Clinton VanSciver: “Indie Anna Jones” featuring Queen B (Dim Mak)
Twenty-one-year-old producer/songwriter and Californian Clinton VanSciver calls his summer cocktail of melodies, keys and bass chunk “dirty pop.” We hear the supposed filth – those smudges of Skrillex synth and occasional bursts of bass – but VanSciver’s music is much more. It’s a perfect union of West Coast house, glistening trance, blue-eyed soul and post-brostep savvy, all in under-five-minute, hummable bursts. This cut, the title track off his debut EP for Steve Aoki’s Dim Mak, feels simple and effortless, which hopefully means that this young gun has a lot more where it came from. –Kerri
Jay-Z/Steve Porter: “Magna Carta Holy Grail / Jay-Z Mashup” (Porterhouse)
What could be more American than Jay-Z boasting about being #alreadyplatinum on the Fourth of July? How about a “Magna Carta Holy Grail” remix by a DJ who hails from one of the thirteen original colonies? Massachusetts’ Steve Porter has compiled a Mayflower’s worth of Shawn Carter a capellas and reworked them as an original song (that happens to feature Beyoncé). The result is something even John Hancock would sign off on. Kanye may have brought DJs into the studio, but here, a studio DJ brings hip-hop back to its DJ-based roots. The original Magna Carta might be housed in England, but this here is an utterly American history lesson. –Zel
Kaskade: “Raining (Late Night Alumni Remix)” (Ultra)
Is there a DJ prouder of his American roots than Kaskade? We think not. From his patriotic UMF stage design to the California cool that permeates everything he does, Kaskade (that’s Ryan Raddon on his passport) embodies what it means to be a U.S. EDM star on a global scene. To celebrate the 4th, Kaskade posted a new version of his 2010 hit “Raining,” reworked by his side project band, Late Night Alumni. The group stripped the track to its ethereal essence, leaving the vocals intact with little more than a simple, moody house beat behind them. It’s a sound that Kaskade and LNA have been working with for years, but feels all the more current through the lens of 2013’s deep-house surge. –Lauren