Brian Degraw of Gang Gang Dance Dublab Mix
- story Matthew Schnipper
- photo Jason Nocito (F44)
One of the highlights of our blogging careers ( 
) was when we realized that Gang Gang Dance sampled the Pack. OMG dudes. Except no one cares but Noz. The reason this was so sweet was not because two different kinds of music came together to make a new kind of music (though once when we heard that 50 Cent/Nine Inch Nails mashup at a club in Long Island it was kind of the bomb), but because it was a mess—”Vans Song” slowed to syrup and disappearing into the fire like Al Pacino in that movie where he plays the devil. We’ve been using the word “melting” as a descriptor too much lately but we’re gonna use it again. Think about those scenes of colored sand set squiggly atop of each other like layers of oil, except bled at the edges, bits of blue and tan in the mini-beach in a jar. What good is a border? Brian Degraw, Gang Gang beatsmith, made a mix for Dublab that is that. Or maybe it’s something else, maybe it’s ToeJam and Earl on weed. Who cares it’s fucking sweet. He puts us onto this dude, hellooooo awesomeeee. On something else, Degraw said: “When the promoter starts throwing you moody looks because you’re playing too much techno in his impossibly stagnant Rock n Roll club – Stick this on and watch him meltdown. This is the dancefloor Tetris equivalent of getting a ’storky’ and clearing the board with a Tetrad.” Dude that works too but we’re just gonna be playing it at home crying for a bunch of complicated reasons we don’t even understand, hope that’s cool.
Download: Brian Degraw Dublab mix
DJ/Rupture and Matt Shadetek, “Track 20 From Solar Life Raft” MP3
- story Matthew Schnipper
- photo Jason Nocito (F63)
That’s not the official title. That would be “Matty G, ‘Layin in Bed,’ DJ/Rupture f. Elizabeth Alexander, ‘Overture: Watermelon City (Acappella), Lloop, ‘Autumn Rain.’” Because a song’s no good unless it has every form of punctuation worked in there. Elizabeth Alexander, now most well-known for reading a poem that a lot of people did not like at President Obama’s inauguration, is the base of this track, from Rupture and Matt Shadetek’s upcoming mix, Solar Life Raft, calmly reading her poem “Overture: Watermelon City” about making decent lives in Philadelphia. Shadetek and Rupture rework Rupture’s original production from his collaboration with Alexander, give it some electronic pep that is not un-DJ Shadow-ish. The entire mix, in fact, is often reminiscent of Shadow’s darker moments. Except for the moments filled with various global drums, the international presentations of dance music Rupture and Shadetek’s Dutty Artz collective has been so wildly entranced with. They have a fair match, then, in Gang Gang Dance, whose “Bebey” they also remix for the album—a bunch of New York artists who are suckers for Middle Eastern percussion.
Download: DJ/Rupture and Matt Shadetek, Track 20 from Solar Life Raft
Download: Gang Gand Dance, “Bebey” (DJ/Rupture and Matt Shadetek Remix)
Video: New Gang Gang Dance Song “Mind Killer”
- story Matthew Schnipper
Last week in London, Gang Gang Dance played a new track, “Mind Killer.” While this video is not particularly visually illuminating, we do get the body of the track, which starts off with buzz-heavy percussion, like a puffed up runner’s breath, and then breaks out the electric keys. Andrew Kuo is saying it’s giving him Herbie Hancock vibes. That’s not untrue, but it’s more like someone sampled some electric fusion than swiped it wholesale. Gang Gang were on the cover of our magazine a long time before their second album, Saint Dymphna came out. It’s been a year since that happened, so at this point we’d guesstimate it might be another 12 months until we see something resembling “Mind Killer” properly released, but that can’t stop us from wanting a taste. And maybe this can be a good weekend reminder: to those of you maybe a little put off by Dymphna’s universal music jumble—as we were at first blush—but revived by this fresh nip of the Dance, play Dymphna if it’s been a while, it’s energy is surprising. “Mind Killer” maybe takes away some of the global vibes in global pop, but we don’t see them abandoning a wide consciousness any time soon. Good to see that confirmed.
Boredoms and Gang Gang Dance Played on Russian Ferry During an Eclipse
- story Matthew Schnipper
We have been trying to ferret reports of Boredoms and Gang Gang Dance playing on a Russian ferry boat during a solar eclipse on July 22nd, but have, until now, been fruitless. But Brian Degraw of Gang Gang Dance put up a few choice shots. We stole a couple and put them up after the jump, all of which revolve around the fact that Boredoms and Gang Gang Dance played on a Russian ferry boat during a solar eclipse.
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posted on Aug 3, 2009 in MUSIC, MUSIC NEWS tags Boredoms, electronic/dance, Gang Gang Dance, playing on a Russian ferry boat during a solar eclipse, rock
Gang Gang Dance Live in New York City MP3
- story Matthew Schnipper
- photo Jason Nocito (F44)
As part of their podcast, Social Registry just put up a full live set from Gang Gang Dance in April 2008, just after they finished recording Saint Dymphna, and those songs are performed here fluidly but fairly faithfully (and without any “Vans” sample), but with a pretty decent electronic drum circle/banshee wail out twenty minutes deep, leading into “House Jam,” which is painfully sick.
Download: Gang Gang Dance Live at Southpaw, April 2008
Schnipper’s Slept On
- story Matthew Schnipper
Each Tuesday, FADER editor Matthew Schnipper highlights an underappreciated recent release he thinks we need to know about. This week it’s Gang Gang Dance’s Saint Dymphna. Listen to the album’s “Princes,” buy the album and read Schnipper’s thoughts on it after the jump.
Freeload: The Big Pink, “Velvet (Gang Gang Dance Remix)”
- story THE FADER
Gang Gang Dance deflated the electro from Big Pink’s drama-dude love jammer “Velvet” and made it light as a feather, then they get all urban mystical on us with some wicked crystal sounds possibly played on a triangle, and the classic GGD pastiche drum editing. GGD makes us wanna go break some glass in a good way, or wander around the Lower East Side in a Greek-patterned Snuggie.
Download: The Big Pink, “Velvet (Gang Gang Dance Remix)” (Via GvsB)
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posted on Apr 21, 2009 in MP3 / STREAMS tags dance/electronic, freeload, Gang Gang Dance, rock, The Big Pink
Schnipper’s Slept On
- story THE FADER
Each Tuesday, FADER editor Matthew Schnipper highlights an underappreciated recent release he thinks we need to know about. This week it’s Gang Gang Dance’s Rawwar EP. Buy the mp3s for four dollars total and read Schnipper’s thoughts on it after the jump.
Gang Gang Dance Moves On From Grime, Now Into Slightly Dated Bay Area Rap
- story THE FADER
Listening to the audio of last week’s Gang Gang Dance MoMA performance we heard something a little peculiar. First we thought it was Rosemary’s baby but then we realized it was just The Pack. For about a minute, they played over a highly-slowed and scary-ized version of “Vans.” “Got my Vans but they look like sneakers,” remember? Can someone add this to The Breaks for us? Check the excerpt below.
Stream: Gang Gang Pack
