randombeats.com Mix Series 01: Future Chillout Dubstep

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Posted 10 Mar 2011 — by karl
Category Music

If you’ve been wondering where all the fresh content is lately, it’s because I’ve been working hard on this first installment of what I intend to be a multi-part mix series.

This first mix contains 11 dubstep tracks, sourced mainly from material available here on randombeats.com.  There are also tracks from other artists included here(some of which were remixed on the fly), especially some that you might not normally consider “dubstep-appropriate”.  However, this mix is all about breaking free from tradition and creating one’s existence in their own life.  This is Future Chillout Dubstep.

Tracklist:

  1. Karl D – The Exchange(Remix)
  2. Karl D – Toxin(Edit)
  3. Karl D – 5_04
  4. NIN – 3 Ghosts 1(Karl D Re-Edit)
  5. Benga – Light Bulb
  6. Skream – 0800 Dub
  7. Karl D – 3_06
  8. PRGz – Stop and Go(Loop)
  9. Kosheen – Marching Orders
  10. Karl D – Futuredub
  11. Above and Beyond – Home

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Karl D Presents – Future Chillout Dubstep(Download – Right click and choose Save As)

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Karl D – Aeon

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Posted 12 Feb 2011 — by karl
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Check out this just finished, spaced-out drum and bass track!

“Aeon” is in the same vein of “Things You’ll Need to Know”.  It drones on and on with a persistent synth in the background, while a complex drum loop is brought in early to give this song some “intelligent” depth. Overall, there’s some influence of minimal techno quite obviously(and very intentionally) present here.

Very little of my drum and bass work is appropriate for a dancefloor or has a definite climax, but I think the track rolls along nicely.

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Karl D – Aeon

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He does?

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Posted 02 Feb 2011 — by karl
Category Reviews

Looks like I finally hit the big time…

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Karl D – Foresight

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Posted 05 Jan 2011 — by karl
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This track was stagnant for quite some time before I took some advice from a Doctor who told me that “Slow is Better”. (Sorry if this looks like a plug.  I really do like that commercial!  Step off! :) )

What started as a hardcore-sounding trance tune lost about 40 BPM to become a much more glitchy trip hop jam.

I’m feeling very comfortable with the 110-BPM tempo right now.  Another favorite of mine is the remix of Evening, which has a similar tempo.

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Karl D – Foresight

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Karl D – Dum Spiro Spero

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Posted 03 Jan 2011 — by karl
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The title is Latin, and might as well be called “The one that has a name I can’t remember”.

This production is raw, dirty, and admittedly busy.  At first I wanted this to sound cleaner as a whole, but I think it sounds good with a little dirt on it.  The contrast between the general grit of the track with the clean, ethereal synth providing the chords was very interesting to me.  That kind of contrast has been fundamental to several key productions of mine over the years, so this track in a way felt like a “return to my roots”.

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Karl D – Dum Spiro Spero

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Lasgo – Alone(Karl D Remix)

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Posted 02 Jan 2011 — by karl
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Much to my own surprise, I’m going to have some fresh content coming for you soon.  This remix from 2003 or so should hold you over until then:

I’ve never tried to distance myself from Eurodance music.  I’m big on the classics, like La Bouche and N-Trance, but Lasgo was one of the more relevant “nu-skool” Eurodance artists of the 2000s.  I’m really into several of their big hits.

During my concurrent(and ongoing) fascination with Hard House, I did this remix of “Alone”, one of my most favorite Lasgo tracks.   I made the decision to only include part of the vocals which I felt were really the core of the song.  There’s some very technical Hoover riffs as well as some revised instrumentation on the main melody, both of which I really wanted to be the stars of the show.

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Lasgo – Alone(Karl D Remix)

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Recap: Karl D’s Favorite Tracks/Mixes of 2010

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Posted 20 Dec 2010 — by karl
Category Reviews

I thought I would do something a little out of the ordinary to close up the year.  As you know, most of the content on this site comes from me and me alone, and I don’t “report” much on others’ work(maybe not quite as much as I should).  I wanted to take some time to recognize some of my favorite tracks and mixes I’ve heard over the last year.  Certainly many of these releases have influenced me and some of the work I’ve published.

Please enjoy this selection of mixes and tracks from these hardworking artists, and if possible, support them any way you can.  These lists are in no particular order.

Top 5 Tracks:

  1. Florence and the Machine – Dog Days are Over(Breakage Mix) – There were several standout mixes for Florence and the Machine this year, but this one really did it for me.
  2. Gaslamp Killer – Anything Worse – Nice, diverse mix of styles on this tense production.
  3. BRIGHT PRIMATE – Oh Well – I’m proud to say that BRIGHT PRIMATE is the project of a good friend of mine, who has(along with his bandmate/girlfriend) revolutionized 8-bit music as a whole as well as making it incredibly relevant in Boston, MA.  I really enjoyed this track from their latest EP for its excellent production values and entrancing vibe.  I love the 2nd half of the song.
  4. Pretty Lights – Still Rockin’ – Pretty much any Pretty Lights could make this list.  All their tracks have a great mix of glitch, hip hop, and electronica that never goes overboard  – it’s always super-smooth.
  5. Pendulum – Watercolour(Deadmau5 mix) – I’m not afraid at all to say I’m a huge Deadmau5 and Pendulum fan!  Since Deadmau5 and Rob from Pendulum worked together on “Ghosts n Stuff“, it’s great to see their working relationship continue and and put out this quality mix.  I’m hoping to see more collaboration between these two big-shots soon.

Top 5 Mixes:

  1. XLR8R Podcast 170 – DJ Food & DK vs. Coldcut – Crazy, epic mix.  This was released for Ninja Tune’s 20th anniversary and it does not disappoint.  This is an incredibly eclectic mix that spans the whole 20 years of the label’s rich history.
  2. DJ Steve Hill – Masif Podcast 11 – Truthfully, I have a hard time picking a favorite one of Steve Hill’s podcasts.  The King of Hard Dance showcases a lot of great material on this one, including Masif DJ’s – “Attention”, a track that certainly earned my attention this year.  Lucky for you Steve’s got lots of material for download.
  3. Electronic Explorations 133 – Shackleton – You can hardly call this dubstep – more like super-chilled future dub.  The first track, “Stripped III (version)” by Shackleton & Vengeance Tenfold, floored me.
  4. Elite Force – Revamped(Continuous Mix) - OK, so this list features one paid mix.  Big deal!  Elite Force has been releasing lots for free and also not for free in the “Revamped” collection, so a buck is not a huge price to pay for an awesome mix from his latest compilation. Also look for the”Smack The Force Up” revamp on his website.  There’s also a remix of Benga’s “26 Basslines” floating around somewhere…
  5. Major Lazer and La Roux – Lazerproof – I’m pretty pleased with all the work Diplo’s done this year, but this mixtape was a shocker when it came out.  Wild yet approachable, and contains several great La Roux remixes.
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Karl D – Penitence

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Posted 28 Nov 2010 — by karl
Category Music

Last one for Artifice, and it’s an epic one.

“Penitence” clocks in around 7 and a half minutes long, just about the longest I ever remember doing.  Of course, length by itself can never make the song.  Similar to both “3rd Level Down” and “The Exchange“, this track is deeply saturated in trip-hop essentials. There’s a point about midway where the tempo drops from the steady 95 bpm throughout the song down to a crawl.  I really thought this was a good way to isolate some of the elements and explore the emptiness of the sounds(in this case, a good thing, I think).  Certainly a pensive track which fits the title as well as the overall theme of the album.  I hope you can find as much meaning in the album as a whole as I’ve injected into it.  That said, the compilation is now available for your downloading pleasure in the Downloads section.

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Karl D – Penitence

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