Finding the Rhythm

I was struck this evening by the fact that while I’m a dance DJ, and I love dance music, the truth is, I just love music, dance or otherwise. But before I get into that, and perhaps some of the surprises that go with it, I’ll briefly talk about the chart update.

This past week, Britney Spears ended-up at #1 with Womanizer. Say what you will about the woman, but her producers (and the various remixers on the project) sure know how to turn out good material. There are several terrific mixes floating around, and apparently I’m not the only one who’s digging them.

At #2 is my friend Jacinta, with her latest, Electric Universe, which I blogged about recently. The more I hear this song, the more I like it, and the more I’m enjoying some of ther mixes other than the Robert G. mix I initially fell for.

You can view the chart here for the rest, but one other notable is mid-chart… Milk & Sugar Presents MS2, with Stay Around. There’s a superb mix from Germany’s Spencer & Hill that I always play, and really, really enjoy. The production’s great, and I love the soulful vocal. A friend of mine commented, “Someone should buy that girl some more lyrics,” and yeah, I would agree it’s a bit redundant. But it’s nonetheless enjoyable to my ears.

OK, back to the music surprises.

I was listening to some DJ promos online tonight, and some of the promos are pop, alternative, country, etc. Normally I limit myself to dance (obviously), but I decided to preview some of the other tracks, including a new single from LeAnn Rimes, and it suddenly struck me… Yes, I love dance music, but as I said at the beginning of this post, I also just love music, period. No, I don’t spend much time listening to country. But what’s not to appreciate when you have a talent like LeAnn Rimes?

Two tracks really stood out that are deserving of mention.

First, Keane’s new single, The Lovers are Losing. Their notable hit single from a couple of years ago, Is it Any Wonder? was my ringtone for months, and Lovers has the same incredible hit potential. Great songwriting, great lyrics, and an incredible performance make this an almost surefire hit. For dance lovers like me, there were some great remixes of Wonder, and I hope that some might be made available soon for Lovers. In the meantime, this one’s finding a home on my iPod.

Second, Canadian Idol’s most recent winner, Theo Tams, offers-up Sing. As near as I can determine, this track is unavailable in the U.S., which is a shame. While Sing is the “winner’s song” written and selected for him by the show’s producers, it is nonetheless a pleasant, enjoyable, ballad with a nice piano foundation, and with great hit potential as well since it’s likely to crossover well between AC, AAA and other mainstream radio formats. Typical of the Idol franchise, anyone from the teen fans of Tams to someone like my mother could enjoy this track.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this brief break. Back to the dance music. 

Wes