aka avant garde musical water cooler discussion…
1. Ace of Base
When I was 16, I really got into Sweden. It all started because of the music of two extremely similar acts: ABBA and Ace of Base. Terrifically basic pop sounds built around an exceedingly pop core. ABBA has sold 370 million albums worldwide, Ace of Base, 37 million. It’s almost insidious just how comparative the groups really were.
From “Gimme Gimme Gimme” having one of the hottest and most underrated basslines of the 1970s, to the lush horns of 1974 Eurovision contest winner “Waterloo,” to the ever slight reggae funk of “The Name of the Game,” and the mellifluous string orchestration of “Dancing Queen,” ABBA’s pop extension knew NO boundaries, and with the delightful female voices lilting delightfully through the tracks, their singles became instant classics, the legendary hits you can build a hall of fame career off of.
You can also say the same about Ace of Base. They had three number one hit singles from debut album The Sign. “All That She Wants,” built around a synthline, 808 and a saxophone sample, may be one of the most iconic sounds of the 90s. “The Sign” features what sounds like a Casio keyboard setting as the instrumentation, proves that hooks drive pop music, and “Don’t Turn Around,” which was a Diane Warren written 1987 pop hit for reggae star Aswad did the trick as well, as the reggae feel of the sample on that track elevates it past just being a solid track, but one of the top songs of the decade.
Ace of Base have proven to still be influential today. Katy Perry has often stated that she very much wants her followup to One of the Boys to have a pronounced Ace of Base influence. But someone may have beat her to the punch. Lady Gaga’s “Alejandro” from The Fame Monster in no way could exist without it’s 1994 doppelganger. ABBA. Legendary. Ace of Base, a derivative, and with following that same pattern, became legendary. Lady Gaga, continuing that path? Legendary? Time will tell.
2. Trouble and Bass feat. Ninjasonik – “Take You”
AC SLATER — TAKE YOU FEAT. NINJASONIK
http://mediaservices.myspace.com/services/media/embed.aspx/m=104320485,t=1,mt=video
AC Slater | MySpace Music Videos
Ninjasonik’s album Art School Girls drops on 4/20. My, how apropos. The Trouble and Bass Crew just engaged in what felt like frighteningly impact-filled sonic warfare with the epic sound system at DC’s U Street Music Hall. AC Slater, a retro bass fiend and member of the crew who has done such amazing thing as sample Fingers Inc.’s “My House” for “Jack Got Jacked,” has returned with “Take You Higher,” which features synths eerily similar to Haddaway’s “What is Love?,” and a bass drop reminiscent to 20 Fingers’ “Short Dick Man.” Re-appropriating the classics of any genre is always appreciated, and this time, taking Ninjasonik’s oft-underrated Telli “Bathroom Sexxx” Federline’s flow and adding a fantastic bass workout at the end of the track, and you get a quality piece of dance music. Do listen, and do appreciate.
3. The Northern Soul movement is one of the most influential and important dance movements in the history of sound. Ask Fatboy Slim. He’ll agree.
I am a giant fan of the Twisted Wheel, Wigan Casino, Blackpool Mecca and Golden Touch club initiated UK Northern Soul movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Featuring DJs spinning small and indy label soul releases big on horn solos, high tempo rhythms and melodies and fast paced drum breaks, the Northern Soul sound was the earliest inspiration of underground UK rave culture. All night parties, spirited dancing, breakbeats, funky dances that were proto-breakdancing as denizens of the club were sparked to fits of dance they learned in attempting to mirror the likes of Jackie Wilson and James Brown with claps, jumps, knee dips and syncopated footwork. Sound familiar? Well it should.
One of my favorite tracks wholly inspired by the Northern Soul generation is UK DJ Fatboy Slim’s 1998 pop sensation “The Rockafeller Skank.” The Just Brothers’ “Sliced Tomatoes” is a funkdafied Detroit soul instrumental breakdown that proves that a track doesn’t need to be electro to move at 120 BPM. Norman “Fatboy Slim” Cook took the track, added a multitude of electronic elements and a Lord Finesse vocal sample, and the track zoomed up the charts, placing high in Billboard’s Top 100 as a single and rock track, and reaching #6 in England as well. As for the “Rockafeller Skank?” Well what other dance can you really do to that song?
elivindotorg 