would like to know... wink wink)!

YadidaHoller!!!!