New and tremendously Disco

[JussiK]

ALCASTAR by Alcazar is classic glamour disco with every nuance 100% right - spectacular production, instant hooks, strings, high drama performance by an impeccably goodlooking quartet in high fashion wardrobe. Get it. Also out: READY FOR ME by Richard Engiers, nasty disco track with lyrics like : ...whip your back with naked lust.."

[discosavvy]

Jussi --
You mean Rickard Engfors :lol:
Thanks for giving us some highlights from Melodifestivalen 2005.

So what's new with the Finnish music scene? Let us know that too.

[JussiK]

Engfors? Of course...And isn't he connected to the Army of Lovers troupe? But whatever became of the formely fabulous La Camilla - the last pic I saw of her she was transforming into a whale-like creature. The hairdo was still there as was the make up.- Finnish music scene? The G-Litter guys have something new on the way I'm informed, very glittery, but otherwise it's the usual - desperate minor celebs starring in reality shows churning out disposable dance tracks.

[Noman]

The real mastermind behind the Alcazar phenomena is Alexander Bard who also stood behind (and in front) of Army of Lovers. He looks and talks like a :o :o :o , but he has a great ear for disco music and knows what will work commercially.

[kari]

Jussi, I was certain this one will catch your ear!

And Noman, what you said is true. Few modern musicians/producers today understand disco music as well as Bard. And what's more, Alcazar -- like Army of Lovers in their day -- really sell their music to modern audiences.

Alcazar earned my respect when they revived one of my all time favorites, Edwards and Rodgers' (and Sheila's) "Spacer", and breathed new life into it ("Crying at the Discotheque").

"Alcastar" really should've been Sweden's entry in the ESC this year... Well, I guess you can't have everything.

BTW, Noman, who was that guy in Melodifestivalen who sang "Roma"? A catchy tune, or what do you think (only heard it once)?

Kari

[Noman]

His name is Cameron Cartio and this was his 1st appearance (he was 100% amateur before the melodifestival)
I think it is a catchy tune but it's not "Bard quality"

[Sami M]

And Alcazar are tremendously popular among gays in Finland too.

And even more, the best of Melodifestivalen rock the dancefloors in the gay clubs of Helsinki too, quaranteering the climax 300%. Not all of them qualifies as disco. Gays go camp. :o

[billywho]

I'm confused. Can someone point out to me a classic, or even a good, disco song that sounds like this? If this was released twenty seven years ago it would sink without trace. It's a cross between Steps and Abba.

I'm going purely on the sound. Maybe there's a "disco image" thing about Alcazar that transcends the music, which I've missed, because I haven't seen them.

There's a "Club Junkies" remix which is a bit better, but still doesn't sound like a song from the disco era.

Is this more 'disco' than Lola's Theme? Really?

[remicks]

******
I acquired it , because of your enthusiastic recommendation Jussik. Always looking for something new and fun. . I immediately thought ABBA. Would you agree when I say "Stars On 45" also comes to mind?
******

[JussiK]

Well, thanks!! Alcazar may indeed be Abbaesque to a degree but if you ask me my interpretation is: Alcazar is pure dance/nudisco whereas old Abba was pure pop, sometimes danceable, more often not. Stars on 45 - ? Again, not really, no - not at all! Stars on 45 was a totally faceless studio group whereas Alcazar comes complete with four faces attached to bodies and clothes - nothing too individual or personal in any of the mannequins but still, airbrushed to perfection as they may be on the cover and promo art, they do form an actual performing group, and indeed not a bad one at all or what! And their music is probably or arguably closest to classic disco as most understand it that there ever was since the real thing.

And what is the "look" like then? It's leggy stereotypes with good hair and lots of cheekbones, plenty of near-Versace fashions, rhinestones, glitter on balanced tans, added sparkle courtesy to Adobe, real good dance moves. I have not seen the group live so cannot judge how well the imagery stands close scrutiny under the natural sun.

[Sami M]

Ideed. What finishes Alcazar as very disco is the feel that radiates from the production. I think people need this kind of happy energy - a thing that is mainly lost in the music nowdays.

For example, last saturday night floated well with
Alcastar/Alcazar
My Disco Needs You/Kylie
This Is Hot/Pamala Stanley
Queen of Chinatown/Amanda
etc.

[billywho]

And their music is probably or arguably closest to classic disco as most understand it that there ever was since the real thing.

And yet I pull from the shelf my Prelude stuff, my West End, my TK, my Casablanca, my Midney, Costandinos, Cerrone, Rinder & Lewis, etc, and there's hardly anything in there (read: nothing) that sounds like this. Re-reading the 'parlez-vous francais?: eurodisco' chapter in your book (great book by the way), I guess it's probably closest to some of the more camp (dare I say cheesy?) artists described in there.

This interests me, because "classic disco" for me, and I assumed most other enthusiasts, is typified by the artists and labels I mentioned above, that, let's face it, produced music on a different planet style-wise than the stuff Alcazar produce. Maybe I've got it wrong all this time.

If I tell someone I'm into disco, and they ask me for an example of a tune typifying the disco era, am I supposed to refer them to stuff by Arabesque? I have enough trouble getting people over the "Village People/Bee Gees" hurdle as soon as I mention the 'd' word to them.

[Anonymous]

The best modern disco album I have heard is Sunburst Band "Until the End of Time".

I quite like some Alkazar material but IMO it is very much on the pop end of the disco sound.

[JussiK]

[quote="billywho

This interests me, because "classic disco" for me, and I assumed most other enthusiasts, is typified by the artists and labels I mentioned above, that, let's face it, produced music on a different planet style-wise than the stuff Alcazar produce. Maybe I've got it wrong all this time.

If I tell someone I'm into disco, and they ask me for an example of a tune typifying the disco era, am I supposed to refer them to stuff by Arabesque? I have enough trouble getting people over the "Village People/Bee Gees" hurdle as soon as I mention the 'd' word to them.[/quote]

You're totally right, of course - who could possibly seriously compare any classic tracks by Gamble&Huff, Midney, Costandinos, Patrick Adams, Cerrone etc to the Alcazar tunes? But, what I personally feel is that Alacazar seems to bring the vibe back, meaning hedonism, free for all glamour, catchy melodies and unashamed parading of outfits - that was always the disco attitude. Seriously good music was big part of it but not all, having outrageous fun was important too, the entrance, the display of the latest move, the whole trip, all set to a flashy soundtrack. Naturally there have been the occasional one-off track closely resembling Coistandinos even, check out the the Moving cities cd by Ashley Beedle & co, but as an ongoing phenomenon, Alcazar rules. Those queens of disco are camp as they get for sure, but good fun, and the producers/songwriters behind it all see to genuinely appreciate the sound. And the records are very well made, wonderful pop music.

And naturally Alcazar is more pure eurodisco than disco in the sense most Americans and Brits understand it. Ain't much soul in those Swedish shoes...

Arabesque - what can I say? While I for one would never stop promoting eurodisco records that are beyond all redemption, camp, trash, bad taste, oozing with mortifying cheesiness, you name it, I would still not recommend those things as perfect introductions to club music history to a student of Japanese minimalist techno! :-)

[QUINNY]

Personally, I'd say that a lot of the 'Soulful House' music that I hear (very occasionally) is closest to the original Disco vibe. Don't ask me for any names though, as the radio show I listen to is always mixed by guys who can't DJ in the traditional radio meaning and the soulful house is mixed in with other genres.

[Noman]

Alcazar samples a lot of old disco music without distorting it into a earthquake kind of house beat, at least in the radio edit's. This is not the case for all the club and extended mixes which is often trashed to pieces by synthetic beats and ugly sound processors.

[Eurodancemix]

And yet I pull from the shelf my Prelude stuff, my West End, my TK, my Casablanca, my Midney, Costandinos, Cerrone, Rinder & Lewis, etc, and there's hardly anything in there (read: nothing) that sounds like this....

The reason they don't sound the same is modern music's overemphasis on bass and booming beats. Disco was happy with a beat and percussion, but the beat didn't pound you in the ground. Today's beats, though I still like them, are sometimes so deep and loud that the rest of the music seems to be an afterthought...and the percussion has been replaced by synth lines.