DJ Hell - U Can Dance

Just when you wrote DJ Hell off after that single with P Diddy, here comes this surprisingly good track to change your mind again. Hell has been around for a while and alongside being one of the leading stars of the techno and (briefly) electroclash scenes, has a commanding knowledge of obscure early dance music. So it makes sense that he would be able to pull off a cut like "U Can Dance," which borrows heavily from the Italo disco sound of the early 80s.

Co-produced by Peter Kruder of Kruder and Dorfmeister fame, and featuring vocals by none other than Roxy Music's Bryan Ferry, "U Can Dance" merges just the right amount of dark Italo disco (a sound previously mined by acts like Black Devil Disco Club and Bottin), while repackaging it for modern European radio consumption. Ferry's vocals, sounding like a drugged David Bowie, work well over the pulsing synths.

Hell has pulled in a heavyweight cast of remixers here too. Carl Craig gives two different versions - the first a soulful take on the track, the second tossing in arpeggiating retro-electro synths recalling his mix of Telex. Meanwhile, Simian Mobile Disco provides a remix for techno dancefloors with tinges of progressive house.