As expected, the 2012 installment of Igloofest has been an amazing success thus far. A-Trak, Buraka Som Systema, French Fries, Max Cooper, Sebastian Leger and many more have already managed to melt faces in the sub-zero temperatures, and the festival isn’t even close to finished yet. So far we’ve already seen the first ever sell-out in Igloofest history, with over 10,000 rabid fans descending on the Quays on Saturday night, so be sure to get your tickets for this weekend early.

Thursday will be headlined by Montreal native Black Tiger Sex Machine as well as international EDM superhero Diplo. On Friday, the UK’s queen of tech-house Maya Jane Coles will headline, and the festival will finish on Saturday with some of the best techno Germany has to offer from Marcel Dettmann and Ben Klock. Stay frosty, see you there

Original Don (Flosstradamus Remix)- Major Lazer

 

If you’ve lived in this city for a decent amount of time, I think you will agree that it hasn’t felt much like a Montreal winter for the last few weeks. The roads were clear of brown slush, the sidewalks weren’t completely covered in ice, and you could even walk outside freely without the snot in your nose immediately freezing. Given all of that, it seems perfectly fitting that the snow has finally returned to Montreal just in time for the first night of Igloofest. I can only take this development as a sign that this evening’s festivities will be particularly insane, so grab your parkas, your snow suits and your warmest boots and prepare for three weekends of frozen mayhem in the Old Port.

As I approach the end of my fourth year of school in Montreal, I feel privileged to say that I’ve witnessed the exponential growth of this festival from year to year, and the 2012 edition is sure to be bigger and badder than ever before (in the best way possible, obviously). The explosion in the festival’s popularity since it’s inception in 2007 and the insane lineups of performers from week to week have brought Igloofest to a new level, and I personally can’t wait to see what they have in store for us this time around. So be sure to arrive early tonight, soak in the amazing environment and enjoy the tunes from A-Trak and all of the other world class DJs set to spin over the next nine days. Here is the latest edition of A-Trak’s monthly Fools Gold radio show to get you pumped, I will see you tonight!!

Fool’s Gold Radio – January 2012 Mix by A-Trak

It’s no secret that as time passes by, your tastes in music, clothes, friends etc. will inevitably change. While I still love my EDM music as much as ever before, I’ve recently found myself more and more seeking out new down-tempo, chilled out tracks from younger, up-and-coming producers, and New York’s Cream Dream is one of the producers who’s caught my ear because of his infectious hip hop instrumental beats. His music is in a somewhat similar vein as Clams Casino, another beatsmith who I can’t seem to get enough of these days. Here’s what the man himself had to say about his new EP:

“Cream Dream is pleased to present his third release, Spliffy Beats Vol.I. It’s a smooth, chilled out beat tape perfect for easy listening or cruising around town with the bass turned up. The tape consists of 5 original bass heavy, airy beats and 2 screwed tracks that pay homage to the late DJ Screw. The tape is available now for free download for your listening pleasure!”

You can download the whole EP here for free.

Keep your eyes out for this guy in the future, now here’s a small taste of what you’re in for.

Fast Life (Screwed by Cream Dream) by Cream Dream

Purple Keys by Cream Dream

Happy Friday everyone. I have to say I’m pretty excited for my first weekend back in Montreal since I left for my final winter break ever (sadface..) For those of you who are heading back to school in the next few days or are stuck traveling when you would rather be out partying, here are some tracks to get you through until you reach your final destination. Today for my first Mixtape Friday of 2012 I have tunes from Angger Dimas, LAZRtag, Bart B More & TAI and others, as well as a great new mixtape from an EDM legend.

It seems like everyone and their mothers did a “best of 2011″ mixtape over the last week or so, but I don’t think any could surpass this Year Mix from Laidback Luke. This epic hour-and-a-half mix contains some of the best jams of 2011, and I have to admit, I get all nostalgic when I think of where I was when I first heard some of these tracks. So find a place to relax and chill and let this one take you away. I can’t wait to see what Luke has in store for us in 2012…

Laidback Luke 2011 Year Mix by DJ Charlie Green

And now your tunes for the weekend.

Drop the Bomb (LAZRtag Remix)- Thomas J

Hey Freak! (Original Mix)- Angger Dimas

Reaching Out (Fred Falke Remix)- Nero

On’n'On (Brodinski Remix)- Justice

Nobody Canna Cross It (Di Bus Can Swim)- Bart B More & TAI

Keep Listening (Original Mix)- Tom Flynn

What’s up everyone? Well I’m back from my self-imposed hiatus, I needed some time to recuperate and be generally lazy while I had the chance, but I hope you all had a happy and healthy holiday season. Over the break my friends over at the New Philadelphia threw an absolute banger of a new years party, head over to their facebook page to check out some of the great pics. For today I’m back with a new crop of great music and a hilarious new video from French Fries, so let’s get down to business.

Laquisha (J-Wow Remix)- French Fries

Cool S#@!- Spank Rock

More Than Me- Eliphino

Cbat- Hudson Mohawke

Owe Me (Nicolas Jaar Remix)- No Regular Play

Happy Friday everyone. The holiday season has arrived, which means its once again time to stand in long lines at the mall while listening to horrible Christmas songs that no one actually likes. In other words, it’s the most wonderful time of the year. That being said, I do hope you all have a good holiday weekend coming up where you have a chance to rest and relax with family and good friends. I have a few holiday goodies for you all today courtesy of Pleasurekraft, NT89, Nic Fanciulli, Clouds and a few others.

The mixtape this week is a perfect present for anyone who enjoys some good ol’ fashioned techno music. The hard-hitting Scottish duo Clouds just released this banging December mix in promotion of their new EP “Matter,” which was released this month with Turbo Recordings.

Clouds Mix for Turbo December, 2011 by Turbo Recordings

And now your tunes for the holiday weekend.

The Test (Original Mix)- Nic Fanciulli & Rolando

Opposition (NT89 Remix)- Polymorphic

Before One- Ben Klock

Matter (Original Mix)- Clouds

Heroes Of the Night (Pleasurekraft Remix)- Christian Cambas & Umek

Upular (Rynecologist Helium Rework)- Pogo

Well finals are finally over with, which means I’ve officially made it to my last semester as an undergraduate. I prefer not to think about the consequences of that just yet, but either way it also means that I’m on my way back to Philly tomorrow for a few weeks of R and R with the New Philadelphia crew. I’m already starting to get excited for their new years party with Trouble & Bass residents Samo Sound Boy and The Captain, if you’re in the area this is one NYE party you can’t miss.

I’ve missed out on posting a lot of great music during my most recent exam hiatus, so I’ll leave you today with a few of my favorites as well as a new video from The Arcade Fire. Cheers

Battle For Middle You- Julio Bashmore

Audio, Video, Disco (Mickey Moonlight Reprise)- Justice

Viices- Made in Heights

Paradise Circus- Massive Attack vs. Burial

Happy Friday everyone. Unfortunately it’s not feeling much like the weekend around here due to the fact that I’m buried in a pile of work and need to somehow crawl out by Monday. So for all of you who are stressing about your finals, I hope these tunes can talk you off the edge and provide a good soundtrack for your late nights at the library, cafe, or wherever you choose to waste (i mean wisely spend) your time studying.

Our mixtape this week is another installment of the Dirty South Joe & Flufftronix Luvstep mixtape series. Something about the combination of melancholy vocals and big dubstep beats makes these songs extremely catchy and perfect for those winter days where you barely see any natural sunlight. Enjoy

Luvstep 2.5 (Mad Decent Block Party Set – Director’s Cut) by DirtySouthJoe

And now your tunes for the weekend.

Nexus (Foamo Remix)- Carl Cox

Mode (Original Mix)- Bingo Players

Elixir (Original Mix)- Virtu

All Fall Down (Ft. Shaz Sparks)- Camo & Krooked

NT89 & Burns – Traffic by Rec Room

Housemeister feat. P.O.S. – Weird Friends (TWR72 Dub Mix) by TWR72

So I was browsing through Mad Decent’s most recent Soundcloud Roundup, a feature they run every week to promote up and coming unsigned artists, when guess who’s name should appear but Montreal’s own Jaekwon Waxmoney (aka Jacob Waxman). I’ve featured his tracks before on the blog, and this most recent track “Off Balance” is a slice of bass-heavy goodness layered in between very chill melodic vibes. Big ups to the man for getting some recognition from one of the biggest labels out there today, make sure you keep your eye out for Jacob’s name in the future. Check out the track below as well as a link to Mad Decent for some more great tunes.

Jaekwon Waximoney – Off Balance by Jaekwon Waximoney

Mad Decent Roundup #57

So as promised, here are the photos for Bassnectar’s incredible show at Metropolis last Friday. The venue was in top form that night, filled to the rafters with loyal bassheads eager to get their fix. Montreal natives Dooze Jackers set the tone for the evening, playing a great selection of tropical, moombathon, and dutch bass music that got the crowd more than ready for the opening act. These guys have been on a tear as of late, so check out their soundcloud here.

As for the main event, Bassnectar shook the place to the foundation as expected, and from the first drop to the last, he had the crowd eating out of his hands. I get burnt out on dubstep sometimes, but Bassnectar’s infusion of hip hop and impeccably timed samples makes his sets a lot more fun from start to finish than your average DJ. That, combined with a kick ass edit of “Breed” by Nirvana and the obligatory heartfelt sing-along to his remix of Ellie Goulding’s “Lights” made this show one of my favorites of the year so far. I was all the way at the front taking pictures in the photo pit for the first part of the show, and by the time I left I felt like the bass coming out of those giant speakers might have given me a concussion. So totally worth it.

Elevate – Datsik & Bassnectar