This week in dance music: Spencer Brown shared his experiences as a producer with OCD, Palm Tree Festival Aspen released the lineup for its February event, Kylie Mingue’s Tension hit the top of Dance/Electronic Albums, M83 answered 20 questions about his discomfort with the limelight and more, the David Byrne and Fatboy Slim musical Here Lies Love announced that it will host DJ sets after select performances starting this weekend, we shared an exclusive first looks at the forthcoming ILLENIUM graphic novel, the managers of artists including deadmau5 and Chris Lake announced a new venture around artist IP and Beatport announced the recipients of its second annual inclusivity grants.
If you want even more, you’re in luck. Here are the best new dance tracks of the week.
James Hype feat. Kim Petras, “Drums”
The Label: Island Records/Cross Records
The Spiel: The U.K. producer — who blew up last year with his unstoppable “Ferrari” — pairs with dance chanteuse Kim Petras and Justin Timberlake (sort of!) for the electro pop whirlwind “Drums.” A staple of Hype’s sets since 2019, the heart rate-raising club anthem evolved into the track you hear now after Hype linked with Petras in the studio, with the singer’s shimmery timbre playing against a sample from Timberlake’s “Like I Love You” with the pop stars iconic “drums!” directive from that 2002 classic giving this song its name.
The Artist Says: “Fast forward to 2023, I met Kim in LA and we got together to create this version of ‘Drums’ you hear now,” says Hype. “We were also incredibly blessed to have Justin Timberlake agree to keep his original vocal, so this record feels incredibly special to me.”
The Vibe: Indeed as Timberlake said 21 year ago, “It’s kind of special, right?”
Mau P, “Dress Code”
The Label: Black Book Records
The Spiel: “You wanna know the dress code? Okay, we don’t have a dress code,” insists the vocal on the latest from Mau P. Making his debut on Chris Lake’s Black Book Records with this one, the Dutch wunderkind (who recently dropped an ace remix of Swedish House Mafia’s “Ray Of Solar”) once again demonstrates why everyone’s paying attention to him. His latest tech house weapon is loaded with simply cool sounds, from the skittering synth to the growling bassline to a hectic build and a drop that’s equal parts wailing vocal and car alarm.
The Artist Says: “I don’t care what you look like or what you dress like, I just want you to have a good time,” say the producer born Maurits Westveen. “This record is meant for people to feel good about themselves and have a good time.”
The Vibe: The strutting confidence of putting on that one outfit you look legitimately great in.
Neil Frances & DRAMA, “Energy”
The Label: Nettwerk
The Spiel: L.A. indie dance duo NEIL FRANCES puts an exclamation point on the release of their latest album, It’s All a Bit Fuzzy, with its standout single “Energy.” A collab with Chicago house/R&B duo DRAMA — “get your hands up, I ain’t coming for your man’s love,” declares DRAMA vocalist Via Rosa — the track is fresh, fun and in possession of that effortless kind of cool that feels just right for the weekend.
The Artist Says: “It’s about stamina on the dance floor, music that never stops and nights that last forever,” NEIL FRANCES says in a joint statement “but most importantly the ‘energy’ to keep up with the person you’re leaving with.”
The Vibe: It’s the beginning of fall, but you’re still locked into that late summer mood.
Chromeo, “Personal Effects”
The Label: Chromeo Recordings
The Spiel: The Funk Lordz are back with “Personal Effects,” the lead single from their forthcoming sixth studio album Adult Contemporary. Coming 20 years into Chromeo’s career and reflecting the album’s theme of grown-up stuff, the new track is about breaking up with your live-in lover and them leaving all their things at your house after they storm out. “Adult Contemporary is a meditation on modern, mature relationships, which means: if we gotta sing about curling irons, so be it,” says the duo’s Dave 1.
The Artist Says: “This is the last song we added on the album,” Dave 1 continues. “I was on a flight and the pilot said, ‘Please don’t forget your personal effects’ and I was like, ‘Wait, how come this isn’t a Chromeo song title?!’ We felt like we needed a little breezy funk … something warm and fuzzy to bop to. You notice that long instrumental bit at the end? That’s definitely a motif on the album: extended sections where we let the music ride out.
The Vibe: Extremely relatable, down to the L-O-L lyrics “she loses hair ties all the time,” which anyone with long locks can relate to.
Miaj feat. Cakes Da Dilla & Wreckno, “I WANNA BE A BIG STAR”
The Label: never_b_alone.mp3
The Spiel: A hot-to-the-touch house anthem from Mija, “I WANNA BE A BIG STAR” is inspired by ballroom culture and features a pair of almost absurdly scorching verses from Cakes Da Killa and Wreckno. Spare, sophisticated breakdowns from the producer offer a moment to catch your breath before she and her collaborators wind it all up again. The track is the final from Mija’s four-track NO RULES EP, which is out in its entirety today via her own never b alone.mp3 label and was funded by raising Ethereum and selling digital collectibles on web3. Mija is on tour across the U.S. until early December.
The Artist Says: “This is a house tune I wrote inspired by the documentary Paris Is Burning,” says Mija. “After I wrote the demo, I asked legendary artists Cakes Da Killa and Wreckno to jump on the track, and both of them delivered sickening verses. I wanted to keep the raw emotion of the original samples juxtaposed with quick and dirty house drops. Something you can dance, to something you can cry to.”
The Vibe: Sweating through your t-shirt on the dancefloor.
Dom Dolla, “Saving Up”
The Label: Three Six Zero Recordings
The Spiel: The days are getting shorter, but Dom Dolla is keeping the sunlight vibes high with his latest, “Saving Up.” A truly joyful disco-flavored singalong inspired by the sound and spirit of the U.K. dance scene, the song features power-lunged vocals that insist “If you’re gonna be saving up, save your love for me” and finds Australian producer Dolla making a track on which he explores his interest in making a track that “sounds sampled, but isn’t.”
The Artist Says: “I was in the U.K. last year after a massive summer of touring when I caught the train down to Brighton with some friends and ended up in an incredible studio overlooking the beach,” says Dolla. “I was missing home a bit, but felt really inspired and wanted to write a feel-good record, reminding myself of the importance of saving time for the ones I care about and love.”
The Vibe: The simple but life-affirming joy of dancing with your besties.
Read more
