Cooke's Cuts - July

After a month away, the playlist is back and pumped full of more testosterone than a Tour de France winner. This month’s got the boys on the main stage and their bringing some new material to the act. The latest releases from The Chemical Brothers, Justice, Matthew Dear and Smashing Pumpkins will give everyone something to talk about. And that’s just getting us started…

• The Chemical Brothers - Do It Again feat. Ali Love
  
  Let’s start the set off right, with an EP from the The Chemical Brothers’ latest effort. The album We Are The Night has many noteworthy tracks, but I can’t keep this one off repeat. The pros combine catchy samples with original beats to produce record after record of timeless hits. The title really does say it all.
  
  

• Smashing Pumpkins - Bring the Light
  
  Another new beginning for Smashing Pumpkins with the release of Zeitgeist, and Billy Corgan knows by now how to impress a crowd. The song acts as a montage for the musical career of the band. It’s got a heavy beat and a signature guitar melody that has kept the Pumpkins popular since the days of Gish. The middle gets angry, a taste of “Bullet with Butterfly Wings,” right before he softens up in the end with homage to Mellon Collie.
  
  DJ Mehdi - Signatune (Thomas Bangalter Edit)
  
  DJ Mehdi parallels Daft Punk in underground French hip/hop and electro, and that’s definitely saying something. Another member of the Ed Banger label, Mehdi’s first album is original, sexy and hard hitting. “Signatune” is the most satisfying track from the album and take note, the louder it plays, the better it sounds.
  
  

• Yvan & Dan Daniel - Enjoy the Silence (Radio Cut)
  
  It’s hard to miss the similarity between this past year’s hit “Proper Education” and Yvan & Dan Daniel’s “Enjoy the Silence”. If imitation is the highest form of flattery, then the guys must be Eric Prydz worshipers. Though it’s hard to go wrong when playing around with Depeche Mode, and these guys make no mistakes. It’s a perfect track for any pace, and any crowd.
  
  

• Bent - Waiting for You (Superbass Remix)
  
  I find music like this simply irresistible; original lyrics, memorable melodies, and an unwavering beat. Bent has been putting out credible stuff for years, but once touched by the magic wand of Global Underground, the track transcends from song to hit. Try it, you’ll see exactly what I mean.
  
  

• Meck - Feels Like Home (Original Mix)
  
  Meck’s club hit starts simply enough; haunting vocals drifting over a thumping bassline. It fades, it builds, and it fades again. But the best part makes you wait: after more than four minutes into the track, a heavily polished synthesizer riff comes alive and is instantly reminiscent of the early nineties techno debuts. It was worth the wait. The song boasts dozens of remixes, but the original gets it quite right.
  
  

• DADA feat. Sandy Rivera & Trix - Lollipop (Club Mix)
  
  On a less serious note, “Lollipop” is pure sugar. It’s fast, danceable, and so full of innuendos, you’ll want to wash your own mouth out after singing along. Just make sure your coaches aren’t in earshot when you blast this ditty.
  
  

• Justice - Phantom
  
  Justice joins the club with new releases ready for masses. The French duo waste no time: “Phantom” is a tight little electronic package with an edgy, vibrating rock sound. The single is pure emotion: rage, bliss, anxiousness, and serenity in one clean production.
  
  

• Matthew Dear - Deserter
  
  After getting Matthew Dear’s recent album Asa Breed, I just can’t put it down. Though all of the songs merit praise, it’s the “Deserter” EP that softly steals the show. It’s the electronic folk of the Postal Service meets the computerized details of MSTRKRFT. Maybe it’s so fresh because this producer has as many aliases as records. Whatever you call it, you definitely be playing it.

ERG ROOM CLASSIC

• Oakenfold - Ready, Steady, Go
  
  Just as the name implies, this classic is all you need to get you through. If you haven’t heard it before, wait, who hasn’t heard this one before? Its heavy, synthed up guitar rips all over the place like a racecar zooming right past your head. The lyrics are simple, but really, what other inspiration do you need? Ready, Steady, Go! Good advice.