The late Gwen McCrae brought emotion to dance music like no one else

Spanning deep soul, disco and beyond, McCrae – who has died aged 81 – didn’t get the recognition she deserved for a discography charged with pain and wonder

Chris Imler: The Internet Will Break My Heart review – underground pop exploring the stickiest bits of the web

Musing on topics as varied as porn, cute animals, war and weed, the Berlin artist’s latest release is as seductive and disorientating as a late-night internet rabbit hole

‘It was wonderfully innocent’: Boy’s Own, the fanzine that defined the acid house generation

A new book collects every single issue of the mag that started as an in-joke among friends and became a subcultural behemoth. Its creators recall the parties, the music, the fashion, and being ‘right on one, matey’

You wanted a hit? LCD Soundsystem’s 20 best songs – ranked!

With Daft Punk Is Playing at My House turning 20 and a new album being worked on, we select the dance-rock musos’ finest tracks

Laneway festival review – Charli xcx headlines a euphoric festival for the masses

Brisbane Showgrounds, then touring AustraliaAs other events collapse, the rapturous young crowds turning out for the 20th Laneway proves that there is still a huge appetite in Australia for the festival experience

Floating Points review – an unclassifiable triumph

On the first of a three-night London residency, British dance producer Sam Shepherd conjures up a transcendent set that’s equal parts body-jacking rave and harp-laced, retina-melting art show

Rose Gray: Louder, Please review – escapist dance-pop fizzes with inventiveness

The London musician’s assured debut runs the gamut from aggressive jungle to uplifting house, toggling between hedonism and introspection

‘Professionals’ to some, ‘a shambles’ to others: can the UK’s biggest nightclub stay open?

Drumsheds can host as many as 15,000 people in a former Ikea and is lauded by many – but following a licensing review, there are concerns it’s too big to function

‘We were strapped to this babbling circus’: Scissor Sisters on their reunion, rightwing reactionaries – and riotous origins

Jake Shears, Del Marquis and Babydaddy are reuniting as a trio to celebrate 20 years since their debut album. They talk electroclash, Elton John and connecting with the UK’s ‘weird’ energy

Barcelona electro-punk duo Dame Area: ‘Seeing other women playing weird stuff made me want to try’

Blending noise and techno, the pair are determined to make dance music more than a ‘functional, metronomic thing’ – and to never play the same set twice

French flirting, flute fusion and love flowin’ free: the best old music we discovered this year

A little crate-digging can yield buried treasure – as our music writers found this year when they discovered everything from Taiwanese pop star to Cher’s disco era

DJ Alfredo, icon of Ibiza’s dance music scene, dies aged 71

DJ whose anything-goes spirit had a huge influence on British club culture had suffered a stroke in 2021

Clubbing has changed dramatically in the past 25 years: is the party over, or just getting started?

When the millennium dawned Britain’s nightlife was as strong as it had ever been. Now, 25 years later the situation is very different – but not all change has been bad, DJs and promoters say

From Charli xcx to Chat Pile: Guardian readers’ favourite albums of 2024

Tyler, the Creator’s ‘pure vocal power’, Jamie xx’s ‘sheer genius’ and Ashe’s ‘beautiful storytelling’ – our readers pick out the new music that has most impressed them this year

The 50 best albums of 2024: No 1 – Charli xcx: Brat (and Brat and It’s Completely Different But Also Still Brat)

Smart, funny, moving and full of big tunes, the in-your-face masterpiece was the right album at the right time, striking a cultural nerve and defining a change in mindset