No Reason

[ThePumisher]

That Ewan McVicar "1994" Remix, release tommorow, sounds interesting


https://thechemicalbrothers.lnk.to/NoReason_EwanMcVicarRemix?fbclid=PAAaZIrKaGSAOYgas6fiEhtjuwsjXQdGVEz4ucRUCpb4Sl0jusEM46lsd0bRU

[Wolkenkrabber]

1) That was a quick turnaround. It was less than two weeks since McVicar tweeted that he was remixing the track. Two weeks Vs six months seems to be the digital Vs vinyl time difference.
2) At a runtime of 3:38, it's even shorter than the original. Unless there's a longer version we don't know about yet.
3) I would probably describe it as '91/92 rave, myself. By 1994 people were starting to describe early 90s rave as "rough", if my memory serves me correctly (mind you, the Prodigy's "...Jilted Generation" came out in '94; perhaps that was an influence here).

https://twitter.com/ChemBros/status/1656663043244433410

https://twitter.com/domonshiranui/status/1656681429584195586

[rynostar]

https://twitter.com/ChemBros/status/1656663043244433410

Wait, there was a third dancer (guy in blue and orange)?

[Wolkenkrabber]

Wait, there was a third dancer (guy in blue and orange)?

Yeah but they didn't put it on YouTube shorts like the other two clips, it was just on twitter I think. I didn't want to post it here in case the audio quality offended you!
(Oh look, here's Tim Burgess again)
https://twitter.com/Tim_Burgess/status/1637856830952030208

[gfa2001]

1) That was a quick turnaround. It was less than two weeks since McVicar tweeted that he was remixing the track. Two weeks Vs six months seems to be the digital Vs vinyl time difference.

He likely started remixing it before tweeting it

[Wolkenkrabber]

Here it is

Blunt is the word that springs to mind.

[𝒥𝑅𝒮𝒵]

Here it is

Blunt is the word that springs to mind.

Really love it, got some strong Prodigy vibe into it, like a mixture of Experience and IMD type sounds with a little flavor of Exit Planet Dust 

[rynostar]

I didn't want to post it here in case the audio quality offended you!

(Sarcastic British colonizer voice)

You know we can't allow for that sort of harsh quality sound in this place

(End sarcasm...while meanwhile still loving poor recordings from the late '90s)

[Wolkenkrabber]

^I said "blunt" at a minute after midnight, but I didn't necessarily mean that as a bad thing.
After a few listens I think I'd describe this remix as a bit rough around the edges. But ...in a good way! It's not a serious thing, but it is kinda fun, and it sounds like McVicar had a 'smashing' time making it (is that the glass smash from the Fairlight CMI? Slowed down maybe?).

Back in October 2021 I was really pleased when a number of people replied to the thread about our favourite remixes of the Chemical Brothers. Particularly as there has been some nonchalance about remixes of Chems tracks in the past. At the time I commented "I've noticed when a new remix of a Chems track is released, only a handful of people here bother to even comment on the remixes".

And here we are with a new remix, and so far only one person besides me has offered an opinion on it. Help me to understand folks. Why don't you care? It's not every day that new music gets released with the Chems name on it. It's a new remix of a new-ish Chems track. Surely this is more interesting to Chems fans than a beef-less Daft Punk treasure hunt? (Not that I'm trying to diss people for posting there, you can post in that thead AND this one!)
Why don't fans rush to the forum to say that they like/hate/'other' this new release? Are you afraid that if you say something negative you might get told off (like I once was by a Chemical Brother)? Help me to understand!


 

[Bosco]

This remix sounds like a weekend bender, but instead of alcohol, marinated in Mountain Dew

Spoiler

....honestly, think it's just okay. The throwback style is great, but maybe a little too unfocused? Kinda wish the lyrics were discarded.

Anyway, it's a remix. He did his job

[sneakerbeater]

Only heard excerpts of this remix, but nothing to say I must go and search out the full version and treat my ears!' Im guessing this is a remix to appeal to a different and less haggard generation from me? I totally respect that.

Chems remixes are a take it or leave it thing for me. There are few that might actually better the original track, and a few that take a different and exciting new perspective. But most are a lesser version of the original. 

For me my excitement can wait for the next new original song to come along

[gfa2001]

I like it but its definitely worse than the original.

Ewan McVicar is a very lovely chap, glad they picked him to remix it.

[ThePumisher]

Me likes this remix. A lot of the remixes they've released in past didn't grab my attention. The last one, as far as i can remember, was Soulwax's remix of HBHG. Before that Ewan Pearson's remix on TGP, or maybe Dexter's International Scribble Mix.

[gfa2001]

and another one

o'flynn

https://www.instagram.com/stories/thechemicalbrothers/3104811490079585180/?utm_source=ig_story_item_share&igshid=MTc4MmM1YmI2Ng%3D%3D

[whirlygirl]

And here we are with a new remix, and so far only one person besides me has offered an opinion on it. Help me to understand folks. Why don't you care? It's not every day that new music gets released with the Chems name on it. It's a new remix of a new-ish Chems track. Surely this is more interesting to Chems fans than a beef-less Daft Punk treasure hunt? (Not that I'm trying to diss people for posting there, you can post in that thead AND this one!)
Why don't fans rush to the forum to say that they like/hate/'other' this new release? Are you afraid that if you say something negative you might get told off (like I once was by a Chemical Brother)? Help me to understand!


 

Aw man, making us feel bad n all, you have the guilt thing down, hahaha. You're not wrong, though - remixes and releases like this between singles should whet our appetites for what's to come! 

I found the Ewan McVicar remix quite fun, and as you said feels rough around the edges. That rawness is appealing, I think. And there's good energy here. But I also feels like there's a ton of stuff going on (everything but the kitchen sink). It's a busy track that feels almost like it's going to go off the rails. Not bad at all and I don't think I'll be skipping to the next song if this remix comes up on my rotation.

[Csar]

Why don't fans rush to the forum to say that they like/hate/'other' this new release? Are you afraid that if you say something negative you might get told off (like I once was by a Chemical Brother)? Help me to understand!

Ha, Krabbs, fair enough and good questions! Maybe it wasn't advertised all that much in other channels, I don't know. How different was it in the past when remixes came out? Did we rave or rant about them more or more passionately? I seriously can't remember...

The remix itself is ... okay to nice-ish. It does try to be reminiscent of past raver days and stuff from that era which I do appreciate. But it's nothing that tickles me enough to want to go back to it like a few other remixes do, such as the Kölsch one of Wide Open.
It would fit in nicely within a breakbeat mix but probably wouldn't catch much of my interest to find out what it was...

Back in October 2021 I was really pleased when a number of people replied to the thread about our favourite remixes of the Chemical Brothers. Particularly as there has been some nonchalance about remixes of Chems tracks in the past. At the time I commented "I've noticed when a new remix of a Chems track is released, only a handful of people here bother to even comment on the remixes".

Thanks for the reminder. As I read through it again, my opinion still stands towards most remixes.

[Wolkenkrabber]

Well thanks for replying, folks. Even if you don't like the remix, I think it's interesting to hear what Chems fans think whenever there's something new like this.

And now on to the next one!

No Reason (O'Flynn Remix)

So it's another short one. Almost like a dreamy dub-strumental. If it weren't for the "woos" I'm not sure I would have recognised this as No Reason. It's pleasant enough and it might work in a warm-up mix, or a late night mix. Doesn't feel essential though.

[Enjoyed]

The O'Flynn remix is region locked, for now. Just FYI if anyone else is having trouble listening.

My thoughts:
They're both very short. And I'm not entirely sure why? Maybe neither has that much else to say?

I personally find the O'Flynn remix to be a smore interesting take on the original than the 1994 remix, which, while capturing that rough'n'ready rave feel, doesn't feel especially exciting to me. It reminded me of a few tracks on the TSHA fabric presents compilation (did we through her name in there for a possible remix? That'd be fun!) but never quite reaching the same quality.
The O'Flynn remix is a little more up my alley genre wise, but is also lacking from being a little under-developed in terms of what I would consider a worthwhile adaptation of the original, as you said. It has the woos, it has the snare rolls... And it's just otherwise a decent-ish track?

---

If I may through in my 2 cents (currently £0.016) about why we may not collectively care as much about the remixes these days... It's because they feel entirely label driven and generally not very exciting. We're also (most of us at least) a little older now. When I first heard the Futureshock remix of Music:Response, or the absolutely mad Micronauts version of BRB, I was in my teens. I didn't really know what a remix was exactly, I was just so excited that a completely different version of a song I already loved existed. Also, popping them on a physical release along with a B side or two, who wouldn't be excited about that?
I got into so many bands and artists through remixes. It was so fun to explore connections between artists. What did I enjoy about this remix? Could I find that same sound/feel elsewhere? I followed Futureshock when they were around, bought the first H Foundation album, downloaded every Switch remix I could find at the time, and was already listening to Fatboy, Daft Punk and Underworld...

Not to sound all 'it-was-better-in-my-day', but I really believe it was. I'm not at an age now where I'm going to go dive into the work of O'Fynn just because he did a remix of The Chems. I have a limited amount of listening time, and time in general to just go exploring. So if a remix isn't knocking my socks off, or isn't by someone I'm already aware of and enjoy, it's likely to fall to the wayside along with most of the remixes post WATN (I did enjoy the Riton remix of GTKO, and The Avalanches journey, for what it's worth). I just don't believe these remixes are for me, to echo Sneaker's comments about the McVicar remix. Especially when a lot of them reek of "uh... hey... you... you wanna do a quick remix of [insert Chemical single] so we can continue posting about it on social media for a few months, because everyone's attention span is completely shot these days? Yeah? Cool! Oh. Good? No, no, don't worry, it doesn't have to be the best thing you've ever done, it's more of a functionality, y'know?"

I don't want to come in here being all negative when we're all just trying to enjoy Chems material whenever it comes around. But if I can't feel a genuine purpose behind these newer remixes, it's hard to find a positive way to talk about them.

[ThePumisher]

It's a nice remix, but i'm with Wolkenkrabber - if there haven't been "Woos" in there, you don't even notice this should be No Reason. 6.5 out of 10



But one thing that really drive me nuts is this "we release something every now and then"-mentality. Back in the good days, there was a release date and on that date you get version 1 & 2 of the single including all b-sides and remixes. Now it's "so heres the main track, in three weeks you get the b-side (if we have one) and afterwards every week a new remix". Damn you streaming services.
edit: should have read Enjoyeds complete post before writing => what he said about attention spans

[gfa2001]

The main time I get excited about a remix is when an artist I like remixes someone else's tune.

Chems don't really do that - but I love when other djs i like do it e.g. Bicep's remix of In Yer Face or some of Four Tets

Generally the remixes i think are good are the ones done by an artist i like of someone else's song, and not the other way round like these two are.