I received an email reminder today about this video from Brooklyn indie-rock artist, Ariel Aparicio; it’s a cover of the Psychedlic Furs punk classic Pretty In Pink. The original rock number featured on his latest album, All These Brillian Things, is a beautiful ode to a friend stricken with cancer. Pocketknife turned that sweet, melodic version into a synthetic house number with a noticeably darker, tougher, yet resonant flavor. Ariel’s guitarist from his back up band provided a few licks over Pocketknife’s sublime, moody electronic instrumentation.
Funny, I was thinking, Ariel, hmmmm? Do I know this guy? I dug a little deeper and found out that yes, I do know Ariel! He and his partner co-own two of the hottest Thai restaurants in Brooklyn, JOYA and SONG.
When I lived around the corner from the JOYA in Carrol Gardens, I was a regular. The food…fantastic! The atmosphere is modern and industrial with exposed brick that is softened with local artwork and floral arrangements. Both restaurants feature DJs on the weekends. In fact, I loved the place so much, I even had my wedding reception there. The marriage didn’t last, but the memories of all my great friends from Brooklyn and others who came in from around the country to celebrate, as well as the inspirational sounds of DJ Ray Velasquez, will live with me forever.
That being said, Ariel is one of the sweetest, most genuine human beings I’ve ever hard the pleasure to meet. Although his first album didn’t catch my fancy so many years ago, it’s great to see that he’s kept at it and is hitting his stride. Like that spicy thai cooking emanating from the kitchens at JOYA and SONG, this one is just is as spicy.
The video is currently being spun on MTV’s LOGO channel. It held the number one spot on the channel’s The Click List program, and has since been nominated to The Click List Top 10 of 2009.
Nice to see someone’s investing in music videos for dance music artists. Although we wish the director would have gotten Guetta to do more than just shill for Nokia and make love signs with his hands, it’s all good. The track is cool and the dance routine isn’t half bad. Thumbs up!
Thanks to @jeffcarvalho for posting this on his Twitter feed. This tune is gorgeous. We love the video from the Cinnamon Chasers called Luv Deluxe, which was shot with a Cannon 5D Mark II. It’s genius. This track is going to be a car commercial soon, you watch.
From iHeartRadio.com comes these amazing video performances by Alicia Keyes singles “Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart” and “Empire State of Mind Pt II”, from the upcoming album, The Element of Freedom.” The performance took place at the P.C. Richard & Son Theater in Tribeca. There are two song perfomances in this video widget, but if you wish to skip right to and play “Empire State of Mind,” click the Playlist tab and then click the play icon for that performance.
Having moved to NYC in 1996 to make live my dreams of success in the music business, the original with Jay-Z (YouTube video below) and now this live performance both deeply resonate with me. They remind me of how difficult it really is to make it in New York City. But, if you stay strong and on the grind you will make it, because dreams are made here. I’ve been listening to the original for weeks now on the radio or my iTunes. Having just left my full-time day job to focus more on Netmix and consulting, it’s been an anthem that has energized and inspired me to make a go of it and do what I love.
We’ve had odes to New York City before, but this one is different. It comes out of Hip-Hop, a genre of music born on the streets of the Bronx. With the rap lyrics in the original version delivered by Jay-Z, Hip-Hop’s king pin (move over Diddy), the song comes alive as a testament to the power of one’s self-motivated drive. Sure, there’s some chest-bumping ego going on too, but sometimes that’s the kind of attitude you need to have to move mountains.
I always loved Arrested Development for their socially inspired rhythms. Here’s the premier of their latest video, “The World Is Changing.” For more on Arrested Development, check out their web site at http://www.arresteddevelopmentmusic.com
They’re from Australia and have been around a few years, but I’d never heard of Sneaky Sound System, until that is, I caught a friend’s post on Facebook for the music video “I Love It.” I was instantly struck by lead singer Miss Connie’s (Connie Mitchell) sultry, evocative and playful vocals. The group’s sound is similar to Duran Duran with a tiny twist of Dee Lite that is long lasting and timeless. “I Love It” is an instant classic.
Little did we know, Sneaky Sound System have achieved double platinum status in Australia, achieving four number one singles and two ARIA Awards. I am absolutely enthralled with this band and am amazed no one has picked them up here stateside. They did recently play a New York date in March, then headed to the Winter Music Conference for a little networking. I’d love to see what happens with this group and hope they something happens for them here. I think they’re genius!
Okay, we love the DIY video. Felix the Housecat is saying “*&#@” the record labels, time to ‘do it yourself’ baby! The track is “Kickdrum.” Bomb the bass, call it what you want—it’s big beats and distortion gallore. Just what you’d expect from a track called “Kickdrum.” We’re definitely diggin this one. It’s out this summer on Felix’s forthcoming digital thingy, He Was King. Although we heard you can get it here.
The original was produced by Stonebridge for Champion Records, but it’s back for a remix treatment by Steve Angello and Laidback Luke. The video…eh…a little weak, but what did you expect in these harsh economic times—a masterpiece? No, we didn’t think so. Just enjoy the music and forget about the tacky motion graphics. You might like the second video, which is a collage of a bunch of live dates from around the world.
After a little bit of a wait, it’s finally here. The new Draft single, “Kiss My Black Amex” drops on the web. Check the video here. You can purchase the single from.
Netmix was on set. We even shot some b-roll for the making of the video, which you can check out on Draft’s YouTube and MySpace.
My man in the office, Elmar, just hipped us to this old video from Scandinavian group, Mighty 44. It’s a cover of Salt ‘n’ Pepa’s “Push It”. Pretty hot. I can’t believe we never heard it. Love the guitar riffs…baby, babaaaay!
Rehab is the latest from pop superstar, Rihanna. Enjoy the video!
Update 12/14: It seems that Universal Music Group has asked YouTube to disable the ability to embed videos on third party web sites like this one. Since UMG wants to control the distribution of their content, we will no longer be able to post UMG videos on our web site via YouTube.
Instead of deleting or changing this post, we’re going to leave this here so you can see how UMG is forcing you to go to YouTube to watch their videos, instead of being able to view them where and when you want. Just another control tactic to force you, the consumer, to kneel at the behest of the almighty Universal Music Group. Another reason to support independent music.
We were reminiscing with friends about the impact Freestyle had on dance music from the mid-80’s to the early 90’s. With that in mind, we thought we’d dig into the YouTube vault and see what we could come up with. Here are 5 fun tracks from that period. We dug up Noel, Debbie Deb, TKA, George Lamond and Sweet Sensation.
Do you ever just have one of those days? Or, as in my case, a solid 20 of them in a row? Take 2 Psapp videos and call me in the morning. I dare you to not smile at the bleeps and bloops.
Tony Zeoli is an innovative digital media product development executive who has been at the forefront of the convergence of music and technology since he founded Netmix.com in 1995.
He has guided music, video and web application product development and strategy for a wide range of companies including Cablevision, the Associated Press, Entertainment Media Works and is currently Vice President of Product Development, IA and UxD at Zaah Technologies. He also advises the organizers of the National Museum of Hip Hop and Hall of Fame on interactive strategy
With a celebrated DJ career spanning 25-years, today, music fans from around the world enjoy his DJ mixes through Netmix podcasts.
Digital Dance Music | DJ Culture | DJ Mixes | Web Technology & Online Marketing Tips, Tools and Techniques for the Dance Music Community is using WP-Gravatar
at Amazon.com. DJs can get 
For more info on Alicia Keyes, visit her 
Tony Zeoli is an innovative digital media product development executive who has been at the forefront of the convergence of music and technology since he founded Netmix.com in 1995.
