Well, this year it certainly is bangers — but maybe “smart bangers”, unlike the huge tunes of a few years ago?

georg-i – Torn in Two [subglow]

The best of the quasi-industrial monsters this year. I said “smart” bangers, and this record is not as “smart” as it could be — the tempo doesn’t even change. We are, only, left with the halftime exploding into the Underworld-esq 3+3+2 pulse, and we’ll just have to be happy with that.

Disco Tex & The Sex-O-Lettes – Get Dancin’ [Chelsea]

Tell me it’s a novelty record, tell me that Sir Monti Rock sounds like he should be in The Producers in the Zero Mostel role, tell me that it is at best a Stevie Wonder ripoff, musically … and I’ll tell you to listen to the piano stabs, to the backing vocals, the horns in the buildup, and to go listen to Tom Moulton’s 1974 Sandpiper mixtape, which had this absolute bop center stage.

Felix – Tiger Stripes [Sleeping Bag Records]

Arthur Russell did not like this very Arthur Russell record, and so credited himself as “Killer Whale” … but thank Nicky Siano, because he did, he got it out, and it’s a great document of post-punk heat.

Impérieux – Fena [Hessle Audio]

Brreeeeeeeoowowwwwwwwwwwoowowww.

The second best of the quasi-industrial monsters of the year — and, frankly, this one sounds better on a big system, like some sort of robotic insectoid giant breaking through the nightclub walls.

Syclops – Pink Sarah NYC Is Back [BubbleTease]

I shazamed this multiple times this year, usually at Mr. Sunday, and then said “Oh I bought this record in January, Maurice Fulton, right” — this is a classy electro-house-minimal throwback that does not try too hard, and is all the better and better and better for it.

Grace Jones – Slave To The Rhythm (Medicine Head Remix) [DMC]

A lot of Grace Jones this year — this one comes from DJ Food’s “Alternate 80s” DJ mix, and is basically a Hybrid / nu-skool mix, long enough to give the record the time it deserves.

Four Tet – Into Dust (Still Falling) [XL]

“Just” another Four Tet sad banger — I sure did go to this one a lot though, when I needed a sad banger.

The honorable mentions to many great jams!

• HiTech – SPANK! — like “Sandwiches”, it’s the tone of voice and the piano riff that make this one.
• Charisse C and Kwamzy – Morning Sun — the platonic idea of a wonderful morning after.
• Junior – Mama Used To Say — boogie heat, via Theo Parrish and, originally, a Steinski mix.
• Weval – DOPAMINE (DJ Edit), another post-electro banggggger.
• Yuji Kawasaki – Springwater — a quintessential Mr. Sunday dancefloor-build / 3:30pm record.
• Minor Science – Mortals — the third best quasi-industrial big tune, but man, it is good.
• Mica Levi – Slob Air, 11 minutes, basically Gorecki.
• Gus Gus – Purple (Sasha vs The Light Remix) — Finally got this on vinyl, maybe this was the nostalgia that I needed.
• Grace Jones – Operattack — the source of the “Annihilating” vocal sample that has been used again and again and again … is in fact a pitched-down Ian McShane!

It gets harder and harder each year to convince people that I don’t just live at Nowadays … but I sort of really do, erk. Two notes in general for the year: there were a higher than usual number of beatmatching errors, from DJs that usually don’t make them, which seemed odd. Also, everyone was makin’ out — if people are decrying that the kids are not having sex, please send them to Cooper Ave, my goodness.

Donato Dozzy @ Nowadays Nonstop

My notes here say, correctly, that “Dozzy did not play one bad record”, which I think is true. An effortless step through contemporary techno, with lots of the minimal revival, but likewise lots of dub and psych influences, with a bit of heavier stuff at the end. Comprehensive and excellent — and a delight to see some pals there!

Ben UFO @ Nowadays Nonstop

Yes yes, again. This was the weekend of Wire Festival and I think some K Bridge parties as well, so the best DJ of his generation was not that busy, and maybe a bit deeper and more Detroit, just a bit? He also dropped “Fena” and shook the room, so maybe it’s just same old Ben as always.

Nidia x DJ Nigga Fox @ Nowadays Nonstop

I could not stay awake for all of this one, as I was coming from a friend’s wedding, but Container was great and loud, Deli Girls apparently had a drum kit set up, somewhere, but our friends from Portugal were amazing — weirdo house beats, some maddening half-time 6/8 things, and spike-heavy loops.

Theo Parrish All Night @ Nowadays

I went to one of these earlier in the year, which was great (and just amazingly busy early), but this one stole it. I think a lot the “loop” that genre-bending DJs go through — house, disco, detroit techno, house, repeat — this time Theo played almost no house music, subbed in jazz and Nina Simone for disco, and despite the room being there, played an empty-room-esq listening party for an hour.

CCL All Night @ Nowadays

If I didn’t think it underrated their achievements, I’d nominate CCL as the new Kwisatz Haderach — this set had multiple start-the-next-record-on-2 to shift basslines over, they played what sounded like two 1970s british blues revival records back to back, etc etc — and I got to hear “Torn In Two” (see tracks) on the Nowadays sound system, a dream!

Powder @ Nowadays Nonstop

No, you just go to Nowadays to dance for 6 hours in the morning — but why not? This set was great and housey and 90s … and then Powder slid in a last half-hour of slinky, weird dark ambient, sleaze-forward dubby techno, and left us all in a daze.

Giles Peterson, Kieren Hebden, Emma-Jean Thackray, Marshall Allan, etc – Jazz Dance @ Xanadu

Peterson has been saying “Jazz Dance at Dingwalls” for something like forty years now — to his credit, I stress, especially when he can bring lineups like this to a roller disco in Bushwick. The whole thing was a wonder, including Marshall Allan at 100, EJT both playing and DJing, and a bunch of nerds watching Four Tet play jazz freakout records … but those of us who knew were cutting it up on the dancefloor.

Honors, honors, we love you all:

• Antal playing boogie and city pop and latin disco at Nowadays, a lovely time.
• The terrifying but compelling ambient room at Wire Festival — great sounds, very hard to get in or out of.
• Donis and Aquite at Mr. Sunday, killer dancers and a Chaka Khan sing-a-long, amazing.
• Akanbi at Nonstop with his own dude on talking drum.
• DJ Clent at Nowadays, endless post-footwork power.
• Jessy Lanza at Public Records, playing more post-step than Pearson Sound, who she was opening for.
• Vladimir Ivkovic / Lena Wilikens at Nowadays, for those who know / want all their records played on 33.
• And a very special thanks to Duane Harriot for playing Toto’s “Africa” at Mr. Sunday, what a jam, what a jam.