Olly Murs' fourth album Never Been Better (SYCO-Columbia-Modest) is better than his previous albums, especially if you like to dance. The focus has been shifted from pre-fab Brit-pop (thanks, Simon Cowell!) to more straightforward dance-pop. There's a difference. There's less stylistic borrowing and more innovation. You can hear it immediately on the club strut of "Did You Miss Me?" and the bouncing beat of "Stick with Me." For the most part, though, Murs hasn't completely abandoned his carefully and commercially manufactured sound, as you can hear on duets with Travie McCoy ("Wrapped Up") and Demi Lovato ("Up") and ballads "Tomorrow" and "Hope You Got What You Came For." Sam Smith he's not.
Smallpools put a distinctly sunny L.A. spin on the dance-pop heard on its debut album Lovetap! (RCA). With the handclaps and shouts on "American Love," you might be tempted to dance the kazatsky, but please resist. "Killer Whales" draws on the Cars playbook, while "Dreaming" has more of a club vibe. "Street Fight" goes for a stadium-sized dance feel, "Over & Over" brings the suburban white funk, and "Admission to Your Party" invites a great big beat.
Even if you don't understand a word that Stromae says (he sings and raps en Francais) he wants only one thing from you: that you danse (translation: dance!). Stromae gives us plenty of opportunities to do so on Racine Caree (Casablanca). Just try not moving to rhythmic tracks "Ta Fete" ("Your Day"), "Papaoutai," "Batard" ("Bastard"), "Tous Les Memes" ("All the Same"), "Humain A L'eau" ("Human to Water") and "Sommeil" ("Sleep").
Just a few short years ago Brit twosome the Ting Tings were riding high on the success of their 2008 debut album We Started Nothing, a disc that spawned hit singles such as "That's Not My Name," "Great DJ" and "Shut Up and Let Me Go." But the 2012 follow-up Sounds from Nowheresville failed to maintain the momentum. The Ting Tings are back with Super Critical (Finca), a nine-track disc that has them moving in a decidedly dance direction. They flash a sense of humor and history on "Wrong Club." "Only Love" and the title track are reminders of why we listened to the duo in the first place, while "Communication" sounds like a fresh start.
Canadian club music duo Humans leaves its mark with the hypnotic full-length pop-tronic debut Noontide (Hybridity). British trance trio Above & Beyond hits new heights on We Are All We Need (Anjunabeats/Ultra). The third time's the charm for French DJ Etienne De Crecy as he revives his Super Discount series with Super Discount 3 (A+LSO-Sony-Pixadelic). German electro artist Fritz Kalbrenner's new studio disc is Ways Over Water (Suol/BMG). SPC ECO raises the bar on the beats on The Art of Pop (Saint Marie/Kaboom).