Explain . . . THE REMIX

[Wryan]

Yeah, so they are the dancier versions of songs. Big humping deal. I can count on one hand the number of remixes I've heard in my life where I thought, "Wow! I can really see why they remixed that! Sounds amazingly fresh and new. It's like seeing the other side of the same coin. Brilliant!"

For that matter, someone please explain Timbaland's success. I got nothing against the guy except that I can hear plainly enough what he's doing in/to these songs yet can't quite understand why people are giving standing ovations for this. The worst, recent offender is his remix of that ubiquitous (and only somewhat good to begin with) One Republic song, "Apologize." Does he really do enough to the song to warrant his name first in the credit for it? Really?

I am but a poor, dense music fan and I don't understand the big, mean remix phenom. I request enlightenment. I know I sound acerbic here. It's not intentional and, like I said, I have enjoyed a few remixes. But overall, I dun get it.

:)

[Kurious Jorge v3.1]

remixes used to mean something in the hip hop world. If it was done well, sometimes it eclipsed the original version to the point where no one remembers the original. Some of my favorites:

Common Sense - Resurrection (Extra P Remix)
Bush Babees - Remember We Remix
D & D All-Stars - 1,2 Pass It Remix
Ras Kass - Soul on Ice Remix

[Wryan]

remixes used to mean something in the hip hop world. If it was done well, sometimes it eclipsed the original version to the point where no one remembers the original. Some of my favorites:

Common Sense - Resurrection (Extra P Remix)
Bush Babees - Remember We Remix
D & D All-Stars - 1,2 Pass It Remix
Ras Kass - Soul on Ice Remix

That's a good answer, but what does it mean to eclipse the original? Does faster and dancier equal better in the hip-hop world? [I'm serious; I have no idea].

I also take it you don't like how remixes have evolved in modern music?

[Kurious Jorge v3.1]

remixes aren't always "dancier" or faster, it could just be a different producer taking a crack at his interpretation of the song. Sometimes the group or artist may have dropped a classic vocal track but the original beat is not up to par, so other producers will remix it using the accapella, maybe today that means speeding it up to chipmunk speeds or adding a dance-your-pants-off drum track, but good remixes are reinventions of the original.

Or sometimes it just means bringing a large posse of rappers to rhyme on the original beat (or a new one with completely new verses, just retaining the same chorus i.e. A Tribe Called Quest - Scenario remix)

I'm sure house and R&B and whatever other genres that utilize the remix have different sets of rules that apply.

[Horbgorbler]

Yeah, remixes that are merely the same thing with phatter beats are lame, lame, lame. You know what rule? Dub versions.

[Acapelli]

Well remixes can be more than just dancier versions of songs, but usually that's what it implies. It's basically another producer's attempt at someone's song. Hence the name re-mix, mixed again.

Also, Apologize is a Timbaland song, not a One Republic song. He produced the track, they're featured on it.

[Lasse]

I thought Apologize was One Republic's song in the first place.

Anyway, I hate most remixes. Too often it's just a two-minute intro and then a inferior version of the song.

One exception is Gorillaz' 19-2000 (Soulchild Remix) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EM5BxEXQFoI), and though this one is in fact a happier dancier version of the song, I can't help but love it.

[D_Davis]

Check out The Cure's All Mixed Up. It's a very good remix album.

[bac0n]

Another source of great remix goodness is the Verve Remixed (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verve_Remixed) series. (That's Verve the label, not the band). Great remixes of old jazz & bassa-nova tunes by some of the more prominent electronic artists of today, such as The Postal Service, Koop, Gotan Project & Brazillian Girls. I have all three and they're all excellent.

And as for why the heaping praise on Timbaland, though I'm not familiar with his work, I have a feeling that people are heaping praise on him because he's making a lot of people very, very wealthy ;-).

[Ezee E]

Take the Dangermouse remix of Jay-Z and The Beatles. That's a damn fine remix.

[Wryan]

Thanks for all the info. Much appreciated.

Acapelli, can you go into further detail about this "Apologize" thing? Wiki says the original version was released in 2006 but didn't get much notice until Timbaland remixed it for his album. If that's right, I still don't really understand the logic behind calling it "his" song. Percentage-wise, he's still only really responsible for like 20% or less of the song. I'm sure I'm not really thinking of this in the proper terms. Perhaps it's different within the industry. But I just can't fathom why it works like that. I realize he considers it his "version" but I dunno. I just can't see it.

:confused:

EDIT: WAIT! I just saw something on Wiki. Is this thing basically "Timbaland presents OneRepublic" in the same way that Quentin Tarantino presents Chungking Express? If so, then THAT totally makes more sense to me.

[D_Davis]

A lot of music made by popular groups, bands, or singers, actually belongs more to the producer than they do to the "artist."

A lot of popular music, rap, R&B, dance music, and so on, is actually written by a producer or production team and then they find a group to "perform" the song.

In instances such as this, the music really belongs to the producer, so if he or she were to remix it, it would be credited as their music.

[Wryan]

A lot of music made by popular groups, bands, or singers, actually belongs more to the producer than they do to the "artist."

A lot of popular music, rap, R&B, dance music, and so on, is actually written by a producer or production team and then they find a group to "perform" the song.

In instances such as this, the music really belongs to the producer, so if he or she were to remix it, it would be credited as their music.

I know that happens sometimes. Kinda weird if you ask me. I'd rather the musicians themselves write and perform their own stuff. But it's somewhat understandable if you have a lot of songwriting talent but no musical talent or something similar.

[D_Davis]

I know that happens sometimes. Kinda weird if you ask me. I'd rather the musicians themselves write and perform their own stuff. But it's somewhat understandable if you have a lot of songwriting talent but no musical talent or something similar.

These kinds of relationships actually form the back bone of what we consider the "music industry."

Unfortunately, ever since Motown, and probably before, the focus has been on the image and the marketing. Find a nice looking group to perform a good song that someone else wrote, and you've got a hit!

But anyhow, a good producer can make or break a song or band.

Take a look at what Andrew Weatherall did for Primal Scream with Screamadelica. This album is often called one of the most important albums of the 1990s. It was the UK's "Nevermind" if you will. This is the album that launched a million raves and injected life into the house and acid house movements.

But whose album is it?

To this day, people still argue about this. Does it belong to Andrew Weatherall, the man who programmed the beats and recorded and remixed a lot of the music, or does it belong to Primal Scream, the band who wrote a lot of the music and lyrics and performed it?

My thoughts...it belongs to both.

Weatherall was able to make a killing off of remixes, and this album helped establish him as one of the premier mixers/producers, and it put Primal Scream on the map.

Win-win.

[Wryan]

My thoughts...it belongs to both.

I'd agree with that philosophy. Thanks for your input.

[origami_mustache]

I think producing is a bit of an underrated art, but on the other hand I don't really understand remixes either. If it's a good enough remix, why not use the alleged "phat" beat in an original work. I suppose if you are a relative unknown, remixing a popular song is a good way to establish oneself or at least get your name out there, but other than that it's relatively useless.

[Ezee E]

I think remixes tend to happen after the album is released. Producers tend to always play around with beats, creating up to 50-60 songs for an album that only has 12. They probably use some of those beats for the songs that made the album, or were just experimenting, liked it enough to where they created a new album of it.

And yes, the Timberland Presents... album is just like Quentin Tarantino presenting Hero, Chungking Express, etc. It's actually a good album, as he takes in hip-hop, and different styles of rock. She Wants Revenge, OneRepublic (which got a record deal out of the album), and others.