Released on 30th January 1989, New Order’s fifth album is a sun-flushed pinnacle of dance rock, directly inspired by the hedonistic energy of Ibiza’s burgeoning club scene of the time. 35 years on, with the help of the album’s engineer Michael Johnson, Ben Cardew reflects on its legacy, and its influence on the acid house [...]
You can’t write a credible history of dance music without Beppe Loda. The Italian producer emerged in the early 1980s behind the decks as resident and main attraction at Club Typhoon, a former cinema transformed into a discotheque. His sets were so popular that the club reputedly attracted more patrons than the entire population [...]
Horse Meat Disco held their first party at what would become known as The Eagle pub in Vauxhall, London on New Year’s Day 2004. As their weekly Sunday night queer party grew, so did their international reputation, and they haven't stopped since. Here, Andy Thomas charts the soaraway success of the disco house collective over [...]
On one level, Anané’s new EP, ‘Take A Ride’, is a playful throwback to the musical opulence of the disco era. But it cuts deeper than that. As the vocalist and songwriter explains, it’s also an ode to unity, freedom, and her own sense of confidence There’s an attention-grabbing point at the four-and-a-half-minute mark [...]
In this extract from DJ Paulette's memoir, out later this month, she confronts the discrimination she and other women faced—and celebrates some of the scene's unsung heroines. I have long been aware that there is a marked difference in the way that Black women are allowed to occupy space in the workplace, and how [...]
In his 40 years as a DJ, Sean “DJ Spen” Spencer has seen it all. As a teenager, he watched hip-hop become a cultural force, opening for acts like Run-DMC and LL Cool J with his group Numarx. He’s spent decades producing and remixing dance records, running labels, and DJing around the world and [...]
In Our DNA: Hip House is screening on the Xfinity channel in the US now. A new three-part documentary series is examining the birth and evolution of hip house. Available now in the US via cable TV channel Xfinity, In Our DNA: Hip House explores the unique conditions in the '70s and '80s that [...]
Idealistic, passionate … Larry Levan (left) and David Depino at Trax - Photograph: Tina Paul/BBC Studios This wonderful series documents the passion and idealism of the 70s music scene. It’s an immaculately soundtracked history lesson – and so much more besides After the tumult of the last few years, UK nightlife is in a perilous [...]
https://youtu.be/Tiv6WEevwbQ?si=ZTuM4urXcjHsZ1Mt Robin S. gives us an exclusive insight into the making of her irreplicable club anthem, 'Show Me Love', three decades on from its release. Robin S. gives us an exclusive insight into the making of her irreplicable club anthem, 'Show Me Love', three decades on from its release. Initially shelved [...]
Danny Tenaglia will deliver a masterclass in DJing that can only come from someone with nearly 50 years of experience under his belt. In 1976, at 16, Danny Tenaglia's parents were okay with him playing his first DJ gig at the confusingly named Miami Lounge in Brooklyn. The caveat was that his older [...]