Klaxons - There Is No Other Time

2014 is the year of the comeback so far! Klaxons are the next band to release new material after a long, long break, and they've come back with a completely different sound! Coming to the fore with Myths of the Near Future in 2006, then following it up with Surfing the Void (2010), they've announced that we can expect to see a new album, in 2014. Let's pray it's not 2018 before we get the next one.

Produced by Gorgon City, 'There is No Other Time' is a synth-filled, electronic and generally summery anthem that is actually incredibly similar to something that The Other Tribe would put out. Not a bad thing of course. Single's out March 23rd.

Major Lazer - Aerosol Can (feat. Pharrell Williams)

We knew that Pharrell and Major Lazer were collaborating, and now the finished product has been confirmed. 'Aerosol Can' is one of the tracks from the upcoming Apocalypse Soon EP - wasting no time from last years Free the Universe, with collaboration with Pharrell, Sean Paul, RDX, Machel Montano, and Elephant Man all confirmed.

'Aerosol Can' is a simple but danceable rhythm with drums and pops and whatnot, with Pharrell effortlessly dropping rhymes. Nothing is difficult when you're a multi-Grammy award winner, clearly.

Banks - Brain

Jillian Banks doesn't half work through producers, does she? Having already collaborated with Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Jamie Woon, SOHN and Jensen Sportag, she's only gone a dropped a track with Shlohmo as well!

'Brain' is an epic electronic ballad, with Banks' vocals paired over an electronic sound that complements the former excellently. Shlohmo's background ambience is overshadowed by the stunning vocals that are delivered alongside it.

She finished third in the BBC Sound of 2014 poll, and it's no surprise why - definitely one to watch.

The Chain Gang of 1974 - You

The Chain Gang of 1974 is gearing up for the release of their debut album, Daydream Forever by releasing another track in the weeks building up to it.

'You' is a gritty electronic track that has similarities to acts such as Wilhelm Tell Me, Fenech-Soler and Polarsets. It was written on reflection of former 3OH!3 member (and CGo74) frontman Kamtin Mohager after witnessing a traffic accident while living in Malibu.

The Chain Gang of 1974 lit up the blogosphere during the early release stages of Grand Theft Auto V, with 'Sleepwalking' heavily featured in advertising and throughout the game.

Daydream Forever is out February 4th.

Clean Bandit - Royals (Lorde cover)

Clean Bandit hit the Live Lounge to perform their new single, 'Rather Be' as well as a mystery cover on Thursday. I tweeted them on Wednesday night to see if they had a clue for the Twittersphere and here's what they gave us:

“@ollie_salter_: @cleanbandit Any clues to the mystery cover?” It was in a major key but now it's in a minor key 😜
— Clean Bandit (@cleanbandit) January 15, 2014

Turns out that they were referring to Lorde's 2013 breakout hit, 'Royals'. In classic Clean Bandit style, they delivered. The combination of classical instruments combined with the dance/electronic/house style we associate them with provided for this. Listen below.

Treasure Fingers & The Knocks - DYWT

Do you want to? We certainly do! Funk champion Treasure Fingers has united with NYC's finest, The Knocks to create DYWT, another excellent dance/deep house track.

Slinky, sleek, bass-filled beats and classic house sounds. Hnng. Dance into the sunset with The Knocks and Treasure Fingers. You know you wanna.

Pick up a free download of this as well, and promptly put it on repeat. And put it in your house party playlist. There's a good lad (or ladette).

Swiss Lips - Fight 4 What U Need

Indie-pop sorcerers Swiss Lips have released a new track as a stop-gap for their debut album, which is set to be released in 2014. They've finished recording it but due to a dispute with their record label they're unable to release anything, which is unfortunate.

But, they've put out a free track in the meantime! "Fight 4 What U Need" is a track that didn't quite make the cut for their first album, but it's another synth pop gem from one of Manchester's finest.

Grab it while you can, and pray that their dispute is sorted so we can get the album we've all been waiting for. Fingers crossed!

St. Lucia - All Eyes On You (Goldroom Remix)

When The Night is undoubtedly one of the best indie pop/dance albums of 2013, I can't remember the last time an album had 11 amazing songs on it. It's an album that just screams sax solos and campness, and I absolutely adore it.

When was the last time an album made you feel like everyone wore Hawaiian shirts, the nights felt like they'll never end and where it's totally acceptable to be permanently hungover and partying? Well, this does that.

Onto the track! LA's Goldroom remix "All Eyes On You", transforming an already summery and romantic track into a dancey indie ballad with a twist. Adding the signature Goldroom sound to a song that I could happily put on repeat again and again creates another track to add to the best indie-dance party ever. And that's never a bad thing, is it?

Yahtzel - Jungle Feels

Not too long ago, 20 year old Australian beatmaker Yahtzel released his first single, "High With Me", consequently putting him on a 23 date tour across Australasia with other up-and-coming artists.

Fast forward to the end of 2013 and he's put out another brilliant single, "Jungle Feels", released at the very beginning of the southern hemisphere's summer season.

The track includes an incredible combination of sounds and various effects, with samples, bird calls, different drums and general jungle sounds. Put it all together and it's an excellent piece of music, perfect for the southern summer, or as a kickstart to fend off the inevitable winter depression in the north of this funny planet.

It's a free download right now - grab it while you can!

MS MR - Think Of You (HAERTS Remix)

Brooklyn 5-piece HAERTS have tried their hand at remixing tracks instead of creating them, and this is their first effort - a glitzy upbeat and faster paced version of MS MR's "Think Of You".

With chimes not unlike Foxes, and a high tempo rhythm, combined with some synths that I could only describe as 'euphoric', the indie pop group have created a nostalgic dance track that you'd probably hear in 90s dancehalls. It's very old school, and I like that.

Listen below, let us know what you think.

Phantogram - Fall In Love

Here's new music from Phantogram - "Fall In Love" is a new track that'll be on their new album, Voices, which is due out February 18th. It's definitely a move in a different direction to previous releases - this is much more electro-funky, but glitchy and distorted at the same time. Bloggers are comparing this to DJ Shadow, which is a pretty accurate description in all honesty!

Not a lot to say about it, but have a listen below.

Ed Zealous - Diamonds For Eyes

Earlier this week, Northern Irish electro-rockers Ed Zealous announced that the final single due out before the release of their debut album, Wired, would be a re-release of their first hit, "Diamonds For Eyes".

If you haven't been keeping up with this blog over the last couple of months, you probably don't know that I'm quite a big fan of Ed Zealous - both "Thanks A Million" and "Telepaths" have been featured in the last couple of months and get played all the time by me. Why not continue the trend then?

Originally surfacing online in the middle of 2012, "Diamonds For Eyes" was (and still somewhat is) a sign of what's to come for Ed Zealous. If you haven't heard them before, think 'Friendly Fires without Ed's voice, and with a shit-ton more synths' and you're sort of on the right track. And it's absolutely brilliant. "Diamonds for Eyes" is out as a single on January 20th, with Wired due to be released on February 3rd. We're so bloody excited, and if you're not, I don't think I can talk to you again.

Haim - Forever (Giorgio Moroder Remix)

You know you've made it when Giorgio Moroder, father of synth disco and electronic dance music wants to remix your track. Well, this is exactly what's happened to Haim. The legend himself has applied his magic touch to "Forever", their début track (now re-released).

Moroder's added an upbeat dance/house beat with plenty of synth magic to a brilliantly summery track, creating an excellent indie-dance sound. With plenty of robot vocals. Haim have broken out and wowed the world this year, releasing a proper 'pop' album that still has rock roots. More next year please ladies!

Bondax - Fires (feat. Josh Record)

Fresh new music from Bondax in the last hour! The electronic duo from Lancaster have just released "Fires", featuring the vocals of Londoner Josh Record, seemingly as their next single. If you've never heard of Bondax, they're an electronic/future garage pairing who have risen to prominence on British airwaves thanks to BBC Introducing, and the championing of their music from Annie Mac and other DJs.

Onto this track! "Fires" is a slowed down, wintery track. It's a lot more chilled than previous releases (Baby I Got That, Gold and Giving It All, for example), but you know it's Bondax straight away. The slow and subtle trap-styled rhythm, combined with the electronic elements we love, with silky vocals layered on top of that make for a gorgeous slice of slowed down indie dance.

There's no release information for this track yet, but it's a good guess to assume that this will be their next single...an album to come next year maybe? With the uprising of dance music sweeping the world all year, we can only hope!

Jamie xx - Untitled (Unreleased)

Before I start, no-one is really 100% certain that this is actually Jamie xx. But, it does sound a hell of a lot like something that Jamie xx would create and produce. Bear that in mind when you're listening to it!

This track recently featured in his 'Day and Night Mix' (on the London Eye) as well as Pional's (a close associate) Fact Mix so it's a pretty good guess that this is Jamie xx's new material - and it sounds excellent.

Throw in some steel drums and you're all but sure it's him. There's literally nothing official about this track, but sources online claim that it's the first track of his new project (the one he's mentioned in his interview with the Japan Times).

It's a quality track. Hopefully it's his. The xx doing house-styled music. Love it.

I See MONSTAS - Nowhere

"Nowhere" is the second track from the Evolution EP released by I See MONSTAS, the now-renamed electronic group who first hit the airwaves after the Skrillex and Nero Remix of "Holdin' On". This actually came out about a month ago but I only noticed it earlier today!

It's incredibly difficult to classify I See MONSTAS under one specific genre as their music is interrelated between different genres. "Nowhere" is a prime example of this - merging between a Toddla T/M+A style piano based intro, with sound effects and echoes, into a much faster electronic dance chorus/drop with a sound just like something produced on OWSLA (their old label). Because it links perfectly between these two styles it's a really nice sounding track, utilising Bryn Christopher's deep vocals throughout. Good stuff.

Flume & Chet Faker - Drop The Game

This is very, very exciting. Earlier today Australian electronic master Flume unveiled the artwork for his collaborative EP with Chet Faker. The pair have worked together before, with the latter providing vocals to "Left Alone", one of the numerous fantastic tracks from Flume's self -titled debut. Individually, Chet Faker (born Nicholas Murphy) is extremely popular in Australia, particularly within the indie community. Notable tracks from him include his incredible cover of "No Diggity", along with tracks from his début EP Thinking in Textures. Add that to collaborations with Ta-ku and Say Lou Lou and you have a pretty impressive repertoire, only a year and a half after his début release.

"Drop The Game" is the first track released by Future Classic in anticipation of the Lockjaw EP (Nov 22: Aus/NZ, Nov 25: UK/Europe, Nov 26: North America) and let me tell you now, it's fantastic. Immediately from the get-go Chet launches into a powerful first verse about the consequences of an unknown's 'soul', with a delightfully simple orchestrated background sound, that breaks into the Flume-esque chorus, adding beats and synths that are a staple factor of his track. That sound develops more and more throughout the track, with a breakdown section in the middle leading to a gradual shift towards the full Flume electronic-effect with a call-and-repeat cry in the background. Layering Faker's vocals over his own background vocals is excellent. All round, this gets me excited for next weeks release. Fantastic stuff.

Flight Facilities - Stand Still (feat. Micky Green)

Flight Facilities are back with a brand new record, and it’s another thriller. Given a world exclusive airing on triple j on Monday morning/Sunday night (ah, the joys of listening to breakfast radio at 11pm), “Stand Still” is a joy to listen to.

Featuring vocals from Australian artist Micky Green, “Stand Still” is a fun, upbeat indie dance track that incorporates aspects reminiscent of all previous Flight Facilities tracks - sound effects, excellent rhythm and the use of previously lesser-known artists (Micky Green, Giselle, Jess, Christine Hoberg and Grovesnor to name a few).

Have a listen, it’s due to be released on November 22nd off the Future Classic label.

Bonus! Have a listen to the Com Truise remix of 'Stand Still' from the remix EP below (Spotify needed):

Bastille - Of the Night (Morgan Page, Fix8 and MNEK remixes)

"Of the Night", the latest single from the never-ending Bastille production line is due out on Monday as a remix EP, and will be part of the All This Bad Blood deluxe release out the following Monday (25th). Originally from the Other People's Heartache I mixtape, this cover of the classic dance track (an original we'd rather not hear sober) is excellent. The remixes that have emerged in the last few months are excellent too.

The EP due out on Monday includes remixes from MNEK, Icarus and Kove, a stellar line-up that covers all bases. MNEK's gone for the soft house remix route, with a slower tempo and distorted vocals. It has a Passion Pit-esque feel to it which is excellent. It has an excellent build up to a drop in the 3rd minute as well, and combines vocals from the original as well. Good stuff.

Fix8 has gone down a slightly different route, creating what many would consider to be an EDM (electronic dance music) remix that's not dissimilar to acts such as Madeon and Avicii, with a high intensity build up and a massive euphoric drop, much like the latter days of Swedish House Mafia. This brings me to the third remix - one from a producer named Morgan Page. This is actually from several months ago but it needs to be included, it's that good! It's another electro-dance track with big buildups and heavy bass-filled drops and quite brilliantly it incorporates the original sound from the track in parts. Truly excellent stuff.

Have a listen to the original, the MNEK, Fix8 and Morgan Page remixes below.

The tracklisting for the Of the Night EP is as follows:
1. Of the Night (3:34)
2. Oblivion [Live from Capitol Studios] (3:08)
3. Of the Night [MNEK Remix] (4:38)
4. Of the Night [Icarus Remix] (5:20)
5. Of the Night [Kove Remix] (6:15)
6. Of the Night [Video]

Sam Smith, Nile Rodgers, Disclosure & Jimmy Napes - Together

This is massive. The biggest dance stars of the year (Disclosure) have teamed up with Nile Rodgers, Sam Smith and Jimmy Napes to create and release "Together", a fantastic collaborative effort. I have to admit I don't know a whole lot about whether this will be released or not, but it does sound fantastic.

A slow burner of a track, with a distorted synth sound, this brings together four acts from across the music spectrum to create something quite excellent. Needless to say it'll go down a treat.