randombeats.com » hard dance

Old Tracks: Black

karl — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:55:35 +0000

I sense a depression in the amount of material I will release in the next several weeks. I will instead fill you in on some other old tracks I still have in my cache.

This first track is from about 6 years ago, I suppose. You may not think I might be crazy enough to do hardhouse covers of Sevendust songs, but you’d be wrong.

Sevendust has been for a long time one of my favorite metal bands, and Black has always been one of my favorite songs. I’ve always been surprised to hear how much people liked this song. Even people not really into electronic music or Sevendust have reported really enjoying this song.

Karl D – Black

12/26/09 – Whoops, forgot the download link. -KD

Karl D – FTL

karl — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 15:30:23 +0000

You’ve already heard the first new track from the Electronic Monk EP(Toxin). The other new track, and the final one from the new EP, is called “FTL”.

Stylistically, “FTL” sounds a bit like an up-tempo march. The casual listener may find it a little repetetive and plain, but the song really dosen’t kick in until about halfway through the track. I think the end result is quite thrilling! Rather than keep talking about it, I would instead have you listen to it for yourself and generate your own perspective on it.

Because this is the last track for The Electronic Monk EP, the album is now available to download in its entirety in the Downloads section. Enjoy!

Karl D – FTL

Old Tracks: Rock the House

karl — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 04:13:50 +0000

“Rock the House” was a song I made in about 2003 that was characteristic of the hard house I was listening to at the time. Although I had been interested in American(NY, LA, and Chicago style) hardhouse for a while, I had just become familiar with UK hardhouse around 2001-2002.

At the time I created this track, I wanted to “prove to myself” I could conjure a competent, contemporary hardhouse track. I’d immersed myself in lots of the Tidy Trax catalog during that time, and the song mirrors that influence with the presence of the famous Hoover sound, the klubby bass, and the hard, fast sampling and scratching.

Karl D – Rock the House

3_08

karl — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 00:15:33 +0000

I’ve noticed that some of the most recent random beats have been increasing in their length. I would say that it’s because there is a tension in the last few that could not be properly expressed in approximately 2 minutes.

This latest entry to the series contains all the elements of a great hard dance tune: ravey pianos, a wicked synth line, and a good, tough groove.

I’ve been working on this particular project for almost a year, because I wanted to get the sound just right. Additionally, this enters the hall of fame of tracks that have crashed my computer, which by my calculation means it’s one of the best ones.

3_01

karl — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 05:06:38 +0000

How exciting that this is the first track in the third volume of random beats. I never anticipated I’d be motivated to move along at such a brisk pace. Look how far we’ve come together.

Today’s track is no-nonsense hardhouse, with a wicked bassline and a very engaging break in the middle.

The middle part contains some very nostalgic synth lines and electro-style breakbeats, which I feel speak for themselves. There’s a lot more old-school influences in my recently-produced tracks(partially due to meeting more people who care about that stuff). I always find that the electronic music I like the most(especially when it comes to hard house) is usually nostalgic in the way it references classic tracks and samples.

Karl D – Existential Funk(TranceFunk Dub Mix)

karl — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 16:19:02 +0000

I’ve been talking up the Existential Funk Remixes and B-Sides EP that’s been in the works.

With the release of this crown jewel of the collection, the album Modify Your Mind: The Existential Funk B-Sides and Remix EP is now available in the Free Downloads section.

The electro-breakbeat original gets a tough hardtrance rework in this mix. Two remixes are available in the full EP: the dub mix included in this post, as well as the full vocal mix. Enjoy the dub mix as a preview, and I’m sure you’ll want to download the whole album in hi-quality 256kbps MP3 format!

(If you haven’t heard the original yet, you can stream or buy it on the Existential Funk page).

2_12

karl — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 07:04:21 +0000

Today I have some very European-sounding, uplifting, melodic “Classical” trance for you. I use that term because I think this is less like trance as it stands today, and more like the melodic trance of the mid-90s.

Old Tracks: No Greater Love

karl — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 07:54:49 +0000

Something I’ve been thinking about lately is posting some older original tracks for listeners who may not be familiar with some of the older material. This is the first in a series of related posts.

I mentioned in a previous post that one of my major influences is Eurodance, and nothing shows that better than “No Greater Love”. I believe I composed this track in late 2001/early 2002. This song is significant for several reasons:

At the time, I used a different kind of sequencing software which was nearly impossible for a serious musician to use, however I had grown very proficient at using it, despite it’s limitations. The sample based software only had 3 “tracks” which consisted of 16 positions each where you could place notes or drum samples, for a total of 48 total notes or drums in a bar.
This was one of the first real melodic songs I ever composed. I had done some other things, but they were mostly beaty hardhouse.
It eventually rose up on independent music site SoundClick’s Euro chart to a top position of #51 out of 1,820.

So, dear listener, I give you, the original and remixed versions of “No Greater Love”.

Karl D – No Greater Love

Karl D – No Greater Love(Remix)

2_04

karl — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 00:31:42 +0000

Those who pay even the most devout attention may not be aware that my electronic music pedigree has it’s roots deepest in eurodance. In some ways, it’s the music that started it all for me.

My favorite kind of electronic music to listen to as well as to DJ with is hardhouse. I believe that hardhouse grew from Eurodance in many ways. Today’s track is somewhere right in the middle, leaning more towards the euro side. The only thing it’s missing: the soaring female vocal paired with the deep-voiced swedish male rapping .

Ed. Note: Throughout my music production, I have found that the best tracks have been those that have brought my computer to it’s knees due to high processing requirements. This one definitely is guilty of both being one of the best ones, as well as having crashed my computer.