SONG OF THE DAY: Warp Brothers ft Red Monkey – How You Like Bass

German duo Oliver Goedicke and Jurgen Dohr, better known as the Warp Brothers, had a string of hard house (banging 138 BPM and higher tracks) club hits including “Phatt Bass,” “Cokane,” and “Going Insane” in the early 2000s. One of their best known remixes, Norman Bass’ semieponymous “How U Like Bass,” continues to get club play to this day. Fresh for 2014, Maurizio Inzaghi steps in to replace Dohr and they rework their classic remix as an original track with re-rapped vocals by Red Monkey (from “Going Insane”). The big room aggressive hard electro track, perfect for any festival set, sounds like something you would hear on a commercial release from Spinnin’. The only critique would be the absence of the “bass-boom-boom” vocal hook from the original Norman Bass version, but witnessing the crowd response on first play in a club set – that is easily overlooked.

Image courtesy of Carrillo Music.

SONG OF THE DAY: Bakermat – Teach Me

The name Lodewijk Fluttert might not be familiar, but you probably know him as Bakermat with his massive track “Vandaag” (that followed in the steps of Mr. Fingers and Moodswings and sampled Martin Luther King’s landmark “I Have a Dream” speech). For his new track “Teach Me,” he samples gospel singer Shirley Caesar for an uplifting and spiritual journey. Upping the energy from the previous release, the bouncy track has the power of a church choir and a handclap tempo that gives a new spin on the retro vocal house genre that is currently en vogue. If you are a fan of Ann Nesby’s recent releases or are looking for a positive message to go with your dance beats, “Teach Me” will lift your spirits.

Image Courtesy of Relentless.

VIDEO PREMIERE: Sariah – Aware, Alive, Awake

The Queen of Hearts is back. Her last single “Only One Wish” was at the top of our holiday playlist and her new song “Aware Alive Awake” is just as effervescent. Starting off with a bit of robotic trap, the swing beat of the track is energetic and a great backing for the empowering lyrics. Ending a bad relationship and moving towards freedom might be a common topic for song lyrics, but the uplifting tone really sets this one apart. The meme-ready title Aware Alive Awake makes a great hashtag as well. Sariah sounds great as well, but after listening to her live clips on YouTube, that comes as a no surprise. For clubland, JRob’s dub and Casey Alva’s tribal mix are both good, but it is really Dave Aude’s mix that will be the main focus. Like he did with Selena Gomez “Come & Get It,” Dave transforms the difficult beat into a prime-time dancefloor filler for the commercial rooms.