Dance music's best of '06, and where they're headed next
True to its mid-decade position, 2006 in electronic dance music was a cross-fade of musical styles, a transition from superstar-DJ-spun mix-CDs to band-based productions, and a time when indie hip-hop got inspiration from dance music tweakery (and vice versa). Here is the Groundswell Top 10 for 2006:
Spank Rock, YoYoYoYoYo ("Groundswell," May 11). This Baltimore-based duo takes the pomp out of hip-hop with schoolyard rhymes and blip-hop beats. The girl-crazy, Q-Tip-like flow of frontman Naeem Juwon gives the act a trashy, Beasties-esque irreverence. Beat-maker Alex Epton brings hip-hop production into the 21st century with spacey, up-tempo kicks and gamer-like 8-bit influences. With an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live already under its belt this year, we sense an '07 breakthrough.
Lady Sovereign, Public Warning (cover story by Natalie Nichols, December 7). Public Warning pairs Sov's pirate-radio influences with some serious broken-speaker bass rumble, not to mention her literal, lyrical f-u spirit. Raw, electronic, and sincerely free of American rap's bullshit posse-on-Rodeo pose, the collection is a chest full of fresh sticky. And, in her own words, "The next album ... they're gonna shit themselves." Can't wait.
Dabrye, Two/Three ("Groundswell," June 22). The assault on major-label crap rap was relentless in '06, and much of it came from the dance community. One-time techno producer Dabrye schools the studio with spaced-out production harking back to the Afro-futuristic '80s (the last era of hip-hop/dance-music collusion). Two/Three doesn't sleep lyrically, either. "Who want to size me up," spits Guilty Simpson, "I got a 40 cal chillin' right beside my nuts." Here's hoping the majors enlist Dabrye as a big gun in the studio this year.
Basement Jaxx, Crazy Itch Radio. It received scant attention and even some derision (from diehard fans, no less). Let us go against the grain on this one: The Jaxx produced one of its best albums to date. Sure, it isn't the typical Brazilian headdress-wearing carnival we're all used to, but, then again, "Samba Magic" was produced 10 years ago. Get over it. The duo continues to push its post-house sound with out-of-this-world production. Every bass kick, blip, horn, crowd sound, and guitar lick is placed in perfect kinetic motion. Instant classic: "Smoke Bubbles."
Goldfrapp, Supernature ("Groundswell," March 2). When we wrote about Goldfrapp's amazing album, you yawned. And now the act is all over your television dial (Target, Verizon ads). Supernature captures the mid-'00s zeitgeist of tech desire, online lust, and yup-scale consumerism, 3.0. The breathy, sexy vocals of Alison Goldfrapp go perfectly with the icy, optimistic Euro-synth energy of Will Gregory. "Fly Me Away," indeed.
Hybrid, I Choose Noise ("Groundswell," October 26). With this expansive, symphonic, cinematic album, the Welsh duo of Mike Truman and Chris Healings prove they belong in the top echelon of electronic producers. Perry Farrell vocalizes for the ages on the sizzling breakbeat single "Dogstar." The pair's frequent work with Hollywood composer Harry Gregson-Williams means Hybrid will go big screen (and wide angle) in '07 and beyond.
Junkie XL, Today ("Groundswell," April 13). Junkie XL, a.k.a. Dutchman-turned-Angeleno Tom Holkenborg, told us he wants to reinvent himself with every album, and that's just what he's done. The club star and top remixer (Elvis's "A Little Less Conversation") made an electronic shoegazer collection. But Today also has electronic energy, guitar aggression, and breakbeat momentum. These days, he's working on big-screen music. Another reinvention, coming to a theater near you.
Satoshi Tomiie, Renaissance Presents 3D: Satoshi Tomiie ("Groundswell," February 16). New York DJ Tomiie's three-disc opus pushes the boundaries of the mixtape-as-art-form, going long with three hours and 46 minutes of house, tech-house, and progressive. His piano-based intro to his house classic "Tears" is sublime.
Booka Shade, Movements. The longtime Berlin duo of Walter Merziger and Arno Kammermeier finally broke through in 2006, becoming the act on every DJ's mind. Movements captured the dance-floor sound of the year - chugging, bubbly, minimal tech-house. With an L.A. appearance planned for March, expect to hear more of that chewy, rubbery bass-tech from this pair.
Mexican Institute of Sound, Mejico Maxico. Mexico City's Camilo Lara is a one-man e-music band, a testament to today's global tsunami of electronic flavor, yet instinctually native in his local favor. The sounds of Lara's homeland waft through his Rhodes-'n'-bass digital soundtrack like savory smoke from a neighbor's carne asada barbecue. You have to taste it.
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