At the start of the year there was all this laughable talk in sections of the media that dance music is dead. It was hilarious really. The dance scene is so broad and filled with so many genres that it remains constantly healthy. 2004 in particular demonstrated this with some really exciting stuff happening underground.

For me, 2004 was all about the kind of harder electro tinged music that has begun to infiltrate the dance scene. It’s all stemmed from Berlin and you have people like Black Strobe, P Schwarz, Head Man, and Alter Ego all feeding off it. 2004 was all about trends – and it was these guys who were setting them and really invigorating the scene.
The Sonar Festival in June really shaped the year for me. It was there I heard really exciting stuff like Alter Ego and Mylo’s ‘Drop The Pressure’ for the first time. Mylo in particular was a huge talent to emerge in 2004. His Destroy Rock ‘N’ Roll record is probably my album of the year. It’s just brilliant because there’s a real pop sensibility to it. What was great is that he seemed to come out of nowhere: that record in itself was indicative of how fresh and exciting 2004 was.
Artists on the dance and hip hop front who have pushed through to the mainstream had mixed success. For a lot of people Eminem’s Encore was a big record. He continues to be an artist that people either love or hate. He’s not someone I’d go out and buy as he seems to have lost his edge. I do think he still has it in him, it’s just he isn’t rapping about anything interesting these days.
Mike Skinner didn’t quite live up to his previous effort either. Appreciating the fact that A Grand Don’t Come For Free was a concept album, I just didn’t like it as much as Original Pirate Material. Some of the tracks were just not dynamic enough. I don’t think it’s the end of Mike Skinner though. You know, he did ‘Dry Your Eyes’ which has been the biggest ballad of the year! People love that track so much. It’s an anthem. But you know, it’s that second album thing. It’s so hard to repeat what you did first time around.
Dizzee Rascal though, did it superbly. Showtime is such a great record. He’s really flown the flag for UK underground hip hop. Grime is a genre of music that has come through because of Dizzee Rascal, and you’ve got people like Lethal B coming in behind him.
2005 is shaping up to be another inspiring year. There are a couple of Irish guys who are going to have big, big years. I cannot stress enough how well I think Belfast’s Phil Kieran is going to do. I’ve heard his first release of the coming year and I’ve never been as excited about a track before. He’s being doing stuff quietly – and now he’s going to come through. Jupiter Ace, from Northern Ireland too, should also break through in 2005.
Next year some great little labels like Def Jugs and Hospital Records will come to the forefront. It should be another healthy year for new talent. I can’t wait to hit the record shops!

In conversation with Steve Cummins. Annie Mac can be heard on BBC Radio 1’s Dance Show from 9pm-11pm on Thursday.

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TOP 30 DANCE ALBUMS & SINGLES OF '04 (COMPILED BY DIGITAL BEAT):

Albums:
SWAYZAK: ‘Loops From The Bergerie’ [K7]
TWO LONE SWORDSMEN: ‘From The Double Gone Chapel’ [Warp]
WAGON CHRIST: ‘Sorry I Make You Lush’ [Warp]
AME: ‘Ame’ [Sonar Kollektiv]
JIMMY BEHAN: ‘Days Are What We Live In’ [Elusive]
VARIOUS ARTISTS: ‘Kill The DJ Vol 2’ [Tigersushi]
LUCIANO: ‘Blind Behaviour’ [Peacefrog]
EMS: ‘Synchronaut’ [Satamile]
CARI LEKEBUSCH: ‘The Architect’ [Truesoul]
THE EMPEROR MACHINE: ‘Aimee Tallulah Is Hypnotised’ [DC Recordings]
DECAL: ‘Release Through Velocity’ [Satamile]
DAVID DONOHOE: ‘Statuesque’ [D1]
THE FUTUREHEADS: ‘The Futureheads’ [679]
RANDOM FACTOR: ‘Convergence’ [20/20 Vision]
FELIX DA HOUSECAT: ‘Devin Dazzle’
[Emperor Norton]
PHONIQUE: ‘Identification’ [Dessous]
!!! ‘!!!’ [Warp]
HACKER: ‘Reves Mecaniques’ [PIAS/Good Life]
MARA CARLYLE: ‘The Lovely’ [Accidental]
BOOKA SHADE: ‘Memento’ [Get Physical]
RJD2: ‘Since We Last Spoke’ [Def Jux]
KIKI: ‘Run With Me’ [Bpitch Control]
BROOKS: ‘LP’ [Accidental]
ALEXANDER ROBOTNICK: ‘The Disco Tech Of…’ [Yellow]
MYLO: ‘Destroy Rock and Roll’ [Breast Fed]
TIEFSCHWARZ: ‘Misch Masch’ [Fine]
OLIVER HO: ‘The Soft Machine’ [Meta]
SIEG UBER DIE SONNE: ‘Plus One’ [Multicolor]
SUPERPITCHER: ‘Happiness’ [Kompakt]
STEVE BUG: ‘Bugnology’ [Poker Flat]

Singles
TIEFSCHWARZ: ‘Ghosttrack’ (Blackstrobe remix) [Four Music]
DJ T: ‘Radiator’ [2020]
UNIT 4: ‘Bodydub’ (Remixes) [Clone]
TRAFFIC SIGNS: ‘VCM Nation’ [Traffic Signs]
PHONIQUE: ‘The Red Dress’ (Tiefschwarz remix) [Dessous]
KIKI: ‘The End Of The World [Bpitch Control]
THE KNIFE: ‘Heartbeats’ (Rex The Dog remix) [Rabid]
EMPEROR MACHINE: ‘The TV Extra Band’ [DC Recordings]
SPEKTRUM: ‘Kinda New’ (Tiefschwarz dub) [Nonstop]
PANASH: ‘Jack 2 Jack’ (Jesper Dahlback mix) [Turbo]
ANTHONY ROTHER: ‘Back Home’ [Datapunk]
DAVID CARETTA, HACKER & MILLIMETRIC: ‘Moskow Reise’ [Good Life]
PAUL McCARTNEY: ‘Temporary Secretary’ (Radioslave remix) [Parlophone]
LORBER & SIKORA: ‘Rumbarumbarumba’ [Nummer]
AME: ‘Mifune’ [Sonar Kollectiv]
THE ELECTRIC ECSTASY CLUB: ‘Jesus Loves The Acid’ [RZ]
MARCO PASSARANI: ‘I’ll House U’ [Peacefrog]
FIVE GREEN CIRCLE: ‘Pop Implants’ [D1 recordings]
TRANSPARENT SOUND: ‘Three Fifty Short’ [Electrix]
TIM WRIGHT featuring TOASTIE TAILOR: ‘The Ride (Luciano Mix)’ [Novamute]
TIGA: ‘Pleasure From The Bass’ [PIAS]
LUCIANO & PIER BUCCI: ‘Stone Age’ [Cadenza]
ALEX SMOKE: ‘Simple Things EP’ [Vakant]
CLARO INTELECTO: ‘Chicago’ [AI]
ORGUE ELECTRONIQUE: ‘Texas, Brooklyn & Heaven EP’ [Crème Organisation]
NYLON: ‘The Mouse’ [Rebelone]
DONNACHA COSTELLO: ‘Infinite Now’ [Minimise]
HIEM: ‘Circles’ (Matthew Jonson remix) [Crosstown Rebels]
JESPER DAHLBACK: ‘Machine Dance’ [DK]
CARSTEN JOST: ‘Uccellacciuccellini’ [Sender Records]