Groove Doctors featuring Duane Hardin - Like Water
Louie Vega opened his grammy set at Pacha with this signing to his new label LNM which sounded great on Crobar's massive system. A project from the Soltrenz crew, this old school jam pays respect to the legends of house music. If the voice sounds familiar, its because Duane sang on Armand Van Helden's classic "You Don't Know Me."

Helena Paparizou - Mambo
This is the dance page and I often try to focus on dance artists making dance records as opposed to pop and R&B artists whose remixes dominate commercial dance clubs. Then comes along this tropical jam from Eurovision winner Helena Paparizou which totally rocked my world. Pop dance at its finest in its original mix though it's even better in the house mix by Ruff & Jam and the turbo-charged hard dance mix by Alex K.

Jakazid - Cillit Bang
This record shook up the tradition, a dance record inspired by the intensely annoying commercial cleanser commercial. Whether in its original hard dance (180bpm) version or remixed by Christian Hoff, a unique record that might become another Zombie Nation.

JCA - Flyaway
Though it was released in October 2005, I didn't discover this morning track featuring vocals from Rufus Martin until well into 2006. Taking the tech sound and giving it an emotional tone, Jean-Claude Ades (best known for his work with Dannii Minogue on "I Begin to Wonder") created a wonderfully uplifting track perfect to end any set.

John Kano feat Gia 7 - I Feel For You
I love John Kano, he's a great writer. He's the one behind that Neil Sedaka (oops Digital Allies) hit "Without You." A taste of subtlety and an ethereal vocal performance from newcomer Gia 7 made "I Feel For You" a mixshow staple. The risk-taking drum & bass mix by John Cerba worked my afterhours set all year long.

Mark Knight featuring Kartherine Ellis - Insatiable
Mark Knight & Martijn Ten Velden are the producers who might be able to claim responsibility for bringing tech mainstream. Katherine Ellis is quickly becoming one of the most in-demand dance vocalists, showing her versatility on Roger Sanchez's "Lost," Dylan Rhyme's "Salty," the Bimbo Jones tracks, and this provocative number. Call me crazy, but anyone who can sing "I'm Tired of Trying to Get Off" with such conviction deserves a Grammy. Which is another reason why I wish "Don't Need a Man" by The Pussycat Dolls would be released as a single in the US.

Mason - Exceeder
Dutch violinist/producer Iason Chronis got his first big break being discovered by Tiesto in South America. His tech jam "Exceeder" was a big Beatport hit on initial release leading to much club and mixshow play. A new vocal mashup with Princess Superstar's "Perfect" is being primed for crossover success in 2007. Watch out for the gymnastics video (a la "Call on Me").

Mr. V featuring Patty - The Bump
You know how it is when people come up to you, start singing a song and ask you to identify it. As a DJ (and a writer), I get that all the time. After I heard "The Bump" all over Miami for WMC, I did the same thing and finally Moises Modesto was able to ID it for me. The hip-house jam is the lead off single from his artist album. If you miss the days when hip-hop and house were played in the same sets, check out this jam-packed CD.

Pendulum vs The Freestylers - Fasten Your Seatbelt
What do you get when you cross the drum and bass kings Pendulum with breakbeat pranksters The Freestylers? Something tells me that this is going to resurface this year as a crossover UK pop hit.

Plumb - Cut (Bronleewe & Bose Remix)
On her fourth studio album, Plumb explores the world of electronica and dance music as a new background for her eloquent and emotional songwriting. Known in the dance world for the song "Damaged" that was covered by Plummet, Plumb's song "Cut," about the dangers of self-mutilation was remixed by Bronleewe and Bose and became a dance radio hit. It's nice to hear music with a message making it out to our audience.

Queen - Another One Bites the Dust (Cedric Gervais vs Second Sun Remix)
Among the 25 million white label remixes of 80s records that were sent out via eMail in 2006, this one stood out as the best.

Simone Denny - Sugar Sugar Lovin
The voice of Widelife and Love Inc steps out on her own with this incredibly strong vocal house jam written by Dee Roberts and produced by Josh Harris. Yes, it's quite sweet. (apologies for obvious pun.)

Spank Rock - Bump (Switch Remix)
Ah, the joys of the internet. Philly-based producer Spank Rock is fusing glitch, breaks, electro, and hip-hop with a breath of fresh air reminiscent of Timbaland. For Bump, imagine old skool trash-talking girl rappers updated with electro and noise. The tempo changes and dissonant noises elevate this record to asterpiece level. Can you imagine a track produced by Spank Rock with Missy Elliott and M.I.A.? Check out their Myspace page for takes on Lindsey Lohan and Rick Rubin.

Stefy - Chelsea
What do you get when you cross New Order and No Doubt? The retro electro vibe and catchy chorus of "Chelsea" was so good that it makes you wonder if radio programmers are completely deaf. Club DJs surely weren't as they propelled remixes by Chris Cox and Morgan Page into a club anthem.

Starkillers - Discoteka
"I make the beat go boom" is the phrase that was oft-heard all over Miami. Nick Terranova's commercial crossover has nicely laid the groundwork for remixes (Paul Oakenfold, DJ Dan) and intense DJ sets. Definitely someone to watch for 2007.

Stunt - Raindrops
When this came out, all the music snobs slammed it for being a cheesy rip off of Brainbug circa 2000. Then a funny thing happened, the dance floors went nuts for it and people loved the track. When a dance record comes along that shows up on New Jersey teens' myspace pages and starts getting requested by straight Nashvillian girls with big hair, you know you got a hit. Isn't that how "Everytime We Touch" started? The fact that it's a catchy and fun europop record is cool as well.