Rejoice, for Boys Noize (né Alex Ridha) is celebrating his eponymous imprint‘s 10th birthday by releasing a free BitTorrent bundle comprising over five hours of music! The generous collection of music and artwork includes– among other things– two unreleased tracks (the menacing Dawnload and pulsating Brain Frequent), a live festival set, and a 25-song retrospective culled from Boysnoize Records’ surprisingly diverse catalog. There’s nods to disco (Strip Steve), club music from Bmore (Spank Rock) and Philly (DJ Sega) and hazy electro-pop (Knox). Then, of course, there’s a big heaping dose of electro from the likes of Peaches, Brodinski, and the man of the hour himself. To cop the whole shebang for free ninety-nine, go HERE.
Putting aside my perennial irritation with Ridha’s decision to spell “Boys” with an “s” instead of a “z,” there’s no denying that Boys Noize has loomed large over electronic music, as both artist and tastemaker, for as long as I’ve been a fan of the genre. Turns out this makes perfect sense, since my raving career began in 2006– just one year after BNR’s founding. Though I’m largely retired now, Boys Noize remains one of a select few acts that were huge during the ’06-’10 electro golden age whom I’d still be legit psyched to see a set from today. Like The Chemical Brothers (who actually contribute a remix to the BNR anniversary comp), BN has retained and refined a signature sound that feels timeless, and a live show that will comprehensively rearrange your head and leave your ears buzzing for days. I could go on, but I’ll leave off here: Congrats, Mr. Ridha! Here’s to ten years of never turning corny, and surely many more to come.
Below, just for kicks, are a couple of my favorite Boys Noize tracks you won’t find on the bundle:
Boys Noize Doesn’t Age, Exhibit A: This remix of Feist’s (remember her?) My Moon My Man was my goddamn jam in ’07, and I just heard it on an in-store radio station last year.
Atypically laid back for a Boys Noize affair, but sexy af.
Boys Noize’s tribute to Donna Summer. Love.
p.s. We’re totes digging the Pictureplane Alien Body hoodie BN is sporting here! Catch our fave goth star‘s new single “Hyper Real” out on IHC 1NFINITY.
