Category Italo

Jan 17 2012

80s Stallone’s ‘Beach’ EP

80s Stallone

Released next month on Silhouette Music is the new EP from SynthWave maestro 80s Stallone.

The ‘Beach’ EP’s title track is a thing of pure joy. Waves of nostalgia wash forth from vintage synth sounds creating this feel good, slightly Italo, vibe. I don’t know whether it’s the bouncy mid-‘80’s bassline or the SynthPop melodies, but there’s just something about this track that captures everything we love about retro synthesizer music, and put a smile on our faces while it does it. We covered the Jan Hammer-esque flipside a few months ago Cliffhanger and love it even more now. the rest of the EP is filled with some awesome reMix work from L’Equipe Du Son, who turn the title track into a night drive pulsar with a slight Psy Trance feel in the burbling riffs, and and some really smooth, laid back, electronic Disco from The Legendary 1979 Orchestra.

♫ 80s Stallone – Beach (Original Mix)

♫ 80s Stallone – Beach (L’Equipe Du Son reMix)

♫ 80s Stallone – Beach (The Legendary 1979 Orchestra reMix)

80s Stallone’s ‘Beach’ EP is released 13th February on Silhouette Music.

Buy 80s Stallone’s music from:

   

Jan 17 2012

Goin’ Old School: Hashim, Wish Key & Depeche Mode

Kicking off with one of my all time favourite tracks Hashim’s  ‘Al-Naafiysh (The Soul)’ from 1983. Often imitated, never bested. Such an influence.

Wish Key’s ‘Orient Express’ also from 1983. Italo, ElectroPop, Euro gold.

From 1981, Depeche Mode’s ‘Just Can’t Get Enough’. The track that started it all. No matter how many adverts you’ve heard it in the original is still awesome.

You can buy most of this  music from:

Jan 12 2012

Lazercat’s new single

lazercat

Out soon on Spirit Soul Music is the new double A-side single from Lazercat.

The Berlin based producer two new tunes, ‘Lovestruck’ and ‘Heartbeat’ are prefect examples of Housey cosmic SynthWave. ‘Lovestruck’ has got a nice late ‘80’s House/Italo digital bassline going on, proving a solid backing for some floaty retro synths to play around over the top. the combination of deep groove, bright melodies and an uplifting progression make this a pretty addictive track. it’s flip side ‘Heartbeat’ is a chilled synth Funk workout led by a smooth electric piano line and synth solo that’s pure ‘80’s Disco. A great atmospheric track.

♫ Lazercat – Lovestruck

♫ Lazercat – Heartbeat

The ‘Lovestruck’/’Heartbeat’ single is out soon.

Buy Lazercat’s music from:

    

Jan 10 2012

Zombi reMixed by Astronomer

Zombi

Here’s an amazing new reMix of Zombi ‘Slow Oscillations’,from their ‘Escape Velocity’ EP, from Alex Egan A.K.A. Astronomer.

Originally premiered on Daniel Avery (Stopmakingme)’s Divided Love’ cassette mix, this reworking of Steve Moore and A.E. Paterra’s Sci-Fi synth epic brings a dark, brooding, Italo flavour to the track. Astronomer strikes a nice balance between a cosmic journey and a deep groove for late night dancefloors.

♫ Zombi – Slow Oscillations (Astronomer reMix)

Check out more from Zombi on SoundCloud.

Buy Zombi’s music from:

      

Jan 10 2012

Todd Terje’s new EP

Todd Terje

Todd Terje’s ‘Inspector Norse’, from his forthcoming new EP  ‘It’s The Arps’, is already being hailed by some as the track of 2012.

The EP drops mid-January and the lead track is a Moroderfied synthetic Disco monster. Bouncy digital Italo bass, some amazing electro tom action and groovy little melodies all combine to create an awesome feel good  track that you can help but move to. The EP sounds like it’s gonna’ be a must buy.

♫ Todd Terje – Inspector Norse

Todd Terje’s  ‘It’s The Arps’ EP is released 16th January on his own Olsen imprint.

Buy Todd Terje’s music from:

      

Jan 9 2012

Jules Schimmer reMixes Aaron Alexis

Aaron Alexis

Ney York ElectroPop artist (and general renascence man) Aaron Alexis’ ‘Heart Box Smasher’ was an intimate, eclectic, slice of SynthPop we featured last summer, well that was until Manc retro synth man Jules Schimmer got his hands on it. Now it’s a huge slap of ‘80’s electronic Pop.

Schimmer brings that particularly ‘80’s combination of bouncy and moody to the tune with a slight Italo flavour and some deep pads. Crafting a tune that could easily work as the theme tune to a mid-‘80’s TV show about a crime fighting Casanova, the combination of Aaron’s soulful vocals and Jules’ RoboPop is something that works amazingly well. We need to hear more from these two, separately, and maybe more together too.

♫ Aaron Alexis – Heart Box Smasher (Jules Schimmer reMix)

Check out more from Aaron Alexis on SoundCloud.

Dec 29 2011

The electronic rumors Awards: BEST SONG – electronic rumors’ top 20 songs of 2011!!!

2011 Best Song

So here we are.

After a year when the current wave of ElectroPop, Nu-Disco, SynthWave, Nu-Italo and Dreamwave all seemed to find a maturity, seemed to suddenly become a lot more confortable with themselves and their groove, we find ourselves with a nearly impossible job for picking the top twenty songs of the year, and a winner.

To those we missed, or forgot, we’re sorry. We’ll be beating ourselves up about it for weeks to come as some awesome track from January slides back into our brain, but it’s time to stop worrying and just go for it. So here it is.

And our top song of the year comes from She’s The Queen, it’s the lead track on their self-titled début EP and it’s one of the slickest ElectroPop tracks you’ll ever hear. Because, over the year just gone, I have grown to call She’s The Queen’s Drew and Emily friends I actively tried not to place them in the top spot. So concerned was I about bias that I sought out tracks that had more of an impact on me in 2011, anything that could reaffirm my sense of integrity and make me not give the number one place to mates. But I just couldn’t. Whether friends or not, there is no two ways about it, ‘Waiting Game’ is the track I have rocked to the most this year, the track I have been most impressed with, the track that is, without doubt, electronic rumors’ Best Song of 2011.

electronic rumors’ best song: 2011

01: She’s The Queen – Waiting Game

♫ She’s The Queen – Waiting Game

…and the rest of the list:

02: Vanbot – Make Me, Break Me

♫ Vanbot – Make Me, Break Me

03: M83 – Midnight City

♫ M83 – Midnight City

04: Cordova – Paradigm

♫ Cordova – Paradigm

05: MiGHty mOUse – Between The Pavement And The Stars

♫ MiGHty mOUse – Between The Pavement And The Stars

06: Queen Of Hearts – Shoot The Bullet

♫ Queen Of Hearts – Shoot The Bullet

07: Holy Ghost! – Wait & See

♫ Holy Ghost! – Wait & See

08: Ronika – Wiyoo

♫ Ronika – Wiyoo

09: The Magician (Feat. Jeppe) – I Don’t Know What To Do

♫ The Magician (Feat. Jeppe) – I Don’t Know What To Do

10: Monsieur Adi – Fire Fire Fire

♫ Monsieur Adi – Fire Fire Fire

11: Electric Youth – Coming Right Back To You

♫ Electric Youth – Coming Right Back To You

12: Peter & The Magician – Twist

♫ Peter & The Magician – Twist

13: Jordan F – Definitely Miami

♫ Jordan F – Definitely Miami

14: Short Circuit – How We Speak

♫ Short Circuit – How We Speak

15: Clancy – Panther

♫ Clancy – Panther

16: Substatic – Gold

♫ Substatic – Gold

17: LIGHTS – Toes

♫ LIGHTS – Toes

18: Bright Light Bright Light – Disco Moment

♫ Bright Light Bright Light – Disco Moment

19: Justice (Feat. Ali Love) – Civilisation

♫ Justice (Feat. Ali Love) – Civilisation

20: Xeno & Oaklander – The Staircase

♫ Xeno & Oaklander – The Staircase

As always, you should definitely pick up some of these songs, they are all highly recommended and most can be purchased here:

Dec 29 2011

The electronic rumors Awards: READERS’ CHOICE – electronic rumors’ 10 most downloaded tracks of 2011!!!

2011 Readers Choice

Next we come to what we have optimistically called the Reader’s Choice award.

This was quite a last minute idea, we liked the idea of having an open category but really, who wants to run a poll at X-Mas? No us! So this award was given based on the number of downloads the track received, which is quite a nice representation of popularity. Of course it doesn’t take into account streaming only tracks, or videos we’ve shown, or tracks readers may have dug that we didn’t feature, but we think it nicely represents what readers have been excited about this year.

And we have a winner, the track most downloaded from electronic rumors in 2011. Fear Of Tigers’ reMix of ‘Bulletproof’ by La Roux. First given away be Mr. Tigers as a thank you to everyone who sponsored his London marathon run this year, to raise money for WSPA (World Society for the Protection of Animals). It’s an storming reMix that really should have made the official single. With a huge big room take on ElectroPop it’s no surprise that this mix as so popular.

electronic rumors’ readers’ choice: 2011

01: La Roux – Bulletproof (Fear Of Tigers reMix)

♫ La Roux – Bulletproof (Fear Of Tigers reMix)

…and the rest of the list:

02: HURTS – Better Than Love (Marsheaux reMix)

♫ HURTS – Better Than Love (Marsheaux reMix)

03: Lykke Li – I Follow Rivers (The Magician reMix)

♫ Lykke Li – I Follow Rivers (The Magician reMix)

04: Madeon – For You

♫ Madeon – For You

05: Gypsy And The Cat – Jona Vark (Starsmith reMix)

♫ Gypsy And The Cat – Jona Vark (Starsmith reMix)

06: RüFüS – Paris Collides

♫ RüFüS – Paris Collides

07: Dirty Vegas – Electric Love (Cassette Club reMix)

♫ Dirty Vegas – Electric Love (Cassette Club reMix)

08: Avril Lavigne – What The Hell (Robots With Rayguns Mix)

♫ Avril Lavigne – What The Hell (Robots With Rayguns Mix)

09: Chromeo (Feat. Elly Jackson From La Roux) – Hot Mess (Duck Sauce reMix)

♫ Chromeo (Feat. Elly Jackson From La Roux) – Hot Mess (Duck Sauce reMix)

10: The Human League – Sky (Plastic Plates reMix)

♫ The Human League – Sky (Plastic Plates reMix)

As always, you should definitely pick up some of these tracks, they are all highly recommended and most can be purchased here:

Dec 29 2011

The electronic rumors Awards: BEST ALBUM – electronic rumors’ top 20 albums of 2011!!!

2011Best Album

With fewer and fewer albums being released in favour of more cost-effective EPs and singles the Best Album category becomes harder and harder to preside over, luckily for us there were some choice cuts this year and some amazing records dropped.

The winner was very nearly going to be Mitch Murder‘s recently released ‘Current Events’. Which, to my mind, is the best SynthWave/Outrun/Dreamwave album ever made. However, the album that has kept us constantly rocking this year has to be Holy Ghost!’s self-titled début. Although I had loved the previous singles I really didn’t expect the album to be this damn good throughout, it was fresh, well written, and sounded like nothing else. It’s a record that is crammed full of potential singles and does an seriously good job of mixing up ElectroPop and New York Disco with a hint of Indie-Electro to make something that appeals to Indie Kids, SynthPopsters and Disco Heads alike.

electronic rumors’ best album: 2011

01: Holy Ghost! – Holy Ghost! (DFA)

♫ Holy Ghost! – Do It Again

…and the rest of the list:

02: Mitch Murder – Current Events (Rosso Corsa Records)

♫ Mitch Murder – Telefuture Theme

03: Cinnamon Chasers – Science (Modus Records)

♫ Cinnamon Chasers – Tattoo

04: Monarchy – Around The Sun (Hacan Sound /100% Records)

♫ Monarchy – Maybe I’m Crazy

05: Johan Agebjörn And Friends – Casablanca Nights (Paper Bag Records)

♫ Johan Agebjörn & Ercola (Feat. Queen Of Hearts) – The Last Day Of Summer

06: Fabian – Say Goodbye (Binary)

♫ Fabian – Last Flight

07: Com Truise – Galactic Melt (Ghostly International)

♫ Com Truise – Ether Drift

08: Yelle – Safari Disco Club (V2 Records International)

♫ Yelle – Que Veux-Tu

09: Shine 2009 – Realism (Cascine)

♫ Shine 2009 (Feat. Paula Abdul) – So Free

10: The Sound Of Arrows – Voyage (Skies Above)

♫ The Sound Of Arrows – M.A.G.I.C.

11: Vanbot – Vanbot (Lisch Recordings)

♫ Vanbot – Lost Without You

12: Shelby Grey – The Music Is On His Side (Holographic People)

♫ Shelby Grey – April’s Legacy

13: Soft Metals – Soft Metals (Captured Tracks)

♫ Soft Metals – Psychic Driving

14: M83 – Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming (Mute)

♫ M83 – OK Pal

15: Washed Out – Within And Without (Sub Pop Records)

♫ Washed Out – Amor Fati

16: The Human League – Credo (Wall Of Sound/[PIAS] Entertainment Group)

♫ The Human League – Sky

17: Mirrors – Lights And Offerings (Skint Records)

♫ Mirrors – Into The Heart

18: Noir Deco – Future To Fantasy (Playmaker Ent.)

♫ Noir Deco (Feat. MPM Soundtracks) – Journeys

19: Ladytron – Gravity The Seducer (Nettwerk)

♫ Ladytron – White Elephant

20: Camille R – Last Limit (Self Released)

♫ Camille R – 100 $

As always, you should definitely pick up some of these albums, they are all highly recommended and most can be purchased here:

Dec 29 2011

The electronic rumors Awards: BEST REMIX – electronic rumors’ top 20 reMixes of 2011!!!

2011Best Remix

Let’s kick things off with one of the biggies. Best reMix.

Compiling 03-20 was tough, this year has been amazing for reMixes, it seems like every release in 2011 came loaded with quality versions. There were so many singles released this year that it was nearly impossible to choose your favourite mix off of. As ever, I’m sure there are tracks we have forgotten, and tracks we will be kicking ourselves for not including when they are pointed out to us, and tracks we will remember tomorrow.

The winner though, and the runner up, were always destined for the top slots from the moment they dropped. In the first half of 2011 I would have said that Ride The Universe’s reMix of Chromeo’s ‘Hot Mess’ was definitely going to be number one, and that was only very closely snatched away when Madonna Of The Midlands™ Ronika released ‘Only Only’ complete with Fear Of Tigers take on the track. Both mixes are jaw-droopingly good, light years ahead of the competition, with Fear Of Tigers just taking the top spot with nostalgia points for weaving elements of late ‘80’s Dance Music into it’s Electro tapestry and making us go all glassy eyed. Combining a Bomb The Bass vibe with contemporary ElectroPop and Nu-Disco, Fear Of Tigers created a vibrant, exciting, make-you-jump-out-of-your-seat track for Ronika’s get-down vocals, it’s the prefect package. While Ride The Universe’s talk-box Funk was my hottest track for most of the year. Innovative and fresh, their reMix of ‘Hot Mess’ is easily the best out there.

electronic rumors’ best reMix: 2011

01: Ronika – Only Only (Fear Of Tigers reMix)

♫ Ronika – Only Only (Fear Of Tigers reMix)

…and the rest of the list:

02: Chromeo – Hot Mess (Ride The Universe reMix)

♫ Chromeo – Hot Mess (Ride The Universe reMix)

03: Housse De Racket – Roman (Oliver reMix)

♫ Housse De Racket – Roman (Oliver reMix)

04: Fenech-Soler – Demons (Yuksek Vocal reMix)

♫ Fenech-Soler – Demons (Yuksek Vocal reMix)

05: Foster The People – Pumped Up Kicks (Gigamesh reMix)

♫ Foster The People – Pumped Up Kicks (Gigamesh reMix)

06: Yuksek – On A Train (The Magician reMix)

♫ Yuksek – On A Train (The Magician reMix)

07: Yelle – Que Veux Tu (Madeon reMix)

♫ Yelle – Que Veux Tu (Madeon reMix)

08: Chilly Gonzales – You Can Dance (Walter Sobcek reMix)

♫ Chilly Gonzales – You Can Dance (Walter Sobcek reMix)

09: Futurecop! – Starworshipper (MPM Soundtracks reMix)

♫ Futurecop! – Starworshipper (MPM Soundtracks reMix)

10: Queen Of Hearts – Where Are You Now? (StardonE reMix)

♫ Queen Of Hearts – Where Are You Now? (StardonE reMix)

11: Kimbra – Cameo Lover (Shook reMix)

♫ Kimbra – Cameo Lover (Shook reMix)

12: Kamp! – Cairo (Moullinex reMix)

♫ Kamp! – Cairo (Moullinex reMix)

13: Worship – Find You (Justin Faust reMix)

♫ Worship – Find You (Justin Faust reMix)

14: AXXE – Sweet Stuff (Ride The Universe reMix)

♫ AXXE – Sweet Stuff (Ride The Universe reMix)

15: Mustang – Shooting Love (Fat Club Mix)

♫ Mustang – Shooting Love (Fat Club Mix)

16: The Good Natured – Skeleton (Grum reMix)

♫ The Good Natured – Skeleton (Grum reMix)

17: Gypsy And The Cat – Jona Vark (Starsmith reMix)

♫ Gypsy And The Cat – Jona Vark (Starsmith reMix)

18: Tyson – After You’re Gone (The Magician reMix)

♫ Tyson – After You’re Gone (The Magician reMix)

19: Niki & The Dove – Mother Protect (Goldroom reMix)

♫ Niki & The Dove – Mother Protect (Goldroom reMix)

20: The Human League – Never Let Me Go (Aeroplane reMix)

♫ The Human League – Never Let Me Go (Aeroplane reMix)

As always, you should definitely pick up some of these reMixes, they are all highly recommended and most can be purchased here: