Paintings for your eardrums

The legitimacy of mash-up artists as just that, artists, is a point of contention in many circles. Some argue that because the end product is derived from the creative content of other musicians and artists, that end content is not original and it is not their own. While that may be the case, what musician is using notes to construct their "art" that have never been used? It is also argued by supporters of the musical niche that the end product is part of a transformational process, rendering the mash-up its own original creation, separate from the works that make up its parts.

One mash-up artist that has recently caught my ear is a fellow that goes by the name DJ Black Irish. He's presently a student at Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA, and he deserves your attention. Not because he is local, but because he's great. He strikes a balance between the complex style of Girl Talk's Greg Gillis, with his walls of sound and intricate mixes that can be a bit overwhelming at times, and the more simplistic approach of the White Panda, who generally choose to combine only a few songs to create funky grooves that can really get a party started.

Regardless of his status as an artist, if the works of this aural wizard were pictures, I'd hang them on my walls.