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VICE: 99 Greatest Dance Albums of All Time
Member Since: 4/27/2012
Posts: 9,977
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VICE: 99 Greatest Dance Albums of All Time
THE 99 GREATEST DANCE ALBUMS OF ALL TIME
By THUMP Staff | The electronic music & culture channel from VICE.
In the world of dance music, the single is the thing. Still, not everyone is a DJ and sometimes a playlist just won't do. Even in a time when the record industry is satiating appetites for individual tracks, the dance album (that thing that makes you move all night) still has relevance and power.
In putting together this list of the Greatest Dance Albums of All Time, we looked exclusively at artist albums—those complete statements of musical intention and dancefloor ambition. Singles rule but albums like these are iconic in their own right, holding down the foundation of dance music's storied past and bright future.
There are no compilations, best-ofs, soundtracks, or mixes included; they have their place, but elsewhere. Instead, we gathered the 99 LPs that have left a mark on dancefloors and are guaranteed to make you work up a sweat while doing your thing, be that in your bedroom, under a mirrorball, or bathed in starlight.
1. Daft Punk: Discovery [Virgin] 2001 
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When some extraterrestrial race looks back on the artifacts of 21st century dance music, if Discovery isn't the most importantly examined fossil, it will at least be the soundtrack to their research. The sophomore album by the world's most famous robots is a joyful candy bag of auto-tuned machine-love storylines, French Touch magic, and a plethora of sounds that have become classics to club-kids and shut-ins alike. The relentlessness of "One More Time," the motivational anthem of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger," the surprisingly emotive "Digital Love," and the dynamic friction of "Face to Face" are standouts in their own right; together they are part of an dancefloor opus. Reliant heavily on samples and made unabashedly with disco love (at a time when disco was paralyzingly uncool, no less), Daft Punk brought electronic dance music to the forefront of modern pop culture, gifting the masses with something that wasn't just infectious, but for many, lifechanging.
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2. Carl Craig: Landcruising [Blanco Y Negro/Mute] 1995
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Landcruising is Carl Craig before he became Carl Craig. This mid-90s classic was Mute Records' attempt to jump into the untapped techno market and although it was critically lauded, sales were lackluster. Still, the album was a groundbreaking introduction to what would become Craig's signature: synth-heavy, atmospheric techno that draws influences from beyond Detroit, yet unmistakably belongs to it. It also functions as a homage to Craig's hometown—after all, it was conceived as a soundtrack for driving around its streets.
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3. Madonna: Confessions on a Dance Floor [Maverick] 2005
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Long after many started saying "I only like her old stuff," the Queen of Pop dropped this start-to-finish perfect album of disco-inspired club cuts, each track mixed—a rarity for non-compilations. While a pop star's club throne is never guaranteed forever, Madonna has more claims to the top spot than most and Confessions proves why. This is the album all her subsequent albums is compared to; for its enduring relevance and how it redefined Madonna as an artist, it should be.
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4. Fatboy Slim: You've Come a Long Way, Baby [Skint Records] 1998
5. Underworld: dubnobasswithmyheadman [Junior Boy's Own] 1994
6. Chemical Brothers: Dig Your Own Hole [Virgin] 1997
7. Disclosure: Settle [PMR/Interscope] 2013
8. Robyn: Body Talk [Konichiwa] 2010
9. Basement Jaxx: Rooty [XL] 2001
10. Kylie Minogue: Aphrodite [Parlophone] 2010
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"Can you feel me on your stereo?" asks pop goddess Kylie Minogue on the title track of her eleventh studio album named for another goddess. Shedding the skin of introspection, Minogue unabashedly puts her hands up on the dancefloor. With production from Stuart Price, Calvin Harris, Ingrosso, Nervo, and Richard X, it's like b2b night at your favorite glitter rave.
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11. Depeche Mode: Violator [Mute] 1990
12. Skrillex: Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites [Big Beat/mau5trap] 2010
13. Michael Jackson: Off the Wall [Epic] 1979
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The opening bassline of "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" is a premonition: something is about to happen here. Then, with a disco string flourish and young Michael's Studio 54-soaked falsetto, it does. Barring a late-album descent into ballad purgatory, some of these tracks are the greatest in human history. This is the King of Pop at his absolute finest.
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14. Justice: Cross [Ed Banger] 2007
15. Plastikman: Sheet One [NovaMute] 1993
16. Donna Summer: Bad Girls [Casablanca] 1979
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When Donna Summer and Giorgio Moroder re-teamed for the disco diva's seventh (double) studio album, they were already the reigning King and Queen of Disco. Bad Girls took them to new heights, becoming Summer's best-selling album. The title track became ubiquitous with the feverish disco obsession that had taken over the mainstream, as well as Summer's prowess as car-sound imitator.
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17. Kraftwerk: Trans-Europe Express [Kling Klang] 1977
18. Groove Armada: Soundboy Rock [Columbia/Sony] 2007
19. Giorgio Moroder: From Here to Eternity [Casablanca Records] 1977
20. Daft Punk: Homework [Virgin] 1997
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It's really hard to do anything but dance while listening to Homework. The robots' debut helped usher in the era of late-90s French Touch, practically inventing the bedroom producer. As the story goes, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter wanted to prove they could make a timeless dance album without fancy equipment at home, hence the title. Damn witty robots.
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21. Erasure: The Innocents [Mute/Sire] 1988
22. Moby: Everything is Wrong [Mute] 1994
23. Calvin Harris: Ready for the Weekend [Fly Eye/Columbia] 2009
25. The Prodigy: The Fat of The Land [XL/Maverick] 1997
26. Madonna: Madonna [Sire] 1983
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All the groundbreaking, world-changing, genre-defining, imitator-inspiring aside, Madonna's first album is just really ****ing fun to dance to. From "Lucky Star" all the way through to "Everybody," the stream of bright, sexy, and unfussy pop doesn't falter once. Madonna provided the New York City dance scene a much needed post-disco palate cleanser and drew the blueprint for future dance pop.
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27. LCD Soundsystem: LCD Soundsystem [DFA] 2005
28. Tiësto: Just Be [Magik Muzik] 2004
29. The Chemical Brothers: Come With Us [Virgin/Astralwerks] 2002
30. Missy Elliott: Miss E... So Addictive [Elektra] 2001
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True, Missy Elliott is more hip-hop star than dancefloor queen but name-checking a popular club drug in your album title gets the club kids to take notice. Dancefloor fillers "4 My People" and "One Minute Man" had bodies throbbing in a post-electronica era. And nothing can nor ever will take away from the majesty that is "Get Ur Freak On."
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31. New Order: Power, Corruption & Lies [Factory] 1983
32. Everything But The Girl: Walking Wounded [Atlantic/Virgin] 1996
33. Pet Shop Boys: Actually [Parlophone] 1987
34. Kylie Minogue: Fever [Parlophone] 2001
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Fever explores the ins and outs of sleepless nights on the dancefloor from moments buoyant ("Love At First Sight") to sensual ("In Your Eyes") to hypnotic ("Your Love"), all soundtracked by cold-hearted machines and a popstar's redolent soprano. Robots, a one-word refrain, and a vexing A-minor key helped make "Can't Get You Out of My Head" Kylie Minogue's biggest hit.
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35. Goldie: Timeless [FFRR Records] 1995
37. Angélique Kidjo: Logozo [Island] 1991
38. M.I.A.: Kala [XL/Interscope] 2007
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M.I.A.'s sophomore release took the global vibe of Arular, and amped the massiveness. From "Bamboo Banga" to "Come Around," it's 13 tracks of unforgettable beats and third-world-swagger. Composed primarily by M.I.A. and Switch, Kala features production from Timbaland, Blaqstarr, Morganics, and Diplo, who threw gun shot sounds over a Clash sample, thus creating "Paper Planes."
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40. Armin van Buuren: Imagine [Armada] 2008
43. C+C Music Factory: Gonna Make You Sweat [Columbia] 1990
44. Goldfrapp: Supernature [Mute] 2005
46. Kraftwerk: Computer World [Kling Klang/EMI] 1981
47. Lady Gaga: The Fame Monster [Cherrytree/Interscope] 2009
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While Gaga's debut is a perfectly acceptable piece of dance-pop, its reissue—replete with an entirely new album, The Fame Monster—is a modern classic. The grotesquely beautiful pound of "Bad Romance" and growl of "Dance In The Dark" complement the Madonna-aping on "Alejandro" (which is great in its own right). What is a night dancing if not an act of monstrosity?
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49. Cut Chemist: The Audience's Listening [Warner Bros] 2006
52. Paul Oakenfold: Bunkka [Maverick] 2002
53. Nero: Welcome Reality [MTA Records] 2011
54. Dizzee Rascal: Tongue n' Cheek [Dirtee Stank/Liberation] 2009
55. Björk: Debut [One Little Indian] 1993
57. Britney Spears: In The Zone [Jive] 2003
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This isn't Britney's best album (that would be 2007's aptly-titled Blackout) but it is the best to dance to. With features from Snoop, Madonna, and Ying Yang Twins, production by Moby and Bloodshy & Avant (pre-Miike Snow), this album is where the pop star went to the club and liked it. Plus, it contains "Toxic," perhaps Ms. Spears' finest recorded moment.
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58. Swedish House Mafia: Until Now [Astralwerks] 2012
59. Yelle: Pop-up [Source Etc] 2007
60. Gorillaz: Demon Days [Parlophone] 2005
65. ABBA: Arrival [Polar] 1976
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You can dance, you can jive, you can admit that ABBA is a perennial guilty pleasure. Arrival is the most successful album by the Swedish-pop group, containing three of their biggest hits ("Dancing Queen" among them). These tracks are basically the origin of disco-jive; they incite the finger-snapping and hip-swaying vibe that is the very essence of 70s dance music.
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66. LCD Soundsystem: This is Happening [DFA/Virgin] 2010
68. Moby: Play [V2/Mute] 1999
69. The Rapture: Echoes [DFA] 2003
73. Róisín Murphy: Overpowered [EMI] 2007
76. Gwen Stefani: Love. Angel. Music. Baby. [Interscope] 2004
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Who can take a number from Fiddler on the Roof and turn it into a chart-topper Eve raps on? The type of woman who can go triple-platinum by spelling "bananas." Gwen Stefani appropriates Japanese culture and gets away with it on her solo debut; with production assists from Andre 3000, the Neptunes, and Dr. Dre, it's easy to hear why.
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82. Hot Chip: Made in the Dark [EMI/Astralwerks/DFA] 2008
83. Calvin Harris: I Created Disco [Columbia] 2007
86. Simian Mobile Disco: Attack, Sustain, Decay, Release [Wichita/Interscope] 2007
87. The Killers: Hot Fuss [Island] 2004
88. Deadmau5: For Lack of a Better Name [Ultra/Mau5trap] 2009
89. Major Lazer: Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do [Downtown] 2009
99. Stromae: Racine Carrée [Mosaert/Republic] 2013
FULL LIST: X
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Member Since: 8/28/2012
Posts: 34,863
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While Gaga's debut is a perfectly acceptable piece of dance-pop, its reissue—replete with an entirely new album, The Fame Monster—is a modern classic.
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No lie 
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Member Since: 12/3/2010
Posts: 14,971
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In the Zone, Love. Angel. Music. Baby., Kala, and The Fame Monster should all be higher.
Settle shouldn't be #7, and Discovery shouldn't be #1 although it is a great album.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 9/22/2011
Posts: 16,128
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I don't agree with this order at all but I love a lot of the albums here!
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 8,890
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Confessions on a Dance Floor should have been #1. It is, objectively, the best dance album on the list. The album never slows down and the fact that the songs play like a DJ's set only adds to its strength.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 8/1/2012
Posts: 27,547
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Disclosure deserves their place at #7, they're mainly responsible for the garage sound revive in the U.K.
I do love Aphrodite it but it doesn't deserve to be #10 
COADF, Fame Monster and Stromae
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Member Since: 2/2/2012
Posts: 26,226
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Originally posted by geddymonster
Confessions on a Dance Floor should have been #1. It is, objectively, the best dance album on the list. The album never slows down and the fact that the songs play like a DJ's set only adds to its strength.
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Clock 'em sis
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Member Since: 9/21/2006
Posts: 789
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The n°1 is pretty predictable
but I was extremely surprised at how awful that list was
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Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 34,855
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What? Is this a joke? Did they only listen to like five dance albums from before 2000? What are the Swedish House Mafia and Skrillex doing on any "best of" list? Why is Confessions Madonna's highest album, at number three?
Some of these aren't even dance. What the hell. This is a total cluster****.
Daft Punk's and Robyn's overhyped, filler-ridden, and mostly mediocre albums can go somewhere too.
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Banned
Member Since: 4/7/2012
Posts: 14,466
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I love a lot of these albums but the list itself is kind of predictable.
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12. Skrillex: Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites [Big Beat/mau5trap] 2010
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ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 22,001
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The fame should of made the cut too, but the fame monster does slay yas
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Banned
Member Since: 1/2/2014
Posts: 2,755
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Madonna where she deserves to be.
But Kylie's Aphrodite and gaga's The Fame? 
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Member Since: 1/26/2012
Posts: 9,236
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Confessions
They couldn't mention gaga without bringing up the Queen of Pop/Dance 
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ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 8/20/2011
Posts: 18,900
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87. The Killers: Hot Fuss [Island] 2004
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What? The album isn't dance at all
Kala, Body Talk, Confessions, In the Zone, LAMB, The Fame Monster
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 12,370
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8. Robyn: Body Talk [Konichiwa] 2010
65. ABBA: Arrival [Polar] 1976
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 6,634
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Aphrodite slaying the lessors 
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Member Since: 6/10/2009
Posts: 10,622
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Discovery is theeeee ****. Deserved #1.
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Member Since: 12/16/2008
Posts: 59,380
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Bye at the saying that Britney's best album is Blackout.
Anyway Madonna, Gaga and Britney making the list
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Member Since: 4/10/2012
Posts: 17,020
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COADF and TFM
Defining albums for pop culture of the past decade.
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Member Since: 4/4/2014
Posts: 13,402
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Madonna, Donna Summer, ABBA, New Order, Pet Shop Boys and Britney
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