remix baby: m.i.a. - come around (dj ellesoc remix) / boyz (kimono kops remix)

m.i.a. - boyz (kimono kops remix) [link 2]
[thanks to palms out sounds for the mp3]

m.i.a. feat timbaland - come around (dj ellesoc remix) [link 2]
[of all the albums that i'm gagging to get my grubby hands on, m.i.a.'s sophomore album kala is the highest on my list. since the album by this sri lankan via london rapper isn't due for another month, imagine my total joy this morning when i discovered TWO new remixes were available on the interweb! personally, i'm feeling this timbaland remix more! turn it up kids! thanks to the m.i.a. blog and chris picks for the remix tip]

virgin music festival 2007: day 2 (aug 5)

turns out i wasn't the only one completely shattered by hanging out in the insane sun for 9 hours straight. one member of the weekend posse (ironically the youngest) got heat stroke, ended up feeling nauseous and hitched a ride back to nyc with another friend. so then we were 6 tired festival go-ers.

we decided that regina spektor, spoon, css and girl talk were worth skipping in order to catch up on our lack of sleep. rock and roll? yeah, so not!
we got to the grounds around 5pm just in time to catch karen o of the yeah yeah yeahs do her thing on the main stage.

the crowd on day 2 was a tad more chilled out and hippy than the previous one. but karen's occasional glorious screech was enough to make any peace loving folk into a punk rocker.

after going through various rocked out songs, she led the crowd into a wonderfully mellow rendition of "maps". it was perhaps the only swoon moment of the weekend and i love her for it!
yeah yeah yeahs - maps (acoustic) [link 2]
of course all great yeah yeah yeah concert's always include some weird, but fierce, costuming. karen sure outdid herself with this american indian inspired poncho cape thingy. just look at the silver curtain tassles!

yeah yeah yeahs - cheated hearts [link 2]


after a mini liquid break, my friend with the pass brought me to the vip stage to check out interpol. i'm not lost on the irony that i had to go to baltimore to check out some of my favorite new york bands, but watching the boys of interpol command an audience of 5000-6000 people was pretty impressive. lead singer paul banks cooly went through the best tracks of their three albums and would rest a cigarette in his mouth during intrumental breaks.

rock n roll!


interpol - slow hands [link 2]
interpol - no i in the threesome [link 2]


[after awhile, i noticed that lead guitarist daniel kessler does some fancy footwork while playing on stage. i couldn't resist and recorded some of it to show you guys.]

look the guitarist from the yeah yeah yeahs was transfixed with daniel's dancing too!

by 8:50pm, i ran over to the dance tent to watch what i knew would be the highlight of my weekend, the m.i.a. gig! with her new album kala THE soundtrack for the weekend car ride, most of my posse were all jazzed up to party (and boy, does she throw a good one!)

starting off with the bombastic basslines of "bamboo banger", m.i.a. mixed in all the hits from arular with most of my personal favorites off her new album kala (though weirdly enough, the 2nd single "jimmy" was not on the set list).

m.i.a. - bamboo banger [link 2]
m.i.a. - pull up the people [link 2]
though m.i.a. ended our 2 day live musical extravaganza, i realised that the 2nd day was just 4 hours of attendance in total. but that doesn't matter since the whole 48 hour experience was easily one of the best of this year.

i realise that after i catch up on my sleep, i will so be ready for virgin festival 2008!

NEW MIA!!: M.I.A. - xxxo / illygirl

M.I.A. - xxxo
[we've been hyping this track for so long that it feels a bit like an oldie but goodie at this point. M.I.A. FINALLY releases a video for her catchy single. maybe it's all the lo-fi graphics and layering techniques that caused this hype williams video to take so long to come out. hopefully they'll release the jay z remix video soon!]

M.I.A. - illygirl
[i would call this more of a random filler video]

LAST BATCH MIX: m.i.a. - y.a.l.a.

m.i.a. - y.a.l.a.
FINALLY a m.i.a. track that doesn't test your appreciation of beats and noise (which as much as i love this woman, her last two leaks were tough sells) giving the y.o.l.o. mentality a finger, you always live again (y.a.l.a.) is the mantra she lives by. karma indeed!

[UPDATE] check out the official video of this song below!

m.i.a. - y.a.l.a.

WONGIE GORGEOUS SONG(S) OF THE WEEK: MIA - xxxo (oli chang cinematic remix) / beyonce - naughty girl (oli chang cinematic remix)

MIA - xxxo (oli chang cinematic remix)
[unfortunately in my book, this latest MIA album has been nothing but a letdown. with her over analyzed sounds taking the place of entertainment, the only beacon of enjoyment came in the form of her vocal renderings in this song. thinking the MIA story was over, i came across this lovely stripped down cinematic remix by oli chang today and all seems to be right in the world. thank you oli!]

want more? check out this lovely remix of beyonce's naughty girl below!

beyonce - naughty girl (oli chang cinematic remix)

WONGIE VIDEO OF THE WEEK: m.i.a. - bad girls

m.i.a. - bad girls
[oh this is badass... like F**KING badass!!! director roman gavras rounds up a group of swagger filled middle eastern women and give the saudi law of banning women from driving, a big middle finger. oh MIA... ever the political one! throw in the fact that this crazy video comes out on the same day where she's featured in the new madonna video and well, today truly is MIA day!]

NEW M.I.A.!!!: M.I.A. - there's space for ol dat i see

M.I.A. - there's space for ol dat i see
[no explanation except for an announcement via twitter, MIA offered up a new tune today for all us to hear. i'd call it more of a teaser and less of an official release. do you think it also hints at the fact that her upcoming album will be more internal and spiritual??]

NEW M.I.A.!!: M.I.A. - born free

M.I.A. - born free
[theme song to the romain gavras directed politically violent short film under the same name. this track also gives you a hint at the aggressive heavier punk sound that M.I.A. will unleash to the masses for her upcoming album. curious.]

album leak: mia - kala

fans of my blog know that m.i.a. is definitely one of my favorite acts around. with an arsenal of rhymes and insane beats, her 2005 debut album arular was easily the best that year. so when information came out that a new album was due for a late august release, it was enough to keep me giddy throughout the whole summer. imagine my total joy this morning when i woke up to find a copy of kala, a full month before it's street date!

recorded in india, japan and trinidad (with some US immigration issues in the process), m.i.a. once again collaborated with arular producers switch and diplo, but also threw in some sick tracks with timbaland.

the result is an adventurous collection that leaves the retro-electro of the last album behind and creates a diverse track list that incorperates hyper pop ("boyz"), some bollywood ("jimmy"), dark progressive beats ("bamboo banger") and sweet guests with a twist (like the wilcannia mob, a group of aboriginal street kids that offer up awesome rhymes in "mango pickle down river").

though the album isn't perfect, the eclectic influences of kala definitely makes this release a step up from whats out at the moment. the girl should be proud!

track listings
1. Bamboo Banga [link 2]
2. BirdFlu
3. Boyz
4. Jimmy [link 2]
5. Hussel (feat. Afrikan Boy)
6. Mango Pickle Down River (feat. the Wilcannia Mob)
7. 20 Dollar
8. World Town
9. The Turn
10. XR2
11. Paper Planes [link 2]
12. Come Around (feat. Timbaland)

NEW MADONNA!: madonna feat m.i.a. and nicki minaj - give me all your luvin'

madonna feat m.i.a. and nicki minaj - give me all your luvin'
[she's baaaaaaack!! working with martin solveig and bringing along a very tamed MIA and nicki minaj in tow, check out the very flawless faced mads in her return to pop supremacy.]

wongie top songs of 2007: #21 m.i.a. - paper planes

m.i.a. - paper planes [link 2]
[easily my favorite track off the awesome kala album, m.i.a. has done a wonderful job establishing herself as an outspoken rappa/singer representing true cross genre music this year. definitely one of my live highlights of 2007, this track just killed onstage at the virgin festival. both chill and gangsta at the same time, all i can say is "f**k yeah!" when i hear this.]

m.i.a. - jimmy (world premiere)

m.i.a. - jimmy [link 2]
[by far one of the best songs on the new album kala, i'm just surprised that m.i.a. didn't perform this over the weekend at the virgin festival (the full report of those concerts tomorrow). but no worries, this is the song that we sang all weekend in the car! so for now, here you go, the world premiere of what may be one of the best singles of the summer... acha!!]

VIDEO PREMIERE!: m.i.a. - bring the noize

m.i.a. - bring the noize
damn this song is a tough punch in the gut! m.i.a. offers up her hard sound to ease her fans into her upcoming album 'matangi' (though more like a drop kick). the beats are crazy, the video is visually dynamic and well... just press play!

NEW MIA!!: M.I.A. - story to be told

M.I.A. - story to be told
[maybe the remixes will be better?]

NEW VIDEO!: rye rye feat m.i.a. - sunshine

rye rye feat m.i.a. - sunshine
[its hard to believe that rye rye has yet to release her debut album after being around for so long. but with a proper 1st single out and the support of her label boss MIA, looks like we'll be hearing ALOT more of rye rye in the coming months!]

M.I.A. - bird flu (world premiere)

M.I.A. - bird flu
[OH MY GOD! it's like my birthday came 5 months ahead of time! my fave rappa MIA finally unleashes the 1st single off her upcoming album and it's a scorcher. raw and ruff with total big ups to her sri-lankan roots i'm totally psyched that she's trying new sounds this time around. thanks to the hot site discobelle for the tip!]

m.i.a. - boyz (world premiere)

m.i.a. - boyz
[it's a neon explosion as mia comes up with a hot follow up to bird flu. i can't wait for the album to drop!]

indie dance bitch dance: buraka som sistema (feat dj znobia, M.I.A., saborosa and puto prata) - sound of kuduro

buraka som sistema (feat dj znobia, M.I.A., saborosa and puto prata) - sound of kuduro [link 2]
[wow these portugese guys really know how to throw a party! taking on the underground dance movement of kuduro (which mixes angolan influences with house/soca/techno), thia ia just a preview of buraka som sistema's debut album which is due to be released later this summer. if they managed to get such an illustrious group together for this single, imagine what the album will sound like! props to my gal MIA for throwing in some flow into this crazy mix!]

HOT MIX: mia - matangi mix for kenzo

mia - matangi mix for kenzo
created for the kenzo paris show, mia offered up a preview of the influences and some actual leaks of her highly anticipated new album 'matangi'! it's a killa mix and now i CAN'T WAIT to hear the actual album!
just in case the soundcloud link doesn't work, check out this one below:

REEEMIX: m.i.a. - bird song (diplo remix)

m.i.a. - bird song (diplo remix)
well looks like hell hath frozen over as mia & diplo have buried the hatchet and released a fun new remix of her current single 'bird song' (not without some behind the scenes drama with her label). claiming this is her last ever album, the reunion of the ex's does allow her career to come full circle if this is the case. either way, it's a perk for the fans!