The Playlist Series #2: Dance music

I thought it was time for another installment of the playlist series. When I first launched this project, Taryn asked me to give some more insight into my Dance folder. That is why I’ve decided to make this next post about Dance music. If you want to place a request for a certain type of music, please leave a comment below and I’ll see what I can do for you!

Dancing has been a part of my life since god knows when. I was 6 when I first took classes and I’ve never stopped since! I think my love for dance music comes from this. With dance music, I really mean the genre of dance music: house, trance, hardstyle, techno, drum ‘n’ bass, etc., and NOT music you can dance to. That would really have to go in a separate post, as that is a category of its own accord in my music collection. So below you will find a list of dance music. I think this is a post which is especially useful for Americans (no offense), because I still can’t get over the fact that a guy in a NYC club once came to me and said: ‘Wow, you know how to rave’, while dancing to Iio’s Rapture. To me, rave is a completely different type of music, which sounds like this.

I will go about this the same way as before: I will first list the songs than below that you will find a short description of the song and the reason why I like it, including a link to the song in question. I have tried to give an overview of the different types of dance music I have, so there is roughly one song per genre, as well as some of my all time favorites.

***Disclaimer*** This type of music is definitely not everyone’s cup of tea, so please don’t leave comments saying: I hate this type of music. If you know you don’t like dance, than this post is NOT for you.

Here’s the list:

1. Armin van Buuren – Control Freak (Sander van Doorn Remix)
2. ATB – You’re Not Alone (1st Clubb Mix)
3. BBE – Seven days and One Week (Original Mix)
   
4. Cassius – The Sound of Violence (Radio Edit)
5. Crookers – Knobbers
6. Daft Punk – Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger
7. Deadmau5 – I Remember (feat. Kaskade) (Original Vocal mix)
8. Deep Dish – Money For Nothing
9. Delerium – The Silence (Paul Oakenfold Remix)
   
10. Dennis Ferrer – Hey Hey (Vox Mix)
11. Digitalism – Tokyo House
12. DJ Tiësto – Suburban train
13. Energy 52 – Cafe Del Mar
14. Franky Dux vs C-Rius ft. the Mindplayer – Restyled
15. Gregor Salto – Bouncing Harbour
16. Jeckyll & Hyde – Frozen Flame (Radio Edit)
17. Marco V – Godd
18. Mental Generation – Cafe Del Mar
19. Motorcycle – As the Rush Comes (Original Mix)
    
20. Nikkfurie – Thé à la Menthe
21. Orbital – Halcyon & On & On
22. Paul Kalkbrenner – Sky and Sand
23. Pendulum – Bacteria
24. Prodigy – Warriors Dance
25. Rob Dougan – Clubbed To Death
26. Royksopp – Eple
27. Sam Sparro – Black and Gold
28. Sensation – The Anthem 2003 (White Edition)
29. Simian Mobile Disco – Sleep Deprivation
30. Sono – Keep Control Plus (Fedde Le Grand Mix)

Armin van Buuren – Control Freak (Sander van Doorn Remix)

I came across this song on another CSI episode from Season 10. Lovely droning beat, good repetitive themes and definitely the type of song to get the club showing. It needs no explanation therefore, that the song was used during a club scene in the TV series. Plus, Armin is Dutch & from Leiden (where I live) so that definitely adds to the man’s rep. Of course it also counts that Armin van Buuren has been crowned: Best DJ in the World several times in a row.

ATB – You’re Not Alone (1st Clubb Mix)

Originally recorded by an artist by Olive in the nineties, this remix beats the original in my opinion. However, that first version is definitely worth a listen as well. I love this remix in particular because of the build up. At around 2 minutes into the song, the beat stops and you get the loveliest chilled out vibe before the song picks back up again.

BBE – Seven days and One Week (Original Mix)

As far as I remember this song dates back to 1997 or 1998, but it’s still current. In my opinion, this can be viewed as an early form of trance house. It has this lovely mysterious vibe, minimal vocals and the song can best be described like the sound of rippling water.

Cassius – The Sound of Violence (Radio Edit)

Cassius is a French DJ, who is better known for his 1999 hit single: Cassius 1999. With the video for this song, the DJ showed to be great at coming up with interesting video concepts. The video for The Sound of Violence is then also one of my all time videos. While rushing through natural surroundings, these surroundings are morphed and random geometric forms as well as other shapes start appearing. The song boosts a mix of funky guitars with a beat that will make you want to get up and dance. To top it off, the lyrics are slightly disturbing as well.

Crookers – Knobbers

This Italian DJ team makes some great remixes as they proved with their rendition of The Way You Are by Timbaland & Keri Hilson. That they can also make tunes on their own accord, is definitely proven by the song Knobbers. The punch line: now push it, hits you like a sledgehammer and the beats keeps thumping in your ears even after the song has finished.

Daft Punk – Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger

Sampled by Kanye West in his song Stronger and with tons of ‘daft hands’ and ‘daft body’ videos on youtube, this song has somewhat of a cult following. Catchy and ingenious. Why? Because Daft Punk who you the art of creating a full song with only two lines of lyrics: Work it harder, make it better, do it faster, makes us stronger, more than ever, hour after hour, our work is, never over. Plus it’s catchy as hell! Part of the same video cycle as some or the other songs from the same album such as One More Time and Aerodynamic.

Deadmau5 – I Remember (feat. Kaskade) (Original Vocal mix)

This is one of my favorite songs from the past couple of years. Good, solid house song that adds a whiff of dreamy melodies and vocals to match. I bought Deadmau5 album simple because this song is on it. It is simply that good. Do make sure to get your hands on the original vocal mix though. The short version is only half as good.

Deep Dish – Money For Nothing

Some dance songs just make use of the most brilliant samples in history. Money for Nothing by the Dire Straits, including some vocals by Sting, is updated to the new millennium without taking anything away from that brilliant 80s vibe and Mark Knofler’s brilliant guitar riff. Still as catchy as the original and yet somehow completely new: that’s what this song is.

Delerium – The Silence (Paul Oakenfold Remix)

This is also one of those songs that has been around for ages in Dance music terms. In 1997, Sarah McLaughlan collaborated on this song to create a dreamy and tranquil edit. There are so many remixes of this song that it would take ages to list them all, and not all of them are that good. My favorite is the 10+ minute remix by Paul Oakenfold.

Dennis Ferrer – Hey Hey (Vox Mix)

I got this song through my dance teacher. We used to stretch to this at the beginning of class as a warm up. Great beats, with a great build up to a climax. The vocals guide you through the song and this song could even work in a club. It’s got a bit of everything. It gets really interesting around 2 mins into the song.

Digitalism – Tokyo House

The first true house song on the list. Note the repetition, yet it does develop into something bigger which is only noticeable when you listen closely. I love playing this on the train.

DJ Tiësto – Suburban train

I used to love Tiësto. Now I feel it’s all a bit too much of the same thing with his music. The oldies, however, are still amongst some of my favorite dance tunes. They’re good, solid trance songs, that especially at the time of release were something completely new. Hence, the title of Best DJ in the World was awarded to this Dutchman for years in a row. Suburban Train comes with a counter song called Urban Train which features Vocals from Kristy Hawkshaw. I like Suburban Train better but I don’t really have a solid explanation for it. Perhaps because it flows better.

Energy 52 – Cafe Del Mar

This song is called after a famous lounge club on Ibiza: Cafe Del Mar. This trance song dates back to 1993 and is still current and continuously remixed. There are tons of remixes and the song is revived and revamped time and time again. No other version beats the original though, but the 2002 remix by Marco V comes close.

Franky Dux vs C-Rius ft. the Mindplayer – Restyled

Now it’s time for something, louder, bigger and meaner. Some of you will think this is noise, but I also like to hear some of the harder styles of dance music from time to time. I picked this one cuz it is the least annoying and still representative of what I have. I don’t have tons of this stuff, just some, since I cannot listen to this all day. Just like there are different types of hard rock/ metal, there are also different types of harder dance music styles. Some of them are: hardcore, hardstyle, techno, jumpstyle, hard trance, etc. I would dub this next song as hardstyle, correct me if I’m wrong.

Gregor Salto – Bouncing Harbour

From hard style we go to elektro house. I got into this music because of my other dance teacher. She has us dance to this all the time during our warm up and is trying to teach us how to ‘house’, which is the type of hiphop dance style that goes with this music. I suck at it. Big time. But that doesn’t mean that the music can’t be fun.

Jeckyll & Hyde – Frozen Flame (Radio Edit)

The only jumpstyle song on the list. I love this song. It still has this sort of dreamy melody line, despite it having a thumping, loud and in your face beat AND it’s catchy. What more can a dance song ask for? Harder type of dance music, yet still very danceable and enjoyable.

Marco V – Godd

Another case of brilliant sampling. A 2003 song by Dutch DJ Marco V, with a bit of a hard trance vibe to it. This song samples Operation Blade by Public Domain, from the Original Soundtrack of the first Blade movie. The original song plays in the opening scene of Blade, the vampire club scene. This song however, gives it a new twist and the video is amazing.

Mental Generation – Cafe Del Mar

How chilled out do you want to get? With this song it will definitely be no problem. Taken from the Cafe Del Mar chill house compilations that have been released since the early nineties, this song definitely helps to relax and soothe your brain. It is no wonder then that I know this song from my BodyBalance classes and it was used to do some Tai Chi to this. The chill house compilations are released by the club mentioned before and the club is by now more renowned for these CDs than for the club itself. If you want to get some more chilled out house music, these compilations definitely deserve a good look.

Motorcycle – As the Rush Comes (Original Mix)

My favorite on this list. Awesome trance song. I prefer the original mix, but can’t seem to find the full 9 minute version that I have on my hard drive. I completely dislike the single version by the way. If you want to know what puts the ‘trance’ into trance you should definitely check this one out.

Nikkfurie – Thé à la Menthe

This song is featured in the Ocean’s 12 movie, but was not put on the official soundtrack. It plays when that French guy is doing is kick ass capoeira moves through the laser field in the museum to get to the Fabergé egg. The song is highly repetitive and fits the scene perfectly. It is almost a perfect loop too: it never really ends if you play the song and have it stuck on repeat.

Orbital – Halcyon & On & On

Another song from a soundtrack, yet I didn’t know that until writing this post. Apparently, this song is from the Mortal Combat Soundtrack from the 1995 version of the film.  What I did know is that this song uses another sample: Opus III’s It’s a Fine Day, a very old school dance track from the early to mid nineties. Vocals on the original track were song by Kristy Hawkshaw, who is also on the Urban Train track I referred to in my info on Tiesto’s Suburban Train. Orbital aren’t the only ones who used It’s a Fine Day: a very well known version is the version by Miss Jane in the ATB Remix. In my opinion, the best one is still Orbital’s version.

Paul Kalkbrenner – Sky and Sand

This song became a hit in the summer of 2009, but had been floating around the Internet since 2007. It’s a minimal house song by Berlin DJs that again has a bit of a dreamy feel to it.

Pendulum – Bacteria

Drum ‘N’ Bass. I don’t have much of this, because I think it would drive me mad, but Pendulum are just gods when it comes to this style of music. I love this song, but other songs by Pendulum worth a listen are Another Planet and Planet Orion. And their version of Coldplay’s Violet Hill is hilarious.

Prodigy – Warriors Dance

From their latest album: Invaders Must Die. Just an awesome Prodigy track. Beats any of their other stuff in my opinion, even though Fat of the Land was a brilliant album back in 1997 and No Good (Start the Dance) will always be a classic in the alternative dance scene. The song is fresh and new, but still sounds like the Prodigy. No Keith Flint on vocals though. If you like this stuff, also check out Chemical Brothers and The Crystal Method.

Rob Dougan – Clubbed To Death

Again a song that was featured on a soundtrack. This time it’s a song from the first Matrix movie. I would dub this alternative dance. Amazing song. It’s angry and peaceful all at the same time.

Royksopp – Eple

Who said Norway was dark and dreary? Royksopp definitely not with this song from their 2001 album Melody 8 AM. When it comes to dance music, then this would be my happy song. Cheerful, uplifting and just FUN.

Sam Sparro – Black and Gold

Perhaps a bit of an oddball in this list of songs, yet I still think this counts as a good ‘dance’ song. Sam Sparro was sort of marketed as the new Barry White back in 2005. This song however, also shows that this kid has more going for him than soul. The lyrics are brilliant, the vibe is awesome and it’s super danceable. Definite club material. (Note: Ellie Goulding covered this song this year.)

Sensation – The Anthem 2003 (White Edition)

Using classical music is nothing strange in especially trance songs. This 2003 song which formed the anthem for the massively popular Sensation White Edition dance parties, uses Mozart for its melody line. Of course with a good firm beat to support it. My favorite dance party anthem.

Simian Mobile Disco – Sleep Deprivation

Simian Mobile Disco is actually rather special. This DJ duo formed out of a four piece rock band after finding out they got more fame for their remixes than for their rock songs. That is why they started off by doing remixes, but later also made their own stuff. Sleep Deprivation is one of my favorite dance tracks as well. It’s a sort of progressive trance track. I just love the build up of it, how it develops and moves along. It’s got a fade in at the beginning and a fade out at the end and when I first heard this song I didn’t even realize it had already finished, that’s how sneaky this song is.

Sono – Keep Control Plus (Fedde Le Grand Mix)

Another oldie but goodie! The original namely dates back to the late 90s. I like the old one and the 2008 remix by Fedde Le Grand equally.

Feedback

Do you guys like this amount of songs? Do you think it’s too many/ too few? Do you want me to change anything about this set up?