Posted by Gosia Mrugala
“Destroy dance music and have fun. Don’t look back in the past. Always go forward. Don’t think too much. Always follow the money. Do the Dada.”
Eccentric Swedish electro house duo Dada Life (a.k.a. Olle Corneer and Stefan Engblom) have quite the philosophy. Posted to Facebook and Twitter using the hashtag #THERULESOFDADA, these maxims to live by include:
* Never bring your brain to a rave.
* Doing the “airpiano” on stage while looking up in the air? Never. The “heart sign” with both your hands? F**K NO.
* Tickle-punch-tickle-combo. Happy Violence!
* Cheating is winning.
* If you’re stuck, there’s only one solution: go harder.
* If you only need one word to describe a song in the studio…then it’s done!
* No bananas on the rider? Then we do our two hour deep/tech house set. Everything under 118 BPM.
* PLUR = Potassium Lust Unity Rage
* Arriving beautiful – leaving ugly.
* Beautiful music = boring music. At least today.
* Never BBQ before a gig.
* If you don’t want to get wet, you don’t want to have fun.
* Bass don’t cry.
* Changing underwear at the club is cheating. Even for the members of Dada Life.
* Never bring your brain into the club.
* Art should be loud as fuck.
* Always kick out the epic motherfucker. Always.
Their new album The Rules of Dada, released October 22 on their label So Much Dada is pretty much the illustrated guide to this philosophy. So let’s break it down, shall we?
1. “Kick Out The Epic Motherfu**er” – I first heard this track during the summer at The Guvernment, and was just blown away. It sent my body into an absolute frenzy — and everyone on the dancefloor was right there with me. Definitely a club banger. The video is pretty entertaining, too. It gives you a good idea of just how crazy and random these guys are. There’s lots of champagne, lots of bananas (get your mind our of the gutter, now) and some HARD PARTYING. And bananas.
2. “Feed The Dada” – I’d call this the anthem of the Dada Life philosophy. The lyrics are intriguing, the music video frankly jaw-dropping. If you want to know why the Dada movement is destined to continue growing, this is the pick to click. Feed the Dada.
3. “Arrive Beautiful Leave Ugly” – Gotta admit, I’ve had this track on repeat. Quite the title: I’d describe the image it conjures in my mind, but not while there are children or pets around. (Gotta bite my tongue sometimes.) I can see this one moving the floor, for sure.
4. “So Young So High” – Well, they can’t all be epic. Not a huge fan of this track: can’t see it filling the floor at the club, though it might move the less-demanding fans at an outdoor festival. With repeat plays it started to grow on me a little bit, but it won’t be making the personal playlist any time soon.
5. “You Will Do What We Will Do” – A 129-bpm electro house banger that held me from first note to last beat and left me yearning for more. Surprising, too: I was expecting a hard electro drop at the 0:29 mark, and instead got a pause and then another mellow build-up. Tricky! Definitely one of the tracks I favour from this album.
6. “Happy Violence” – I remember hearing this track for the first time while watching a Burning Man recap video: appropriate! All it took was the first 10 seconds, and I knew I was hooked. Another great track title, too — puzzling and inriguing, like all of their titles.
7. “Rolling Stones T-Shirt” – Entertaining tune. And that music video! Pretty typical stuff: girls in bikinis, pool parties, the beach … until the 2:18. I made the mistake of drinking some water while watching this, and almost choked! Couldn’t stop laughing. I won’t try describe it — just watch for yourself. All I will say is this: you see a whole new side to the boys from Dada Life here.
8. “Bass Don’t Cry” – Give me bass and I’ll give you my heart. It’s as simple as that. I’m a bass addict. A bassaholic. This track strikes the kind of perfect balance between bass and rhythm that will set a musical orgy in motion on any dancefloor.
9. “Everything Is Free” – Without the vocals I am a fan of this one, but The vocals at the start of this track almost deterred me from listening to the rest. Which is too bad: vocals aside, I’m a fan of this one. Not the best track on the album, but hardly the worst either.
10. “Boing Clash Boom” – See “Everything Is Free.” Actually, I’m not sure if it’s the vocals that ruin this one for me, or something else. Frankly, the track is a bit all over the place. If I had to sum it up in one word, that word would be: confusion.
11. “Don’t Stop” – After the last couple of tracks, they had me doubting — but album finishes strong. A bit mellow, but with enough kick to move the listener, and vocals that mesh comfortably with the beat. Do the Dada!
Gosia Mrugala is a Toronto-based blogger and reviewer. You can read her blog HERE, and follow her on Twitter HERE.
