[Electronic] Sylvan Paul – Back To You

Sylvan Paul’s “Back To You” is a chilled out funky jam that everyone needs to hear. It’s four minutes of escape thanks to it’s easy listening mood and minimal vibe. It’s a little bit weird in all the right ways and it’s certainly a song you need for your playlists this Summer.

If you’re looking to just kick back and “vibe out” as the kids on TikTok say (do they even say that? Idk). Anyway, Sylvan delivers a memorable gem that blends genres for a listen that’s just as much fun as it is chill. You like chill rock? You like electronic? Cool. Give this a whirl and thank us later!

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[Electronic] Medii – What If This Is All Real LP

The LA meets London duo Medii has planted a major flag on 2022 with the release of their LP What If This Is All Real. The fourteen track project showcases the group’s dynamic talents with influences from electro pop to 80’s, to indie dance and beyond.

The synth-laden throwback vibes that oozes throughout this LP is one of its best qualities. It’s a glue that keeps this album feeling tight throughout. Another highlight that keeps things cohesive despite the wide range of talents involved are the vocals. From front to back What If This Is All Real is packed with memorable performances from the likes of Cat Cayenne, Gemyni, Sidney Blair and more. Medii delivered a massively fun listen that manages to also express emotional sentiments that will make the LP a timeless treat.

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[Electronic] ClariS – Careless (Slushii Remix)

The prodigious producer Slushii is back together with Sacra Beats, formerly Sakura Chill Beats, for another massive anime remix. This time he takes on “Careless” by ClariS which many will recognize as the opening theme song from season 2 of Magia Record.

Slushii’s take on “Careless” is a bubbly midtempo record that takes influence from numerous genres including future, pop, moombahton and more. It’s a fun record that even English speakers are going to sing along to as they dance away to Slushii’s synth heavy production. It fits perfectly with the style of ClariS’ original and makes for one of the more unique remixes in the Sacra Beats ever-growing catalog.

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[Trap/Future] Danny Olson – Club Cinema EP

The cinematic maestro Danny Olson has recently dropped his biggest EP to date. Featuring the next chapter of his ever-evolving orchestral signature, the Club Cinema EP features five singles created in collaboration with vocalists including Vo Williams, David Frank and Daemon.

Together these cunning creatives put together a masterful record that is just aching to be in Hollywood’s next big action trailer. Danny is no stranger to sync success, but with songs like “Dreamer” and “Don’t Wake Me Up” he’s surely going to add a few more commercial spots to his belt. His ability to express emotion at such a high level, while still offering up energetic songs that would crush in a live setting is astonishing.

Experience Club Cinema for yourself and for anyone in the LA area, Danny Olson is debuting his live show at Catch One this Friday 4/29! RSVP now and tickets are free as long as you show up before ten. With artists like TEEZ showing support, you’ll want to be there early anyway.

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The Knocks – R U HIGH (ft. Mallrat) [SUNDRESS Remix]


If you’ve been paying any attention, you’ve likely noticed that I haven’t posted anything in well over a year. In fact, very few people have posted on TMN recently. We won’t get into reason why, as today we’re focusing on why we, or rather I am back with another post.

Call it serendipitous. Call it kismet. Whatever you label it with, it’s a strange and rather comical reason why I’m here, writing up a song. It all started four nights ago, as I was watching the Nuggets’ playoff game, enjoying a cocktail, and scrolling through NBA twitter. In a moment of jubilation, celebrating the Nuggs somehow stopping Dame Lillard from sinking an endless amount of threes, I tweeted something snarky. That snark (seen below) was followed up by a brutal ratio from a guy named Jack–a Trailblazer fan and one half of the Portland-based SUNDRESS.


After a bit of playful Twitter sparring, we both followed each other, and came to find out that he had read TMN in high school. And, that I was a big fan of what Jack and Khal were making.

So, that’s why we’re here today, taking a peek at their latest release, a remix of long-time TMN favorite The Knocks‘ latest tune, “R U High?” Loaded with vibes for days, this flip of what was originally a moodier piece is reimagined as more of a warm weather take. Driven by well-sampled vocal cuts, and a fresh lead synth that walks the line of feeling trop, without going overboard, this stellar remix is primed for this weekend’s Memorial Day pool party.

This is SUNDRESS’ third release, but more are on the way soon. I recommend following them across your favorite social channels and staying tuned in. I’ve had the pleasure of previewing it, and they’re pretty damn fantastic.

I guess the only thing I have left to say to these two is Go Nuggets. See you on Twitter for the rest of the series.

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New Zealand’s Four Greatest DJs

For a country with such a small population, New Zealand has produced some of the world’s finest DJs over the years. Here are four of the greatest.

Zane Lowe

Auckland-born Zane Lowe is as well known for his television-presenting and radio-DJ career as much as for his music production and live DJ skills. After moving to the United Kingdom in 1997, Lowe came to prominence hosting shows on XFM and MTV Europe before landing a global music show on BBC Radio 1. As a live DJ, Lowe has enjoyed an international career touring with bands like Muse, Kasabian, and The Prodigy, and playing festivals like Coachella, Future Music Festival, and Glastonbury. He has also regularly DJ’d at Ibiza and Mallorca Rocks. Lowe’s discography includes remixes of Snow Patrol’s In the End, Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip’s Look for the Woman, and Kasabian’s Vlad the Impaler.

If you want to try out your own remixes for fun, a good place to start is the popular DJ Hero video game. You can mix tracks from a selection of more than 100 songs across numerous genres. And if you are in the mood for some more DJing fun, check out the DJ Wild slot game, which is available at Casumo online casino.

Nanotek

New Zealander Nanotek, whose real name is Mark Christiansen, is an international dubstep and drum and bass DJ and producer. He began his involvement with music during his teenage years when he played cool electric guitars under 500 and drums in heavy metal bands before discovering electronic and industrial music in the mid-1990s.

When he moved to Wellington in 2003, he was introduced to music by the likes of Photek, Dylan, and Dom & Roland, who became major influences in his hard darkstep sound. Nanotek’s break came in 2006 when Dylan, the owner of Freak Recordings, signed his two tracks Deadly Force and Acid Burn to his sister label Obscene Recordings. The two tracks gained attention from such recognized DJs as Counterstrike, Tech Itch, and Current Value, and it was not long before Nanotek received a global audience.

P-Money

Hip-hop DJ and producer P-Money came to prominence with his second studio album, 2004’s Magic City, which reached number two on the RIANZ New Zealand Singles Chart. The album contains the single Stop the Music, featuring New Zealand rapper Scribe, which gave P-Money his first number one song. The album contains many collaborations with both international and local artists, including Skillz, >Akon<, and Grandmaster Roc Raida. In 2003, P-Money scored another hit with Scribe with the smash hit track Not Many.

For someone who started out in student radio and DJ competitions, P-Money has certainly come a long way. Over the years, he has won numerous awards, including Best Producer, for Scribe’s multi-platinum album The Crusader, and Songwriter of the Year at the New Zealand Music Awards in 2004.

Mark de Clive-Lowe

Now based in Los Angeles, Mark de Clive-Lowe was born and raised in Auckland. He began playing piano at the age of four and developed an interest in jazz via his father’s vast record collection. During his teenage years, Mark de Clive-Lowe collaborated with local R&B and hip-hop artists.

In 1998, he moved to the United Kingdom. It proved to be a good move. He soon became a regular collaborator with other producers like Attic, Bugz, and Restless Soul. Not before long, de Clive-Lowe helped to develop the UK’s broken beat movement, which blends jazz, funk, electronics, and world music. Amazingly, throughout his career, he has been involved with more than 200 releases, including collaborations with Omar, Shirley Horn, and Lauryn Hill.

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How to Create an Ideal Playlist for Online Learning


Know What you Like
The first step in creating a playlist is to know what you like. Remember that not everyone likes the same things. What is acceptable and useful to some people could be distracting and annoying for you. You need to keep that in mind. There is no right or wrong way to do this!

Look and listen to the music you like. Try and remember your previous experiences with it when you were studying. Were you distracted by it, or did it help you focus? If it helped you focus, it is a good contender for a study list. Remember that if the music on your list is something that you don’t like, it can be very distracting. That’s the opposite of the goal you want to achieve! You want to pick music that you like, which is why you should focus on the music you regularly listen to first.

Knowing what you like is the key, as it will form the base of your studying playlist. You can’t branch out into new ideas if you don’t have a good music starting point.

Have a Look at Different Music
A playlist for studying doesn’t have to be static. You can always look for new music to put in it, if that is what you want.

If you want to do this, it’s best to do it from your existing musical tastes. If you like trance, why not try another genre of electronic music? If you like classic rock, why not try progressive rock? If you like baroque music, you will probably like romantic music. And so on. Widening your listening can give you some great new ideas for your study playlist. It can also introduce you to entirely new musical genres to use throughout your life and activities!
Looking at what other people do is always helpful when you are looking at expanding your own musical tastes. Why not start with some articles on what music is known to help people study? If they have music on there is similar to what you like, you can easily try it. You might like it, and you might not. Either way, you can find new music to try in your own playlists. More than that, expanding your music journey can lead you to a new genre you can listen to for the rest of your life!

Ask Other People’s Opinions
You may just be creating a playlist for your own use. In that case, do what you want – the only person you need to please is yourself. However, you might find yourself in the position of creating a study playlist for multiple people. If that’s the case, then you will need to talk to people and find out what they want.

You can buy essays online and enjoy listening music then. You need as much information as possible before you start making your playlist. You will need to find a way to please everybody with your playlist. Try and find out who likes what, who doesn’t like what, and try to compromise. You might have to mediate between people who hate each other’s music! Just remember that the end goal for everybody is the same – to get some good studying done.

You should try and approach this study playlist by keeping things simple. Take all the genres that are similar to each other, and start finding tracks that you like. This will allow you to create a playlist that satisfies everybody, and yet is not too jarring. Any tracks that are too different from each other will likely pull you out of your studying headspace.

Put it all Together
When you have all the music you feel you want or need, put it together. Remember that the best study music playlist is one that enhances your studying. You shouldn’t find yourself actively listening to the music at any point. The music should help you focus on your work. When you are putting your playlist together, try and keep the genres together, if you can. This will serve two purposes. It will keep your attention focused on your studying by avoiding any sudden changes in music. If the music only gradually changes, then you won’t get any sudden shocks.

When you put it all together, you need to decide how you are going to do that. Are you going to make a YouTube playlist? That would make the creation process a lot easier – you simply take YouTube videos of appropriate songs and add them to your playlist. You might prefer another music platform, such as iTunes or Spotify. It all depends on your needs. Which would be better for you? Choose, and then work on a playlist in that format. From there, you could take it one step further and start a podcast! Make sure to do your research to review very popular streaming mics.

On the other hand, why not use all the music platforms you want to? Each one can have different applications, and you will never be without your study music.

Listen to It Before you Play It
Before you confidently move on with your life with the best study playlist, listen to it all the way through. You might find that music which works well in concept doesn’t work so well when you actually hear it. Your idea of good studying music might turn out to be too distracting. Listen to it all the way through, and then make adjustments if you can.

You might find that you want to make two playlists. You can split your music up into a more sedate playlist and a more active playlist. One for quiet studying, and one more pumped up music for when you need to get your blood flowing. This can come in very handy when writing essays, for example. Listening to your playlist before you debut it can solve a lot of problems. If you are making a playlist for a group, listening to it first can help you spot any problems before they come up.

Happy Listening!
The question of the best music to study to has no real answer. It depends on what helps you, so your list should have music that helps you. Whatever happens to your list, try and have fun while you make it. Studying doesn’t have to be purely work – have fun!

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