Customer Reviews

Remixed

5 star:		(44)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Being a huge fan of Sarah's for many years now, I've heard plenty of remixes, some great, some not so great. This is definately the best of the best here.

1) Hybrid takes Sarah's "Fear" to another level. This is my all-time favorite Sarah song and I had some high hopes for Hybrid's remix of it, and they didn't disappoint. Other remixes just didn't capture the haunting feel and gripping desperation and emotion of the original, yet Hybrid manages to do this and take it even higher. Definately my favorite track. In my opinion, this mix alone is worth buying the album.

2) DJ Tiesto's remix of "Sweet Surrender" is an intricate dark mix that is definately a pleasure to listen to and takes the song in a new direction.

3) Dusted's remix of "Angel" takes an otherwise much-too-sappy song and transforms it into something worth listening to more than once. The track has a nice, mellow feel to it that doesn't try to blatently tug at your heart-strings like the original, therefore giving it another layer the song previously lacked.

4) The same goes for BT's remix of "I love you", except this is more of a beat to which you could get up and dance a little. I'm a huge fan of BT and really like what he did with this song.

5) DJ Tiesto takes "Silence", a song everyone's heard about a billion times unless you never leave the house, and puts a fresh new spin on it.

6) William Orbit, who gave Madonna an electronic make-over with her album "Ray of Light", mixes "Black" in a trippy, euphoric fashion. This is a good track and was featured on the "X-Files: Fight the Future" soundtrack.

7) Rabbit in the Moon's remix of "Possession" is a classic that was on Sarah's b-sides album.

8) BT's mix of "Hold On" keeps a lot of elements of the original, guitar and all, but gives it an upbeat funkiness. He also keeps it interesting by splitting Sarah's vocals in some parts.

9) Fade's mix of "Plenty" is probably the weakest track on album. It's not bad, just fairly repetitive and doesn't really go anywhere or do anything for the song. They should've put this in the middle somewhere, instead of having it finish out such an otherwise spectacular album.

All in all, an awesome cd. Pick it up if you're so inclined. I doubt you'll regret it.

Like my title says, Remixed is definitely worth the money. I finally bought the cd after himming and hawing for months. The result? It's fantastic, and the remixing is beyond just interesting. It's great.
Sometime's remixing a song can be tough, especially if it's a really slow song, which requires lots of work, but Remixed proves to us that any type of music can be remixed.

Sarah McLachlan has the type of voice that is fun, funky and angelic all boxed up in one great album, no matter what she puts out on the market. I thought of this when listening to the song Fear (Hybrid't super collider mix). There is a lot of vocal touches and little things that make this a great remix song.
I like the fact that the remixers didn't distort the original key that the songs were recorded in. It does a lot of good for the artist's song when the original tone is respected!

Angel (Dusted remix) is another one of those hard-to-let-go-of songs. Since the first time I heard it in someone's car, as they passed on the road, I wanted the cd. That's basically what started me off to wanting the cd so badly. It all happened while I was music window shopping, and I couldn't afford the cd. A guy was blasting the whole cd in his car with the windows open. He seemed to circle the area where I was the whole time, finally urging me to buy the cd, after almost 5 months went by.

All the remixes are excellent, and are perfect for any day listening. I call the cd my "car washing day" cd, because that's when it's blasted the loudest.

Here is the tracklist:
1-Fear (Hybrid's super collider mix) 2-Sweet surrender (DJ Tiesto Mix) 3-Angel (Dusted remix) 4-I love you (BT mix)
5-Silence (DJ Tiesto's In search of sunrise remix)
6-Black (William Orbit mix) 7-Possession (Rabbit in the moon mix) 8-Hold on (Bt Mix) 9-Plenty (Fade mix)

The graphics on the cover of the cd are beautiful, and I was drawn to the cd since it was released. Unfortunately, I waited too long to enjoy the cd when it was new. Cheers to the remixers and to Sarah herself for allowing her great songs to be re-touched and let out into the light once again.

One complaint. They forgot to include a remix of Vox and Into the fire. These two songs are biggies, and would have sounded great remixed, but I guess it was better to leave them alone the way they were intended to be...Go and buy Sarah Mclachlan Remixed now. You'll love it!

Sarah McLachlan definitely has the voice of a trance music diva. Label mate BT, as well as other well-known remixers like Wm Orbit & DJ Tiesto have taken her songs and mixed them into club & rave masterpieces. There's only 9 tracks on this import-only CD, and most of them have turned up before. "Sweet Surrender" is on the Plastic 5 compilation, "I Love You" is on Ultimate Dance Party 2000 & Plastic 3, "Black" is the remix on the X-Files movie soundtrack, "Possession" is on Sarah's Rarities album and doesn't even have the same trance music feel as the rest of the newer remixes on this compilation... so only 1/2 of the album is new to die-hard Sarah fans. The Dusted Remix of "Angel" takes some getting used to; I didn't like it at first, but it grew on me. The BEST track on this album is the 12 minute "Silence" remix by TJ Tiesto, which will be a club gem for years. Who would've thought when Delerium's album came out in the Spring of 1997 that YEARS later the song would take off? Nettwerk is doing a really good job on cashing in on Sarah's old music and giving her fans something to enjoy until her new album comes out.

An amazing album and highly necessary to, simply due to the proliferation of Sarah remixes that had been floating around prior to this compilation, many of which were previously very hard to get hold of.

The album kicks off with the absolutely exquisite Hybrid remix of "Fear". Ever innovative Welsh orchestral breaks outfit Hybrid have really excelled themselves here, with Sarah's breathy vocals taking on a new dimension atop their simply stunning electronic soundscape. At ten minutes in length this track is a truly inspirational opening to what is a truly essentially album.

Track 2 is the jawdroppingly brilliant "Sweet surrender", as remixed by Tiesto. Tiesto's remix of "Silence" - Delerium featuring Sarah McLachlan further cemented his reputation within dance music culture as a legend. His remix of "Sweet surrender" is every inch as powerful as "Silence". This remix originally appeared in late 2000 but was not realeased commercially in the UK until early 2002.

Next up is Sarah's signature tune, the hugely emotive "Angel", which, in its original form, truly sends a chill down the spine. The mournful spirit of the original is not lost in Dusted's remix, who pick up the pace ever so slightly to deliver a rework that would not be out of place on their own "When we were very young" opus

Track 4 is another remix that had been floating around for seemingly an absolute age, the BT remix of "I love you". An emotive epic laced with BT's peerless high quality production, "I love you" is one of the highlights of this CD, and is again featured here in full length form. This particular remix echoes ever so slightly of BT's Jan Johnston collaborations such as "Mercury and solace" and "Sunblind"

"Silence" is up next, the biggest dance crossover hit of 2000 by an absolute mile. "Silence" was originally produced by Delerium in 1997 but it was only when the track was remade by US prog-trance outfit Fade in 1999 that it received the attention it deserved and became a massive club favourite. The Tiesto remix is not based on the original of "Silence", but actually takes its cue from Fade's timeless sanctuary mix, adding bombast by the bucketload and culminating in one of the best remixes ever to have been committed to vinyl.

"Black" is up next, as remixed by William Orbit. This track sounds a little out of place when surrounded by high octane, hugely emotional trance remakes. It is the weakest track on the album and something of a disappointment from the usually reliable Orbit

The Rabbit In The Moon remix of "Possession" is another disappointment, seemingly incomparable to all of the other tracks on the CD. The best version of this poignant track scribed about a crazed fan stalking Sarah is surprisingly a cover version which was recorded by Transfer and released on the Multiply label in the UK in 2001

Track 8 is another highlight which is again brought to us by the pioneering BT, whose remix of "Hold on" is simply breathtaking, surpassing even his mix of "I love you". Again a hugely idiosynchratic affair, BT pulls out all the stops to deliver an electonic emotional rollercoaster which is arguably one of the finest Sarah reworks to date

The last track on the album comes care of the aforementioned Fade, who were commissioned to remix "Plenty". Again, doing a fantastic job they did with "Silence", Fade's remix is a less immediate but massively infectious affair which builds and builds before exploding into a sonically stunning climax replete with the hypnotic "Until my dying day, plenty" refrain. Again, another rarity which has been impossible to find either before or after the release of this CD, Fade's remix of "Plenty" is an inspiring and truly enduring offering.

All in all a must have either for fans of dance music in general or of Sarah McLachlan. The follow up album was eventually released in 2005 entitled "Bloom"

As the previous reviewer pointed out, this CD was released over 2 years ago, but the List Date of Dec 2003 is still correct since this remix CD was previously not available in the USA on the Arista label. It was released in Canada on Nettwerk and subsequently around the world except USA.

It's easy to think that a remix CD is another way a record company to make a quick buck, but in this instance, these remixes are sought after and who would have imagined that they could club to any of Sarah's haunting tunes? Now you'd better, Employing the skills of such celebrated remixers like BT, Rollo, DJ Tiesto and William Orbit, the results are certainly pleasing.

It's undeniable that BT does the best job here and I'd give him a perfect 10 for re-creating I Love You into a semi-elctronic dance tune that complements Sarah's sombre vocals there perfectly. Hybrid's remix for the heavenly Fear also scores points for its highly-charged energy. Rollo's mix of Angel typically changes the sad song into a trip hop affair.

The only possible fault here is DJ Tiesto's remix of Sweet Surrender which turns the beautiful song into a generic Euriopean dance mix. I would have preferred Uberzone's funky remix on the CD-single.

In the end, this is a gift for fans and dance maniacs alike. Finally, it gets a general release in the US and that's great!

OK. We're gonna get right down to it here folks. The track listing for this cd.

1) Fear (Hybrid's Super Collider Mix) - 9:00 - BT, Moby and Filter are a few of the artists that Mike Truman & Lee Mullin have lent their talents to, and I'm glad to see that Sarah has been added to their list. Hybrid usually gives us the more hypnotic, breakbeat like types of dance remixes, and this one is no exception. This song would not have worked as a complete club anthem, and Mike & Lee know this, so their electronic style was the perfect style to choose for this song. Their remix works wonderfully with the lyrics and vocals of this beautiful track.

2) Sweet Surrender (DJ Tiesto Mix) - 7:02 - Club anthem. Who would have thought that this track would be a club anthem? Well, DJ Tiesto (who's remixed for Jan Johnston, BT, Sureal and also remixed the Delerium feat. Sarah track "Silence" - which is on this disc) gives us another pulsating mix here. Not as peak hour as "Silence", but does have quite a few merits of its own. Hot remix that will definately rip up the charts.

3) Angel (Dusted Remix) - 5:28 - This song is one of my favorite Sarah songs, and unfortunately, this remix is not one of my favorite remixes. The slow breakbeat beats are quite good, and do work well with Sarah's deliverance of this song at most times. At others, the breakbeats seem to be out of place (mostly during the chorus). Don't get me wrong, I do like this remix, but it is not one of the best on the disc.

4) I Love You (BT Mix) - 9:01 - OH! So Good! This is the scorcher on the disc! Madonna, Lenny Kravitz, Tori Amos & Billie Ray Martin are just a few of the artists that BT has kicked into the world of electronic club mixes and he does another fine job with Sarah. A pumpin' beat that comes together wonderfully with Sarah's delivery of the vocals. This remix is also available on Plastic Compilation volume 3.

5) Silence (DJ Tiesto's In Search Of Sunrise Remix) - 11:33 - Wait! Even though the name is different, this is the remix that appears on all of the singles for "Silence". You know this track, because it has become a clubland staple. This is that peak hour stuff that the clubkids rage for! Eleven and a half minutes of pure energy! Tons of vocals, tons of breaks, tons of builds, tons of fun.

6) Black (William Orbit Mix) - 7:00 - William Orbit is known for his unique style. His remixes for Madonna, Olive and Seal all have their own definate style, and this one is no different. This is not a club mix, but a very hypnotic journey through vocal bliss. Sounds quite dark and chilling. This remix never gets a solid bassline going, but does manage to peak thanks to Sarah's vocals.

7) Possession (Rabbit In The Moon Mix) - 5:41 - This remix also appeared on Sarah's "Rarities, B-Sides & Other Stuff" album. Again, not a club diva remix, but more of an electronic vibe with this one, which seems to be the case with most of this disc. A very good remix of one of my favorite Sarah tracks. Great builds that lead us into a breakbeat frenzy.

8) Hold On (BT Mix) - 7:45 - BT appears again. And again, he delivers. Not as club heavy as "I Love You", but still enough to get those feet shufflin'. A great remix here kids. Lighter beats invade your ears that entice your feet to move. Lotsa vocals to keep all us fans happy as well.

9) Plenty (Fade Mix) - 10:19 - Neil Colo & Chris Fortier have remixed for Sarah before. Their remix of "Silence" was the one that we were all hearing before Tiesto's mix came into existence. And this remix is quite good as well. Along the same line as their remix for "Silence", this remix goes for the late night crowd rather than those peak hour ravers, and gives us "plenty' to be happy about.

So, I highly suggest that you buy this cd whether you're a fan of electronic, anthemic or dance music or if you're a fan of Sarah's and want to hear her in a different light. Some of the more hardcore Sarah fans will probably have quite a few of these remixes ("Sweet Surrender", "Silence", "I Love You" and "Possession" have all appeared on complitions or singles already), but it's nice to have them all in one package.

enjoy another great Canadian artist!

I am not one to instantly disdain music revisions and curse them for not being clones of the original stuff I know and love. Hell, I still think that Un-Led-Ed by Dread Zeppelin is one of the best albums ever while I remain a solid fan of the Led (in case you don't know: Dread does reggae versions of Led Zeppelin songs while being fronted by an Elvis impersonator). So I do think that music can be revised and reheard.

And here it is: the But...

But I think this remix disc seriously undermines the core strength of Sarah McLachlan's music--her voice.

Odd to say, because for almost all of these tracks, the voice is all that remains of the original song. This disc is just another exhibit of a belief I have held for a long time, which is that electronic music is ultimately a very limited medium, and that the richness and variety of tones of media as ancient as percussion and the human voice will always outweigh electronics in spades...unless the electronics are so intrusive and underdeveloped that even a voice as rich and multi-layered as McLachlan's is put off-kilter by it.

One track that stood out to me as a good example of the limits of electronic music is the Dusted remix of "Angel." The rigid, limited rhythms of the electronic beats just can't come near addressing the more complex rhythms of McLachlan's voice, and as a result, both of them sound out of place and a little silly (one more than the other, obviously).

It's good to know that Sarah McLachlan isn't a purist or a separatist and doesn't want to express in one area of music alone (although, let's face it, would L7 have been SUCH a bad choice for Lilith?), but this particular effort set her voice back too much.

This coming from a rabid Sarah fan who loves her studio albums and live music. I hated remixes. I don't even dance.

Over the past few months however, I discovered this dance genre called trance, or progressive trance to be exact. All because of the track Silence (DJ Tiesto remix), which I heard became a huge club anthem. I didn't care much for it the first time I heard it. Then my friend dragged me to a club and there they started to play Silence and I was like "OH MY GOD!" Everyone went nuts when they heard the first goth strains and the room just went ballistic when the beat came on. To make the long story short, I was hooked. Sarah's haunting voice combined with hypnotic beats blaring over the speakers wreaked havoc on the senses! And I, a certified non-dancer, actually got up and danced.

The rest of the album has pretty much the same elements; Sarah's ethereal singing and utterly cool dance beats. Hybrid's remix of Fear is SUPERCOOL man! Not as frenetic as Silence but has its own sense of urgency. Sarah's voice is pitched higher than the original making her sound like an alien from another planet. An ethereal alien!

DJ Tiesto's remix of Sweet Surrender is another scorcher. I love how he completely reworked the melody of the original and turned the remix into a dark brooding epic. Another highlight is Dusted's ambient chillout remix of Angel; Rollo and his guys certainly gave a slight edge to this otherwise sappy song.

I Love You BT's remix is another favorite along with William Orbit's experimental remix of Black. Interestingly, Rabbit's remix of Possession, although released in mid nineties sounds just as relevant today, its sound echoing that of BT.

Hold on, another BT remix, is fabulous; it appropriates some of the guitar work of the original and distorts Sarah's voice to perfection! Fade's remix of Plenty is the only weak track here because it's so repetitive; Sarah sings "plenty" every few minutes and this continues until about half of the duration of the track.

Overall, I recommend Remixed to Sarah fans open to new musical experiences and just about anyone who loves dance music. Remixed goes beyond being a "filler" album or a mere money-milking venture by Nettwerk. I believe its purpose is to bring Sarah into the European dance market following the huge success of Silence. To spread the Sarah McLachlan name in Europe where she's not so well known. If among those dance fans there are also some rock or folk-rock fans, who knows.. they might want to check out Sarah's original unremixed material.

Let me begin by saying that I'm a fan of both Sarah McLachlan and electronica. I own almost all of Sarah McLachlan's albums (excluding "Rarities, B-Sides, and Other Stuff" and "Mirrorball"), as well as numerous electronica albums (e.g. Hybrid's "Wider Angle" and "Remix and Additional Productions"; and BT's "ESCM" and "Movement in Still Life"). So when I became aware of this remix album, I was very excited. Sarah's beautiful songs remixed by some of the most famous DJs, what more can one ask for? However, after having listened to the album several times, I must say I'm somewhat disappointed.

Here is a song by song rating:

1) Hybrid is one of my favorite (if not my favorite) electronica group and they do a good job remixing "Fear". Sarah McLachlan's vocals are nicely enhanced by dark string samples and "soft" breakbeats making the song even more haunting. The time in between vocals is filled with "harder" beats, which however don't intrude on the singing. 4/5

2) Good remix. DJ Tiesto, for the most part, let's listener enjoy Sarah McLachlan's beautiful voice without adding too many effects. The synthesizer melodies nicely complement the song lending it an "uplifting" quality. 4/5

3) This remix is ok. Unlike the other "upbeat" numbers, this track is more laid back. 3/5

4) "I love you" starts out great. BT begins slowly gradually adding layer after layer of effects until the listener's heart is pounding. However, then come in the vocals. Sarah McLachlan's SLOW singing combined with FAST dance action, in my opinion, doesn't work here. Both elements distract from each other. 3/5

5) DJ Tiesto creates another good remix. This is probably the best song on the CD. Nice fusion of uplifting trance music and Sarah's performance. Typical club anthem (pumping beats, synthesizer melodies, and singing). 4/5

6) OK track. Orbit's remix has a dark, brooding, trip-hoppy quality to it. 3/5

7) Well known Rabbit-in-the-Moon remix of "Possession". However, not one of my favorites. Mostly just breakbeats with a few voice samples from Sarah McLachlan's original song. 2/5

8) BT's second contribution to the album. This song is more mellow compared to BT's other remix. Combination of vocals with the somewhat slower rhythm works better here as compared to BT's other mix. 3/5

9) OK track by Fade. Initially somewhat repetitive and boring, as the only "singing" will consist of Sarah McLachlan saying the word "plenty". But once the song hits the 4 minute mark, it gets better. In the middle part of the song, the vocals and the electronic effects compliment each other well. The remix finishes off like it started with repeated samples of Sarah McLachlan saying/singing "plenty", yet the beats are more interesting. 3/5

Overall a decent album containing a mix of "good" and "bad" songs. Personally, I prefer the original creations of the artists over this (hybridized) remix album, i.e. Sarah McLachlan's "Fumbling Towards Ecstasy", Hybrid's "Wide(r) Angle", etc.

Just my two cents.

Sarah McLachlan's latest release, "Remixed," is a thoroughly enjoyable disc full of addictive sounds.

The remixers who produced these nine tracks made these mixes unique and danceable, but it is easy to see they paid close attention not to lessen the power of McLachlan's haunting voice nor blur the meaning of her lyrics.

"Remixed" was originally issued in 2001 as an import only. If you lived in the US and wanted to own a copy, it would a cost a pretty penny. But it's now available at a price that isn't cruel to your wallet. Why this couldn't have been done earlier is a question that will most likely remain unanswered.

Unfortunately, the opportunity to include a timely remix of her single "Fallen" was missed. Included on her now double-platinum certified November album "Afterglow," the remixes of "Fallen" reached #3 on Billboard's Club Play/Dance chart less than two months after this disc's release. Including one of them as opposed to a track from the original import would have been a wise move. The prime candidate for swapping would be the Dusted Remix of "Angel," which does not fit with the rest of the tracklisting well by any means. The original vocals are basically intact with less-subdued music behind them that gives the song an unsettling, hokey vibe.

With the exception of the aforementioned and William Orbit's mix of the appropriately-titled "Black" from her excellent 1992 album "Solace," the disc is club-ready and full of vitality and bounding energy. The best tracks are "Silence (DJ Tiesto's In Search of Sunrise Mix)" and BT's mixes of "I Love You" and "Hold On". BT takes the latter two songs to a whole new dimension. Also worth particular praise is the swashbuckling Rabbit In the Moon Mix of "Possession," which has seen previous inclusion on "Rarities, B-Sides and Other Stuff", still an import-only release.

Even though its an album of interpretations by remixers, "Remixed" still earns itself a rightful place alongside McLachlan's past releases due to its freshness and originality.

For fans who own the import with the Rollo Mix of "Angel," rest assured that the Dusted Mix is the same remix with a different title.