U:Move

          After being nominated for his first Grammy earlier this year, the name Dave Aude’ now shares the same class as a Michael Jackson or Stevie Wonder…ok, so maybe Dave isn’t as great of a singer, but we’ll bet that he can sure as hell mix up some records at a party to greater effect.

Some categories for best dance recordings or remixes didn’t even exist as a part of the Grammy Awards back when Stevie and MJ were at their artistic zenith.  But now, the Grammy’s have become more relevant. 

Dave Aude, an LA resident, was nominated for his fine work on the “I Want You” remix he cooked up, featuring Dean Coleman and DCLA.  He wrote about his experience at the Grammys on his website, daveaude.com. 

Oh yea, speaking of rocking parties, you’ll be able to check out this latest Grammy nominee at Lucky Strikes in Kansas City on Saturday, February 27th.  Here’s what Dave had to say about the ever-growing field of dance music, what kind of equipment/software he uses to create his magic and what makes a good remix.

Chris Mills:  You were recently nominated for a Grammy award this year in the “Best Remixer” category. How do you think dance music is being accepted at the Grammy’s? Is it getting better? Was there even a problem with it before?

Dave Aude’:  Dance music is getting bigger and more popular every day. Thanks to artists like David Guetta, Black Eyed Peas, and Lady Gaga dance music is getting attention on the mainstream pop level. Also, many major artists are doing dance remixes (more) than ever. Beyonce, Rihanna, J-Lo, U2, and Lifehouse are just a few that are using dance remixes to help promote their music.

CM:  What were some of your favorite remixes that were released within the past year or so? Were there some that you thought were great, but weren’t necessarily nominated for a Grammy?

DA:  Well, I was really surprised to get nominated in the first place, and to get nominated for a track that I expected to be a very underground track was shocking. I knew it was a really great remix, but when you compare a fairly unknown artist like Dean Coleman to Lady Gaga or Beyonce, its kinda nuts that it was nominated. I guess it just made me more proud of the remix!

I thought one of the 4 Gaga mixes I did or one of the Beyonce mixes would for sure get picked. I also thought the mixes I did for U2, Noisettes, Pussycat Dolls, and La Roux were huge.  But what would I know?

CM:  What singles are out right now that you would like to get your hands on for remixing purposes?

DA:  Funny, people always take for granted that I listen to the radio and decide what I want to remix. I’ve never ever been in the position to choose what I want to work on. Usually I’m working on songs that are coming out months later, so I never know how big a song is gonna be until after that fact. Example, I had now idea how massive “Single Ladies” was gonna be. I enjoyed mixing it, but it was one of those kinda “left field” tracks that sneaks up on you after you hear it a few times.

CM:  What kind of gear do you use to create your remixes?

DA:  Pro Tools is my main tool. I also have a lot of analog synths that Ive been using for years, Roland JD990, Roland XV5080, Nord Lead, Nord 3 Rack, Roland Juno 106, Access Virus TI, Studio Electronics SE-1, Roland V-Synth XT, and Korg TR-Rack are a few. I also like a few software synth – REFX Nexus and Spectrasonics.  (All of them) are cool.

CM:  What makes a good remix?

DA:  A good song to start. I can (and have) remixed pretty much every type of song, good and bad vocals, at good and bad tempos, but if the song sucks, it’s never gonna really be that great! Also, in my opinion it’s good to try and keep the original elements of the original song in tact, or at least to help promote the original with your mix, and not just chop it up until its un-recognizable. What would be the point of that?