- Matching messy guitars and few-fucks-given vocals with a driving beat and a dollop of pop magic, Grauzone's Neue Deutsche Welle classic "Eisbär" works wonders on dance floors. That hasn't stopped it from becoming one of the more edited and remixed cuts in the canon, ranging from relatively minor tweaks to total makeovers. "I just cannot get enough of Eisbär remixes," one SoundCloud user commented on Remain's drastic retooling, and he's in luck: Ilo has taken on the track, following his wildly popular (and recently re-released) 2011 edit of "Warp" by New Musik.
The project apparently came at the suggestion of a reviewer, and the tip makes sense—such a skilled editor could likely elevate "Eisbär" above all the noise. It's worth recalling why "Warp (Ilo Edit)" clicked. Ólafur Breidfjörd didn't do much more than slot the original's nervy new wave refrain and chorus into a sleeker beat pallet. His proportions were ingenious, though, combining for what was at once a sprawling side of minimalist house, a smart bit of music nerdery and an uncanny earworm. "Eisbär (Ilo Edit)" sounds a bit more like the sum of its parts: an airy groove and a punky burst that go together fine, even if they never quite melt into one another. Where "Warp (Ilo Edit)" came off as effortless, "Eisbär (Ilo Edit)" could have benefitted from a little more effort. It's preceded on the 12-inch by "Love Of My Own (Ilo Edit)," where Ilo also takes the artist credit. The cut sounds like a record Theo Parrish might make for Hessle Audio, though it's markedly less mindblowing than that sounds.
TracklistA1 Ilo - A Love Of My Own (Ilo Edit)
A2 Grauzone - Eisbar (Ilo Warped Edit)