Good Morning Mix: Head back to Bayfront Park for Afrojack’s all-time Ultra 2014 performance – Dancing Astronaut


by: Ross Goldenberg


Dec 21, 2020

There’s a considerable case to be made that, heading into 2014, Afrojack was plainly sitting in a class of his own. In the months building up to his sunset scheduling at Ultra that March, Afrojack was making preparations for his long-awaited debut album, piecing together Forget the World as its May due date crept closer. Considering that Bayfront Park is prominently hailed as the breeding ground for new, soon-to-be released music, Afrojack took the open invitation to supply exactly that, and we’re taking the next 66 minutes to re-experience the height of dirty dutch music from Ultra’s 2014 iteration.

Ask any avid follower of either Ultra or house music to rattle off some of the mid-2010’s most noteworthy festival performances, and Afrojack’s 2014 Bayfront Park presentation would undoubtedly come up 10 out of 10 times. In between bringing out Martin Garrix to unload “Turn Up the Speakers” or unveiling back-to-back Forget the World collaborations with Matthew Koma, Afrojack wholly summed up the elation surrounding dance music that year.

Whether you were sitting at home viewing the UMFTV livestream or in the depths of the Miami crowd itself, the set’s energy was palpable as Afrojack powered through a blue-chip tracklist, including blends of his ageless staples like “Take Over Control” versus “Jack That Body” and “Rock The House” against “No Beef.” Close to seven years later, Afrojack’s late afternoon display that Sunday in March still holds up as one of the single greatest in Ultra’s multi-decade history.

Featured image: Rukes

Tags: afrojack, Good Morning Mix, ultra, Ultra Music Festival

Categories: Music, Videos






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Bono, Halsey & Pharrell Williams all cast in ‘Sing 2’


Bono, Halsey, Pharrell Williams are among those who’ve been announced as part of the cast for the forthcoming animated film, Sing 2, Variety reports.

The sequel to 2016’s Sing is set for cinematic release in December 2021, and is produced by Illumination, the same studio behind the Despicable Me and The Secret Life of Pets franchises.

Letitia Wright, Eric Andre, Chelsea Peretti and Bobby Cannavale will also be joining the cast, which already includes returning cast members Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Scarlett Johansson, Taron Egerton and Nick Kroll.

In what will be his animated film debut, Bono is set to play a reclusive rockstar named Clay Calloway who secluded himself from the world after his wife passed. Williams will play Alfonso, an ice cream truck driver who is also an elephant, and falls in love with another elephant played by Tori Kelly. Halsey plays literal teen wolf Porsche, the daughter of Cannavale’s Jimmy Crystal.

“The film is a musical celebration of the unrelenting pursuit of one’s dreams, no matter how large the challenges that stand in your way,” said Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri.

“At its core, this movie speaks to the power of optimism and belief.”

Earlier this year, it was announced that Halsey would make her major acting debut in fellow actress Sydney Sweeney’s adaptation of YA novel They Wish They Were Us.

“I think she’s going to blow the world away with her acting ability,” Sweeney told NME of Halsey’s performance.

“She’s just so passionate about so many different issues and topics that the show hits on. I think she’s really going to be able to bring that to a whole new level and deepen it and make it more impactful.”





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Jinx Drops Wonky New Single, “Goblin”


We just named Jinx as one of our Top 40 Artists to Watch for 2021, so we’re incredibly glad we now have the opportunity to tell you about her newest song, “Goblin,” out on Underdog Records.

As the name would suggest, the song oozes creepy vibes through synths and melodies, but also goes far into the wonky side of bass music. It’s starts off rather simply with atonal bass, but gradually adds in more elements to fill in the gaps.

Check out “Goblin” below!



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The Complete Edition of Daft Punk’s “TRON: Legacy” Soundtrack is Now on Apple Music and Spotify

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of TRON: Legacy, nine elusive tracks from Daft Punk‘s Grammy-nominated score have been added to a number of streaming services, including Apple Music and Spotify. The new releases add on to the original and make up “The Complete Edition” of the soundtrack.





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Congress passes COVID-19 relief bill with $15 billion in funding for independent venues – Dancing Astronaut


by: Rugby Scruggs


Dec 21, 2020

On December 20, the United States Congress reached an agreement on a $900 billion relief package that, in addition to granting an individual payment of $600 to each qualifying American, will afford $15 billion to “venues, independent movie theaters, and cultural institutions.” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said,

“I’m especially pleased this this bill will provide money for bars and restaurants, and $15 billion in SPA grants for theater operators and small venue operators through the Save Our Stages Act. These venues are so important to my state and so many other states across the country. They are the lifeblood of our communities. They were the first to close and will be the last to open. This bill gives them a fighting chance.”

For the past few months, the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) has worked tirelessly to get the Save Our Stages federal relief package approved. In October, the House of Representatives amended the Heroes Act to include Save Our Stages, and now, NIVA’s work has finally paid off.

Featured image: Lindrik/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Tags: #SaveOurStages, covid, covid-19 music relief, Heroes Act

Categories: News






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“I want to see real change happen”


David Byrne has shared his hopes for a post-Donald Trump America, though admits it is “too early to celebrate”.

Byrne was speaking as part of last week’s Big Read cover feature, around the release of his new Spike Lee-directed concert film American Utopia.

  • READ MORE: David Byrne: “I have a little bit of hope. Not every day, but some days”

“For me Trump was not so much a shock; we knew who he is,” Byrne told NME. “He was around New York before that, in the reality show [The Apprentice], we knew what kind of character he was.”

He added: “What shocked me was how quickly the Republican party all fell into line behind him, behind this guy who’s obviously a racist, misogynist liar and everything else. But it’s kind of encouraging – although it’s taken four years and with some it’s only with the prospect of him being gone – that quite a few have been breaking ranks. There are some possibilities of bridge building being held out.”

Donald Trump. CREDIT: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Byrne then warned that it is “too early to celebrate” following Trump’s loss to Joe Biden in last month’s election, discussing the current Republican control of the Senate. “[This] is what happened with Obama…” Byrne said. “I want to see real change happen.

“[Climate change] absolutely needs to be a priority. The clock had turned back over the last four years, so there’s a lot to be done. Whether there’s the willpower to do everything that needs to be done, it remains to be seen, but at least now it’s pointing in the right direction.”

Byrne added that he hopes to look back at the four years of Trump’s presidency as “a near-miss” for the United States.

Elsewhere in the Big Read interview, David Byrne told NME why there “probably won’t” be a Talking Heads reunion in the future.

“There’s a lot of differences that haven’t entirely gone away,” he said. “And I think, as is evident in [the American Utopia] film, I’m having a pretty good time doing what I’m doing.”





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Vote for Your Favorite Essential Dance Music Video at the Clubbing TV Awards, Presented by EDM.com

In early 2021, Clubbing TV will be broadcasting their third annual awards ceremony celebrating the best videos in dance music. For those unfamiliar with the channel, Clubbing TV is an international television station focused on the electronic music world. With live performances, music videos, industry discussions, and more, they now reach over 100,000,000 viewers across 50+ countries.





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Tycho gathers RAC, pluko, Com Truise, and more for ‘Weather Remixes’ – Dancing Astronaut


by: Austria Masim


Dec 21, 2020

On Weather Remixes, Tycho welcomes eight new reworks of originals billed under his Grammy-nominated Weather LP, released in 2019. Earlier this year, the Bay Area producer shared the instrumental companion album to Weather, Simulcast; now, he’s carrying on the eclectic movement with a full album of revisions from RAC, Com Truise, Satin Jackets, Mild Minds, Harvey Sutherland, Nitemoves, and pluko.

Weather Remixes complements Tycho’s introspective, ambient sound, exploring an array of genres ranging from house, downtempo, ambient, lounge, synthwave, mid-tempo, and more. Enlisting a prestigious group of artists to assume remix duties, Tycho commissions reinterpretations that expound on the soundscapes and tranquilizing melodies to which Tycho fans have become easily attached in recent years.

To celebrate the new year, Tycho is preparing a live sunrise stream, “Solo Ascent.” The event is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. EST / 7:00 a.m. PST on January 1. More information and tickets for Tycho’s Solo Ascent are available here. In the meantime, listeners can stream Weather Remixes below.

Featured image: Xavi Torrent/Redferns via Getty Images

Tags: Ambient, com truise, Harvey Sutherland, house, Mild Minds, Mom + Pop Music, nitemoves, pluko, RAC, remix album, remixes, satin jackets, tycho, Weather

Categories: Music






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GREG DOWNEY + BEATMAN & LUDMILLA: ‘THE ART OF SKULLDUGGERY VOL II’


Gambits & chicanery, intrigue, ploys ‘n’ subterfuge – who doesn’t like a bit of the deep-down ‘n’ dirty in their musical lives!!? Bang on cue the Skullduggery crew are back to provide us with precisely those types of thrills!

Last year’s ‘The Art Of Skullduggery’ saw the label plot its first mix-comp course, painting their vision over ‘Vol.1’s dual-disc canvas. At its heart was Chief Skull Greg Downey’s desire to share both his inimitable combustible trance sound and that of other talents who – on the scale – have been underexposed. Stoneface & Terminal showcased in last spring’s inaugural, but for 2020’s it’s Beatman & Ludmilla who grab some second disc spotlight. A backbone of the country’s electronic music scene for well over a decade the Hungarian duo has evolved through its breaks and prog periods, regularly playing 25 in-country shows a year. It is though through psytrance that they’ve found their higher calling, which subsequently brought them to Greg’s attention. Back in 2018, he persuaded the enigmatic duo to break with their Ayra Recordings release tradition and license ‘Dune’ to Skullduggery. Its exposure quickly widened interest & audience for the pair, which in turn opened the release floodgates and ultimately leads us to today and the release of the trio’s pretty darn killer collaboration ‘The Art Of Skullduggery Vol. II’!

Skul(l)duggery, noun, (skəl-ˈdə-g(ə-)rē) (skull-dug-er-rrrry). Meaning: making it happen by means fair or otherwise (usually otherwise).

On his mix, Greg weighs in with a mass of gear for your ear to cheer, immediately pushing the needle to lightspeed with his own ‘Infinity’. That precedes a wealth of new and upcoming Downey studio-ware: ‘London Calling’, ‘Rendezvous’, ‘Elephant’ and his recent reworking of Michael Kaelios’s ’Who I Am’ amongst them. Greg draws on plenty of desk-hot music from other quarters too, with the latest from like-minds including Will Atkinson, John Askew, Chris Schweizer, Ronski Speed, and Everlight getting the ‘Vol. II’ call up.

Looking to make absolutely certain you’re getting something you’re not finding anywhere else, Beatman & Ludmilla draw on 100% exclusive material for their mix. In and amongst you’ll find new cuts from Gabor & Fruzsina themselves, including the disc’s overture ‘Om Namah Shivaya’ and the (no-explanations-needed!) ‘Welcome to Skullduggery’. Kelle’s remixes of B&L’s ‘Shaman’ & ‘Walking In The Forest’ are also on deck, as are Eshericks and Mindfold’s reworks of ‘Dune’ & John Dopping’s remap of last year’s ‘Amelie’. Beatman & Ludmilla get remix-busy themselves crowing their 80 minutes with new spins on Simon Patterson’s ‘Apex’ and Greg’s own ‘Loco’. Available to stream or buy this very moment, ‘The Art Of Skulduggery Vol. II’ is available through all good platforms where music is streamed.





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The National are “starting to talk about making music,” says Aaron Dessner


The National could soon begin work on their ninth studio album, according to the band’s guitarist Aaron Dessner.

Speaking to Billboard, Dessner said his current project is the next album by Big Red Machine, his collaboration with Bon Iver‘s Justin Vernon, but that The National are beginning to discuss their first music since 2019’s acclaimed ‘I Am Easy To Find’.

Asked about his plans for the future following his work on Taylor Swift‘s acclaimed 2020 albums Folklore and Evermore, Dessner said he and Vernon were “close to finishing” their new album before “the Folklore and Evermore vortex opened up.”

“Actually Taylor has been really helpful and involved with that as well,” he continued. “The National is starting to talk about making music, and I think [Swift] will probably take a break.”

In September, Dessner’s The National bandmate Bryan Devendorf told NME that he wants the band’s next album to be a “stripped-back rock record” in a similar vein to IDLES.

“I think it’s back to the drawing board,” he replied. “We’re starting from the bottom of the mountain. Personally, I’ve always wanted to strip it back and do minimalist stuff like IDLES – they’re one of our new favourites. I love their production and their music,” he said.

Following the release of ‘I Am Easy To Find’ last year, meanwhile, the band told NME that that they have some more “rock” and “live” songs that didn’t make it onto the album but may still see the light of day.





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