Christina Aguilera and The Strokes are probably the least likely collaborators you could find in today's music world. Christina dishes out the shiny bubblegum pop, while the Strokes mine rock's past to create tunes that sound like they were recorded 20 years ago. But while Aguilera and The Strokes will probably never share a stage or a studio, you can hear them perform together, thanks to the heady mix of the Internet, computers, and clever pranksters with too much time on their hands. In fact, Christina and The Strokes play together perfectly, in total sync--she's singing "Genie in the Bottle" while they back her with "Hard to Explain"--on a bootleg remix by an entity who calls himself The Freelance Hellraiser. Just search for Aguilera Strokes on KaZaa or Google, and you'll see what I mean (or enter A Stroke of Genius, the absolutely perfect title). If the labels need further proof of who now holds the reins of the music industry, this should probably seal the deal: The Artists Formerly Known As Fans.

What is this six-stringed object?
It's no accident that these remixes coincide with the fact that the Guitar Center, which sells more guitars, amps, drums, keyboards, and pro-audio equipment than any other retailer in the country, is seeing DJ turntables and multitracking software fly out the door. Meanwhile, the guitars gently weep, waiting for someone to pick them up and fill the store with wretched-to-everyone-within-earshot noodling. People are really getting into music. They're taking it apart, bending it around, scrambling it mercilessly, and outputting material, which, despite comprising other people's work, is thoroughly original. Here in San Francisco, there are fewer venues for live rock bands than ever, while every other person you walk past on the street seems to be DJ-ing or spinning at one club or another.

These downloadable bootleg remixes are a manifestation of that same development, taken online and to the extreme. People are pairing Eminem with AC/DC for weird results and coming up with clever titles such as "Smells Like Missy Elliott," which matches Nirvana with Ms. Elliott (who, incidentally, spells her name wrong--see the byline above).

Of course, the entire enterprise makes a mockery of sample clearance, copyright law, and the fleeting notion that artists have any measure of control over their own work. So what? The Internet is filled with data, and some of that information is music that can be manipulated by anyone with a computer and some imagination. I'm sure the record companies are going ballistic about this development but only because their blinkered view prevents them from seeing this trend for what it really is: a twisted form of tribute.

Stop helping us or we'll shoot!
It reminds me of the way Hollywood, citing certain copyright- and trademark-protection laws, threatens massive legal action against bewildered 14-year-old kids who are "guilty" of building sites honoring their favorite TV shows. The kid just wants to tell the world how much he likes Buffy--that is until The Man shows up talking loudly, carrying a big stick (or a cease-and-desist letter), and demanding the removal of all pictures, audio samples, and video clips. By taking such actions, the studios are shooting themselves in the foot in a way so obvious I can hardly even stand to point it out: they are preventing someone from doing their marketing for them, for free. The Hollywood crowd would do well to heed two classic clichés: There's no such thing as bad publicity, and imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. As well as contradicting their marketing objectives, crushing fan sites just plain makes the studios look bad. The same thing happens with these bootleg remixes. The labels see them as theft and desecration, when in fact they're really just a form of homage that can only boost the popularity--or at least the notoriety--of the songs used. Many artists don't consider themselves a success until Weird Al does a version of their song; the bootleg remix phenomenon should be seen in the same light.

Someone somewhere gets it
Let's get you hooked up with some of these bootleg remixes, so that you can add to your collection if you're already a fan or see what all the fuss is about if you're new to the scene. Sometimes you just have to stumble across them--try searching file-sharing programs for bootleg remix or other such terms--but you'll find some good places to start below. Remember, you're likely to encounter a decent dose of irreverence or (in some cases) obscenity on these sites, so if you're easily offended, give it a pass and check out the MP3 Insider archive for more serious fare.