December: 7 hard dance releases you need to hear this month

Technoboy, Showtek & Tuneboy 'Mellow' (Skint)

Showtek are back writing the odd spot of hardstyle again after an incredible EDM venture over the past few years. What better way to get back in the saddle, then, than by teaming up with two of the biggest and best in the game? ‘Mellow’ features a high-pitched vocal over a gorgeous lead and pad combo. The whole track is euphorically massive – nothing noisy or mindless here – and you can’t help but smile not just at how great this sounds, but also at the return of two of the best in the genre’s history.

9/10

Short Fuze 'Ice Bomb' (Mohawk)

Short Fuze, aka Ben Garside, is an artist that excites us – he works hard, plays harder and has an incredibly positive outlook on how to achieve success in the hardhouse scene. ‘Ice Bomb’ is his biggest release to date and it’s absolutely bursting at the seams with energy thanks to its frantic, chopped-up lead. There’s lots to feast your ears on here and if peak-time, heads-down music is your bag, this is a must-buy.

9/10

F1 'Recoil' (BK remix) (Vicious Circle)

While some people like to whine about massive classic tracks being remixed, our stance is simple: if they offer something new, bring it on.
BK steps up to the plate here to take on one of VC’s biggest releases and, while it’s solid and produced to the high level we expect from him, it doesn’t really get the creative juices flowing. Instead, it stays firmly inside the box and mirrors the feel of the original; perhaps it could have been even bigger.

8/10

Yorkshire Ripper, Macks Wolf & MC Eruption 'I’m Here' (Futureworld Recordings)

A dose of the finest hardcore chaos here, with the breakdown and drops either side of the main section being full of stomp-it-out madness. Eruption arrives in the middle, with an incredible hip-hop/r’n’b style rhyme selection: it works so well and, when coupled with the big EDM-style lead and riff pattern, adds a whole new element to an already massive track.

7/10

The Chainsmokers & Daya 'Don’t Let Me Down' (Hardwell & Sephyx remix) (Disruptor Records)

Shock! Horror! Hardwell is writing hardstyle! After ending his sets for the past couple of years with something a little harder, it was inevitable he would eventually drop his own material in this genre – and here, teaming up with Sephyx, he absolutely smashes it.
The Chainsmokers are killing it at the moment and this mix, with its pitched aggressive kicks, is definitely worth investigating.

7/10

TNT & Brennan Heart 'It’s My Style' (WE R)

This track is hooky as hell, with a looped rap which builds and builds alongside one of the biggest riffs we’ve heard in a long time. Once this track drops you can’t help but smile, throw your hands up and enjoy the music. This is peak-time hardstyle at its best.

8/10

Klubfiller, Infexious and Bassline Animals 'Ill Behaviour' (Klubbed Up)

Klubfiller is one of the hardest working producers around. Here, he teams up with Infexious and the Bassline Animals for an off-beat banger of big bass, rap vocals, sirens and a drop that comes out of nowhere but keeps the fun levels at 10 and the energy at 11.

8/10