Today's RAD Song(s): Beastie Boys Remixed

Why is it that every time I take my clothes out of the dryer, all my t-shirts are inside out? I mean, I understand that my socks will likely be inside-out - cuz they're inside-out when the go in the wash... but not my shirts... I don't get it, and it frustrates me cuz I hate folding laundry to begin with, and the whole inside-out t-shirt thing adds at least five minutes to my folding of the whites load and seven minutes to the darks load...

On a completely unrelated note, I mentioned the Beastie Boys a few weeks back in the blog - great 'driving through a screaming thunderstorm' music - though I doubt that's what they have in mind when they're sitting around the studio writing lyrics and producing loops.

The Beasties are an interesting act, because for people of my generation who remember License To Ill and Paul's Boutique, we've been able to hear the band mature before our very ears. And I'm not talking about a weak-ass foray into disco and then back again a la U2, but a real growing up of content and presentation.

I understand the Beastie Boys are not for everyone; they are loud, obnoxious, opinionated and do still carry that frat boy tag with them (cultivated from the above mentioned albums). It is worth mentioning however, that they are one of the few white hip-hop groups in the history of the genre that are respected by audiences, critics and other hip-hop artists alike.

I suppose - like folding laundry - I find it frustrating that Beasties never seem to get the respect they deserve. They altered a genre that had been heading down a pretty mainstream and pretty boy road in the mid 80's, and along with groups like Public Enemy and Run DMC made hip-hop both cool and culturally significant for an entire generation (whether the state of hip-hop today is a worthy legacy of that rap renaissance is an argument for another day.)

Today's RAD song(s) are two remixes of two of my favourite Beastie Boys songs. The first is by Alex Metric, a UK producer and DJ whose playful approach to his remixes always make me giggle (if not bop my head), and the second is by Yellus, a Swede who I don't know much about but have liked all I've heard from him. Both of these tunes are likely to pack the dance floor - and slip easily into high rotation on your ipod, even if you've never been a huge fan... enjoy.


Sabotage (Alex Metric Remix) by The Beastie Boys



Intergalactic (Yellus Remake) by The Beastie Boys