Just when you thought the countdown lists were over, here we are with another best of 2012 feature, but this one's a bit different. No order, just a collection of the biggest and some of the most underrated, but essentially our favourite electro house, progressive house, deep house, and tech house. Kicking off the 2 part series that takes a look back at the year in club music, today we present the best of the big room in 2012. Make sure to checkout the top 100 dance tracks of the year(more geared towards techno, deep house & the bassier side of dance music) and check back here in a few days as we'll bring you top deep house & tech house of the last twelve months of The Club. Before we get started, here's a quick 10 minute mix that our friends Dzeko & Torres dropped for NYE, mashing up 40 of their top picks for 2012. With a recent release on Dim Mak and constant air time from the biggest DJs in the world, these budding Toronto producers are a likely candidate to end up here next year, but in the meantime, its names like Alesso, Nicky Romero, and Hardwell dominating the main stage dance music world.
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Since signing with Virgin Records at the end of 2011, Eric Prydz's legendary status has taken a turn for the better and has accelerated him to the top of the pile of progressive house producers (although he doesn't necessarily fit in that category). Die hard Pryda fans will already know what he is capable of however it seems it wasn't until the release of his three CD compilation album in early 2011 that he put his stamp on the music industry. From the mind blowing build up and drop in "SW4", to the chilled out vibes and vocal of "Allein", to "Mighty Love", which has the 90s strings old school feel to it, the album spans across genres and moods, all while maintaining the classic Pryda touch. His private remix of M83's "Midnight City" still remains one of his most successful, as he added his uptempo magical touch to a such a great original to kick off the year of Prydz in 2012.
Porter Robinson has seen quite the successful year at the bright eyed age of 20. In that time he has sold more than 25,000 copies of his Spitfire EP on Skrillex’s well-respected OWSLA label making him a force to be reckoned with among the dance music world. He has graced the stages of some of the largest festivals this summer including Coachella, Tomorrowland, and Creamfields and embarked on a cross country tour alongside the young powerhouse Zedd. His fire does not seem to be going out anytime soon. Coming out on top this year is the “Language” track. With the perfect melody to display his new affinity for the progressive house sound. The words beautiful and dreamy have been used to describe the track, but even in all it’s beauty, you can’t help but find yourself urging to get up and dance.
Two of the biggest names in dance music at the moment teamed up to bring us some serious face melting music. A-trak and Tommy Trash brought us “Tuna Melt,” the EP titled track off A-Trak’s latest project that dropped just a few weeks ago on Fool’s Gold. With so much electro energy the track put both artists production skills to the test. It’s a collaboration made to make you wanna move. What a year for both artists, but specifically A-Trak who saw himself with a Grammy nod and graced the cover of Billboard magazine, all while starring in a Grey Goose ad campaign and you can’t forget touring the world. Oh and I forgot to mention running his own Fool’s Gold label. 2013 is looking like a golden year for the turntable king. – Lindsay Herr
Words can’t describe how it felt when Swedish House Mafia dropped the Tommy Trash (aka Thomas Olsen) remix of “Ladi Dadi” at Coachella this year; the song hit with such incredible force, seeming to connect the entire mass of people gathered for the headliner’s show. It’s Olsen’s signature sound (a sort of fast-paced croaking) along with a desperate sense of time running out, that took “Ladi Dadi” to new a whole new level. These elements also made it into Olsen’s version of “Sunrise,” a collaboration with The Aston Shuffle. When the bass hits, it almost feels like you’re going to miss out if you don’t start dancing, and that’s exactly what this genre is about.
There seems to be a new sound entering into electro house, no better articulated then TJR’s recent Beatport chart topper “Ode To Oi.” The ol’ chainsaw grind, while still prominent in many respects, has a younger brother, which takes the electronic staple to new, more melodic heights. When the sound hits, it’s deliciously infectious, seeming to creep into every available ounce of ear-space. In fact “Ode” plays with it perfectly, setting up a minimal background and thumping bass to compliment this ratchet noise. With other artists like Deorro, Will Sparks and Koyote also sporting this newfound glory, “Ode To Oi” is just the first of many.
Laidback Luke had not such a laid-back 2012. Constantly remixing and using a varying musical voice, the past year was full of everything from very hard electro grinds to classic upbeat progressive house. From the almost mainstreamed hit remix of Dragonette's "Let it Go," to the housified "Trilogy" collaboration with Arno Cost, LBL has certainly reminded us of the fun and melodic artist that we've grown to love. And creating a new field for himself in 2012, Luke hit hard with womping grinding electro in songs like "1234," a huge hit launched at Ultra Music Festival, and his remix of Chuckie and Junxterjack's "Make Some Noise." At the end of 2012, what we've learned to expect from Laidback Luke is rock solid, huge amounts of quality energy.
It feels like Otto Knows, the Swedish Otto Jettmann, layered the dulcet tones of children from all over the world to create his track “Million Voices.” So filled with hope and inspiration, I can’t help but smile whenever I listen to it; honestly, everything just seems right in the world. The track became a staple in sets world-wide and still remains in the Beatport top 100, though it came out back in February of this year. Quite a testament to a new producer who has also had his hands on tracks, such as “Kick Out The Epic Motherfucker” by Dada Life and “Lies” by Burns.
In today's world of computer production and agressive, in your face synths, sometimes the musical talent can get lost. That goes for anyone, including classically trained musician, Anton Zaslavki, better known as Zedd, who at the beginning of 2012 had already carved out his niche in complextro-electro house. Working alongside friends like Porter Robinson, he injected some progressive elements into his sound and the result has been nothing short of astounding. With a full album released at the end of year featuring his singles from the year and some impressive new tracks, Zedd has broken out of the shell in a big way. This past week he even showed off his skills on David Letterman with Foxes, something not many electronic music producers will ever have the chance to do, let alone the talent to pull it off.
This list wouldn’t be complete without Axwell’s remix of “In my Mind.” For months I think every DJ found a way to work this uplifting track into their set. He took the original track by the fresh up and coming duo Ivan Gough & Feenixpawl and turned it into a house anthem. The instant your ears hear those memorable uplifting lyrics you are instantly reminded of why you live and breathe dance music.As Georgi Kay effortlessly belts out “And in my mind, in my head, this is where we all came from. The dreams we had, the love we share, this is what we’re waiting for,” it is exactly the track we had been waiting for. – Lindsay Herr
Make sure to support the artists you enjoy by purchasing their tracks at an outlet such as Beatport, Itunes, Juno, Boomkat or other. Contributions to this post from Becky Parker, Steph Evans, Colin Tewksbury & Lindsay Herr.
