Thursday, November 27, 2014

Mega Mix 44: A Review

Did anyone else not know how to react to MM44? I mean, my immediate reaction is always the same when I see the white envelope in the mail - woohoo! When I popped it into my car radio and listened, I was just... Confused. After playing it safe with the last few music collections (see my reviews here and here) that included classic, familiar-sounding music, this mix was very different.

Where are the core rhythms? At first I was very thrown off by that, but then I got to thinking... I have salsas upon salsas and merengues upon merengues sitting in my "songs to choreograph" playlist. It was kind of nice to have a CD of almost all alternative rhythms to try out. So, philosophically, I got on board with MM44 and started to listen.

Despite coming around, I have to say, I don't think I'll use many of these songs. The first song was Just. So. Annoying. And the Big Spender remix was cute (I would totally use it if I was teaching a jazz class) but I don't think it's the right fit for my current students' interests. Some of the songs felt too slow. Tutti Frutti is adorable, but I just added Rockin' Robin to my playlist and they feel too similar. I love love LOVE Come Baby Come (what's up, 1993?) and it's one song I'll definitely use from this mix.

I admit to not knowing what Axé is, but Wikipedia tells me Axé is a popular music genre from Brazil rooted in Afro-Caribbean genres like Reggae and Calypso (two of my favorite rhythms!). The word Axé is a religious greeting that means "soul", "light", or "good vibration." Cool!

I'm issuing a CHALLENGE! If you upload choreography to MM44 songs on YouTube or elsewhere, please send your routines my way! I want to fall in love with these songs and styles, and seeing good material will help. If I get enough submissions, I will write another post so we can share ideas.


P.S. Today is the LAST day to enter the Thanksgiveaway! Don't miss out!

3 comments:

  1. I only got one video! Please send me your stuff if you have it. :)

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