Kicking off with the glittery "Let's Go" from
Calvin Harris and
Ne-Yo,
Ultra 2013 is the usual combination of top-notch picks and undeniable dancefloor hits that fill the series every year. It feeds off an especially fertile and successful 2012 for dance-pop with the EDM explosion in full force, and while one of the year's biggest artists,
Swedish House Mafia, isn't represented, superstars
Dada Life are, remixing and shooting
Kaskade's "Llove" into space with their echoing and dark treatment of the track. Listen for
Deadmau5 and
Wolfgang Gartner mixing church organs, funky riffs, and whomping dubstep on "Channel 42,"
Lil Jon and
LMFAO Bacardi-rockin' all night long during "Drink," and
Afrojack as he pours both purple drank and electro beats into the mixing desk, creating some new kind of syrup-house during the druggy "Beat Down" from
Steve Aoki,
Angger Dimas, and
Iggy Azalea. Unexpected delights come from
Nause (bringing back the spirit of airy '80s synth pop with "Hungry Hearts") and
Inner Life (disco meets filter house on the sweaty cover of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough"), while
Congorock "Bless di Nation" along with the dancefloor and bring the 2012 sound of ragga-house, which is slick, polished, and delivered in style by reggae great
Sean Paul. Now that's what you call
Ultra. ~ David Jeffries