Bootlegs by Freelance Hellraiser
XFM Superchunk DJ set

Freelance Hellraiser has been DJing for around ten years now. In that time he has honed to a fine art the practice of mixing acappellas and instrumentals from different records together - unusual combinations that result in dancefloor brilliance. Perhaps the most celebrated 'bootleg' of recent times - 'A Stroke Of Genieus' - was the work of this man. The track caused some controversy as both Aguilera's and The Strokes' labels issued 'cease and desist' letters to radio stations warning them not to play the track as it infringed copyright. Seems some corporate heads just don't recognise the notion of unorthodox free publicity always...

Of course, man cannot live on one bootleg alone. The Hellraiser has produced several other quirky unofficial remixes and examples of bastard pop, and he is currently working on his own material with collaborators including members of Snow Patrol and in 2002 completed remix work Gomez, Ian Brown and Richard Ashcroft.

But 'A Stroke Of Genieus' seems to have ingited the trend for bootlegging, capturing the imagination of bedroom producers and DJs like no other booty before it. While people attempt to emulate FH's success however, the man remains one step ahead and at the top of his game thanks to continued support from radio stations such as XFM (London) and BTTB (Germany).

Bootlegs by the Freelance Hellraiser include:

Supersimon
Stevie Wonder's 'Superstitious' as covered by an electronic Simon toy!

Lick Pops
Missy Elliot finds herself licking shots over N Sync's devastating pop beats

Just Can't Get Enough Pills
The twisted drug-fuelled dirty dozen meet their match in Dave Gahan and the Basildon crew

Step On Man
Bootleggers favourite Missy flirts with the Happy Mondays, all for the love of money

A Stroke Of Genieus
The flawless fusion of grinding Noo Yoik rawk and sauntry sly pop - the one that everybody talked about - made both The Strokes and Christina Aguilera actually seem interesting...

Grange Hill Grammar
Yokel bad boy Nelly goes back to school and finds Mr Bronson less receptive to his excuses for not doing his homework ("Snoop Doggy Dogg ate it Sir...")

Musical Know How
The token Madonna bootleg, but it sounds phat as ever with Young MC spewing his dope old-skool rhymes over the top.

Trapped Dreams
Military smoothie Colonel Abrams runs predictably into Dave and Annie and their memorable warm synths and the result is a pleasant splicing of two well crafted 80s pop hits.

XFM Superchunk DJ set - Jan 2002
The Strokes - "Hard To Explain" (Rough Trade)
Christina Aguilera - "Genie In A Bottle" (RCA)
Outkast - "So Fresh So Clean (Fatboy Slim Mix)" (Arista)
Freelance Hellraiser - "Supersimon" (Strangelove)
Adam F + LL Cool J - "Greatest Of All Time" (EMI)
Deltron 3030 - "Positive Contact (Charlie Clouser Rmx Inst.)" (75 Ark)
Erick Sermon + Marvin Gaye - "Music" (NY.LA)
Ice T - "New Jack Hustler (David Morales Stress Mix)" (Warner)
Ol' Dirty Bastard + Kelis - "Got My Money" (No Info)
The Jackson Sisters - "I Believe In Miracles" (Tiger Lily)
Giorgio Moroder - "The Chase" (Casablanca)
Kelis - "Young Fresh & New (Timo Maas Mix)" (No Info)
My Mate Svante - "Push It Around The World" (unreleased)
Badmarsh & Shri - "Get Up" (Outcaste)
Stereo MCs - "Deep Down & Dirty (Jon Carter Basement Mix)" (Island)
N'Sync - "Pop (Instrumental Mix)" (Jive)
Missy Elliot - "Lick Shots" (East West)
Depeche Mode - "Just Can't Get Enough" (Mute)
D12 - "Purple Pills" (Interscope)
Shirley Bassey - "I'd Like To Hate Myself In The Morning (And Raise A Little Hell)" (EMI)

also broadcast on Back To The Basics on 01/03/02