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2002
DECEMBER |
GABRY
PONTE
"Time To Rock"
Bliss Corporation Italy/MCA USA
Originally
released in Italy in April, "Time To Rock" is the follow up
single from top Italian DJ Gabry Ponte hits "Got To Get". Gabry
is also the DJ for top Italian EuroDance group Eiffel 65 and Sangwara.
This song features the vocals of Stefania Piovesan, the PR of BlissCo
(Gabry’s recording company). The song has topped many dance charts
including TheDanceWeb.com, DeeJay.it Parade, and many others. However the
song did flop a bit in the official Italian top 40 (www.fimi.it)
by debuting at #33 and then dropping out of the top 40 down to #45. Here
at DanceWebSite however, we feel that the song is a very successful dance
hit from Italy and is set to do well in the US when it released on
December 10th 2002.
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FAMILY CONTEST THE ESTATE
OF LA BOUCHE SINGER
"The family of the
late La Bouche singer Melanie Thornton are trying to stop her husband
Christian Thornton has being declared sole heir to her estate."
In
a letter to Undercover Media,
Christian's mother Barbara Allison-Simpson says "In December a half
hour before the funeral, the husband of Melanie's sister gave Christian a
copy of a final divorce degree. He didn't know that one was filed and
finalized October 8, 2001".
That action has lead to a
bitter legal struggle on both sides.
Barbara says "about
mid-February, Christian filed a challenged to the in-laws attempting to be
identified as sole heir of the Melanie Thornton's estate. In May, a
hearing was scheduled to be heard by the original judge, but the in-laws'
attorney had it postponed. The next week, Christian's attorney requested
that the county appoint a temporary county administrator of her estate
until the validity of the final divorce degree. The family tried very hard
to have Melanie's sister's husband appointed to administer the
estate" she says.
Barbara's letter to
Undercover states "On October 9, 2002, the original divorce judge
held a hearing to determine whether to vacated and set aside the divorce.
Her final decision was made based on:
(1) an affidavit with a
notarized Melanie's signature dated June 5, 2001 was filed with the
divorce application June 28, 2001;
(2) the affidavit said
that Melanie looked for her husband after the divorced was filed but the
signature said that was a lie;
(3) her mother, sister
and brother-in-law said that Melanie was out of the country to do what was
in the affidavit;
(4) the information in
the affidavit was erroneous. The affidavit said that his brother and I had
not heard from him in months but their lawyer submitted to the court an
e-mail I sent to Melanie June 19, that said that I had just gotten off the
phone with my Christian.
(5) The local county
probate court had sent a document through the US Postal Service to notify
my son of the impending divorce. It was sent to the last known address of
the marital house".
"Someone forged his
receipt that the in-laws admitted that someone in their household forged
Christian's signature to the postal service receipt" Barbara says.
"As a result of the forged signature, the divorce court upon the
receiving the forged receipt published a notice of the pending divorce.
When Christian didn't respond, the divorce was finalized".
Barbara says it isn't
over yet and the legal action may go on for a good part of 2003. "The
judge was very upset with the fraudulent affidavit and forged signature.
She vacated and set aside the divorce. The family has not given up. They
have retained a new lawyer and are trying to get a new hearing with the
same judge. Things may not be settled until next year".
Melanie Thornton died in
a plane crash in Switzerland on November 24, 2001. La Bouche are best
known for the dance hits 'Be My Lover' and 'Sweet Dreams'.
In a bizarre twist of
fate, Melanie was promoting her debut solo album 'Ready To Fly' when she
was killed in the plane crash.
Photo courtesy of private
collection of Barbara Allison-Simpson.
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AMBER
"Anyway (Men Are From Mars)"
Tommy Boy USA
This
has to be just ONE of my favorite song on this cd. It is not a ballad, but
not an upbeat song like "Yes!" or "The Need To Be
Naked!" The vocals are OUTSTANDING! The chorus is very catchy and
this will be Amber's 3rd single after "The Need To Be Naked".
This is absolutely a 10 out of 10! Includes DJ Encore and Al.B.Rich
remixes.
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LASGO
"Pray"
Antler-Subway Belgium
What
if we told you that Lasgo's lead vocalist, Evi Goffin, was so drunk when
she was scheduled to record their latest vocal trance hit,
"Pray," that she vomited twice in a dumpster outside the studio
and passed out on the floor of the green room with a roll of toilet paper
placed under her head in lieu of a pillow...? Well, since not a word of
that is true, you could in turn call us big, fat liars. Still, she does
sound kinda liquored up on this and virtually all of Lasgo's previous
hits. Perhaps it's the fact that she's yet to master English
pronunciation, perhaps she's just a kook... who knows? Either way, she's
still one of the best Euro-trance vocalists in the biz, and
"Pray" stands as a good example of her trio's hi-NRG arsenal.
Radio and Extended remixes are included on this Belgian 2 Title CD. A
harder trance remix from Peter Luts is included on the Spanish Maxi-CD.
The UK CD Single will include more mixes.
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TAYLOR
DAYNE
"How Many"
Centaur USA
Taylor
Dayne is back... and she's got the collagen injections to prove it. The
still-svelte pop singer returns to the dancefloor once again to prove
she's still got what it takes to belt out power chords usually reserved
for the larger ladies. She's also apparently still got the juice to
command some of America's most in-demand remixers to produce over 2 CDs
worth of club cuts for her latest effort, "How Many." How many,
indeed - there are over 20 tracks included on this domestic single;
ranging in styles from big room circuit magic ("Guido Osorio Club
Mix") to empty floor tragedy ("Lorry K Classic Dub Mix").
While the sensation tribal house epic from Friburn & Urik is still
enjoying the most frequent airplay in clubs, other entries worthy of note
are Vibelicious' huge, perhaps even grotesquely over the top "Anthem
Mix" and the delightfully energetic and uplifting remix from DJs Inc.
Should your taste differ from ours, well, you've got, what, like a
thousand other extended remixes and dubs to choose from... if you don't
like at least one of 'em, well, you probably don't like dance music in the
first place.
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D.J.
SAMMY
"Boys Of Summer"
Super M
Records Germany/Robbins Entertainment USA
Much
like his previous hit, the popular trance cover of Bryan Adams'
"Heaven" with Yanou and Do, DJ Sammy's cover of Don Henley's
classic 80's tune, "Boys Of Summer," sounds a lot worse in
theory than it does when actually played out loud. To be honest, the
hands-in-the-air vocal trance tune actually works quite well... Sammy's
own extended mix is included here, as is a somewhat similarly styled remix
from reliable trance remixers, Green Court. An unexpected offering from
the typically more underground outfit, Humate, is also featured here; even
more surprising is that it uses all the vocals in a throbbing, progressive
trance atmosphere that just about evokes tears upon reaching the climactic
chorus. Just about. As an added bonus, this single also includes an
extended remix of "Heaven" as well as Yanou's sought-after
"Candlelight Mix" of the international hit.
|
NOVEMBER |
CRW
PRESENTS VERONIKA
"Precious Life"
Media Records Italy/BXR/Media Records UK
Ah,
CRW. Their biggest hit was back in, what, summer of 2000 and it's been an
uphill battle for another hit ever since. That's not to say they haven't
produced anything worthwhile since the Stateside success of "I Feel
Love" (no relation to Donna Summer's classic); in fact, the Italian
hitmakers seem to just keep getting better with each new single. It's not
their fault that there weren't enough brave DJs in America to give their
awesome, hard tribal trance tune "Like A Cat" any airplay.
Perhaps this is why "Precious Life" is being re-released almost
a year after it was originally offered to audiences - to give a great song
one last chance at its rightful place in dance music history. A new remix
from trance allstars Lost Witness is included here to offer incentive to
anyone who might already have snagged a copy of the original Italian
edition, but it's still the hard-to-find "Pro FX Mix" that gets
our trance anthem hands held high above our heads. Give it a shot.ub!
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DECOY AND
ROY
"Inner Life"
Mostiko Belgium
The
6th of September 2002 Forest National hosted the big "Brussels Is
Burning" party. After appearing first on vinyl, the official
"Brussels is Burning" theme, Decoy and Roy "Inner
Life", is now also available on CD single.
DJ ROY, now at age 24,
started his career at the age of 16. He's a resident DJ @ Club Reflex
(Friday) Belgium, Elsombrero (Saturday) Holland and Bora Bora (Sunday)
Holland. His favorite music style is groove, progressive, trance and hist
productions are influenced by: Robbie Rivera, Underworld, Tangerine Dream
and BT. The track "Inner
Life" is Roy's
first production. He started this project together with Decoy and producer
Tim Janssens, with whom he's currently working on other productions.
DJ Decoy (Danny van
Wauwe), known from the projects The Moon and Boss@nova was born in Antwerp
and is a resident DJ at Mondial (NL) and Club Reflex (B). He loves Groove,
Club and Underground.
The CD Single comes with
3 different mixes, something we should see more often as getting more for
the money is always nice :) The CD Single starts with the required Radio
Edit, as that one is needed to get airplay on the radios. This version is
just a short version of the Original Extended. The Original Extended is a
very nice dreamy trance track with great vocals. (Open your eyes to your
inner life....) "Inner Life" is certainly one of the best
belgian trance productions in 2002. It's refreshing to hear something
different in a year where we've been hearing a lot of dance remakes. (some
of which were way to commercial eg. MadHouse). The third track, the Nord
Vs Bonka Mix, has a lot more hard stompin' beat going in it, although at
2:45 there is a very beautiful soft part too. This is the version to play
at the club!
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COSMOS
"Take Me With You"
Polydor UK
Cosmos
is the UK's Tom Middleton, who has recorded 10 different styles of music
across 10 different albums in the space of 10 years. He plays chillout
sets with 30 voice choirs as well as peaktime deep tech-house, nujazz,
deep step and future breakbeat sets. He is not only a DJ by a remixer
whose discography includes work for Jamiroquai, Leftfield, Pulp,
Underworld, Prince, All Saints, Eddy Grant, Goldfrapp, Lamb, Incognito and
Depeche Mode.
In 2002 Tom
Middleton returns under his funk ridden Cosmos moniker for another lesson
in divine dancefloor intervention. An essential genre mashing dance
anthem, responsible for an entire summer of Ibizan chaos. Featuring all
new vocals from Andrew Roachford (yes, THAT Roachford!) Undoubtedly one of
the dancefloor tunes of the year.
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JAN WAYNE
"Because The Night"
Kontor Germany/Product-Incentive UK
Already
a number one hit single around Europe, Jan Wayne's UK debut "Because
The Night" (cover of early nineties hit by Italian dance band Co-Ro)
is one of those rare tracks that manages to successfully touch all kinds
of musical bases at once. The work of a hugely popular German deejay (with
three hit singles and a Top 20 album under his belt already), it's another
catchy, uplifting slab of pumping pop-dance that the likes of Lasgo, Milk
Inc and Ian Van Dahl also turn out at the drop of a hat. Set to be huge,
"Because The Night" is the first release on Incentive's new
Product imprint and, as with the label's usual output, comes with a
top-notch remix package to-boot
and the enhanced MPEG video of the track.
|
OCTOBER |
GLAMROCK
"Crucified - The Remixes"
ZYX Germany
Just
what we always wanted for Christmas - a cover of the Army of Lovers'
classic, "Crucified." No, seriously, it's just what we always
wanted. Three extended mixes that sound eerily similar to the Lovers'
original are featured, kicking off with the DJ friendly "Handbag
House Mix" that adds a few sweeping filters to the tune in a standard
club tempo take. Next up is flanged-out "Trance Anthem Mix" that
turns up the drama a notch of two (if that's even possible) with big
builds and pointy, techno stabs. Finally, there's the buzzy, analog-driven
"DJ Spacecase Meets Observer Mix," which sets the tune in a
hi-NRG Euro-trance environment and, like the other two mixes, uses plenty
of the familiar vocals.
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KARAJA
"She Moves (la, La, La)"
Ministry Of Sound UK
Already
causing a storm on dancefloors and airwaves around Europe, "She Moves
(La La La)" looks like it's all set create a big noise in the UK.
German born model, dancer and T.V presenter Karaja (pronounced Kar-ay-ya)
already has a successful showbiz career, but it was when she caught the
eye Mr Lover Lover Shaggy that things really started to happen. An
uplifting, energetic slab of contagious Euro dance-pop, "She Moves
(La La La)" is one of those singles that's so darned hard to ignore
that it's almost infuriating. Set to make the summer last that little bit
longer - yippee!
|
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GROOVILICIOUS
GOING OUT OF BUSINESS
Press release NYC USA
Strictly
Rhythm/Groovilicious Records closed its doors on October 2, 2002.
According to their press release, the dance label was affected by the
current state of the economy, as well as lost revenue due to Internet
downloading/CD burning. Groovilicious was responsible for artists such as
Abigail, Aubrey, Darude, Vengaboys, The Ones and Milk Incorporated in the
USA.
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WIDE LIFE
"I Don't Want U"
Nervous
Records NYC USA
In
the popular tradition of Nicole J McCloud's "One Good Reason,"
Jessica Folker's "Able To Love," and even Pusaka's "You're
The Worst Thing For Me" comes this diva-driven circuit anthem that's
already considered among the year's most-wanted club singles. Unlike the
aforementioned tunes before it, however, the lengthy "Dezrok Club
Remix" spans a range of emotion, beginning with a plaintive
"Workin' hard just to pay our rent" sequence in the verse that
suddenly makes way for the more ferocious, crowd-pleasing "Pack your
bags" chorus. The appropriately titled "Dezrok Dark Drama
Mix" offers a more stripped down version of the song with an a bit
more sinister undercurrent, while the original "Wide Life Mix"
again picks up the pace with the busiest, arguably most anthemic example
of the tune. Obviously essential.
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YANOU
PRESENTS DO
"On And On"
F.Y.S. Germany/Central Station Australia
In
2001, Yann Peifer aka "Yanou" asked DJ Sammy to join him and
twenty year old Dutch singer "Do" to record a cover version of
the Bryan Adams hit "Heaven". Having gone top 10 in almost every
country worldwide, the surprising success of "Heaven" which
featured Do's angelic vocals strongly raised the public's awareness of how
stunning Do’s voice actually is. Now Yanou and Do bring you "On and
On", their follow up to the smash hit "Heaven" with remixes
from Flashrider, DJs@ Work & Ray Knox. Also contains bonus video.
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ZIPPORA
"See The Sun/What About U"
Byte Records Belgium/Central Station Australia
De
Brauwer is a multi talented, multi faceted performer whose contemporary
style is currently dominating the airwaves and dance venues around Europe.
Zippora (who's name literally means "Songbird") is also the name
of the project that fuses her vocals with production skills of top Belgian
dance producer Eddy Weyns.
The sound of Zippora was
born on the sun baked party island of Ibiza and "See The Sun"
was inspired by Ibiza’s heavy nightlife. This six track single features
remixes from Sylver and Soho, plus bonus track "What About U"
and video clip of "See The Sun". A must!
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PPK
"Reload"
Perfecto UK
A
natural successor to the mighty "Resurrection", Moscow-based
'transki' pioneers PPK soar back into orbit with the brilliant double
A-sided 'Reload/Russian Trance'. Another poignantly hook-filled blend of
haunting melody, signature bleeps, spooky atmospherics and relentless
Russian beats, "Reload" is the solar soundtrack to big nights on
even bigger, louder, more uplifting dancefloors. Whilst "Russian
Trance" sees PPK launch into slightly deeper, but no-less devastating
mode on a track that's already shaking clubs to their very foundations.
Don't miss! The maxi-cd includes the video!
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ORION TOO
FEAT. CAITLIN
"Hope And Wait"
Mostiko Belgium/Data UK/Ministry of Sound UK
Comprising
the collective talents of Belgian producer Serge Ramaekers (Cartouche,
Confetti's, T-Spoon, Technotronic, 2 Boys, Stay-C, Twenty 4 Seven...) and
vocalist Caitlin, Orion Too's "Hope & Wait" is another
trance direct hit for the increasingly prolific Data Recordings label. Big
in Europe (especially Spain, where it stayed in the Top 10 for six weeks),
it's another of those uplifting vocal trance monsters that's as catchy as
it is impossible to avoid dancing to. And with Flip'n'Fill (yep, them
again) turning up to deliver an Ibiza styled mix (all breezy guitar loops)
and a stripped back dub, "Hope & Wait" is another essential
package from Data/Ministry of Sound UK.
|
SEPTEMBER |
MILK INC.
"Walk On Water"
Antler-Subway Belgium/Positiva UK
Already
one of the biggest dance acts around Europe, Milk Inc debut on the mighty
Positiva UK with another inspired dose of catchy pop-trance. Coming with a
more dancefloor orientated remix from the currently on-fire Flip'n'Fill,
"Walk On Water" is one of those singles that balances the
tightrope between dance and pop with relative ease. Catchy, completely
irresistible and as comfortable in a club as it is on the radio at home,
it's set to propel the Euro dance stars to new UK heights. The maxi-cd is
enhanced and contains the full new UK video of "Walk On Water".
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T.A.T.U.
"All The Things She Said"
Universal Records Russia/Interscope Records USA
First
American release for this successful openly gay duet T.A.T.U. from Russia.
The group TATU was formed in 2000 by the script writer and director Ivan
Shapovalov who is now producer of the group. Lena (19) and Yulia (18)
delivers a nice little pop song very similar to Sarina Paris' voice and
music. Skip the "Radio Version" (pop) and jump to the eurodance
beats of the "Extension 119 Club Edit". The 2 Title CD contains the video!
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AGO
"Put On Your Red Shoes"
Media Records Italy/ZYX Germany
Mister
d'Agostino is back! And this is a burner, be sure!
It took
quite a while for your beloved Italian to put a new production out, but I
must admit: this was for the best. "Put On Your Red Shoes" is a
hit in the vain of his former hits! Don´t miss it!
The maxi-CD contains the video!
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LASGO
"Alone"
Antler-Subway Belgium/Positiva UK
Still
piping hot after the massive success of last single "Something",
Lasgo return with yet another perfectly primed pop-trance monster. Already
big around the rest of Europe, "Alone" is catchy, uplifting and
perfectly formed for the summer, but more than that, the original version
proves that Lasgo are indeed a real band that can actually play their own
instruments. But never fear, the dancefloor is ably taken care of by Ian
Van Dahl (on a big room tip), Hiver & Hammer (uplifting) whilst
Lasgo's own Peter Luts turns in a darker, tripped out version as DJ Shog.
The maxi-CD contains the remixed video!
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MAD'HOUSE
"Absolutely Mad"
Bio France/Serious Records UK
As
Mad'House mania rages unabated across Europe it's high time the heady pop
delights of first single "Like A Prayer" gave way to the album
behind all this crazy business. Not content with re-booting just one of
Madonna's international crows-pleasers the Mad'House inmates have come up
with a full album dedicated to la Ciccone. Thus "Abolutely Mad"
is fourteen popped-up, beat-driven Madonna tracks including
"Holiday", "Into The Groove", "Like A
Virgin", "Papa Don't Preach", "Frozen" and plenty
more. And, as if this wasn't enough, this version includes bonus tracks
"Frozen" (Exclusive Club Mix), "Like A Prayer"
(Almighty Mix) , the "Like A Prayer" and "Holiday"
videos and a free screensaver!
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EIFFEL 65
"Cosa Restera"
Bliss Corporation Italy/Vale Music Spain
After
selling thousands of copies of the 2002 remixes of ATC's candy-coated hit
"Around The World (La La La La La)," we see no reason why the
equally uplifting "Cosa Restera (In A Song)" couldn't enjoy the
same fate. It's catchy, euphoric and loaded with more sing-a-long vocal
elements than you can legally fit into a Euro-single without being
arrested for brainwashing the public. Those who cringe at severely
computer-enhanced vocals may be pleased to discover that Jeffrey also
sings without digital assistance here (as he use to back in 1995 on Bliss
Co productions)... at least on a few of the verses.
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ATC
"Around The World 2002"
BMG Germany/EMI Records UK
Comprising
of four unique talents from various different parts of the globe, Joe (New
Zealand), Sarah (Australia), Tracey (England) and Livio (Italy) all came
together whilst starring in the German production of Andrew Lloyd Weber's
'Cats'. And with vocal skills to match their obvious dance abilities, this
foursome have very quickly gone on to become one of the biggest pop acts
in Europe. An upbeat, catchy combination of hooky pop and bouncy
Euro-dance (think Steps), "Around The World" looks like it could
be the single that'll launch this multi-talented group into the UK's pop
slip stream. A great debut remixed for 2002 and including the video!
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DEEJAY
CHOICE ITALY ONLINE STORE
Italy
For you all looking
for the latest Italian releases of maxi CDs and vinyls and CD Albums,
check out today DEEJAY
CHOICE online store. They have the largest selection of Italian
releases online, the cheapest prices, the best shipping costs. Plus, they
are friendly and efficient which makes it easy to communicate via email in
English. We highly recommend you to visit this store and make your
next purchase of Italian Dance music through them! Click now on DEEJAY
CHOICE.
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DJ LHASA
"Heaven Is A Place On Earth"
No Colors/FMA Italy
Behind
DJ Lhasa is Italian DJ/producer Maurizio Braggagni. Born in Milan on
11/26/1968, Maurizio started deejaying in 1987 and released his first CD
in 1989. Four years spinning North Europe Techno tracks would strongly
influence the sound of his future productions. Thanks to the success of
Two Cowboys "Everybody Gonfi Gon (1993), Maurizio strenghtened his
experience by deejaying in several clubs across Europe and by producing
remixes for big artists such as Whigfield, JK and Berri. Right now,
Maurizio spend most of his time in his studio (Mabra Studio), releasing
compilations, remixes and Techno commercial productions. DJ Lhasa is his
latest, picked up by FMA Italy, and licensed all over Europe. This track
will remind you of DJ Sammy feat DO "Heaven". It has the same
quality in its production. A guaranteed future hit.
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LADY
VIOLET
"In Your Mind"
New Music Italy
Lady
Violet lives a noble life….because she is a real countess. In fact, she
comes from a Florentine ancient noble fasmily of '600 with shield and
blazon, of course. Her
life has always been conditioned by the usual rules and ceremonials of the
noble life, but which she has never accepted, because of her nature that
makes her love freedom, sincerity, passion and transgressions. She has
never accepted any sort of restriction, and her impulsive temper has
always created problems between her and her noble family members and
especially with a very traditionalist and conservator uncle.
"I fall
in love with dance music when I was really young" Lady Violet says
"and I always secretly listened to it closed in the bathroom, dancing
and doing my make up at the mirror; I wanted to be a singer since then,
but I knew that my parents and, my Uncle in particular, would have never
approved and supported my choice. One night, at my friend’s birthday
party, I sang "Happy Day" to him and another boy, who was at the
party too, consequently noticed me and asked if I wanted to sing a song he
had been planning for a long time. A remake of a Limahl’s song of the
80s. His way of asking me for this was between serious and funny, but I
immediately accepted with no hesitation anyway. I sang "Inside To
Outside" and my artistic story began: totally by chance I ended one
day at New Music International; where we spoke about an Artist Agreement,
a photo session, a video clip, promotion… a real revolution for my usual
style of life… and, of course, I agreed again with everything without
hesitating!"
The idea to
give her a little halo of mystery really bears from Lay’s need not to
reveal the new life to her family (her uncle would exclude her from the
family will). The name Violet was born from her passion for this
flowers…
And Lady
…. well, her noble origins oblige to a natural elegance in the name as
well… "Inside
To Outside", released in October 1999 in Italy, immediately climbed
all the charts both of the radio and of sales and Lady Violet was
immediately accredited as one of the best dance acts in her native
country. Then, after the release in all the other European countries
between February and March, the single was getting very good results all
around Europe, entering all the international sales and dance charts,
supported by the airplays of the main networks and with af promotional
activities in several countries. The video clip, entirely shot in Los
Angeles, is played on the main TV channels. Then 4 other CD Singles
followed and after a year break, Lady Violet is back with a eurotechno
pumping track entitled "In Your Mind".
|
AUGUST
2002 |
KARAJA
"She Moves"
Motiv8 Records Germany
With
her debut "She moves" 24 year old Karaja is really kicking the
summer into gear. With her trademark close-cropped blond hair, she’s an
avalanche of energy with a voice to match – that was the recipe that
took her high into the Spanish charts a few months ago. The track now
stands on it's own merits as a wonderful piece of ear bashing dance floor
pop. In Spain it peaked at nr. 8. Neighbouring countries have greeted the
track with nothing short of euphoria and in France and Greece their
promises to be a real “Karaja-Wave” sweeping over the Mediterranean
Sea this summer. "She moves" is without doubt the first
summer-smash hit of 2002.
The recent meteoric rise to international stardom slots perfectly into the
biography of Karaja (phonetically spoken karad’scha). Ivana (real name)
was born in Berlin 1978. There she resided until taking a life changing
decision to leave school at the tender age of 16. Her intention was to
head for London to attend a 'dance' course. Resolute in her decision to
move on, in 1997 Ivana finished her course at London's prestigious 'Dance
academy' with honours. Her first short-term professional engagements were
on London's renowned West end stages – as a dancer and backing singer.
She also did various modelling jobs.
Her musical bandwagon began rolling in 2001, when she worked for
Shaggy’s stage crew at the "Record Of the Year" Awards. It was
there on the set that the production team Schott & Bredie discovered
her. After one vocal audition it was unanimously agreed that Karaja had
arrived in style. Her first tenuous steps into the music business were
made with the assistance of celebrated Swedish Dance-Pop specialist Patric
Ullaeous who's hi-tech video clips have already brought BroSis aka ATC to
the foreground. On the wave of her Mediterranean success Karaja is working
on her eagerly awaited second album, which is guaranteed to display even
more facets of her remarkable talent. Until then summer will bounce along
in Berlin, London and Barcelona to the beat of Karaja's solar powered
anthem – "She moves".
|
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EYES
CREAM
"Open Up Your Mind"
EMI Italy/Provocative Music USA
You
scream, I scream, We all scream for Eyes Cream. You probably remember
their '99 vocoder dance hit "Fly Away (Bye Bye)", well Eyes
Cream is back! Granted, the name of the band is bizarre, but "Open Up
Your Mind" is nevertheless a fantastic song and among the first
singles to be released off Thunderpuss' new label Provocative Music USA.
The lyrics are strong and Agostino's diva vocals croon while the song's
catchy riffs and funky rhythms lift you up. This combination blends so
well that it makes this song truly delicious to lick. Virtually all the
mixes are fabulous as well, keeping the integrity and vocals of the track
while adding new elements and reminding us why we live for dance music.
Among the most sought-after remixes is the "Club 8 Extended
Mix," however the "KLM Club Mix" adds a nice tribal feel.
Unsurprisingly, however, it's the legendary "Guido Osorio Club
Mix" that breaks through with a big-room circuit mix that no DJ will
want to live without. If you love disco house and great vocals then you'll
definitely want to check this one out.
|
|
MAD'HOUSE
"LIKE A PRAYER"
Bio France/Serious Records UK
Already
massive around the rest of Europe (number one in Germany, Holland, Belgium
and Austria), this danced up cover of Madonna's pop classic now looks set
to storm the UK's charts. A huge single on import; it's also the first
release from Madhouse's forthcoming debut album.....and guess what? It's
packed FULL of covers of Madge classics. Madhouse's "Like A
Prayer" is actually very, very good indeed! Re-sung by gorgeous
Turkish front-woman Buse; the French production team have added a pumping,
Euro-tinted house edge and in the process created a summery, uplifting pop
monster. The Uk maxi-CD includes a more pumping "Almighty mix".
|
|
GLORIA
GAYNOR
"I Never Knew"
Logic Records USA
Credited
by VH-1 as having released the #1 Greatest Dance Song of all time,
Gloria Gaynor steps into the spotlight once again to prove there's more
than one-hit in this wonder. As club anthems go, "I Never Knew"
is about as big as they come - driven by an emotional storyline and an
ecstatic chorus in which Gaynor's gospel vocal talent shines with
unexpected exuberance. These attributes are best illustrated in the
circuit-inspired "HQ2 Club Mix," which comes to us from two of
the most trusted names in dance music, Hex Hector and Mac Quayle. A rather
noteworthy tribal-tinged take on the single comes from Cruz & Bagz,
who turn things down a bit in a warmer house setting. On the other end of
the spectrum is Mike Rizzo's thumpier circuit mix, which retains the
original vocals and tempo, yet surrounds the tune with more digital,
slightly trancier effects. The single closes out with an entertaining
medley, which consists of several brand new tracks from Gaynor's
forthcoming album, "Stronger", due in stores September
10th. If "I Never Knew" is any indication, it's definitely going
to be an album worth looking into.
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|
AMBER
"Naked"
Tommy Boy USA
Amber
Alert! Amber Alert! No, no one has been kidnapped - it's just the newest
CD release from circuit diva Amber. Sugar sweet vocals, drum machines and
danceable rhythm's... what's not to love about Amber? The intimate way she
sighs, whispers and coos so silkily about sex and her breasts and being
naked makes listening to her album almost as good as... you know what.
Amber's newest release "Naked" is almost like a companion to her
last album "Amber". Many of the songs are interchangeable
(you could press your "shuffle" button and it'd flow pretty much
the same), but there is still a fresh air to this album and her sound
remains reliable. The highlights of this album, besides the singles
"Yes" and "Need To Be Naked," are the danceable
"Sex Without Sex" and the inspirational "If There Would Be
No Tomorrow". My personal favorite is the identically titled tribute
to the HBO series "Sex and the City." The only complaint about
the album is that many of the songs are slower and more like ballads...
and less of those dance hits that we are used to hearing from our often
anthemic sweetheart. "Naked" has a romantic, feminine quality
that warrants dimmed lights, flowery fragrances and ambient moods.
However, one added bonus of buying the album is you can get a companion CD
with megamixes and videos by entering a special password (found only
inside the CD: go to www.tommyboy.com/amber/login and type the password
"morenaked") on the Tommy Boy web site. So what are you waiting
for? Get Naked.
AMBER’s track record of
club and pop hits such as “This is Your Night,” “Above the
Clouds,” “If You Could Read My Mind” (the hit from the “Studio
54” film soundtrack with Ultra Nate and Jocelyn Enriquez) and “Sexual
(Li Da Di)” defined her as a dance diva with a flair for the mainstream.
AMBER also made her big screen debut in the much talked about film of the
same name, performing the song as part of the trio. Her talents as a
singer and songwriter have been celebrated and complimented with five
consecutive #1 Dance singles. Her songs have been covered and have
produced hits for other artists, including most recently, Cher recording
AMBER’s “Love One Another” on her latest album and AMBER’s
rendition of the Diane Warren penned “Taste the Tears" landed on
the first music compilation from television’s "Sex and the
City." After seeing her perform, David Gest invited her to join the
impressive list of artists performing at his recent wedding to Liza
Minnelli. AMBER’s third studio album, NAKED, (Tommy Boy), out on August
20th, showcases her personal and artistic growth. “With this album I
feel I can really breathe as a songwriter, as a vocalist, as a creative
person,” she says.
Setting out to explore the
layers beneath the surface reflects the artist and songwriter’s life and
lifestyle. AMBER has a writing credit on all but two of the album’s 13
songs and she transverses lyrical territory from God, to James Joyce, to
her young son. This is a new AMBER, a stronger-than-ever AMBER. Since her
last album, AMBER, was released three years ago, the singer bought back
her contract from the Berman Brothers, the producers of her first two
studio efforts and instead worked with a cadre of talented producers--of
her own choice. "With the other producers, I didn’t feel I had the
creative freedom I was supposed to have," explains the singer.
"I was directed in terms of how to write my songs. I didn’t feel
comfortable in that skin."
NAKED then, is 13 new tracks
of AMBER feeling completely comfortable--to detail what's new and
important in her life, and to spread her musical wings. "I think
people will be surprised. My roots are in dance music but with NAKED, I am
able to show all the colors I have, from alternative to dance to ballads
to classical. Variety is the most exciting thing in life, as in
music."
And, her high music
standards are deep rooted. Music was always in her life -- growing up with
a Mother who is a piano teacher and songwriter and a Father who is an
Opera Singer, the Dutch born artist grew up in a home where she says,
“Music was just another language we used to talk to each other.” It is
easy to see where the musical variety on NAKED derives from, a dance diva
with classical training, quoting literature on a hit single!
"Yes!" the first
single from NAKED, is probably the first dance song to take classic
literature as its sole inspiration. AMBER acquired the permission of the
estate of James Joyce to use the text from Ulysses as the hook for the
first hit from the album. She sings, “I put my arms around him, yes/and
drew him down to me so he could feel my breast/And his heart was going
like mad/And yes, I said yes.” AMBER bristles when she recalls that some
advised her the lyrics might be censored at radio. "Those are Joyce's
words! You have all these songs about smoking weed and sex on the radio
and there might be controversy because of the word 'breast?' What am I
missing?" The song topped the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play
chart and hit #2 on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi Single Sales chart.
AMBER is going boldly where
few divas have, daring to bring depth and meaning to the dance floor.
Expanding into unusual territory for an up tempo number, "He" is
gospel--for a nightclub. "I am a person that believes in God and a
higher spirit," explains the singer. "This song is a love
declaration towards my creator. God is always with me. I pray regularly to
make sure my son grows up and when I travel, I pray he guides the plane.
He doesn’t judge me, and as the song says, 'He sees me. He feels me. He
heals me."
Then appreciate the
universal message of AMBER's fast-paced, straightforward "If There
Would Be No Tomorrow.” The song showcases an alternative vibe, and
includes some guitar riffs. "What would you do if there would be no
tomorrow?" asks AMBER. "Do you live your life the way you think
you should live it or are you just wasting your life away, pissed off? Do
something about it! Have a voice and take control of your situation."
The singer is practicing
what she preaches: another standout track on NAKED is "Anyway"
(Men are from Mars), a song the singer dedicates to her recent divorce.
"It was a very empowering thing," says AMBER. "Sometimes
you're surrounded with people that give you bad energy and you don’t see
it right away but then you realize people are holding you back, trying to
control you." The lyrics speak to AMBER's growth: "I like to
talk, you'd rather watch TV. You like to control, I accept what I
see."
AMBER says the most
important song on the album, to her, is the family affair "The Smile
Of My Child," a song about her son. "He is the most empowering
and important thing in my life," says the singer. "That's where
I always go to put everything in perspective, and what unconditional love
is about." AMBER wrote the song with her mother (who has contributed
songs to her albums in the past) and the piece, built around piano and a
symphonic orchestra, tapes into her musical roots. "This song is
different from the rest of my album, but that's what I like, to get
people’s, attention and for them to say ‘what is she doing?”’
AMBER is pushing at the
boundaries of dance music, daring to redefine her fans' definition of the
genre, and laying herself bare in her provocative lyrics. "I am at a
point where I want to say to people, 'I have a lot to say and I am a
serious vocalist, even though people have buried it under their beats in
the past. With NAKED I am finally free. If people like it, that would be
great. If not, at least I did take the leap into the deep end."’
For more information on
AMBER, please visit: www.amber-mcc.com
Amber’s "Naked"
is being released on August 20, 2002!
|
|
AMBER
"The Need To Be Naked"
Tommy Boy USA
Okay,
Amber - you're sexy, we get it. The second single taken from her third
album entitled "Naked", the rapidly rising number one hit,
"The Need To Be Naked", at first listen appears to be a high
energy "Take off my pants, my shirt, my socks and my shoes, I need to
be naked with you", heavy breather, but after a few listens and in
context with the rest of the album, we can see that this is Amber’s
anthem to stripping down to what's really there, to getting beneath the
skin, if you will. "It's not about sex," explains Amber,
"though it has that twist to it. 'I feel the need to be naked with
you' means I need to tell you the truth about me and I want to know
everything about you."...
|
|
KIM
ENGLISH
"Treat Me Right"
Nervous
Records NYC USA
Who
knows how she does it, but Kim English is among the rare breed of dance
divas with the delightful ability to release one terrific song after
another. As thousands of DJs and dance fans still thrill to the magic that
was her previous tune, "Everyday," English slams out another
massive anthem, packed with her trademark combo of great vocals and
insightful lyrics. Like the broken-hearted "Missing You" and the
legendary "Unspeakable Joy," "Treat Me Right" offers a
great story and a few important life-lessons in two top-notch club mixes
by Guido Osorio that are above and beyond mere circuit fodder. This stuff
would work just as well on the radio as it does on the dancefloor, armed
with monolithic vocal builds, tidal crescendos and a chorus you simply
can't get out of your head. There's also a very cool t-dance mix by Jon
Cutler, which downplays the anthemic elements of the Osorio mixes in favor
of smooth, jazzy house. Quite simply, "Treat Me Right" is a
truly brilliant single from one of the most talented names in dance music.
|
JULY
2002 |
WARP
BROTHERS
"Blast The Speakers"
Dos Or Die Germany/Blanco Y Negro Spain
Noise,
noise, noise. Bring it on and make it loud! Fill my ears with
the dirty beats of the Warp Brothers. Pop techno is here and
it's name is Warp!
"Blast
The Speakers"
is an almighty mash-up of relentless beats, acid-spiked breakdowns and
yes, you guessed it, phatt bass. It's guaranteed to have hi-fis
throughout the US self-combusting as the Warp Brothers have created
a track that'll put the frighten grandmas everywhere.
The Warp
Brothers are Olly Goedicke, Jurgen Dohr, Guido Kramer and Dennis
Bierbrodt. Olly and Jurgen met when they were 16 and both
members of rock bands. That helps to explain why there is such as
huge rock element to the Warp Brothers' style. Commenting on this
new track, Olly states "What we do is music with power. We
wrote this track because we like our music hard and loud and because we
always like to turn up the volume. We've actually blown about 10
sets of speakers so far this year."
The Maxi-CD
was also released in the US on Radikal Records and in Spain on Blanco Y
Negro Music.
|
|
CASSIUS
FEAT. JOCELYN BROWN
"I' A Woman"
Astralwerk/Virgin
France
French
house supremo's Cassius return to the frey with their first new
material since their acclaimed debut album "1999". The
single is called "I'm A Woman" and is instore now.
Already one of the hottest club tracks in UK and Europe and #20 with a
bullet on the Australian ARIA Club
Chart. The
follow-up album is due in September. "I'm A Woman" is
cool uplifting house with garage grooves, a disco spirit and funk attitude
- and with club icon and soul veteran Jocelyn Brown on the mic you know
it's going to have a lot of the latter. This is going to be everywhere!
Boombass and Phillipe are scheduled in to play gigs in the UK and France
over the next few months.
Cassius are production duo Boombass and
Phillipe Zdar, fine connoisseurs of hip hop and house. But more than that
they've been a seminal influence on the French music scene for the past
decade. And this year, they're going to prove how influential they are
once again with a club classic in the making, "I'm A Woman".
Boombass grew up on the west side of Paris. His father was a top Paris
record producer, so it was only natural he would follow in his footsteps
and he got his first job as a teaboy at a recording studio. By 1991 he had
become a producer and was working on MC Solaar's first album. Meanwhile,
Philippe had studied to become a studio engineer and met Boombass in 1988.
A couple of years later they were production partners. Together they
produced three hugely successful albums for MC Solaar, including the minor
UK hit "Bouge de La" and developed the proto-trip hop grooves of
La Funk Mob whose seminal EP "Ravers Suck Our Sound" arrived in
1994. Philippe then started recording as Motorbass with Paris DJ Etienne
De Crecy and began experimenting with house music. Their Pansoul album
remains one of the benchmarks of French house music's first wave. Back
with Hubert, Philippe made the house track "Foxy Lady"
under the name of L'Homme Qui Valait Trois Millards, aka, The
Six Million Dollar Man, which eventually evolved into Cassius.
'What we really like," say Cassius,
"is heavy bass. We listen to Daft Punk, DJ Sneak, Tuff Jam, Masters
At Work, 2-step speed garage, DJ Premier, Timbaland, drum & bass. You
might not hear it on the record, but it's all there." Their debut
album, "1999" in the same year was a critical success,
combining pop appeal, underground grooves and the sheer brilliance of
their French comrades like Air and Daft Punk. The past three years have
seen them extending their DJ duties and working on the follow-up to 1999.
The first cut from said oeuvre arrives this spring. Entitled 'I'm A
Woman', it's another slice of uplifting house, featuring
tear-the-place-right-down vocals of club icon, Jocelyn Brown.
The maxi-cd
includes the full MPEG video of "I'm A
Woman".
|
|
BEAM VS.
CYRUS
"Lifestyle"
EMI Germany/Nettwerk America
From
Germany (yes, again), Beam and Cyrus teamed one more time and released a
brand new Trance tune for the first time domestically in the US. This tune
is built around galloping synths in edge of Progressive cut to die for and
a repetitive voice stating: "This is our music, and that is our
lifestyle. Our music. Our lifestyle". Yeah right :) Well the result
is a very energetic track that everyone should own. Their new European
single is "All Over The World". Visit Bean vs. Cyrus official
web site at http://www.beam-vs-cyrus.de/
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|
FUTURE
BREEZE
"Temple Of Dreams"
Alphabet City Germany/Radikal USA
Future
Breeze serve up
an intense slab of emotionally charged trance with "Temple Of
Dreams". It's throbbing beats set the pace as piercing
synths and dynamic chords collide together until the guitar-like riffs
wash over you with euphoric pleasure. With the radio edit featuring
a seductive female vocal hook, this is an awesome package.
On remix
duties, Pedro Del Mar vs. DJ Shah add a bit of progressive funk -
replacing the vocals with harder stabs and general mayhem. While
fresh from their international chart success with The Drill, The
Dirt Devils deliver a darker, rougher edge to this uplifting anthem.
Electrique Boutique introduce the must-have euphoria - swirling
synths and gentle strings beckon you to dance floors across the country.
This track
has been causing a furor on dancefloors across Europe and in the UK.
Premier league DJs such as Ferry Corsten, Dave Pearce, Tall Paul,
Fergie and Armin Van Burin all jumped on this track and showed
immediate support.
Future
Breeze are Markus
Boehme and Martin Hensing. From Essen, Germany, they
began producing music in their spare time in the early 90's. A lathe
operator and power production technician by day, they were music producers
by night. Their first big break came in 1994 when a demo that they had
produced was accepted for a record deal with Alphabet City Records
in Germany. A year later, their track called "Read My Lips"
was released and it catapulted Future Breeze onto the German dance
charts. They remained on the charts for the next 10 weeks. Other
successful singles followed, such as "Why Don't You Dance With
Me", "Keep The Fire Burning", and "Another
Day". Both boys could finally quit their day jobs and concentrate
on music full time. "Smile", their last single and now
their debut single on Radikal Records, was their biggest hit to
date and made it to the top of the sales charts in Germany and in
the UK. Energetic hard trance / progressive techno.
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|
DJ ENCORE
FEAT. ENGELINA
"Walking In The Sky"
Universal Denmark/MCA USA
DJ
Encore's second single "Walking On The Sky", taken
from his album "Intuition", finally got released in the US after
months of airplay on American radios. The single includes 4 extended mixes
and 1 radio acoustic version, but surprisingly no radio edit of the
original. This single is quite interestin although not as powerful as
"I Can See Right Through To You". Rush on that release before
MCA USA decides for no specific reasons to pull it off the shelves as they
did with the first CD Single release of "I Can See Right Through To
You"...
|
JUNE
2002 |
HEART
ATTACK
"The Videos"
VMP International Singapore
VMP
International Singapore is delivering us a great double VCD derived
from their multi-platinum dance audio cd compilation serie "Heart
Attack". This double VCD compilation contains a total of 32 MPEG
eurodance/eurotechno videos, including hard to find videos such as Billy
More "Up & Down", A7 "Piece Of Heaven", Sarina
Paris "Just About Enough", Gitta "No More Turning
Back", Espresso feat. Manola "Everybody Get Up", Zorolt
"I Wanna Be" and DJ Flex "Good Feeling" just to name a
few. The full tracklisting and reference is available from the ENHANCED CD
section. Recent VMP International Singapore VCD releases includes Eiffel
65 "Contact" (2001), Whigfield "III" (2001) and Kadoc
"United People" (2000)
|
|
HANNAH
"Blinded"
Up Music Prod. Estonia/Robbins
Entertainment USA
Hannah
(Hanna Pruuli) was born on May 12, 1981 in Tallinn, Estonia. Unmistakably
enamoured of singing since the remarkably early age of three, Hannah
proceeded to study the piano and write her own songs. She composed her
first piece of music at age 13. As for now, Hannah has proved her
performing gifts and song-writing talent at numerous contests and
competitions in Estonia. Starting with ballads and subsequently embracing
dance tunes, the best part of Hannah's repertory has always consisted of
original songs. At present, after a successful series of collaborations
with various Estonian producers and bands, she is established as one of
the most popular female artists and in-demand performers in her homeland.
Parallel to
performing and composing music, Hannah studies advertising and media at
the Tallinn Pedagogical University.The first song of Hannah's that made
the general public prick up their ears, move their feet and, in general,
pay notice was "Still Waiting For You" ("Sind otsima jään"),
her joint venture with Caater Productions in 1999. It was followed by two
dance hits, "Without You" ("Sinuta") and
"Blinded". On Hannah's signing a recording contract with Sony
Music Finland in 2001, both songs were granted a Finnish release as
singles.
2001 saw
also the release of the young artist's debut album, "Secretly"
(Salaja). It was at once warmly welcomed at home, and pretty soon the
record started to attract attention abroad.
Deservedly
so. Most of the songs from the album —"Still Waiting For You",
"Blinded", "Without You", "Secretly" as well
as "Leidmata sind" and "Lõputud ööd" — quickly
rose to the top of Estonian dance charts and consistently found favour
with the majority of Estonia's radio stations. What's more, in early 2002
"Blinded" suddenly hit it off with a number of American
listeners who came to hear it on Chicago's Energy 92,75 (www.energy9275.com).
At the 2001
Estonian Music Awards, Secretly was voted the Dance Hit of the Year. As a
matter of fact, Hannah's debut was simultaneously nominated in four more
categories: Newcomer, Female Artist, Dance Artist, and Radio Hit of the
Year.
As for the
future, there is no doubt about it — fresh challenges and further
fulfilment are awaiting Hannah.
|
|
DJ SAMMY
"Heaven"
Super M
Records Germany/Robbins Entertainment USA
Spanish
disc jockey and producer DJ Sammy became involved in entertainment while
working for a local techno/house radio station. After graduating with a
degree as a sound technician, DJ Sammy recorded "Life Is Just a
Game" in 1996. His track "Prince of Love" climbed the
German charts in 1997. In 1999, his debut album, called "Life Is Just
a Game", featured the hit single "In 2 Eternity." In
addition, he produced Loona's first record "Bailando",
Paradisio's cover. After a couple of albums produced for Loona (feat.
Carisma), DJ Sammy is back with a new album full of eurotechno gems,
featuring the voices of Do and Carisma.
|
MAY
2002 |
IAN VAN
DAHL
"Ace"
Antler-Subway
Belgium/Robbins Entertainment USA
IAN
VAN DAHL project of CHRISTOPHE CHANTIZ (well known from ABSOLOM)
after having a world success with two singles: "Castles In The
Sky" and "Will I" is releasing the debut album "A.C.E.".
This album is scheduled to be released in May in US and UK, followed by
BeneLux. It features both singles as well as the newest one
"Reason". Not only though. The album has 16 tunes all together
(including an intro, the intro is not available on the US edition) and
most of them are powerful TRANCE-related compositions. Be prepared to get
frenzy over hypnotic sound, fiery tilt synth lines and female vocals
(provided by ANNEMIE COENEN) featured on many tracks in this
offering! Should you like the album? It really depends what your
expectations are. IAN VAN DAHL's oscillates between TRANCE and
VOCAL TRANCE. New tunes in this album do follow this pattern. Majority of
fares contain female vocals. The music is interesting but not free of
repetitions. The originality of ABSOLOM, was much more distinct
compared with IAN VAN DAHL project. So how about more details?
"After All" has some elements of HOUSE, TECHNO and VOCAL TRANCE.
It's nicely crafted tune, fits good for clubs scene. Same pattern follows
"Satisfy Me", but it corners more into HOUSE oriented TRANCE,
again with seductive female vocals that indeed sounds great. "Nights
On Java" is an instrumental monster with hypnotic melodic lines and
driving synths that sends the melody soaring. It builds up though. It's
starts rather as commercial repetitive track, but transforms later into
thunderous TRANCE trip. "Try" is a cosmic voyage to underworld.
It's engaging club smash with TECHNO/TRANCE appeal. "Lonely" is
a slow, to calm you down. "Be Mine" will put you back to more
faster pace. Among other tunes that falls into faster TRANCE are
"Nothing Left To Say" or "Tears". The album closes
with "Run". Solidly mesmerizing Intrumental TRANCE. Taken
together an engaging album for fans of IAN VAN DAHL but some of you
might expected a bit more. I still really missed ABSOLOM. The US
edition includes a free CD with video of "Will I" and audio
track of "Castles In The Sky" (Original version).
|
|
HMV.CO.JP
VERSUS TOWER RECORDS JAPAN
I have recently
experienced difficulties with HMV Japan customer service.
Although their answer were fast they did not try to understand my needs
neither admit their mistakes, which leads me to lower my customer service
ratings from EXCELLENT to POOR (see LINKS>RECORD
STORES) and also leads me to recommend instead to shop with Tower
Records Japan.
|
|
THE ONES
"Flawless"
Groovilicious USA
"Flawless"
is one of those tracks that has built a reputation by word of mouth in
previous
months, with more and more people being informed of its existence, and its
fan base growing in accordance with this.
Hard to
believe it's the production from three guys who worked in a clothing
design boutique in Greenwich Village, Paul Alexander, JoJo America and
Nashom. Between them, they've worked on such tracks as Morales' "Give
Me Love" and the track Headhunter for Danny Tenaglia's
"Tourism" album, to name but a few.
Flawless was
originally released on UK imprint, Ink, but Positiva, always on the money,
have snapped it up, pushing it right to the forefront of the scene's
attention this summer, and have turned it into a huge smash.
Mixes come
from Phunk Investigation, who turn in three superb mixes, a vocal and club
mix, featuring the superb catchy vocal that has caused massive effect each
time its been dropped in the White Isle, and also a dub for those who
prefer to be different.
Additional
mixes come from the acclaimed outfit Sharp Boys, whose stomping house
remix is yet another that causes dance floor mayhem. Different Gear add
their unique tribal influence to the track, to great effect and Curtis
Mantronix has taken the track to new heights with his Afro Hut remix,
which has fast become an anthem at DC10, making sure Jo Mills has to avoid
those crumbling walls.
Looks like
it will be three years in a row for Positiva in signing the summer's main
anthem, which just goes to show how on the ball they are. An essential
purchase, whether you've been to the White Isle this year or not.
|
APRIL
2002 |
ERIKA
"Relations"
Time SRL Italy/Radikal USA
"Relations"
by Erika is currently one of the hottest records in the Chicago
area. # 1 on WKIE, Energy 92.75, it has been getting lots of
listener reaction and has remained
one of the station's most requested songs for the past several weeks.
DJs,
retailers and music fans in the Chicago area have been going crazy trying
to find copies of this very hard to find import. We are happy to
announce that it is now available domestically on Radikal Records as a CD
maxi or 12" vinyl single.
"Relations"
is a highly energetic and melodic euro-trance track, similar in style to Gigi
D'Agostino or Sarina Paris.
Erika
(aka Erika De Bonis) is a vocalist from Italy. Her brother, Tristano
De Bonis, wrote the song and it was produced by the guys who are
better known as Magic Box (DJ Ross and Gian Luca Mensi).
Relations
has reached #1 on the Italian Pop Chart and was also
released in Germany, France, Benelux and Spain.
|
|
CRW FEAT.
VERONIKA
"Like A Cat"
Media Records Italy/BXR/Media Records UK
Already
No.1 on many of the charts that count as well as a big tune for all the
top trance and hard house jocks on the scene, "Like A Cat" finds
Mauro Picotto donning his CRW hat on yet another future classic. Featuring
longtime collaborator Veronika on vocals, this sweeping, uplifting vocal
trancer is, arguably, CRW's best release to date. The awesome remix
package veers from a commercial edge to Picotto's usual tough
techno-tinged sound, whilst along the way Tillman Uhrmacher (of "On
The Run") gets in on the act with a stunning trance version. Massive!
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MATT
DAREY FEAT. MARCELLA WOODS
"Beautiful 2002"
Incentive UK
Already
looking like a bumper year for trance, 2002 sees the welcome return of one
of the scene's all time biggest and best tunes. Still massive with all the
top deejays after its initial release in July 2000, Matt Darey's sublime
"Beautiful" returns re-vamped, rejuvenated and well, sounding as
good as, if not better than it ever did. The classic original's included
for those that missed it first time around alongside new dancefloor
interpretations from Hiver & Hammer, JDS, Pulser and Stuart Chrichton.
With a little something for all tastes, each mix adds a new slant to this
faultless classic.
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TUKAN
"Light A Rainbow"
Jive Electro USA
Released
in 2001, Tukan "Light A Rainbow" finally gets its domestic break
out on the Jive-Electro USA. You've got the CJ Sone Remix, The Green Court
Remix, ATB Remix and The Wippenburg Remix. Plus you have two radio
versions as well. Every Remix is great with the exception of the ATB
Remix. It's slower and is just plain boring when compared to the other
remixes which are more uptempto. The female vocals are superb and the song
is in the same vein as "Will I?" by Ian Van Dahl,
"Forever" by Dee Dee, "Tremble" by Marc Et Claude and
"The Sound Of Goodbye" by Perpetuous Dreamer. A catchy melody
and driving beat with beautiful vocals make this perfect for dance music
stations. It's basically commercial pop/trance which some die hard trance
fanatics may consider cheesy. I consider it superb dance music worth
adding to any collection. Highly recommended!
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ATB
"Dedicated"
Kontor Germany/Radikal USA
"Dedicated"
is the new album from ATB. His third full-length release, it
features 11 new tracks along with the much sought after remix of "Let
U Go" and a US bonus track of a never before released mix of "Hold
You" (remixed by Todd Terry). ATB's previous
albums, "Movin' Melodies" and "Two Worlds"
have sold over 200,000 units combined in the US alone, and have sold
millions world-wide. This new album should continue his success well
into the future.
While most
of the tracks maintain the characteristic ATB sound and style that
he's become known for, they take it in a little different direction.
In this new set, he expands his sound palettes and reaches beyond all
musical expectations. It's a bit deeper, a bit funkier, a little more
progressive and a great ATB trance package.
The CD
includes a VIP access code to a special ATB website where there are
exclusive videos, audio, screensavers and computer wallpaper. Only
the Radikal version of the ATB Dedicated CD will take you to
an English VIP area. (Anyone who uses the code on the import should
understand German.)
"Dedicated"
also includes a mail-in offer for a limited edition bonus enhanced CD that
contains previously unreleased remixes of "9pm(Till I Come)",
"The Fields Of Love", "Killer" and "Hold
You" as well as the video for "Hold You", which
is the first single off of this new album.
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SCHILLER FEATURING HEPPNER
"Dream Of You"
Radikal USA
Dream Of You is the first single from Schiller's new
album Voyage. A chill-out trance track, it features the
vocals of Heppner, from the electro-synth pop group Wolfsheim.
Heppner helped pen the track and his vocals blend perfectly
with the mood and the melodies of the music. Part
electro-synth pop, part trance - many have mistaken this track for Depeche
Mode.
DJ Tomcraft,
Ayla and Molella all lend their talents to the remixes,
and there are plenty of them. Ranging in tempo from a relaxing
chill-out groove to energetic progressive trance and covering just
about every facet in between, there is a mix here for everyone's
musical tastes.
Dream Of You was released in Germany where it reached #1
on the German Dance Charts and the Top 20 on the German
Pop Charts. The video received heavy rotation on MTV
Europe and VIVA. Dream Of You also reached the Top
20 on the Italian Pop Charts.
Zeitgeist,
the debut album from Schiller, is a novel combination of
pop and dance - well suited for dancing or for chilling out.
It is full of relaxing melodies, driving rhythms, and voices which
expand your consciousness and set your fantasies soaring.
With
their first single, Glockenspiel, the producer duo of Mirko
von Schlieffen and Christopher von Deulen managed the
jump into the Top 25 of the German sales charts, where they
stayed for three months. The follow-up single, Liebesschmerz,
managed to match that feat with a chart entry at # 24. Glockenspiel
became one of the most played club anthems of the year, a Top 50
radio record and the video also became the most played video on
Viva.
When
Mirko and Christopher met, it didn't take them long to recognize
their mutual musical interests and they set out to prove that they
could produce a great album with Schiller, a truly complete
album, not just a couple of catchy singles. They have
succeeded in accomplishing that goal with Zeitgeist - equal
parts trancey rhythms and ambient, haunting melodic parts on par
with anything heard from Enigma. They have created a
listening experience par none.
Named
after the German poet Friedrich Schiller, the production duo
of Mirko von Schlieffen and Christopher von Deylen
took German dancefloors by storm in 1999. Coming out of left
field with their unusual combinations of German poetry recitals,
esoteric vocal lines and soaring string lines over hypnotic trance
tracks, audiences all over Europe found this musical mixture
irresistible.
Singles
like Glockenspiel (The Bells) and Ruhe (Peace/Quiet)
struck a chord and made major impact on sales charts everywhere. The
album Zeitgeist became the biggest selling dance album in
Germany in 1999.
Glockenspiel
is finally available in the USA, as their lead-in single
for their album's release at the beginning of 2001. Accompanied by a
strong video, it will have no problem ringing the bells on American
dancefloors and on radio.
Aside
from Schiller, Christopher and Mirko have also produced hits
by acts such as fellow labelmates SM Trax (Got The Groove), Soulforce
and Tank, all of which were major pop hits in Europe.
Ministry of Sound, their UK label, considers Schiller
the heir apparent to Enigma. Great to dance to, great
chill-out music. Get ready for the emotional dreamscapes of Schiller.
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MARCH
2002 |
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ABSOLOM
"Stars"
Antler-Subway Belgium/X-Treme Records USA
Absolom
is back with this US exlusive CD single release of
"Stars", a great Eurotechno track in the pure style
of Antler-Subway Belgium's hits. Absolom
is a project by Christophe Chantzis, the same guy that's also
part of the DJ Jan, DJ Glenn, Astroline, Dee Dee and Ian Van
Dahl projects.
Christophe has
made remixes for Fiocco, Zohra and X-Session (all Belgian dance
groups) but also for foreign groups like Future Breeze,
Komakino, Organ and the swedish Ace of Base.
Christophe
together with DJ Jimmy Goldschmitz created a few smash hits in
the studio: "Secret", "Where", 'The
Air" and "Baby Boomers" should definitely be
played on a party!
Live acts were
done with Pascale Feront (vocals), two dancers (Cindy &
Ellen) and Christophe behind the keyboards. Later Ellen joined
Praga Khan. |
|
DJ SAMMY
AND YANOU FEATURING DO
"Heaven"
Super M Records Germany/Robbins Entertainment USA
This
time DJ Sammy is back without Carisma (aka Loona) and teamed up with Yanou
(from Beam and
Yanou). The result? An awesome vocal trance cover of the Bryan Adams
classic, with more mixes on the domestic version, too! Note that the
"Anastasia Mix" is not by Anastacia.
DJ
Sammy is undoubtedly the best-known DJ and
producer from Spain. Born on Mallorca in 1969, this party king began his
DJ career in 1984 in various clubs such as Alexandra's, Bananas &
Zorba's. At about the same time he completed training as a sound
technician at the music college in Palma. As a radio DJ with CADENA TOP,
the official techno/house channel on Mallorca, he spread the
up-to-the-minute club sound outside the clubs. In 1991 he got to know the
Dutch singer and dancer Marie José van der Kolk and appeared for the
first time with her under the name DJ Sammy feat. Carisma at
Zorba's Club in Playa de Palma. A year later Sammy became resident
DJ at the legendary Joy Palace Club in Arenal and together with Carisma
provided the hottest party nights on the island.
Now he
can look back on a career spanning more than 15 years as a DJ in the most
acclaimed clubs around Europe, having celebrated success as a producer in
the fields of pop and dance and founded the Gamba Music company and his
own dance label, Super M..... Records.
In
November 1995 the first single under the project name DJ Sammy feat.
Carisma was released, entitled "Life Is Just A Game",
and it reached pole position in the Spanish radio charts. By the time the
second single "You're My Angel" was released,
people in Germany were becoming aware of the duo from Mallorca, to the
extent that DJ Sammy und Carisma were bombarded with requests to
perform. Their fans, now a Europe-wide community, made sure that the third
single "Prince of Love" climbed to No. 24 in the German
sales charts, marking the beginning of a varied success story. Their debut
album "Life Is Just A Game" released in June 1998, which
like the singles previously released was produced by Sammy together with
the team from BASS BUMPERS Music (Henning Reith, C.J. Stone, Akira
Yamamoto & Caba Kroll), also made it into the sales charts and that
summer was the highest-placed dance album in the German charts. The
follow-up singles "Golden Child" (HP #43), "Magic
Moment" (HP #67) and "In2Eternity" (HP #31) were
all proof that DJ Sammy feat. Carisma knew just how to turn
club music into commercial success.
DJ
Sammy is well known as a talented, committed,
music-loving DJ and producer, and it is no wonder that simultaneously with
his own recordings he worked on and released the live DJ set he had always
dreamed of, under the name "DJ Sammy At Work": this was a
mix CD which immediately entered the Top Ten of the German compilation
charts.
It was at
this point that the big breakthrough in all of Europe came; by putting
together the pop project LOONA with his singer and partner of many
years, Marie José, Sammy was adding the cherry to the icing of his cake
of success. The first LOONA single "Bailando", which Sammy
recorded with producer Henning Reith, shot straight to No. 1 in the
German, Austrian and Swiss charts. Further hits, like "Hijo de la
luna" and "Mamboleo" , to mention but two, sold more than
five million copies in Europe within weeks of release and earned multiple
gold and platinum status. By now, two LOONA albums and various
other singles have been released and enjoyed equal success, making DJ
Sammy one of the most successful producers of the past three years.
Furthermore, LOONA and DJ Sammy have had awards heaped upon
them, such as ECHO and R.SH Gold.
In
addition to his dance and pop recordings, DJ Sammy returns again
and again to his roots in the progressive house and techno fields through
other projects. Under the pseudonym Porno DJ he released "The
Judgment" in July 1999, and in the same month, he delivered his
unofficial anthem for the Love Parade entitled "Lovestern
Galaktika meets Le Petit Sam", which also placed successfully in
the German Media Control Charts (highest position #32).
Despite
all his many producer activities, DJ Sammy constantly returns to
where it all began, namely in the clubs. The list of his guest appearances
reads like a Top Ten of the most popular European dance temples, with more
than 200 DJ gigs a year.
Visit DJ
Sammy's web site at www.djsammy.de.
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FEBRUARY
2002 |
|
PERPETUOUS
DREAMER FEATURING ELLES DE GRAAF
"The Sound Of Goobye"
Nervous NYC USA
Written
and produced by Armin Van Buuren, "The Sound Of Goodbye"
is a high profile vocal trance single with great, memorable vocals
that also includes extended offerings from trance all-stars and
"What It Feels Like For a Girl" remixers Above &
Beyond as well as Van Buuren himself. We knew this one was gonna be
big ever since it was released several months back on import and
people still keep asking for it.
Every face i see is cold as ice
everything i touch is pale
Ever since i lost imagination
Like a stream that flows into the sea
I am lost for all eternity
Ever since you took your love away from me
Sometimes the sound of goodbye
Is louder than any drumbeat
Armin
Van Buuren is no stranger to the global trance and progressive
scene. Who can forget the earth-trembling majesty of "Blue
Fear", possibly one of the seminal trance sounds that broke
through in 1998? Maybe someone with amnesia might forget, but if you
were to subject him or her to a liberal blast of Armin's latest
production, I’m sure it would all come flooding back. This is 100%
club dancefloor dynamite and although it has a distinctly commercial
flavour, you will not be disappointed.
|
JANUARY
2002 |
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DJ ENCORE FEAT.
ENGELINA
"I See Right Through To You"
Universal Denmark/MCA USA
A
shining new star named DJ Encore has emerged in the galaxy of
pop-dance. Along with his vocal partner Engelina, the pair has
dazzled the world courtesy of their smash debut single, "I See
Right Through To You."
Only
22, the Copenhagen-based DJ (real name: Andreas Hemmeth) was born
into a musical family - his mother teaches music; his father is a
music consultant. As a child, Andreas learned to play piano, guitar
and taught himself how to mix music on his computer. Two years ago,
he took up DJing and garnered DJ residencies at three local clubs
spinning pop and trance as he worked on his own music. While
engineering at a recording session for Funkstar Deluxe at a hometown
studio, Andreas met a representative from Sony Music publishing.
Impressed by the demos Andreas played for him, the representative
heard something in the grooves and suggested that Andreas should
meet Engelina, a talented chanteuse and songwriter who came from an
opposite musical background.
"He
knew Engelina and asked me if I wanted to write with her,"
recalls Andreas. Engelina, a jazz/soul singer whose father is a
songwriter and grew up singing with her two older sisters, appeared
to be the perfect Yin to Andreas' Yang. "I said of course. The
first time I wrote with her, it was like, 'Whoooaa! This is
good!'"
"I
thought that it would be interesting to work on something so
different from the background I came from," adds Engelina.
“The environments that he creates really inspire me."
After
their initial meeting, the two set aside some time to write
together. Andreas produced "I See Right Through To You,"
which become the theme to the Big Brother show in Denmark. Engelina
contributed melodies, vocals and lyrics and the song became an
instant, yet unexpected hit.
"I
went skiing in France when the TV show started," explains
Andreas. "I came back and had four different record deals
waiting for me. It was so unexpected."
With
"I See Right Through To You" blazing up the charts, the
pair signed to Universal and traveled to England, Germany, Belgium
and Sweden to write and collaborate on the songs that now compose
their debut album, Intuition.
"We
made music that we thought was fun and went with it," says
Andreas. "There was really no plan. It's all been a surprise
and we've done what we thought was right and fun to do. We didn't
think about writing another hit. We're writing songs, telling
stories and working through our intuition."
Boasting
a wealth of sounds, emotions and textures, Intuition displays a
musical maturity beyond the duo's years. The ballad "Out
There" remains close to Andreas' heart, while pumping tracks
like "High On Life" hint at the forthcoming live show
that'll be full of musicians and dancers.
As
DJ Encore Featuring Engelina's "I See Right Through To
You" continues to dominate the European charts alongside the
album's second single, "Walking on the Sky," the first
single has begun to infiltrate American radio in key markets.
"It
is a huge dream to have our music played in America," says
Andreas. "We wrote the single for a TV show in Denmark that
became a hit, and now that people in the USA want to hear it is
amazing. We don't want to expect too much, and can't wait to tour
America and play some gigs."
Now
that they've burst onto the global music scene, what do their
musical families think of Intuition? Andreas laughs. "My father
plays classical music, but he loved the melodies. That's the most
important thing for me and Engleina."
Engelina
beams: "My dad, who is very critical since he is a musician,
thought that our album was clever and well-made. He said that he
thought that it sounded very perfect." In this case, father
really does know best.
DJ
Encore's "I See Right Right Through To You" CD Single US
release has been recently deleted by MCA Records and is currently
impossible to find in stores. The "Intuition" album is
still available in the USA.
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BEKI
"Wake Up"
Logic Records/BMG USA
Songwriter,
performer BEKI Onslow's solo career is official. BEKI's debut single
"Wake Up" is scheduled for a January 2002 release on Logic
Records/BMG. Co-written by BEKI and world famous DJ/producer Guido,
they have given this former member of the multi-platinum quartet
"Solid Harmonie" what could well be the dance theme song
for 2002.
This redheaded,
Wales native now calls Orlando her home. Under the wing of pop mogul
Lou Pearlman, BEKI's passion and talent have sparked an already
bright career. While in Solid Harmonie, BEKI toured the world
sharing the stage with artists that included: N'Sync,
Backstreetboys, BBMak and LFO.
A very theoretical
and creative family who is not only musical, but also very spiritual
brought BEKI into life. This has given BEKI a down to earth
personality with depth and inspiration that translates in her own
unique feel for lyrical poetry in her songwriting and stage
presence. BEKI's music industry background includes having been a
part of several writing projects with U.S. producers including:
Guido, Billy Chapin, and Keith McGuffy.
The collaboration
of BEKI and hit producer Guido for "Wake Up" have
generated lyrics with an inspiring message "Wake up ..It's a
brand new day, wake up, a new days begun". BEKI's debut song
sends a positive message of hope in a much-needed time. Guido's
production / remixes along with additional remixes by Johnny Vicious
will drive the beats and vocals of "Wake UP" into a
worldwide dance floor anthem.
BEKI is currently
working on her debut LP scheduled for Summer 2002. She will be
lighting up the stage on her January 2002, club tour.
For more
information, please contact Jennifer
Kanas of Logic Records at 212.219.2710 |
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THE PROGRAM
"Love And Affection"
Manifesto UK
The
work of Leiam Sullivan (aka Mr.Pink) and Dave Lee (aka Jakatta, Joey
Negro, Raven Maize), this re-working of Joan Armatrading's 1976 top
10 hit FINALLY surfaces on Manifesto after being hammered by all the
top jocks for the last couple of months. Messrs Lee and Sullivan
take the classic original and twist it around a thunderous, insanely
funky disco-house groove making this update of 'Love &
Affection' a slab of primetime house gear that'll move most floors
without fail. Also, checkthe remixes; Joey Negro himself funks it to
the max while Mike Monday gets on a deeper progressive tip - all
bases covered then!
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