With the familiar feeling of Spring (almost) in the air, it’s time to put on our dancing shoes with this song ‘Familiar Feeling’ by the English/Irish duo ‘Moloko’. Although I usually like my music on the melancholy side, I can’t resist the celebratory nature of this infectious dance track.
Taken from Moloko’s fourth and last album, the ironically titled ‘Statues’, it’s the video’s distinctive dance number that really caught my attention – re-staging a ‘Northern Soul’ night. As the name implies, ‘Northern Soul’ dance events swept the North of England and Midlands from the late 60’s onwards. From the ‘Twisted Wheel’ in Manchester to the ‘Golden Torch’ in Stoke-on-Trent, dance floors of party goers would shuffle, spin and high kick the night away in fun, if rather competitive, abandon.
Although the music that accompanied these nights were Motown hits (the more obscure the better) the dance developed here, in the North of England and is still flourishing today.
The video begins with ‘Moloko’s’ vocalist Roisin Murphy polishing her dancing shoes. On the wall of her bedroom are two posters. One is Bruce Lee, perhaps a reference to the ‘martial arts style’ high kicks that typify this dance. The other poster is from the Michael Powell classic ‘The Red Shoes’ – one of the most celebrated dance films ever made. Certainly a future entry in ‘Letters from England’.
