1320 Records
When one thinks of Sound Tribe Sector 9, immediately the imagery of Dave Murphys smooth bass lines, Zack Velmers monstrous drum beats, Hunter Browns ripping guitar, Jeffree Lerners soulful percussion skills, and David Phipps range of keyboard lines come to mind. However, when considering the jamtronica heavyweights, they should not only be evaluated on the basis of their larger-than-life live performances, but also for their soft-spoken humanitarian efforts.
To supplement Sound Tribes charitable efforts, over 30 artists from every corner of the electronic genre donated a remixed track off of STS9s most recent album release, Peaceblaster—a benefit album for the Make It Right Foundation—that infuses their own unique style into Sound Tribes music.
However, this album is not only noteworthy for the concept, but also for the incredibly diverse, and downright dirty collection of music that all these artists helped to create. If youre looking to hit the dance floor, check out Lazer Swords take on Hidden Hand, Hidden Fist, the Pretty Lights remix of Beyond Right Now, or the Stay Blastin remix of Peaceblaster.
For more of a bassy-dub style, the album features a nasty cut of Shock Doctrine by San Francisco DJ Eskmo, and an unbelievably cool remix of The Spectacle by UK wizard, Ott. Big Gigantic, meanwhile, remixes an awesomely catchy hip-hop rendition of Empires, while Alex B steeps his concepts remix of Metameme with a laid back, thumping groove.
The album also features a fantastic Telepath remix of Peaceblaster 68 that has a funk core with the introduction of an organic bass groove, percussive line, and blues guitar riff but is supplemented by an Eastern sounding synthesizer that reminds the listener its a Telepath cut.
In addition to the many instrumentals on the album, a few tracks introduce lyrics over Sound Tribes foundation to add some poignant political commentary to the album. For example, in the Flying Skulls’ remix of Hidden Hand, Hidden Fist, the lyricist remarks Its not all over because one man came the President, while the Lowpro Lounge take on Hidden Hand is spliced with political banter like Freedom has many difficulties, and democracy is not perfect. This aspect of the album is especially powerful as it doesnt come off as a biased or pessimistic look at todays state of affairs, but instead as a reflection upon what we as the listener can do to improve the situation.
Peaceblaster certainly engages the audience, and gives us a hell of a party while doing so. Not every track on the album is brilliant (the John Hughes remix of ReGeneration seems to be waiting to break into something interesting, but never does) but the wide variety of sound, and the difference every purchase makes definitely warrants the download.