Clubs

As the cartoon spectacle of new rave reached its peak or, if you tend to view things with a little more common sense, its nadir, three live ‘dance’ bands descended on Camden, home of all things dayglo, to show people how it should be done. And it’s certainly not with shoddy Casio keyboards and a fecking glow stick. Getting things off to a minimal, techy start was French chap Joakim and his Ectoplasmic Band, so named because of their ethereal sound rather than anything to do with ‘Ghostbusters’.

 
His album, ‘Monsters & Silly Songs’, is out on !K7. The midpoint in the gig, when your tipple of choice kicks in, is soundtracked by bouncy Brazilian teens Bonde do Role. Marina, Pedro and Gorky accompany their native baile funk – a cheeky mix of electro, stuttering Latin rap and old-school breaks that MIA got dead excited about – with some huge, face-stretching grins. Amazingly, what with Arctic Monkeys back, they’re one of Domino Records’ priorities. Rounding things off in euphoric fashion are synth-pop aces Junior Boys, another act who show that Domino isn’t putting all of its eggs in an indie rock basket. Using equal parts chin-stroking electronica, groovesome house and clever – like Pet Shop Boys – pop songs, they’ll take over both your feet and your mind.

 
Fans should check out their remix EP, which sees Hot Chip, Carl Craig and Kode9 reworking songs from the album ‘So This Is Goodbye’. Live dance music and not an Altern8 plastering mask in sight. What a relief.