Concentric Pleasures: Playtime Playlists

The official start of BBQ season cries out for just the right soundtrack, and Concentric Pleasures abides. From the hits of '89 to hipster-friendly disco, let these playlists put the fun in your social function.

Dance Hits: 1989. Properly applied, nostalgia is to social functions as lighter fluid is to a fat stack of charcoal. (Caution: in both cases, a little goes a long way.) So kick things off with a trip 20 years back in time. In 1989, disco balls spun fast and loose, beaming with positive vibes. In the U.K., rave's "Second Summer of Love" was in full swing. New York tricksters like the Jungle Brothers spoke in native tongues. Chicago's electric acid test was bubbling hot, and for a brief moment hip-house looked ready to take over the world. From Soul II Soul and Neneh Cherry to Lil Louis and Ralphi Rosario, 1989 was a shining moment for dance music at its most fun -- and most inclusive. Even the hatingest hater can't be mad at these feel-good grooves, up to and including "Batdance."


Dance Hits: 1989

Norwegian Disco Bliss. Of course, if your backyard is full of beards, you can play it cool -- or play at cool -- with a little Scandinavian oonce-oonce. For some inscrutable reason, the best disco is coming out of Norway these days. (Maybe it has something to do with dancing under the midnight sun.) Artists like Lindstrom, Prins Thomas and Todd Terje turn boompty beats otherworldly and put a curious, psychedelic twist on acts like Bebel Gilberto, Franz Ferdinand and Jose Gonzalez. If you dig the DFA, you'll flip for these starry-eyed soul providers.


Norwegian Disco Bliss

Tosca: Hassle-Free Beats. Finally, when the grill's burned down and the intimacy is heating up, cozy up with Vienna's Tosca. The duo of Rupert Huber and Richard Dorfmeister (of Kruder & Dorfmeister) don't break any sound barriers on new album No Hassle, but that's precisely the point. They've retained cruising speed for 14 years now, across the hills and dells of dubby downtempo, and No Hassle opens up an even wider vista, with live instrumentation misted with a subtle electronic haze. Along with selections from the album, our overview of the band's back catalog surveys 44 tracks from these mood-music mainstays, including remixes by Faze Action, Beanfield and Lindstrom & Prins Thomas.


Tosca: Hassle-Free Beats