A Tale of Two Remixes

Jun 1, 2001 12:00 PM, By Chris Gill

For most dance music producers, the invitation to remix a Madonna song is the equivalent of being inducted into knighthood by the Queen of England. Renowned for her impeccable taste by the most trendsetting remixers, Madonna makes choices that consistently reflect the preferences of the underground cognoscenti. Over the last several years, Madonna has invited a wide variety of creative visionaries to enter her elite group of remixers — including Victor Calderone, Club 69, Deep Dish, Groove Armada, Kruder and Dorfmeister, Orbital, Sasha, Stereo MC's, Junior Vasquez, Richard “Humpty” Vission, and Tracy Young. Even when artists turn down an offer to do a Madonna remix, they still acknowledge the esteem and merit the opportunity represents.

When it came time to choose artists to remix her hit “Don't Tell Me,” Madonna went straight to several of today's hottest remixers, including Thunderpuss and Timo Maas. Thunderpuss have dominated the Billboard dance charts for the last two years, releasing 17 singles and remixes that reached number one (including one of their two remixes of “Don't Tell Me”). Timo Maas has enjoyed similar chart success in Europe; his songs, such as “Der Schieber” and “Ubik,” and his immensely popular remix of “Doom's Night” by Azzido Da Bass, are staples in the record boxes of club DJs all over the world.

Thunderpuss's original “Club Mix,” their subsequent “2001 Hands in the Air Anthem” version, and Timo Maas's mix vary significantly. The Thunderpuss “Club Mix” features adventurous vocal manipulations, trippy synth effects, and a deep four-on-the-floor house rhythm, while “2001 Hands in the Air Anthem” includes lively Latin-style percussion, a catchy melody line, and the signature-style massive peak-of-the-night buildup that earned Thunderpuss their dance-floor reputation. Timo Maas takes an entirely different approach, laying down a funky breakbeat drum pattern; a driving bass line; a moody, ambient breakdown; and a straightforward vocal line. The differences between these versions are great examples of how talented remixers can leave their own mark on a mix while still allowing the original artist's vision and performance to shine through.

We asked Chris Cox and Barry Harris of Thunderpuss, and Timo Maas and his producer and engineer, Martin Buttrich, to tell us everything about their remixes of “Don't Tell Me” in their own words.

THUNDERPUSS

For the last two years, almost every project released by the duo of Chris Cox and Barry Harris, better known to most nightclub aficionados as Thunderpuss, has gone straight to the top of the Billboard dance music charts. Thunderpuss have helped pop artists like Amber, Christina Aguilera, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, Jennifer Lopez, and LeAnn Rimes gain dance-floor acceptance, while original releases such as “Stand Up,” “Fuck Me Harder” (released under the Harris and Cox moniker), and their cover of “Papa's Got a Brand New Pigbag” allowed the duo to maintain their underground credibility. In addition to remixing and producing a steady flow of hits, Cox and Harris regularly hit the road individually to DJ. Both recently released their own DJ mix compilations — Cox's New York Anthems on Nervous Records and Harris's Circuit Sessions 00.3 on 4 Play Records. Madonna recently invited Thunderpuss to do their third remix for her, and they apply their magic touch to her latest single, “What It Feels Like for a Girl.”

PREPARING FOR THE REMIX

Chris Cox: We've wanted to remix a track for Madonna from the beginning of our career. Madonna's management approached us about doing the remix. Other people were already working on their remixes, and we were the last ones they approached for the first round of remixes of “Don't Tell Me.” We found out about it and got the tapes on a Friday just before Christmas. We had to have our remix turned in the following Friday, so we had only one week to do the project, with no prior notice. It was just dropped in our laps, and we had other projects going on at the same time. We didn't have much time to think about what we wanted to do.

Barry Harris: I listened to Madonna's Music album a lot while we were waiting for the tapes to arrive. I wanted to hear where Madonna's head was at musically because I heard that the album was rather different. Usually we just think about the dance floor and try to please the crowd. We think about crossing over all the time by doing things that are innovative and edgy. I thought that Madonna was being more creative and artsy on this album, so I felt that we should follow that lead. I wanted to do a mix that sounded more like something Madonna would do herself than what we usually do. It was time we changed our approach anyway, and that's why the first remix is a little more laid-back.

Cox: Quite a few artists just let us do what we do. The only pressure on this project was what we put on ourselves. We wanted to do something that was worthy of Madonna, something that DJs could get into, and something that was a bit of a departure for us. Madonna has always been at the cutting edge of music, so you don't want to throw her remix into a factory processor. We don't ever like to do production-line remixes, but we do have a certain sound that people expect to hear from us. Madonna never goes after remixers just because they have a certain sound or they're just hip at that moment. She's always gone for people who are more underground. We were in a dangerous place, because we could have just done something with the remix that we had already proven was successful. Instead, we decided to do something that was more worthy of Madonna's creative side and forged new ground for us. We thought she would appreciate that.

GETTING THE GOODS

“We always look for moments that give a song that peak-of-the-night feel.” — Barry Harris

Cox: Madonna's record label sent us a DAT that contained all the parts of the song. Surprisingly, there are not a lot of different elements on the original version of “Don't Tell Me.” We got Mirwais's drums, the guitar parts, the bass lines, the keyboards, the strings, and Madonna's vocals. That was it. It was all dry pieces split left and right with no time code or anything. We threw it all into a computer and went nuts.

Harris: Usually the first thing I do when I get the master tape is go to the end of the a cappellas, which is often where all the ad libs are. The most exciting thing there was this part where Madonna was going, “Tell the rain not to drop.” She's not a screaming diva like Jennifer Holliday or Ann Nesby, but we always look for moments that can give a song that peak-of-the-night feel.

SELECTING THE TEMPO

Harris: Both of our remixes of “Don't Tell Me” are at 132 bpm. That's a pretty safe speed for dance music, although now we're experimenting with slowing down our tempos. There's so much music out there that DJs can pick and choose what feels good for them. For our niche, I'd like to start slowing the tempo down a little. You can still do a song at 125 bpm that sounds really exciting. In the ’80s, acts like Exposé and Shannon were at 116 and 120 bpm; you couldn't get past 122 bpm during your peak of the night. Just because you're slowing down the tempo doesn't mean you're slowing down the energy.

Cox: After we decide upon a tempo, we spend a lot of time working on the vocal comp and using time compression to get the vocals at the right speed. We hate the warbling “billy-goating” effects caused by bad time compression. Nothing is more infuriating than a record with bad time compression on the vocals. We pay a lot of attention to the vocals because ultimately the song belongs to the singer. The first thing every vocalist listens to on a remix is their vocal, because it's their personal attribute. We don't want to make somebody miserable because we totally fucked up his or her voice. We always try to treat the artist and the song with respect.

LAYING DOWN THE VOCAL COMP

Cox: Effects were already printed on Madonna's vocals. All the quirky dropouts you hear on the record are on the master tape, too. That made it especially challenging to work with because we were trying to do a comp around these other elements. It also sounded like the vocals were already thrown into a sampler and chopped up. We wanted to put the vocals over another groove, but the editing was locked to the original beat. Madonna passionately sang long, sustained legato notes on the song — and a single sustained note is harder to comp than a lot of little rhythmic notes, which make it easier to hide the artifacts from digital processing. We spent a good chunk of the week just working on the vocals. Once we transferred her vocals to the digital domain, we had a lot of fun playing around with her performance, looping parts and editing them.

Harris: After we locked in the a cappellas for the vocal comp, we laid down the beat, and I started thinking of melodies in a minor key to darken things up. Then we started playing along to the vocals and drums. Usually the first idea that comes to mind is the best. I've learned not to be fussy and fiddly. I have a lot of fun doing remixes because no one ever tells me what to do. If a record company should ever try to direct or limit my artistic ideas, that would just fuck me up. The best thing is total freedom, and that always leads to the best results.

Cox: We went wild with effects on her voice during the buildup. It was like creating tension through chaos. When you hear those tracks isolated, they sound really sick. God bless [Mark of the Unicorn's] Digital Performer. It's our main computer program. We wanted to have this groovy, cool pop song that gets kind of weird in the middle and becomes like ’60s psychedelia meeting current club music. We really pushed the envelope with the effects processing, but what the hell. If anybody could appreciate something edgy, Madonna could. We were making the mix for her as much as we were making it for the DJs.

WRITING THE MAIN RIFF

Cox: What we do is house fused with tribal fused with a little Latin and techno. That's kind of our schtick. We write a lot of hooks for the records we mix. We just sit down at the keyboard, start playing around, and find something that feels like it's going to work. There's no formula or thought process that goes into it. We just have a little jam session with ourselves. It's the same thing as being a session musician.

Harris: Remixing is a lot like cowriting a new song. We have to invent new hooks that work on the dance floor. The guitar part on the original version of “Don't Tell Me” didn't do that. A lot of DJs who do remixes don't write hooks, but that's something we like to do. Sometimes we think we should save the hooks for our own records, but it's a matter of doing what's best for the song. Chris and I have a million hooks in our heads. We just sit down and something happens. It isn't always easy to come up with a good hook right away. That's why we did the second remix. A few weeks after we completed the first remix, all these great ideas came to us. Sometimes it's worth stepping away from the pressure for a weekend and coming back to the project with fresh ears on Monday.

INSTRUMENT CHOICES

Harris: We went for tougher, harder sounds on the remix, including a lot of heavy kick drums from our Novation Drumstation. We always use that and a Nord Lead, which has very clean-sounding filters.

Cox: I bought a Roland HPD-15 HandSonic about two weeks before we started working on the remix. That unit inspired a lot of the percussion performance. There's a lot of live percussion playing on the remix. We love bouncy, percolating percussion instead of just straight “boom, kick, boom, kick.” Having a little movement within the track adds some sonic texture. I hate playing percussion parts on keyboards, but I really like being able to play percussion parts with my fingers. You can also do so much more with your fingers than when you're limited to just two drumsticks. The HandSonic has the freshest sounds Roland has come up with since they released the R-8 drum machine.

A SECOND HELPING

“We always try to treat the artist and the song with respect.” — Chris Cox

Cox: When our first mix came out, our fans were excited because we finally got to work with Madonna, but our hard-core fan base hated that mix. We got slammed so hard by them because they were expecting the typical Thunderpuss mix. But then we started getting all this positive feedback from other DJs who previously said they would never touch a Thunderpuss record. It was like we catered to another crowd. When we started the second remix a few weeks later, we decided to go down a different path. Part of the reason we did the second mix was that we could hear it being done another way. We did what we thought was a cool underground take on the first mix, but then we decided to put a little more adrenaline into the remix to make it into a peak-of-the-night party anthem.

Harris: I got this idea for a different hook, and I heard in my head exactly how it could be done. I approached Chris about doing a second remix that sounded more like what we always do. We sat down and spent a few days working on it. I started the new version, and then Chris came in and took over. I had to make sure he was hearing what I was hearing so that we could go down the same road together. Usually we follow each other's lead.

Cox: We did the second version entirely on our own. When we were finished with it, we let Madonna's management know we had completed a second remix. They really liked it and pressed up another promo with the new version. We managed to make both remix releases. The CD and cassette singles have just the album version and our mix. It's really gratifying. I've had the goal of remixing Madonna for the last 15 years. Just getting to work on these remixes was an honor, but the fact that they're doing well is a dream come true.

TIMO MAAS

In the dance music world, 2000 will go down in history as The Year of Timo Maas. The success of his remix of “Doom's Night” by Azzido Da Bass would have guaranteed him this distinction on its own, but Maas kept releasing a relentless succession of irresistible singles — such as the low-down and funky “Ubik” and his hard-driving remixes of Green Velvet's “Flash” and BT's “Never Gonna Come Back Down.” His tracks appeared on dozens of DJ compilations, and Maas circled the world several times over, performing DJ sets in nearly every corner of the globe.

One of the most in-demand remixers, Maas gets an average of 60 to 100 remix offers a month. But lately he's turned down most of those offers to concentrate on recording his first full-length artist album. Appropriately titled Loud, the album is scheduled for release this fall. Like all of Maas's original tracks and remixes, it is being coproduced by Martin Buttrich, who also releases records as Sounds of Life on the Peppermint Jam label. Although Maas provides many of the main creative ideas behind the songs, Buttrich is responsible for creating the signature Timo Maas sound that has captivated dancers and DJs all over the world.

Maas released his first official double mix CD, Connected, on the Kinetic label last April. It features his new remix of Fatboy Slim's “Star 69” and a demo version of a track from his own forthcoming album. For the latest news about Maas, check out www.timomaas.com, where you'll also find a complete discography, his touring schedule, a brief bio, and amusing photos of his most recent exploits.

GETTING THE GIG

Timo Maas: Madonna's manager contacted my manager, Leon Alexander, and he called me and asked, “Are you up for remixing Madonna?” I said, “Are you joking?” Martin and I couldn't refuse that. We heard the album, and we thought we could do a remix of any song on it. Then we found out that the song was “Don't Tell Me,” and we were okay with that. About four or five days later we got a tape with tracks, and a couple of days after that we started working on the remix.

Martin Buttrich: We had about two weeks to complete the remix.

Maas: We finished a dub mix first, but it was never released because it featured only half a word of Madonna's singing. Then we decided to do a vocal remix. It is quite difficult to do something new that complements the vibe of her voice, which is the most essential thing in a Madonna song. We really wanted to adapt her vocals to the Timo Maas sound. We didn't do too bad, although today we would do the remix in an entirely different way. We didn't let anyone know that we were working on a Madonna song before we finished the remixes. When the press in Germany found out we were doing it, everyone called me up. I did about 45 interviews on TV and radio within ten days. Fortunately we were already finished with the remix when the press found out, so there wasn't any pressure from outside.

WORKING WITH THE VOCALS

“My manager asked, ‘Are you up for remixing Madonna?’ I said, ‘Are you joking?’” — Timo Maas

Buttrich: I programmed the beats first, and then I put the vocals on top of the rhythm. We received a DAT with all of the separate tracks, but we only used the vocals. The original song was about 95 bpm, and the version that we wanted to do was 130 bpm. It was hard to pitch up the vocals without getting a cheesy Mickey Mouse effect. That's why we didn't use any instruments from the original mix. We built everything around Madonna's vocals. The vocals also already had effects on them. I put a flanger on the vocals so that the listener wouldn't realize they've been time-stretched. We used Prosoniq's Time Bandit, which is the best program for time-stretching vocals. I didn't cut the vocals up at all. I just grabbed three vocal parts, stretched them, and put them down on the recorder. I re-edited the beats a little bit to make them fit better with the vocals, and then we recorded the sounds.

RECORDING THE INSTRUMENTS

Maas: We used to rely on a Korg MS-20 a lot, but we don't use it anymore. Now our main synth is the Studio Electronics SE-1, which gives you lots of possibilities for creating sounds. You can put effects on it or just play around with it, sample it, and reedit the sample. You invest a lot more in your ideas when you're not using very much equipment. We've bought some high-end EQs, but we don't want to say what kind we're using — that's our secret.

Buttrich: For all of the music that we make, we just use a dual-processor Macintosh G4 to run a Pro Tools/24 Mixplus hard-disk recording system, two samplers, and one synth. We have a lot of outboard effects and plug-ins, but most of the sounds come from the samplers and the SE-1. We used to use a lot of synths — a Roland SH-101, TB-303, and other vintage stuff — but now all those instruments just sit in the corner of our studio.

Maas: Our old partner was a synth collector. We used to have a lot of synths, and we'd spend a lot of time searching for sounds. But when you have just one machine and a certain sound in your head, you make it happen more quickly. One machine can give you a lot of possibilities. When you know what is possible with a machine, you know how to get what you're looking for. We never use the same presets for a remix, with the exception of the remix we just did of Fatboy Slim's “Star 69.” We used one sound that was heard on our Azzido Da Bass “Doom's Night” remix — it was our way of making our last statement on that single.

TIMO'S REAL SECRET WEAPON

“We built everything around Madonna's vocals.” — Martin Buttrich

Maas: The equipment, the synths, and the outboard processors are not the essential things. You have to be able to create the music first. Martin is a great programmer and producer, and he's come a long way since our first productions. The first song we did together — Orinoko's “Mama Konda” — was recorded five and a half years ago in Martin's bedroom, but that song still works well on the dance floor. It still sounds pumping and powerful. We analyzed a lot of other artists' work and figured out a way to make our tracks louder. The Timo Maas sound is basically quite simple. The true secret behind my success is not the instruments, but the team I work with. I'm lucky that I've met one of the best dance music producers in the world.

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Madonna once asked Remix editor Chris Gill for a remix. Apparently she didn't like the daiquiri he made for her.

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