The Remix Cancer Of The 2010's

I remember the extended long play 12" vinyl from the 80's that just gave us longer versions of pop songs for clubs. Now we get a million remixes of everything now and the horrible junk these so called "remix artists" come up with is usually unbearably bad. I just had a listen to the latest Katy Perry single "Wide Awake" remix package. There wasn't one good worthwhile remix of the six tracks. Why does their need to be a chill version of the song? No DJ in their right mind would play this in a dance club unless he's working in a pot smoking cave where everyone is so stoned they can't do much more than sit comatose. The song gets remixed by Alex Ghenea in a manner that completely ruins the track. Whomever this shit flinging monkey ass reject is he or she should go back to mom's basement and stay there.

How about the Goyte track which isn't even a dance song but it gets infected with the remix disease. Dlake & Morsy take a great alternative song and infuse a droning dance drum track into it and poof the magic that was "Somebody That I Used To Know" is now terminally ill with remix cancer. The song has yet to be remixed on a level that satisfies me and I don't hold much hope that anyone can make this song work with a dance rhythm.

There are some songs and remixes that work better than the original studio track and I do love a great remix but with what seems every song being remixed I am losing interest in this genre. It was once cool to hear a remix of a pop song because there wasn't a million of them and complete albums worth of the same song re-imagined by lesser talented people.

You take Adele for another example and the idiots that have remixed her singles to failure outside of Jonathan Gering who's remix of "Someone Like You" retains enough of the original melody infused with an energetic beat that allows the track to be used for an uptempo dance floor jam. But then you get "Rolling In The Deep" remixed by numerous folks and none of them can get it right. Getting right is impossible because that song isn't a good fit for the pogo dance club beat and should be left alone as it is one of the entire decades defining songs. Songs like it will never be club anthems they aren't meant for that they have a deeper more affecting definition unlike jump rhythm house music or reggaeton jungle beats.

But you do find gems now and again in this form of the music industry like the brilliant remix of "What's Going On" the classic by one hit wonders 4 Non Blondes from the 90's. It stays true but ignites the track with a big beat. But again the unnecessary remixes of every Beyonce track or Rhianna track or Britney Spears track gets old really quickly and is more of an ego stroke than being good art. Music remixes are necessary for sure and I applaud the skilled people who have vision and talent to make a good song work in a different way but it is time to make better choices of what to remix and the song necessity to be reworked. Nobody needed a club remix of "Save A Horse Ride A Cowboy" the original track had more than enough oomph to put asses on the dancefloor without a shitty house inspired version.

Here is a small sample of good remixes: