THE 25 greatest tracks of 2007. A very hard list to compile indeed. Many of my favourites were left out, but what has been posted includes some of the funnest, dirtiest, most innovative and interesting tracks to have graced the decks and dancefloors this year:
Does It Offend You, Yeah? – We Are Rockstars
With hundreds of noisy Justice copycats churning out distortion-based tracks, few were as refreshing as DIOYY. Dirty and boisterous. (And, erm, offensive.)
TEPR – Minuit Jacuzzi (DATA remix)
Even on your fist listen this sounds like a classic – instantly recognizable and highly addictive. DJ’s had a field day looping the chorus. A party track.
Alex Kid (now taken Erol’s place at The End on Bugged Out nights) brought some gnarly noize to his debut album with this standout track of thumping electro-tech. Who said Boys Noize could only remix?
Big Face – I Wanna Be A Style Crusader
Catchy, bouncy and warm indie-electro. This has Kitsune written all over it. Some equally impressive remixes too from DATA and David E. Sugar.
Yes, the Boys Noize remix was an eiry and deviceful take on Feist’s track, but lacks the tenderness and etherealness of this original. All down to her soft, sweet-sounding voice.
The Hamburg duo, Digitalism, released this indie-fied track, with vocals from Jen (the skinny one). Thoroughly catchy, inevitably acting as a soundtrack to the summer. (Oh, & I’ve met the big fat, furry one. Twice.)
The Black Ghosts – Some Way Through This (Plastician & Skream dubstep Remix)
This Black Ghosts’ original track is already slightly spooky & atmospheric, thus this dubstep remix works perfectly, creating an alltogether better offering.
Infectious Belgian Electro-rock, utilizing both guitars and sythns. A little cheesy. Very simple. But excellent all the same. Check the Stanton Warriors remix too.
Holy Hail – Born of a Star (Shir Khan Remix)
Holy Hail give poppy lyrics and a simple head banging beat. Shir Khan chops it up and adds blasts of fuzzy distortion. Sweet as a nut.
Midnight Juggernauts – Tombstone
A funky 80′s feel, using sythesisers and a creeping voice vocoder. Futuristic or retro? A bit of both, making for a unique electro dance-tune. Tombstone: the unsung hero of their debut album.
The Black Ghosts – Any Way You Choose To Give It (Boy 8-Bit Remix)
Bouyant and lively electro, layers of distortion and bleeps, stand nicely alongside a basssline and catchy lyrics. Boy 8-bit’s remix only just superior to the choppy Fake Blood version.
Klaxons – Gravity’s Rainbow (Soulwax Remix) 
On my ipod I have 22 different Klaxons remixes. I very much doubt that’s all of them. (everyone from Skream to Kavinsky had a go) Way too many to chose from, but this Soulwax remix outstrips them all by a country mile. Added cowbells and other intuitive sonds make this chirpy remix a must.
Claude Vonstroke – Who’s Afraid of Detroit (Stanton Warriors Remix)
Stanton Warriors spice up Claude Vonstroke’s electro-house tune, with a bit of punchy breakbeat. Really just a simple ‘breakbeat version’ of the original, but still effective.
“À cause des garçons”. 2007 was the year french vocals became trendy.
TEPR crafted a beautiful ectro remix, having worked with Yelle before on “Short Dick Cuiz”; they seem to pair up well. God knows what most of the lyrics mean. Shit, maybe we’re all gonna have to learn french – is that what being trendy has come to?
Kissy Sell Out – Her (The State of Floral Beings Remix)
Kissy Sell Out is a tit. A sweaty, skinny, hyperactive tit, continuelly smirking and blowing that fucking air-horn. But his music is similarly energetic and fun-loving. He gave us so many great dirty remixes and, here, his debut track ‘Her’ receives a spicing up from this remix.
The Teenagers – Homecoming (Guns ‘N’ Bombs XTC Remix)
The original is truly amusing – a wry take on the opposing viewpoints of a one-night stand:
[Male]“I fucked my American cunt”
[Female]“I love my English romance”
But this Guns ‘N’ Bombs remix chops up the flow of lyrics and melds it into creates a great dirty banger. Now much more suitable for the dancefloor.
Another French gem for 2007. Hundreds of remixes, but the original remains unrivaled. A catchy chorus accompanied by thumping distortion and bouncy drums. The chorus is so moorish you cant help but embrace the repetativeness.
Larry Tee ft. Princess Superstar – Licky (Herve Goes Low Remix)
A filthy, chavvy, slightly cheesy track (but nevertheless with a great old school vibe). Yet its immense fun, starting with some looping lyrics and dropping into a fervently filthy bass-line.
Skream – Midnight Request Line
Of all the dubsteppers, Skream has released the most, played the most live and is by now pretty well-known. Technically came out in 2005. But few really heard it like they did this year. One of the mot accessible dubstep tracks out there, offering typically eiry claps and waves of bass.
Oizo is a fucking weirdo. No doubt about it. But all geniuses are apparently. He broughtu s the infectious simplicty of flat beat (a track well ahead of its time and out of its element) and is now bringing eccentricity by the bag-load to Ed Banger Records. Patrick 122 chops, fades in and out, and splices all kinds of samples into a glorious mesh of retro funk and disco.
Party Shank – Penis Vs Vagina (Lies In Disguise Remix)
Beginning with a slow pumping and pounding of bass, and looping of distant vocals. Then a screeching, winding build up of tempo into a sweet drop at 1min 26 secs. A fun monster of a dancefloor track.
Justice – Phantom Pt. 2 (Soulwax Nite Version Remix)
Justice gave us Phantom. Everyone loved it. So they kindly gave us a Phantom Pt. 2 on the album. An even nicer surprise was Soulwax’s remix. Erol and Annie started dropping it at the Summer Festivals, prompting hundreds of kids to scrabble around on the blogs for a gd copy. An almost operatic build up, and almighty drop worth the (huge) wait.
The Loose Cannons – Raw (Kissy Sell Out Remix)
So many Kissy remixes in 2007. So little space on the list. A funky and chirpy remix of the loose cannons. a warping bass line and momentous rhythm. As always, Kissy infuses pure fun into the track.
This year ‘Drop The Lime’ took the new-and-improved form of ‘Curses!’ All the tracks are diverse yet strangely similar, though they include house, techno dubstep and dirty electro to create atmosphere and brooding suited to the more grimey and undergound dancefloors. Innovative and avant-garde.
Kavinsky – Testarossa Autodrive (SebastiAn Remix)
One of my favourite tracks of the year (possibly released towards the end of 2006, but still mainly dominating 2007). Kavinsky’s original is gloriously retro; a typical 80s movie soundtrack, but with a little more momentum and energy. Even better is SebastiAn’s fast-paced remix.
