DJ Earworm - "United State of Pop 2010: Don’t Stop The Pop"

2010 is nearly over and I can't think of a better way to say goodbye than with DJ Earworm's mash-up of the top 25 pop songs this year. I have to admit that for all the music I listen to I am not familiar with most of the songs on this list, at least by name anyway. "United State of Pop 2010: Don’t Stop the Pop" (mp3) has just about everything I want from a dance song and is by far my favorite way to engage the top 25.

Them Jeans (Remixes) - The xx and Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Turning some of my favorite indie music into danceable jams is mind-blowing enough to get me to do what I tend to hate doing most, which is, well, dance. Still buzzed from a year of fantastic electro-dream pop releases and still reeling from this week's Leonid Meteor Shower, I was reminded of Jason Stewart, better known as Them Jeans, who is a Los Angeles-based DJ/Producer with whom I'm pretty much obsessed. Last winter he did a 6-month DJ residency at L.A.'s Natural History Museum playing "First Fridays," an institution we also have at some of NYC's cooler museums, where the first Friday of every month they transform the space into all-out dance floors so that hot paleontologists can talk nerdy to their music-loving friends while getting their swerve on next to dinosaur fossils. I wish Them Jeans would bring his magic to the East Coast to resuscitate the now defunct Starry Nights Jazz and turn the AMNH into one uber-romantic, uber-stellar cosmic dance party kissed ever so gently by the shimmery intergalactic lighting from the planets in the Hayden Planetarium. Not only is his great taste in music varied, but he also manages to remix lots of indie songs in upbeat ways so you can actually not feel weird playing them during appetizers for non-indie music loving guests at your indie rock dream wedding or during your house party in hopes the music will create the type of ambiance that will get your guests groovin' and movin' about the place... except, in a chill, loungey, downtempo "let's make out in the dark corner against the wall" sort of way, and not a coked out, riotous, Girl Talk "let's do some blow in the bathroom" kind of way. Either way could be fine, but I guess it really just depends on the mood.

In his reportoire, he's reimagined songs for the likes of Beach House, Yeasayer, Sigur Ros, Radiohead, Ratatat, and even Snoop Dogg. But the following two remixes are absolutely stunning interpretations and, of course, totally danceable versions of songs I already love. These should help get your party started right... and quickly, at that.

The xx - "Shelter" (Them Jeans Drum Edit) - [original]

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Soft Shock" (Them Jeans Acoustic Remix) - [original, acoustic]

Healer Selecta - "Tura Stomp" Video

Move over Girl Talk. There's a new DJ mining the crates to create the ultimate dance music. Healer Selecta mixes retro soul, funk, go-go, and rock n' roll into seriously catchy beats. The video for "Tura Stomp" is particularly awesome. Turn it up and start the dance party.

Garage Fest Pre-Party @ East End

Holy crap. I've been so focused on the the Scion Garage Fest that I somehow missed that East End was having a pre-party on Friday with DJs King Khan and BBQ and a surprise guest. Judging from the music they make, their DJ sets should be great. It's free.

On top of that, Davilla 666 is sticking around after they play the fest until Monday for a set, which is good because they are playing the same slot as Cheap Time and I've been dying to see them.