Yup, it’s another never-ending, sinfully self-indulgent and yet entirely superfluous end-of-year list (and in case you missed it check out Pelski’s top original tracks of 2009):
1. Toasty – The Knowledge (Untold Remix)
I put this at the top not because it is necessarily the best remix – choosing the very best is nigh on impossible – but because it is the most criminally underrated and underplayed of the year. ‘The Knowledge’ is a classic 2004 dubstep banger: filthy, grimy and clamorous. Toasty’s rough and ready production style is a delight and refreshingly bold, but Untold cleans up the rough edges (on Hotflush’s remix superb series) with some hi-end tweaks, a manipulation of the vocal sample and, of course, a generous portion of weighty, drudging bass. Essential for any dubstep head.
2. Bill Withers – Who Is He (Henrik Schwarz Edit)
Henrik Schwarz is one of the finest producers on the planet. And this year was business as usual – remixes for Code 718, The Detroit Experiment, Omar, Visti & Meyland and DJ Hell all illustrated his diversity and proved him the don of all things deep. But his re-rub of 70′s soul singer Bill Withers topped them all, and became an uplifting staple of house sets everywhere from Panorama Bar to Matter.
3. Florence + The Machine – You Got The Love (The XX Remix)
Is it a remix? Is it a sample? Is it a cover? No, it’s all three. A cover of Candi Station’s classic, remixed by hip indie rockers The XX, who inject some warm 2-step percussion. The remix is one of those rare things: one that betters the original (the cover, i mean). The sparse beats and dreamy xylophone give Florence’s divine vocal-work space to reign free, whilst leaving the original’s harp strums in tact, adding to the wonderful dreamlike soundscape.
4. Visti & Meyland – Yes Maam (All Nite Long) (Trentemoller Remix)
The rattling drums of the original fit wonderfully with the soul of the gospel sample – like some kind of new-age folk, so it was gonna take some real work on the remix front. But Trentemoller comes out trumps (bettering even Henrik Schwarz’s effort), by transporting it to the dancefloor with a steady tech-house beat but keeping as much drum clatter and bluesy melody intact as possible. Truly inventive music.
Besides the awful pun on Roy Orbison, it seems Joy can do no wrong – every remix and original production has astounded and counfouded in equal measure, whilst his mixes have shown off his obscurely and intriguing taste. Joy replaces the lo-fi essence of Kieran Hebden’s original by some slow-paced percussive dubstep. The dabbing, floating synths reinvigorate the track with an impossibly uplifting verve.
6. Radioclit – Secousse (Round Table Knights Remix)
Arriving at the very beginning of 2009, the Secousse remix packages were truly something to be reckoned with. But the remix that smashed them all was Round Table Knight’s. At the beginning of the year the Swiss duo were better known for their electro-pop leanings (thanks to 2008 anthem ‘Hold Me Back’), but reinvented themselves in 2009 with a string of inventive tech-house and minimal productions, before being snapped up by Mowgli’s tastemaking Deadfish label. They inject Secousse’s frenetic piece of afro-beat/baile-funk with a punchy tribal drum beat that’s simply impossible to resist. Watch out for RTK’s forthcoming ‘Calypso’ remix.
7. Sebo K, Metro – Saxtrack (Reboot Twisted Fist Remix)
8. Nicone and Sascha Braemer – Nur Mal Kurz (Philip Bader Remix)
The Renaissance Man edit may be even better, but credit ought really go to Philip Bader. Chipper handclaps and a tropical melody made this a Berlin hit. It’s got that strange Balkan vibe that caught everyone’s imaginations in 2009. The tribal beats are bravely organic and the claps’ dominant role bold – it’s an audacious piece of electronic music that reflects alot of what was great about 2009.
9. Extrawelt – Mit Liese Auf Der Wiese (Max Cooper’s Melt Remix)
In 2009 Max Cooper seemingly came out of nowhere, to blindside us with his beefy techno bangers and, more importantly, his melodic take on minimal techno. His Melt remix has an ambience that emanates from a choir-like hum, gentle hi hat ticks and fizzing white noise. But two minutes later all the crackling melancholy gives way to a surprisingly buoyant bassline, with plenty of dancefloor thud. His remix of Extrawelt’s ‘Im Garten Von Eben’ could just as easily have taken this chart spot – retaining an equally menacing tone whilst demonstrating the subtler side of his production techniques. Max Cooper’s set to go off in 2009.
10. Pinch feat. Yolanda – Get Up (Jack Sparrow Mix)
The original is almost two years old and remains one of the highlights of Pinch’s ‘Underwater Dancehall’ album. Again, picking a top remix on this package is almost impossible: RSD brings a high-octane jungle workout, whilst L.V. turns it into a woozy reggae jam. But, it’s the unsung hero of the outstanding Tectonics label, Jack Sparrow, who really reinvigorates Yolanda Quarterly’s classic vocals – a voice that positively drips in sensual soul. Sparrow elegantly weaves hollowed tribal 2-step beats and an amalgam of moody, warm bass around those husky, voluptuous vocals. Astonishing.
11. The Detroit Experiment – Think Twice (Henrik Schwarz rmx)
12. Renaissance Man – What Is Guru (Riva Starr Remix)
13. DJ Sprinkles – Grand Central Part 1 (Motor City Drum Ensemble Remix)
14. La Roux – In For The Kill (Skream Remix)
15. Noob & Brodinski – Peanuts Club (Renaissance Man Ph 7 Remix)
16. Crazy Cousinz – Bongo Jam (L-Vis 1990 & Bok Bok’s refix)
17. Butch – Amelie (Format B Remix)
18. Klement Bonelli, Brams – Los Chicanos (Claude Monnet Mix)
19. Jesse Rose – Touch My Horn (Crookers Remix)
20. Ramadanman – Revenue (Untold Remix)
21. Sandy Huner – Rare Tap (2000 And One Cut)
22. Malente – I Like It (Riva Starr Remix)
23. Cajmere Feat Dajae – Brighter Days (Underground Goodie Mix)
24. Kevin Saunderson – The Human Bond (Claude Vonstroke Rave Recognize Rave Mix)
25. James Brown – It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World (Regrooved by Parker)
26. Daniel Steinberg – Lucky Sauce (Tiefschwarz Remix)
27. Kenneth Bager – Fragment One (Style Of Eye Remix)
28. Chase Buch – Monkey Drums (Nick Olivetti Remix)
29. Hardrive – Deep Inside (Jesse Rose Play Prime Mix)
30. Tiga – Shoes (Green Velvet Remix)
31. Fever Ray – Seven (Martyn’s Seventh Mix)
32. M.in & Patrick Kunkel & Harold Todd – Frauen & Blumen (DJ Sneak Remix)
33. Hot Chip – One Pure Thought (Remixed By Geese)
34. MSTRKRFT – Heartbreaker (Brackles Remix)
35. Bart Bmore – Bingo Players Get Up (Diplo Remix)
36. Raffertie – Antisocial (Toast Refix)
37. Coolshop – Trumpet Girl (Juan Magan Remix)
38. LCD Soundsystem – 45:33 (Theo Parrish’s Space Cadet Remix)
39. The Very Best – Kada Manja (Tim Green Remix)
40. Buraka Som Sistema – Aqui Pra Voces (Mastiksoul Samba Remix)
41. The Heavy – How You Like Me Now? (Solo Remix)
42. Dance Area – AA 24/7 (Noob Remix)
43. Zombie Disco Squad – Eurovision (The Boog-A-Loo Crew Remix)
44. Major Lazer – Pon de Floor (Alvaro Remix)
45. Headhunter – Prototype (Modeselektor’s Broken Handbrake Remix)
46. Joe Goddard – Apple Bobbing (Four Tet Remix)
47. Boris Dlugosch – Bangkok (Roska remix)
48. Depeche Mode – Wrong (Caspa Remix)
49. Lykke Li – Dance Dance Dance (Buraka Som Sistema Mix)
50. Pitto – Feelin’ (District One’s Feelin’ Techno Remix)
