Avicii - Levels (Chris Stebbins Summer 2015 Remix)

You'll be forgiven for reading the title of this post and thinking "Oh god, not another rehash of this tired old track", because I have to admit, I have the same knee jerk reaction every time I hear Levels even mentioned in casual conversation. But if you had that thought, I hope you pressed play anyway like I did, as you'll be pleasantly surprised with this remix from Chris Stebbins.

Chris has taken the original to another place, with little left from the original aside from his use of the Etta James vocal sample from her 1962 single Something's Got A Hold On Me.  Aside from that sample, Chris has gone on to create a fresh new melody that really gave this track new legs for 2015 that I would never have expected. Do yourself a favour and have a listen, and grab the free download from his Facebook Page.

- KJ

Ellie Goulding - Love Me Like You Do (Chris Stebbins Remix)

Chris Stebbins dropped us a line letting us know he was dropping his remix of Ellie Goulding's Love Me Like You Do as a free download last week.  You may recognize his name if you checked the Friday Care Package out on Friday, as we included his remix of Wiz Khalifa's See You Again.

The track eases into things with a gradual build that introduces some of Chris's melodic elements through the initial verse and into the first run through the chorus.  The percussion doesn't really drop until the one minute mark when the second verse hits. This remix has a slightly reigned in big room progressive house sound that gives a nod to mainstream dance while also staying away from being cliché.  Fans of the original Ellie Goulding track will also appreciate that Chris left the vocals intact and without pitching of any kind.

Make sure you check out this Ontario producer's Soundcloud page, and keep an eye on it as he mentioned he's got a few more tracks up his sleeve that are forthcoming. 

- KJ