I’ve been making a concerted effort to get back on my dancehall shit in the last six months or so, from recording with Natalie Storm to remixing Federation to spinning on the Deadly Dragon show on EVR. Here is a short piece I wrote for the newly relaunched Large Up site on Okay Player, about Cutty Ranks:

http://largeup.okayplayer.com/2011/10/13/throwback-thursdays-dj-ayres-on-cutty-ranks-the-stopper/

You can listen to my set on Deadly Dragon in their archives, just click on October 3. My set is in the second hour. And here is my remix for Federation:

FEDERATION SOUND FT. BLING DAWG – CUT OFF (DJ AYRES REMIX)

I wanted to do a bounce / dancehall track and the Federation Sound dons Max and Kenny said no samples, so I recreated the Triggaman drums from scratch on the 808 kit in Battery and put a huge sub bass underneath. Big up to Nick Chacona for mixing it down with me. My favorite mix from the release is DJ Theory’s moombahton remix of To-isis, this shit is bananas! Max played the whole remix album on Federation Invasion (also on East Village Radio – click October 12).

http://therub.crewcial.org/YoungRobotsMix.mp3 Right Click “Save Target As”

A few years ago my friend from Philly Pittsburgh, DJ Apt One, sent me demos from his project, RCMP. To my surprise this wasn’t edits or mashups, it was full fledged original disco tracks by Apt and his man Paul aka Relative Q. I’m a big fan of Italo disco so I loved it and played the hell of the vinyl when it came out. Since then I’ve been working a lot with Skinny Friedman (Apt One’s partner in Philadelphyinz), playing parties together in Philly and in New York, and kept up a friendship with RCMP as well.

This year we talked about putting their new EP on T&A, a discussion which evolved into me jumping in to help out with Young Robots, the label they started a few years ago to put out RCMP and Philadelphyinz related music. We relaunched the label this fall and we’re on a roll, from disco and house to moombahton to weird remixes of rap and whatever the fuck we’re feeling. So I’m really excited to present this DJ mix, which features a bunch of the recent records we’ve put out plus a few exclusives which will be out in the coming months, starting with RCMP II this Tuesday, October 18. Tracklist after the jump, and be sure to check out their insane new video as well.

Read the rest of this entry »

DJ Ayres – Cats, Snakes, Chickens, Ducks, Elderly People & Twerkers (Mannie Fresh Mixtape) by T&ARecords

Oh man, this is a treat.  Club vet DJ Rok One went all out for the Heavy Warmup series, bringing the slow jams, disco and 80s singalongs, forgotten 90s rap gems (Ten Thieves? Grav? wow) and even a Nine Inch Nails record.  Catch Rok making it hot at The Rub this Saturday, and do yourself a favor and ask to subscribe to his email blast (rokone@gmail.com), which is always hilariously on point.

The Heavy Warm-Up Series: Rok One by The Black Russian Party

Download Link (right click “save target as”)

tracklist after the jump Read the rest of this entry »

German homie Tand Williams just sent me this mix for the Heavy Warmup series, this is how the Yum Yum crew breaks in the dance floor in an irie fashion.

YUM YUM Reggae Tunes (download) right click “save target as”

Grandmagneto – Everybody’s Talkin (Fred Neal)
The Dynamics – Move On Up (Curtis Mayfield)
Anthony Johnson – Come Let Me Love You
Chuck Fender – Mi Gi Dem
Collie Buddz – Come Around
Bush Man – Fire Bun A Weak Heart (D. Duncan)
Marlon Asher – Ganja Farmer
Joy Denalane feat. Jah Mason – Let Go
Fugees – Fugee La (Version III)
Ken Boothe – When I Fall In Love
T.O.K. – Footprints
Alicia Keys & Usher – My Boo (Rework)
The Dynamics – Miss You (The Rolling Stones)

On August 5th I did a guest DJ set and made banter on DJ Still Life’s Worldwide Smash show, on East Village Radio. You can stream the show in his archives. I’m a huge fan of this show and highly recommend it for fans of darker electronic music, forward-thinking hip-hop and all its cousins.

ALSO Still Life rocked this mix (and party) with my patna DJ Eleven:

Str8 West Coastin’ – Eleven, Dopeshoes, Still Life by 11InchRecords

FINALLY on the subject of Internet Radio, I would be remiss in not shouting out Jubilee’s newish show on Brooklyn Radio, it’s called Fireworks. Each show is a 30 minute mix from Brooklyn Miami’s Bass Sweetheart and a 30 minute mix by a guest, often someone big, dancey and European.

http://www.sendspace.com/file/9hx52g

Kelly Rowland – Motivation ft. Lil Wayne
DJ Khaled – I’m On one ft. Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne
Chris Brown – Look at Me Now ft. Busta Rhymes & Lil Wayne
Lil Wayne – 6 Foot 7 Foot
Wiz Khalifa – Black & Yellow
Trey Songz – Bottoms Up ft. Nicki Minaj
YC – Racks on Racks
Waka Flocka Flame – No Hands ft. Roscoe Dash & Wale
Rick Ross – B.M.F. (Blowin’ Money Fast) ft. Styles P
Drake – Right Above It
Lloyd Banks – Start It Up ft. Kanye West, Swizz Beats, Ryan Leslie & Fabolous
Drake – Fancy ft. T.I. & Swizz Beats
Dr Dre – Kush ft. Akon & Snoop Dogg
Wiz Khalifa – Roll Up
Lupe Fiasco – Out Of My Head ft. Trey Songz
Bruno Mars – Grenade
Rihanna – What’s My Name (Federation Remix ft. Vybz Kartel)
Ricky Blaze – Just You And I
Gyptian – Hold Yuh (Remix ft. Nicki Minaj) Jimmy 2Times Edit
Khajo – Nah Sell Out
Beenie Man – Rum and Redbull
Gyptian – Nah Let Go
Vybz Kartel – Clarks ft. Popcaan & Gaza Slim
Vybz Kartel – Benz Punanny (So Shifty Edit)
Nicki Minaj – Moment 4 Life ft. Drake
Aloe Blacc – I Need A Dollar
Adele – Rolling in the Deep

http://www.divshare.com/download/15317106-113

Sam French just sent over this opener mix, a perfect complement to the Heavy Warmup series with lots of 70s and 80s rock and swagged-out glamorous shit. Lots of surprises, no tracklist, warming it up like Kane.

DJ Ayres – Mad Friends by T&ARecords

DJ Ayres – I’d Fuck Me [T&A Records]
Para One & Tacteel – A1 [Fools Gold]
Jeremy Glenn – New Life (Torro Torro Remix) [Future Classic]
Peter Dragontail & Maggie Horn – Crazy Bout You [Young Robots]
Rob Threezy – Venus [Soundcloud]
Nadastrom – Theo [Dubsided]
Tittsworth & Alvin Risk – Porcacheese [Plant]
Zombies for Money – Ankara Dream [Trouble & Bass]
DJ Ayres – Panty Crickets (Swick Remix) [T&A Records]
Munchi – Shottas (Alvar Remix / Sabo’s Slow Down Edit) [T&A Records / Tittsworth.com]
Tittsworth & Alvin Risk – Pendejas
Johnny Love – The Switch (Skinny Friedman & DJ Ayres remix) [T&A Records]
Win Win – Releaserpm (Nadastrom Remix) [Vice Records]
Vybz Kartel – Beautiful Girl [Mixpak Records]
Derek Allen – Spirits in the Material World [Mad Decent]
Clicks & Whistles – Raw Passion [T&A Records]
Clicks & Whistles – Raw Passion (DJ Ayres Remix) [T&A Records)
Grandtheft - Splash [T&A Records]
DJ Ayres & Nadastrom – Liberation [T&A Records]
DJ Eli – Desire ft. Nomi Ruiz (Beg To Differ Remix) [Plant / Wurst]

HEAVY WARMUP 8 by thatdjbennyb

Benny B (NY) used to open up for me at Savalas when he was first starting out, like 6 years ago. I remember because he was playing vinyl and at that point I was already messing with CDJs and then Serato. He’s become a really solid party DJ, and I’ve played with him a bunch of times in Brooklyn at his parties. It was at Scott Melker & Puja’s party that the lightbulb above my head lit up – this dude is perfect for Heavy Warmup. Here he is, live at Huckleberry Bar in BK, 11 – 12. Tracklist after the jump, download here:

http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?1y2hylb4dcgwjvl

Read the rest of this entry »