Lemonade

Birthed in San Francisco and now based in the hot bed that is Brooklyn (and as a result, they to me don't sound anything at all like what I might consider to be 'Brooklyn sounding') are Callan Clendenin, Alex Pasternak and Ben Steidel, collectively known as Lemonade.

Their upcoming single 'Big Weekend' was recorded and mixed by Chris Coady (TV on the Radio, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, !!!, Blonde Redhead) - the name dropping leading me to wonder who of the Brooklyn scene would be the musical equivalent of the six degrees of Kevin Bacon.

Anyway, call me a total cheese whore, but I'm a sucker for a cowbell. I got drawn in with one at the intro of the single; then the disco bassline came in, the housey synths dropped and I was hooked. 'Big Weekend' is a track full of incredibly eclectic elements that perhaps could be interpreted as making up a big weekend; and musically might be a little confusing if it wasn't so infectious.

I'm eager to hear what else Lemonade have to offer on their debut album dropping in early August via Sunday Best. In the meantime here's L-Vis 1990 cut; this remix making the track more minimal, sober and a little more marching, cutting up the drums and adding plenty of distortion.

Buraka Som Sistema

Photograph by Richard Kelly

When I interviewed Joao, Kalaf and Conductor of Buraka Som Sistema in 2008, the boys explained to me what the now upcoming single - due out in the UK on the 20th of July - 'IC 19' is actually about...

JOAO: There’s a song on the album called IC 19; it’s actually a road. We did that song cause a lot of people, well, do you know about tuning here? Like when people race…[illegal car racing]

KALAF: It’s kinda like pimp my ride –

JOAO: No, pimp my ride is kinda like ‘make my car look beautiful’. Tuning is like, make my car go 300km per hour and make a lot of noise. And that road, during the day time, is the busiest road in the whole country...So we named the song that, cause if I was driving my car while listening to that song, it would make me want to step on the gas.

[CLICK HERE TO READ THE WHOLE INTERVIEW]

And you know what, the track is actually pretty fast and the furious; reminiscent of revving up an engine to a roaring frenzy of adrenaline pumping percussion and undulating electronica - even the pauses in the song are like a sports car shifting gears. The track has been remixed by James Talk, A1 Bassline, Mikix the Cat and Deathface (half of the brains behind the now extinct Guns'n'Bombs).

The two best remixes of the package (cop them below) are James Talk's and A1 Bassline's. James Talk's edit has more of a [Tokyo] drift feel with a kind of tropical flair, maracas decorating the beat.

[Removed on request]

A1 Bassline add in what I like to call 'wowow' (check the track, you'll get what I mean) and develop 'IC 19' into more of a journey with some awesome peaks and dance-outs.

[Removed on request]

Deathface keep it pretty cut and dried, whilst giving it more of a zippy toy car cruising feel rather than a raging machine, building the track into a zippy little number. Vrrrroooooom.

And for extra measure, here's the L-Vis 1990 remix that didn't make it onto the single as well, with it's deep hyper rubber bass.

The best new band in Kitsuné's catalog since La Roux circa 08, Crystal Fighters are finally releasing their amazing debut single, 'Xtatic Truth'. Think of an electro song created to be listened at the night, a song that was born to be a rave anthem - if they played good songs at raves that is. Strong fuming synths, a hypnotic chorus spiced with a delicious Spanish accent, classic Basque instruments and the girls contributing with delicate vocals - basically a song that everybody needs to start playing at the clubs as soon as possible.

Auspiciously, a track with such strong personality got an equally stunning  video as unique as the song. It's not something to describe, just turn off the lights, put the player on full screen, turn the volume up to the max and enjoy. You shouldn't ignore the lyrics on this one either: "Standing on the world alone, learning how to stand alone, and always to be alone, we'll be alone forever."

You know it wouldn't be Kitsuné if the single didn't come with loads of remixes. Even though all the five of them (Xtra loud , Maybb, Magistrates, Renaissance Man and Micromattic) are good reinterpretations of the original, none have as much impact as the original - although I do like the Magistrates one. We also heard that the single will be released in the USA via Steve Aoki's Dim Mak and will feature another remix, this time by L-Vis 1990.