Altered Zones

[image by Max Capacity]

In celebration of one full year of Altered Zones, we're going back to where we began and observing our very favorite tracks of 2011 thus far. We pulled together all of AZ's contributing blogs' top picks and assembled a 25-song list of cuts that can't missed. --Ric Leichtung, Altered Zones

AZ's Favorites of 2011.5

Balam Acab: "Oh, Why"
Bill Callahan: "Baby's Breath"
Clams Casino: "I'm God (Instrumental)"
Devin Gary & Ross: "Four Corners"
Dirty Beaches: "Lord Knows Best"
Ford & Lopatin: "Emergency Room"
Gang Gang Dance: "Glass Jar"
Grimes: "Vanessa"
Holy Other: "With U"
Iceage: "White Rune"
John Maus: "Believer"
Julian Lynch: "Terra"
LA Vampires Goes Ital: "Streetwise"
Light Asylum: "Dark Allies"
Matthewdavid: "Like You Mean It"
Panda Bear: "Alsatian Darn"
Peaking Lights: "Tiger Eyes (Laid Back)"
Protect-U: "U-Uno"
Pure X: "Don't Wanna Live, Don't Wanna Die"
Purity Ring: "Loftcries"
Puro Instinct: "Stilyagi"
Sic Alps: "Do You Want To Give $$?"
Sleep ∞ Over: "Casual Diamond"
The Weeknd: "The Morning"
Woods: "Pushing Onlys"

I can't think of too many artists that could honor Gang Gang Dance's trademark peripatetic musical experimentation when cutting a remix from their recent stand-out LP, Eye Contact. The eccentric maelstrom of form and content at the heart of GGD's ethic is itself almost a crazy interpretation of the history of world music; anyone who attempts a remix has to either embrace this chaos, or risk diluting its central energy. No one could really rise to this challenge better than dub and dancehall pioneer Lee Scratch Perry, who has used "MindKilla" as a point of departure for his own cracking groove. LSP uses Lizzi Bougatsos' vocals almost as a backing-singer's response to his own infectious calls about overweight cops and the sort, while Brian DeGraw's propulsive synths, responsible for the anxiety and childhood fears of the original, are all smiles and good cheer here. The tinkle of the keys, the sync of the guitars, and the ceaseless sway of LSP's touch makes this one trip you won't mind taking to a song about the mind's countless neuroses. --Daniel Gottlieb, Altered Zones

MP3: Gang Gang Dance: "MindKilla (Lee Scratch Perry Remix)"

Gang Gang Dance's Eye Contact is out on 4AD now. Below, the official video for "MindKilla," directed by Shoji Goto from Japanese experimental noise act Boredoms:

Gang Gang is a band that needs no introduction. We're stoked that the five-piece is putting out their fifth, Eye Contact, May 10 on 4AD. Its opener, "Glass Jar," is an 11-minute odyssey that's an absolute jawdropper. The track starts off floating in space with a teasing, unchanging bass pluck that taunts us with the knowledge that we've been waiting for new Gang Gang since 2008, making us squirm in our seats while anticipating the inevitable explosion of sonic color. Gang Gang Dance have always specialized in balancing a staggering amount of instruments just right, and "Glass Jar" is one of the best examples to date. Through the course of the song, each instrument brings something unique to the table. It breathes. It evolves. It's the type of track that spurs a drunken late-night diner debate about which part of the song is the best. I'll just throwdown right now and and say it's the steel drums at 8'11". Gang Gang or GTFO. --Ric Leichtung, Altered Zones

Eye Contact is out May 10th on 4AD

Lizzi Bougatsos of Gang Gang Dance says:
This is my summer jam. I hear this drum beat EVERYWHERE even in my own music especially when I was makin my record. I love the playfullness between Princess and Donaeo. Apparently there is a SOCA version that's pretty tite but I haven't found that yet. Princess has a sick voice like old LIL KIM or something but with a sexy swagg.  It's bout a nite out n gettin down!  WAT ELSE IS THERE? HALLO!

MP3: Donaeo & Princess: "Party Hard (Remix)"