Tags archives: Dance music

  • If you’re like us, you’re dreading New Year’s Eve – the night when you are practically forced into trying to have a good time. But experiencing a fun night can be difficult when you are concentrating on getting out of the way of drunken-bro packs or avoiding puke puddles. We wouldn’t blame you if you decided to stay home and cuddle up with a bottle of champers, watching Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve in your jammies and bunny slippers. However, if you really want to hit the town—and if dancing all night in the clubs is your thing—here are a few options that might be a bit more bearable than say, heading to Madison Square Garden for a fist-pump session with Skrillex and Diplo, the idea of which haunts our nightmares. Resolute and Blkmarket Present New Year’s Eve at Output Output. 74 Wythe Ave at North 12st St, Williamsburg, Brooklyn. 10pm; $80–$100. Advance tickets available through outputclub.com. With its warehouse feel and strict no-photos policy—not to mention its emphasis on the serious side of deep house and techno—Williamsburg’s Output is loosely based on Berlin clubs like the famed Berghain. So it makes sense that this party has scored one of Germany’s best, DJ Koze, to headline the affair with one of his oft-surreal sets of house, techno and various sonic oddities. And there’s about a billion other DJs spinning in the club’s two rooms as well—but the party stretches into the following Friday, so there’s plenty of time to squeeze ’em all in.  [...]
  • There's have been so many good electronic- and dance-music releases coming out lately that our heads are spinning…but we've conquered our vertigo enough that we can tell you about two of our favorite recent releases. As an added bonus, both of them have a strong Gotham component - go, home team!—Bruce Tantum New York Endless Strategies EP (Golf Channel Recordings) “Scale Those Heights,” off the debut EP from New York Endless, is bedecked with the following ornamentation: a metronomic, tick-tocking rhythm; percolating, cascading synths; a spare, haunting melody and, when a four-chord keyboard pattern kicks in around the three-minute mark, a quietly triumphant ambiance. In short, it’s a gorgeous tune that’s not far removed from the work of Kraftwerk, especially the often-meditative, flowing music the German quartet produced for mid-period albums such as ’77's Trans-Europe Express and ’78's The Man-Machine—and for Dan Selzer, the man behind New York Endless, that likely would be the ultimate tribute. Selzer, a veteran DJ and longtime underground presence (he runs the postpunk/new-wave–oriented label Acute Records, among many other claims to fame), doesn’t keep his love of Kraftwerk, and specifically, the combo's “Europe Endless,” a secret, and the shimmering aesthetic of that song and that album runs strong on this EP. Which is not to say that Selzer has made a slavish, gently cosmic Kraftwerk copy here. “Scale Those Heights” is a full-bodied and muscular work, closer[...]
  • Strictly Rhythm. Nervous. Emotive. These seminal New York labels, along with a handful of others, evoke a time in the late ’80s and early ’90s when the local variant of house music, one that combined depth, emotion and soul with the raw rhythms that had been coming out of Chicago, took form. But there was one other local label that was equally influential—and it wasn’t even based within the five boroughs. Its name was Movin’ Records, a label (and record shop) led by Abigail Adams and based in East Orange, New Jersey. Between 1987 and 1995, Movin’ released some of the most beloved songs of the era—Phase II’s stone-cold classic “Reachin’" among them—and its lineup of vocalists and producers and included such notables as Kerri Chandler, Kenny Bobien, DJ Pierre, Ce Ce Rogers, Blaze’s Kevin Hedge and Josh Milan, Ace Mungin and Tony Humphries. That last name is key: A symbiotic relationship formed between the club that Humphries deejayed at, Club Zanzibar in nearby Newark, and Movin.' Though they were both just a few miles west of Manhattan, the Movin’-Zanzibar affiliation resulted in a sound with a different feel than what was going down in Gotham, a feel that amped up the gospel- and R&B–tinged passion beyond what the big city had to offer. It’s a style of house generally referred to as the Jersey Sound—and its effects can still be felt on the club music of today. I recently had the pleasure of speaking with the gracious and friendly Adams, her love of the music still shin[...]
  • On Sunday, we have another spectacular line-up of music & art, and the festivities get started just around the time the parade ends.  Sunday's DJs & performers will take us on a bit of a different trip with a little more electro, a hip hop beat, or two and of course that big pop remix, but we're not trying to categorize Mr. Tedd Patterson. That would be impossible. When Tedd steps to the decks a true musical journey will begin. Those who are familiar with his sets understand what to expect- a perfectly selected fusion of many dance music genres, and even a little bit of the unexpected.  Tedd's long running residency at NYC's Cielo is a mainstay in the dance music community and a place where dance music aficionados gather every month to experience Tedd's creative, dynamic sets.  On the other hand, if you like the more popular vibe in today's dance music sound, we have plenty of that as well. We're pleased to have Ms. Chaisley Lussier playing with us for the first time, Chaisley will be joining us from Philadelphia where she's been creating a name for herself with her many talents. Though she hales from the city of brotherly love , NYC has a lot of love for Chaisley too. You can find her playing at some of the cooler spots around town quite regularly. Next to take the stage will be AFP favorite Kevin Graves. When Kevin's not remixing the latest pop chart buster, he's traveling internationally spinning at top spots, creating major buzz and doing what he does bes[...]
  • After an inspiring night of live music, DJs will takeover the spotlight Saturday and they will set the tone for a night of dancing under the stars in the greatest city in the world. While many of the performers are veterans of the underground NYC scene, we do have a long time NYC favorite who's at the top of his game right now, and that DJ is Hector Romero. Hector, once known as "Baby Hec" in his early years in the biz, is a taste-maker, a so-called DJs DJ, who always delivers for the masses. Currently, you can find him tantalizing crowds from Italy to Tokyo with his eclectic sets that cross dance music genres.  We're fortunate to have him for this special night in support of equality and art education in NYC. But, before we get too far ahead of ourselves, we'd like to introduce our other talent on hand for the evening. Brooklyn's Sal Leone is stepping back into the scene after a short hiatus and we're sure Sal will bring his best Saturday. Sal formerly part of the Deepa crew, who have thrown raucous deep house parties around these United States for many years, knows how to rock a party and he's not just spinning deep house anymore! Next up is Atilla Da Hun who's the ever-present Saturday resident at his East Village mainstay Key Bar.  Atilla has a keen sense of knowing what his guests want to hear and on any given Saturday you can catch him playing extended sets of great house music to a dedicated crowd that knows who they came to see. AFP's own, DJ Gatto brings [...]