New Music Friday is intense. Hundreds of songs drop from artists around the world, and you’re supposed to somehow find the best ones. It’s fun work, but it’s time-consuming — so we at Billboard Dance want to give you a hand. Each week, we sift through the streams and dig into the digital crates to present absolute must-hears from the wide breadth of fresh jams.
This week saw the release of fresh music from the anonymous producer Izniik, a brand new LP from the veteran Jacques Greene and the one and only Benny Bennassi remixing Georgia Ku. In addition to all that, below we’ve got new music from venerable banger-makers Mstrkrft and Flosstradamus, some fresh to death tech-house and a few bonafide slow jams. Let’s proceed.
Alan Dixon, “Patootie Tango”
Trending on Billboard
How can you read a track title like “Patootie Tango” and now smile? This one comes off the B-side of Alan Dixon’s Motel 4000 EP, out today (Oct. 18) on Tensnake’s True Romance Records. The U.K. disco-house fiend taps into an undeniable, almost childlike sense of joy with bright, beaming chords, a delightfully squiggly acid-style synth and a breakdown worthy of a few full body rolls. If Studio 54 were the final destination on Mario Kart’s cosmic Rainbow Road, this is what would be playing inside.
Thankfully, no one has to leave Earth to hear this in the flesh — consummate veteran Laurent Garnier dropped it recently while DJing at London’s fabric, and with the flashing pink and violet lights, it was altogether every bit as euphoric as one can imagine. — KRYSTAL RODRIGUEZ
Krewella, “Ghost”
The Yousaf sisters are back with “Ghost,” their second fresh single of 2019. The track maintains both the strong, defiant vibe the sisters have demonstrated throughout their work since breaking out in 2013, along with the complex bass beats that are also their signature. “Ghost” is some of Krewella’s most sophisticated and pop-leaning work to date, with the track’s melodic hooks demonstrating the power of not only their attitudes, but their voices. Jahan and Yasmine are currently working on a new album, the name and release date of which are still to be determined. Watch for it. — KATIE BAIN
Alex Metric and Waze & Odyssey, “Jack to the Future”
Alex Metric began 2019 with a bang by winning his first Grammy award for best dance recording (“Electricity”). Last month, the London-based producer released his first original music this year and has been on a hot streak since.
In his latest, he’s linked up with fellow Brits Waze & Odyssey and Chicago vocalist Russoul for “Jack to the Future,” a no-nonsense, chrome-covered slice of tech house that sounds like a spacecraft come to life amid cascading bleeps, fuzzy acid chugging, short-circuit synth lines and a black hole of a bassline. The single is the newest release on Danny Howard’s recently relaunched Nothing Else Matter label, which so far has come out of the gate strong with singles from Howard and Eli & Fur, Kill Frenzy and Iglesias. — K. Rodriguez
Flosstradamus Feat. Megatone, “Bounce Back”
The tech industry has a saying: “fail fast and fail often.” You’ve got to screw up so you can learn and become stronger, so next time things don’t go your way, celebrate and play this absolute banger from trap lord Flosstradamus and Isreali upstart Megatone. It’s fast-paced and hair-raising, with a mix of funky exoticism, a wandering Western whistle, massive siren wails and the kind of blood-pumping beat that’ll scare away your doubts and lift your spirits, making you ready to take on the world once more. — KAT BEIN
Sonny Fodera & Biscits, “Vibrate”
“Vibrate” is the lead single and title track from Sonny Fodera and Biscit’s new two-song EP, out today via Fodera’s own Solotoko label, and it’s a ripper. Falling squarely in the hot tech-house sound of the moment, the track is built from a super-sized vocal sample and a low-key bass synth that sort of seduces your ears. Set against a buzzy build and bouncy drop, this one is for peak time weekend dancefloor action, or just wilding out to in your car on the Friday night commute home from work. The EP’s sister track, “The Get Down,” is similarly cathartic. — K. Bain
Mstrkrft, “Oh Yeah”
The monster electro duo Mstrkrft has taken a turn for the techno in recent years, grabbing themselves some analog synths and going to town. The group’s latest EP Sunshine Of My Life dropped on mau5trap today, and the four-song collection is dark-stomp industrial to the max. The intro song “Oh Yeah” is our personal favorite: It’s groovy, electric streak and vocal chant hit like a lightning bolt on the dance floor, and the repetitive synth line crawls under your skin until you’ve no choice but to move. At nearly seven minutes, this bang-fest goes the distance, and we are here for the whole nine yards. — K. Bein
Devault, “Scar”
We got pretty excited about Devault’s new Sapphire EP, which dropped today in full on Insomniac Records – so excited, in fact, we named him an Emerging Artist for the month of September.
Now that the complete four-track work is here, we’ve got to highlight closing track “Scar.” It brings haunting but beautiful emotion. It’s dreamy and driving, with ambient synth chords that mimic the human voice and a pulsing mechanical rhythms. Be sure to give the full ’80s-inspired sci-fi fever dream a run through. — K. Bein
Jim-E Stack, “Good Enough”
Sometimes you want to dance, and sometimes you just want to sort of space out and let the music take your mind where it will. “Good Enough,” from San Francisco-born, Los Angeles-based producer Jim-E Stack, is decidedly for the latter activity, with the chilled out trap beats serving as a woozy template for hypnotically Auto-tuned vocals from Ant Clemons, best known for his work on Kanye West’s “All Mine.” This song shimmers as it builds, creating an uplifting vibe despite its methodical pace. Consider it your soundtrack for that late-night Uber ride home from the club. — K. Bain