Discussion of the track's highpoints show up the next time you read the name Mark Ronson.
3. "Easy Going Woman," a previously unreleased Air track shows up the other tracks on this EP because of one key element: Tempo. The song is very simple for the most part and is so down that it crawls, but Air shows why they are the group being remixed here in the first place. Their use of sound and space is so choice that time actually stops the first time you run through this song. Not because it is the most beautiful thing you'll ever hear, but because it subsides on a completely different planet than the tracks huddled around it. This tune would be at all out of place on the Virgin Suicides soundtrack. The many faces of this band call for many classifications. You can file this under Slow Driving Music.
4. Juan Maclean both tweaks and teases elements of the "Surfing On A Rocket" original to unfortunately placid results. He effects the "duh-dump" portion of the song, but keeps the sound going through the entire track. When he actually breaks things down at about the 4:30 mark, the sound is tired and the change isn't as welcomed as it could have been. Logging seven minutes of playtime, it seems like an appropriate space for movements rather than addition and subtraction. This remix is only made up of a handful of sounds that are just stretched and prolonged (here comes the cliche'!!!) ad nauseam.
5. The Jackson Remix of "Alpha Beta Gaga" is temporarily fun but too down tempo to really catch my ear with anything. The bright spot is a finger picked banjo line that does mix well with the song’s original whistle. (If you listen to this EP just once, it will haunt you more than Kill Bill.) As unimpressed as I unfortunately am with these remixes, it seems like a no brainer when remixing a song with such a prominent element (i.e. "The Whistle) to seriously deconstruct the most obvious part. This whistle in “Alpha Beta” is just begging to be played with and this adventurous take on the song would have been a shoe in. Oh well.
6. Joakim's treatment of "Surfing" has a more interesting remix perspective than any other track on the EP, but still comes off just as repetitive as the rest. The choice here is to just speed parts of the song up, which works well with both the main riff and vocal sample, however, it still just sounds a little bland. The highlight of this track falls about three quarters of the way through right after the "5,4,3,2,1,0". A slight hint of broken beat and then a little funky head nodder break rounds out the track. The only fault here is that the track is too long to include the “robot on speed” vocal effect. There is a bit of repetition here that makes the track seem dragged out, but hell at least it sounds good.
7. Apparently the best remix of each tune were saved for the end of this record. On the last track, we finally realize that there was some entertainment hiding behind the vocal stylings of Rhymefest on Mark Ronson's vocal mix. Basically, you get the same thing here sans MC. Very cool stuff going on. The acoustic guitar, of course and a good change of sounds incorporating different types of keys to build back up to the whistle. A fun remix amongst a CD full of sleepier tracks.
All in all, this EP was more of a thrill when I knew it was coming than it was while it was playing. I like Air, I like both of the tracks chosen for remix, but nothing here touches the originals. “Surfing On A Rocket” has a certain movement about it. It takes up space on the track and sounds full. The remakes here just sound like a computer screen full of waveforms to me. I have sat idle and watched as computers have destroyed hip-hop and I am just starting to notice the way they affect other forms of music. Don’t get this guy wrong, they’re awesome for some songs, but let’s be honest, even I can drag handclaps into Pro tools and repeat it a few thousand times.
Ronson’s instrumental of “Alpha Beta Gaga” was definitely a highlight, but again, I’m sticking to the original. Maybe hardcore Air fans will get more out of this disc than I have, maybe I’m missing out on something completely. Regardless, Talkie Walkie is a fine album and this is really just an advertisement for it, so skip the rigmarole and get the genuine article.
-Joel Armato 01/19/05
