Grammys: 6 dance nominees to electrify your playlists
In 2014, we saw faceless electro-vets Daft Punk nab the Grammy Awards' top hardware, while British upstarts Disclosure and Clean Bandit exploded stateside with top-40 hits. As the Grammys rapidly approach once again Sunday (CBS, 8 p.m. ET/PT), we shine the spotlight on six dance newcomers and old hands nominated this year:
APHEX TWIN (aka Richard D. James)
Nominated for: Best dance/electronic album, Syro
Get to know him: The famed Irish producer returned with his first album as Aphex Twin in more than than a decade, winning acclaim for his unfettered and richly textured Syro last year. The 43-year-old electronic vet has since lined up a new EP, Computer Controlled Acoustic Instruments Pt. 2, out Jan. 23 and featuring his typical balderdash of unusual song titles.
The bottom line: "In some sense, Aphex Twin is this year's Daft Punk," says Billboard's editor-at-large Joe Levy. "He's made work that is foundational to this world and his stature has only grown in the time he's been away. In a world that changes constantly, he's returned doing more or less exactly what he does."
AUDIEN (aka Nate Rathbun)
Nominated for: Best remix recording, Bastille's Pompeii
Get to know him: At only 22, the Connecticut native has already been tapped for official remixes of Bruno Mars (Treasure) and the late Michael Jackson (Slave to the Rhythm), while racking up nearly 20 million Spotify streams of his own with galvanic, progressive house tracks such as Leaving You and Circles. Ranked No. 88 on DJ Mag's Top 100 DJs of 2014, the trance wunderkind scored one of the top-played tracks at Electric Daisy Carnival and Coachella last year with his remix of Bastille's Pompeii.
The bottom line: With this remix, "he gets the chance to show a world outside of the EDM world exactly how hooky, catchy and smart he is," Levy says. "In a year where a formerly smaller sensation like Cashmere Cat (winds up) producing for Ariana Grande, I would say he is the next in line for that kind of coronation, if he wants it."
BASEMENT JAXX
Nominated for: Best dance recording, Never Say Never
Get to know them: The prolific British duo of Simon Ratcliffe and Felix Burton has been a presence on the electronic scene for two decades, but they've shown they're spry as ever with genre-melding seventh album Junto (Spanish for "together"), released in August. After high-octane sets at Ultra, Bestival and Wireless fests last summer, the dancehall vets are bringing their live show to Hard's EDM cruise Holy Ship! next month.
The bottom line: Winners of the first dance album Grammy in 2005 for Kish Kash, "these guys are veterans going back 15 years, and have created a sound that drew on Chicago house, and a sound that's now become a classic sound, being brought back by artists like Disclosure," Levy says. For them, "this album is a return to basics. It's both in the tradition of their own work and a classic DJ set."
LITTLE DRAGON
Nominated for: Best dance/electronic album, Nabuma Rubberband
Get to know them: The Swedish band of lilting vocalist Yukimi Nagano, drummer Erik Bodin, bassist Frederik Wallin and keyboardist Hakan Wirenstand has been dipping into electronica and synthpop for nearly 20 years, but didn't release its self-titled debut album until 2007. They returned with propulsive fourth effort Nabuma Rubberband last May, which they supported with a U.S. tour and festival dates at Glastonbury and Bonnaroo throughout the summer.
The bottom line: "Here's an album that's electronic by virtue of the way it's put together and that it's danceable, but it might also appeal to some as a classic album," Levy says. "This is not festival music, this is closer to chill-out music. It can work in the club, but it also works at home, and could exist in many different Grammy categories."
MAT ZO (aka Matan Zohar)
Nominated for: Best dance/electronic album, Damage Control
Get to know him: Ranked No. 66 on DJ Mag's Top 100 DJs in 2010, the 24-year-old Brit incorporated elements of hip-hop and drum and bass on assured debut album Damage Control, released in fall 2013 and featuring collaborations with Porter Robinson (Easy) and rapper Chuck D (Pyramid Scheme). He has also made a name for himself as an adept remixer, from him grimy rework of Ellie Goulding's Burn to his club-ready take on Kylie Minogue's anthemic Get Outta My Way.
The bottom line: "It's definitely one of the widest ranging and most interesting albums nominated in the dance/electronic category this year," Levy says. "For certain, (he's) a DJ/producer who comes from a deep musical background. He's someone who understands more than his laptop, and he's made an expansive record that reflects (that)."
ROBIN SCHULZ
Nominated for: Best remix recording, Mr. Probz's Waves
Get to know him: Dutch singer Mr. Probz washed up Billboard's Hot 100 with Robin Schulz's mellow dance remix of his lovesick ballad, peaking at No. 14 last year. Now, the 27-year-old German DJ is working his magic once again, lending his Midas touch to Lilly Wood & The Prick's dreamy Prayer in C, which just climbed to No. 21 on USA TODAY's top-40 airplay chart.
The bottom line: "The interesting thing about Schulz is he's a German DJ remixing a Dutch artist, in a year where some of the biggest pop hits were imports," Levy says. The Waves remix "starts as a moody pop song and ends as a moody dance track, and its second life is the one that we know. Its second life, frankly, is the reason it's successful."