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Mark Reeder \ Collaborator [FBN 111 CD]

Factory Benelux presents Collaborator, a collection of electro remixes by Berlin-based producer and musician Mark Reeder.

Expanding on Reeder's acclaimed Five Point One collection in 2011, Collaborator gathers together door-wobbling remixes for European dance acts such as Westbam, Koishii & Hush and Blank & Jones, along with electronic and EDM artists including Ladytron singer Helen Marnie, elegant Greek synthpop duo Marsheaux, and hotly-tipped newcomer Queen of Hearts (aka Elizabeth Morphew).

Reeder's early influence on the electronic/dance direction taken by New Order after 1981 is reflected in several collaborations with his friend Bernard Sumner. As well as sharp electro remixes of the two Bad Lieutenant singles Sink Or Swim and Twist of Fate, Sumner is also the featured vocalist on tracks by Westbam, Blank & Jones and Corvin Dalek (the latter track an early version of New Order single Crystal). Sumner also produced You Hurt Me by Reeder's band Shark Vegas, released as a single on Factory way back in 1986.

Other featured vocalists range from postpunk poet Anne Clark to Duran Duran bassist John Taylor, all topped off by a beguiling version of I'm In Love With A German Film Star, recorded by noted British artist Sam Taylor Wood with the Pet Shop Boys. A truly collaborative effort! Cover photography by Katja Ruge.

Tracklist:

1. Bad Lieutenant Sink Or Swim (Rettungsring Radio Remix)
2. Marsheaux So Far (So Close Remix)
3. Corvin Dalek w. Bernard Sumner Crystal (Demo Mix)
4. Koishii & Hush w. John Taylor C'est Tout Est Noir (Black Night Remix)
5. Blank & Jones w. Bernard Sumner Miracle Cure (Genussmittel Remix)
6. Blank & Jones w. Anne Clark The Hardest Heart (Hardest Soul Remix)
7. Marnie Sugarland (Sweet & Sticky Remix)
8. Queen of Hearts Neon (Electrically Excited Remix)
9. Sam Taylor Wood w. Pet Shop Boys I'm In Love With A German Film Star (Stuck in the 80s Remix)
10. Westbam w. Bernard Sumner She Wants (Old School Remix)
11. Die Unbekannten Radio War (Re-tuned)
12. Bad Lieutenant Twist of Fate (Synth of Fate Remix)
13. Shark Vegas You Hurt Me (Radio Edit)

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Reviews:

"Mark Reeder knows a thing or two about dance music. The Mancunian producer has spent the past four decades in Berlin, and he's also worked with the likes of New Order, Pet Shop Boys and Blank and Jones, all of whom feature on this, his third album of remixes. The dreamy So Close Remix of So Far by Marsheaux echoes the long-forgotten Spanish duo Baccara, and equally notable is the pounding and pouty of Sweet and Sticky Remix of Sugarland by Ladytron singer Helen Marnie" (Classic Pop, 06/2014)

"A noted remixer, the highlights of this compilation are his collaborations with Bernard Sumner, who gifted Mark Reeder the Transcendent 2000 synth that he used in Joy Division. Reeder, for his part, sent Sumner the early 1980s dance music he was experiencing in Berlin, inspiring New Order's transition into a dance act. The two began formally collaborating after Peter Hook left New Order, and their creative relationship is represented by the breezy demo of Crystal, Bad Lieutenant's Twist of Fate and the speedy pulse of Blank & Jones' Miracle Cure. Sumner also sings on a new remix of Westbam's playful She Wants. Reeder's style incorporates pulsing bass and sampled vocals, and his remixes maintain the architecture of the original song. He even makes sense of Sam Taylor-Wood and the Pet Shop Boys disco retread of The Passions' I'm In Love With a German Film Star. 7/10" (Uncut, 08/2014)

"This CD is a fine catalogue of Mark Reeder's career to date, covering key aspects of classic and contemporary electronic pop. Collaborator proves that the modern day club remix doesn't have to be death by four-to-the-floor and can instead be a song-oriented art form in itself. A significant number of tracks feature long-time friend Bernard Sumner who appears vocally in four guises on songs reworked in a classic electronic style not really heard accompanying his voice since New Order's Here To Stay in 2002 and Electronic with Johnny Marr. In addition, there are Reeder's versions of both Bad Lieutenant singles Sink Or Swim and Twist of Fate, which are without doubt more enjoyable that the guitar-driven originals. Meanwhile the wonderful Miracle Cure helmed by dance merchants Blank and Jones could easily be mistaken for a New Order dance track as interpreted by Reeder. Best of all, though, is She Wants - Sumner's most recent collaboration with Westbam. Given an Old School Remix by Reeder, this does what it says on the tin. Collaborator also highlights Reeder's love of female fronted synthpop. Reeder's So Close Remix of Marsheaux's So Far and a smooth Euro styled Sweet and Sticky rework of Sugarland by Marnie both display an affinity with The Electricity Club's own tastes. But things are then taken to the next level with his remix of Neon by Queen of Hearts. TEC is pleased to say it assisted in bringing these two together, and the resulting Electrically Excited Remix is a rich slice of euphoric electro schaffel well worth the creative intervention. Sam Taylor-Wood teams up with old pals Pet Shop Boys for an extended retro restyling of I'm In Love With a German Film Star" (The Electricity Club, 05/2014)