So I've recently got into "disco"...

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Zorg
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So I've recently got into "disco"...

Post by Zorg »

well not so much disco. I was listening to the pitchfork 500, hoping to go through it all in order, but I never could, because I kept getting floored by two songs in particular. These are of course Donna Summer's I Feel Love and Giorgio Moroder's Chase, and they're so perfect. Reminds me a bit of Tantra's The Hills of Katmandu (which I got from Moonbeam's amazing songs list) - long, metronomic, funky, bouncy, awesome.

I don't know if these genres (apparently they're called Hi-NRG and Italo Disco) do albums per se, but I sure would love to hear one. If not, does anyone else know of any canonical songs from that sort of era and genre? Where should I go from here?

If you haven't heard these songs, I highly highly recommend it:
Last edited by Zorg on Wed May 14, 2014 10:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Nick
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Re: So I've recently got into "disco"...

Post by Nick »

I'm not really a wealth of knowledge when it comes to disco, but the "Saturday Night Fever" soundtrack is pretty much amazing. Also check out "Risque" by Chic. For some more modern stuff, listen to Hercules and Love Affair's first album and the newest albums by Daft Punk and Todd Terje. That's about all the input I have on the matter.
Nassim
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Re: So I've recently got into "disco"...

Post by Nassim »

"Love to Love You Baby" is the other great Donna Summer/Giorgio Moroder team up.

As far as Disco in the Pitchfork 500 goes, Dinosaur's Kiss Me Again is the one that floored me !
Machine's "There but for the grace of God, Go I" isn't too shabby either.
Maybe closer to Moroder, you might enjoy the Alexander Robotnick song.
TimmyWing
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Re: So I've recently got into "disco"...

Post by TimmyWing »

if you want a whole album of that kind of stuff, you can't go wrong with Gorgio's From Here to Eternity:
The soundtrack to Midnight Express (which Chase is from) is also worth checking out, it doesn't quite follow the Hi-NRG style that track sets up but it's a very decent album.

For more stuff like that, you've also got Marc Cerrone, who's like the Gorgio Moroder of France:
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Moonbeam
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Re: So I've recently got into "disco"...

Post by Moonbeam »

Awesome, Zorg! Here are a few other italo/Hi-NRG blasts!

Automat - (The) Rise (The) Advance (The) Genus: Apparently the musicians made the album as a kind of demonstration for a new synthesizer. It is shown off best in this 17-minute instrumental monster.
Bagarre - Lemonsweet: The most "famous" Bagarre track, it has become a cult favorite.
Bagarre - Dirty Love: The music perfectly captures the title - it's funky, a little bit cheap but irresistible.
Bagarre - For Your Pleasure: The most amazing hybrid of italo disco, funk, new wave and a sort of French cool, all processed into a grainy B-grade Little Red Riding Hood motif.
Charlie - Spacer Woman: Probably the most well-loved italo track, it has a monster beat and wonderfully warped pleading vocals.
Dharma - Plastic Doll: Layers and layers of awesomely buzzing synths. The lyrics perfectly represent the darker side of love that the genre explores so well.
Easy Going - Fear: This would be a PERFECT song for my Horror Disco compilation. Just look at the cover in that video! It has such a skittering, nervous and foreboding energy before unexpectly opening up into an almost uplifting epilogue.
Fun Fun - Happy Station: Overloaded with cheese, this is dancefloor fodder for shameless 5-year-olds and 70-year-olds alike!
Gaznevada - I.C. Love Affair: This song has the coolest vibe of any italo track, I think.
Kano - It's a War: Apocalyptic synth+bass madness! One of my all-time faves.
Kano - I'm Ready: Their most famous song, it was sampled for "Whoomp There It Is". This just phlanges and funks its way to a hefty cosmic groove.
Kano - She's a Star: The addition of the real bass makes this song and its parent album their funkiest yet. I love the nocturnal mood of this - that slice of neon purple cake set against the pitchest of pitch black nights in the album cover is perfect imagery.
Kano - Another Life: Another fan favorite, the synths are unreal. Too bad the vocals are horrendous, but that is a trait of a lot of italo.
Klein & M.B.O. - Dirty Talk: The sexiest, filthiest groove of any italo track, I find. This one goes straight to the naughty bits.
'Lectric Workers - Robot Is Systematic: The most manic and psychotic italo track yet. The uvulating vocals are downright hysterical!
Lime - On the Grid: A relentless onslaught of synths, this is what Hi-NRG is all about!
Lime - Angel Eyes: A poppier Lime track with some very questionable vocals, but still filled to the gills with vibrant thrills.
Lisa - Rocket to Your Heart: It sounds like Bubble Bobble's neon ecstasy EXTENDed for over 9 glorious minutes!
Mr. Flagio - Take a Chance: Another favorite of the genre is one I can't find for sale!
Sylvia Love - Instant Love: I could swim in those synth whooshes forever and ever...
Tantra - A Placed Called Tarot: Like "The Hills of Katmandu", it shifts between different segments quite dexterously, adding to an amazing whole.
Tantra - Macumba: This video doesn't have the whole thing, sadly, but you get the idea - Tantra's wild blend of italo, exotic mysticism, and almost progressive rock is there for the tasting.
Tantra - Wishbone: This is the flipside to "The Hills of Katmandu", equally stretched to epic proportions.
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Moonbeam
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Re: So I've recently got into "disco"...

Post by Moonbeam »

And yes, From Here to Eternity is amazing from front to back.
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bonnielaurel
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Re: So I've recently got into "disco"...

Post by bonnielaurel »

Disco classics:
Alicia Bridges - I Love the Nightlife
Barry White - You're the First, My Last, My Everything
Bee Gees - Stayin' Alive
Blondie - Heart of Glass
Chic - Good Times
Donna Summer - Love to Love You Baby
Earth, Wind a & Fire - September
Gloria Gaynor - Never Can Say Goodbye
Jimmy "Bo" Horne - Spank
KC & the Sunshine Band - That's the Way
Kool & the Gang - Celebration
Lime - Your Love
Lipps Inc. - Funkytown
Michael Jackson - Rock with You
Rick James - Super Freak
Rose Royce - Car Wash
Sister Sledge - Lost in Music
Tavares - Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel
The Emotions - Best of My Love
The Jacksons - Blame It on the Boogie
The Trammps - Disco Inferno
Thelma Houston - Don't Leave Me This Way
Village People - YMCA
Yvonne Elliman - If I Can't Have You

Eurodisco:
ABBA - Dancing Queen
Amanda Lear - Follow Me
Boney M - Sunny
Imagination - Music and Lights
Ottawan - D.I.S.C.O.
Patrick Hernandez - Born to Be Alive
The Nolan Sisters - I'm in the Mood for Dancing
Tina Charles - I Love to Love
De gustibus et coloribus non est disputandum.
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Bruce
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Re: So I've recently got into "disco"...

Post by Bruce »

Here's two disco lists I did for DDD many years ago. The top 100 songs and the top 100 artists.

http://digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/best_ ... tists.html

http://digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/best_disco-songs.html
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