'Dance Music...whats your favourite?'

Strauss's "Blue Danube" (I'm a crap waltzer, but enjoy myself anyway), or if I'm in the audience then Prokofoiev's "Romeo and Juliet" is quite fab.

Most ceilidh music is pretty generic and not much to listen to, but Mairi's Wedding is a good tune and has its own dance, though it's pretty complicated and I've never got all the moves right yet.

There's more to dance than clubbing, of course!

Pete.

quote:

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There's more to dance than clubbing, of course!

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Absolutely fair point, Pete, but I think you know what type of dance music I was on about...lol
Nick, have you tried either of the Leftfield Cd's. Leftism is essential in my book - loads of differant takes on trance, house etc.
Their second Cd has 'that' track from the Guinness Ad on it -and that really rocks.
Also for samplers I'd recommend any of the Global Underground series - Especially Deep Dish and Sasha...
regards,
Andy c!

all nighters, those were the days!
a good post, a much under valued form of music!

I think the problem with trance/progressive house etc, is that it is best enjoyed within the DJ mix/set.
I often go to www.djmixes2k.com were u can download the latest dj sets for free, often recorded from the radio and it's mp3 192, not great sound but u get the idea!

as for complete cd's i do like

Orbital Orbital 2 - classic stuff

Blue Amazon Javelin - bit old now, maybe even deleted, many tracks used by Sasha in his mix's 5-6 yrs ago

Van Basten Perimitive - great trance cd, trk 9 superb!

Dragonfly presents 'a voyage into trance' mixed by Paul Oakenfold - it's a mix cd but classic goa trance from the man who invented it

Jam & Spoon - Tripomatic fairytales a bit softer, yes they released some pants euro singles,but not on this gem worth it for a couple of tunes, which all the top DJ's used at the time

Spooky Gargantuan - is worth a look if after all that trance u fancy turning it down a notch!

Zuco 103, but I'm just a sucker for Brazilian women's voices.

Actually, I'm unable to listen to any of this music unless dancing at a club or party.

With the exception of Orbital, who seem to get through for reasons of nostalgia, I think the last housey thing I bought was a Reese Project album in '93. I have an idea that there is a limit to the number of 'hands in the air' moments one can have before the brain develops some form of resistance. Unfortunately, I reached my limit about 10 years ago, during a particularly grim trance set at the Zap. Now a straight house beat brings me out in a rash.

... (at least for now) must be Ian Pooley's "Since Then"; a german DJ spreading balearic vibes all over the place, carefully avoiding the "Mallorca cliches".
It's a shame the recording is not on par.

Also worth mentioning IMHO:
Underworld - Secont Toughest in the Infants
Leftfield - Leftism
KLF - The White Room
Inner City - Testament '93 (2x12")

And on a more 'acid oriented' vibe:
Stakker - Humanoid (12")
Rhythm is Rhythm - Strings of Life (12")

And, of course:
Donna Summer - I feel Love
Herbie Hancock - Rock It
Prince - Sign 'O' the Times

quote:

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Originally posted by iiyama:
all nighters, those were the days!
a good post, a much under valued form of music!

I think the problem with trance/progressive house etc, is that it is best enjoyed within the DJ mix/set.

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Not entirely true - try out Dark Soho's "Sun spot", Infected Mushroom's "B.P.Empire" (quite commercial but the first and last tracks are AWESOME), or if you want to go psy-trance compilation, one of the best is Full on 6 - Trance Waves...

If you want REAL old skool (things like early Leftfield and Bedrock etc), the Loved Up BBC soundtrack is awesome - the single CD/triple vinyl set is rarer than rocking horse poo (I have both - it cost!); although the double CD set is easier to find, the mix isn't as good.

Of course, all DJ set-style music can tend to be more dramatic in a club - especially if you, ahem, take sweeties from strange men... It's true that a lot of the tunes don't come across so well in the home environment.

When the music's over turn out the lights

Favourite dance music. Where to start?

Here are some of my favourites, well today anyway ...

RND Technologies - Anamphoric Dream Response
[The definite measured well paced hard trance record ever it just builds and builds..]

Koenig Cylinders - 99.9 (played at 33 not 45)
[as above, with vocal samples and some of the thumpiest drums ever]

Donna Summer - I feel love (P. Cowley megamix)
[A object lesson in how to build a track part by part into a swirling circling mind trip. The best single record ever made ever]

Hardfloor - Acerperience 1-5
[As well as all the mixes they did, incl Circus Bells, Is there anybody out there, Filling up with Heaven, Blue Monday etc. they redefined the use of the Roland 303 in modern music. They were not the first, but were / are the best]

Sabres of Paradise - Smokebelch II
[Magical]

Sheila B. Devotion - Spacer
[Chic's Nile Rogers best work, with well, space in the mix]

Edwin Starr - Contact
[Classic dancefloor filler]

Beltram - Tales from the RZ
[A brilliant overwrite of Raplhi Rosario's track]

Kylie - I can't get you out of my head
[Source for all sorts of mash ups, a perfect track]

Renegade Legion - The Weeping Waste
[The best hoover record ever]

Public Enemy - Rebel without a Pause
[Bass! how long can you go?]

Dr Walker & Electro Atomu - Der Stricherjunge (mit der raucherlunge)
[Just had to have something from Cologne. Best use of sampled coughing in any record]

Bad Company - The Nine
[That Bass line!]


DS

Wot! No Chemical Brothers!

Of more recent stuff I've heard Groove Armada have put out some rather good tunes. Goodbye Country (Hello Nightclub) has a couple of real crackers.

I'm not sure why a lot of trancey stuff gets described as dance music, since a lot of it strikes me as undanceable, but if you're counting that then the 2 Lemonjelly albums are well worth a look.

A fine recommendation from Dev B. was a compilation, Beats and Pieces Vol 1, the subtitle is something like "music for a more discerning dancefloor". Suppose I ought to check out Vol 2...

Pete.

I tend to find I listen to trance more in the car than at home, especially compilations.
Stuff I'm listening to at the moment:
Timo Maas - Loud (very good - and well produced to boot)
Kraftwerk - Tour De France (ok but boring in places)
Sharam - afterclub mixes (Global underground follow op to GU25)
Goldfrapp - Black Cherry (been touted on this forum before)
I also rate Groove Armade - but not their latest Cd, and Cassius. Daft Punk are somewhat hit and miss, and I really like Moby's music.

P.S. alexgerrard - I concur - we do seem to have similar tastes... for the record I have tried the odd ministry of sound compilation and also gatecrasher but neither are as consistently good as the GU series...

Adam,

Always happen to help..

I have about 8 12" versions of 1 Feel Love, and I have made a CDR for friends previously, but the Patrick Cowley mix IS available on CD on a compilation called "Fuse Presents DJ Hell"

Here is a link to the Amazon listing..

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005204U/qid=1062100881/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_2_1/026-5266183-3567658

There are a few other good tracks on the CD it seems. I might even get it myslef as well.

Good luck

DS

OTD - Sheep on Drugs - Greatest Hits
[Bristol's answer to Ministry]

A few I'd add which are the only house albums I still listen too are:

The first Renaissance album (Sasha & Digweed at their prog house best). I doubt this is still listed, but well worth bidding for on Ebay.

Deep Dish - Yothiesque (the one with a bright yellow cover). Classis house tunes that never seem to date.

Unkle - Do Androids listen to electric beats.
This is the only recent house complilation I have bought that gets listened to. The two above are 7-10 years old.

Adam,

Straight back at ya.

DS

ITC - Various - Here Comes Trouble

Ok so I've gone and done it - I've reinvented my entire collection by buying a CDX2......awesome!

A couple more suggestions...
On a shinier note you could try either of the most recent Oakenfold releases - Swordfish soundtrack or Bunkka (I think thats how its spelled lol!).
I prefer the Swordfish soundtrack (And also like looking at Halle Berry - of course), because its a darker more trancy mix than the other release. Production is quite toppy in places - but I've listened to worse recently.
Oakey's 'presents another world' compilations are also not bad either...

quote:

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Originally posted by David Slater:
Hardfloor - Acerperience 1-5
[As well as all the mixes they did, incl Circus Bells, Is there anybody out there, Filling up with Heaven, Blue Monday etc. they redefined the use of the Roland 303 in modern music. They were not the first, but were / are the best]

Sabres of Paradise - Smokebelch II
[Magical]

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MMMMMMM.... Hardfloor... Both "Acperience" and "Smoke Belch 2" are on Loved Up - for a CD from 1995 that can still hold its own easily...

What about Jack'n'Chill's "The jack that house built" - I think this track probably has some of the most innovative uses of sampling (particularly for 1987!) ever used - on 12 inch it's even better.

When the music's over turn out the lights

Dom,

Sounds like a fine CD there.

I still follow Hardfloor and the Weatherall spin offs

Hardfloor are still producing tracks - Witness, the recent release of 'Alphabetical' by Hardfloor a few months ago. They still do the occasional remix , mainly it seems for European (Non-UK) dance acts.

Did you see my ramblings earlier in the year about Smokebelch 2003,, which was a sensitive reworking in a slightly more up tempo manner. but still keeping the key elements of the original track. There was the 'beatless Smokebelch' 7" single given away with one of the Sabres LP, perhaps Haunted Dancehall.

DS

OTD - Choose - Crucial events (Brutal US techno, on Drop Bass Network records)

Sybil,

Yes, Bad Company are a force to be reckoned with! Intry to get all their recordings, but am having trouble getting the 'Grunge' import.

I shall dig out and play the Spider and Hornet tracks again, as well as Pulse, The Fear etc.

Have you heard/got 'Shadowboxing' by Nasty Habits (Doc Scott)? That is a bit like The Nine, with a evil sounding hoover bass carrying the track. Well worth finding.

DS

OTD - Acrid Abeyance - Exposure ep

Alex,

The original (confusingly titled) Smokebelch II is the thing to hear. The David Holmes remix was not so good. which was a shame as he is fairly reliable on the old knob twiddling.

There was an interesting idea on the remix, in that the sleeve design was given a remix as well. I think that was the only time I've seen that.

DS

OTD - still Acrid Abeyance

p.s. How are the threatened mammoth purchases coming along ?

Alex,

Yes, I have the 'Pink me up' and several other Sabrettes compliations, LP and loads of the singles.

One of my rarer items is the first Sabres of Paradise record - untitled, but known as 'Throbbing Gristle' from the samples used.

There were some good artists on the SoP and Sabrettes label - such as Musical Science, Shave Your Tongue, Blue, Innersphere, Sapiano etc.

Well worth a listen

DS

OTD - Wax - Uprising

On the Sabres theme, has anyone got 101,303,808 = now form a band There is a track on here called 'alpha acid.' It has to be one of the the finest examples ever of to use the 303! The bassline ain't bad either.

On a lighter note, from Haunted Dancefloor: The ballard of Nicky McGuire is excellent.

SonofColin

Yes, I have that one as well.

The Sabrettes improved quite a lot after the first 'Jive Bunny' record.

I would look to Hardfloor, Plastikman, Pergon, Plank, Acrid Abeyance or Gamma Loop for alternative nominations for the best use of a 303.

DS

OTR - Radio 4 - Today

quote:

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Originally posted by alexgerrard:

quote:

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There was the 'beatless Smokebelch' 7" single given away with one of the Sabres LP, perhaps Haunted Dancehall.

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MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

I think I have a copy of the track on a compilation somewhere. Maybe.

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It's the Beatless mix that's on the Loved Up CD - check out details here: Loved up

The triple vinyl is ACE even though the copy I have has an eccentricity on the Hardfloor track - wouldn't notice were it not for the high pitched warble synth line that's sustained through most of the track

Is the 303 a sampler or drum machine? Really silly question but...

Also, anyone know good sources of VSTs? I am upgrading my PC and getting into music writing (psy-trance) so am on the scrounge for info...

When the music's over turn out the lights

Hi Dom,

The Roland TB303 is a bass module - the sounds become screechy and squelchy when you fiddle with the Resonance and Cutoff filters.
I've never used the real thing but apparently it is very tricky to get that Hardflooresque sound... a lot of trial and error!

Modern sequencers like FruityLoops have their own version of the 303 built in (TS404) and they're great fun to play with.

Re: VST Instruments
There's plenty of Freeware/Shareware ones out there (just Google: VSTi Download).
I just had a look and this site has lots of freebies.
Native Instruments make a large range of Quality VSTi's - Absynth is definately one to try.

Good luck with the music making! - have you decided on a sequencer yet?
If not I can seriously recommend Fruity Loops, it's cheap, easy to get into and capable of some serious results. It comes with quite a few fully functional and demo VSTi's as standard.

Dom,

Another of my specialist subjects...

I think the Propellorheads 'Rebirth 338' is regarded as the best TB303 emulation.

It has 2x303, and 808 and a 909 (2 x bass, 2 x drum machines), and a pattern based sequencer for step programming it. Hardfloor have wrtitten a track for it, so it must be O.K.

It is not a VSTi, but can be connected to other applications using Propellorheads' ReWire technology, so it can be synced to a host seqeuncer such as Reason and Cubase in a very deep way, allowing audio and control sugnals to be passed back and forth.

A good source of free VSTi' is the Computer Music Magazine cover CDs, which has a whole load each month. They recently did a 'Beginners Guide ' issue with loads of good stuff in it.

Mail me PM if you want a longer chat on this, I have been fiddling about with these sort of things for ages.

DS

OTD - Cujo - Stay with me