Friday Dance Music Guide: The Week’s Best New Tracks From Roosevelt, HAAi, Alok With The Chainsmokers & Mae Stephens & More

Katie Bain
·5 min read
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This week in dance music: BBC Radio 1 re-released The Chemical Brothers’ 1995 Essential Mix for a limited time, Eric Prydz announced three HOLO shows in New York City this November, we spoke with Floating Points ahead of the one-time only performance of his 2021 collaborative album with the late Pharoah Sanders, Costa Rica’s Ocaso Festival released a phase one 2024 lineup featuring John Summit and Seth Troxler and we asked Fatboy Slim 20 questions in conjunction with the 25-year anniversary of his classic You’ve Come A Long Way, Baby and a headlining set in Los Angeles this week.

You know what’s next. These are the best new dance tracks of the week.

More from Billboard

Roosevelt, Embrace

The Label: Counter Records

The Spiel: The fourth album from German DJ/producer/songwriter Roosevelt is called Embrace — and with good reason, as the ten-track LP pulsates with the warmth if a solidly moving dancefloor. Sophisticated, dreamy and often funky, the project was created in Airbnb’s in Barcelona, Los Angeles and New York, with the producer born Marius Lauber finding the simple set-ups in these temporary settings freed him from the constraints and expectations of the studio. The project, his first with Counter Records, is a no-skips affair, but we’re highlighting the slinky, sexy disco-soaked “Realize” for its undeniable danceability.

The Artist Says: “I’ve had the privilege to work with some incredible artists to help reimagine their music over the years while also creating my own personal catalog of records that I am truly proud of,” Roosevelt tells Billboard. “Creating this new album was an eye-opening experience and exciting new chapter for me, that provided a fresh perspective on my craft and fueled my passion for my music in profound ways. I am using this album to really embrace where I am at in my life, right in this minute.”

The Vibe: Being on vacation and stumbling on a locals only discotheque where you stay until sunrise.

HAAi, “ZiGGY”

The Label: !K7 Music

The Spiel: The first release from HAAi’s forthcoming DJ Kicks compilation is the new original track “ZiGGY.” Started out spare and spatial, the track then bursts into life with a 2-step beat that then again shifts gears into sparkling clean, increasingly galloping techno. The song is the first of three original tracks from the DJ Kicks compilation, due out November 10 and also featuring the Australian-born, London-based producer’s fiends and peers including Jon Hopkins, River Moon, The Blessed Madonna & Cocktail Party Effect and more.

The Artist Says: “I’m so proud to present my DJ-Kicks filled with exclusive tracks from some of my favorite artists from around the globe, HAAi says. “The theme of the mix is ‘Always Ascending’ with each artist interpreting this brief individually. From I. JORDAN’s ‘Life on the Wing’ to The Blessed Madonna’s ‘Strong,’ The mix was made to give the listener the feeling of constantly ascending to collective euphoria.”

The Vibe: Raving on a cloud.

Alok, The Chainsmokers & Mae Stephens, “Jungle”

The Label: Alok Music/B1 Recordings

The Spiel: Alok, The Chainsmokers and English singer/songwriter Mae Stephens take a trip into the wild with their collaborative track “Jungle.” Falling squarely into the trance trend of the moment and giving heavy Robert Miles/”Children” vibes with the piano notes at its center, the song falls an urgent amalgamation of simmering percussion, layers of synth, Stephens honeyed voice. The song comes with a live action sci-fi themed video featuring the three artists.

The Vibe: The human jungle of a mainstage crowd going nuts for a trance banger.

Above & Beyond & Seven Lions feat. Opposite the Other, “Over Now”

The Label: Anjunabeats

The Spiel: Seven Lions and Above & Beyond have been bonded for more than a decade, first uniting when Seven Lions came to prominence upon winning a 2011 remix competition with his rework of Above & Beyond’s “You Got to Go.” The tag team are at it again with their predictably soaring “Over Now,” featuring vocals from South African band Opposite the Other, who also guested on the 2019 Seven Lions/A&B collaboration “See the End.” A blissed-out big-room anthem in its purest form, the song reflects on the idea that any situation, good or bad, has an inevitable ending.

The Artists Say: “We’ve always loved Seven Lions,” A&B say in a joint statement. “Jeff’s understanding of melody and songs is second to none. His remix of ‘On My Way to Heaven’ was incredible, so it was really only a matter of time before we’d make a record with him.”

The Vibe: That moment the fireworks go off at the festival.

Ali Sethi & Nicolás Jaar, “Muddat”

The Label: Other People

The Spiel: Pakistani singer/songwriter Ali Sethi links with Nicolás Jaar for for the sublime “Muddat.” The track is the first from the forthcoming Intiha album, on which the pair reimagine songs off Jaar’s 2020 album Telas into album a fresh project informed by the Arabic poetry style of Ghazal. The LP is coming November 17 via Jaar’s own Other People imprint.

The Artist Says: “It felt familiar to me, that sense of adventure you have when you hear his music, like a tale that teases you and plays with your expectations as it unfolds,” Sethi says of Jaar’s work. “In that sense it resembled the leisurely improvised ghazals and qawwalis I grew up hearing in Pakistan.”

The Vibe: Genuinely transportive.

Best of Billboard

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