RPS

Some stats. There are: 4 albums from the seventies. 10 albums from the eighties. 15 albums from the nineties. 11 albums from this decade. 32. The B52’s - The B52’s (1979) The stats: Went #59 on the Billboard music charts, 152 on Rolling Stone’s greatest albums. The essential tracks: Planet Claire, 52 Girls, Rock Lobster, 6060-842. Before everyone and their mother starts to hate on this record just wait and let me explain. So they recorded Love Shack (ok, admit it, everyone loves that song). This is THE party record. Go and watch the video for Rock Lobster. How can you NOT dance to that? Its mindless, absolutely. Its kitchsy, absolutely. Hell, its really, really gay. But it’s a damn good time! (and we all love Love Shack, just admit it) 31. Gorillaz – Gorillaz (2001) The stats: Seven million albums sold worldwide, spawned four top 40 hits in the UK and an unexpected hit in Clint Eastwood in the US. The essential tracks: Five Four, Clint Eastwood, Punk, Rock The House, Latin Simone, 19-2000 When this album was released, people weren’t really sure what to call it. There are lots of albums released that people can ascribe some sort of genre, but Gorillaz was an entirely different world. It literally genre-hopped all over the world. Latin, hip-hop, rock, punk, electronica, reggae all combined to make this very lush and weird record. 19-2000 is still one of the most pecuilar, yet incredibly dance-able tunes out there. 30. Madonna – Ray Of Light (1998) The stats: 14 million albums worldwide, three Grammy Awards, produced by William Orbit. The essential tracks: Ray Of Light, The Power Of Goodbye, Frozen, Nothing Really Matters. The first appearance for Madonna on this list was her return to the dance floor. Madonna seemed to flounder in the nineties, really unsure of any sort of identity she wanted to have. And than Ray Of Light comes to her; her most experimental and risky record and it paid off huge. It reestablished Madonna as the Queen of the Pop World and ensured that she’d keep her throne until… well, she still hasn’t lost it. 29. Depeche Mode – Violator (1990) The stats: Depeche Mode’s first appearance in the top 10 of the Billboard Album charts, The essential tracks: Personal Jesus, World In My Eyes, Enjoy the Silence. Depeche Mode’s biggest break through at the time combined elements of synch pop and industrial to make a thrilling statement on dance music.

36. Air – Moon Safari (1998) The stats: The album was recently re-released to commemorate it’s ten year release; been covered by Franz Ferdinand and Nena. The essential tracks: Sexy Boy, La Femme d‘Argent, Kelly Watch the Stars Released in 1998, this classic album has proven over the last ten years to have longevity. Songs like La Femme d‘Argent and Sexy Boy still seem a bit ahead of their time. Much like Play (37), it serves not only as great dance floor music, it’s just the kind of record you can put on and chill out too. It’s laid back nature gives it versatility; it isn’t the type of record that grows old fast. The classic Sexy Boy is still as fresh today as when I first heard it back in 1998. 35. Run DMC – Greatest Hits (2002) The stats: Four top five Billboard hits; considered the most complete compilation of Run DMC’s career. The essential tracks: It’s Tricky, Walk This Way, It’s Like That. Much like DFA1979, Run DMC aren’t your typical dance group. Regardless, this mix of rock and roll and hip hop makes for an instant good time, on and off the dance floor. Everyone and their mother has at least danced to Walk This Way and the rest of the tracks here laid the ground work for hip hop artists to come. 34. Death From Above 1979 – You’re A Woman, I’m a Machine (2004) The stats: The only studio release by DFA1979; went gold in Canada; Blood On Your Hands was a top 40 hit in the UK. The essential tracks: Romantic Rights, Blood On Your Hands, Cold War, Sexy Results. Its hard to not acknowledge the fact this isn’t a conventional dance record. Where are the techno beats? Where’s that heavy disco bass line? Shouldn’t MSTRKRFT be listed here? Regardless of all that, DFA1979 released one hell of a statement in 2004. Its not a clubbing album; it’s a balls to the walls, get drunk off your ass and dance like there is no tomorrow type record. There is just something about that infectious combo of the heavy, almost metal bass line and the non-stop drumming. 33. Vengaboys - The Party Album (1997) The stats: Four top five hits in the UK (two of which were #1s), We Like To Party was covered by Crazy Frog and used in Six Flags commercials. The essential tracks: We Like To Party, Boom Boom Boom Boom!, Up And Down, We’re Going To Ibiza. The only way you could hate this record were to be if you hated fun. Much like Aqua (#38), this is just pure and unadulterated fun. Do the Vengaboys want you to think? No! Do they want to you to dance? Fuck yeah. A staple of club music not only in the nineties but well into the new millennium. And what separates the Vengaboys from other one hit wonders is that – they didn’t have just one song. They had an entire CD full of amazing tunes!

Yeah, I shuffled it up a bit. I don't know. Aqua is a bit dated, but you can't really underestimate how big of a record that was in 1997. The Prodigy holds up better over a long period, but Aqua immediate impact was far greater than the Prodigies. All in my opinion, though.

Dancing is a primary function of music. People can do it in bars, at a concert, or in their own bedroom. And it’s infectious. Many artists have tried over the years to get us up out of our chairs and to get dancing. Some didn’t even try and they did any ways. From disco, to new wave, to industrial, to funk and soul, to punk rock, dancing has been integral to music as the music itself. And with that, I’ve decided to compile a list of the 40 best dance albums of the last thirty years (well… one is a bit over, but it’s the exception). I admit, a purely subjective list. Much of my tastes clearly emerges from the list. But for the most part, I think did a great job in compiling the most successful albums in getting us to dance. Some may be obvious (the top four are in my mind, the only top four you could choose); others will be a surprise. Posts will be posted in increments of four. Spoiler: Click here to view 40. David Bowie – Let’s Dance (1983) 39. The Prodigy – The Fat Of The Land (1997) 38. Aqua – Aquarium (1997) 37. Moby – Play (1999) 36. Air – Moon Safari (1998) 35. Run DMC – Greatest Hits (2002) 34. Death From Above 1979 – You’re A Woman, I’m a Machine (2004) 33. Vengaboys - The Party Album (1997) 32. The B52’s - The B52’s (1979) 31. Gorillaz – Gorillaz (2001) 30. Madonna – Ray Of Light (1998) 29. Depeche Mode – Violator (1990) 28. The Clash – Rock The Casbah (1982) 27. Justice – † (2007) 26. Blondie – Parallel Lines (1978) 25. Fat Boy Slim – You've Come a Long Way, Baby (1998) 24.The Spice Girls – Spice (1996) 23. The Chemical Brothers – Dig Your Own Hole (1996) 22. Devo – Freedom Of Choice (1980) 21. Madonna – Confessions On A Dancefloor (2005) 20. Kraftwerk – Trans-Europe Express (1977) 19. Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand (2004) 18. New Order – Low-Life (1983) 17. Basement Jaxx – Rooty (2001) 16. Jamiroquai – Travelling Without Moving (1996) 15. Madonna – Like A Prayer (1989) 14. Michael Jackson – Off The Wall (1979) 13. Missy Elliott - Miss E… So Addictive (2001) 12. Beastie Boys – Hello Nasty (1998) 11. Basement Jaxx – Kish Kash (2003) 40. David Bowie – Let’s Dance (1983) The stats: David Bowies fifteenth studio album; #1 in the UK and #4 in the US; three top five singles. The essential tracks: Let’s Dance, China Girl, Modern Love, Ricochet Throughout the late seventies and early eighties, David Bowie had shown signs of attempting a cross over to a more dance sound. Incorporating synthesisers and experimenting with producer Brian Eno. The result was Let’s Dance – a highly divisive record. A commercial success for Bowie, it came at the expense of critical disdain for his recent turn into disco and new wave. http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=30AVhf-ZLwM (Let’s Dance) http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=vF3SBrLrgmE (Modern Love) 39. The Prodigy – The Fat Of The Land (1997) The stats: Fastest selling album in the UK in 1999; debuted at #1 on the Billboard Charts; included in Rolling Stone's "Essential Recordings of the 90's." The essential tracks: Smack My Bitch Up, Breathe, Diesel Power, Mindfields, Firestarter. In 1997, The Prodigy were different in every sense of the word. Not only did Liam Howett and Keith Flint look out of this world, but their brand of electronica was hard to define. Combining industrial, punk and rave sounds, the Prodigy created a distinct sound that captivated European and North American audiences. Courting controversy with songs like Smack My Bitch Up and Firestarter, the Prodigy created an album full of aggressive dance songs. http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=lU2AVp6uFDw (Smack My Bitch Up) http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=28ow4TLMTqM (Firestarter) 38. Aqua – Aquarium (1997) The stats: 10 million albums sold worldwide; eight singles released off the album; first three singles released by the band went #1 in the UK. The essential tracks: Barbie Girl, Doctor Jones, Lollipop (Candyman), My Oh My. Anyone who attended a high school dance between 1997 and 2000 knows about the power of Aqua. Regarded in some circles as a novelty band, Aqua struck it big with the hot single Barbie Girl. The success of Barbie Girl would lead it go Platinium practically everywhere around the world – from Spain (x5 platinum), to Japan (x2 platinum), to Canada (x10 platinum). This would all be irrelevant if it wasn’t for the fact that Aquarium was a gem of Europop. Each track, while a bit cheesy, delivers over the top fun at every turn. It’s pure camp goodness. http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=pxn567bHny8 (Barbie Girl) http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=buXJlBd3Mf8 (Doctor Jones) 37. Moby – Play (1999) The stats: 10 million albums sold world wide; every song was licensed for commercial use; number 341 on Rolling Stone’s Greatest Albums of All Time. The essential tracks: Honey, Porcelain, South Side, Natural Blues Moby combined gospel, blues soul and electronica elements seamlessly on Play, creating a unique and distinct sound. Moby’s choice to license all the songs for commercial use seemed to take attention away from the pure quality of the tracks inside. It’s the type of record you can be dancing too in the club one second or while relaxing on a night in. http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=D1Fcaro25Ek (Porcelain) http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=ivtKcM1DGeY (Natural Blues)

Janet Jackson - Discipline In a weird way, its actually really good. 6 top notch song on it, Feedback being such an amazing club track. But way too many "shorts" and not enough substance make it pretty bland and uninteresting.

JUSTICE - Planisphère (Part 1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YNeAYL6Bps Good god almighty, a mightier riff has never existed! It both makes me wanna rock out and dance my ass off.

Daft Punk 1. Human After All [Human After All] 2. Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger [Discovery] 3. Da Funk [Homework] 4. Superheroes / Human After All / Rock'n Roll [Alive 2007] 5. Crescendolls [Discovery] Of Montreal 1. The Past Is A Grotesque Animal [Hissing Fauna] 2. Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse [Hissing Fauna] 3. Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games [The Sunlandic Twins] 4. Id Engager [Skeletal Lamping] 5.Tulip Baroo [The Gay Parade] Justice 1. D.A.N.C.E [†] 2. We Are Your Friend [Never Be Alone] 3. Me Against The Music (Justice Remix) [N/A] 4. Planisphère (Part 1) [Planisphère EP] 5. Waters of Nazareth [†] Radiohead 1. 15 Step [In Rainbows] 2. Paranoid Android [OK Computer] 3. Idioteque [Kid A] 4. Everything In Its Right Place [Kid A] 5. Just [The Bends] Kanye West 1. Stronger [Graduation] 2. Hey Mama [Late Registration] 3. Love Lockdown [808's & Heartbreak] 4. Heard 'Em Say [Late Registration] 5. Everything I Am [Graduation]

Planisphère by Justice is probably the best release of the year. SO FUCKING EPIC.

Just got around to listening to the new Bloc Party and... SNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOZE. Seriously... its just a boring mess. The first time I heard Silent Alarm, it was a cool experience hearing something a bit fresh. This is just bad and been done before. On the flip side, I found a torrent that has every Ed Banger release ever and I'm just a bit obsessed.

1) Outkast - Stankonia 2) Kanye West - Graduation 3) Jay Z - The Black Album 4) Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP 5) Missy Elliott - Miss E: So Addictive 6) Dizzee Rascal- Boy In Da Corner 7) Kanye West - College Dropout 8) N.E.R.D - In Search Of 9) Beastie Boys - Hello Nasty 10) Outkast - Speakerboxx/The Love Below Kanye West

Franco was awesome, the first bit of the movie dragged and was not funny at all, after they traveled to the woods and went to the guys house it picked up and became a really funny movie. I'm tired of Seth Rogen and his awful acting. Did anyone believe for a second the guy was stoned? Ever? James Franco played the role to a tee.

1. Daft Punk 2. Blur 3. M.I.A 4. The Clash 5. Justice 6. Rufus Wainwright 7. Of Montreal 8. Hercules & Love Affair 9. Nine Inch Nails 10. Hot Chip Edited: my list from 2007 1. Bloc Party 2. Blur 3. Justin Timberlake 4. The Format 5. Kanye West 6. Daft Punk 7. M.I.A 8. My Chemical Romance 9. Final Fantasy 10. Babyshambles

i'm so pumped for the rest of my year. going to see: broken social scene rufus wainwright bloc party madonna of montreal i've already seen snoop dogg, primus, m.i.a and than i get even more awesomeness.

It has transvestites, Tim Curry and plenty of gender bending. This is the type of movie I live for.

Bikini Kill, Black Flag, The Clash, Dead Kennedys, The Hives, Limp Wrist, Refused & The Thermals are probably my favorite punk bands. I've always had a soft spot for punk in my heart, but lately I've gotten bored of the genre. A lot of the bands were, in my eyes, really average and boring (like the Ramones) or just lacked any songs that you could listen to again and again. I can still throw on the Dead Kennedy's "Fresh Fruit" or the Thermals "The Body, The Blood, The Machine" and listen to every single track. The Ramones and the Sex Pistols... not so much. The Sex Pistols had one good CD and the Ramones had a handful of good songs and a whole slew of LPs full of average and uninteresting songs.

Dizzee Rascal; "Sirens" Daft Punk; "Rock N Roll" Justice; "†" Blur; "Song 2"

.... who had plans prior to his death to collaborate with the lead singer of R.E.M, Michael Stipe...

... who once covered a song "Saturday Nights Alright For Fighting" by the legendary Elton John...

Justice. (We Are Your Friend, Waters Of Nazareth, DVNO) MSTRKRFT (remix of Woman by Wolfmother, Work On You, BOUNCE) Of Montreal (anything off Hissing Fauna) Ron Sexsmith.

Great concept, but to me, it just was a bore. Not my type of movie at all, and it seemed to really drag, except for the last ten minutes. I won't deny the clever concept behind the movie, but to me it's just that. A clever concept that gets muddled in execution.

Kurt Cobain has made it very clear in many interviews that without R.E.M, he wouldn't be a musician. I believe he stated it in a Rolling Stones article. I have it in a book, so I can cite it later. And I still lay to my claim without R.E.M, no alternative rock. I mean, to say that R.E.M isn't influencial is one thing, but to ignore the blatant fact that R.E.M was alternative rock in the eighties is ludcrious. We aren't just talking musical style, but their early approach to DIY and in constructing an image of the band. Without R.E.M there there would be no Sonic Youth, no Grunge, no alternative rock of the nineties. Sure, they released some major crap in the nineties, but to deny their existence as the one of the most (if not, the most) important alternative rock groups is ludcrious considering many music critics, journalists and historians would disagree. But hey, just one opinion...

I voted for R.E.M [in fact, I might have put them number one of the list...] and I will back up this nomation. I think R.E.M take a lot of flack for their 1990-early 2000 work which was LESS than stellar. Before that, R.E.M was the KINGS of alternative rock. Without them, THERE would be no alternative rock. They were, in the eighties, the most interesting band releasing music regularly. I think putting "they influenced" is doing them a great disservice. Them, along with a couple of other bands, PIONEERED alternative rock. Not just in terms of musical style, but in terms of how they approached the music business. R.E.M were not only important in helping to foster alternative rock on the underground scene in the eighties, but bringing it to the mainstream in the nineties and hugely influencing alternative rock and grunge movements. [Heck, without R.E.M I think Kurt Corbain said there would be no Nirvana]. To say that R.E.M had no songs that were ground breaking is ludcrious. In fact, its completely ass backwards! R.E.M released six of the greatest albums of the eighties. They released six amazing and ground breaking albums. One simply has to go back and look at reviews for albums such as Murmurs and Reckoning. Murmur which is widely recongised as one of the greatest alternative rock albums of all time, let alone probably the best CD of the eighties. Not only that, although they weren't necessarily the best band in the nineties, they still released a hell of a lot of good singles. Losing My Religion, Man on the Moon, Whats The Frequency Kenneth?, and their entire new CD is class. Great songs by R.E.M? Gardening at Night , Begin the Begin, Radio Free Europe, Talk About The Passion, Don't Go Back To Rockville, The One I Love, Can't Get There From Here, So. Central Rain, 7 Chinese Bros., Fall On Me, Drive 8, It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine), Man On The Moon, All the Way to Reno, The Great Beyond, Losing My Religion, Stand, Living Well Is The Best Revenge, Man-Sized Wreath, Supernatural Superserious, Houston. I think that R.E.M in the current climate is just as relevant as others on the list, if not more than others who have placed higher, but whatever...

Dead Kennedys - mainly "MTV - Get Off The Air" and "Nazi Punks Fuck Off". LCD Soundsystem "Losing my Edge".

I'd totally agree with your point if it wasn't about Wii Fit. Its gotten actually really good reviews from a lot of sites and is applauded as being really different. Most of the other shit out there for the Wii is awful, however.

I mean, I disagree but it all comes down to taste. I don't think Vampire Weekend are bland, but different tastes I guess. I do hate the indie love for them though. Most of the "cool" kids I know tried to recommend this band to me a million times, and they talk about how different and cool they are. They aren't different; they rip off Paul Simon and dress like hipsters.