Meet the Beastles

December 21, 2004 11:24 AM

Meet the Beastles - The Beasties mashed up with that obscure quartet from Liverpool. Let the countdown to the C&D letters commence!
posted by shawnj (38 comments total)

Seems so obvious I'm surprised no one did this earlier. I just did a quick run through all the tracks and the Whatcha Want, Lady sounds terrific.
posted by mathowie at 11:35 AM on December 21, 2004

Not a bad mashup at all-- I might even listen to this after the 'gee whiz' wears off.
posted by everichon at 11:36 AM on December 21, 2004

From Dj BC's site...looks like he's a local (Bostonian)...and he threw (and will try to throw in the future) a mash-up night a great Cambridge bar, RiverGods...sweet.

Although, i'll be the first to admit that the plethora of mashed-up material out there makes it seem absolutely daunting separate the good from the bad....
posted by tpl1212 at 11:54 AM on December 21, 2004

Far, far better material to work with than all that Jay-Z crap last summer. I tried to listen to the Grey Album but it sucked, badly.

I'll have to wait to sample this but I'm going to go out on a limb and say its better before even hearing it. I hope they don't pull the site before then!
posted by fenriq at 11:57 AM on December 21, 2004

Hope this dude has bandwidth. That counter is really spinning now.
posted by terrapin at 11:58 AM on December 21, 2004

I just checked this same link at BoingBoing and liked it. Word to the Mic is good too.
posted by fungible at 12:01 PM on December 21, 2004

I like the Beasties, but I don't particularly like this (although it has its moments). The beats are weak, and the whole thing is a bit too mellow for me. I thought the Grey Album was fantastic (even on the first listen), but this just doesn't do it for me. (I will also admit to not taking to the Pink Album either, but I hear that one's not so popular.)
posted by uncleozzy at 12:02 PM on December 21, 2004

I liked the Grey Album a lot more personally.
posted by grouse at 12:07 PM on December 21, 2004

I'll agree with unldeozzy...I thought the Beastles had it's moments...but the Beatles' loops/samples seemed fairly simple and repetetive, and some of the Beasties' tracks laid over were (IMHO) kind of weak (but i'm just not a fan of some of their politically trite new-ish stuff...so that's just me).

I *heart* the Grey Album, however...but I also can't recommend strongly enough Dj Kno's White Album...
posted by tpl1212 at 12:11 PM on December 21, 2004

uncleozzy, what is this Pink Album, you speak of? Google gives me too many false matches.
posted by mds35 at 12:23 PM on December 21, 2004

I found the Pink Album on IRC, mds35 (PacketNews might be a good place to start looking). To be perfectly honest, I haven't listened to the whole thing yet, so I probably oughtn't pass judgment.
posted by uncleozzy at 12:34 PM on December 21, 2004

I like this a lot more than the Grey Album... But none of it is as good as A Night at the Hip-Hopera.

Also, on the interesting, but not-that-great front, there's The Who Boys
posted by Robot Johnny at 12:39 PM on December 21, 2004

Yeah, Kno vs Hov is probably the best of all the Black album remixes. I'm also partial to the DJ Enui's the Slack Album (Jay-Z vs. Pavement)
posted by SweetJesus at 12:48 PM on December 21, 2004

Thanks for the Who Boys link, Robot Johnny. I think it's interesting what different people think about this stuff. I thought "A Night at the Hip-Hopera" was awful and unlistenable. I've only listened to two tracks from The Who Boys so far, but I think it's great.
posted by uncleozzy at 12:54 PM on December 21, 2004

The Who Boys wins points at least for not being the standard "Vocals A" played over "Music B".
posted by Robot Johnny at 12:58 PM on December 21, 2004

Didn't Jay-Z release a vocals-only album made specifically for remixing?

I've been waiting for months to post that.
posted by bigtimes at 1:12 PM on December 21, 2004

i like the Beastles better than the Grey Album, but so far i actually like The Who Boys better.
posted by mrgrimm at 1:18 PM on December 21, 2004

Night at the Hip-Hopera rules the current crop of mash-ups.
posted by sonofsamiam at 1:20 PM on December 21, 2004

Night at the Hip-Hopera rules the current crop of mash-ups.

I dunno, the new Diplo vs Shadow (Megatroid Mix) is pretty hot. Anyone who can drop Little Jon over Weezer, and do it well, is the king of Mashups.
posted by SweetJesus at 1:34 PM on December 21, 2004

Night at the Hip-Hopera rules the current crop of mash-ups.

I agree with you there, sonofsamiam
posted by Robot Johnny at 2:03 PM on December 21, 2004

I don't know what all the fuss is about with these mash-ups. Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of it. But something about mixing together 2 groups with so much legacy just falls flat. I can't separate what I already know about these bands to listen to the "mash-up" with fresh ears. Which is why something like Jay-Z and Linkin Park has a better chance of flying. 2 incredibly horrible MTV acts may make a better mashup than 2 brilliant originals....
posted by asianmack at 2:23 PM on December 21, 2004

You really have to instantly love a mashed song titled "Sure-Bla-Di Shot-Bla-Da". That's beautiful.
posted by mcstayinskool at 2:27 PM on December 21, 2004

After listening to all of the Beastles and about half of the Who Boys, I think I like the Beastles better, although I think the Who Boys might grow on me. I haven't heard the Grey Album yet, other than one track where someone made a music video. That track didn't do much for me, though.
posted by CMcKinnon at 2:39 PM on December 21, 2004

I was always very fond of 'Paperback Believer' (mp3) - a beatles/monkees mash.
posted by nonemoreblack at 2:57 PM on December 21, 2004

Man I'm only on the second track, and already I have to apologise. I figured another 'Grey Album' post and internally dissed shawnj for the post, but I was wrong for sure. This kills.
posted by cosmonik at 3:09 PM on December 21, 2004

I like. I like. *cranks volume*
posted by Dick Paris at 3:18 PM on December 21, 2004

I think the main difference here between this and the gray album is in the construction. This was created using Acid, and is probably more of a straight forward mashup, whereas the grey album and hip-hopera have much more mixing and general production value.
posted by evilgenius at 3:23 PM on December 21, 2004

For some other great Beatles mash-ups, be sure to check out Go Home Productions, especially the Beatles Bootleg sample.
posted by quasistoic at 4:40 PM on December 21, 2004

SweetJesus: i'll have to keep an eye out for that Diplo vs Shadow mix...hmmm...sounds intriging.

Diplo is the man (as seen in this Ninjatune video [QT] of him mashing-up some high school prom (which is via Blentwell...and which is, to me, the best of the web.
posted by tpl1212 at 4:40 PM on December 21, 2004

Wow, thanks tpl1212... I'll give you a big, fat hint where you can find the Diplo mix, and much more: www.themixingbowl.org

Fire up the bitTorrent!
posted by SweetJesus at 5:26 PM on December 21, 2004

I'm suprised nobody's brought up Beatallica! Rawk on, Beatallibangers!
posted by nervestaple at 8:12 PM on December 21, 2004

ah very nice!
posted by Hands of Manos at 8:21 PM on December 21, 2004

Aw man, Beatallica are the balls; I have been known to send their MP3s to everyone I know. Especially "I Want To Choke Your Band" and "Got to Get You Trapped Under Ice."
posted by uncleozzy at 8:52 PM on December 21, 2004

Ok....

Beatallica - not very good. Its just a poor imitation of Metallica's sound. If this is your thing... enjoy it, but I hope to not hear it again.

The Who Boys - Eh... its a little too chopped up and remixed for me. Too "club music" like. I like a few tracks but will be surprised if it gets another listen.

Beastles - Its ok. A little to straight forward. Just beatles loops + Beastie boys lyrics. A pretty simple formula... a typical mashup.

Grey Album - Not a typical Mashup, and that's what makes it great. Instead of looping pieces he samples pieces and puts them together around JayZ's lyrics. He constructs a beat instead of laying one track over another.

The key to a great remix is if the parts are better then the whole, or a finished product that shows a fresh perspective on the material.

that's what makes the numb/encore remix good. He gives new feeling to Jay Z's words.

And the pieces seem to meld together. Good mashups happen when you don't hear two parts put together. Numb/Encore almost sounds like its meant that way. And it makes you take a second look a second look at Jay Z's lyrics. I think it gives more feeling to his words.

BTW.... B.S. review by Rolling Stone. They gave Collision Course an awful rating. They didn't judge it for what it was and missed out on a great project. Its not an album, its a happening, a single. An EP. And it exceeded expectations.
posted by Mroz at 1:12 AM on December 22, 2004

My favorite mixup is Slim Shady vs. Ragtime. The MP3 archive at With Or Without Me is down, but you can find it if you go to April Winchell's page and scroll down to "Eminem vs. Ragtime".
posted by yankeefog at 6:45 AM on December 22, 2004

Eminem vs. Ragtime? This I have to hear!
Most of the Beastles stuff is... weird (Sure-Bla-Di Shot-Bla-Da especially), but I do like a couple of tracks. I wonder if there's Beasties/Led Zep stuff out there, especially since the Beasties sampled the hell out of them on Licence to Ill...
posted by May Kasahara at 7:16 AM on December 22, 2004

Oh wow some news mashups_i.

I'm pretty much with dsico on this one ...

That shit was fun for a while but now it just feels like a boring soul destroying activity in pointlessness. - there is just nothing left to explore. Mash-ups are ultimately a One Trick Pony, continuing to mix up these tracks is just floggin a dead horse*. (hehe)
posted by milovoo at 9:33 AM on December 22, 2004

For me, The Grey Album wins out over the Beastles -- first for the originality of the concept, second because the material is just better.

Dangermouse used Beatles samples far more creatively (the fact that he could only work with the White Album, and not troll thru all their greatest hits as BC did, imposed a useful limitation). The production values on the Grey Album are better, as noted above. And while I respect the Beasties, somehow their raps sound tired and uninspired next to Jay Z's.

They are really from another era. What they did was fine for the '80s, but Jay Z is more contemporary. He's also more autobiographical. Yes, he has the typical hip-hop obsessions with violence and misogyny, but I was far more moved by his rapping about his own life than by anything from the Beasties (their material is or was sometimes clever, but rarely moving).
posted by Artifice_Eternity at 12:43 PM on December 22, 2004