My Love Affair with R3hab Is On Hiatus...

R3hab has been one of the hardest working men in the DJ world in the last year, no doubt about it. He started out with a lot of steam and was cranking out what I considered floor-filler over and over again, that was up until the end of the Summer this year.

R3hab has talent, no doubt about it. His bootlegs made him stand apart from the sea of Avicii copycats and wanna-be Afrojacks. His signature sound was easily recognizable and he was elevating his music to another level with every track. All of a sudden, for whatever reason, his remixes are becoming, for lack of better phrasing, boring and predictable.. thats NOT something anyone in EDM needs to be. This can take you from top status to the bottom of the barrel in a heartbeat. His mixes used to rank number 1 or 2 when it came to best of the rest, now he is starting to fall into that "Its ok, but Nicky Romero's is better..." insert name as desired.

First of all this week we are hearing his remix to Kaskades "Eyes" and I was hoping this would be his big change up track, the one that puts him back in the game, I was wrong. I am afraid now he he has gone from boring and predictable to just plain annoying :( However, I do know that in the Las Vegas scene he is still considered the top of the tops.. so maybe it just isnt translating very well to the masses. This also worries me, in this ever-changing world of EDM going to mainstream and getting a lot more attention you dont want to be the fastest rising star to miss the big bang.. here is the most recent remix from R3hab, dont worry I have more examples coming..



Kaskade - Eyes (R3hab Remix) by R3HAB

This sound has become stagnant, below is his remix for David Guetta & Ushers "Without You". Unfortunately, the placement and portions of the track are almost identical to this most recent effort, I was a bit shocked but it is what it is.



David Guetta ft. Usher - Without You (R3hab's XS Remix) by R3HAB

Next up, Jennifer Lopez and "Papi", in his defense this song by itself sucks.. so he was working with a slight disadvantage as it is... but again... the drop doesnt work with the song, its like very disconnected and again predictable..



Jennifer Lopez - Papi (R3hab Remix) by R3HAB

The list could go on and on over the last 3 months, next up and finally I will show you how he has destroyed a song that many have tried to touch but havent (in my opinion) been able to elevate it other than Chuckie. Calvin Harris with Rihanna gave us probably one of the biggest tracks of the Fall season 2011 and R3hab manages to take away the pretty aspects of it and give us a drop that sounds like its out of a horror movie. Again my biggest complaint with this is a disconnect, it sounds more like a mashup than an official remix. I like the instrumental part, but I dont like it with THIS song. I believe he needs to do a massive change up of style like Chuckie did to re-invent himself or else he will fall out of the limelight, here is that Rihanna track... sorry R3hab, we cant be together again until you give us what you did back when you dropped the Lady Gaga remix of "Judas"... that was hot shit!



Rihanna & Calvin Harris - We Found Love (R3hab's XS Remix) by R3HAB

DJ Airrick presents DRUM & BASS!

Dont get too excited... here is a little mini podcast from me.. I havent mixed Drum & Bass in over 10 years or so.. I got in the mood.. found a lot of great tracks on beatport and here is what we get.. tracklisting and podcast below enjoy!

1 - Close - Drumsound And Bassline Smith
2 - Overkill - Delta Heavy
3 - Talk Box - Koan Sound
4 - Stomp - Sub Focus
5 - Tap Ho - TC
6 - I see You - Metrik
7 - Spitfire - Porter Robinson
8 - Night And Day - Sigma


DJ Airrick presents Drum N Bass mixset by djairrick_mixset

Bingo Players - Alesso does Guetta - Slumber Gets Trashed - Hardwell Tackles Levels!

Bingo Players - Mode (YouTube Teaser)

Speaking of Avicii "Levels" from my last blog post this song totally reminds me of the energy I felt when I heard that track the first time. The Bingo Players are one of the most known UNknown EDM acts in the States. This track has all the pluses, energy, check, riffs, check, electro, check.. big room CHECK. This track will be online for sale at Beatport on Dec 5th, however I am sure us DJs will get promo copies in advance.. I am certain remixes will circulate before that date. However, I look forward to the official release and official remixes of this track, this is BIG.





Steve Forte Rio ft Lindsey Ray - Slumber (Tommy Trash Remix)

This has to be one of my favorite tracks of 2011. The original was released over the Summer and made popular thru Tiesto. I am not a huge fan of trance or Tiesto but the proof in the pudding, he has a ton of fans and when he supports a track people take notice. I had the original version of this on rotation for months and just as it has died out in its original form Tommy Trash crashes us with this electro banger. This again is HUGE, big room for sure.. reminds me a lot of what Alesso is bringing us lately with the delayed call/response sound. I totally dig it and cant wait for the full release. This remix is due on Nov 21 and I am certain people are waiting for this one, I know I will be stalking Beatport on that day to snag the official release.



Titanium (Alesso Remix) *PREVIEW* by Alesso

David Guetta ft Sia - Titanium (Alesso Remix)

Speaking of Alesso, this dude is on fire. This is a preview of his official remix for "Titanium" vocals from the hauntingly beautiful Sia and production from DJ Mags #1 Dj this year David Guetta. I wasnt a huge fan of this song originally but a few bootlegs I have really enjoyed and this remix has totally changed my mind. I feel like Alesso is the new Avicii for me, and Avicii isnt even old enough to have a NEW version... their styles are very similar. What Avicii does with piano riffs Alesso does with drums and synths, the outcome is amazing and both of them though different have similar patterns.. no complaints from me. This remix has no release that I can find but as soon as its out expect to hear it in my sets!



Avicii - Levels (Hardwell Bootleg) (Premiered on Hardwell on Air 037) by HARDWELL


Avicii - Levels (Hardwell Remix)

Soooooo I saved the best for last (I know I know, personal opinion). Just as we are hearing Levels all over the place (see my last blog post) and of course like I said, its arguably the hottest EDM record of the year this remix actually takes it to the next level (haha) for me. Hardwell has been one of my favorite producers/remixers over the last couple of years dropping hot track and banger after banger and he doesnt disappoint this time. He adds his own unique drop to this version while taking the piano and giving us a synth overload on them. I actually think I like this more than the original.... either way a massive tune.


Well thats it for tonight on whats new in EDM from my perspective, and enjoy what I have posted here! I will be uploading a new mix sometime in the next few hours so check back or stay hooked to my social media! Links below!


@djairrick - Twitter
DJ Airrick - Facebook

Does AVICII get a GOOD FEELING when Flo Rida limits his credit to this hit?

Commercial music baffles me sometimes, they sometimes want to give credit then other times ignore it altogether. We are seeing artists like Rihanna acknowledging EDM but giving credit to the artists/producers they work with them while others just simply continue to ignore it, and this time to me, its surprising.

Flo Rida has worked with EDM artists over the last couple of years to help mold his career as a club rapper. Working with Guetta on possibly his biggest club hit, "Club Can't Handle Me" he gave credit to Guetta for the production and assist on the track. Here we have an example of the complete opposite, he ignores the fact that right now he is rapping over one, if not the biggest EDM record this year. Its not a little known record, its a world acclaimed record and guess who is getting the shaft all over again, AVICII! This guy has been tossed around by 2 major recording artists this year over some of his biggest hits. First the entire debacle with Leona Lewis which resulted in lawyers and press smears to get him credit on the track. This time we have Flo Rida, in my opinion murdering the track, and NOT in a good way.

People say OH its a sample, yes a SAMPLE of a current hit song with no headline billing credit to Avicii. Also the Etta James sample was crafted into the piano and drum production BY Avicii NOT Flo Rida as some are assuming without doing any research.

Here is the original, a beautiful track full of uplifting builds and structure. I have no problem with mainstream artists sampling or working with EDM world but the lack of respect to the productions and integrity is appalling. Another person who constantly disrespects the dance market is Pitbull. He has alone built many hit singles by "stealing" tracks and doing very little work on them. I used to write hip hop lyrics in the 90s and they were much more complex than they are now, the current people in the market are using baby lyrics over these dance tracks and that is another issue I have with it. I am all for feel good club music that crosses over, but I am tired of this whitewashing of the original producers and artists!

#TEAMAVICII






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LMFAO vs Afrojack - Sexy & I Know It vs Pacha On Acid

If you keep up with me on my various social networks you will know I am a huge supporter of showing credit where credit is due. That entire Avicii/Leona Lewis Penguingate scandal was a bit much for me (dont get me started again LOL). The outcome of that situation I think was great it gave Avicii the proper platform and set a precedent for other EDM producers out there.

A big sign of people finally realizing there is a market for what us DJs/EDM Producers do is the voting of David Guetta into the #1 spot in DJ Mags top 100 DJs of the world 2011. This is also seen in the latest #1 single from Rihanna ft Calvin Harris "We Found Love", although I believe its more like Calvin Harris ft Rihanna but WHATEVER, I'm nit-picking LOL. We see that the market is there for the taking and that the labels and artists may finally realize that DJs are entertainers just as much as any of the other artists out there.

This little blog post is about the latest in the storm of EDM on pop music. LMFAO has yet another HOT single on their hands with "Sexy & I Know It". If you guys know anything about LMFAO they are into making PARTY music. Fun club music that has one goal, to get you to have a good time, awesome. My issue is that their latest single sounds an awful lot like Afrojacks single "Pacha On Acid" from 2010. Its so similar that everytime I have played LMFAO "Sexy.." anyone that knows anything about EDM has said, "WOW that sounds like Pacha on Acid!". Sometimes things happen in music and its strictly coincidence, certain phrasing in lyrics, sometimes a riff might sounds closely related but its pretty clear that the producer for the LMFAO single knew of this track and the construction. It makes no sense at this point to continue to rip off EDM producers when they are becoming just as well known as some of the major label artists in the world.

I will get off my soapbox, here are the 2 tracks.. you listen and come to your own conclusions!

Laidback Luke Vs Example - Natural Disaster VIDEO review

I'm a huge fan of Laidback Luke, I think he is probably one of the most talented producers and DJs in the game right now. However, I am not a fan of Example LOL. I also dont care too much for the piano riff in this song (sounds like something from a bad Halloween movie). I love the drop on this song and the drum pattern is pretty sick but overall this song could have been so much better. I had the instrumental version of this for a few months before the official vocal version came out.

Now onto the video, I think its predictable but fun. I mean showing a DJ in the club (LBL) with lasers and flashing strobelights. Then we cut away to the parts of the video which add to the story we are seeing, overall very predictable and probably cheaply made. I do love that EDM is getting more time in the video market but I dont see much thought or imagination going into the videos. I also feel as if LBL has sort of lost his stride, most of his recent releases seem a bit lost. He was the one to watch, the guy who everytime he produced or remixed something you knew it was going to be a banger, now he is hit or miss and that probably comes from putting out SO MUCH content.

He has pushed himself to put out material (R3hab is doing this now as well) and his sound is starting to become saturated. EDM is a fickle market, we want new new new & that is also what makes it such a tough market. One day you can be on top of the game the next you are the throw-away remixer who creates filler mixes for the clubs.

I am keeping my fingers crossed LBL makes a huge change in 2012 and brings back that new fresh flavor that gave him so much momentum late 10 early 11!

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Korn ft Skrillex & Kill The Noise - Narcissistic Cannibal - review & video

Oh Korn, I remember how much I loathed you when you were on top of your game. This has to be the biggest combination of stuff I hate collab I have heard in a longgggg time.

We all know I am not a fan of dubstep, its not that I dont think it doesnt have interesting sounds or quality enough for a fanbase, I just find MOST of it boring. The few producers I can stand to listen to arent enough for me to like the genre as a whole. I do enjoy a few of Skrillex's productions but I have to say the one dubstep producer I can really get into is Nero, but thats off the topic of this post.

This to me sounds like something from the early 90s overall. If you guys ever listened to NIN you remember the industrial revolution in rock music and all the bands that came out of that. Gravity Kills did extremely well on the charts but one of the most underrated industrial bands at that time was God Lives Underwater. This song sounds surprisingly like their material, and I will link some of their videos below for reference.

So point is, the obvious dubstep elements in this song make it TRENDY, CURRENT but doesnt add up to the intention of the song. This sound without the dubstep elements is DATED, 20 years dated in melody and sound. I feel like Korn wrote this track then put it on the shelf for 2 decades then said, "lets put some dubstep on it". It lacks imagination and to me lacks any originality, probably a smart move on Korns part because the sheep (aka radio market) as a majority look for stuff less innovative and more on a curve (grading curve). They want things to move at a pace, they dont want SHOCK and AWE, unfortunately for me thats what I need to keep me motivated.

Overall this is a lackluster track with elements that might make it a commercial success but hardly what I would consider a comeback song for a group with such a huge following and legacy.

Here are a couple of God Lives Underwater videos for reference, the similarities are quite striking. Outside of the dubstep elements the melodies and vocal arrangements show just how dated this sound would be without Skrillex.

Kaskade Album - Fire & Ice - My Thoughts

Kaskade who was recently voted best DJ in America has been one of my favorite producers & remixers for a decade now. He does a great job of keeping that energy on every track he does from commercial to full-on electrohouse. He is part of the reason why I drifted away from that traditional tribal sound that most gay DJs stick to, the sound you kind of expect to hear at circuit parties around the country. I want to bring a different sound to big rooms in the gay community & I have done a great job so far, giving them everything from commercial to big electro and anthem music you wouldnt hear in most gay nightclubs. The video above is an interview with Kaskade and he talks in detail about his project, the new album. Below I will link some of the stand out tracks I really enjoy via YouTube.

Thanks AIRRICK

House Of Fur 12 - Injection Edition

Hey guys just wanted to update my blog, going to update it a few times this week and try to get into music review as well as my own podcasts and mixes. Hopefully this will become an outlet for not only my music but opinions of new music.

This is one of my latest podcasts, HOF 12 injection edition. I hope you guys enjoy this mix inspired by tech/acid/minimal house music!