You're going to want to go out and get almost every track as
Daniel W. Kelly | Long Island, NY United States | 03/10/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"From vocals to instrumentals, Thrivemix has managed to pick a selection of tracks that capture everything that various genres of `electro' are supposed to be, from the pop stuff, to the retro 80s feel, to the alt rock goes dance and finally to the hardcore bleeps and blips. It's all here, almost perfectly sequenced and mixed. Seriously, you're going to make a lot of discoveries here and want to see if these artists have other songs. I've already made a list of CDs I now have to get as a result of hearing single songs by individual artists on here. I just wish some of the really strong tracks on here had been play out for longer durations, since many of these mixes are not available on CD otherwise. Track times and song notes:
CD1
1. let me in (4:23) (brilliant way to begin this collection. It doesn't get anymore retro 80s than this alt rock dance mix)
2. time won't let me go (5:27) (totally worth the price of the disc to have this mix on CD, considering it wasn't released on a single. If you were disappointed that the second Bravery CD didn't have the 80s synth dance feel of the first one, this will be an extra treat. Now if only more of the songs from that CD would be remixed)
3. I love it (4:00) (a harder alt rock electro sound with female vocals)
4. back in your head (4:54) (More female vocal, with a great electro vibe, kinda mellow mix that contrasts with the gruff vocal. Some great synth work)
5. me plus one (4:56) (Just what you'd expect from LuCont. Modern dance meets 80s alt rock. Male vocal track very reminiscent of Bono. Great track.)
6. star guitar (2:50) (WHY is this awesome, melodic track not even 3 minutes long??? The guitar here reminds me of U2 (a theme going on here) and finally the female vocal kicks in. Get the full length version on Shinichi Osawa's CD)
7. le disko (4:40) (Awesome to have another remix of Le Disko that hasn't been on other mixed compilations, but I really wish the record label would release a Shiny Toy Guns remix CD with all the songs that have not seen the light of day on CD)
8. technologic (3:36) (getting into the hardcore electro with this slammin' track, more synth noise than melodic)
9. testarossa (4:00) (total electronic dance music, no vocals)
10. pogo (4:45) (Japanese artist Shinichi Osawa brings on the retro 80s meets electro sound again. After hearing track 6 and this remix by Osawa, I now want to explore further music by the artist. Male vocals reminiscent of Robert Smith of The Cure, with a mix that is very much like a Cicada mix or LuCont mix)
11. somewhere beyond (5:12) (some `rasta' type vocal on this track, but not much, and the dance vibe, bassline and synth riff just carry you along.)
12. the walk (4:37) (I grew up with the original of this song, so I was hesitant to hear a remix, but this one truly brings it into the new millennium without totally destroying your memory of the original. And really, since SO many bands are trying to sound like Robert Smith these days, the real deal deserves to be in the mix somewhere)
CD2
1. she wants to move (3:51) (simple, straightforward alt rock dance song with male vocal)
2. countdown (3:19) (Awesome. This is that rare discovery you make when you get one of these discs. A totally catchy, melodic electro pop track with male vocal)
3. gotta move (3:46) (disc 2 just keeps pumping. This heavy electro vibe features several female vocals harmonizing in a 70s disco style. Why are all the good songs so short on this disc???)
4. Ice Cream (5:19) (Think Goldfrapp. Hard electro with female vocals. Keeps the party going, thanks to a remix by Van She. A great 80s synth line smoothes things out.)
5. ladyflash (4:37) (repetitive female vocal chant with a funky groove. Good stuff.)
6. hearts on fire (4:41) (a surprisingly mellow instrumental. Nice stuff, but might have been better as a cool down track at the end of the disc)
7. like something 4 porno (4:03) (back to the hard noise. This track is loaded with heavy bass and orchestral slams, plus a gurgley female vocal. Remixer Armand Van Helden is at the top of his game here.)
8. merrymaking at my place (4:19) (a fun and clunky male vocal track, kind of like a novelty track gone electro.)
9. north american scum (4:49) (this instrumental mix is quite dramatic, with a lot of synth build up.)
10. listen up (4:26) (Hard house track has some serious diva attitude)
11. bombs (4:27) (great moody track with melodic female vocals)
12. Kelly (4:58) (This fantastic, mellow male vocal track is 80s new wave meets modern electro perfection. Great to have the remix here, pretty much isolated from the track before it since it hasn't been released commercially on CD single)
"
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1