Dance music should be the most eclectic sonic form. It covers such a broad sonic spectrum, is less concerned by genre or form than any other style of music out there and its use of digital technology means that it should always be ahead of the curve. So why does so much of it sound the same?
I guess even within such a broad musical church, so many people are willing to toe the line and follow what has gone before. This is not the case with the latest release from the wonderfully named Marcos The Arrow.
You can argue all night where dance music starts and ends and even if The Machine is dance music at all. It doesn’t really matter, it’s just an easy reference point to start with, and the beats are certainly infectious and the grooves…well, groovesome.
After that, you get into more interesting territory. On top of the lolloping, unusual and leftfield beat which drives everything along Mr Arrow bathes it in synth washes and shimmering riffs, bass pulses add weight and intriguing keyboard additions spiral and meaner up towards the light or boom out from the very depths of the song. Throw in a cool and artistic video and you have the complete package.
Call it what you will, dance, alt-dance, avant-garde, music as art, electro-indie, it doesn’t really matter. All that matters is that it sets new benchmarks for what dance music can be. (If we can even agree that it is dance music. Hang on, isnt this where I came in?)
