Streetlab is an electronic/rock duo from Brooklyn, NY, who've made a name for themselves with huge club remixes of classic songs like The Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter," Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song," and Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Fortunate Son." More recently, they've done remixes for artists like Hot Chip, Heartsrevolution, and Crystal Castles, and have been stirring up attention around their self-titled debut EP.

RCRD LBL had this to say about the first single, N Y Sound :

This fidget-disco apocalypse has been blowing out PA fuses across Europe for a while, especially in Italy and England. But maybe the Streetlab guys go to parties I don't go to, parties where serpentine bass quashes and a jagged electro-house stutter have commandeered the sound of the city that never sleeps, killing classic disco with one blast of a supersonic laser gun.

We had a few questions for the guys, and they spared no detail in their answers!

Tell me a little bit about yourselves: who's who, who does what, how'd you find each other?

Coz: I'm the shorter one. We don't have too many strict rules about who does what in the studio. The process is always changing. I do most of the final mixing and polishing - but other than that it's usually all open to attack any instrument or device in the room. In the studio we have every device and station synced to our master computer - so you can essentially walk up to anything and start playing with it. We record everything too so be careful if you're ever over touching things....

Ryan: I would be the tall ginger although right now I am a blondie. Coz and I first met in 6th grade after he moved to the area. We actaully started off brawling like many kids do in sixth grade. It was a crazy year but after it was said and done we were hanging out quite a bit. Musically we started together around late high school/early college. My first memory is sampling washing machines and random stuff around his house. In the studio nowadays we each do a little bit of everything. We are both always creating demos and whatever sounds good we will jam out on together and take it to the next level. We both run Ableton Live in sync and tend to come up with many ideas that way. Ableton has tons of flexiiblity and possibilities. When we do remixes most of the time all the crazy sounds are actaully a part of the original tweaked out in Ableton Live or Reason. Usually I am using the MicroKorg, VSTi's or Reason to get some really distant sounding textures or crazy sounds. Every song is different but once we get everything close Coz will pull out his mixing skills and make sure everything is finalized and sounding awesome.

Where/when did you start making music, and what spurred the name Streetlab?

Coz: I started making music as far back as I can remember. My Father was in a band when I was growing up so it was always around me. Plus I was sort of raised on MTV in the '80s - I don't think I watched many cartoons. So it's always been around...I used to watch MTV and follow the melodies with my little Casio keyboard. I also remember using the built in mic to 'sample' a song off the tv speaker, and then play it back on all the keys. Man I was sampling at 8!

Ryan: I started with an old piano and later a ghetto drum set and bass guitar in my basement. Coz and I started making stuff around 1999 but back then it was more Rock/Industrial. Streetlab started around 2001 when we were in college and sharing an apartment. Picking a name was a long process in which numerous names were written on notebooks and passed around. Eventually we decided that Streetlab sounded the best and everyone seemed to like it so we went with that. Sorry wish we had a crazier story for that one.

How would you describe the "New York Sound"?

Coz: Funny question. There was never a conscious thought to have a song describing a 'sound' or trying to define it. To me, the 'sound' of the song in which it speaks is more in the lyrics and the meaning behind them. The 'sound' is the way we live here in NYC - what is all around us everyday. The norms, the way live here, what they think about....

Ryan: A supernatural experience.

What do you guys do when not playing music?

Coz: HA! I ask myself this question all the time. But I can never answer it, so I always resort back to playing music. I've been very much a music whore for the past year or so. If I'm not in the studio I'm probably out at a show or party...serious.

Ryan: We are involved in music every weekend. There is always something we can be working on. If not I try to get outside and explore brooklyn, go out to eat, go to some bars and parties, play the Wii, do some pilates or yoga and converse about the future and current state of things.

I hear a bit of Dead or Alive in your tracks (especially NY Sound)…is that intentional? Who and what are your biggest influences?

Coz: Who is Dead or Alive?! (Googling.....) I'll get back to you...

Ryan: Well I have to honestly admit I have never listened to Dead or Alive so it was definitely not intentional. Biggest influences would be The Chemical Brothers and NIN. Hearing Dig Your Own Hole for the first time is something I will never forget. It shocked my brain and opened up many other doors of influences. Before I heard that I really only listened to Rock/Alternative music.

What's your favorite of your songs so far? Why?

Coz: One of my favorites has got to be What Is It For? (feat. Dawnie Love). Main reason being the lyrics and meaning to the song. They are spot on for me. Also, a more techy reason being its probably the 'oldest' song on the EP. Meaning it was around and in development before the rest. And from where we come from - the longer a song is around, the more likely you are going to kill it. So I love that this song came together...

Ryan: Hmmm that's a tough one. After hearing them all so many times its hard to pick a favorite. My favorites right now are probably songs that are in the works but off of the USB EP we just released I would have to say Supernatural and N Y Sound . "Supernatural" because of the journey that song has been on since we started it about 5 years ago and because it gets my blood pumping. "NYSound" because of the evolution of the track and it finally coming to fruition was rewarding. Also the recording process of the vocals was a supernatural experience....

How is life on the road treating you? Any tales to tell?

Coz: Nothing too out of the norm yet. Blowing venue speakers, hitting 'STOP' buttons by accident, people requesting songs thinking we are DJing...ya know the usual stuff.

Ryan: So far so good. No crazy tales yet but I am sure there will be some in the future.

What do you see for yourselves in the future, and what do you NOT want to become?

Coz: FAME. $$$. HOT CARS & HOT CHICKS. But I don't want to become greedy....

Ryan: Hopefully if everything works out we will be playing shows around the globe and producing our own music and others. Ideally it would be nice to have the economic freedom to explore all of our artistic directions. I also envision some crazy studio either isolated in the woods or out in Cali where we can escape and make music.

I do not want to become a mindless zombie who works for the man, waits for the weekend and has no direction or passion. I do not want to be taken advantage of by someone's economic dreams and I never want to base my life around a 9-5 lifestyle. I guess that sums it up.......

Featured Tracks:
N Y Sound
What Is It For?