Remii’s remix of El Hermano by Carloscres on Bogota records wraps itself around the bottom end of the original. Slowing it down, the producer beefs up the sub-bass whoomph of the track, with a bouncing Electro-House take on the original. The mix lives alongside mixes by Jay Tripwire and Bogota boss Ivaylo and stands apart from them as the furthest outlier from the original. Incorporating a fraction of a vocal from some obscure gospel source and intermittent waves of legato synths that sink the track at opportune moments to the deep, Remii’s remix drips with the sultry heat of summer.
Remii (Emini) is a producer and a DJ with a readymade touch. His remix of Brandy and Monica’s “The Boy’s mine” has gotten 146k listens on Soundcloud to date and showcase an innate ability to repurpose the familiar in a completely different context. His original tracks with a proclivity for the funky side of synth music, are alluring pieces that combine various musical tropes in unique musical assemblages. A soundcloud anomaly, Remii is reserved in his approach, but is a veteran of the Oslo DJ and music scene, where he often plays between the dichotomy of pop music and club music on the weekends.
With a sincere respect for a guilty pleasure and refined touch in the studio, Remii Emini is a conundrum, that we’ve not been able to solve through his music and DJ sets alone so with his remix of El Hermano playing in the background we sent him some questions to find out more.
*El Hermano by Carloscres is out on Bogota Records now and available via Traxsource.
Hey Remii. Where are you at the moment and what are you listening to?
I’m home on my computer. It’s Monday and -12 outside. I’m listening to some Sango a tune called Middle Of Things, daydreaming of palm trees and umbrella drinks.
What’s earliest memory of a piece of music and thinking “I want to do this”?
Fa Monteco-To The Rhythm, kickass house tune!
What sort of influence did your family have on your musical tastes and creativity?
My family aren’t really into music. Both of my parents are from Albania, and they mostly listen to albanian music. I’m not really into it, except some very old folkish, jazz sounding stuff.
What did your first attempts at making music sound like?
I remember I sampled some vocals from N.W.A and the beat had that funky french house thing going on. I sampled Ice Cube’s part on F tha police, when he says; coming straight from the underground.
What was the turning point when you started to feel comfortable and pleased with the stuff you were making?
Hmm, I felt pretty comfortable with a track I did called 1983. It had that retro sounding italo flavour. This was in 2004 I guess.
What musical instrument is essential to your work?
Synths! Chords, sequencers, funky basslines. Mostly software in Reason and some few hardware, (love the Micro Korg, especially the vocoder). I’m also thinking about buying a talkbox!
What’s always inspired you musically?
The music I grew up with! Good old hip hop, r&b, new jack swing, disco, italo, boogie, funk, house, juke, jersey-club, nola boune and the list goes on. But I also listen to modern Pop music, anything from Dua Lipa to Travis Scott inspires me. Bruno Mars’ new album is lit, btw!
What desert island disc would be essential for you?
Warren G Regulate…G Funk Era! No, wait! Michael Jackson’s Thriller! Wow. They’re both masterpieces!
Some of the first things I heard from you were your remixes of pop songs. What inspired you to remix songs by the likes of Christina Aguilera and Monica?
Well, Genie in a bottle is my nr. 1 guilty pleasure. The boy is mine was a big hit when I was in high school, and it brings back a lot of good memories.
What were your intentions with those kinds of remixes?
I guess I wanted to recreate them! I often play the Brandy & Monica remix at the club, and people dance to it. The Aguilera remix is more of a “just for fun” thing.
You’ve recently remixed El Hermano by Carloscres. What drew you to original track initially?
Ivaylo played me the original, and I liked it. A juicy tech house track! It’s got some nice pads, a groovy arpeggiator and a filthy bassline!
You slowed it down, allowing the bass to swell more in what I considered an electro House interpretation. What did you hope to bring out in your version?
I like that slow, down tempo type 110-115 (or slower) bpm house. Yeah, I feel it has more of that straight forward bouncy electro vibe going on.
The release came out Friday, what do you hope the listener’s get from your remix?
I hope the listeners dance to it!
What’s inspiring you outside of music at the moment?
My son, my wife, and everyday life!
What’s in the pipeline for Remii after this release?
Keep making music! You’ve probably understood that i’m quite a skitzo when it comes to genres. I started producing some moody trap beats last week! Maybe I’ll add some vocals… maybe not.
Lastly, can you play us out of a song?
“Shooby-doo-bop, shoo-doo-bop I, wanna love you, Shooby-doo-bop, my computer love!”