It was looking a little shaky there.

You know, what with Mercury Rev, Buffalo's long-running widescreen indie fantasists, recording one of the most pastoral and wondered albums of the late '90s in the form of Deserter's Songs, and then following it up with years of increasingly daft and unintentionally comic soft-rock cheese.

But Snowflake Midnight, which came out last month, is somewhat of a re-alignment of the band's lost ethereal strengths, built from songs like "Senses On Fire," which float and sparkle along like light on a lake.

It was released, incidentally, to the day, on the 10-year anniversary of Deserter's Songs.

What's even more interesting, though, is the all-instrumental bonus sister-album Strange Attractor, which Mercury Rev just put out for free on their web-site at the same time, and follows the best threads of the band's reboot.

Whole careers have been based on Deserter's Songs, a musical virus, from The Flaming Lips to The Polyphonic Spree to Of Montreal. Wayne Coyne, in fact, has, consciously or not, patterned the creative arc of The Flaming Lips on Mercury Rev's years-long progression from the busted squall of the early records to the lush, haunted, 'Wizard Of Oz'-styled surreal optimism of the subsequent ones, and it's been entertaining to watch the alternate realities swarm around the same idea.

Mercury Rev were first, of course. And first to become shit. So the fact that Strange Attractor is one of the best things the band has ever done, and free as well, suggests the parallel stories are not quite over.

Opening track "Love Is Pure" is a quiet rise of single-note pianos and small, steady waves of electronic South Asian sounds, gone before you know it, like a lost Brian Eno record, and it's a lovely little thing. Then, urgent and hypnotic, there's "Because Because Because," which shows an influence of mid-period "Hoops"/"The Sunshine Underground" Chemical Brothers, a hushed side-effect from their one-time collaborators. Some songs only last a minute or two. If bits like "Loop, Lisse, Loop" might sound like bad planetarium jazz, there are also loads that recall Cliff Martinez's soundtrack to 2002's 'Solaris,' but more innocent and old-fashioned, like a big wind-up toy.

It's a slight, sideways collection of songs.

A real surprise.

Exactly what Mercury Rev needed to make.

[Download]

Lips, announced a few months ago, is Microsoft's stab at karaoke for the Xbox 360. Comes with two motion-sensitive microphones, costs $70, hits stores "mid-November."

So what's the big deal? Some of the info in today's Joystiq preview ranges from interesting (when you sing, the game will use "vowel detection" to bust would-be mumblers) to worrying (the motion-sensitive mics will be used for dance moves, which I figure will get old fast). Honestly, Lips' nuts and bolts add up to an interesting twist on the music-games genre, and the emphasis on duets will make this stand out from the likes of Rock Band and Singstar. But check this out:

[Consider] the ambitious "Freestyle Mode," which allows players to import their own music into the game. Provided the song doesn't feature any DRM, you should be able to bring in music from any connected MP3 player.

Any song I want? Dude, this has been a long time coming. Recent music games charge, on average, $2 per song if you want to add new tunes to your party play. And if you want to be on the level, you can buy legit tracks either from Lips' in-game shop or the Zune Marketplace and import them and blah blah blah. I'll happily take this instead, which adds auto-karaoke volume adjustments to MP3s, along with other game integration tricks, so that you're not merely singing along to a jukebox.

Seriously--I want a music game with the Beatles and Zeppelin. That's not unreasonable, and Lips'll be the first to make that happen, even if in semi-hacked form. Plus, who needs the Zune store when you can sing along to all of these bands?

Mashup pioneer DJ Z-Trip’s posted a free mix on his site that includes speech/interview comments from Barack Obama and several left-leaning, politically oriented tracks by Public Enemy’s “Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos,” Saul Williams’ “Not in Our Name (The Pledge of Resistance),” DJ Vadim’s “The Terrorist,” Bob Marley’s “Get Up, Stand Up,” the Doors’ “Tell All the People,” the O’Jays’ “Give the People What They Want,” Eric B. & Rakim’s “Eric B. Is President,” Chemical Brothers’ “Leave Home,” Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come,” the Five Stairsteps’ “Ooh Child,” something by Gil Scott-Heron, a Jello Biafra rant (of course), and more.

So, you know, if you were planning to vote for the McFailin ticket, this mix might just sway you to a pro-Obama mindset.

About the mix, Z says: "The only thing I ask in return is that you spread this link everywhere.... Blogs, forums, emails, MySpace, Facebook, everywhere. We've only got a month left to really make some noise, and it's crucially important that we get things right this time. Please download this mix and PASS IT ON!"

Tip: Groovin Kim

Waves and Wires has a freely available recording of last week's My Bloody Valentine show in San Francisco. I'm surprised how decent the recording is, since I was certain that any microphone would be demolished by the loudest band on the planet.

^{DJ Struggle: moody, man.}

I know I’ve been jocking the hell out of DJ Struggle on Line Out, but dude deserves it for the killer sets he lays down during the Deep Wednesdays weekly at Vito’s (Madison & 9th) and those he uploads to the internets like a philanthropist of rhythm. Struggle joins forces with fellow Seattle underground-dance obsessive D’jeronimo (Jeremy Grant) to form Made Like a Tree. Their latest mix submerges techno and house in a crepuscular aura, at once burrowing and spacious. These moody, midtempo cuts radiate a subliminal, cerebral sexiness for the post-rave set. The section from Moodymann to Vakula is especially butter. These guys know how to build momentum gradually and their mixing is supremely tight.

The track list for Struggle in Progress (2)
-------------------------------------------------------------
1. Omar S - Tecky Alexander [FXHE]
2. Patrice Scott - Motions [Sistrum]
3. Luke Hess - There Is Hope [FXHE]
4. Morphosis - Baal [Morphine]
5. Patrice Scott - Azteck [Yore]
6. Cassy - Poem [Uzuri]
7. Moodymann - Dem Young Sconies [Planet E]
8. Recloose - Walk Through Turquoise [Rush Hour]
9. MD/LOW - MD [Out To Lunch]
10. Vakula - Loop For My Friends [Uzuri]
11. KSoul & Ra.H - Turning Point [Sistrum]
12. Korsakow - Make U Crazy [United States of Mars]
13. Omar S - Psychotic Photosynthesis [FXHE]
14. Ra.H - Fall of Justice [Morphine]

This week a re-issue of Linda Law's classic disco single Nights In White Satin was released. This original 1978 release featured two amazing cuts, the title track "Nights In White satin" and my personal favorite "All The Night". From what I can tell, this was the only solo release from Linda Law, whom also spent some time as a backing singer on some lesser known disco releases during the 1970's. Regardless, this is a great re-issue of a much hard-to-find classic and I recommend everyone picking up a copy while they still last.

Download Lind Law's 1978 disco classic "All The Night" and more by visiting this site.

- PLUS -

Conflict of Interest: (It's for a good cause though!)
Tonight's STUDIO! is a special 'Obama-Rama' Night @ Havana. All the doors proceeds will go straight to Barack Obama's Presidential Campaign! Free Obama buttons & stickers!!!

In 1994, THE CRYSTAL METHOD released their first single “Now Is The Time” which sampled the title, a prominent slogan of the 1960’s civil rights movement. More than a decade later, the same slogan was used throughout Democratic presidential nominee Senator Barack Obama’s speech at the Democratic convention held in Denver, CO last month.

As election time nears, THE CRYSTAL METHOD—who are Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland—have remade the song utilizing a sample of Obama’s “Now is the time…” statement from his speech. Fans will be able to obtain the song as a free download through The Crystal Method’s website at: www.thecrystalmethod.com. Corresponding artwork for the song by Shepard Fairey, a revision of his popular Obama portrait logo, can also be viewed at the site.

“Like 38 million other Americans, we were transfixed listening to Obama's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention. It reminded us of the creative process we went through all those years ago, listening to samples of inspiring old civil rights speeches and creating the original ‘Now Is Time,’" states THE CRYSTAL METHOD. “We don't often revisit old songs but we've been spending so much time looking forward as we work on our new album it seemed appropriate to take a minute to look back at the beginning. Plus, right now no American could be hurt by hearing another inspiring message, whether it's on the morning news or at the club later that night. This is a song we just want people to hear.”

The original, you may recall, sampled Rev Jesse Jackson.

Update: Just to clear up any confusion, this is a laughably cheap retread of an already cheesy would-be rave anthem, but you should still vote for Obama.

This weekend, I found myself listening to more than once, Jim Capaldi's 1979 disco classic "Shoe Shine". British drummer and former member of Traffic stepped into the 'disco world' back in 1979 and released the LP Electric Nights on RSO Records. This record included the track "Shoe Shine", which was the album's single and standout track. I can't say that I know much about Capaldi's music career outside of this record and I can't say that I'm much of a Traffic fan, however that being said, Capaldi has definitely won me over for at least one record.

Download Jim Capaldi's 1979 disco classic "Shoe Shine" and more by visiting this site.

Green Label Sound (Mountain Dew's music website, apparently) has a new, exclusive Matt & Kim song available for download. It's called "Daylight," and it's the perfect soundtrack for a sunny, chilly fall day like today.

Go to www.greenlabelsound.com to get it.

What would be more fitting on the afternoon before a STUDIO! night, than posting one of the all-time greatest gay anthems "I Was Born This Way" by gay gospel singer Carl Bean. This record originally came out in 1977 on Motown Records, and was more recently re-released by West End Records. The song was produced by Motown and disco legend Norman Harris and was mixed by the 'one and only' Tom Moulton (whom else). Singer Carl Bean was very passionate about doing this song, not only musically but politically, as it's explained on the West End Record website -

"The lyrics to 'I Was Born This Way,'" he says, "are as relevant today — perhaps even more so in the current political and social climate — than they were when this record was first released back in 1977."

Overall the song is a powerful and amazing disco gem, that will truly serve as more than just a memorable dance classic, however a pollitical anthem for gay rights and equality.

Download Carl Bean's 1977 disco classic "I Was Born This Way" and more by visiting this site.

Hipster Runoff has the new Teenagers remix of Vampire Weekend's "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" posted. It basically substitutes the originals instrumentation with the Teenagers' over compressed drum machines, guazy guitars, and soft synths, effectively transforming it into a Teenagers song. It doesn't hurt that VW's lyrics with their young crushes and designer brand references fit so nicely into the Teenagers oeuvre. Unsurprisingly, I'm a sucker for this track.

About a week ago I was excited to find a used copy of Machine's 1979 self-titled record that features the disco classic "There But For The Grace of God Go I" which happens to be one of the most requested songs at STUDIO!. Machine was basically a studio disco group put together by legendary producer August Darnell, a founding member of both Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band and Kid Creole And The Coconuts. The album's single, "There But For The Grace of God Go I" remains to be the most memorable and known track from the group's existence. Other stand out tracks on the record consist of the lesser known "Marisa", "You've Come A Long Way, Baby", and "Get Your Body Ready". Overall, it's hard to think of a more classic release from August Darnell's impressive catalogue which certainly includes a number of great dance gems. I'm just happy to now have the ability to fulfill those 'few rare enjoyable' requests each and every Wednesday.

Download Machine's 1979 disco classic "There But For The Grace of God Go I" and more by visiting this site.

Do you love the Italian disco group Macho as much as me? Is so, I will treat you to another classic cut, "You Got Me Running" from their 1980 album Roll. First off, I'll just say that as a whole, I don't think this record even stands up to there classic 1978 debut I'm A Man. That being said the record has a couple of classic tracks including "You Got Me Running", as well as "Got To Make A Move" and "Montreal". You can tell that as the 1970's were ending and disco as a genre was somewhat dying out, as far as in the mainstream, Macho, which consists of Mauro Malavasi along with co-producer Celso Valli, where experimenting with there sound, using a lot more distorted and gritty guitar riffs. However, not all was lost, as the album cut's of both "You Got Me Running" and "Got To Make A Move" have become two of my many favorite tracks by the group. Even though I think the record is a considerable drop-off from their debut, I still think the record contains some lesser known hidden gems worth owning.

Download Macho's 1980 disco classic "You Got Me Running" and more by visiting this site.

This summer, one of dubstep's biggest breakout singles has been Joker's "Snake Eater."

Bristol's 19 year-old Joker grew up, unbelievably, in the middle of turn-of-the-millennium U.K. garage and his gradual conversion to dubstep and bassline is far away from the credibility cash-ins of some of his fellow genre-chasers.

With "Snake Eater," DJs have been banging out his name to new levels, whether it's been positive or negative.

And for good reason.

"Snake Eater" is a thunderous and silly, nothing-held-back beast of a single, without a fear of arrogance or stupid tricks. It's the kind of song that puts its chin up in front of a flag of John Barry spy-horns, looped soul vocals, thuggish dubstep rhythms, and a club peak or three, and asks what you're going to do about it.

Every time I hear it, I can't think of anything but Adam F & M.O.P.'s "Stand Clear" or Oxide & Neutrino's "Shoot To Kill," both from the beginning of the decade. If those took drum & bass and 2-step, respectively, and blew them out of great hip-hop-caricature proportions, "Snake Eater" seems to be trying to pull off the same for dubstep.

The worst thing to happen to any genre is for it to take itself too seriously, which dubstep has always been in danger of, so a dumb thing like this can only be a force for good.

Everyone uses the word "ridiculous" around it.

But at least this time it's a compliment.

[30-Minute Joker Mix For Skream's Rinse FM Show]
Download

A classic disco track that I've been enjoying throughout the summer has been Fat Larry's Band's 1979 "Lookin' For Love". This classic boogie cut was released as the title track to the Lookin' For Love LP, which is another fine release from the legendary Fantasy label. The song also gained some more recent attention as it was re-edited and included on Dimitri From Paris's In The House of Love mix compilation which came out a few years back. Many believe the groups 1982 boogie classic "Act Like You Know" is the group's finest effort, however, being a bigger fan of late 1970's disco genre music, I believe the Philadelphia based funk band shined the brightest on "Lookin' For Love, a true disco gem that reminds me of all those early classic Salsoul releases by groups like Double Exposure, Moment of Truth, Love Committee, and Instant Funk.

Download Fat Larry's Band's 1979 disco classic "Lookin' For Love" and more by visiting this site.

Pitchfork has a new song from Of Montreal's forthcoming album Skeletal Lamping (in stores Oct 7):

"Nonpareil of Favor"

No, the CD (uh... MP3) is not skipping about halfway through the song. Of Montreal's just crazy.

Also of note, there will be a listening party for the new album on Friday, Sept 12 at the LASER DOME! Full details to come.

One my favorite tracks that I enjoy to break out every Wednesday is Lorraine Johnson's 1978 hi-energy disco classic "Feed The Flame". This track originally appeared on Johnson's second LP Learning To Dance All Over Again and was produced by Jesse Boyce and Moses Dillard, whom have been part of many solid disco projects including Saturday Night Band, Constellation Orchestra and Frisky. "Feed The Flame" is definitely my favorite cut from Johnson, however I also highly recommend people to check out her 1977 single "The More I Get, The More I Want" which was featured on her solid debut album. Overall, it's a perfect disco cut to play at those peaking hours on the dancefloor.

Download Lorraine Johnson's 1978 disco classic "Feed The Flame" and more by visiting this site.

With the Olympic games wrapping up, I thought I would pay a "disco tribute" by sharing one of my favorite songs by the disco funk group Olympic Runners, "Sir Dancealot". This classic boogie track was released off the 1978 LP Dancealot, and was the records featured single. From 1974 to 1979, this United Kingdom group released many solid records and singles including "Whatever It Takes", "Get It While You Can", "Solar Heat", and "The Bitch", which became the title track song for the 1978 film The Bitch, written by Jackie Collins and starring Joan Collins. Regardless, this is probably the closest I get to having a "themed post", so enjoy a classic by one of the UK's finest soul-funk outfits, the Olypmic Runners.

Download the Olympic Runners's 1978 disco-funk classic "Sir Dancealot" by visiting this site.

The Kane Hodder digital-only EP I mentioned a few issues ago is finally out. The band haven't officially released anything new since their 2005 full-length, The Pleasure to Remain So Heartless, so it's about fuckin' time!

I've been a Hodder fan for about as long as I've been writing for The Stranger--the band was the subject of my first lengthy music feature, we go way back. But after some shake-ups over the past couple years (member replacement, label replacement, and tour cancellations), Hodder has had a hard time regaining their footing.

It felt like forever for this EP to finally come out, and a few times it felt like it was going to never happen. But it's finally here, and it's a hell of an effort--a weirdo hardcore dance party that shifts speeds, moods, and genres quicker than Lindsay Lohan does sexual orientation. Vocalist Andrew Moore still croons and screams in the same breath, the guitar shreds and shimmers in the same riff. It's everything Hodder is best at being and it sounds like they're having a hell of a time doing it.

You can get the record for less than $5 at www.hodderrock.com.

This past weekend I flew back to my home town of Sacramento, Ca. for a friend's wedding. During that trip I decided to stop at a couple local record stores to see if I could find any hidden disco gems tucked away in the stacks. I always love going to a small city record store where there isn't a hint of a disco scene, you're bound to pick up at least a few classic records for a ridiculous cheap price. I found the same true when I made stops in Portland and Tacoma this past year. That being said, I did pick-up many great disco finds including Revanche's 1979 Music Man LP, John Davis & The Monster Orchestra's Up Jumped The Devil and Ain't That Enough For You LP's, Loleatta Holloway's classic "Loleatta" LP, Taka Boom's 1979 self-titled LP, as well as many others. However, maybe the overall best find of the weekend came when I picked Two Tons Of Fun's 1980 self-titled disco classic. Two Tons Of Fun where one of those groups I had heard about a lot, but unfortunitely hadn't checked out, so when I came across the record I thought I would give it a listen. From start to finish I was pretty blown away with a very reminiscent sound similiar to Sylvester, whom the two singers Izora Armstead and Martha Wash orginally sang back-up vocals for. Overall, the record is pretty solid with classic cuts like "I Got The Feeling", "Earth Can Be Just Like Heaven", and "One-Sided Love Affair". I highly recommend the record if your a fan of Sylvester's early releases. That being said, it was a nice weekend of great finds in a small city.

Download Two Tons Of Fun's 1980 disco classic "I Got The Feeling" by visiting this site.

The Dead Science has posted a mixtape, School of Villainy on their website today in advance of their forthcoming album Villainaire (due out 9/2). I had some trouble downloading the first mixtape, but the "originals" have downloaded just fine; the excerpts of Sam Mickens' Stranger interview with the RZA are particularly curious.

School of Villainy (The Digga Crates Real Deal) Mixtape:

INTRO
MODERN VAMPIRES
VILLVILLE
DAYS OF FUTURE PAST
GREY DIAMONDS
MAKE MINE MARVEL (CRAIG DUB PLATE) FEAT. CRAIG WEDREN
THRONE OF BLOOD RMX FEAT. ZAC PENNINGTON & KATRINA FORD
INTERLUDE
GARDEN WALL
MAKE MINE MARVEL RMX FEAT. CARLA BOZULICH
HEAVEN ON THEIR MINDS (EXCERPT)
CLEMENCY (FREDDY RUPPERT HOUSE MIX)
ADRIAN DESCANT
IMPLIED VIOLENCE RADIO PLAY-"A GHOST ON THE BOAT"
MAKE MINE MARVEL (REMIX)
THE APOLLONIAN
OUTRO

also available for free download:

School of Villainy (The Originals) Mixtape:

RZA #1
INTRO
DAYS OF FUTURE PAST
THRONE OF BLOOD RMX FEAT. ZAC PENNINGTON & KATRINA FORD
VILLVILLE
RZA #2
GARDEN WALL
MAKE MINE MARVEL(CRAIG DUB PLATE) FEAT. CRAIG WEDREN
HEAVEN ON THEIR MINDS (EXCERPT)
RZA #3
MAKE MINE MARVEL RMX FEAT. CARLA BOZULICH
INTERLUDE
GREY DIAMONDS
RZA #4
CLEMENCY (FREDDY RUPPERT HOUSE MIX)
IMPLIED VIOLENCE RADIO PLAY-"A GHOST ON THE BOAT"
RZA #5
MODERN VAMPIRES
ADRIAN DESCANT
MAKE MINE MARVEL (REMIX)
THE APOLLONIAN
RZA #6
OUTRO
RZA #7

Download both, and check out the schedule for their "Villainaire Festival of Culture" (9/1-9/7) at http://www.thedeadscience.com/.

With tropical rain storms in Florida dominating the news as of late, I thought I would post one of my favorite "tropical disco"(Obviously a made-up genre) songs in Ottawan's 1979 disco classic "D.I.S.C.O.". When I first heard the track, I admit that it took me a little time to get into some of the song's vocals, however over the past few weeks I've started to warm up to them and really get into the entire production. An interesting side note to this song, is that it was produced Daniel Vangarde, father of Thomas Baltanger from Daft Punk. If the sunshine ever decides to come back to Seattle, "D.I.S.C.O." might make for a nice addition to those "end of summer" dance mixes.


Download Ottawan's 1979 disco classic "D.I.S.C.O." and more by visiting this site.

Because it's Wednesday, I thought I would post a STUDIO! favorite with Destination's 1979 disco cover of Curtis Mayfield's "Move On Up". Now you may think it would be hard to top Mayfield's original, as I originally thought, however over time I've really grown to enjoy this more "disco-sounding" uptempo version. There's no denying Mayfield's solid vocals which I always enjoy, however this cover version, which maintains a lot of the same instrumentation with a solid horn arrangement, dynamic string melodies, and funky percussion, is sped way up to give the song a more overall dancefloor friendly feel that I tend to enjoy a bit more. The cover track was originally released as a twelve inch single and was featured on Destination's only LP, "From Beginning To End" during that same year. Regardless, it was preety bold for a group to take on such an amazing dynamic classic like "Move On Up", however with that being said, Destination definitely turned it into a classic of there own.

Download Destination's 1979 cover of Curtis Mayfield's "Move On Up" by visiting this site.

In honor of the great Isaac Hayes, who unfortunitely passed away yesterday in his Tennesse home, here is an amazing Ron Hardy white-label edit of Hayes' 1975 classic funky dancefloor cut "I Can't Turn Around." Hayes will probably best be remembered for Shaft, however, his long career went well beyond the 1971 soundtrack, with Hayes releasing many amazing funk, soul, and even disco classics throughout the years. Some of my favorites that come to mind are "Zeke The Freak," "Don't Let Go," "I Can't Turn Around," and of course "Theme From Shaft." Regardless of your favorite track, it's obvious that Isaac Hayes' legacy, music, and influence will be forever lasting.

Download Ron Hardy's classic edit of Isaac Hayes's 1975 funky gem "I Can't Turn Around" by visiting this site.

I recently came across Wild Fantasy's 1978 disco classic Jungle Drums, and I have to admit I haven't been able to put the record down since. This classic album was produced by Tony Hiller of Brotherhood Of Man fame. The record contains amazing dancefloor friendly cuts including "Gypsy Lady", "Africa", "Get It On", and "Africa". I first found out about the group when I found a twelve-inch version of "Africa" for about two dollars and thought it was worth giving it a listen. When it comes to disco, any song or artist with the word "fantasy" and "Africa" included, I find, generally means it's going to be good. This is definitely one of those times that the previous statement is absolutely true, with Wild Fantasy releasing a disco masterpiece in Jungle Drums.

Download songs from Wild Fantasy's 1978 classic disco LP "Jungle Drums" by visiting this site.

It's safe to say that Brooklyn based disco group Escort is one of my favorite bands to come out over the past few years. Over the past few years they have been releasing some amazing twelve inch singles including "Starlight", "Bright New Life", and "All Through the Night". However, lately I've been finding myself getting back into, after not hearing for a while, maybe their most underrated single "Love in Indigo", which was the groups second release back in 2006. I actually got to see the group about a year ago in San Francisco and "Love in Indigo" was the song I enjoyed the most live. If your one of the few people that haven't caught on to this group, which features about fifteen members to make up a small orchestra of percussion, strings, horns, vocals, bass, and guitar instruments, I highly recommend picking up one of their four singles. The rumor has it that the group is actually working on a full-length album, however no date for a release has been given. Regardless, I'll probably dropping a couple of classic Escort cuts later on this evening at Havana for your enjoyment!

Download Escort's 2006 single "Love in Indigo" by visiting this site.

As Stranger readers are no doubt aware, Sam Mickens loves him some hip hop, especially if it's of the Wu Tang Clan variety. Readers should also know that Mickens, along with Jherek Bischoff and Nick Tamburro, has a little band called the Dead Science. Fittingly, the band's forthcoming album, Villainaire (out September 9th on Constellation) is a Wu-obsessed (and therefore also comic-book obsessed) work—single "Make Mine Marvel" even excerpts a couplet from the Wu's epic posse cut "Triumph." But the album is neither as gimmicky nor as juvenile as such a concept might suggest, instead using these outsized references to explore bleak everyday moral crises. Observe:

The Dead Science - "Make Mine Marvel"

Even though his career was cut short due to his unfortunite death in 1982, Patrick Cowley was involved with many amazing italo projects, working with artist's like Sylvester, Donna Summer, Paul Parker, and many others while also helping to start the San Francisco based italo label Megatone Records. As many of you already know, Cowley released his own material including the 1981 classic LP Megatone Man, followed by albums Menergy and Mind Warp. During his career there might be many songs that could stick out as "defining moments" of Cowley's own music, however, for me the two songs that come to me first when thinking of Cowley's brilliant career is 1981's "Megatron Man" and "Menergy". Both became huge "anthem like" favorites among San Francisco's underground gay disco scene which really helped establish himself and his label. That's not to say he didn't have his hands on many other amazing releases, including Sylvester's high-energy classic "Do You Wanna Funk", an incredible remix of Donna Summer's "I Feel Love", and Paul Parker's 1982 chart-topping single "Right on Target". It's safe to say that Patrick Cowley will forever have a lasting imprint on the gay disco and San Francisco music scenes, and it's unforunite that his life was cut so short especially as it was just starting to peak. That being said, Cowley did leave behind an incredible legacy that can be forever lived through his amaing productions.

Download Patrick Cowley's "Megatron Man" and "Menergy" plus more by visiting this site.

Disco producer, writer, and composer Tony Valor put his signature stamp on many great disco projects during the late 1970's including the Tony Valor Sounds Orchestra, Touch, Soccer, as well as working with Tom Moulton, Fantasy, Maryann Farra & Satin Soul and a host of many others. I recently came across one of my favorite Tony Valor produced records, the 1979 self-titled Salsoul Records classic LP by the group Soccer. This record hosts a number of great disco cuts including the album's amazing single "Come And Get It On", as well as album tracks "Give Me Your Love" and "Time Out (For Love)". Overall it's another fine release from disco legend Tony Valor.

Download Soccer's 1979 disco classic "Come And Get It On" and more by visiting this site.

Some free music that has nothing to do with the Block Party: a mixtape of Santogold vs. Diplo. Enjoy.

Tracklisting:
1. Dub Selection Intro
2. 3-6 Mafia - Late Night (Unstoppable Mix)
3. Santogold - Shuv It (Disco D Blend)
4. Santogold - I’m A Lady (Diplo Mix Ft Amanda Blank)
5. Sir Mixalot - Posse On Broadway
6. Santogold - Lights Out (Diplo’s Panda Bear Mix)
7. Aretha Franklin - Save Me
8. Devo - Be Stiff
9. B52’s - Mesopotamia
10. Gerri And The Holograms - Gerri And The Holograms
11. Santogold - Anne (Switch Mix)
12. Santogold - LES Artistes (XXXchange Mix Ft Movado)
13. Cutty Ranks - Dutty Six Pack
14. Santogold - Find A Way (Graeme & Switch Mix Ft Kid Cudi)/ Lunar Camel
15. Richie Spice x Ratatat - Marijuana
16. Desmond Dekker - Shanty Town
17. Santogold - Guns Of Brooklyn
18. Dixie Cups - Iko Iko
19. Tony Matterhorn - Big Belly Guns
20. Santogold - Get It Up (Radioclit mix Ft MIA & Gorilla Zoe)
21. Mark Ronson In Studio
22. Trouble Andrew - Run - Hide
23. Sister Nancy - Pigeon Rock
24. Nora Dean - Barbwire
25. Shinehead - Know How Fe Chat
26. Clash - Ghetto Defendant
27. Warrior Queen - Check It
28. Santogold x Benga - Unstoppable / Night Dub
29. Shawty Lo x Skream - They Know / Stagger
30. Santogold - Creator (Mumdance Mix ft Jammer, Badness, Chronik Rage, Slikman & Tempz)
31. Xray / Turbulence Duplate (Starstruck Diplo Mix)
32. Barrington Levy - Send A Moses
33. Prince Jazzbo - Ital Corner
34. Santogold - Icarus
35. Santogold x Diplo - Right Brigade (hidden track)

Technically, this was the leak of last week, but I've struggled for a few days to articulate exactly how I feel about Jaguar Love's debut record. Since they're playing on the Neumo's stage tomorrow, my time's up.

I saw the trio once in concert, and at that point, I was willing to give the Blood Brothers/PGMG fusion the credit that most of the commenters weren't. I looked at 'em from the perspective of a pre-teen raised on emo-pop; through those eyes, Johnny Whitney's high-pitched squeals and hand-hip struttin' weren't laughable, but all too appropriate. With more listens to this debut full-length, out in stores next month, I've become decidedly neutral.

Jaguar Love certainly delivers bombast, or at least Whitney does. The guy can make his voice go whatever direction he wants--almost chillingly so at the outset of "Jaguar Pirates," as his opening "oh-OH" chirps are unworldly enough to put T-Pain out of biz. He's less screams and more squeals this time, a transition he started as the Blood Brothers petered out, but his whine and falsetto can turn from wild to absolutely grating. Snoozer-ballad "Georgia" lets his voice off the leash, and its every miss is too painful. The band's accompaniment, at its best, sounds like Hot Hot Heat colliding with the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. "Antoine and Birdskull" is a plodding rocker underlined with buzzing organ, and the arrangement makes the most of Whitney's voice in climactic bursts between the verses. But shameless soft-pop attempts like the aforementioned "Georgia" and the melodramatic "Bonetrees and a Broken Heart" drag the disc down, since Whitney's not willing to calm down with the rest of his bandmates and actually try to sing.

For the most part, Whitney's more memorable than the songs that he and his friends have cranked out. One exception bodes well. When the band eschews its punk origins and makes the most of its pop fascinations by injecting energy and tempo into closing track "My Organ Sounds Like," they seem to finally cement their unique place in the guitar-rock universe. The jangly head-bobber doesn't see the band trying any funny tricks, simply keeping up the energy and pace for Whitney to deliver his best falsetto-vocal performance of the album--hard to believe his nearly dreamy cries that "everything, it hur-rrts!"

Last night while doing some late night record shopping at one of Seattle's many record stores, I was suprisingly happy to hear Belle Epoque's 1977 disco classic "Miss Broadway" playing over the loud speakers. I immediately fell in love with the track on first listen. Unfortunitely I quickly found that the store wasn't selling the record because it came from one of the clerks personal collection. Belle Epoque has always been one of those groups I've always wanted to hear more from, especially since I've been a huge fan of their popular classic "Bamalama" for quite sometime. Even though my record store shooping didn't result in any Belle Epoque finds, it did inspire me to hunt down some more of their records.

Download Belle Epoque's 1977 disco classic "Miss Broadway" by visiting this site.

It seems like a "Match made in Heaven" when it comes to Dimitri From Paris re-editing a classic Ashford & Simpson track. We saw the first example of this back in the year 2000, when Dimitri's amazing re-edit of "Found A Cure" was included on A Night At The Playboy Mansion mix compilation, which happens to be a personal favorite of mine. Well earlier this year on a new Ashford & Simpson 'best-of' type of compilation, The Warner Bros. Years: Hits, Remixes & Rarities, we saw the two come together again with Dimitri this time re-editing the 1979 classic "Stay Free". Even though the new edit of "Stay Free" isn't quite as ripe for the prime moments on a dancefloor as "Found A Cure", the more laid back edit is equally as good in my opinion. Dimitri does a nice job touching up and extending the finer moments of the original, making the song just right for those early hour dancefloor or coll-down mixes. Nice results again from this solid combination.

Download Dimitri From Paris' re-edit of Ashford & Simpson's 1979 classic Stay Free by visiting this site.

As many know, San Francisco's Megatone label released many amazing disco/italo records during the beginning of the 1980's. The label which was founded by Patrick Cowley, worked with arists like Sylvester, Sarah Dash, Cowley(himself), Paul Parker, Queen Samantha, among many others. One of my many favorites from this label is Paul Parker's 1982 italo classic "Right On Target". This track, like many of the early Megatone releases, was produced by Cowley and became an instant club hit, especially in the gay communities. The song also made it onto his debut LP Too Much To Dream later that year. From what I have heard of Parker, I feel like he never quite re-captured the magic that he and Cowley were able to produce on the "Right On Target" single. Regardless, Parker's debut single is one the finest productions during the legendary eary years of Megatone's existence.

Download Paul Parker's 1982 Italo classic "Right On Target" and more by visiting this website.

Before local cosmic disco producer Altair Nouveau relocated to California, one of his favorite songs to play on Wednesdays was the recently released Greg Wilson re-edit of Adriano Celentano's "Prisencolinensinainciusol". Since it's STUDIO! debut, the re-edit, which was released off of Wilson's 12-inch single GW Ruff Edits #1, has quickly become a crowd favorite. I constantly get people asking me the name of the track, which I always fail to pronounce. Regardless on how you say the name of song, Wilson puts together a fine edit, successfully pumping the tracks overall bass level to new heights, as well as extending out some of the songs more instrumental moments giving the song an even more Afro-Tribal disco feel. Wilson also adds a nice touch to the songs last few minutes with some sampled vocals from Instant Funks 1978 Salsoul classic "I Got My Mind Made Up". Greg Wilson is definitely known within the disco and dance communities over the past three decades for putting together some of the world's finiest edits, however here, GW might just have "raised the bar" once again, releasing one of the best edits' of the year.

Download Greg Wilson's re-edit of Adriano Celentano's disco classic "Prisencolinensinainciusol" by visiting the new STUDIO! Disco Blog.

A disco album by a former member of classic prog-rock band Yes?!?! Who would of thought? In 1978 former Yes member Trevor Rabin released the disco record Disco Love Bite under the name The Tee Cee's. The record has a dark erotic theme going on throughout each song, blending together disco-era percussion, prog influenced guitar and strings melodies, underneath mostly female erotic moaning. I pretty much fell in love with the record half way through the first listen with my favorite cut being "Ecstasy". Who said prog-rock and disco can't come together.

Download The Tee Cee's "Ecstasy" off the record Disco Love Bite and more by visiting this site.

Shameless Promotion: Remember to check-out Chocolate City Disco tonight at the Re-Bar.

Many disco lovers know about the numerous brilliant and legendary productions and mixes that disco legend Tom Moulton has contributed over the years, however, what people might not know is his late 1970's project TJM, which stands for Thomas Jerome Moulton. In 1979, Moulton under the project name TJM, released his debut record off of Casablanca Records. The record consisted of four tracks including the disco classic "Don't Need No Music". I recently heard this record, and was pretty much blown away from the start. It definitely makes me wonder why some of these tracks haven't recieved more attention, especially in disco mixes and DJ-sets. Regardless, I was extremely happy when I found this record for only three dollars in some random budget bin, especially since I would of paid a lot more for it. Anyways, I've always loved most of Tom Moulton's productions, however I have a whole new reason to love him even more.

Download songs off of Tom Moulton's 1979 TJM LP and more by visiting this site.

Last Night I was listening to Dimitri From Paris's In The House Of Love mix compilation, which I hadn't put on for a while, and somewhere in the middle of the mix it went into Crue-L Grand Orchestra's "Spend A Day Without You" and it reminded me how much I love that song as well as the entire first Crue-L Grand Orchestra record. It's now been over a decade since the Crue-L Grand Orchestra I record came out, yet it still remains one of my favorite "post-golden disco era" disco releases. I still haven't been able to hunt down a copy, which will still probably remain a tired-some task, especially because anything released by Japan's Crue-L Records tends to go out-of-print shortly after hitting the shelves. Regardless, if your able to get a hold of a copy, I highly recommend swiping it up.

Download Crue-L Grand Orchestra's 1996 disco classic "Spend The Day Without You" and more by visiting the STUDIO! Disco Blog.

Megan's already posted my commentary about Kate Simko's appearance tonight at Nectar. I made mention of her set at Spectral's Winter Music Conference party, and it only makes sense to share the recording with you. Here it is:

Kate Simko @ Spectral WMC Party 29.03.2008

Enjoy.

Last night I played the new edit from The Revenge, which was just released this past week on Jiscomusic. This time around, The Revenge, contributor to the great re-edit and disco blog OOFT Music™, re-edits Hot Chocolates's 1976 classic "Heaven Is In The Backseat Of My Cadillac" which appeared on their Man to Man LP. I've been a big fan of many of the edits I find on his OOFT Music™ blog, always putting a new and interesting spin on classic tracks from artists like Marvin Gaye, Don Ray, Logg, Shirley Lites, even The Eagles, Sade, and Survivor. However that being said, he probably put together his best edit that I've heard with "Cadillac looping the chorus "Heaven's in the Back Seat of My Cadillac..." over and over again to a more driving back beat groove compared to the 1976 original. Overall, it's safe to say that The Revenge have easily produced one of my favorite edits of the year. Go pick it up while there are still some copies out there!

Download The Revenge's re-edit of Hot Chocolates's 1976 classic "Heaven Is In The Backseat Of My Cadillac" and more by visiting this site.