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KCRW Exclusive: Foster the People — Houdini Remix (by DJ Valida)

13 May 2011 15,621 views 38 Comments by:
Foster the People by Williams + Hirakawa
Foster the People by Williams + Hirakawa

KCRW DJ Valida loves adding her special touch to favorite tracks. She remixed local artist Jenny O earlier this year and has now gotten her hands on another LA band, Foster the People. You can stream her “Slip Out Mix” of “Houdini” and read more about how the remix came about below.

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Foster’s album is out on May 23 and fans who pre-order on their site get four tracks instantly, including the original version of “Houdini” and the summer jam that started it all, “Pumped Up Kicks.”

foster torches

FROM DJ VALIDA:

I’ve been a fan of Foster The People ever since I heard “Pumped Up Kicks” and “Helena Beat” played on KCRW in 2010. I didn’t discover “Houdini”until I made it a point to do some research and see what else was out there in terms of their music.

I was instantly intrigued by the title and the song’s powerful intro sequence. I loved it at first listen and have played it repeatedly ever since.

Fast forward to SXSW 2011, where I finally got the chance to see them live at the Filter showcase presented by KCRW. Needless to say, I was blown away.

I remember thinking out loud how much I would love to remix a track by them.  Fellow DJ Anne Litt had already heard my recent collaboration on Jenny O.’s remix of “Well OK Honey” and introduced me to their manager on the spot!

As a DJ with a strong affinity towards blending, I knew that I wanted to create a version that would mix in and out of other tracks in my set better, so building a decent-size intro/outro was key.

Also, my background is in dance, so I wanted something I could groove to and not necessarily rock out to, and therefore created a four-to-the-floor feel.

And finally, I have taken piano and singing for most of my childhood and early teen years and love to mess around on my keyboard and sing. I almost never sing the standard melody of any song and instead find myself making up harmonies to anything and everything I hear, so I already knew of the few places in the song where adding a subtle vocal harmony felt just right. Et voila!

With “a little” help from Ableton and my friend Computer Jay’s (member of Master Blazter w/ Dam-Funk) studio and engineering expertise, I set out to integrate all of the above while still keeping true to the original. Enjoy!

– DJ Valida


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38 Comments »

  • Lejla said:

    This is sooooo awesome!!!

    # 13 May 2011 at 10:44 am
  • Michael said:

    Very cool!

    # 13 May 2011 at 10:56 am
  • HOUDINI (DJ VALIDA REMIX) | Foster The People said:

    [...] another remix. Check out Houdini (DJ Valida Remix). Click here to [...]

    # 13 May 2011 at 12:08 pm
  • donny said:

    sick!!

    # 13 May 2011 at 1:39 pm
  • Jennifer Barrette Trainor said:

    Love these guys so much! This is fun. Seriously counting down the days, hours, minutes till the album.

    # 13 May 2011 at 2:26 pm
  • nataliepenelope said:

    Let's dance……

    # 13 May 2011 at 3:13 pm
  • sabi said:

    Very nice!Bravo Valida!!!!

    # 13 May 2011 at 6:16 pm
  • Ciaran said:

    pretty awesome!

    # 14 May 2011 at 12:53 am
  • kells said:

    wonderful!

    # 14 May 2011 at 12:43 pm
  • Susanne Kindt said:

    yay, downloaded it, so good!! love from Sweden

    # 17 May 2011 at 12:44 pm
  • Armine said:

    Flows perfectly with my coffee buzz!!! Love this!!!

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:27 pm
  • T Kell said:

    Love Love Love it! Wow you consistently amaze me! T

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:28 pm
  • Lindsay said:

    Love this! You are very talented

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:28 pm
  • Andrea said:

    Very cool!

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:29 pm
  • maria said:

    Love Love love!!!!

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:29 pm
  • Diana said:

    Have been infatuated with FTP for about a month…now have another reason to love them!

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:34 pm
  • Gordon said:

    very well done!

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:34 pm
  • hipcheck said:

    Dripping with freshness, but clearly it's been cooked over a basting tray, so once it's done, you can just pour the freshness back on as a double-baste.

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:38 pm
  • funkforce5 said:

    Wow! I've always loved her mixes. Another great one!

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:39 pm
  • stev said:

    Nice one! Really cool.

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:40 pm
  • Seth said:

    DJ Valida…where can I here you spin live?

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:42 pm
  • Drai said:

    DJ Valida at KCRW plays the best mixes! LOVE IT!
    Liquid lounge!!!

    # 17 May 2011 at 5:52 pm
  • vicki said:

    supercool! Love it!

    # 17 May 2011 at 6:26 pm
  • Karen B. said:

    Fantastic job, Valida!

    # 17 May 2011 at 8:12 pm
  • Kasia said:

    Gooooooo Validaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!

    # 17 May 2011 at 9:38 pm
  • Vildana said:

    Bravo!!!
    Love it! :)

    # 17 May 2011 at 11:29 pm
  • Kelly said:

    The coolest DJ on KCRW!

    # 17 May 2011 at 11:43 pm
  • tarajaustin said:

    YES, I loved it in the first 10 seconds, sick beat!

    # 18 May 2011 at 9:00 am
  • tarajaustin said:

    Valida, you are becoming quite the Mixtress! I'll never forget seeing them at Coachella with you!
    LOVE LOVE LOVE

    # 18 May 2011 at 9:02 am
  • Mike said:

    Pretty slick stuff!

    # 18 May 2011 at 9:36 am
  • DJ Lady Sinclair said:

    Dude! Yesssss! Awesome shit gurrrrrrrllllll!

    # 18 May 2011 at 11:52 am
  • Talisha said:

    Awesome! Keep up the good work!!

    # 18 May 2011 at 1:27 pm
  • Erin Ivey said:

    Love it!

    # 19 May 2011 at 2:48 pm
  • Josh said:

    This rocks!!! Looking forward to more…

    # 23 May 2011 at 11:49 pm
  • Tata said:

    Super!

    # 25 May 2011 at 9:34 am
  • Victory said:

    Cool. Check out the Synthetrix remix as well!
    http://soundcloud.com/synthetrix/foster-the-peopl…

    # 25 May 2011 at 9:51 pm
  • Gumsoul said:

    Original version = old and busted.
    Valida remix = new hotness.

    # 26 August 2011 at 8:11 pm
  • Top 5 LA Albums of 2011 by DJ Valida | KCRW Music Blog said:

    [...] (Editor’s Note: Download Valida’s remix of “Houdini” here) [...]

    # 16 December 2011 at 8:08 am

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