Maybe you heard

by JACK OATMON

Perhaps it only stands as evidence of the ludicrous number of hours I spend bugging out to funky music, but I attest that my favourite DJs are not the ones who rock my preferred stock, but the ones who make me like music I’ve never heard before. A true selector sets the mood and gains the listener’s trust by consistently broadcasting scintillating sounds and combining them in an interesting way, without relying too heavily on established hits.

No shit, you might say. Well, the reason I begin on that rather dour note is because a few Super Smash Club Hits have been breeding something of a musical monoculture on Montreal’s dancefloors lately. And always, for that matter. Don’t get me wrong, I love what I’m hearing out there, but in the interest of diversification, here’s a handful of face-busting bangers that might not be on your living-room jukebox:

The Black Ghosts: One half Simon Lord of Simian fame, and the other Theo Keating of the Wiseguys, this freaky-cracker-Brit duo already has the right connections to crop up in conversation around the turntable, but the proof is in the pudding of greasy, motorcycle-driving crankers like “Face” and their swaggering remix of the Whip’s “Muzzle.” If there was ever a style of house to slam whiskey sours and shotgun malt liquor to, this would be it.

Cut Copy: You’ve almost certainly already heard Cut Copy somewhere in your travels, whether you realize it or not. But they’ve recently announced the production of a new album, due out early next year, and it’s going to be a behemoth, with Tim Goldsworthy co-producing. Get a taste of the editing satisfaction from the single “Hearts on Fire,” which draws their nostalgic, subtle songwriting expertise out of the new-wave era and into the punch-drunk ’90s without sacrificing their wistful charm.

Filthy Dukes: Hosts of Camden Town’s monthly Kill ’Em All party, these sinister blokes from the Smoke just dropped a shifty-eyed synth single called “This Rhythm,” as well as already having a few sketch-brained remixes under their belts, most notably that of the Maccabees’ “X-Ray.” Late-night kooks revel and delight.

Duke Dumont: Fellow Londoner, also a Duke, but signed to Montreal’s own Turbo Recordings, he concocts glitched-out, axe-wielding stompers that would spin a crystal meth dealer’s head. Drink three cans of Red Bull and toss the karate-chopped hip hop of “Pop Dat Poosay” or the nerdy overdrive of “Final Level” on the old gramophone. See how long it takes you to smash something.

Manhead: An oldie but a goody, this is an early pseudonym of Headman, owner of Relish Recordings. My friends make fun of me for how often I listen to “Birth, School, Work, Death,” but in terms of zany, fruity, nihilistic electroclash, it absolutely can’t be beat. The YouTube video is a riot.

Alan Braxe: Still kickin’ around Paris since the Stardust days, Braxe makes the kind of disco that magnetizes beautiful women inexorably toward the dancefloor. You may have heard “Rubicon” on the speakers of a favourite establishment a few years back, but wait till you get a load of his new single “Lumberjack” or his hootin’ and hollerin’ remix of Kelis’s “Bossy”—particularly the “Earth Out” version, if you can get your hands on it.

Yeah, yeah, you already got all that shit. I know. jack.oatmon@gmail.com