TR Love

Check my (slighty geeky but I hope very playable) homage to classic Roland drum machines:

Mike Monday "TR Love" (Systematic)

This is a low quality mp3, if you want the whole shebang you can get it here from Beatport.

I wrote it for Marc Romboy at Systematic who asked me to do a track for his 5 Years Systematic anniversary release.

It's a very straightforward, no nonsense record that uses drum sounds from the Roland 505, 606, 707, 808 and 909. And before you ask no I'm afraid I don't have all these original machines, some of the drum sounds are samples...

(Oh and refreshingly there's no hint of any congas, bongos or ethnic vocals anywhere on the track)

Animal Collective Unofficial Edit

One of the things I've incorporated into my live set is music from elsewhere that has truly inspired me. But I've tried not to just play the original track as a DJ would, but instead attempted to do "live" remixes of said music.

One example I used is a track off the recent stunning Animal Collective album "Merriweather Post Pavilion". (If you haven't heard the album yet, where have you been? You need it in your life! Buy it on iTunes here.)

What I did with the track got such a huge reaction when I played it in my first live set that I decided I really had to commit it to...er...mp3. And here it is for your listening pleasure:

Animal Collective - My Girls (Mike Monday's Unofficial Remix)

It is completely unofficial so if you like it please support the brilliant, wonderful, marvellous Animal Collective and buy their album or if you can't stretch to that, then at least the track "My Girls".

Oh and here's some of the reactions I've had from a few DJ luminaries I've sent it to:

BEN WATT:
"ace! played it at the arches"

PHILLIP JUNG (MANDY):
f**king great remix of the animal collective
"really really good man! played it out twice already."

LAURENT GARNIER:
"yes yes yes mister Monday
another big dancefloor shaker
Full support as always"

AUDIOFLY
"bro....just heard your remix of the animal collective.....wikid
really liking that line you have taken....super good... MANDY played it in Romania the other day, and i almost fell over..."

MOZAIC
"yea man, just dropped your "my girls" boot at this street faire fest here in SF and the crowd went mental"

This is probably an unfashionable thing to say but...

As someone who's been writing and releasing music for nearly 14 years (crikey!), these are exciting times indeed. Not particularly good times, but most definitely exciting. The way that music is now distributed has fundamentally changed and there are many unforseen consequences and opportunities as a result of this seismic shift, some good some bad.

The digital behemoth that is iTunes is too often seen as simply a necessary evil by artists and labels, but given that someone was going to do it, I am broadly pretty positive about the way iTunes operates.

I'm not going to rehearse the familiar arguments about how much they pay the artists/labels for the music, how they are a virtual monopoly on digital music, or about how they're hastening the end of the album as a format for releasing music. But in my experience so far they have a healthy regard for music which isn't necessarily the most commercial (my music video Catnip has been chosen as the music video of the week for the front page of iTunes US and available for a free download - plug plug), and what's more on a personal level its the details about the site that I'm starting to dig.

The user reviews are something both frightening and exhilarating for me as an artist, as until now no one has really been able to tell me what the genuine punter - who isn't my mum - thinks about my work. Journo reviews are one thing, but reading these early customer reviews of Songs Without Words on iTunes USA (I particularly love the "strange and retarded" one - isn't that a compliment?) has given me an invaluable insight into what Joe Plumber thinks of my work. This can only be a good thing for me as an artist.

Ok, user reviews are not just as iTunes idea, but the way they are so front and centre of the iTunes shopping experience is excellent. Power to the people! Or to Steve Jobs! Or just maybe both.