The homeless population of New York City is the inspiration for this album and all the profits go to benefit that cause. Heroes Of The Dancefloor isn’t exactly what the title implies. I don’t recognize any “heroes” here, although the album is pleasantly listenable all over said dancefloor. We have Dan Moore on keys, Gary Alesbrook on trumpet, Alex Hutchings on guitar, James Morton on sax, the remixers are Anthony Mansfield and Nick Chacona, and someone named Mamazu on vocals – again, no “heroes”.
The philanthropy is noble and some of the players are notable because of their past musical associations (like Morton who used to be a sideman with the late James Brown), but back to the songs themselves, because their sale-ability is now locked into how much they can raise for these charities.
Can We Dance To The Heroes of The Dancefloor?
Disappointing insofar as club dance music goes, the leadoff song, “Ricky” has that stage musical showgirl feeling to it, while the next selection, “Same Scandal” is what I’m talking about and true partiers are used to shaking a leg to. It is downhill after that if you are expecting anything resembling House, electronic, trance or discotheques dance music.
“The Knack” is a sleepy, smoke-filled nightclub number that is slightly reminiscent of Billy Holiday in “Lady Sings The Blues”. Subsequent stylings stay in this pseudo-jazzy and dive bar pocket with the exception of the mid-tempo number “Savior”,” Cool” whose hardwood must have been born out of the roaring ‘20s and the final “Catch 22” which revisits the mood of track one.
Should We Pass on the Torch?
It would be heroic if the admirable angle involving Picture The Homeless and the Coalition for the Homeless indeed raises a bucket full of cash behind this only slightly sequacious effort. Alas, an album title change might have made me less perfervid, because I was truly expecting to be wooed to shake my groove-thang much more mightily. Two stars.
Released November 2008 on InGrooves Records
