Blogcritics Category: Music: Dance

Songs That Touch My Soul, Nine

A.L. Harper — Thu, 15 May 2008 08:58:00 EDT

With summer on its way, this one is full of summery pop craziness.
We all have them, songs that seem to touch a secret place in your soul – sometimes secret even from you. They can grow and occasionally fester like an open wound, or they can fill you up, inspire you, and occasionally even heal you. Sometimes they don't even reflect your musical tastes. They can be shameful secrets that you keep from...

Music Review: Shy Child - Noise Won't Stop

Kevin Eagan — Sun, 11 May 2008 18:16:08 EDT

Shy Child are a band that is on the cusp of the indie underground.
The indie underground has always thrived upon borrowing from the past to create something new, discovering new styles that can't be easily defined and have not yet been exploited by the mainstream. In music, as well as in art, indie artists try to reject modern approaches by tearing apart the sounds and actions that make up the current pop...

Music Review: Sasha - The emFire Collection: Mixed, Unmixed & Remixed

David R Perry — Wed, 7 May 2008 07:51:18 EDT

The emFire Collection: Mixed, Unmixed & Remixed feels like a disappointing mix of the old and the not very good.
The original tracks for Sasha's emFire label were released digitally and on decorative vinyl. (I previously reviewed the tracks "Coma" and "Park in the Shade".) The tracks were long, the build very techy and unique, and even if some of them weren't among Sasha's best, they were at the very least examples of his...

Music Review: Armin Van Buuren - Imagine

David R Perry — Wed, 7 May 2008 02:21:47 EDT

Imagine is a great introduction to Armin's brand of melodic and accessible trance. It's a no-brainer.
Armin Van Buuren, the world's #1 DJ, is a lot of things, but mostly he is busy. In addition to his DJ sets, his weekly radio show, heading up his own record label and publishing house, and doing remixes for other artists, he somehow still finds time to make records. Not just the token one-off artist album either, but several. And they've been...

Music Review: Ladytron- Velocifero

Angie Pardue — Tue, 6 May 2008 20:46:20 EDT

The electro-pop chameleons prove they have a few more tricks up their sleeves
This latest and fourth album is yet another progression in the ever evolving sound of Ladytron, and is easily their best work to date. With a more friendly and accessible sound, Velocifero may help to keep the band from the slowdive into niche. The album also boasts production assistance from Alessandro Cortini (Nine Inch Nails), which may help...

Interview: On the Bus with Jack Dangers of Meat Beat Manifesto

Eric Olsen — Tue, 6 May 2008 13:18:49 EDT

Video chat with groove master Dangers about tour, new album, career.
Wow, ten years flies by when you're having fun, influencing the course of nations, and taking out the trash and brushing your teeth and stuff. Ten years ago I got married, was still in my 30s, had no idea what a "blog" was, and was putting the final touches on The Encyclopedia of Record Producers, including a lengthy phone interview with one of my...

Music Review: Above & Beyond - Anjunabeats 100: From Goa to Rio

David R Perry — Sun, 4 May 2008 23:07:06 EDT

Anjunabeats 100 is a worthwhile set for those who might be new to either trance or Above & Beyond.
Anjunabeats 100 is the latest DJ mix offering from trance stalwarts Above & Beyond. Not only is it a highlight of their DJ releases, but a milestone project for their Anjunabeats label. Home to some of the hottest trance tracks in rotation, Anjunabeats has enjoyed a brief but shining career thus far. There have been a few album mixes over the...

The Rockologist: The Politics Of Dancing Rocking

Glen Boyd — Sat, 3 May 2008 03:34:07 EDT

Revolution rock still lives. You just gotta' look a bit harder to find it.
When you get to be my age, you find yourself doing more and more reminiscing about the good old days. I never understood this when my parents did it back when I was growing up. I mean, what little I knew of their generation was things like the Depression and the war, and what possibly could have been "good" about those old days, right?But like a...

Concert Review: Coachella - Day Three - 4/27/08

El Bicho — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 07:18:18 EDT

A look at day three of the music festival.
Wanting to catch what Perry Farrell was up to on the Sahara Tent at 2pm had my friend Todd and I leave early from Orange County. We hit no traffic until we were right outside the parking lot. The consequence of such light crowds early on meant that the line to get in wasn’t long, allowing the security check to be more intense. Yet, plenty...

Concert Review: Coachella - Day Two - 4/26/08

El Bicho — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 02:46:39 EDT

A look at Day Two of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
Day Two in the desert brought more heat on a number of fronts. Trying to get in from a mile away by car at around three-thirty in the afternoon took roughly an hour. This isn’t all the fault of the facility and the police handling traffic as plenty of selfish folks cut into the line from the shoulder or making U-turns rather than waiting...