Top 10 Dance Songs of 2023
It was a year to get one’s groove on, despite all the global horrors
I’ve been relatively MIA from recent challenges here, but I’m able to come up for air long enough to join in the “best dance songs” challenge started by Terry Barr and answered by Jeffrey Harvey and probably some others (and when I find their posts I’ll add them in the comments).
Because I’ve been consumed with music released in 2023, my brain cannot access music prior to that until January 1, 2024. Therefore I will choose my ten favorite dance songs from the past 12 months only.
It’s been a veritable groove fest this year, so I have a lot to choose from!
A Spotify playlist of all 10 songs is at the end of this piece.
1. Club Makumba — Crazy Lizard
This jazzy, funky band from Portugal puts me in a trance, and I can’t not move my body listening to them. I love the way the song builds in intensity, adding in saxophone and screaming guitars. The rock and psych elements give “Crazy Lizard” a unique multi-culti flavor.
2. Coloray — Buy Me
Here’s how Bandcamp describes Coloray:
Dutch multi-disciplinary artist, Coloray, has carved his own lane in the music industry in recent years. With an extensive back catalog of electronic hits, the artist has consistently questioned the norms of the dance world by placing songwriting at the forefront.
I knew nothing about Coloray until right now when I looked him up online. I love his retro/techno sound, and I especially appreciate the way he incorporates spoken word bits into his songs.
3. Barry Can’t Swim — Sunsleeper
My friend on Substack, Kiley Larson, who writes the great “Check This Out” music newsletter, turned me on to Barry Can’t Swim (and many other fantastic new artists). Listening to his debut album, When Will We Land?, I immediately connected with BCS’s contagious blend of deep house, jazz, afrobeat, and funk. Alibora (a traditional Galician band) provides the vocal sample on “Sunsleeper.”
4. Jessie Ware — That Feels Good
Jessie Ware has become the definitive disco goddess of the past decade. Her latest album, That! Feels Good!, might be her best. In a collection of booty-shaking anthems, the title track starts the sweaty dance-floor party right. It’s either this or Janelle Monae’s The Age of Pleasure as the sexiest album of the year. You can’t go wrong with either.
5. Drama — Tighten It Up
Drama is a collaboration between producer Na’el Shehade and vocalist Via Rosa. Their Chicago-house meets jazz-funk-bossa nova blend is supremely contagious. “Tighten It Up” might be the tastiest dance tune of the year. The way the bass synth, cowbell, and horn section accents interact is pure dance floor magic.
6. Jungle (with Erick the Architect) — Candle Flame
Jungle has been around for a while now, and although I find their music hit and miss, their music videos are always fire. Every song on their 2023 album Volcano has a video filmed in one long shot featuring some of the best dancers and inspired choreography I’ve ever seen.
“Candle Flame,” featuring Erick the Architect, is my favorite track on the album.
7. Brittany Howard — What Now
If “What Now” is an example of what to expect with Brittany Howard’s new album (also titled What Now), due on February 2 next year, we might have a contender for album of the year on our hands. I’m digging her branching out into more electronic, groove-forward, experimental directions.
8. Young Gun Silver Fox — Tip of the Flame
Young Gun Silver Fox is single-handedly bringing Yacht Rock back. Or, more accurately, Yacht Soul. Their 2023 album, Ticket to Shangri-La, is a veritable smorgasbord of smooth grooves. “Tip of the Flame” is one of the more upbeat tracks and one that I can’t get enough of.
9. Sofia Kourtesis — Si Te Portas Bonito
My friend Kiley Larson (mentioned above) also turned me on to Sofia Kourtesis. Though I would have discovered her anyway, as her new album, Madres, has garnered a ton of buzz and is on a ton of AOTY lists. Deservedly so, as the Peruvian producer’s gorgeous, layered collage of sounds is trance-inducing and transcendent.
10. Quantic (with Andreya Triana) — Run
More often than not, I turn to Quantic (U.K.-born, New York-based musical polymath Will Holland) as a major source for my dance party mixes — or simply for when I’m in the mood to get my groove on in the living room. Quantic is a musical chameleon; his previous dozen albums masterfully incorporate such globe-hopping genres as jazz, funk, cumbia, bossa nova, salsa, afrobeat, reggae, and EDM. Dancing While Falling is unabashedly retro, blending elements of 70’s soul and disco, techno, and gospel — featuring luscious vocals from featured singers Andreya Triana, Rationale, and Connie Constance.
- Are you familiar with any of these dance-floor ditties?
- Which tracks stood out to you?
- I’d love to read your feedback in the comments.
- And come post your own top 10 dance songs (based on any criteria you deem appropriate) here on PoP so we can all share our favorite groovalicious go-to songs.
