[numblock num=”7.5″ style=”3″]As much LMFAO or David Guetta as it is Dash Berlin or Armin Van Buuren, Mischa Daniel’s latest effort is an upbeat, energetic album that should find a happy home in any club. Not really striving to innovate, Let’s Connect Tonight is a festive, continuous romp through the sounds at the forefront of EDM popularity. If you’re looking for the soundtrack to your latest nightclub romance, look no further.[/numblock]
Fame is a tricky mistress. You can ride the popular sound as high as you can go, but at some point people will expect more. Innovate too much, and you’re risking everything you’ve built. Mischa Daniels, one of Armada Music’s tentpole pop-infused progressive house artists, has made a career out of blending the Top 40 sounds that make even the most casual club-goer move their feet with the trance sound his label is known for.
[quote style=”1″ author=”Let’s Connect Tonight”]I’m on your frequency, I’ll be there when you need me.[/quote]
If you want to connect with your dance music fans, you must connect with how they live and how they club. Let’s Connect Tonight is, in that regard, a perfect snapshot of what’s happening in clubs the world over. Stabbing chords and crunchy bass leads dominate the album, accented by vocals that walk the line between hip-hop and trance. The albums first four tracks are vocal-heavy, uplifting tracks with just enough pop sensibility to find their way onto mainstream radio. Partied All Night, Can’t Live Without You, Dance Till We’re In Love, and the album’s title track Let’s Connect Tonight are proof positive that the Rhianna and Nicki Minaj-inspired vocal styling, complete with hip-hop accents, is a sure fire way to get every single hand in the air come Friday night.
https://soundcloud.com/armadamusicofficial/01-mischa-daniels-feat-craig?in=armadamusicofficial/sets/mischa-daniels-lets-connect
Before you start to think that every track on Let’s Connect Tonight is nothing more than the background music for a fog machine and strobe lights, halfway through the album Daniels introduces the intensity we’ve come to expect from Armada artists. Heartbeat (with yet another stunning vocal performance by Jonathan Mendelsohn) plays like Calvin Harris done oh-so-right, and Intergalactic literally blasts through the speakers, delivering energy that’s unmatched on the rest of the album. Fanfare was a unique surprise, with strings and a horn section that made you think that, just maybe, it was a Fall Out Boy remix.
Ever wonder how big an influence David Guetta has had on popular dance music? Look no further than Rock Me To The Beat, That Girl and Shaking, songs reliant on booming kicks and d-d-dirty bass to move your feet. The F*ck Me I’m Famous party (planned and created by David Guetta) clearly had a profound effect on Daniels, and these tracks showcase just how effective that funky sound can be.
We got that undeniable connection. We’re living here under the lights.
There’s always that one person in every club that captures your attention and keeps you on your toes all night. Let’s Connect Tonight is a thrilling formula designed to capture and inspire that moment, and the album is certainly cohesive. Does it innovate? No. But maybe it doesn’t need to. Sometimes, when it’s right…it’s right.
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Dance Music Northwest got a few minutes to sit down with Mischa and talk to him about Let’s Connect Tonight and his decidedly pop-influenced sound:
DMNW: How does the dance music scene in Holland (and greater Europe) differ from that in the USA?
MD: Well not that much, maybe it’s a little bit more commercial/mainstream minded in the USA. Especially places like Las Vegas, Miami and LA. But after all the Dutchies brought you EDM right? 😉
DMNW: How much would you say pop music inspires your productions?
MD: Quite a lot. I really like songs with a head and tail and pop music mostly goes by that rule. I used quite a lot of pop-approach on my new album to not only make you dance to the album but also listening to it as well.
DMNW: What story were you trying to tell with Let’s Connect Tonight?
MD: Well, the album has this feel good EDM feeling and consist a large variety of styles within the EDM. It’s really a great album to connect to in the evening/night to get in the right mood for some proper partying.
DMNW: There are numerous hip-hop elements in your latest album, what are the major differences working with hip-hop artists as opposed to EDM artists?
MD: Hip-hop artists work more in a pop arrangement (verses, pre-chorus, chorus and bridge, etc) and the lyrics are very important to them whether EDM artists focus more on the drop and a particular unique sound nobody has used before.
DMNW: What was it like tracking Jonathan Mendelsohn? Any great stories there?
MD: Jonathan is a great and very talented guy who has a very unique sound in his voice which I like a lot!! I’ve met him and his manager last year during the WMC in Miami. We were sitting down at Lincoln Drive sipping on our drinks talking about the music and what we could do about it. Before I knew it we hit the studio and created that bomb Heartbeat.
DMNW: Finally, what would you like to say to all your fans in the Northwest who aspire to be Armada artists one day?
MD: It sounds cliché but never stop trying and believe in yourself regarding the music you make, and please do send demo’s as people from Armada love new music!!!
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Buy Let’s Connect Tonight on iTunes here.
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