Three years ago.
Danger MusicSo, back in the day, Franck Rivoire was just some kid with a knack for graphic design and music production who happened to be obsessed with video games, comics, and superheroes. In 2007, he tossed a few tracks onto his MySpace page, and wouldn't you know it, a couple of weeks later he was signing a deal with Ekler'o'shock. Since then, Danger has racked up over three million plays on that same MySpace profile, his last record sold out in a mere three weeks, and iTunes USA even picked his track as the single of the week at 11:30. Given all that, it's pretty safe to say that Danger is leading the charge for the new electronic scene in France.
Danger has put out three EPs so far: the first two dropped back in September 2007, followed by his most recent one this past February. That latest project feels like he was heavily fueled by those gritty 80s sci-fi thrillers, whereas the first couple were clearly leaning into that old-school video game aesthetic. Aside from his own tracks, he’s also knocked out some seriously solid remixes for names like Sébastien Tellier, Midnight Juggernauts, Empire of the Sun, Estella ft Kanye West, Symbol One, Lil Jon, and The Crystal Method.
Danger describes his own sound as a sort of French-inspired new electro. It’s dark, layered, and heavy on those thick synths and basslines that manage to get you moving without being too obvious about it. Long before he hit the mainstream electro scene, he was busy scoring video games and messing around with chiptunes, and honestly, you can still hear that digital DNA bleeding through his tracks—not to mention the fact that he isn't afraid to flirt with a bit of hip-hop every now and then.
http://www.myspace.com/2emedangerGoto80 made on InternetSo, Anders Carlsson has been grinding away at 8-bit production for nearly two decades now. He’s basically mastered the art of turning the limitations of the Commodore 64, Amiga, and Game Boy into his biggest strengths rather than fighting against them. Even though he’s been in the game forever, it wasn't until his EP Papaya dropped in 2001 that people outside of the hardcore geek circles actually started taking notice. Honestly, the guy can whip up anything from jazz to pop to straight-up grindcore using nothing but 8-bit beeps and vocals. His range is kind of absurd—he actually put 30 different tracks on his website just to show off how much he can jump between genres. Between 2007 and 2008, he churned out over 300 songs, which is pretty wild considering you might hear his stuff playing on MTV one minute and in some gritty underground squat the next. He even picked up an award for best innovator in C64 music back in 2007 during the Commodore 64's 25th anniversary celebration.
Raquel Meyers I caught this video by an artist from Spain who leans heavily into low-res graphics to create these surreal, weirdly atmospheric visuals. Before 2007, she was part of the duo Entter, focusing on art installations, web design, and print work. As a VJ, she’s collaborated with a bunch of different performers like Glomag, Rubeck, or Tubular Bells, and since 2004, she’s been joining Goto80 for his live sets and performances. They play around with 8-bit music and aesthetics, basically trying to pit horror against happiness, and they've even performed at Transmediale, the Mapping festival, and the Cimatics festival. Their whole thing involves engaging net.art and these totally absurd music videos; for example, when they released the EP Goto80 made on Internet, they launched a karaoke app filled with sweet love songs paired with chaotic, glitchy visuals. Since 2009, they've been working on a new project called Polybus.
http://www.goto80.com/Check out Raquel Meyers' site here: http://www.raquelmeyers.com/
The Lowbrows Formed back in 2005, this creative duo hails from Tokyo. Chaki pulls double duty as a multi-instrumentalist and DJ, while Emi brings a classical musical background to the mix. If you’re trying to pin down their sound, "dramatic electro dance" is probably the best way to describe it—though if you wanted some comparisons, you could look toward acts like Congorock, 80kidz, or GLOVES. They dropped their first EP, The Lowbrows, in 2007, but they didn't really hit the radar until Dexpistols remixed their track "Melody & Shudder" for the Apple.Lesson.4 compilation. Once "Dream in the Desert" landed on The Gang Bang Deejaysa's *D is for Disco, E is for Dancing* compilation, they pretty much cemented their status as the next big thing in the Japanese dance scene. Since then, they’ve put out two albums, including their latest, *Danse Macabre*, which hit in November 2009 and actually managed to pick up some decent praise from the blogosphere. They've shared stages with everyone from Digitalism and Steve Aoki to N.A.S.A., Hot Chip, and Friendly Fires. On top of their own tracks, Chaki and Emi have knocked out a few solid remixes too, with their take on Simian Mobile Disca's "Synthesise" being arguably the most widespread.
http://www.myspace.com/thelowbrowsYou Say Party! We Say Die! It all kicked off back in late 2003, basically as a way for this group of cyclists called The Smoking Spokes to stay busy during those brutal Canadian winters. This five-piece outfit, led by Becky Ninkovic—an American with some family roots in the old country—decided to dive into dance punk, mostly because they figured it might help them stay in shape. After playing a few local gigs, they put out their first independent EP, Danskwad, which was really just a way to give anyone thinking about showing up to a show a heads-up on what they were actually in for.
After touring around Canada back in 2005, where they opened for Pretty Girls Make Graves and The Blood Brothers, they finally started catching some media traction and dropped Hit the Floor!. A year later, they were back on the road for another Canadian run, kicked off their first European tour, and played SXSW, while indie labels over in the United Kingdom released the singles The Gap and You Did It!. Following the release of their second album, Lose All Time, and an endless cycle of touring, the band actually came pretty close to calling it quits since everyone was busy focusing on family, "real" jobs, and other creative outlets. However, they regrouped late in 2008 to start working on a new record, which finally materialized early this year. The new album earned a ton of praise from critics and fans alike, even sitting at number one on the American college radio charts for six straight weeks. You can really hear them maturing on this one; they’ve taken that jittery new wave sound they're known for and layered in some darker emotions and more introspective lyrics.
http://www.yousaypartywesaydie.ca/
