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Discovery of the day: The dø vs. Heyday.

The who?

Anyway. Big sound. Fuzzy, galloping bass, anguished vocals -- it's like the Knife collided with Röyksopp in a dark alley way, got carnal, and had a love child (long lost twin, rumour has it, of Mika).

Dance music this fun should be a crime.




[the dø - MySpace] [Amazon] [Heyday - MySpace]

Labels: Dance, Electronica, Pop, Remix

Bloc Party’s debut album Silent Alarm

Perhaps lesser known, however, is the remix version of the same album, where such electro-luminaries as Ladytron, M83, and Four Tet have a bash at reconfiguring the Bloc’s tunes for ‘em.
made a huge splash when it came on the scene a couple of year’s back.

Labels: Dance, Electronica, Indie, Remix, UK

The first impression of War Stories, the third release from UK outfit Unkle, is one of awesome power: a towering juggernaut of sonic beautastic-ness.

Wily and hard-bitten in places, lush and orchestral in others, War Stories strains and snaps at its leash like a feral, wholly unpredictable beast.

Repeated listens, however, begin to reveal a crack or two in the savagery. The album seems less bite, more whimper. Somehow, someway, the whole is not quite equal to its parts.

But, oh, the parts.

The first single, "Burn My Shadow", is like a warped, cracked-out version of Revolution (from the Cult’s Love LP, circa 1985). Ian Astbury is amazing here, managing to sound both menacing and plaintive at the same time. It’s a treat to hear Astbury in such fine form, and he shows up not once, but twice, gracing the albums’ final track as well.

Unkle has had no shortage of big-name guests in the past: Thom Yorke and Ian Brown, to name but two. And their latest line-up is an intriguing mix of some of rock’s more interesting vocalists, including Gavin Clarke, Liela Moss from The Duke Spirit, Josh Homme and, of course, Astbury.

Not all guest tracks work – Gavin Clarke’s "Keys To The Kingdom" is one of the weaker songs on the album. It’s Astbury who is the standout here, no question. His deep, mellifluous voice perfectly suits Unkle’s dark, volatile grooves.

When it works, it works: War Stories' highs are spectacularly high. Certain parts verge on tired retreads of Unkle's older work, however, and this is, ultimately, what makes the album a flawed one.

Unkle - Burn My Shadow:



[Unkle - MySpace]

Labels: Dance, Electronica, Rock, UK

Anyone remember Bronski Beat?

Three UK lads who took the world by storm in the early 80s with a string of dance hits that went on to became huge gay anthems?

Remember wee Jimmy Somerville, with a face like a potato (a very cute potato), and a voice like an angel?

I had their album Age of Consent on vinyl, back in the day. I think I may have even worn a hole in it.

I'd all but forgotten about these lads, when I came across the remix "Tell Me Why" by Supermode.

Supermode are a Scandinavian group, apparently, who also like to be known as the "Swedish House Mafia". Go figure.

The song is a remix of two Bronski Beat songs, with music sampled from "Smalltown Boy", and lyrics taken from both "Smalltown Boy" and "Why".

It's magic. Listen:

Labels: 80s, Dance, UK

Allaying my vague disappointment with the new releases from The Chemical Brothers and Unkle -- both of which have some outstanding tracks, but which are, overall, a bit inconsistent -- Idealism, from German duo Digitalism, is killer.

It’s a driving, angular, thumping, damn fine example of electro-kraut-dance-punk-rock.

And while the single Zdarlight has been a favourite of mine for ages now, I’ve been delighted to find that the album more than lives up to the single’s early promise.

Here’s Zdarlight and I Want I Want:

Labels: Dance, Electronica, German