Mirah

Joyride: Remixes

(K Records)

Record Review by Alexis Roberts

Mirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn is a woman full of fascinating lyrics that take her listeners everywhere from Jerusalem to Argentina. The two-disc collection that is Joyride: Remixes is a sort of greatest hits type compilation, remixed and reinterpreted by friends. It must take a lot of faith in a person to hand over one of your songs and let them do what they will with it, but Mirah seems to be quite open and willing to let her guard down, as this is made fairly obvious in many of her songs.

As far as remix CDs go, this is at the top of the heap. The recent crap remix CDs that have been hitting the shelves left and right don’t even hold a flame to Joyride. Mirah’s songs are so delicate, and the remixes, instead of deconstructing them and turning them into something they are not, reinforce their subtle strength.

Mirah’s regularly folksy and guitar driven songs are enchanting and lighthearted. She sings about things dear to her and wears her heart on her sleeve. The greatest part is the way many of the songs are remixed is that they take the sweetness out of the song without turning it bitter. It’s like a transition from day to night. The remixes are the hot evil twin of the original song. On “Jerusalem (chopped and screwed mix by Y.A.C.H.T)” her voice is slowed down into a low moan as opposed to her normal high-pitched songbird voice. The song has all of the typical aspects of your run-of-the-mill remix song: dance beats, heavy use of electronic noise, and the intentional chopping and skipping noises. This new version, however, has morphed into a creepy somber song from its former chirpy disposition.

A few of the songs appear on both discs—remixed differently, of course. “Light,” “La Familia,” “Don’t Die in Me” and “Make it Hot” are among the songs that get the privilege of having an encore performance on disc two. Some might say that’s overkill, but it allows you to decide which remix you like better, and also gives you the comfort of familiarity.  Personally, I think “Monument” deserved a spot on both discs, but, hey, that kind of thing isn’t up to me, so I deal with it.

Joyride: Remixes is a wonderfully unique collection of songs from a very interesting and talented songwriter. They twist and turn in every direction and really do take you on a joyride through the best of Mirah’s catalogue to date... and once the ride is done, there’s still another disc waiting to take you on another one.