Remix The Politik

Drum roll please..... THE WINNERS

2009-03-20T09:51:00.000-07:00

It's time people! Almost a year late... it's amazing how time flies and for keeping everyone waiting we're definitely sorry. Hopefully you'll agree it's all worth the wait - we had so many great entries from all corners of the world, and it's been a tough process choosing the winners. Thanks to Afronaught (coopr8/Bugz in the Attic), Phil Asher (Phlash & Friends/restless soul) and Benji B (Deviation/1xtra) for joining us in the judging process.

Enough with the waiting tho... with five judges we've all ended with some different winners and runners up, and compiling the votes to give us the end result, we're happy to announce The Politik Remixed winners (click their names or pics above for myspace links):

1st= Mistaken (Slang remix featuring Dave Ghetto) - Philadelphia, USA
1st= She's Gone (Brendon remix) - London, UK
2nd= Feel It (Altered Natives remix) - London, UK
2nd= Black Sun (TRZ remix) - Sao Paulo, Brasil
3rd Mistaken (Scrimshire remix) - London, UK

Runners up:

The Essence (Brendon remix) - London, UK
Turn the Light (Monsieur Greg remix) - Paris, France
Money (Soulparlor remix) - Mainz, Germany

Individual judges' other favorites/remixes we felt should get a special mention:

Feel It (Qsoncs remix)
The Essence (Monsieur Greg remix)
How Did They Know (Alegory remix)
Moonlight (Broken Beatnik remix)
Mistaken feat Bahamadia (UKey remix) - great effort flipping Mistaken into a broken dancefloor soul joint and mashing up the Bahamadia rap from Feel It into the same track

We know some people are going to feel like "but what was wrong with my remix ? Everyone I played it to loves it!"... there were almost 300 remixes submitted, about half of those were pretty good, and there's plenty of remixes which had nothing wrong with them at all - these were just the ones that resonated with the judges the most/in the right way. If you really dig your remix and it wasn't selected, feel free to put it on your myspace/website/blogsite, or another idea, if you didn't use any of our music parts is to take the vocals off and record your own original vocal/vocalist to the backing track and voila... brand new original joint. It'd be nice if everyone could be a winner in this, but it's not the case.

We're organising release plans now for the Remix album - winning remixers (and runners up!), keep an eye on your inbox. If your email address has changed since you entered the contest, please contact us directly office(at)mashibeats.com. Look forward to the remix album out in the summer along with some very special exclusives - a brand new original studio joint 'Dreams', and bonus remixes from Zed Bias under both Zed Bias and Maddslinky guises, C Swing Black Einstein and bonus remix for Japan from DJ Mitsu the Beats.

We have an artwork winner as well - the quality on that front was not as high overall as the remixes, and the winner is a clear winner for sure. we'll be in contact with the designer soon and you'll see the artwork on the final release!

Thanks again to everyone who entered and spent time crafting and reinterpreting our music. Keep the good music coming :)

MdCL + Bembe Segue aka The Politik

The Politik Remixed - Winners and Runners Up

The Politik Remixed: It's Time

2009-03-16T19:37:00.001-07:00

Spring greetings Worldwide fam,

First up, I gotta say a big thank you to everyone for your continued, extended and benevolent patience. This project was intended to be a wrap a long time ago, but a whole number of things came into play with all of us judges which kept it on the backburner. Bembe and I totally appreciate the effort and creativity you all brought to the project and know how frustrating it can be to not hear anything for well... almost a year!

Secondly, and more importantly... we're announcing the winners this week! We (all the judges) have had a fun time checking out everyone's contributions, and it's nice to be able to draw it to conclusion. It hasn't been an easy process - there's been some good remixes that let themselves down in one area or another - usually as simple as getting the vocal really sitting in a groove or sitting in a key that works with it.

The winners will be announced later this week here (http://remixthepolitik.blogspot.com) and http://mashibeats.blogspot.com. The winners will also be contacted directly and explained what is required from them for their remix to be included on the winning release (file formats, etc).

For those who are not winners (and by the sheer volume of entries, that's a lot of you), that doesn't necessarily mean you did a bad job or there is anything wrong with your remix - it's a competition and we've had to choose the winners!

Thanks again for getting involved and we're looking forward to hearing more music from all of you with your own projects.

peace,
MdCL

update number 9,374,481

2008-12-04T19:44:00.000-08:00

yes fam.... where did 2008 go to ??! we planned to have this whole project out there in the world's ears by now but one thing, then another thing, then another and another and another meant that there have been constant delays.

we've had a variety of emails and messages from people asking what's happening with the contest, some understanding, some down right rude, but all understandable given how long it's taken us to not even get it wrapped.

so, update for today is... there are 29 remixes left in the running. judges are sitting with these as 2008 draws to a close and one way or another, we will be announcing the winners with the dawn of 2009. yes, we're 8 months late, but it's all been with good intention! (you'll just have to take our word on that). it's been difficult to get down to these ones - there's already been some where the vibe is all there in the backing track, but the details let it down... vocals not sitting in the groove properly or odd harmonies that detract from what's otherwise a good reinterpretation. it is after all a competition tho, so we have to narrow it down to the winners.

it's been an interesting year for the industry in general, and the way that has ebbed and flowed has effected, amongst other things, the way this project will be released. however yes, it WILL be released and we look forward to hopefully helping some new talent get a step up to the eyes and ears of heads, tastemakers and music lovers worldwide. we'll be announcing the top 3 winners and there will be limited vinyl releases of some tracks, digital release of the whole remix album (plus bonus digital only tracks) and limited CD release of the definitive selection including the top 3 winners and some runners up.

thanks to everyone for your continued patience... 2009. a change is comin'

MdCL

--

in the meantime, we'd like to share with you miss laidlaw's remix of she's gone. it would have been a solid contender for a firm place on the remix album, if not for the sample that the her beat is built on. still, it's a dope vibe and most certainly brings a nice reinterpretation to the song...

- download 'She's Gone' (Miss Laidlaw remix)
- check out The Beat Making Housewife live n direct on myspace

judging in progress...

2008-08-12T03:15:00.000-07:00

as of yesterday, about one third of the entries we've received have been selected to stay in the running.... we're getting there!

hold tight

ez,
MdCL

update is better than none no ?

2008-07-15T05:31:00.001-07:00

yo people,

first up, apologies for the delay - nothing further has been announced yet as the details are not finalised so it seems like a waste to just say "wait a lil more please!". but yes, the contest is happening, no the judging is not over yet... we've had a difficult time getting all the judges time for this with a very busy summer - everyone doing gigs, festivals, etc. if we had a dedicated office/staff then we'd be bang on schedule, but (hopefully!) you know how the independent grind goes!

on the positive, it's giving more time for us to sit with the remixes - and some of them definitely age like fine wine and sound better each time ;) we totally appreciate the time and effort that you producers have put into the remixes and the contest, and it's not our intention to mess anyone round... just the reality of everyone's schedules and multi tasking right now which has meant the contest is running way late.

the official remix album will still be compiled and released featuring the winning remixes + some commissioned remixes. all the remix entrants will be given free digital versions of the final album. in the meantime, as was stated at the start of the contest, feel free to post your remixes, share them, etc. we're hoping to announce winners in the next 6 weeks

sunsonsound - liking the b-line action on your moonlight!

currently listening to.. zed bias dubstep rub of the essence

;)

peace

Hold Tight!!

2008-05-07T02:03:00.000-07:00

to all the remix contest producers and beatmakers, sorry but we're delayed in announcing the winners. we'd hoped to have made the announcement by now, but due to the number of entries and the judges juggling multiple responsibilites (hmmmmm.... see, if we were a big funded company, we'd get some office juniors to do all the b.s. work... but then... if we were some big funded company... this contest probably wouldn't even exist).

so, sit tight, yes the contest has closed. yes the winners will be announced. no they will not be announced on schedule as we'd hoped. yes the winning entries will be officially released :) also, no sorry - not all entries will be posted here for everyone to hear - that office junior must have snuck out to an extra long lunch again ;)

btw, winners will be notified directly and the results will be posted here.

peace and big thanks to everyone who entered - hope you had fun with it!

MdCL

two weeks to go!

2008-03-27T17:58:00.000-07:00

two weeks to go til the submissions deadline and we've got dozens of remixes from all corners of the planet... check out a selection of entries here and get remixing! :)

a few tips...

2008-02-26T03:28:00.001-08:00

we're loving the variety and ideas of the remixes submitted so far and looking forward to a whole lot more over the next month and a half.

some remix producers are handicapping themselves straight away with some remix 101 mistakes that shouldn't be happening, so a few pointers here:

1. do NOT use loops or chunks of other tunes as samples - and if you must, then they gotta be flipped beyond recognition. eg, if you're going to flip the vocal over a mash up of a quincy jones track then we cannot consider it for the competition. feel free to send it in as a mash up (no doubt it probably sounds dope) but sample clearance is not an option for winning remixes so we will not be able to consider these entries

2. tempos: if you're going to change the tempo from the original (and we definitely are into some of that if it's working!) then make sure you timestretch the original file parts to fit the new bpm. putting a vocal over a house beat without timestretching it is not going to work

3. phrasing: in a similar boat with #2 above - if you want to change the phrasing of the original vocal, it really has to work well. there's been a couple of submissions so far where the remixer has changed the phrasing unnecessarily, so an otherwise dope remix is compromised by the vocals sounding like they're in the wrong place. 'turn the light' and 'mistaken' remixers might want to note that the original parts do not run in consistent 4 or 8 bar patterns so you either need to work out how the originals run or flip the parts to fit a more conventional format

4. harmony: changing harmony can be a good way to flip a tune for a remix, but the new harmony has to make sense. ie, if you're changing the chords or key of the tune compared to the original, it has to work. you shouldnt need a PHD in music harmony to be able to hear that it's working or not working, but a few submissions are compromising themselves with really wrong harmony. dark is ok, abstract is ok, etc, but especially with vocals with backing vocal parts dictating some really fundamental harmonic ideas, you need to make the vocals sound good with whatever chordal/harmonic direction you take. same goes for rhythm and groove although that seems to be less of an issue with the entries so far :)

keep 'em coming!

Check out some of the competition entries...

2008-02-15T23:09:00.000-08:00

hear the contest in progress and check out some of the entries we've had in so far ... from Brazil to the UK and all around the world... keep the remixes coming!

- remember for your remix to be eligible for the competition, it MUST be submitted to us via email to office(at)mashibeats.com

Welcome...

2008-02-06T16:03:00.001-08:00

Bembe Segue and Mark de Clive-Lowe welcome you to The Politik Remix Album + Artwork Competition.

This competition is open to anyone and everyone who'd like to have a go at remixing one (or more!) songs from The Politik's debut album. The winning remixes will be compiled into the official remix album The Politik Remixed to be released on both physical and digital formats. The second part of the competition is an artwork remix competition for the cover art of the official release. Download the original artwork by Joshua Mays and have a go at reworking it in the spirit of the Remix.

Please read the information here - by downloading any of the remix files you are agreeing to the conditions stated.

Your remixes will be judged by The Politik (Bembe Segue + Mark de Clive-Lowe), Benji B (Deviation 1xtra), Phil Asher (restless soul) and Afronaught (coopr8/Bugz in the Attic).

* Submit your remixes and artwork here

* Hear the original album at thepolitik.imeem.com
* Buy the original album (digital) at antipodean.ithinkmusic.com

The Politik on MySpace / The Politik on imeem.com / coopr8.net

Remix parts download links all in the right side column of this blog....

in association with Milan Records, Antipodean Records, Village Again Records + coopr8

The fine print...

2008-02-06T16:02:00.001-08:00

* All parts are 24 bit 44.1 AIFF with the exception of 'Money' vocal which is 24 bit 44.1 WAV

* All links marked (vocals) are mixed stereo stems of the vocals ONLY with the exception of 'Saturn' (vocals + music) and 'Turn the Light' (vocals + horns). Links marked (music) contain the main music elements from the track with no drums. The samples have been omitted from two tracks. Please do not email us asking for additional parts, split vocals or bpms of tunes. * UPDATE 11 January: music parts all uploaded in addition to the vocals *

* The track 'High Priestess' is NOT included in this competition as this track was a US CD/vinyl substitute for 'Black Sun' and previously released by Dopeness Galore Records (big up!). However, you do get an extra track for the competition - the Japanese bonus track 'Next in Line'...

* The competition deadline is April 14, 2008. All submissions must be received by then and deadline extensions will most probably not be granted. All remixes should be submitted as 320 bit mp3s by email (or yousendit or ftp download link) to office@mashibeats.com. Artwork submissions should be sent to the same address (pdf or jpg).

* The winners will be decided and notified by May 6, 2008.

* The competition will be judged by The Politik (Bembe Segue + Mark de Clive-Lowe), Benji B (Deviation 1xtra), Phil Asher (restless soul) and Afronaught (coopr8/Bugz in the Attic). The judges decision will be final and the winning remixes will be released on The Politik Remixed CD and digital also featuring the winning artwork. The artist reserves the right to alter/edit album content in consultation with the remixer(s) for the final release including artwork.

* All winners will be fully credited on the Remix Album release and on all promo info accompanying the release including their myspace/website links. All intellectual property and master use remains with the originators of the music and artwork. No remuneration (including royalties or mechanicals/publishing) will be paid to the winners from the sales of the Remix Album on digital and physical formats. Remuneration WILL be paid to the remix producer for any remixes that are licensed to 3rd party licensees including but not limited to synchronisations for TV, film, video games and compilations. This remuneration will be calculated as 50% of the royalties due to the Artist. Mechanicals/publishing will not be due to the remixer under these circumstances.

* Entries requiring sample clearance for official release will not be considered sorry. If you're using samples flip them HARD!

* The winning remixers will be expected to supply a 24 bit WAV or AIFF of their remix promptly on request. Wherever possible, the winners will also submit a hi-res JPG image of themselves. The winning artwork artist will be expected to supply a hi-res print quality digital image of their creation.

* You may enter as many different remixes of as many different songs as you like. If you're up for the ultimate challenge, remix the whole album start to finish... :)

* Artwork note: the remix album will be titled The Politik Remixed, so if you're flipping the artwork, you're encouraged to use or adapt the raw artwork creatively (or create something new from scratch which still relates to the original) and present a front cover complete with The Politik Logo and "Remixed". The official release artwork will have additional design to include tracklistings, credits, logos, etc.

* You may post/share your remix at any time anywhere on the internet regardless of whether you are a winner or not. Our only stipulation is that the track is credited correctly:

The Politik 'Song Name' ([Remixer name] remix)

and wherever possible a weblink is included to http://myspace.com/thepolitik and/or http://thepolitik.imeem.com