Category: Quadzilla Is Spinning!

It’s time again for another installment of – you know I love acronyms – G.O.T.C. & M! Otherwise known as “get off the couch and move!” Another eight tracks of “motivational” music to get you going. The playlist contains one pop and one house track along with four dance tunes and two electronic, with contributions from eight different artists along with featured vocalists. What follows is the scoop on four of the entries.

Silk City is a music project that began in 2018 when American DJ and record producer, Diplo (Thomas Wesley Pentz – 1978), and English-American musician, DJ, songwriter, and producer, Mark Ronson (1975) joined forces. Their debut single, “Only Can Get Better” (2018), featured vocals by Daniel Merriweather. Their second single, “Feel About You” (2018) featured vocals by Mapei. The playlist track was their fourth released single (Sep.6, 2018), “Electricity,” with vocals by English-Albanian singer-songwriter, and actress Dua Lipa. The music video was released the same day. In 2021 they released another single, “New Love,” this one featuring English singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding.

The Night Writers (also written as “The Nightwriters,” “The Knight Writers,” “Nightwriterz,” and “The Night Riders”) was a Chicago House group that was active from 1987-1989. The group’s name, or names ,were often considered to be and alias for Frankie Knuckles, who produced both of the group’s landmark singles. The Night Writers’ discography was written by the lesser-known duo of Jere McAllister and Henry Riley Evans, with the original vocals for the playlist’s track, “Let the Music Use You,” performed by Ricky Dillard. After the song’s release (1987), it rose to widespread acclaim in both the United States and the United Kingdom. A second mash-up version of the single, “The Night Writers/BnC – Let the Music Use You/House Ain’t Givin Up,” was released by Jack Trax later that same year. From 1987 to 2021, the track has been reissued, remastered and remixed at least 14 times on labels such as Danica Records, Jack Trax, Ffrreedom, Danceteria Records, Phuture Trax Promotions, S12, and Mint Condition.

Next up is Franky Rizardo, one of The Netherlands’ finest music exports, who established himself as a name renowned across the globe driven by his music that tends to blur the lines between Techno and House. He is an Ibiza regular with the ANTS, Music On and Elrow camps, as well as hitting the decks in iconic venues such as Fabric (London), Shelter (Amsterdam), Amnesia (Ibiza), and Sound (Los Angeles). In 2015, Rizardo launched his FLOW brand with his good friend, Jasper Fioole, and since that time the pair have challenged themselves to bring people into a “flow state of mind” by creating unique vibrant gatherings and connecting people through their music. By 2023, Rizardo saw an expansion of his music with his own label, LTF Records, hitting No.1 on Beatport with “Everybody” and “Out The Fire (At The Hotel)” garnering over six million plays on Spotify in the first year. FLOW hosts over 20 events a year, and as they continue to grow, 2023 saw them launch into new territories such as the USA, Australia, Asia, and beyond. The featured track on the playlist, “Same Man,” is a single from 2017.

Chris Joss (1964) is a French multi-instrumentalist and record producer. When he was twelve, his parents enrolled him in electronic organ lessons, which taught him the basics of music, although he always wanted to play the drums. At fourteen, he received an acoustic guitar and taught himself how to play it. In 1981, he formed a band while in high school, and dropped out of school in 1984, “beginning to invest in recording and electronic equipment.” His music ranges from funk to electronica, and several of his tracks from his releases are featured in movie trailers such as Accepted (2006), Argo (2012), Hotel for Dogs (2009), Inside Deep Throat (2005), Ocean’s Thirteen (2007), and Role Models (2008), as well as the television shows, Six Feet Under, and Better Call Saul. In 1987, Joss released his first record with his three-member band on EMI. His 1999 album, The Man With a Suitcase, was part of a trend in the late 1990s of “imaginary soundtracks,” compositions created to accompany films that did not actually exist! As of 2021, Joss has released twelve solo albums plus a remix album; five of them by ESL music and six on his own Teraphonic Records.

Time to listen. Enjoy!

Los Angeles 2025

More music to get you spinning. This particular grouping of songs provides a rather energetic workout from start to finish. The list features music from eight different artists and four different countries, United States (2), United Kingdom (3), Slovenia (1), and South Africa (2), and from several genres including House (2), Dance (3), Electronic, Reggae, and, surprisingly enough, Pop. However, when you hear the sublime vocal from Cara Frew on the single “Falling,” you might become a “pop” fan!

The workout begins with the track “Equilibrium” from Slovenian producer Denis Jašarrević (1984), known by his stage name Gramatik, currently residing in New York City. His interest in music began at age three, when his mother would catch him listening to American funk, jazz, soul, and blues from his older sister’s cassette tapes. He started producing hip-hop music using an early PC when he was 13, followed by him sharing his tracks through the online music store, Beatport, which helped him gain a following in the United States and Europe. After relocating to New Your City and signing with a new agency, he released his debut studio album, Expedition 44, in July of 2008, as well as a second studio album, Street Bangerz Vol.1 that same year. The song, “Equilibrium,” is from that debut album. To date, he has released 18 albums, the most recent, Aequoreus (2025). Needless to say, his music pops up on my spin lists on a regular basis.

The lone reggae track on the list belongs to SOJA, the acronym of Soldiers of Jah Army), an American band based in Arlington, Virginia. They formed in 1997, and the eight-member band has released 12 albums since their first release in 2000, the self-titled Soldiers of Jah Army. Their latest release was Beauty in the Acoustic (2024) and the playlist song, “Tried my Best,” is from 2017’s Poetry in Motion. While the amount of reggae tracks I use to spin to is sparse, every once in a while, there is the odd song, like the one on this list, that speaks to me. The current line-up for SOJA are: Jacob Hemphill (lead vocals/guitar, 1997-present), Bobby “Lee” Jefferson (bass guitar/vocals, 1997-present), Ryan “Bird” Berty (drums, 1997-present), Ken Brownell (percussion, 1997-present), Pastrick O’Shea (keyboards, 2002-present), Hellman Escoria (saxophone, 2012-present), Rafael Rodriguez (trumpet, 2012-present), and Trevor Young (lead guitar, guest lead vocals, 2014-present).

There are two tracks on this list from South African artists, the aforementioned Cara Frew and an electronic duo from Cape Town, Dominic Peters (production, keyboards, upright bass, bass guitar) and David Poole (production, saxophone, flute, vocals), otherwise known as Goldfish. They now reside in San Diego, California, creating dance music containing elements of house, pop, jazz, and African music. Thery have released eight albums to date, their debut in 2006, Caught in the Loop and their latest, If Summer was a Sound in 2023. The featured song, “Get Busy Living,” is from their 2010 release of the same name and features vocals from Emily Bruce, who is featured on two other tracks from this album. Goldfish are another group that I use frequently for my spin lists. When you listen to the song from this playlist, you will know why.

Cara Frew’s artistic journey began as a singer/songwriter and recording artist when she signed with Sony Music to release her debut album, Flame, in 2017. The featured song on this playlist, “Falling,” was released as a single in 2015. Besides her music career, she is also an actress, which has been occupying her time these days, although she did release a second album, Candy Coloured Nightmare, in 2025. She studied at Berklee College of Music, earning a Master Certificate in vocal performance, piano, production, song writing, and music theory from the Malie Kelly Vocal Academy. Frew has headlined the live stage at the Ultra Music Festival in Singapore, resonated with audiences throughout Toronto at Canadian Music Week, and sold out shows in Los Angeles, including an unforgettable performance at Johnny Depp’s iconic Viper Room in West Hollywood. Although her debut album was classified as “pop,” her latest release is labelled as singer/songwriter, just another example of what I like to call “genre roulette.”

Enough talk, enjoy the music!

Los Angeles 2025

Here is another international playlist with tracks from England, Austria, Croatia, Germany, Belgium, Australia, Sweden, and Norway. To start things off, a rather hypnotic, trance-like tune that will get you started with a repetitive beat that you can adjust your tempo to suit your needs thanks to, “Shining Through,” from British DJ duo, Lay Pashkin and Matthew Benjamin, better known as Layo & Bushwacka!. They released four House Tech albums between 1998-2012. Next up is a more up-beat track by Austrian DJ and producer, Parov Stelar (Marcus Füreder) from a 2016 live album recorded at Pukklepop, an annual music festival in Belgium. Although best known for sampling vintage swing records, contributing to the electro-swing oeuvre, he is also known for dabbling in soul and pop, as well as remixing and putting his own spin on tracks like Lana Del Rey’s “Dark Paradise” (2013), and Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett’s “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love” (2014). His live performances are a wonderful blend of musicianship, vocals, and electronics. Very hard to sit still when listening to these performances.

The next four tracks keep the beat going with contributions from Funky Destination (Vladimir Siuc – Croatia), Purple Disco Machine (Tino Piontek – Germany) & Lorenz Rhode, a self-proclaimed synth nerd, Llorca (Ludovic Llorca – Belgium), and Sonny Fedora (Australian born London based DJ and producer).

The last two entries are both from 2012 and both from Scandinavian artists. Otto Knows (Otto Jettman) is from Sweden, a native of Stockholm, and came under the wing of local stars such as Swedish House Mafia. His solo breakthrough came with “Million Voices,” with its euphoric synths and vocals, which epitomized at the time the era’s big-room EDM at its most anthemic. Savant is one of the many aliases of Aleksander Vinter, a Norwegian DJ and producer, who has also released under the names Vinter, Datakrash, Blanco, and Vitner in Hollywood, just to name a few. The last track, “Mother Earth,” is from Savant’s 2012 release, Alchemist.

Enjoy the workout!

Los Angeles 2025

If you have listened to the previous two offerings on this page, you probably have a fairly good idea of the type of music that drives my “spinning” obsession. Moving forward, I will provide some background on some of the featured artists on these lists and spare you the running monologue of the type of beats, vocals, background, and everything else that goes into making this type of music. When you listen to playlist, all will be revealed as it should be.

First up on the playlist are an English DJ and production duo, consisting of Dave Whelan and Mike Di (known as CamelPhat), formed in London in 2006. To date, they have released two studio albums and many singles and Eps, and they have collaborated with many different artists, as they do on the single, “Crystal Clear” (2019) with Riva Starr, aka East-London based Stefano Miele, a widely respected DJ and producer originally from Naples, Italy. As his bio states: He “has made a career from shrugging off genre constraints and expectations.” In other words, my type of artist. This collaboration also features Ursula Rucker, an American spoken word and recording artist, known for a diverse repertoire, and for using techniques that catch the listeners’ attention, as she does on this single.

The next track, “Sorry,” is from another English DJ, producer, and television personality, Joel Corry (1989). The vocals on this track belong to Hayley May as well as being a remix thanks to English house music maestro Majestic who, when he isn’t rocking out joints with his beats, is a mental health ambassador for UK charity CALM. Also featured on this playlist are GoldFish, an electronic duo originating from Cape Town, South Africa and now residing in San Diego, California, consisting of Dominic Peters (production, keyboards, upright bass, and bass guitar) and David Poole (production, saxophone, flute, and vocals). They create dance music containing elements of house, pop, jazz and African music. And last but not least, the second-to-last track belongs to Shakedown, which is a Swiss musical project consisting of Stephan Mandrax and Sebastien Kohler who created their own in 1999, which is a modified disco infused house music crossed with electro, also known as electro-funk or electro-pop.

Enjoy!