I’ve been friends with DJ/producer Mike Vincent since the fifth grade. We met in English class in a town called Natick, 30 minutes outside of Boston. Mike was wearing a Rage Against the Machine t-shirt. I was (and still am) a Rage Against the Machine fan. From that point on Mike and I shared a common interest in music. We both liked the same bands and the same musical styles and we would continually share tunes with each other. Mike was always a guitar player and once I began playing the drums we would have recurring jam sessions, eventually forming the band A Crowded Mind. Mike and I did the band thing through high school but once college came we parted ways, keeping in touch sporadically. Finally Mike and I reconnected after college only to find out we both had a huge passion for dance music. While I enjoyed writing about and listening to dance music, Mike had taken things a step further with his background in music production: he’d been working on writing dance tracks and DJing at parties around Boston. After making some key connections in the industry Mike became a resident DJ at Bill’s Bar, located right next to Fenway Park. Bill’s is a unique venue in that it has the feeling of a bar while keeping the music format in the dance music world. As I was getting my feet wet with DJing myself Mike invited me to open for him during his residency and between the two of us we had many awesome nights on Landsdowne St.
I’d like to say I take partial credit in coming up with Mike’s stage name of Mike Vincent and that happened when things really started to progress for him. Between playing gigs around town and holding down a full-time job, Mike somehow found the time to hone his skills in the studio. Before he knew it, Mike Vincent was on the Barstool Blackout Tour, co-Headlining with Dante the Don and playing in front of thousands of people each night at venues like the House of Blues Boston, the Worcester DCU Center, Philadelphia’s Electric Factory, and Washington DC’s Fur Nightclub (just to name a few). Things kept getting bigger for Mike and this past Spring he decided to move to LA to pursue his dream of producing and DJing professionally.
This morning Mike Vincent sent over a brand new mix, compiled exclusively for MMIBTY. Having seen Mike DJ many times and having heard several of his mixes, I can honestly say this is the best 70 minutes he has strung together yet. The sound Mike Vincent prefers is something along the lines of funky bangers. Mike’s always preferred heavier tracks, but when he’s not in front of a crowd of thousands of screaming fans covered in foam, he prefers to break out the funkier side of hard-hitting House music. Mike and I share this in common. These days the key to my heart is a good bass line, something that has almost disappeared from dance music. But Mike has done his homework and mixed together a set that keeps things aggressive, fun, and flowing. The set opens with a Mike Vincent original called “Dirk Diggler”, out on his forth-coming EP, and displays his continued growth as a songwriter. The mix follows with a string of high-energy tunes including Paris & Simo/Merk & Kremont’s “Tundra” and the Sick Individuals remix of “We Are the Sun”. After taking a Progressive break with EDX’s “Hazed”, we’re treated to songs like “La Tromba” (Chris Lake & Nom De Strip Remix), another Mike Vincent original called “Monday”, a bangin’ track by Marcel vs. Stefano Pain called “Back”, and Madeon’s new track “Technicolor”. I love Mike’s inclusion of Michael Woods’ remix of “You Don’t Know Me“, Axwell & Sebastian Ingrosso’s “Roar” (funkier than I realized), and Felguk’s “Slice and Dice”.
Overall this mix is very well-done and I’ll definitely be playing it repeated times over the coming weeks. Make sure to show Mike Vincent your love and support and make sure to also keep your eyes locked on his SoundCloud page for new releases! *Track list after the jump!*
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Track List:
Dirk Diggler (Original Mix) – Mike Vincent
Rocket – Stereotronique
Bugabull vs. Walhalla – Marco V (Mike Vincent Edit)
Tundra – Merk & Kremont, Paris & Simo
Maelstrom – Alex Mind
We Are The Sun (Sick Individuals Remix) – Heather Bright, Savvoy
Hazed – EDX
Stage Dive (Chrizz Luvly & Rocket Pimp Remix) – Chrizz Luvly
La Tromba (Chris Lake & Nom De Strip Remix) – Chris Lake, Marco Lys
Monday (Original Mix) – Mike Vincent
Back – Marcel, Stefano Pain
Technicolor – Madeon
You Don’t Know Me (Michael Woods Remix) – Armand Van Helden
Blaze (Dirty South Edit) – Maarcos
Roar – Axwell & Sebastain Ingrosso
Slice and Dice – Felguk
Childish Grandpa – Julian Jordan & TV Noise