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Gang Gang Dance

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Gang Gang Dance


 

Gang Gang Dance

This spaced-out New-York-based fusionist band released their first album Revival of the Shittiest in  2003. They were in the same freak-out scene of the early oughts, along with other N.Y. based bands. They would go on to release three more albums before I jumped on board as a fan: 2004's sophomore self-titled album, 2005's God Money & 2008's Saint Dymphna. All these releases saw the band (& specifically lead singer Lizzi Bougatsos) refining & ultimately crystallizing their sound, topping out with 2011's Eye Contact. The album opens up with the track "Glass Jar," a song that has synth and piano arpeggios shining through in stereo, percolating through a filter of jazz percussion before setting into an Eastern groove. It's a song about reincarnation. And that's only the first track! The whole album takes the listener on a trip through many fields: Hard techno, soft rock piano, polyrhythmic dance floor clatter, steel drum solos- all of a sudden these avant-gardists found their pop-start tendencies emerging, with the band moving from hallucinogenic freak outs to tighter song structure. Since their 2005 album God's Money, they have woven each track into the next so it plays like a continuous set. The band waited seven years before dropping another record, 2018's Kazuashita. This band truly defines fusionist work, never scared to go where no band has gone before- but to make it sound this interesting AND listenable is a feat in itself. Imagine your favorite pop record- melt it down, have Jackson Pollock dripple some paint over & start up your fog machine & lava lamp- then you'll have an idea of this band...

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Gang Gang Dance

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