Walking Away (Mode CK Remix) - Chris Kaeser, Jonathan Mendelsohn (Golden Banana)
One of the top Progressive House tracks right now, doing extremely well on Beatport. Driving and energetic, definitely more on the Housey side. Pretty sure Mode CK = Chris Kaeser.
Lady (Original Mix 2011) - Yohanne Simon Twill
Just gonna say, this is the furthest thing from an original mix there is. But it is a very nicely revamped version of one of the greatest House tracks of all time to fit today's production standards.
Freaks & Geeks - Childish Gambino
Wait, Rap music? Cheers to gLAdiator for the rec on this one. Adele sample, surprisingly, and much better than Adele.
Being at the top of their game YAKfilms has almost single handily achieved worldwide recognition in both the underground dance scene and in the music video producing industry. Getting shout outs from MTV and the ABC, YAKfilms has been given exclusive access to dance shows around the whole world from Paris to Tokyo!In fact appearing on YAKfilms has become a sort of must for any dance crew trying to make it big in the industry. So we here at Apes with Barrel decided to go back to the routes of blogs, that of discovering new underground talent.
-First and foremost! Who’s the person behind B'zwax?
The B in B’zwax stands for Ben. I am part of Yak. It’s no mystery; B’zwax is just a pseudonym I use when I produce music.
-I've surfed all over the net to find some info about you but to my regret, my search didn't provide me with much info. How did you meet Yak and eventually started producing beats for his dance videos?
Because I am a part of YAK, the musical collaborations on some of the videos we produce came naturally. Yak is actually a 4-person crew, but we are only 3 to work on video production. I’ve been making instrumental music ever since I was young. Yoram, one of the members of the group who started Yak is a childhood friend of mine with whom I shared my passion for video and photography as we were growing up. When I officially joined the group in late 2009, we had already used some of my tracks on some unreleased dance videos, but it wasn’t until our winning video “Golly the Rainmaker” for the 2010 East Bay Express' 24-Hour Green Film Festival that my tracks really started coming out. As far as the web, it’s pretty recent- you won’t find much because most of the stuff that I’ve made never got released. The beats that I’ve made have always stayed amongst close friends because it was never more serious than that.
-Looking through you're soundcloud, I've realised that you also use YAKfilm's slogan (a bull), does this mean that you specifically produce beats for YAKfilms?
That’s intentional. It’s actually a yak like the animal. All the tracks on my soundcloud have been used or will be used for YAK productions. I feel it’s an easier platform to distribute and share the music that we use on our youtube channel. -Strings and 'asian-like' sounds are at the heart of your tunes, where does this inspiration come from? Are there any specific hip hop producer that've influenced you?
I wouldn’t say that there is one specific producer… Many hip-hop producers have influenced me like Madlib, Dilla, even Flylo just to name a few… but there is so much good stuff out there, it’s hard not to listen to many different kinds of music. I would have to say that inspiration also comes from my close friends who are mostly musicians. Without them I don’t think I would’ve discovered the beauty of let’s say Cretan music for example… I like to experiment with many things. One of my close friends would always blast old Greek music in my ears and play me a tune when he could. It took me a while to appreciate it like he did, but I guess I did that in my own way.
-As a hip-hop enthusiast, what's your view on modern day hip-hop? Do you think the 'philosophy' and culture behind hip-hop has drastically changed during these past 10 years?
That’s a tough question to answer alone… yes and no. I mean of course it has… Hip-hop is a relatively young culture, and like every music culture, it goes through some changes as it evolves. People today talk about Hip-hop and overanalyze the situation a bit too much. But my truth is that it’s alive. Music is just one aspect of it. There are so many elements that are alive and well in the culture that I witness, dance for example, that I really don’t see going away anytime soon. In the last 10 years? … I grew up in it, I see it changing. A lot of your favorite artists back then are not who they were today, but fortunately there are still a handful of artists that try to preserve those good sounds… you just have to find them. The philosophy is still there with a few… haha.
Of course! Hip-hop as allowed me to dip into many different musical cultures, from classical to jazz, even electro just to name a few. Instrumental Hip-hop is an interesting thing because it doesn’t have a strict guide to follow. The music I make for YAK is music that dancers dance to, and that usually doesn’t always have to be ‘hip-hop’. But on that same note, not all the music I make has to be danced to.
-I'm dying to get my hands on some of your tracks like Rubbing Alcohol, Belly Dance (JD 2010 menu beat) and Tractor Beam, are they ever going to be available in an EP? If yes, when would it drop?
Of course, I’ve been working on that… The EP is out, on my bandcamp. The link will be available on my soundcloud and obviously on the YouTube videos, as well as on the yakfilms Facebook page
American Trash (Porter Robinson Remix) - Innerpartysystem (GOLDEN BANANA)
Porter shows us again why he's one of two people to be watching in 2011. I'll reveal who I think the other is in the next post. I'm obsessed with the calmer techy sections of this track actually, he really demonstrates his versatility.
Heaven (Original Mix) - Promise Land
Big sweeping Progressive House. Feels like your flying over waterfalls. Think of it like that cheesing episode from South Park but WAY gayer.
Full Stop - Cirez D (GOLDEN BANANA)
I love how Prydz created Cirez D as a joke, but he's since used it to put out some of his best tracks. Techno on the Progressive side.
Black Ops (Daniel Portman Remix) - Weekend Heroes (Silver Banana)
Portman ALWAYS kills it. And I love the title of this track, reminds me that a lot of these producers are on the same page as us. This is extremely epic and driving Progressive House.
La Samba (Original Mix) - DJ Chus & Mikel Curcio
The tempo drops out in the middle to allow for a tribal breakdown of percussion call and response. Where all my West Af dancers at? This would totally KILL at a rave.
It's time again. Who's that wide-eyed fella with the oh so pink hair? +500 Bastille Love and Admiration Points to the first to post the correct answer.
In Violet (Hidden Cat Remix) - HEALTH
Beautiful stuff from Hidden Cat, kinda Nu-Disco/Electro feel. If you've been reading us for a while, you might remember our interview with this guy, if not check it HERE.
My final batch, just had to put up a few more House tracks. Definitely some gems in this one. Also, J's computer is officially dead, poor dude. Looks like I'll be carrying the weight of this blog by myself again, it was definitely nice having someone else post for a few days. It's also gonna put a big damper on our production speed. Hope he can get a new one soon...
Blackberry Hype - Maxwell D & Lil Silva Here's some UK Funky (first time we've posted any if I'm correct), this is definitely perfect for your hipster crowd. We all love Irony. The organ-like bass is awesome.
Afghanistan - Komytea This one's weird, which is why I'm putting it at the bottom. If I had to relate it to another producer, I'd say Pryda, so if you like Pryda (as you all should) be sure to grab this one. Electro Tech.
