By now we’ve established well enough the myriad connections between synthwave and metal that we don’t need to trot out that argument each and every time to convince naysayers this music is worthy of coverage on a metal site, right? The deeper into this darkened world I dive the more I learn about its nuances, and — as with any sub-genre of music, really — it turns out there are tons of sub-sub-niches to be explored. And some of them don’t have much to do with metal at all. Which is perfectly fine. Dance with the Dead don’t come from the GosT/Perturbator school of hard-as-fuck headbangable beats and black metal vibes; the Orange County, CA duo falls firmly on the dance/electronica side of the synthwave spectrum (shit, it’s right in their band name). Save for some distorted guitar leads here and there, this is a straight dance record — and dance your little tail off you will! The beats pop, the keys cut, the melodies are immediate and the synth toms… you already fucking know exactly what the synth toms sound like, and you love it. Put on Near Dark late night at your next party just as things are starting to die down, and watch as the room roars back to life and the dance floor fills with even those who only break out their moves when it’s THAT time of night and things have gotten sloppy.