by Alex Truong – A&SB Contributor

Just when you thought the universe was running out of cool stuff to dance to, MSTRKRFT comes up and slaps you upside the head with some amazing beats. A duo with a penchant for capitalization is capitalizing on the market for synth beats that have the pop appeal of Justice (MSTRKRFT actually has a Justice dance remix on their MySpace, which is absolutely worth checking out) with a little bit of the weirdness of the Faint. MSTRKRFT’s ALP and JFK have a sound that can also waver a little bit more in the way of a techno-ized Dub Trio in its distortions backed up by rapid drumming. It is not, however, so heavy that the movement of feet becomes impossible. Featuring the likes of Ghostface Killah, E-40 (hyphy love), and John Legend shows that ALP and JFK’s new shit has no shortage of talent. Their latest LP, Fist of God, is being released digitally to the plugged-in this March 17th.

Most of the tracks, like “It Ain’t Love (Featuring Lil Mo),” and “Bounce (Featuring Nore and Isis),” feature a consistent beat with solid and repeating hooks (read: easy to improvise dance steps, WORD) that might give way to a synth-heavy breakdown a couple of minutes into the song.

The tracks featuring the famous dudes like Ghostface, E-40, and Legend are “Word Up,” “Click Click,” and “Heartbreaker,” respectively. “Heartbreaker” shines through both of them, and is a tightly wound hit that really benefits from the smooth lyricism of the Legend. In fact, MSTRKRFT’s better stuff has good vocals backed by a solid wall of dance music sensibility (or sensible danceability). “Click Click,” is pretty good too, and Ghostface Killah’s rhymes work well in a heavier beat that, if groove was part of the human anatomy, would cause it to climax uncontrollably.

With a headline on their Myspace of “THESE CIGARETTES WON’T SMOKE THEMSELVES,” MSTRKRFT probably advocates ecstasy and cocaine abuse at their shows. While they may not explicitly say this, the music is definitely advocating the production of buckets of sweat. Fast beats and constant repetition of lyrics induce the listener to almost automatically start bobbing their head forward fast and hard and maybe that’s unhealthy, or maybe it’s just a product of some hot music. Seriously, this music’s call to the dance floor is almost impossible to resist, and I dare anyone to try to listen to this and not move a single limb in time with the beat.

If you’re going to pick up an album randomly this month, than MSTRKRFT will provide some sheer joy that you can work out through some booty shakin’ and sweatin’ that probably still won’t compare to how hot these tracks are. The band hits the road today, so make sure to check out their tour dates below & watch the video for “Bounce”.

05-Mar Cholula, Mexico – lAniversio Bombay w/Felix Cartal
06-Mar Monterrey, Mexico – Nueva Leon w/ Felix Cartal
07-Mar Mexico City Plaza – Condesa w/Felix Cartal
13-Mar Phoenix Myst – Bird Peterson
14-Mar Denver – Ogden Theater w/Felix Cartal, Bird Peterson
19-Mar San Francisco – The Independent w/Felix Cartal
20 Mar Dallas – Pontiac Garage at the House of Blues
21-Mar Austin – SXSW
28-Mar Miami (WMC) – Ultra Music Festival
28-Mar Miami (WMC) – Louis @ Gansevoort
03-Apr New York – Webster Hall w/The Bloody Beetroots, Bird Peterson
04-Apr Baltimore – Sonar
09-Apr Toronto – Koolhaus w/Crookers, The Bloody Beetroots, Steve Aoki
10-Apr Philadelphia – Theater of Living Arts)
11-Apr Montreal – Metropolis w/Felix Cartal
18-Apr Indio – Coachella

So its confessional time. At first, I was a Justice skeptic, even after Jason posted about them a few weeks back.

Now I have been converted to the awesome. The live album and tour documentary of the absolutely insane French Electronica outfit is up on Itunes as of yesterday. (real live versions of both coming Dec. 9) If you ever imagined going on tour with your guys/girls and having the most awesome sinful time imaginable, these guys are living your dream, so check it out.

p.s. super special THANKSGIVING post tomorrow. Enjoy your foods. I will enjoy my turkey sandwich.

pps. check out another clip from A Cross The Universe

So have you gotten a chance to check out Justice? What about getting the time together in your hectic schedule to see them live? Even better… What about being cool enough to be “back stage”? Probably not. Thanks to multi-award winning directors and intimate friends of the band Romain Gavras (“Stress” director) and So-Me (“D.A.N.C.E.”, “DVNO”, Justice will have a live DVD/CD/Documentary hit shelves on December 9th, just in time for you to buy it as a gift for your preferred religious holiday. This documentary covers their 3 week US March tour and shows you every gory detail of life on the road of this Grammy-nominated French duo. Check out the trailer after the jump.

JUSTICE ON MYSPACE