In a surprising union, Major Lazer (Diplo + Switch) has teamed up with La Roux to create Lazerproof, a mixtape that combines Major Lazer’s electro-dancehall bangers with tracks from La Roux’s eponymous debut album. No stranger to the realm of mixtapes, Diplo has collaborated with M.I.A. on Piracy Funds Terrorism and Santigold on Top Ranking, creating mixtapes that fuse the respective artists’ debut albums with a selection of hip hop, dubstep and reggae beats. La Roux’s songs have seen their share of dubstep remixes, making her collaboration with Major Lazer a little less surprising (bonus: check out tradehooks compilation of the best La Roux remixes HERE).

Lazerproof balances the familiar with the unfamiliar, while delivering surprise after surprise. Some songs are close derrivatives of their respective archetypes  - the Costra Nostra Edit of “Cover My Eyes” adds a ska beat while keeping the melody and vocals intact. “In For The Kill” gets reworked twice, first in “Independent Kill”, where Candi Redd raps over the original melody, then again in ”In 4 The Kill Pon de Skream”, which takes Skream’s pervasive remix  and laces it with a stripped-down beat from “Pon de Floor” for a curiously subtle result.

“Magic (Falling Soldiers Dub)”, a less obvious interpretation of “As If By Magic”, takes the vocals from its poppy predecessor and lays it over a reggae dub. Stripped of its synth undertones, the song takes on a completely different mood. The two closing tracks – “I Said It (Major Lazer Dubplate)” featuring Opal and “Hold Yuh (Double Dubplate)” featuring Gyptian – left us mystified. Although there are two La Roux songs that didn’t get the mixtape treatment (“Saviour” and “Reflections Are Protection”), neither resembles the tracks in question.

CLICK HERE to download Lazerproof from the Mad Decent blog, a free download if you get it today (Wednesday, May 26). Last we checked, the server was having some issues, so if you need it right this second (as we did), head over to the Stockholm Beat Connection for an alternate download link.

We leave you with two samples from Lazerproof: “In 4 The Kill Pon de Skream” and the mysterious “Hold Yuh (Double Dubplate)”. If you can figure out its origins, by all means, enlighten us in the comments section below.

Major Lazer & La Roux – “In 4 The Kill Pon de Skream”

Major Lazer & La Roux featuring Gyptian – “Hold Yuh (Double Dubplate)”

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This weekend, the Pepsi DJ Collective is kicking things off a little early with a party at Roxy’s Playhouse (a.k.a. BK Space, N8, The Space on 8th, etc.) on Thursday. Diplo, Roxy Cottontail, DJ Drama and Eli Escobar will take turns manning the decks, with a special live performance by Mad Decent’s own Maluca.

In support of his latest album, The Boy Who Knew Too Much, Mika will perform at the United Palace Theater on Friday night. We saw Mika on his last tour, and the boy definitely knows how to put on a show. Also on Friday, Chromeo will be doing double duty, with a live performance at Irvinig Plaza, followed by a DJ set at Webster Hall for the official after party.

Saturday night brings two legends of house music to town: Erick Morillo is back from Ibiza and will be spinning at Pacha, while Jeff Mills and his signature Detroit techno will be at The Sullivan Room.

Be sure to check out photos from Dave 1’s DJ set at Webster Hall last June and Diplo’s appearances at Hard NYC and Flashing Lights last Saturday.

Don’t forget, CMJ’s annual Music Marathon is taking over NYC next week. Click here to customize your own CMJ schedule, or check in with us on Monday for our top picks.

Featuring Toddla T, Nick Catchdubs, DJ Ayres, Jubilee

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL ALBUM

I’ve attended a few parties in dodgy locations before, but finding a bit of revelry in a Chinatown mall was a first. Enter Flashing Lights: your no-nonsense solution to realizing a sublime NYC evening. Spearheaded by DJs Ayres (The Rub), Jubilee (Nightshifters), and Nick Catchdubs (Fool’s Gold), these tastemakers bring a genuine dance party to life without the pretentious attitude found in clubs across the apple.

The NYC debut of Toadally Krossed Out begged a comparison to Dim Mak’s Bloody Beetroots as the two DJs donned green toad masks while rocking the dim sum restaurant. What stood out for me was the attendance from label heads, Diplo and A-Trak, who both came out to support their artists and partake in the action. In return, the DJs played their respective remixes of tracks by Switch, A-Trak, and Major Lazer. Their presence exemplifies a certain kinship that exists amongst labels like Fool’s Gold and Mad Decent and the artists they represent. All this juicy party goodness is wrapped together with big help from MeanRed Productions and Good Peoples.

We look forward to what artists and collaborations Flashing Lights will be offering in the future. In the mean time check out the site www.flashinglightslightslights.com and be sure to catch their next party at Glasslands September 4th! Also check out some photos from the evening debauchery as well as the M.R.I. Lightpainting blog.

Major Lazer – Hold The Line (Toadally Krossed Out Remix)

After all of the trash talk on Twitter (especially between the Mad Decent and Fool’s Gold families), we just had to check out the Converse Band of Ballers 3-on-3 basketball tournament last Wednesday. We were too late to catch the Fool’s Gold vs. Mad Decent smackdown (Fool’s Gold won), but we did get there just in time to see the Jim Jones Family dominate Mad Decent in what co-host Peter Rosenberg called “the easiest win so far”.

In the semi-finals, the Jim Jones Family took another victory against the Brooklyn Crew, which included Theophilus London and Matt & Kim. Next up, Fool’s Gold took on Pac Div in the closest game of the day. MVP definitely goes to Dan Solomito, who scored most (if not all) of the baskets for Fool’s Gold. Despite A-Trak’s supreme coaching skills and amusing victory dances, Fool’s Gold lost 11-10 in sudden-death overtime. To no one’s surprise, the Jim Jones Family prevailed once again over Pac Div, earning them the tournament trophy.

Big ups to Converse for planning a great event and bringing the NYC music community together in a fun, relaxed and unique way. The players’ uniforms were styling and of course, the sneakers matched.

Photo courtesy of The Village Voice

DJ Ayres, Nick Catchdubs and Jubilee created Flashing Lights, their signature party, to fill the house, disco, techno and rave void in NYC. Their next party at 88 Palace on August 14th will also mark the debut of Mad Decent’s Toadally Krossed Out. As a teaser, the trio has put together a monstrous mix tape, Flashing Lights Vol. 4. This mix does not come with a warning but we advise you to turn up the volume and lose yourself in this eclectic compilation. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

Listen to it below or click here to download.

DJ Ayres, Nick Catchdubs and Jubilee – “Flashing Lights Vol. 4″

Track List after the jump.

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This weekend’s Essential Mix features two of the world’s top producers, Diplo & Switch as Major Lazer. They just released their debut album Guns Don’t Kill People, Lazers Do and have embraked on a global dancehall zombie war. Be prepared for 120 minutes of a dubby, dance rhythm infestation.

Major Lazer – Essential Mix

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