Tag: Flight Facilities

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Music

EMPT Presents: Summer Heat by Barry Poppins

I’m a fan of the Phish.

There, I said it. And it’s not because I like to bounce around rooms. It’s because of their covers. Ever since I saw The Last Waltz, I have been completely inebriated by musicians exiting their comfort zones and singing songs that they d
have been not became and singing songs that they did not create. That love carried over to my first (or second, who can remember) Phish concert when LSD and the band’s Talking Heads cover (Cities) collided and absolutely floor me. That love of covers has translated into a love of remixes and edits when it comes to electronic music, specifically: disco. From remaster of the universe Todd Terje to Greg Wilson (featured on this mix), that love has become real, and bordered on an obsession. It’s not to say that the originals don’t do the job, but simply put, I’ve got a thing for remixes and hearing the familiar tune in an unfamiliar, newfound way. From the slight edit to the total overhaul, they just do it for me. This mix is a blend of the Balearic and the Funky, but throughout, you’ll hear both old and new songs re-imagined, as they make up the majority of the 90 minute mix. From Gwen Stefani (yes, really Hector) to Bob Marley, this mix represents my personal, aural journey from the last year and a half, with a slew of artists I’ve come to admire and blast on repeat. Whether you’re at work or getting ready for the weekend, this mix is intended to bring you to the place we all wish we were: right by the beach, mon!

Tracklist:

Half Baked – Right Near the Beach
Gwen Stefani – Rich Girls (Greg Wilson Edit)
LUXXURY – Travolta Fever
Dr. Packer – Islands in the Sky
Greg Wilson – Summer Came My Way
William de Vaughn – Be Thankful For What You Got (FKJ Remix)
Falcon Punch & Roller Radio – Never Enough
Nore en Pure – Come With Me (Satin Jackets Remix)
The Whispers – And The Beat Goes On (Fingerman Edit)
Delegation – Heartache No. 9 (Breixo Edit)
Disclosure – Latch (DJ AA Ibiza Bootleg)
The Establishment – Love Like This
Bob Marley – Exodus (Drop Out Orchestra Remix)
Late Nite Tuff Guy – Do U Wanna Get Down
The Backwoods – Breakthrough
Flight Facilities – Foreign Language (Rocco Raimundo Edit)
Nora en Pure – You Are My Pride (Croatia Squad Remix)
Chris Malinchak – So Good to Me

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Music

EMPT Presents: Balearea by Barry Poppins

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The kid Barry sent me this literally weeks ago but somehow in the endless waltz of learning, work, music and insatiable hunger for more that’s my life I haven’t been able to sit down and post it, until now.

For a quiet guy like me, one who enjoys the dwellings of solitude so much I rarely find myself alone these days. Lately though, I’ve been stepping back and taking time for myself and man is it helping. As I write this I’m at some random Cafe in Highland Park, listening to “Balearic” and enjoying an easy Sunday morning only California could provide. I don’t even know how I got here, but my new thing is just getting in my car and going…

I hear the birds on the summer breeze,
I drive fast, I am alone in the night
Been tryin’ hard not to get into trouble,
but I, I’ve got a war in my mind
I just ride, just ride…

Say what you will about Los Angeles but you just can’t beat this weather man, it’s 61 degrees, sunny as fuck and oh yeah, it’s February! Anyways, life on this end has certainly not been smooth sailing but I feel like things are finally coming back to a peaceful place and it most certainly has to do with stepping away from the things that just don’t agree with my disposition. It’s a hard thing to do, it may even be a little bit escapist in nature but sometimes you have to trust your gut and that’s all I’m doing.

This tape is the perfect soundtrack for Sunday. Put this on and go about your business, this is vibe music, sensual, sexy and feel good. This is Space Age Bachelor Pad Music, the type of shit you would place in the morning on a Yacht coasting off the south of France or at a 6am pool party in the Dominican Republic after you’ve been partying all night. It’s beautiful and euphoric chill out music curated at the highest level. Enjoy.

“This mix took me 6 months to finalize and is an ode to the “Balearic” realm of music that can’t be defined by words, only brisk, smooth sounds. It’s a collection of tunes that make me feel like I’m surfing on a rocket or floating on a Banana Boat. It’s a collection of songs that both calms and awakens me, if that makes any sense. For me, Balearic tunes are ones that can calm your nerves but make your nipples hard at the same time. And that is what these songs mean to me.”

Tracklisting:

Psychemagik – Wake Up Everybody
Late Nite Tuff Guy – I Can Feel It
Chris Malinchak – So Into You
Reverso 68 – Piece Together (Todd Terje Spinning Star Mix)
Classixx – Supernature (Hot Toddy Remix)
Appo – Cocaine
Mario Basanov – Caribbean Girl (New Found Land Remix)
Satin Jackets feat. KLP – For Days
Air Zaire feat. Patric Baker – Sanibel
Flight Facilities – Shine A Light
Laid Back – Fly Away (Poolside Edit)
Roy Ayeres – Everybody Loves the Sunshine

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Music

EMPT Presents: Le Miel du Mois Decembre Best of 2013

I can’t lie, I’ve had this tape since mid December. I did have an extremely busy end of the year and going back to NYC for two weeks didn’t exactly help my productivity but that really has nothing to do with it. In fact this tape has been complete since Steph first sent it over. HP sent us one of their new Split X2 laptops, you know the one Clams Casino has been using for those beat making videos you’ve been seeing all over the net. Anyways, I didn’t want to take my army of technology with me on this trip so I put Ableton on the X2, got inspired, took it on my flight and did all the mix on it while on my way to New York. Gotta love the space age.

The truth is I have this weird thing with LMDM’s where I want to hold on to it for myself for as long as possible. I realize EMPT is this whole thing now and people have certain expectations that need to be met but I like to do what I feel and being the only one with LMDM for a little extra longer makes me feel good, sue me. Seriously though, I know it’s a problem, I promise to be better about it this year. Anyhow, Steph usually speaks through her selections but this time she graced us with some beautiful words and I won’t go on with my ramblings and distract much longer. We took a little extra time to mix and blend the tracks while keeping Stephs original track order in tack so I think you’ll guys like how this one flows. To make up for my hoarding and to step it up for 2014 I’ll be mixing all LMDM’s like this from no on, enjoy.

Putting this lmdm is always particularly special – for me, each year it’s a way to go through the endless lists of my favorite songs which in a way is to go through moment after moment after moment that made up my year – to sum up “a best of” – this took me exactly twenty minutes, at a quarter to midnight, BC I knew exactly what needed to be on this – so this is my version of a best of – each song is a piece of my year and perhaps of yours as well…each track is much more than that – it’s a distinct memory you repeat in your head bringing you back to that individual experience you associate it with. For me there’s a strong mix of emotion attached to each one and a definitive event, person, or both. Here’s to a full year-  of ups and downs, highs and lows, falls and beautiful mistakes but with each close of a year – comes a new opportunity – of renewal and most importantly, an open path – waiting to be taken…

Le Miel du Mois at work? That’s much better than work at work! Download
Tracklist:
  1. Sam Smith – Nirvana (TIPs Promised Land Remix)
  2. Nicolas jaar – With Just One Glance
  3. Coma les dilettantes (Roosevelt remix)
  4. Blood Orange – Champagne Coast (Clockwork Opera Remix)
  5. Foals – Bad Habit (Alex Metric Remix)
  6. Wolf Alice – Blush (Duncan Murray Remix)
  7. Vadoinmessico – Teeo (Crystal Fighters Remix)
  8. Miguel – do you (ah yeah remix)
  9. Hermitude – hyperparadise (flume remix)
  10. Vitalic- fade away (C2C remix)
  11. Ginger and the ghost – one type of dark (ta-Ku remix)
  12. Lafayette – Mauvaise mine (Jupiter remix)
  13. Kleerup and Lykke Li – Til we bleed
  14. Ultraista – Small Talk (whomever remix)
  15. Flight Facilities – Claire de Lune (them jeans edit)
  16. The Do – Bohemian Dance (YUS remix)
Categories
Music

EMPT Presents: Le Miel du Mois Octobre 2013 (Mini-Mix Series)

As we proceed, to give you what you need…”

Time flies when you’re having fun man. Lately I’ve taken to myself, embraced being alone and finding my zone, it’s a beautiful thing. That’s where I was when I started EMPT, met Steph and built the ground work for all that is my life today. I run with a lot of creative people, not just creative in the sense of painting a picture but people that lead creative alternative lifestyles, rebels who create their worlds. Whenever I lock into my zone they’re right there with me and we make something from nothing. We do it effortlessly and have much fun…

Lookin back I did the shit to death
I guess I ain’t killin it this rhyme, I’m here to raise the dead
I’m here to raise the stakes, this time it’s ten mill
Supply the sink ill, ship five and then build…” – Fat Joe

We’re about to partner up with a radio station in Miami to stream LMDM and DJ at Art Basel and I was looking back at all the tapes we’ve done so far and I gotta tip my hat to Steph and say thank you. You’ve been at this for so long, you saw something in EMPT before it was anything and have been riding with me since. It’s been an exciting ride and we continue to do great but it’s definitely time to get back and beyond what we were before I left New York. EMPT is my DNA and I know it’s growth falls on me and no one else, I’ve tried getting help with no real success but I’m back in my zone and as happy as I am with what we’ve done, I’m not the type of guy to rest on his laurels…

Overly focused it’s far from the time to rest now…” – Drake

So just like that we’re on the 4th and final tape of the awesome mini-mix edition of LMDM. It’s a bittersweet symphony to be honest, I could get use to having Steph pick my music everyday! This tape like the 3 before it is phenomenal and brings us up to date on the internets longest running, most consistent, most eclectic, best curated, most loved mixtape. I’m the luckiest guy on earth to have Steph grace us with her music, I’ve said it before and I’ll never stop, enjoy.

Tracklisting:

  1. Sam Smith – Nirvana (TIP’s Promised Land Remix)
  2. Elephant – Shapeshifter
  3. Foals – Out Of The Woods (Kulkid Remix)
  4. Jagwar Ma – Come Save Me (Flight Facilities Graceland Remix)
  5. COMA – Les Dilettantes (Roosevelt Mix)

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Categories
Music Remixes

Miike Snow – The Wave (Flight Facilities Remix)

Miike-Snow-The-Wave-Flight-Facilities-Mix

It’s always magic in music when everything just seems to fit. The way the lyrics move through the melody to personify the words; the way the production works to emphasize the dissonance;  the way the sound pulsates through your veins, into your bones to resonate in your gut before bursting through your every pore in dance. There aren’t many tracks like that out there in the music sphere, but this one right here is a needle in a haystack.

Miike Snow is already a gem of a band. Their tracks and sound aesthetic consistently impress me. I have proof in my iTunes song counter that I kept it on repeat for a healthy couple of weeks when the song dropped. The video, too, was glorious. Factor in Aussie duo, Flight Facilities infectious electro-pop vision and we’ve got ourselves a brilliant piece of sound. Any more words on the track would ruin the experience for you. This is one track that doesn’t need much to back it up; it’s power speaks for it self. No, it’s power does more than speak; it’s power is felt.

Plug in your headphones, tune in, and begin your Thursday properly. Welcome to the new day.

We’ll all be staring at the same wave.”

Indeed, we will be.

Miike Snow – The Wave (Flight Facilities Remix)

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Music

EMPT Presents – Wet Dreams #1 by Barry Poppins

We all want so much man, over achievement and extreme ambition are glorified and admired almost universally these days but have you ever stopped to ask why?…

Hustle, hustle, hustle. Grind, grind, grind. Why does everyone got hustle on their mind?”

MIA was something else back then, I remember first hearing that hook and questioning everything. I won’t get into all that right now now but always remember to look around your environment and question what you see. Just because everyone is doing something, just because it’s tradition, culturally revered or whatever doesn’t mean it’s truth. Think about it, if the massive amounts of cultural influence, media and tradition we’rent around to sway would you care about the same things? Sometimes you have to press pause on the Human Drama and give your mind a break to formulate it’s own path. Which brings me to the subject of todays post, the Wet Dreams #1 by Barry Poppins, a former EMPT writer that returns with a downtempo/chill mix worthy of boss caliber reflection and relaxation. This mix isn’t made for Friday or Saturday night, this is strictly for downtime, Sunday chillin’ folks. I’ve had it running top to bottom for the last hour and I gotta say the kids downtempo song selection is tight enough to rival the best of them. Anyhow, I’ve told half the story but the rest is from the maestro himself, press play on this one ASAP, enjoy…

In the 6 months, I’ve been exposed to more music crossing more genres than perhaps at any point in my life. It was both a blessing and a curse, that allowed me to hone in on the sounds that truly act as aural therapy for me. One of these sounds is a very cliche, five letter word: chill. The great part about this genre, I’ve discovered, is that chill out music is not confined to one genre. So many artists across so many different “genres” and decades and continents create an array of music on a daily basis. But if you examine every prolific group or artist’s catalogue thoroughly enough, odds are you’ll find a soothing, relaxing track somewhere. 

These are the types of songs that act as ear valium. Since being afflicted by the most gnawing, aggravating medical condition I’ve ever experienced–tinnitus–the need to listen to sparse, mellow, and just calming music has truly arisen. Tinnitus hurts the ear, yes, but it also tortures the soul and the mind. I’ve always been an anxious person, but this disease has made everything in life more difficult–going to clubs, talking on the phone, or just walking down the street. You hear voices, you hear a constant ringing, and you don’t ever know if it will come to an end. 

As someone who’s constantly bombarded by stress–both self-inflicted and through external forces–it’s a sound without which I’d be helpless. Thus began my transformation of my musical diary/Tumblr into a very niche, and very mellow music blog, along with a mixture series I hope to update on a monthly basis. Loosely inspired by the White Light Series, and mainly by the overall need to decompress, take a deep breath, and be thankful for what I do have and can control in life, came The Pleasure Dome. I don’t know what, if anything, this little site will turn into. But I do know–as long as I can hear–I’ll be on the look out for the cream of the chill out crop. Without further ado: Welcome To The Pleasure Dome.

Track List:

  1. Tangerine Dream – Love On A Real Train (Chilled Out Euphoria Version)
  2. Radiohead – Climbing Up The Walls (Zero 7 Remix)
  3. Mechanical Me – Beachy Head (Bonobo Remix)
  4. Air et Gordon Tracks- Playground Love
  5. La Roux – In For The Kill (Skream’s Let’s Get Ravey Remix)
  6. Leonard Cohen – I’m Your Man
  7. Nicolas Jaar feat. Scott Larue & Will Epstein- With Just One Glance You
  8. Lou Reed – Walk On The Wild Side (Rocco Raimundo Extended Version)
  9. Flight Facilities – Claire De Lune (Them Jeans Edit)
  10. Montauk – Speed Of Light
  11. Cosmic Kids – Freight To My Soul
  12. Telepopmuzik – Breathe
  13. Zero 7 – Destiny
  14. Daft Punk – Make Love
  15. Mansions On The Moon x Junior Boys – Lights Off
  16. Daft Punk – Nightvision

Categories
Music Video

Paul Simon – You Can Call Me Al (Flight Facilities Edit)

The kid Barry Poppins sent me this a minute ago and less than a minute later I’m sharing it with you. Flight Facilities will be releasing it on Soundcloud in less than a week so stay tuned. Undeniably good, enjoy.

Categories
Music

Le Miel du Mois by Steph Lund: Janvier 2013

Music has taken me many places man but my most recent adventure might be the one to top them all. I spent last week on a 26,000 acre private Villa off Mexico’s virgin coast. I was there curating the music for someones 50th birthday, this person shall remain nameless but all I can say is that my life will never be the same.

A good friend asked me what I got from the trip and aside from the most luxurious partying I’ve ever done, hanging with some of the most beautiful and elegant women I’ve ever encountered, having worldly conversations with the most powerful men around and all the other romance such beauty and power affords, it was the first time I really understood that it’s the rebels who get the best life has to offer…

 How does somebody know what they want if they’ve never even seen it?”

We’re literally bombarded with media these days, which in the context of that question means that what we want is limited to what is put in front of us. For example, these BS Netflix and Pandora algorithms that “know what you like.” At first thought that might seem cool but always getting what you already know and are comfortable with is criminal. Where’s the adventure? There’s no limit to our anything, not our love, our ability to learn or appreciate, to grow or to expand and yet the whole point of these services is to define and box you up. I don’t buy it.

It’s important to ask yourself if the path you’re on is something you created, is it an expression of yourself or is it just something others have created for you? You’ll never find what you seek if let others guide your vision. There is a wonderful experience out there most of us will never get because we got so caught up in the ever expansive rat race but we live in a time when being limitless is easier than ever… The people who excel astronomically in this world are the ones who live beyond it. Welcome to the Space Age, please REBEL ASAP.

That brings me to the subject of today post, the first LMDM of 2013, aka the soundtrack to my story. Le Miel du Mois has been going since 2009 and you think by now we’d know what to expect right? Wrong! This isn’t Pandora baby, this is pure life in the form of music and like someone who is truly living, it’s constantly evolving, changing, learning, adapting, growing, speeding up, slowing down, in love, out of love, partying, chilling out and on and on. I’ve never been able to define LMDM, I could never tell someone it’s one genre of music or what not and it’s one of the reason I and so many others are forever in love with this tape. Where’s the adventure? With LMDM it’s everywhere and it makes me proud to bring you another year of it, enjoy.

januaryyy. sigh. the cold air. hugging your coat a little closer to your body. brisk walks. short cigarettes. cold hands. warm bodies. late night sips. stealing kisses…stay warm & stay up late…

“When I see you standing there. The evening sun upon your hair. Covered up with garden dirt. With just one glance you tear my skirt.” – Nicolas Jaar”

Le Miel du Mois at work? That’s much better than work at work! Download

Tracklisting:

  1. Misun – Harlote
  2. Crystal Castles – Baptism
  3. Electric Guest – This Head I Hold
  4. Flight Facilities – Clair De Lune (Them Jeans Edit)
  5. Paradis – Hemisphere
  6. New Animal – Falling Up
  7. Ultraista – Gold Dayzz (Maribou State Remix)
  8. Diiv – Follow
  9. The Dø – Bohemian Dances (YUS Remix)
  10. Porcelain Raft – Shapeless and Gone
  11. Kleerup with Lykke Li – Until We Bleed
  12. Young Magic – Sparkly

Categories
Music Remixes

Lou Reed – Walk On The Wilde Side (Rocco Raimundo Extended Edit)

Flight Facilities took up residency at Australia’s Triple J last October and the simply incredible result was four, separate, decade-spanning mixes that required an immense amount of research and curation. They’ve finally released the first of those mixes which spans the 10-year period of 1972-1982. The mix is flush with seminal works, sound bytes from historical figures, and, most serendipitously, new, albeit slight, takes on old classics.

The one that really stood out to me was Rocco Raimundo‘s over 9 minute long edit of Lou Reed‘s epic “Walk On the Wild Side.” By stripping down the vocals, and then expanding upon the original, infusing it with hypnotic and mind-altering piano and percussion work, Raimundo clearly strikes a magical chord throughout this piece of art.

The most refreshing part about this edit–and the entire mix–is how deeply seeped into history and the respect with which it treats music that simply cannot and will not ever be duplicated by synthetic instruments.  It’s rare that you make it through 3 minutes, let alone 9 minutes of a song these days, but this is a throwback and a ballad in every sense of those words. With much thanks to Flight Facilities and Rocco Raimundo, that whacky crew of Holly, Candy, Little Joe, theSugar Plum Fairy, and Jackie have taken on a completely new meaning.

Lou Reed – Walk On The Wilde Side (Rocco Raimundo Extended Edit)

 

Categories
Music Remixes

Flight Facilities – Claire De Lune (Them Jeans Edit)

“Claire De Lune” was unequivocally one of the best (in my opinion, the best) songs in 2012. It’s rare for a downtempo song to completely enrapture the bloggosphere–but Flight Facilities are simply on a completely different stratosphere than their contemporaries, crafting an unparalleled, hypnotic sound that ironically emerged from “Nu Disco.” I haven’t met a person who doesn’t love Claire De Lune, and the only complaint I can levy is that it’s so beautiful that it’s a tad bit depressing at times.

When this type of song ends, you don’t have much to look forward to when you get your head out of the clouds. It’s just an epic–you can both lose and find yourself throughout it. Side note: I’m very intrigued to see where Flight Facilities sound goes from here–and praying for  a full-length album–as you rarely see a group shift in vibe so drastically and suddenly with such deft (whatup Skrillex).

The second complaint I could lob at the track is that you can’t listen to it outside of a “chill setting,” something Flight Facilities have clearly tiptoed well in the past. Especially since”Crave You” was the ultimate song that flawlessly borders the upbeat and the downtempo, ripe for both setting.

Thanks to LA based DJ/Producer Them Jeans–who rarely makes edits, but when he does, delivers–that’s no longer the case. I’ve been both anxious and scared for worthy remixes or edits of this song since it came out, one that could make it a tad more “club friendly” and a little less melancholy. With a crisp bass line and pimp vocal alterations, Them Jeans certainly has delivered.

Flight Facilities – Claire De Lune (Them Jeans Edit)