Posted by Andrew Unterberger on 11/02/2011 at 4:06 PM News

The Popdust Files: born this way: the remix, lady gaga, marry the night, Remix, the weeknd

You may or may not know exactly what a remix of Lady Gaga’s “Marry the Night” will sound like just by knowing that The Weeknd is partially responsible for the new cut, but you can probably guess that it’s not going to be made any faster, brighter or poppier. Indeed, Abel Tesfaye tends to go the other way with things, and his and Illangelo’s “Marry the Night” remix (from the upcoming Born This Way: The Remix compilation) slows the original to a near-dubstep (in the Burial sense, not the Skrillex sense) crawl, with haunting strings and synth moans, and a skittery, Timabaland-circa-’98-esque beat providing the song’s sole propulsion. (Until even that cuts out, and it’s just Gaga, some piano twinkling and some creepy backing vocals.)

It’s minorly predictable, but it’s pretty badass, especially for the first couple of minutes, and it gives Lady Gaga an Aaliyah-esque cool that she’s never really had before. Between this, the Wild Beasts “You and I” and the Twin Shadow “Born This Way,” Born This Way: The Remix seems like it might actually be more than a mild curiosity, and perhaps something verging dangerously close to a must-listen. We’ll see, but early returns are certainly promising.

[Pitchfork]