“R.I.P. Mash-ups, we’ll miss your forced titular ironies.” So began yesterday’s “Mash-up Genre Raises Hell in Heaven” article on Idolator. Not long ago I was invited to help out as an infrequent guest editor over at Mashuptown, one of the web’s leading bootleg sites, and I feel that I’ve been able to keep at least a casual understanding of what is going on within the genre. As such I suppose I was a little taken back at the unexpected state of emergency. Idolator continues, “In The last few months, friends and family claim the genre had grown sick from uninspiration.” But not even in the indie elite population have these sentiments appeared as popular opinion in recent months as innovative mashers such as ABX and DJ STV SLV of The Hood Internet and Girl Talk have been hyped royally.
An interesting set of comments followed, some agreeing wholeheartidly and some disputing the claim altogether. One of the most informed replies came from established masher Dunproofin who responded, “Give a monkey a copy of Pro-Tools and most of them think they can make a masterpiece. Give Kanye West a copy and you get his new single - if you listen to it (go on, I dare you to listen to it all the way through) just ask yourself afterwards has he really put any more effort into putting a new rap over an old Daft Punk song than any monkey would have put in by putting an existing rap over the same Daft Punk song?”
I believe the point is absolutely valid. While personally I believe Kanye’s “Stronger” to be a fantastic track with inspired rhymes it wouldn’t have been the same without the Daft Punk sample; a fairly general sample at that when listened to critically. Dunproofin continues, “There is a mash up (or bootleg as us Brits call it) ’scene’ out there still, some people admittedly making a better bootleg than others. Saturation of poor tracks has really driven the scene back to ground however as most of the bootleggers don’t want to be associated with the (general) lack of creativity at best, or fundamental lack of understanding of music that is exhibited within the bootleg scene as a whole.”
With that I invite you to check out ten of the best mashups (or as Dun would have, bootlegs) that I have come across during the first half of 2007. If you were to check out a single track or two may I suggest Copycat’s “Knowing the Rhythm is Right” and DJ Morgoth’s “Stars on the Boogie.”
ABX “Wouldn’t Grip Far (The Game vs. The Go! Team)”
Arty Fufkin “Liar in a Brainstorm (Arctic Monkeys vs. Beyonce & Shakira)”
Brat “Big Shot Pimpin’ (Jay-Z vs. Billy Joel)”
Copycat “Knowing the Rhythm is Right (Nelly Furtado vs. ABBA vs. Sagi Rei)”
DJ Erb “Ecstasy of Gold (Ennio Morricone vs. Nas)”
DJ Lobsterdust “Skyline Operator (Notorious B.I.G. vs. The The)”
DJ Morgoth “Stars on the Boogie (Just Jack vs Jay-Kid)”
DJ STV SLV “What You Know About Transparent Things (T.I. vs. Fujiya & Miyagi)”
Lenlow “Bjorn Slippy (Peter, Bjorn & John vs. Underworld)”
Pheugoo “I Was Signed For Loving You (Snoop Dogg feat. C. Wilson & Justin Timberlake vs. Kiss)”
previously - Culture Bully’s Favorite Mash-Ups: 2006
previously - Culture Bully’s Favorite Mash-Ups: 2005
Hey you are right. This list is a lot of fun. I am not sure it I can stand listen to this all summer. but once and twice is definitely fun
squashed
June 8th, 2007
thanks for checking this stuff out Squashed - I have a lot of fun with this sort of thing…not bad for a solid sunny summer day
Chris DeLine
June 8th, 2007
Monday Music Blog Bonus…
Happy Monday Birdwatchers,
We’ve got some goodies for you from a new birder, Ethan. He’s helping us find and contact the pioneers of the media web. Some of our favorite blogs have decided that Songbird is cool enough to be on their pages. As you’…
Songbirdnest.com
June 8th, 2007
I really hope mashups aren’t on their collective deathbed. The guys who do it well pull off some amazing stuff. I’ll have to take a listen to the ones you have up there, I haven’t heard any of them yet.
Waffles
June 9th, 2007
[...] This guy almost makes me cry and by wondering if mashups are on the way out [...]
waffles Radio – Turn On the News
June 9th, 2007
[...] The Hood Internet released its first mixtape today combining its shining moments into one progressively spectacular mix. If you check out the tracks on an individual basis I would suggest starting with The Game, Go! Team mash “Wouldn’t Grip Far” as well as the Destiny’s Child, Justice track “Lose My Waters of Naza(b)reath.” Snag the whole thing and give it a try…some might say that The Hood Internet is proof that mashups aren’t dead. [...]
Culture Bully » The Hood Internet: The Mixtape Vol. 1
June 11th, 2007
Thanks for having me in the List, this brings me a happy day today!
Cheerz!
Morgoth
DJ Morgoth
June 18th, 2007
People have been saying mashups are dead since 2002 (!).. yes, every single year. If you check out idolator’s link in their Mashups R.I.P. article — the link about music blogs is from THEIR OWN post of mashups they still lke)….the funeral article is tongue in cheek.
Too bad some people may take it seriously, but again, this is nothing new in bootleg culture. Mashups are more underground again in some areas (yet still new in some), but good work keeps coming out every year and new bootleggers are popping up all over the world.
We’ve also just started Bootie mashup parties in New York and Paris this year (in addition to long-standing Bootie’s in SF and LA)… so mashups are no more or no less popular than they ever were. They’re just an easy target for music journalists to spout the same silly comments about.
-D
check out our woldwide mashup parties here: http://BootieUSA.com
Bootie
June 22nd, 2007
I’m still finding new mashes every week that I love - they’re one of the few things that continually adds honest excitement for me in music…it’s like going to garage sales or flea markets…you never know, buried deep within some random web site you may find a fantastic gem
Chris DeLine
June 23rd, 2007
[...] previously - Are Mashups Dead? [...]
Culture Bully » Number of Da Boots: The Iron Maiden Bootleg Compilation
July 10th, 2007
Most of the MP3 links seem to be dead
Ross
November 26th, 2007