On with the show…
6. Bell X1 – Flame (Chicken Lips Mix)
Neither are all remixes confined to the techo or house oeuvre. Chicken Lips have transformed a wet and forgettable indie stinker into a disco hit. Rescuing a strong vocal with great lyrics (how often do you hear marshmallows referenced in a song?) from the mediocre abyss.
7. Friendly Fires – Paris (Aeoplane Remix)
It’s really a non contest between remix and original here, and that’s not taking anything away from Friendly Fires, they were just outclassed. TKO, the Belgian duo Aeroplane win, hands down. Swapping the vocal for a female one was a stroke of genius. If this track doesn’t make you smile then you must be dead inside, you monster.
8. Matthew Dear – Don and Sherri (Hot Chip Remix)
Anyone who knows me will be unsurprised to see a Hot Chip remix on this list. In fact, they will probably be shocked that I’ve managed to show restraint by not filling the whole list exclusively with Hot Chip tracks. Matthew Dear’s original is really interesting and defies explanation, so please go and listen to it. But just by laying their own vocal over the top the Hot Chip boys have transformed an experimental track into a warm and effecting song. Lovely stuff.
21 Don & Sherri (Hot Chip Remix)
9. Rufus Wainwright – Tiergarten (Supermayer Remix)
I can’t stand Rufus Wainwright. His warbling voice and operatic leanings really bug me, so Supermayer had a big job to do if they wanted to make this song bearable, let alone worthy of sneaking into my top 10. In truth this track is a bit of an indulgence on my part, but it’s here to prove that a great remix can come from the oddest source material. Yes it’s grossly overlong at 13 minutes and it doesn’t really hit it’s stride until the three minute mark. But it is beautifully constructed, and is an excellent slow burner. It just shows what a little German efficiency and Krautrock spirit can do.
01 Tiergarten (Supermayer Remix)
10. Thom Yorke – Atoms For Peace (Four Tet Remix)
Finally, this track is here to demonstrate that sometimes a remixer doesn’t need to add anything, but to subtract. Thom Yorke’s version of this song is a little too off the wall for my tastes. What Kieran ‘Four Tet’ Hebden has done is preserve that beating heart of the song, which is Thom’s unique vocal. With that at the center he adds the simplest tribal drum loop and a few simple keys. The result is near perfection.
2-01 Atoms for Peace (Four Tet remix)
Here endeth the lesson. I hope some of what I’ve said has gotten through and if you were a skeptic before that your views have been softened somewhat. If after reading this article you download and enjoy one of these ten tracks I will consider it all worth it and my job done (that’s how low my standards are).
