by Paul V.

Singled Out

Fantasia feat. Big Boi - Hood Boy - J Records

Oh yeah, girl—you finally hooked me. I never cared a lick about Fantasia, but damn this track is so damn fresh, fierce and funkdafied! Throw in that dope Supremes’ sample and Miss Fantasia works it like Missy mackin’ Beyoncé. Hotness!

A Touch of Class - ATOC Still Sucks! - ATOC

Hovering on the musical map between electro disco and indie dance rock, New York duo A Touch of Class are mix masters supreme who’ve added their frothy electronics and genius production to some of the hippest acts around. This second installment of their knob-twiddling tweaks and beats is the first genius dance record of the year, and you’d be hard-pressed to sit still while it’s spinning. You’ve probably already shaken your groove thang to these remixes over the past year or so, too. Kicking it all off is their pitch-perfect extension of The Gossip’s “Listen Up,” transforming the indie trio’s darker original version into a bell and whistle-laden, nearly 9-minute workout—while losing none of the grit ‘n’ grime of singer Beth Ditto’s roof-shaking vocals. Probably most famous here is the ATOC vs. Superbuddah blast of Scissor Sisters’ “Filthy/Gorgeous,” with lots more attention to the filthy side, along with some heavier guitar work. Other big winners include the discofied electro throbs of Le Tigre’s “After Dark,” the distorted, grimecore blips and bleeps on Services’ “Element Of Danger” and three tracks from the United Kingdom’s The Ones, including their original collaboration called “I Feel Upside Down,” best described as Eurodisco reggae rock. All told, this collection of steadfast, genre-splintered revamps seriously delivers. What else would you expect from two guys who got their name from an emblem on the side of a garbage truck they spotted on the streets of the Big Apple?

Various Artists - A Date With John Waters - New Line

I think this is supposed to be a collection geared for lovers on Valentine’s Day. But uh-oh—when you throw in John Waters and his cockeyed but brilliant taste in music, you know you have to brace yourself for something just a little bit ... different. And sure enough, Waters is all over the place here, including the obscure opener from Patience and Prudence, whose “Tonight You Belong To Me”—the first single he ever shoplifted— sounds like the Peanuts gang swooning some serious cheese. And only Waters could then segue into the penetrating, pogo-stomp of “Jet Boy Jet Girl” (Elton Motello’s early ‘80s ode to punkish boy-on-boy sex), and Edith Massey’s unhinged new wave take on “Big Girls Don’t Cry.” Some bawdy R&B tracks include Ray Charles’ “(Night Time) Is The Right Time,” the Ike and Tina Turner slow-burn gospel of “All I Can Do Is Cry” and our beloved Mink Stole’s breathy and jazzy “Sometimes I Wish I Had A Gun” (written by Brian Grillo). Throw in a few perverse cocktail teasers like Dean Martin’s “Hit The Road To Dreamland” and Shirley and Lee’s “Bewildered” and you can probably hit your home-run, without even blinking. Oh, and let’s not forget the trend-sexual inclusion of Josie Cotton’s fabulous “Johnny Are You Queer?” Is this Waters’ way of espousing his love of “bro-jobs” and “friends with benefits”? As if you have to ask.

Various Artists - 8-bit Operators: The Music of Kraftwerk - Astralwerks

The music of Kraftwerk has inspired countless electronic musicians for nearly 30 years, and now you can hear interpretations of their tracks from the imagination of the Super Mario Brothers. Well, sort of. See, all the tracks here were arranged on lo-bit gaming devices—vintage video game consoles and obsolete 8-bit home computers like Gameboys, Ataris and Commodores. Archaic, perhaps, but they’re actually known for their rich and distinctive sounds, culminating in these “bit-pop” or “chip-tune” sounds. On paper, it might seem like a silly or frivolous idea, but within these 12 elucidations, there’s plenty to keep you grinning and even dancing. Standouts include opening track “The Robots” from Bacalao, who bring some extra warmth to this classic; Neotricz’s “Electric Café,” which vibes more menacing and darker than the original; Glomag’s sprite and wiggly take on “Pocket Calculator;” Bubblyfish’s “It’s More Fun To Compute”—think horny cyborgs having mechanical sex underwater; Nullsleep’s “The Model,” the most throbbing of the bunch; and the Kraftwerk cornerstone, “Trans-Europe Express,” which hums and vibrates on a whole new level here from the Receptors. This record certainly isn’t for everyone, but if you have a special place in your heart for either the games you played as a kid—or the Kraftwerk tracks you loved a bit later—plug this one in and let the joystick work its magic. Maybe next up could be a Pac-Man or Donkey Kong tribute to Human League?

Check out DJ Paul V. spinning at “TVOD” Wednesdays at Faultline, Bootie L.A. the first Saturday every month at The Echo, Dragstrip 66 monthly at The Ex_Plx and “Indietronik”—Saturday nights from 12-3 a.m. on Indie 103.1 FM. Get more info at www.myspace.com/smashmix.