HEALTH - DISCO2

I’ve never been fond of remix albums. Infact, that’s probably putting it a tad lightly. I positively loathe them. The blame surely has to lie mostly at the feet of the 90s, where any track that had a synthetic drumbeat slapped over it with a higher tempo was considered ‘remix’ worthy.

Two years on from the release of HEALTH//DISCO, the noise-kings have followed suit with DISCO2 - the remix version of their sophomore masterpiece GET COLOR. Thankfully, the shiny double LP that dropped into the Artrocker inbox doesn’t disappoint.

The whole crux of a good remix is whether or not the hooks and unique sounds from the original track are kept and moulded into something new, different and interesting. It should be such an exciting opportunity when you think about it; taking songs that are already brilliant and getting to see how else they could work. Sadly this has historically been done so painfully badly by bigger mainstream acts that it often just reeks of record company tactics to claw back some more revenue on initial album sales that haven’t lived up to their commercial expectations.

Luckily, given the amount of detail and attention that was obviously paid to their last release, HEALTH are not the sort to just hand over their creation to anyone to tinker about with. The mixes contained on DISCO2 are full of all the ethereal sounds and whisperings of the original, but with a completely fresh sound. The aggressive thunderings of GET COLOR have been tamed, and sound just as wonderful soft. This should be used as a lesson to those who are thinking of remixing another band’s tracks.

The mixes are as idiosyncratic as those that did the mixing. Before Tigers sounds like I want my summers to be like - a blissed out spacey affair. In Heat has a very current dancefloor feel with a funky infusion; Pictureplane have got the tribal sound of the jungle into Die Slow (a jungle full of insane drunken dancing round an LSD fire) and Crystal Castles have come up with a mix of Eat Flesh that’s every bit as haunting and other-worldly as you’d expect.. but produced and curated by the band, the whole thing flows together remarkably well. Impressively so.

DISCO2 is out on the 25th of June 2010 (5th of July for Europe), and even includes a typically dreamy brand new single - USA Boys.

Pre-Order it from here. There’s even another LP (or CD if you’re that way inclined) with a bonus 12 remix tracks. It’s sure to keep you in good health for some time to come. (bad pun)

Check out Tobacco’s remix of Die Slow here.

From the mouths of HEALTH themselves, here are some entertaining notes on each of the artists to grace this electronica-fest:

CFCF
- Montreal based producer remixer and solo artist.
- Has remixed Crystal Castles as well as released LP "Continent"
- Follows up HEALTH\DISCO "Triceratops’ B horror film/excite bike
jammer with a summertime treatment of GET COLORS "Before Tigers"
reminiscent of the Score to "Manhunter" and the sounds you hear in
your head while driving in a convertible.

JAVELIN
- Buzzing Brooklyn duo operate on the charming assertion that even if
you won’t admit it, they know you like Tom Tom Club bad the bass line
from the theme to Seinfeld.

TOBACCO
- Independent producer and creative mastermind behind critically
accoladed Black Moth Super Rainbow.
- Neo-Psychedelic pop backed by throbbing hip hop rhythms

SMALL BLACK
- Brooklyn four piece reluctantly riding the blog coined chill wave
along with compatriots Washed Out and Neon Indian.
- Making whispered, warbling pop music with the with fuzzy warmth of
ten thousand discarded reels of analog tape.
- Like watching a well worn John Hughes video cassette handed down
from your dead sister. Try not to cry like a bitch.

GOLD PANDA
- One man East London based personal electro project.
- Released mind blowing single "Quitters Raga"
- Recalling emotive and contemplative feel of Four Tet while
experimenting with world music without being the slightest bit
 pretentious.

CRYSTAL CASTLES
- The last remix they did for us got bigger than our entire fucking band.
- We asked them to do another one.

SALEM
- This three piece is peerless.
- In an indie world where nine out of ten bands aspire to sound like
the soundtrack to a Wes Anderson film they create a blend of
apocalyptic hip hop and and melancholic Electro where every sound is
dark brooding and broken.
- The sad kids are still the coolest.

BLONDES
- Rising Brooklyn outfit
- Specializing in spacey long distance meanderings custom fit for
bleary eyed iPod soundtracking to late night train rides.
(personal caveat: this music sounds like it could be playing in a wine
bar in some awful metro sexual hotel in Soho. Try the goat cheese and
olive platter dickhead)

PICTUREPLANE
- This depraved unwashed sex addict is the sound of the near future.
- Every bone in your body wants to dance but the drugs are too strong.
- When the harbingers of 90’s top ten R n’ B gather with the ancient
aztecs to eat fast food and fuck on the new astral plain this is what
will sound in the reeds.

LITTLE LOUD
- No one has heard of this burgeoning young talent from Brighton England. They will soon.
- His tracks have an undeniable wistful quality that is nothing short of aching.
- You’ll remember the first time you kissed a girl. You’ll remember the first time you kissed a boy.
You’ll remember the first time you kissed a girl and realized that you wanted to kiss a boy.

BLINDOLDFREAK
- Former keyboardist for Nine Inch Nails Allesandro Cortini has spent
a hundred thousand cigarette smoke soaked hours squeezing and
shaping tones out of enough cables and capacitors to power a degraded
legion of malfunctioning and tear rusted cyborgs.
- Haunting.
- Fuck drums.

Tracklist

01. USA Boys
(new Health single)
02. Before Tigers
(CFCF Rmx)
03. In Heat
(Javelin Rmx)
04. Die Slow
(Tobacco Rmx)
05. Severin
(Small Black Rmx)
06. Before Tigers
(Gold Panda Rmx)
07. Eat Flesh
(Crystal Castles Rmx)
08. In Violet
(Salem Rmx A)
09. Nice Girls
(Blonde Rmx)
10. Die Slow
(Pictureplane Rmx)
11. Nice Girls
(Little Loud Rmx)
12. Before Tigers
(Blindoldfreak Rmx)

DISCO 2+ (Enhanced Part Trackllist)
IN VIOLET (HIDDEN CAT RMX) -> Download for free via Stereogum.com
DIE SLOW (NASTIQUE TMX) -> Download for free via TheQuietus.com
EAT FLESH (BARON VON LUXXURY RMX)
DIE SLOW (NITE JEWEL RMX) -> Download for free via GorillavsBear.net or TheFader.com
BEFORE TIGERS (RAINBOW ARABIA RMX) -> Download for free via DrownedInSound.com
WE ARE WATER (SOFT ENCOUNTER RMX) -> Download for free via RCRDLBL.COM
DEATH+ (CLIPD BEAKS RMX)
SEVERIN (YIP-YIP RMX)
DEATH+ (DELIVERY RMX)
IN HEAT (RODION RMX)
WE ARE WATER (AZARI & III RMX)
DIE SLOW (PINK STALLONE RMX)

DISCO2++ (Bonus Disc)
IN VIOLET (HIDDEN CAT RMX)
DIE SLOW (NASTIQUE RMX)
EAT FLESH (BARON VON LUXXURY RMX)
DIE SLOW (NITE JEWEL RMX)
WE ARE WATER (SOFT ENCOUNTER RMX)
DEATH+ (CLIPD BEAKS RMX)
SEVERIN (YIP-YIP RMX)
IN HEAT (RODION RMX)
WE ARE WATER (AZARI & III RMX)
DIE SLOW (PINK STALLONE RMX) -> Download for free via BrooklynVegan.com
NICE GIRLS (PARALLELS RMX)
IN VIOLET (SALEM RMX B)
DEATH+ (RENAISSANCE MAN RMX)
/ /M\ \ (SOFT METALS RMX)

HEALTH LIVE:

01.07.    Hamburg, Hafenklang
02.07.    Roskilde – Roskilde Festival
04.07.    Eurockeenes – Festival
05.07.    Wuerzburg, Posthalle
07.07.    Warsaw, Centralny Basen Artystyczny
09.07.    Ruesselsheim – Phonopop
10.07.    Liege, Les Ardentes
13.07.    Zagreb, Kset
14.07.    Graz, Forum Stadtpark
16.07.    Gräfenhainichen – MELT!
18.07.    Nijmegen, De Affaire Festival
24.08.    Malmo Festival
25.08.    Groningen Vera
27.08.    Zurich Festival
28.08.    Leeds Festival
29.08.    Reading Festival

with Crystal Castles:

08.10.   Belfast, Mandela Hall
09.10.   Dublin, Academy
11.10.    Liverpool, Academy
12.10.    Bournemouth, Academy
15.10.    London, Roundhouse
17.10.    Bristol Anson Rooms
18.10.    Wolverhampton, Wulfrun
19.10.    Glasgow, ABC
21.10.    Nottinhgam, Rock City
22.10.    Manchester, Academy
23.10.    Leeds, Met
24.10.    Norwich, UEA
26.10.    Amsterdam, PAradiso
27.10.    Luxembourg, Rockhal
29.10.    Lille, Ground Zero Festival
30.10.    Paris, La Cigale
31.10.    Bordeaux, Krakatoa