We’ve already blogged about Acid Washed, Paris-based chill-space maestros. This time they return with a take on Kelis, the rnb princess. As Kunk loves a good mix of genres, we were naturally curious about what can be accomplished here. You might expect, after the trippy and umm “acid-y” single, “Change”, this remix stays on this end of the scale. Of course, Kelis’s new song is not traditional rnb material, she went in an electro-disco influenced direction. The atmosphere is somewhere near the Hercules and Love Affair authentic disco sound. Daring move. Acid Washed tap right into the coolest aspect of the track and add a hypnotic beat that carries us throught their remix with subtle tension builds and falls. They shoot Kelis’s disco right out to some higher spheres that reach deep inside one’s mind…and legs.

Kelis – Acapella (Acid Washed remix) [mediafire] // [ysi]

Kunkers are still in recovery mode after last weekend’s shenanigans — however, no rest for the wicked as we’ve got quite the barnburner coming up this April 30, at Merlin, presented together with our mates, Kollektiva. Joining us in Budapest will be no less than the so-called ‘Andy Warhol of dance music’ and godfather of all things filthy, dirty, and electro: Larry Tee!

In typical Kunk pre-party fashion we’ve got some tracks to share and an interview with the man himself. So, get your fill after the jump!

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Perpetual Kunk faves Thieves Like Us new album (Again and Again) is coming out next month. You previously saw and heard the Never Known Love single here not too long ago… next up is Forget Me Not, which is naturally accompanied by its own remix package. This track follows in a similar vein to the first preview release — it’s evocative of the yearn for romantic memory — introspective, but not sullen. Look for the album on May 7 through deBonton in Europe and Shelf-Life in the U.S.

Of the below, we’re particularly fond of the Not Second Date remix… and, to get a taste of the original, it can be streamed here: http://www.7digital.com/artists/thieves-like-us/forget-me-not/01-Forget-Me-Not/

The single will be released in full next week.

Thieves Like Us – Forget Me Not (Not Second Date Remix) [mediafire] // [ysi]

Thieves Like Us – Forget Me Not (Cécile Small Town Girl Remix) [mediafire] // [ysi]

Thieves Like Us – Forget Me Not (Sundance Remix) [mediafire] // [ysi]

So this Florrie girl has a song called Panic Attack which clearly has some muscle behind it in terms of flexing up on the remix front. Some nice names have had a go including Falke and Bitfunk. Thankfully, Justin Faust also jumped in to spin his magic and in the humble opinion of our ears, saves the track — or at least makes us think a lot less about the slightly inane lyrics. Might even go so far as to say he should release this entirely sans vocals, chop in some sweet 70s sample loops, label it as 2001-era Kylie Minogue and own it outright. We thinks it would go down quite well at that angle.

Well, we’ll leave the additional commentary as it stands for your consideration –  for the moment, simply classify this as some more wickedly fun electro-pop from the Bavarian wizard and keep your ears peeled for his next effort!

Note: The bro pictured above is the Faust. The woman pictured above is not Florrie.

Florrie – Panic Attack (Justin Faust Remix) [mediafire] // [ysi]

I woke up with a terrible fucking headache today and it occured to me that I’d like to write a post about one of my all-time favourite bands, Refused. In case you don’t know them, they were a Swedish hardcore band in the 90s. First album was out in 1994, last one, the super-influental The Shape of Punk to Come came out in 98. I titled the post ‘Rediscovering Tomorrow’ because, as some of you might know it, Kunk has this little party series under the same title. Our concept is having a concept: to recapture some sounds of the past that are shaping the present and future. So it seemed appropriate to mirror this on the blog. Every once in while I’ll write a post under this title.

“The destruction of everything is the beginning of something new
Your new world is on fire and soon you’ll be too”

Now with Refused, it is undeniable that the spirit is still active today. I got to know them late, in 2001-2002. It was a revolutionary experience. By then, I was into punk for a long time but Refused were the first instance when I met proper hardcore. The middle-finger attitude, the super heavy guitars, the psychotic screaming and the radical political lyrics shot the band right into my heart. I was amazed at the legend (nevertheless true) of their last show in a basement of a house that ended in a police raid while Refused were playing “Rather Be Dead” and the police pulled the plug. So when I get to know them 4 years later, they still seemed to be some kind of symbol of radical rock and roll. Anarchy, system-shock, fuck the establishment…it’s Angry Young Men for the 90s and the 2000s as well. Now it is clear that the ideology did not take over the music, on the contrary, the music created the whole atmosphere of ideology as an aesthetic projection of their raw power. Career-wise, it is visible as a line of change that the dry hardcore of the first album is carried on with a more complex classic rock and metal influenced sound on Songs to Fan the Flames of Discontent and becomes something apparently unique on The Shape of Punk to Come that has the awesome dynamic of slow-sensitive vocal parts and the hardcore choruses and their alterations. Seriously, it’s music that can kickstart a revolution. It is something that commits arson in your soul, aggressively subverts and integrates your inner protest into a larger framework. Refused are fucking dead but something equally heavy and magnificiently evil has to come, and in the spirit of rediscovering tomorrow, I wait for a band to tie up music and liberation in a similar strong tour de force.

“This is the beat of a new generation”

Refused – Back In Black (AC/DC cover) [mediafire] // [ysi]

Refused – Pump the Brakes [mediafire] // [ysi]

Refused – Coup D’Etat [mediafire] // [ysi]

Refused – Live Wire (Mötley Crüe cover) [mediafire] // [ysi]

Refused – Liberation Frequency [mediafire] // [ysi]

We first dropped some KOLT13 love last summer and it’s long overdue to revisit what’s been happening with the French producer. Specifically in fact: Love at the Speed of Light — with which we’re definitely getting vibes of Symbol One’s Love Juice Danger remix (perhaps after enough juice one reaches the speed of light?) and it all lines up famously with the vocals.

The track is pretty spot on for those moments when you wanna experience a little slo-mo epic trance to accompany your epic blunt-rolling, bitch-macking nights out. The track is preview-ish, truncated to a slightly lesser length than the eventual release will be.

Props to trashbags and others on the track.

KOLT13 featuring WEB – Love at the Speed of Light [mediafire] // [ysi]

Acid Washed is some trippy, er, acid-influenced sounding comsic-disco coming from a pair out of Paris. Change meanders along a path which evokes a moment you might have in Ibiza after that fast stuff has started to wear off, but the slow stuff is starting to kick-in (yes, it’s a thinly veiled drug reference). Their tracks are generated from both vintage as well as modern equipment, and that comes through in the variation of sounds you’ll pick up from this track, especially with headphones on.

The result of all this is fusion of late nineties French house vibes and DFA disco touches, while also acknowledging the influence of Chicago and Detroit without being overly reverential.

Pick up some Acid Washed gear here: http://shop.recordmakers.com/catalog/

And order through iTunes here: http://itunes.apple.com/artist/acid-washed/id339219409

Acid Washed – Change [mediafire] // [ysi]

This isn’t material that’s exactly hot of the presses, however i’ve been in a Miike Snow mood of late. The Swedish/American trio with the solo artist-sounding name remain one of the freshest sounding things going nearly one year on from their self-titled first release. Perhaps not surprisingly, to my ears their sound is not so far removed from another trio consisting of two Swedes and an American, Thieves Like Us.

So, apropos of not much more than my current mood, revisit the first single, Animal, another tasty one, Song For No One, and finally, my remix of the year for 2009, for Peter, Bjorn & John’s It Don’t Move Me. May the snow continue to fall heavily this summer. They’ll be touring primarily in the US, but with occasional gigs in Europe later this year.

Miike Snow – Animal [mediafire] // [ysi]

Miike Snow – Song For No One [mediafire] // [ysi]

Peter, Bjorn & John – It Don’t Move Me (Miike Snow Remix) [mediafire] // [ysi]

“Yeah we were born free // can’t you see? // it’s our destiny” – bursts the chorus of a hip and new NYC band, The Rassle. Not sure if this means the end of The Young Lords and/or The Virgins, since it’s composed of their members, but if it does, it is a cool, phoenix-like rise from the ashes. They’ve just launched their new EP which is a free download and was recorded in an appartment with a cheap mic and an old computer. This is the lo-fi part. Their music is super-catchy, good-natured garage stuff. Obvious comparison is BRMC’s Howl . The differ in the innocent attitude, the naive romanticism and untainted leaning on 60s garage pop. Spice it with original US ‘hallelujahs’ and even southern country charisma and it’s a great recepie for awesomeness. My favourite song from the EP is “Born Free” (see the quote), such an uplifting spring-comming-of-summer anthem. Makes you wanna do cheesy stuff like go out to the fictional open fields of the teenage myths and lie in the fictional grass with fictional girl from youthful dreams. However, the music is so good that it makes you believe it. Give The Rassle love on myspace/facebook/twitter.

The Rassle – Born Free [mediafire] // [ysi]

Punches is a new outfit out of Brooklyn comprising Finger on the Pulse, Alan Astor and The Kid Rob… the three of whom wanted to ‘punch’ out a new sound for summer. To kick-off this venture, they’ve crafted an ear catching mixtape containing an ear catching remix of the wistful Only You Can Make You Happy, by muses to many, Au Revoir Simone. You’ll recognize the essence of the original, but not much else, as Punches elevates the track into a disco-infused call to summer jamming. Kunkers are severely digging it.

For the moment you can find the original, the remix (soundcloud stream only for now) and the full mixtape, below… which also includes some Punches originals, Let Go, and Feeling Right, both of which give clear indication that ‘brown skin and cinnamon tans’, will be in full effect very soon!

Au Revoir Simone – Only You Can Make You Happy [mediafire] // [ysi]

Au Revoir Simone – Only You Can Make You Happy (PUNCHES Remix) by punchesbk

Punches – Somebody Has To Help You mixtape [mediafire] // [ysi]

Tracklist

• Romanthony – Hold On
• PUNCHES – Let Go
• Panther Hands – Young Gifted and Brown
• Chicane ft Tom Jones – Stoned In Love (Young Punx Remix)
• Swick – Grow Up (Cassian Remix)
• Au Revoir Simone – Only You Can Make You Happy (PUNCHES Remix)
• Classixx – I’ll Get You (Treasure Fingers Remix)
• Ellie Goulding – Starry Eyed (Russ Chimes Remix)
• Figure & Sleepy T – It’s Only Love
• Haritas – Your Love
• PUNCHES ft Alan Astor – Feeling Right