In the early- to mid-aughts there was a huge deluge of post-Strokes revivalists that flooded and clogged the scene. Sometime around 2006, it all hit critical mass, Casablancas and Co. went on indefinite hiatus, and the thing began to die. Meanwhile, a new trend -- electro-tinged, indie pop mash-ups -- bubbled up for the late-aughts and this new decade.
Almost predictably, the Brits gave it a weird name. They called it "wonky pop." And despite the lame, unconvincing genre tag, this increasingly international scene -- think the Knife, Boy Crisis, La Roux, etc. -- has thrived, with one of England's own (albeit self-exiled in Paris), Dan Black, being the current hype magnet.
A former post-Strokes revivalist himself, Black's poppier solo stuff first broke when he released the Notorious B.I.G. vs. Rihanna experiment "HYPNTZ" in 2008. Then, this December, Black dropped debut disc UN, an album of perfectly polished cacophony anchored by semi-hit single "U+Me" and today's free track "Symphonies." It's exactly the kind of stuff you'd expect the similarly schizophrenic Passion Pit to remix.
Now, will wonky pop break in 2010? Probably not. But with Julian Casablancas getting into a wonky-ish mood on Phrazes for the Young ... Who knows what the future holds? A deluge maybe?
With Ross One, Contra, and Discotech. Wednesday, January 20. LIV, 4441 Collins Ave., Miami Beach. Doors open at 10 p.m. 305-674-4680; livnightclub.com
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