Introducing the latest release from Sander Kleinenberg's label Little Mountain Recordings. Comprised of Envy and Martin Villeneuve, the group MV gets to work remixing the Styx' classic "Mr. Roboto". MV's original mix combines melody with chunky percussion and bass, while Stef Vrolijk's remix takes the more funky and "techy" road.

The Vitals

Label: Little Mountain Recordings
Genre: Progressive House, House
Number Of Tracks: 2
How to obtain: juno.co.uk, threebeatrecords.co.uk

Factor Scores:

• Production Quality: 7.5
• Programming and Arrangement: 7.8
• Entertainment Quality: 8.5
• Total:  7.9 – Good

Brian's Take:

Introducing the latest release from Sander Kleinenberg's label Little Mountain Recordings. Comprised of Envy and Martin Villeneuve, the group MV gets to work remixing the Styx' classic "Mr. Roboto". MV's original mix combines melody with chunky percussion and bass, while Stef Vrolijk's remix takes the more funky and "techy" road.

MV's original mix is irresistibly heavy from the beginning. Staying faithful to the Styx' original song, a lot of the quality chord progression is identical. The vocals were re-cut so well by Hanna (a.k.a. Warren Harris) that at first I couldn't believe they weren't from the original lyricist. This release is noticeably reminiscent of the Styx' original, but with a modern, almost funky spin on it. Stef Vrolijk's remix brings a rolling vibe to the track, covering the "tech" end of the spectrum. Though Vrolijk's remix doesn't cover the vocals as extensively, it plays a lot more with them effect-wise, intentionally building the tension quite well. The programming and arrangement category scored much higher on Vrolijk's remix.

Though both remixes do a good job representing the original Styx' track, I think they would've been a lot more fun had they re-cut vocals from the full verses of the song, rather than simply the chorus. The production on MV's original mix was great, however further embellishment of the vocals would've impressed me more. As they are they tend to get boring after several listens. The vocals on Vrolijk's remix however don't share this problem. He gives them a mind bending chrome-like sound.

In conclusion both tracks are worth a listen, even a buy. I'll be spinning them both on and off for the next couple months.