Remix mashup edit > whatever you want to call it the song sequel is not uncommon. But an entire album of the re-cut is scarce indeed and practically an endangered species.
It's puzzling that more artists do not deliver the whole pie reheated as opposed to just a slice. Some of my most prized discs are doppelgangers, per say, some of which have been my morphine during the painful await of follow-up albums. One of my favorite bands, Bloc Party, has put out two remix albums: Silent Alarm Remixed and their latest Intimacy Remixed. Both Silent Alarm and Intimacy are superb in every way and the band's permission to let a slew of beloved DJ's like Armand Van Helden do their thing with it have made the time between new Bloc Party releases seem like a lot less than two years.
Aside from putting DJ's to work to prevent fan starvation, there are other benefits to releasing new cuts like capturing new followers or penetrating new musical territories.
I was never really a fan of Sarah McLachlan until I heard the Tiesto remix to 'Silence' back in 2001. The vocals on this song are hot and such a compliment to DJ Tiesto's craft. It was the middle of this 11-minute track when some serious voice is shown off that got me curious. Turns out the album that this gem is on, Remixed, features mixes from some of my other favorite DJ's like Hybrid and BT. This album got me to appreciate Sarah but her Bloom album, which contains remixes by Junior Boys, Thievery Corporation and Gabriel & Dresden, turned me into a fan.
The Tonight album by Franz Ferdinand is a good album but their dub remix album titled Blood is better tenfold. You know Franz and you know the genre but this album takes fans outside of the indie element and into the reggae remix realm. It's such a great album to get lost in and worth at least a listen even if you're not into the dancehall sound.
Finally, let's talk about scores. There is a difference to a soundtrack and a score. In the case of the film Requiem for a Dream, this 'soundtrack' is more of a score. I've never felt the need to pick one up, especially in this case when tracks would just remind me of Jennifer Connelly going ass to ass, Jared Leto's severed arm or any of the other demented shit in that flick [for the record, I do think this movie's music is brilliant anyhow]. But this soundtrack procreated and that dark spawn was a remix album with tracks by Paul Oakenfold and Delerium, to name a few. The cuts are somber like the original but injected with a huge dose of BPM, perfect for your gym playlist or next heroine party with Marlon Wayans.
Some other honorable mentions in the remix department involve Mr. Jay-Z. While I'm not as much a fan of him as the rest of the world is, these two mashup albums are the product of incredible creativity and extremely diverse sounds. Collision Course features early Linkin Park songs mixed w/ a variety of Jay-Z's. The much more impressive album is a bootleg that Danger Mouse deserves the credit for: The Grey Album, where he mashes up The White Album by The Beatles and The Black Album by Jay-Z.
Any of the aforementioned albums are highly recommended if you are a fan of any of these noted artists but especially if you aren't already :j Marc
