Hey, You Got Destiny in My Spirit!

I knew about the existence of mashups or bootlegs (in which two or more songs are combined to create a new track) before, but I never listened to any until this weekend. I love the internet; there, I've said it. Song links go right to the file, so you might want to right (or option-) click and save to be a nice internetty person, or not click at all if you have some crappy dial-up account. Sorry about that. But, you're probably at work anyway, so no problem, right? Oh, and I guess that you'll be (cue Beavis and Butthead) "breakin' the law! Breakin' the law!"

This Destiny's Child/Nirvana mashup by Grant McSleazy Smells Like Teen Booty is justly famous; hearing them chant "Beyoncé - can you handle this? Michelle - can you handle this?" above the rocking guitar-only opening is really funny. Similarly, this well-known Christina Aguilera/Strokes mashup A Stroke of Genie-us by Freelance Hellraiser is catchy in its own right, and brings out the fact that Little Miss Nasty has actually got a great voice, something I had never noticed before in my studious efforts to avoid her skank ass. (As an aside, I have to note the fundamental injustice of a world in which someone gets paid - and I don't mean just makes a little money but gets PAID - for writing the line "hormones racing at the speed of light.")

This electro version of Nirvana's Nevermind is amazing, too (by Dsico). I know, everyone is so tired of electroclash that they're abandoning Williamsburg en masse and moving to a scene that's not played out - the Lower East Side (!?). (This really seems like an article in search of a trend, possibly written by an envious Manhattan-dweller, but there you go. For what it's worth, Gawker (scroll down) (who lives on the -cough- Lower East Side - cough) agrees.) But too bad, this song still rocks. You don't have to put on leg-warmers or anything.

The best of the ones I've found so far is Dsico's Missy Elliot/Joy Division mashup Love Will Freak Us. It's Get Ur Freak On over Love Will Tear Us Apart (plus some guitar strumming which may be from a Who song?). In this case, I like the mashup better that either of the two source songs. The trademark Missy E. samples in the original are undeniably brilliant, but I find them off-putting. The Joy Division song is really good, but it has a thin, synthy aspect. This mashup turns the Joy Division song into more of a rocker with the addition of the extra guitar track and removal of the '80's vocals. It also showcases Missy's verbal dexterity; you're not distracted by the space-aliens-are-falling-down the-stairs samples in the background.

Now I wonder how much those Sound Forge Pro type software packages are, because this is music you could make yourself. But I have a novel to write, so what the hell am I thinking? Lots of other songs are available here, and check out this good article on the phenomenon. The author argues that while some mashups are just novelty tracks (Eminem vs. the Magnum P.I. theme song, I'm calling your number) others are new works of art of an interesting, if illegal kind. I was surprised to learn that Beck (among others) had refused permission for his songs to be used in this way. That seems wrong.

(Post has been updated to correct the identification of the Joy Division song, which I had spaceily attributed to New Order. Duh. This is the first time anyone has fact-checked my ass! It feels tingly.)

Comments

[Mitch]

I'm NOT an 80's goth geek or anything (honest!), but a small correction is in order: "Love Will Tear Us Apart" is a Joy Division song, and the guitar you hear on the mash-up track is in the original song.

Everyone always remembers the wispy synth sounds (which did become a hallmark of New Order songs), but if you listen LWTUA has actually got a pretty rockin' guitar line, as does most of Joy Division's stuff.

I only really realized this when I heard, quite a few years ago, a live band do a cover with only guitars, bass, and drums, and not a synth anywhere to be heard. I was surprised how much it rocked, and so went and gave the original a fresh listen, and lo and behold it rocked too. Who would have thought?