A dance anthem, floor filler or club anthem is a dance (or disco) track which receives almost timeless status, being played commonly many years after its release. Many older (pre-1990) tracks which are referred to as dance anthems are often only played at retro nights in clubs, or at themed parties. A common sub-category of dance anthems have sometimes been referred to as “tunes”, examples of such tracks include “For An Angel” by Paul van Dyk, “Energy 52” by Cafe Del Mar, “Carte Blanche” by Veracocha and “Born Slippy” by Underworld.
However, most commonly a dance anthem is a track which DJ’s still play in normal sets alongside the usual tracks. Some are played only towards the end of a set, almost as if a mini retro set was being played, but some are still used as if they were recently released dance music.
The term floor filler was coined to describe extraordinarily popular songs, due to the ability of certain tracks to bring people from the bar areas of nightclubs onto the dance floor. This is often due to the highly distinctive intros that some songs have but can also be due to the simple popularity and recognition of a song. DJs frequently reserve these tracks for critical times during their performances, to bring people to or keep people on the dance floor, thus ensuring a lively atmosphere.