Asian Dan

Holy Ghost! returns to their remix roots with this reworking of Monarchy’s “Love Get Out Of My Way” with the help of Berlin based producer Dixon. This time with a funky harpsichord and fat synth bassline that would make any late 70s/early 80s discotheque groove hard. This is definitely the heaviest production to come from Holy Ghost due in part to the fantastic drum solo that occurs during the bridge courtesy of Jerry Fuchs, RIP. Be sure to check out their live version of the duo in band form coming to a city near you.

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/June%202010/monarchy_LGOOMY_holyghost_dixon_192.mp3]Monarchy – Love Get Out Of My Way (Holy Ghost [Feat.Dixon] Remix)

Holy Ghost! has finally emerged with a new reworking of LCD Soundsystem’s latest single “Drunk Girls”, an 80s disco synth track that evokes memories of New Order. This track has been released all in time for the start of the LCD Soundsystem and Holy Ghost! tour where Holy Ghost! shall be debuting their live full band version of the project. I am hoping it is a massive disco undertaking with members surrounded by multiple synthesizers, twisting and tweaking in order to make the finest analog dance music to hit dancefloors in quite a while. Check out holyghostnyc.com for more info.

Their new EP “Static On The Wire” will be out on May 18 on DFA featuring the title track, “Static on the Wire” which features Penguin Prison providing back up vox. Also the slowburner disco tune “Say My Name” is on this EP which was also featured on the latest Kitsune Maison Compilation 9. I love the Barbara Kruger inspired artwork.

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/April%202010/LCD%20Soundsystem%20-%20Drunk%20Girls%20(Holy%20Ghost!%20Remix).mp3]
Download: LCD Soundsystem – Drunk Girls (Holy Ghost! Remix)

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/April%202010/Holy%20Ghost!%20-%20Say%20My%20Name.mp3]
Holy Ghost!- Say My Name

Greetings Blogosphere. As you all know I have been raving about Penguin Prison for the past few months for his ability to craft such polished and catchy pop tunes with substance and conviction. April 8 marks Penguin Prison’s first full band live debut – a new incarnation of these pop songs in a live and raw environment at NYC’s Mercury Lounge. I am quite excited to see what a live band will do to these polished tunes. Chris Glover aka the ringmaster behind Penguin Prison was kind enough to answer a few questions about his musical endeavors.

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/March%202010/Penguin%20Prison%20-%20The%20Worse%20It%20Gets.mp3]
Penguin Prison – The Worse It Gets

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/April%202010/Golden%20Silvers%20-%20True%20Romance%20(Penguin%20Prison%20Remix).mp3]
Golden Silvers – True Romance (Penguin Prison Remix)

Asian Dan Q&A: Penguin Prison

1. Who is Penguin Prison? How would you describe your music.

Penguin prison is me. I’m penguin prison.
I would describe my music as pop music by someone who cares.

2. What was your first musical memory?

I remember having a Michael Jackson doll and I rememeber my parents having the thriller record and playing it on a fisher price record player. I remember taking the Michael Jackson doll around with me. One of my earliest foggiest memories is of me holding the Michael Jackson doll and being at NBC studios behind the scenes because my best friend’s mom was a producer at NBC.

3. What are your influences, musical or otherwise?

I am influenced by people I know mainly. For some reason it helps me to actually know people who make music and see them doing it firsthand. It makes me feel like I can do what they are doing.

4. Last year I feel marked a new era of pop within the indie scene – an amalgamation of electronic, pop, rock with acts such as Grizzly Bear, Miike Snow, Passion Pit and Phoenix all leading the way in this “Intelligent Pop” music scene. I feel like you are definitely going down a similar path. Thoughts on this? And what sort of vision/perception are you trying to put out of yourself through your music?

Intelligent pop is a good term probably. I am trying to make pop music but goof pop music. There is a difference between the backstreet boys and Michael jackson. Both are labeled pop but everyone can tell the difference.

Hopefully the vision of what I am trying to put out there will slowly be revealed as time goes by.

[Read more]

I don’t know how I missed this info about this collaboration that came out a few months ago about the both of these fantastic bands covering/remixing each other. What a perfect pairing. Holy Ghost!’s dark, Larry Levan disco re-visioning of “On Board” featuring The DFA Celestial Choir is exactly what I love about Holy Ghost!, vintage synths and that glorious analog warmth. And Friendly Fires takes Holy Ghost’s dark disco and is able to squeeze out all its dark pop glory. Either way just dance.

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/Feb%202010/Holy%20Ghost!%20-%20On%20Board%20(Friendly%20Fires%20Cover%20feat.%20The%20DFA%20Celestial%20Choir).mp3]
Holy Ghost! – On Board (Friendly Fires Cover feat. The DFA Celestial Choir)

Via tlc-blog.com

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/Feb%202010/hold-on-holy-ghost-cover.mp3]
Friendly Fires – Hold On (Holy Ghost! Cover)

Via blahblahblahscience.com

For all of us that don’t have a cassette player still here is that mixtape that Holy Ghost! threw together and was selling limited copies of for our listening pleasure. Time to scour the blogosphere for more Xmas goodies from our fav DJs and producers.

Download: Holy Ghost! The Remixes Vol. 1 Cassette Tape

I think Van She did an amazing job covering such a cult classic of a tune now Holy Ghost! reworks this tune into a slow burner of a disco tune. Rejoice there is a cowbell in this version!

Download: Van She – ((Don’t Fear) The Reaper [HOLY GHOST’S B-LIVE MIX]

The might duo Holy Ghost! strikes back by releasing a limited edition mixtape on Cassette Tape featuring some of their amazing remixes from 2009. Check out these other goodies they posted on their blog, some demo versions and dubs of remixes released this year. Now time to find a place to listen to this mixtape…

“The cassette is worth the price of admission alone, featuring an incredible mix of all HG!’s big-dog remixes for the likes Phoenix, Prince Language, Panthers, Curses!, Moby, Cut Copy, MGMT, In Flagranti, etc. with guest drops and appearances from A- Trak, DJ AM, James Murphy, DTL, Stretch Armstrong, and more.”

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/Dec%202009/i%20love%20to%20move%20(in%20space).mp3]
Moby – I Love To Move In Space (Space Echo Return Dub)
“Just a bunch of pretty bits recorded directly to the super worn out 1/4″ tape in a Roland Space Echo.”

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/Dec%202009/Hearts%20On%20Fire%20(Jerry’s%20Drum%20Dub).mp3]
Cut Copy – Hearts On Fire (Jerry’s Drum Dub)
“World’s greatest drummer + 2 Space Echoes + Two Spring Reverbs = Nice”

Van She has teamed up with Bacardi B-Live, another great company that is tastefully aligning themselves with important contemporary cultural movements and artists along with Scion (I am not getting paid to plug them, just love what they are doing). Van She decides to cover Blue Oyster Cult’s “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” WITHOUT Cowbell, which maybe blasphemy but they do an amazing job transforming the track into a modern sounding synth drenched pop tune. I love the classic Van She Tech lush synths that kick in during the 2nd half of the tune. Be on the lookout for the Holy Ghost! remix of this cover.

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/Dec%202009/(Don’t%20Fear)%20The%20Reaper%20%5bA%20B-LIVE%20ORIGINAL%5d.mp3]
Van She – (Don’t Fear) The Reaper

“Well that song has such a nice vibe to it and the harmonies in the lah lah lah section are so warm and care free, then it drops into that beautiful tube/tape sounding guitar which leaves you in this gap of contemplation and you just sit there with your headphones on going ” laaa lalaaalala “. we also chose it because a lot of people i know think the song is quite gothic and proggy, which it is due to blue oysters style, but i also think the song is very amazing lyrically and beautiful and i guess it didn’t feel like it totally comes across in their version unless you read the lyrics. so i thought we could do a version that sounded like what we interpreted the lyrics to be … romantic and deep and uplifting as well. we love the song a lot as well which also had something to do with it.” – Van She (via Stoneyroads.com)

[audio:http://diestruktur.com/asianmandan/music/July%202009/i%20will%20come%20back%20classixx%20acacpulco%20nights%20version.mp3]
Download: Holy Ghost! – I Will Come Back (Classixx Acacpulco Night’s Version)

I love this slick and smooth summery direction Holy Ghost! and Classixx are taking the electronic world. They are songwriters that are bring back a certain class and atitude into this once distorted bloghaus landscape. Classixx need to remix that upcoming Holy Ghost! track featuring Michael McDonald to fully bring Yacht Rock into the 21st Century. I think I hear some Toto in this remix.

Cheers Green Label Sound for hooking it up.