Customer Reviews

Danse Macabre Remixes

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have to start out by saying I am in staunch disagreement with the majority of feedback this album is getting; however, I am not passionate enough in my great disagreement to feel I have a real cause defending this album. So I'm going to simply give you my take, without getting emotional, as I cannot help getting over say, an actual Faint album, or the likes of a new Interpol release... I think what has happened with the Danse Macabre Remixes is a common syndrome that sweeps over listeners for many albums, only here it is a little more understandable on their part, and a little less deserving of defense for the album. Any time something different comes along with the name of the same band attached, their fanbase tends to get queasy. People don't like change. I find change to be difficult as well, but I think I listen to an album much more than many of the reviewers who bash the new direction. This is not quite a new direction for The Faint, as it is not technically their craftsmanship. However, it is a statement from the band, and one that is rooted in their music. The Faint started as an Indie emo-type rock group with Media and suddenly made the monumental switch over to electronica. As they were barely a blip on the radar when their debut had come out, there was not a whole lot of protest for this radical change. But it was radical nonetheless. Blank-Wave Arcade was an excellent New Wave-Electronica rock amalgamation that would signal things to come. Death and sex had already been established as their primary vernacular. When Danse Macabre was released, it was even more dance-worthy and even darker and even better, especially as a flowing album. It took three years for them to follow it up, and I know many people have been grossly disappointed. This could have been predicted. A new album after a masterpiece... Fans are known to be unforgiving directly after the release of one they adore, especially if it shows signs of being different from the last. But in between, was this little gem of songs that the Faint had written and vocals had been preserved for other artists to interpret with new beats and melodies. The artists chosen, were not rock, not emo, and not necessarily what Faint fans listen to. I for one, don't carry any Paul Oakenfold CD's in my collection, and there is a good reason for that, despite his fame and good reputation. A lot of these artists on their own would not be my style. But I appreciate what they did here because it is different and because I think these Faint songs do lend themselves to interpretation. I think "The Conductor" is a wonderful change of pace, as well as the first version of "Posed To Death." "The Conductor" though admittedly a nuisance if not in the mood to hear "control" repeated endlessly, is an excellent emphasis of the song's theme with some great new music to accompany it. "Posed To Death" features male and female vocals harmonizing in a rather off-beat, quirky, vaguely creepy way that I find to be extremely charming. "Glass Danse," though many many times worse than the original, is not a bad redo in my opinion either, if for the sole reason that it emphasizes one of my favorite parts of the song ("I feel the social glare; I feel the attitude...") and makes it the chorus, instead of the original synth hook. I admire the creativity in these remixes which I think most people have overlooked because it is "not The Faint." I don't mind that it's not The Faint. I have every Faint album. And yes, I much prefer them, without needing to explain to what degree... But this is a nice little non-Faint album The Faint has offered us that I will take out every so often and truly enjoy. I would recommend listening with an open-mind, as I would with any album. I think you can comprehend and even appreciate the transition from Danse Macabre to Wet From Birth a bit better if you do. Take care.
-Ari

Most of the remixes are dull and fail to present an interesting interpretation of the original "Danse Macabre" album.
I was especially disappointed with the remix of "Glass Danse"- I expected someone like Paul Oakenfold to do a better job.
The only remix that really stands out is "Let the Poison Spill" by Tommie Sunshine. It transforms the original song in a very refreshing way, totally taking out the gloomy atmosphere of the original and turning it into something uplifting and danceable.

On the whole, this is an album you can listen to but there's nothing special about it.
I recommend buying the unmixed "Danse Macabre" instead (if you don't have it already...)

I was most impressed with Danse Macabre Remixes. In a world of easily digested chart junk it's nice that bands are still willing to push the envelope that little bit further...

Danse Macabre was my album of the year for last year and after waiting for this release I wasn't disappointed. Thin White Duke (Jacques Lu Cont) starts things off with a cracking electroclash interpretation of The Conductor, The Calculators (superb name for a group) give Posed To Death an entirely new vibe with a female backing vocal which I hope they explore in the future. I was a bit worried about Oakey doing a mix as I felt the song might become kind of chart-fodder but to be honest it's probably the best mix on the album (sorry for a lack of faith, mate!). Jagz Kooner removed some keyboards and beefed up the bass on Agenda Suicide and as with the rest of the mixes on this album it's a fantastic re-interpretation of an already classic track. My only less than 10 out of 10 track was the remix of Your Retro Career Melted. I'm not sure how or if this song should be remixed as the original was PERFECT. All the same, top marks all round. Keep pushing the envelope...

Danse Macabre was a great cd but the remixes just had more zing if you're into pushing your subs to their fullest. It's more of an ear candy release. It's like.. "lets take the Faint and turn the songs into something that would be a good soundtrack for a nightclub scene in some action flick". Danse Macabre is more for my indoor listening pleasure and the remixes are for the car when I like to rattle windows as I drive by. Just two different ways to enjoy the Faint.

This is possibly one of the best releases I have heard in 2003. It stretches the Faint's excellent album in cool new ways. Not a substitute but a vital part of the band's catalog. This album also reveals what "electroclash" could have been with better songs. The sounds here are a mixture of the modern or nu-electro sounds, but the songwriting is stronger than most of the nu-electro junk that gets passed along these days.

Agenda Suicide (remixed by Jagz Kooner) - Not bad, and although the repetitive use of the word "control" is interesting from an artistic p.o.v. first time around the track becomes almost unlistenable on repeated listens.
The Conductor (Thin White Duke Mix by Jaques Le Cont) - brilliant build up, plays on the song title with its almost orchestral arrangement.
Your Retro Career Melted (remixed by Ursula 1000) - again, another smart remix that bring in a rhythm section right out of Romeo Void.

Glass Danse (remixed by Paul Oakenfold) - eh, easily the weakest remix on the set but still ok.
Let the Poison Spill (City Street Riot Mix by Tommie Sunshine) a strong remix, helped by the fact that it keeps much of the original, already a strong song.

The rest are all above average remixes. The nice thing about the mixes here is that none are "by the numbers" club remixes but rather interesting, arty, mixes you can dance too.

As with almost any remix disc, die hard fans of the original won't like it. This album was no exception. The only reason that this album is not totally horrible is the fact that they have a great foundation. While Danse Macabre is an amazing CD, the remixes seem to be nothing but club/techno cuts of some amazing songs, focusing more on consistent beats and overworked build-ups than on the vocals. The only thing this album didn't fail to do was rob The Faint of their original "ectroclash/industrial" sound. If you can make it past the first song, the rest of the album doesn't sound as bad. While the trite nightclub beats and mainstream pop mixes almost cloud out the original intent, they still remain The Faint.

This album disappointed me greatly. I felt that each remix detracted from the original. I think a remix should either improve on the original or transform the original into something new and captivating, which is just not happening on this album. The one exception is "Posed To Death" (remix by The Calculators). The interweaving male and female vocals complement eachother beautifully. Unfortunately, the rest of the album is monotonous, shallow and poorly composed.

The Faint are a great band, but it seems kind of funny to me how they are associated with the emo/indie scene due to their label, Saddle Creek, instead of the newer wave/industrial genre. Remix albums are key to the latter two forms of music and honestly how often is their a remix of a Bright eyes or Cursive song by paul oakenfold. Sure the remixes are repetative and laden with samples, but thats what a remix is. Its usually a dance song, and with inventive artists like Photek remixing a jammin' Faint track you can boogie on down to these sweets all night.

while most of the tracks on the original CD are actually more synth/dance retro 80s than the remixes, the master works of Thin White Duke and Tommie Sunshine, the guys who have perfectly infused dance and alt rock numerous times, make this worth the purchase. The dance mixes by Jagz Kooner, Mojolators, and Junior Sanchez just don't have enough of that new waev sound to live up to the stylings of the band's originals. And all the remaining mixes are downtempo clunkers if your buying this disc for house and electro mixes.

Don't go by the negative reviews from the others. This is a definitely a great remix set from The Faint from their Danse Macabre album of a couple of years ago. All of the remixes are top notch with my favorite being Glass Danse remixed by Paul Oakenfold. The Conductor remixed by Thin White Duke is another wonderful remix taking the original and making it very club friendly. My other 2 favorite remixes on here are Agenda Suicide by Jagz Kooner and Your Retro Career by Ursula 1000. Overall though every single remix on here are good. Definitely worth it if you are into remixes or electronica.

SJ
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