Music

The Best of Soundcloud This Week: Dancehall Covers, Dembow Jersey Club & Native American Chanting

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Soundcloud Selects takes you through our top picks this week from the online platform’s forever-scrolling catalog of remixes, edits, bootlegs, unofficial releases, mixtapes, and more.

OMAAR – "Move On (dub)"

https://soundcloud.com/afterpop-tv/omaar-move-on-dub

OMAAR is one of few electronic music producers in Mexico that started his music ventures by publishing juke tracks at a local level. As time has come and gone, the man has refocused his production in another direction, focusing on British grime and Night Slugs-like techno. This track is quite dark, bassy, and holds a lot of suspense through out the piece, contrasting a metallic wobble bass with vogue and club vocal stabs, while a hypnotizing pitch-bending hi-hat marks the heavy pace. The level of detail is impressive, and although this is a rather hard piece to digest on the dancefloor, it definitely brings a new proposal for the Mexico City underground scene of 2015. –Adrián Méndez

Bossy Lion - "Tengo Algo Para Ti"

Am I the only human out there in this world that is over the top enamorada with dancehall covers out of Panama? I’m not afraid to admit it, nope, not at all. This week brings Bossy Lion out of–you guessed it–Panama, with an español cover of Tanto Metro and Devonte’s “Got News for You.” It’s a pretty straightforward cover, but it still brings such warmth to my soon-to-be Polar Vortex’d heart. –Sara Skolnick

DJ Assassin & DJ Merks – 'Dembow Mix Vol.2'

DJ Assassin & DJ Merks, members of the PrimeTime DJ collective, put together a solid mix of the latest in dembow. They run through the usual suspects like El Alfa, this past summer’s peculiar single by Sensato & El Mayor’s “Bello,” and others. The most remarkable part of the mix though is some surprising edits that reflect their Jersey Club backgrounds. –Marco Gomez

Gnucci – "A.RAB (Jubilee + Rizzla remix)"

This freebie from Swedish MC Gnucci is pretty dope, especially considering the minds behind the beats. Both Jubilee and Rizzla have made a name for themselves in the American club music scene in the last few years, pushing for unheard-of combinations of sounds and genres, each with their own respective approach. In the end, this club blend of Miami bass, house, and some dancehallish / raggamuffin style vocals is what you need to get your weekend started on the right foot. –Adrián Méndez

Joey LaBeija – 'The Sounds Of Legendary Vol. III'

https://soundcloud.com/joeylabeija/the-sounds-of-legendary-vol-iii-112214-w-ynfynyt-scroll-poor-sport-false-witness-93-no-6-street-bk-ny

Shameless self-promotion plug ahead! If you’re in NYC this Saturday you can catch me and the squad DJing at Legendary in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Joey LaBeija got this 10 minute minimix to prepare you all for what’s in store: Ynfynyt Scroll’s remix of Buraka Som Sistema is on here, as is up and coming artist Poor Sport’s “Thuta Fliip.” Plus, he threw in a bootleg I made from back in the day, entitled “Silver Dons.” –Marco Gomez

Femina-X – "Inka"

We’ve already got our eyes set out San Antonio-based trip hop/pop outfit Femina-X. “Inka” starts out in drone land before picking up into some chanting vocals, reminiscent of The Knife’s high-pitched, extraterrestrial vocal vibes. The live band aspect of the track becomes more apparent toward the end when the track picks up pace toward the end. Ethereal dream times. –Sara Skolnick

Poolboy92 – "Rebyrth"

https://soundcloud.com/poolboy92/rebyrth

Poolboy92, formerly known as Mohegan Son, is a New York City producer with quite a taste for advanced club beats. For me, what truly singles him out from the rest  is a certain influence he has from what I believe to be traditional Native American chants, reflected in this track through samples mixed in with some pounding club bass drums and a bunch of Ha! stabs. This #FEELINGS alumni is truly stepping up his game with this minimalistic yet very narrative piece that takes us to a very unexplored terrain of dance music. Did I mention it’s a free download? Enjoy! –Adrián Méndez