Aphrodite (born Gavin King), also known as A Zone or DJ Aphro, is a UK jungle and drum'n'bass DJ/producer commonly referred to as the 'Godfather of Jungle', who works along with Micky Finn on their joint Urban Takeover label. One of the oldest dnb producers, he largely contributed to and influenced drum and bass' current styles and techniques.
DJ Aphrodite is behind Aphrodite Recordings which was inspired by a club he ran in 1988 called 'Aphrodite'. His debut album was a self titled effort under V2 Recordings released 1st September, 2000. The follow up was 'Aftershock' which was again released under V2 Recordings on June 24th, 2002 featuring artists such as Barrington Levy and Wildflower.
The Chemical Brothers - Where do i begin?
The Chemical Brothers are the UK-based Grammy Award winning electronic music duo of Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons (occasionally referred to as Chemical Tom and Chemical Ed). Initially they called themselves "The Dust Brothers", after the noted United States production duo of the same name, but their burgeoning popularity and the threat of legal action from the originals led them to change their name in 1995. Along with The Prodigy, Fatboy Slim and The Crystal Method, as well as other lesser-known acts they were pioneers of the big beat electronic dance genre, and are known for high-quality live sets.
"Where Do I Begin" is a song by The Chemical Brothers, released as a promotional single in 1997 and appearing on their second album Dig Your Own Hole, also in 1997. As a promo release, copies are hard to get hold of[1]. The version appearing on the single is different from the one on the album, the single version being titled "Radio Edit" and being slightly shorter. Beth Orton sings the vocals on the song.
It was featured in the 2001 Cameron Crowe film Vanilla Sky, and was included on the released Vanilla Sky (soundtrack). The soundtrack itself was nominated for an Academy Award. The song was also featured in the film Monster (2003) starring Charlize Theron. The song was featured again in the film Accepted (2006) starring Justin Long.
The Orb - Little Fluffy Clouds
The Orb are an English electronic music group known for popularising chill out music in the 1990s and spawning the genre of ambient house. Founded in 1988 by Alex Paterson and KLF member Jimmy Cauty, The Orb began as ambient and dub DJs in London. Their early performances were inspired by ambient and electronic artists of the 1970s and 1980s, most notably Brian Eno and Kraftwerk. Because of their "trippy" sound, The Orb developed a cult following among clubbers "coming down" from drug-induced highs.[1] The Orb has maintained their drug-related and science fiction themes despite personnel changes including the departure of Cauty and other Orb members Kris Weston, Simon Phillips, and Andy Hughes. Paterson has been the only permanent member, continuing to work as The Orb with the Swiss-German producer Thomas Fehlmann and later with Martin "Youth" Glover and Tim Bran of Dreadzone.[2]
Alex Paterson prides The Orb on manipulating obscure samples beyond recognition in their albums and concerts; however, his unauthorised use of other artists' works has led to disputes with musicians, most notably with Rickie Lee Jones.[3] During their live shows of the 1990s, The Orb performed using digital audio tape machines optimised for live mixing and sampling before switching to laptops and digital media. Despite changes in their performance method, The Orb have maintained their colourful light shows and psychedelic imagery in concert. These visually intensive performances prompted many critics to compare The Orb to Pink Floyd.
The Orb's critical and commercial success in the UK peaked in the early 1990s with their albums The Orb's Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld and U.F.Orb, which reached #1 on the UK Albums Chart in 1992. This success led to their infamous appearance on Top of the Pops, where they showcased their quirky style by playing chess (an interest of Paterson's since his early youth) while the group's single "Blue Room" ran in the background. The Orb's mid-1990s albums were met with mixed reactions from UK critics; however, their work received praise from American publications such as Rolling Stone. They experimented with vocalists on their next two albums, which critics generally described as bland and uninspired. The Orb shifted to the minimalist techno style spearheaded by member Thomas Fehlmann, releasing their new material on the record label Kompakt.
"Little Fluffy Clouds" is a single released by the ambient house group The Orb. It was originally released in 1990 on the record label Big Life and peaked at #87 on the UK Singles Chart. The Orb also included it on their 1991 double album The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld. "Little Fluffy Clouds" was re-released several times with different b-sides with its 1993 re-release reaching #10 in the UK.
ATB: The Fields of Love
Horrorist - One Night In New York City
Ebeneezer Goode - The Shamen
The Shamen were an experimental electronic music band, initially formed in Aberdeen, Scotland by Colin Angus (b. 24 August 1961), Derek McKenzie (b. 27 February 1964), Keith McKenzie (b. 30 August 1961) and Peter Stephenson (b. 1 March 1962) in the 1980s as a psychedelic-influenced indie rock act. They found underground credibility as an acid house act and pioneers of rock/dance crossover, before moving on to international commercial success with "Ebeneezer Goode" and the Boss Drum album.
Band members
Colin Angus - Vocals, guitars, keyboards (1985-1999) Derek McKenzie - Vocals (1985-1987) Keith McKenzie - Drums (1985-1988) Peter Stephenson - Keyboards (1985-1988) Will Sinnott - Bass, vocals, keyboards (1987-1991) Richard West (Mr C) - Vocals, keyboards (1990-1999)
The Scientist (& DJ Hype) The Bee
Terrorize - It's Just a Feeling
ALTERN 8 - Activ-8
Altern 8 - Hypnotic ST8
Altern-8 is a breakbeat hardcore duo band featuring Mark Archer and Chris Peat. They were one of the UK rave bands of the late 1980s and early 1990s whose trademark was loud electronic tracks with a heavy bass line. Altern-8's members wore facemasks and chemical warfare suits. The band was signed to Network Records based in Stratford House, Birmingham, England.
Notable Altern-8 tracks include "Activ-8", "E-vapor-8", "Frequency", "Brutal-8-E", "Armageddon", "Move my body", "Hypnotic St-8" and "Infiltrate 202". The band produced an album on the Network Records label in 1992 called Full On... Mask Hysteria. After disbanding in 1993 they later regrouped for a comeback tour on which they were rumoured to have played a midnight rave set in the middle of a country farm.
In 1992, Peat entered as a candidate for the Stafford constituency in the General Election representing the Hardcore (Altern8-ive) party. He polled 158 votes and finished in fourth place. In 1993, Archer began producing as Slo Moshun with Danny Taurus, responsible for Bells of N.Y., and Xen Mantra.
Full On... Mask Hysteria by Altern-8Altern-8's somewhat surreal image made for dramatic photographs and videos, but the same PR that helped to sell their music was eventually used against the rave movement, as the UK tabloid press published stories about the dangers of ecstasy, illegal raves and their impact on the countryside, resulting in the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.
I never had to say goodbye You must have known I wouldn't stay While you were talking about our life You killed the beauty of today
Forever and ever LIfe is now or never Forever never comes around
You never heard me break your heart You didn't wake up when we died Since I was lonely from the start I think the end is mine to write
Forever and ever Life is now or never Forever never comes around People love and let go Forever and ever Life is now or never Forever's gonna slow you down
You'll never see me again So now woh's gonna cry for you You'll never see me again No matter what you do
There's something special about Swedish dance sensation September. A year and a half ago, the last September record "In Orbit" was released. Since then, Petra Marklund (born in September, in case you were wondering) has been touring China, Russia, the US. In Spain and Poland, September's topping the charts. "Satellites" even won September the number one spot on the Billboard Dance Chart last year. - Being #1 on Billboard was fun mainly because it proved that people really appreciate what we're doing, says Petra.
Besides singer Petra, the September team consists of producer/songwriter Jonas Von Der Burg, and songwriters Niclas Von Der Burg and Anoo Bhagavan. "Dancing shoes" is their third record together.
Petra Marklund is 23 years old and just moved out of her parents' house in Stockholm. She was still in high school when Jonas, Niclas, and Anoo approached her, looking for just the right unique voice that could lift their tunes to something that would move people on, as well as outside of, the dance floor. When the foursome first met up, Petra mostly sang jazz - and today, it's her dark, soulful voice in combination with high quality hit songs that makes the trademark September sound. You'll definitely be dancing. But at the same time, you'll ache. Just a bit.
- "Dancing Shoes" is probably a bit more crazy than "In Orbit". I've been much more open about my own visions on this record, and so has the others, says Petra who writes music of her own but likes the fact that September enables her to focus entirely on the singing. - This time, I've really tried to enter each song in a different way. I've even sung quite badly here and there, almost out of tune, if it felt necessary for the song.
While making "Dancing Shoes", Petra, Jonas, Anoo and Niclas really found their way of working together. By now, they all know each other incredibly well, and always get inspired by the others ideas. - I've never seen Jonas this addicted to working. It's almost been scary to watch him, says Petra, laughing. And the result will hit you even harder this time around. Petra sums it up: - From euro disco to The Knife,
Between those extremes, "Dancing Shoes" flirts with electronica, house, rock, and ragga. And the next single, "Until I die", sounds like the best Bond theme that never was made.
JuSt Dance- Lady GAga feat. Akon and Colby O.
When Lady GaGa was a little girl, she would sing along on her mini plastic tape recorder to Michael Jackson and Cyndi Lauper hits and get twirled in the air in daddy’s arms to the sounds of the Rolling Stones and the Beatles. The precocious child would dance around the table at fancy Upper West Side restaurants using the breadsticks as a baton. And, she would innocently greet a new babysitter in nothing but her birthday suit.
It’s no wonder that little girl from a good Italian New York family, turned into the exhibitionist, multi-talented singer-songwriter with a flair for theatrics that she is today: Lady GaGa.
“I was always an entertainer. I was a ham as a little girl and I’m a ham today,” says Lady GaGa, 22, who made a name for herself on the Lower East Side club scene with the infectious dance-pop party song “Beautiful Dirty Rich,” and wild, theatrical, and often tongue-in-cheek “shock art” performances where GaGa – who designs and makes many of her stage outfits -- would strip down to her hand-crafted hot pants and bikini top, light cans of hairspray on fire, and strike a pose as a disco ball lowered from the ceiling to the orchestral sounds of A Clockwork Orange.
“I always loved rock and pop and theater. When I discovered Queen and David Bowie is when it really came together for me and I realized I could do all three,” says GaGa, who nicked her name from Queen’s song “Radio Gaga” and who cites rock star girlfriends, Peggy Bundy, and Donatella Versace as her fashion icons. “I look at those artists as icons in art. It’s not just about the music. It’s about the performance, the attitude, the look; it’s everything. And, that is where I live as an artist and that is what I want to accomplish.”
That goal might seem lofty, but consider the artist: GaGa is the girl who at age 4 learned piano by ear. By age 13, she had written her first piano ballad. At 14, she played open mike nights at clubs such as New York’s the Bitter End by night and was teased for her quirky, eccentric style by her Convent of the Sacred Heart School (the Manhattan private school Nicky and Paris Hilton attended) classmates by day. At age 17, she became was one of 20 kids in the world to get early admission to Tisch School of the Arts at NYU. Signed by her 20th birthday and writing songs for other artists (such as the Pussycat Dolls, and has been asked to write for a series of Interscope artists) before her debut album was even released, Lady GaGa has earned the right to reach for the sky.
“My goal as an artist is to funnel a pop record to a world in a very interesting way,” says GaGa, who wrote all of her lyrics, all of her melodies, and played most of the synth work on her album, The Fame (Streamline/Interscope/KonLive). “I almost want to trick people into hanging with something that is really cool with a pop song. It’s almost like the spoonful of sugar and I’m the medicine.”
On The Fame, it’s as if GaGa took two parts dance-pop, one part electro-pop, and one part rock with a splash of disco and burlesque and generously poured it into the figurative martini glasses of the world in an effort to get everyone drunk with her Fame. “The Fame is about how anyone can feel famous,” she explains. “Pop culture is art. It doesn’t make you cool to hate pop culture, so I embraced it and you hear it all over The Fame. But, it’s a sharable fame. I want to invite you all to the party. I want people to feel a part of this lifestyle.”
The CD’s opener and first single, “Just Dance,” gets the dance floor rocking with it’s “fun, L.A., celebratory vibe.” As for the equally catchy, “Boys Boys Boys,” Gaga doesn’t mind wearing her influences on her sleeve. “I wanted to write the female version of Motley Crue’s ‘Girls Girls Girls,’ but with my own twist. I wanted to write a pop song that rockers would like.”
“Beautiful Dirty Rich” sums up her time of self-discovery, living in the Lower East Side and dabbling in drugs and the party scene. “That time, and that song, was just me trying to figure things out,” says GaGa. “Once I grabbed the reigns of my artistry, I fell in love with that more than I did with the party life.” On first listen, “Paparazzi” might come off as a love song to cameras, and in all honestly, GaGa jokes “on one level it IS about wooing the paparazzi and wanting fame. But, it’s not to be taken completely seriously. It’s about everyone’s obsession with that idea. But, it’s also about wanting a guy to love you and the struggle of whether you can have success or love or both.”
GaGa shows her passion for love songs on such softer tracks as the Queen-influenced “Brown Eyes” and the sweet kiss-off break-up song “Nothing I can Say (eh eh).” “‘Brown Eyes’ is the most vulnerable song on the album,” she explains. “‘Eh Eh’ is my simple pop song about finding someone new and breaking up with the old boyfriend.”
For the new tour for this album, fans will be treated to a more polished version of what they saw (and loved) at her critically acclaimed Lollapalooza show in August 2007 and Winter Music Conference performance in March 2008. “This new show is the couture version of my handmade downtown performance of the past few years. It’s more fine-tuned, but some of my favorite elements to my past shows – the disco balls, hot pants, sequin, and stilettos – will still be there. Just more fierce and more of a conceptual show with a vision for pop performance art.”
It’s been a while since a new pop artist has made her way in the music industry the old-fashioned/grass roots way by paying her dues with seedy club gigs and self-promotion. This is one rising pop star who hasn’t been plucked from a model casting call, born into a famous family, won a reality TV singing contest, or emerged from a teen cable TV sitcom. “I did this the way you are supposed to. I played every club in New York City and I bombed in every club and then killed it in every club and I found myself as an artist. I learned how to survive as an artist, get real, and how to fail and then figure out who I was as singer and performer. And, I worked hard.”
GaGa adds with a wink in her eye, “And, now, I’m just trying to change the world one sequin at a time.”
California Dreaming- Benny Benassi feat. Global Deejays Remix
A native of Milan, DJ/producer Benny Benassi started DJing alongside cousin Alle Benassi in the late 1980s in their hometown, before moving to Larry Pignagnoli's Off Limits production studio in the mid 1990s, creating music for various acts, including Whigfield, J.K. and Ally & Jo. Benassi first hit the dance floor with his own projects in 2001 with the single "I Feel So Fine", released under the name KMC with vocals by Dhany, the track first stormed the charts in Benassi's native Italy, and soon became a number one hit in the United Kingdom. [5]
After moving from eurohouse to electro, "Satisfaction" took Benassi's success worldwide a year later with high-profile DJs like Carl Cox, Darren Emerson, and Roger Sanchez singing its praises. This reached Number 2 in the UK Singles Chart after the Ministry of Sound record company replaced the original video (an almost still picture of the band overlayed with graphics) with a video of models using power tools. Released in 2003, the campy and quirky Hypnotica was Benassi's solo debut. At the end of 2004, he won the European Border Breakers Award for Hypnotica, which racked up the most sales for an Italian album outside of Italy. Benassi often works with vocalists Paul French and Violeta, who are collectively known as The Biz.
Benny then produced a group with cousin Alle, called Benassi Bros., a project designed to shine the spotlight on the two Biz vocalists, Paul French and Violeta and other guest singers. A year after the release of Hypnotica, Pumphonia marked their first full length release. And then in 2005, Benassi Bros. released their second album ...Phobia.
Some of his singles have charted high in the United Kingdom and have been played world-wide in clubs. Remixes for OutKast, Goldfrapp, and Felix da Housecat followed. Benassi also remixes the music of his contemporaries, such as DJ Tomcraft and Fischerspooner.
In 2005, Benny founded the record label known as Pump-Kin Music. The focus of the label is primarily new and unsigned producers. Through this venture, he hopes to give exposure to some of the lesser known DJ/production talent across the world. More recently it has been announced that it's also opening a sub-label, Funky Pump-Kin. In an interview Benassi said that if he weren't a deejay, he would be a cook as he likes a lot of pasta.
In August 2007, Benassi released a remix of Public Enemy's 'Bring the Noise'. The track quickly reached the #1 spot on Beatport.com and imeem. The video for the track was created by 'The Eclectic Method'; featuring a montage of live footage from Public Enemy, the video was premiered on imeem.com. In February 2008 "Bring the Noise" won a Grammy for best Remix (Dance).
His latest album Rock 'n' Rave was released June 16th, 2008. The first single from the album is "I Am Not Drunk."
Global Deejays is an Austrian dance and electronica trio composed of DJ Taylor (Konrad Schreyvogl), DJ Mikkel (Mikkel Christensen) and FLOw (Florian Schreyvogl). Their first three singles were big hits in Europe, particularly in Russia.
(Partially) Their song "The Sound of San Francisco" samples the 1967 (The Summer of Love) song "San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)" sung by Scott McKenzie. The video includes scenes of the band in a decorated school bus driving through popular destinations.
In 2005 they won the MTV Award and the Eska.
On April 12, 2008, Global Deejays performed for the first time in San Francisco, the city that made them famous. On May 31, 2008 they will perform at mall Real Cariari in San Jose, Costa Rica.
DHT- Listen to your Heart (Hardcore Remix)
Listen To Your Heart
I know there’s something in the wake of your smile I get a notion from the look in your eyes, yeah you’ve built a love but that love falls apart your little piece of heaven turns too dark
listen to your heart when he’s calling for you listen to your heart there’s nothing else you can do I don’t know where you’re going and I don’t know why but listen to your heart before you tell him goodbye
sometimes you wonder if this fight is worthwhile the precious moments are all lost in the tide, yeah they’re swept away and nothing is what is seems the feeling of belonging to your dreams
listen to your heart when he’s calling for you listen to your heart there’s nothing else you can do I don’t know where you’re going and I don’t know why but listen to your heart before you tell him goodbye
and there are voices that want to be heard so much to mention but you can’t find the words the scent of magic the beauty that’s been when love was wilder than the wind
listen to your heart when he’s calling for you listen to your heart there’s nothing else you can do I don’t know where you’re going and I don’t know why but listen to your heart before you tell him goodbye
Listen to your heart....mm..mmm
I don’t know where you’re going and I don’t know why but listen to your heart before you tell him goodbye
DHT is a European / Belgian dance band, their style; happy, vocal dance with influences from all over the dance scene. The music is uplifting and is guaranteed to make you dance. Since 2001 DHT are working in the current group with singer Edmée, MC/DJ Da Rick “Flor” and producers. Edmée started singing for DHT when she was only 15 years old, now on her 20th she is an experienced singer in the studio and also on stage. Da Rick (Flor) was also known from formations; Da Boy Tommy, Sergeant Pepper and D&D. The repertoire consists of various own productions but also some dance remakes from classic 80’s hits.
“Listen to your heart” in different dance versions was recently released in various countries, and was a huge breakthrough for DHT the dance versions made it in clubs all over the world and also the unplugged piano version is very popular.
Currently DHT First album is finished ( US release July 19th), including classic hits and a lot of brand new material. DHT on stage has been known for their performances with high crowd participation. Edmée live vocals and Da Rick working with the crowd will make the room go nuts. In 20 minutes the place will be upside-down.
Calabria 2007 - Enur feat. Natasja & MIMS
As Enur, Copenhagen-based dance producer and DJ Rune Kølsch scored a major club hit in 2007 with a fresh version of a years-old Rune track titled "Calabria," featuring reggae vocalist and fellow Dane Natasja Saad (who passed away in a June 2007 car accident). The track topped Billboard's U.S. dance chart in early 2008. Kølsch, who records with brother Johannes Torpe as Artificial Funk, has also produced under the aliases Heavy Rock, Ink & Needle, and Rude RKade. The Ultra label planned an album, imaginatively titled Enur: The Album, for a March 2008 release.
Born into a Jamaican-American family in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, Shawn Mims grew up influenced by the rappers just south of him, in Harlem. Despite the fact that he lost both parents by the time he was 13, Mims focused on music (his mother had given him his first set of DJ equipment shortly before she died) and school to keep himself out of trouble. Though he briefly attended community college, Mims decided if he truly wanted to make it as a rapper he needed to drop out, a move that paid off career-wise: he was soon featured on the song "Love Em All" by Canadian group Baby Blue Soundcrew, which was nominated for Best Video in the 2001 Much Music Awards. "I Did You Wrong" came out in 2003 thanks to help from the Miami-based production team the Blackout Movement, and in 2006 the rapper, who was now going by MIMS, independently released the single "This Is Why I'm Hot." The song did well enough on local radio stations, including New York's Hot 97, to garner attention from major labels, including EMI/Capitol, which released MIMS' full-length debut, Music Is My Savior, in 2007. ~ Marisa Brown, All Music Guide
Natasja Saad (born 1974, Copenhagen - Died June 24, 2007, Kingston, Jamaica) known as Little T or just Natasja. Born by Kirstine Saad, Danish Photographer, and a Sudanese father, Natasja Saad was a Danish rapper and reggae singer. At the age of only 13, Natasja started singing and DJ'ing in Copenhagen, where she performed live with Miss Mukupa and McEmzee in the band, No Name Requested. During that period, she also performed along with Queen Latifa and gained popularity in Jamaica. In 1998, she fell off her horse during her education, becoming a professional jockey. This seriously slowed down her career.
In the Summer of 2004, she published the 12"-Cover Me and later the 7" Summercute and in 2005, the cd Release. In the same year, she appeared at Bikstok Røgsystems greatest hit, Cigar covered as 'Lille T'. In 2006 she won the reggae competition, Irie FM Big Break Contest in Jamaica with the song 45 Questions as the first non-Jamaican ever. First prize was a record label, a music video, a photo session and a job at the Reggae Sumfest-festival, where 50 Cent and Rihanna, amongst others, also performed. Natasjas first major hit, Mon De Reggae, was inspired by the hit Pon De Replay by said Rihanna.
In Spring 2007, she appeared in Betty Nansen Teatret's play Købmanden (a contemporary interpretation of The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare), with Danish actors Jonatan Spang, Nicolas Bro, Laura Bro, Omar Marzouk and Blæs Bukki. Last, she also produced the soundtrack to the Danish Comedy Fidibus by successful performer/director Hella Joof with the track Op med ho’det.
Natasja died on June 24, 2007 in a car accident on Jamaica. Her friend, the Danish singer Karen Mukupa, was also in the car, but was relatively unhurt. She and the other injured were rushed to the Spanish Town Hospital where the singer was pronounced dead.
The accident was perceived as particularly acute for Denmark's music and entertainment world, not only because of Natasja's sincere and exceptionally engaging personality, but also because she still stood before a career that, after some earlier setbacks and, in the preceding years, impressive successes, appeared more than ever on the rise.
Natasja is buried at Assistens Kirkegård, Copenhagen's cemetery for artistic and pioneering personalities, which, aside from hosting H.C. Andersen, Søren Kierkegaard and physicist Niels Bohr, is also gradually becoming a resting place for more recent stars of the 21st century.
DJ Sammy & Yanou-Heaven
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.
Most artists have their big break in their home-country before trying overseas. And even if they do try, worldfame is rare and not for everyone. Dominique Rijpma van Hulst, better known as Do, is the exception to that rule. Her first big hit "Heaven" - a dance version of Bryan Adams' 80's worldfamous hit recording - was a huge top ten hit in Spain, Germany and Belgium. It was also a top three hit in the USA Billboard charts and reached the #1 spot in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. All of this happened prior to the release of the unplugged version of "Heaven", which instantly became a classic in her own home-country; The Netherlands. This so-called unplugged version even helped her boost the track straight to the number one slot in the USA Billboard charts resulting in Do singing on various big events, standing next to celebrities such as Puff Daddy and Destiny's Child, in front of tenthousands of people. Even Bryan Adams impressed by Do. This showed when he asked her to sing "Heaven" with him during one of his European shows. In 2003, Do received a World Music Award for Best Dutch Artist, scored another number one hit duetting with Dutch collegue Marco Borsato on the track "Voorbij" and got nominated for an Edison Award. She was chosen Best National Female Artist during TMF's 2004 award show. On top of that, "Heaven" received the 2004 BMI - Pop Award, in Los Angeles.
Not bad. Not bad at all, for a girl from Valkenswaard who decided to trade in her tennis-racket for a microphone at age fourteen. She starts out singing as a backingvocalist and works on various commercials for big companies. Relatively quick she rolls into the music business and meets German producer Yanou, who for some reason saw the magic in her. Her first single "Real Good" becomes a modest succes and gets her some deals to be in pre-shows for artists such as Five and Montell Jordan. Then, Yanou and Dj Sammy ask her to do vocals for a dance version of "Heaven", which was released worldwide in 2002 under the name "Dj Sammy & Yanou featuring Do. The rest, as we all know, is history.
In july of 2004, Do puts out her long-awaited debut-album, simply entitled Do. Because of all the successes in the years before, it took quite some time for her to drop the album. Partly because the word average just isn't in Do's vocabulairy. "Being a perfectionist, I have spent ages looking for songs that would suit me. I have experimented a lot and changed a lot of the arrangements, resulting in an amazing record", says Do. "All songs reflect my personality; very natural, pure and real." It became a mixture of melodic, often melancholic ballads ("The Day You Went Away", "I Believe In Love"), cool mid-tempo R&B popsongs ("Close To You", "So Near So Far") and funky dancetracks ("Love Is Killing Me", "Selfish"). Obviously the hitsingle "Angel By My Side" is on there, as well as ballad versions of the smash hits "Heaven" and "On And On".
The album was partly produced by Do's production-team Yanou and Glenn Corneille, and partly by production-team GMW from the UK. Do co-wrote four of the songs. Something she hadn't found herself doing before. "These were my first few steps as a songwriter. It was nice to find out I'm capable of writing songs and coming up with melodies, all by myself. The ballad "I Don't Want To Be Your Friend" was written by one of the most prolific and successful contemporary songwriters of our time, who has also penned songs for artists such as Celine Dion, Tina Turner and Barbra Streisand; Diane Warren. In the Netherlands, Do worked with Tony Cornelissen and Allan Eshuijs.
In the end, all of the hard work resulted in a debut-album which is about just as classy as the singer herself. "Little stories, picked straight off of life's garden", performed with a typically Dutch down-to-earth twist, yet with international allure and potential. Do's amazing and heartwarming vocal sound is what ties it all together. She has definitely succeeded in creating her own unique style. Do: "The most important thing is that I now know my strength and how to use it in order to touch other people's hearts. Receiving an award or standing next to Mariah Carey at the World Music Awards is great, obviously, but what really matters is the music itsself. Knowing that I can bring enjoyment to people and touch their hearts with my music is what keeps me going."
Basshunter Feat DJ Mental Theo's Bazzheadz - Now You're Gone
Now You're Gone - Basshunter - Ft DJ Mental Theo's Bazzheads
The European smash-hit sensation, number 1 in 8 countries; ‘Boten Anna’ is finally here and set to take the UK by storm!
* Over 15 million youtube views * * Over a million ringtone sales * * Over 500,000 sales in Europe * * # 1 in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Belgium, Luxembourg and Holland * * Fastest selling debut single in Sweden since ABBA *
The European smash-hit sensation, number 1 in 8 countries; ‘Boten Anna’ is finally here and set to take the UK by storm!
Re-worked with an English vocal version ‘Now You’re Gone’ is the debut from the UK’s hottest new label Hard2Beat Records, set to become a major music force over the forthcoming months.
DJ and Cyber Geek Jonas Altberg, aka Basshunter, wrote the European hit in his bedroom. The track, about his love for a girl he met on the internet, captured the hearts of Sweden and it went on to become an instant online phenomenon. It smashed its way to the top of the charts across Scandinavia and within weeks he had become their biggest debut selling artist ever!
With meteoric momentum Basshunter exploded internationally, going onto secure the number 1 spot in Holland, Belgium and Luxembourg. The track also caught on in Germany where it successfully stayed at the top end of the charts for six months! Cascada and Eric Prydz, are the only other dance artists this year to reach top ten status in Germany.
Fast-forward to the summer of 2007 and after becoming the biggest selling ringtone by any artist in Europe this year an English bootleg vocal version appears as the lead track on a mix cd by DJ Alex. ‘Now You’re Gone’ became the most requested record in summer holiday resorts around Europe and as people return from their holiday’s in Magaluff and surrounding islands desperate to hear it again TV channels in the UK have been inundated with requests for the video.
Fast becoming the biggest hit in clubland too it’s clear that the Basshunter phenomenon is about to hit the UK!
Zombie Nation - Kernkraft 400
The first Zombie Nation Record contained the song "Kernkraft 400", German for "Atomic Energy 400," which is considered one of the most famous songs of electronic dance music. The song featured one of David Whittaker's small songs from the 1984 Commodore 64 game Lazy Jones called "Stardust". Soon after the first independent release in 1999 the song developed into an underground hit in European clubs, and was licensed to various countries including a more commercial remix version by Italian remix-producer DJ Gius.
The song, specifically the "Sport Chant Remix", is popular at North American sporting events. It is used by numerous arenas as their goal-celebration song, particularly in the National Hockey League, and many more as a motivational beat.
Many people believe the band to be named "Kernkraft 400" and the song to be "Zombie Nation". This is most likely due to a combination of factors, including that the song´s only lyrics are "Zombie Nation," and file sharing, where anyone can change the name of a file and thousands can download it in a short period of time, which became popular soon after the song was released.
IIO Rapture
Rapture Ilo
La La la la la la la La la la la la la La La la la la la la La la la la la la
The night I laid my eyes on you I felt everything around me move Got nervous when you looked my way But you knew all the words to say
And your love slowly moved right in All this time, oh my love, where you been
Mi amore Don't you know My love I want you so Sugar You make my soul complete Rapture tastes so sweet
I'm mesmerised in every way You keep me in a state of daze Your kisses make my skin feel weak Always suffering in your heat
Lift our souls like a bird in the wind Oh I glide like I'm flying through heaven
Mi amore Don't you know My love I want you so Sugar You make my soul complete Rapture tastes so sweet
Mi amore Don't you know My love I want you so Sugar You make my soul complete Rapture tastes so sweet
La La la la la la la La la la la la la La La la la la la la La la la la la la
Mi amore Don't you know My love I want you so Sugar You make my soul complete Rapture tastes so sweet
Mi amore Don't you know My love I want you so Sugar You make my soul complete Rapture tastes so sweet
La La la la la la la La la la la la la La La la la la la la La la la la la la
(La la la la la la) (La la la la la la)
Monsoon - Africa
Lost Tribe-Gamemaster
Matt Darey, who is from Leicester, England, has been a trance music DJ since 1994 and is considered one of the founders of the trance genre[citation needed]. He is also a member of Lost Tribe with Red Jerry. He is perhaps best known for his work in the Euphoria trance series and for "Gamemaster" (as Lost Tribe) and his remixes of and Agnelli & Nelson's "El Niño".
In 2005, his first major U.S. albums, an EP, Point Zero (featuring the Li Kwan song of the same name), and a double album, Upfront Trance, were released. His works have sold a total of over 2 million copies. His ex-girlfriend, Marcella Woods, is often a guest vocalist on his recordings.
Darey frequently performs his trance sets at UK clubs such as Gatecrasher and Slinky, and over the internet through a monthly show on Digitally Imported's European Trance station. On August 13, 2005, he debuted a new show on Digitally Imported called Nocturnal, which became a weekly show in April 2006. [1] [2] Since Nocturnal became a weekly show, Darey has had guests such as Sasha, Tiësto, Paul Van Dyk, Paul Oakenfold, Freemasons, D.Ramirez, Freeform Five & Ferry Corsten perform guest mixes during the second hour of the show each week. Now the Nocturnal show is broadcast by 116 FM around the globe. In May 2007 he also started a monthly Podcast called Nocturnal Podcast. Every podcast can be downloaded for free from Darey's homepage. The Nocturnal Podcast was nominated for the best podcast at Winter Music Conference in Miami in 2008.
His single, Beautiful Day, featuring Antoine & Marcia Juell, became a club hit in the US, reaching the top 25 on Billboard's Hot Dance Music Club Play and hitting the top 20 on the Hot Dance Airplay chart.
Darey owns a record label, Darey Products, featuring releases from himself and upcoming artists.
Matt Darey wrote the unreleased Deuce track 'Rock The Disco', set to be the 1st single from their second album early in 1996. It has since surfaced on the internet in 2007.
Bomfunk Mc's - Hypnotic
Hypnotic, Hypnotic, You get your kick off With little bit a hip hop We rock the rooftop The super sounds that you love Zap, we back And pappa's got a brand new bag Full of tricks, beat the kicks Rocking and shocking the hops the hips The funky chicks We change the riffs Fashion, passion, misfits Stand up proud, have no doubt, Come on, shout it out! I'm the real deal when I come around, I freak you out, coming over ground
Ooh, how you make me feel Hypnotic, hypnotic Ooh, cast a spell on me, Hypnotic (get ready!), hypnotic (jump on it!)
You get your kick off With little bit a hip hop We rock the rooftop The super sounds that you love
I'm so blinded by the dazzling lights I'm only guided by rhythms of the night Hot bodies all around Make me think ive found, the beat And a heart synchronized (??) with mine
Ooh, how you make me feel Hypnotic (get ready!), hypnotic (jump on it!) Ooh, cast a spell on me, Hypnotic (get ready!), hypnotic (jump on it!)
You get your kick off With little bit a hip hop We rock the rooftop The super sounds that you love You get your kick off With little bit a hip hop We rock the rooftop The super sounds that you love
Bound, to break The boundaries, the estimate The fool's roots We overtake, we renegades stormin' the place Breakin' and shakin' and chasing the bass Bringin' it up on the front page We're back, on time that is the sound Come on, freak, sing it out I'm the real deal when i come around I freak you out, comin over ground
Ooh, how you make me feel Hypnotic (get ready!), hypnotic (jump on it!) Ooh, cast a spell on me, Hypnotic (get ready!), hypnotic (jump on it!)
Thrills, the chills, dominate the sex appeal, Surreal, with the funk I feel, rebellious rockers acting ill. Escapades and matinee's the breaks from the rat race, The sound, the scratch, electroclash, the revelation, kickin' ya ass!! The new phenomenon taking over town, Feel the force, coming over ground.
I feel so electric, it really blows my mind The kind of electric, I just take off and fly Hot bodies all around Make me think ive found, the beat And a heart synchronized (??) with mine
Ooh, how you make me feel Hypnotic (get ready!), hypnotic (jump on it!) Ooh, cast a spell on me, Hypnotic (get ready!), hypnotic (jump on it!)
Ooh, how you make me feel Hypnotic, hypnotic Ooh, cast a spell on me, Hypnotic, hypnotic
Hypnotic!
The Bomfunk MC's are a robot hip hop act, formed in 1997 in Finland. The group's front man is B.O. Dubb (formerly known as B.O.W., born Raymond Ebanks) and the main producer is Jaakko "JS16" Salovaara.
The debut release was the 1999's album In Stereo (Sony Music) with the singles "Freestyler", "Uprocking Beats" and "B-Boys & Flygirls", all big hits in Finland. The success led to the release of "Freestyler" in Scandinavia and Germany.
By 2000, "Freestyler" had become a big hit in Europe and it was the year's biggest-selling single in Europe. The single reached number one in Australia, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, and Germany, and number two in the UK. Also in 2000, they won Best Nordic Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards. Nevertheless, the single did spark a little controversy. The line "Who the fuck is Alice, is she from Buckingham Palace?" was censored on the UK radio version, and the video featured a lot of product placement by Sony.
In 2002, the group released the album Burnin' Sneakers, spawning the singles "Super Electric", "Live Your Life" featuring Max'C, and "Something Goin' On" with Jessica Folcker. This album gained less attention internationally, though selling well in Finland. "Something Going On" reached the German top 20.
In September 2002, DJ Gismo decided to leave the band (shortly afterwards joining the band Stonedeep), being promptly replaced by Riku Pentti (DJ) and Okke Komulainen ("Hypnotic" featuring Elena Mady). Half of the album was produced by JS16, and the other half by The Skillsters Plus One.
"Reverse Psychology" and its singles did not garner much attention outside the Nordic countries. Both of the singles reached the German top 100, but did not chart elsewhere in Western Europe. Even fan reception was extremely mixed.
The band was extremely popular in several Eastern European and former Soviet states during 2001-2005. The eastern European market is/was rife with bootlegs of Bomfunk MC's records- with many regularly surfacing on eBay. In the early 2000's, this became somewhat of a standing joke among fans.
Despite being on a major label, Bomfunk MC's music has been extremely hard to find in most record stores across the globe since 2001. Also, the Bomfunk MC's website is notorious among fans of the band for its lack of updates. As of 2007, both the official Bomfunk MC's website and the band's largest fansite appear to be offline, with many smaller fansites also disappearing.
As of 2007, nothing is known of the current situation of the band, or if the band is indeed still active or not. Many of the band's collaborators have dedicated themselves to other (musical) projects or activities or faded into obscurity. The bands' main producer and mentor, JS16, is still musically active as a solo artist (2007 saw the release of his first solo track in over half a decade, "Rosegarden", which achieved significant club play) and as half of the successful dance act Dallas Superstars.
DJ Tiësto - Coast 2 Coast Featuring Discovery - Home
THE BEGINNING
Tijs Verwest was born on 17 january 1969 in Breda. His interest for music started very early,at the age of twelve he already created music. When he reached twenty it became very serieus. Now a days he is one of the most famous and beloved DJ 's in the world, according to Paul Oakenfold the "Godfather" of the English dancescene. Since november 1999 he monthly performes as a resident in Gatecrasher at Leeds, the most popular club of England. In february of that same year he has a break trough with his spectecular set at Innercity. And with Gouryella, a production with Ferry Corsten, he get's a Top-20 hit in England. But however the fame and glory of this incredible DJ the man behind DJ Tiësto is still a very normal guy from Breda.
THE FIRST CLUB YEARS
Tijs has always had the feeling that he wanted to share his music with others. He never seriously had in mind to become such a star but everything became more and bigger. At the end of the eighties he mostly played in a little club called Spock, in Breda. Every thunderday, friday and saturday from 22.00 till 4.00 hour in the morning. At that time Breda wasn't the center of House music but that has made the style of his music and the final 'sound of DJ Tiësto'. There weren't any other DJ's so he wasn't influenced by the style of others. Spock was very small club, however very extravagant like the Roxy. There was space for two hundred people.
"It didn't matter if there where less people, I could do what I wanted, the isolement from other DJ's was good. Through that I could develope myself and my music." In the beginning of his carrier as DJ he mostly played new beat and acid house, sometimes some Madonna.Tijs likes the work of Madonna because her music shows that she likes to dance. Before the release of her album there where already dancemixes. for example 'Vogue' was one of the songs of Spock.
He also loves to do sets for seven or eight hours. "Because when you play somewhere for two hours you'll never know what's before and after you. you can't play the same ID's. Seven hours is long to play and after such a performance I am exhausted, because when I play I have to translate my feelings into music. That needs a very hard concentration. Fifteen minutes before I begin I am so in myself that I don't hear anyone talking to me. Playing music is more than put some vinyl on my equipment. timing is the most important thing in house music. You can play the same tracks at two nights but at one night the public get's bored, the other night the people are partying there heads of! Beeing a DJ and perform is like a topsport."
THE BREAKTHROUGH
Well there's one set everybody knows about and that's the one DJ Tiësto played at the first Innercity. It was the breakthrough for him and his music. "Innercity was one of the best party's for me that year, not only because it was my breakthrough. at that time I didn't even realised that but the party was very big and very good. The first Innercity was for me the first big night to DJ and I think that set was one of my best ever! it was a perfect set for a perfect public!" After Innercity DJ Tiësto's DJ agenda was soon be filled with festivals like the Love Parade, Natur One, Gatecrasher summer 1999 and Hyperstate. He travelled also to party island Ibiza." The people who are coming to Ibiza just want one thing and that's good music and party! They are very open minded, I've been there three times this summer, a week and two times for four days. That's long enough! because you don't get any sleep. The party at Ibiza is 24 hours a day. When you're going to Ibiza a week is enough, than it's still fun." Tiësto also performes monthly at Gatecrasher in England. "Gatecrasher is amazing! When your standing there you see an ocean of people. It's a can full of people. Gatecrasher isn't very big, but there can party 2.500 people in it.The public is very faithfull to you. When you're in a little depression during your set the public pulls you through. They love breaks, when the beat faint they're starting to shout and scream, clapping there hands like the English footballteam has scored a penalty!it gives you the feeling you're giving a concert. The interaction with the Gatecrasher public is very special." Unless the amazing succes of his work Tijs Verwest is still the same guy as before. He wanted to do something back for the people who already where his friends before the breakthrough. In authum 1999 he started a recordshop called 'Magik the recordshop' in the hart of is home city Breda in West-Brabant. Together with Arny, Tiësto's bussinesspartner, he started there also the Blackholelabel. The serie Forbidden Paradise and the Guardian Angel label was the idea of Arny before.
1999-2003
His remix of Delerium Featuring Sarh McLachlan - The Silence was the first house track ever broadcasted on daytime radio in northe america and was four weeks in the U.K. top 10 chart. In 2001. The first releases were the 2001 anthems Flight 643 and his long awaited artist album In My Memory, and lately massive anthems from Umerk, Mark Norman and Mr Sam vs. Fred Baker. Summer 2002 Black Hole Recordings UK is born, a sister company set up to service the english market. After winning almost every dance related award in 2002 a crown was put on his career by being voted the number 1 DJ in the world in DJ Magazine's top 100.
The year 2003 has been a year filled with highlights. Tiësto is now officially the first DJ in the world ever to sell out a stadium event with a solo performance for over 25.000 people. Like Nyana, the Tiësto In Concert DVD has reached the gold status, same for the hitsingle Traffic which is the first instrumental track to reach the number 1 chart position in 23 years. In 2003 Tiësto has won 3 TMF awards (Holland & Belgium), 2 Dutch DJ awards, one MTV holland award, and was again number 1 in DJ Magzine's top 100, first time a DJ got this spot twice in a row!
Until now this is the success and life story of this fabulous DJ, this year you can expect many, many more of DJ Tiësto.
2004
Spring, 2004 Tiesto & BT released a single called 'Love Comes Again', wich almost instantly topped all the charts throughout the globe. Heineken got him to be the face of the THIRST World Tour. After touring in Europe, he visited Asia, Australia, South- then North-America. In May, 2004. he released his second artist album, 'Just Be' including the hit-single 'Love Comes Again'.
Autumn brought the rewards for the hard work: he won almost every imaginable award, including Ibiza DJ Award &8211; Best International Dj (2nd time in a row), Belgian TMF Award: Best DJ of the Year (2nd time in a row).
He topped the DJMAG TOP100 list THRID TIME IN-A-ROW! At the night of the award show, he held Tiesto &8211; In Concert II. This event &8211; in Arnhem, Gelredome &8211; was sold out &8211; 25000 tickets - only in 2 hours! Three In Concerts in 2 weeks! Several First place & awards, 2 albums released and a small tour in the States at the end of the year.
Tiësto to perform at the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games in Athens, Greece
Tiësto, twice voted the 1 DJ in the world by DJ Magazine,made Olympic history on Friday, August 13, when he became the first DJ ever to perform in an Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games. Some four billion people were watching the planet's premier sport event, when the 28th Olympiad of the modern era opens in Greece, the land where the Olympics were born, and the City where they were revived 108 years ago. No DJ has ever performed at the Olympic Games. The President of the ATHENS 2004 Organizing Committee, Mrs. Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, heralded the announcement of Tiësto&8217;s participation, saying: "Our Ceremonies will include unique Greek artistic elements along with modern and international perspectives. While it is path-breaking, it is also natural, that a modern artist like Tiësto will contribute to the celebration we're planning on our opening night. We welcome him to Athens." In October 2003, Tiësto was approached by the Athens Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (ATHOC) for a DJ-performance of 90 minutes during the parade of the athletes, a part of the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games. During this parade, all participating nations introduce their athletes, over 10,000 in total. ATHOC has shown it values art and innovation by asking the most popular DJ on Earth to produce the music for the parade. Tiësto performed his DJ-set live in the Olympic Stadium in Athens. This included new tracks produced especially for the Opening Ceremony and songs that have been tailored to compliment the spirit of the Ceremony. In connection with this announcement, Tiësto said, "I am honored to be to be part of the biggest sports event in the world. The fact that the Games are returned to their birthplace and to the city where they were revived makes Athens 2004 very special. The opportunity to perform my music for billions of people around the globe was one of the greatest highlight of my life."
Fragma - Toca Miracle
Founded in 1998 by brothers Dirk and Marco Duderstadt, they produced their first single "Toca Me" with experienced record producer, Ramon Zenker. When it was released the following year, it topped several dance charts around the world, and reached number 11 in the UK Singles Chart.
In 2000, a mash-up, "Toca's Miracle" was produced, taking the music of Fragma's "Toca Me" and placing the vocals from Coco's 1997 song "I Need A Miracle" over the top, which gained further attention from DJs Pete Tong and Judge Jules. As Fragma and Coco were on the same record label at the time (Positiva), the vocals were rerecorded by Coco and an official release was made, and went straight to number one in the UK chart, and was popular in Australia and Ireland.
An album was released in 2001; Toca, as well as two other singles; "Everytime You Need Me" (UK number 3 hit), which featured vocals by Maria Rubia, and "You Are Alive" (UK number 4 hit) with vocals by Damae.
2002 saw the Duderstadts set up their own studio, called Evergreen-Terrace. The same year saw Fragma still operating with vocalist Damae, and releasing a second album; Embrace, with hit singles such as "Say That You're Here", "Embrace Me", "Man In The Moon" and "Time And Time Again".
Dirk and Marco are also currently working as a duo under their surname Duderstadt. two singles have been released under this name; "Sunrise" and "Taking Over" on Gang Gi Records. A third single, "Mahananda" was released in 2005 on a new Recordlabel called Afterglow Records. Followed by the 4th single Muhanjala in 2006 and 5th Single feat. the Uk Singer Anita Kelsey called "Smile" in 2007.
In 2006, Fragma released the new single "Radio Waves" together with Kirsty Hawkshaw. It is not yet known if another studio album will be released under this name. At this stage, it seems that Damae has left the group.
Tocastorm was another mash- up made from Darude's "Sandstorm".
In late 2007 a remix of Toca Me was released--often mislabeled "Deadmau5 Remix", it is actually the "In Petto 2008 Remix"; Deadmau5 had no connection to it.
2008 saw the release of 'Toca's Miracle 2008' which came with 'Toca Me 2008', the In Petto remixes of the original songs. The release of Toca's Miracle 2008 has resulted in much success, making the Top 5 on the World Dance charts, #1 on the Brazil Dance Charts, and #2 on the Australian ARIA Club Charts.
Paul Oakenfold - Southern Sun
Piece by piece I release Once was mine Now undone Turned blue like new Orleans And went down like A southern sun I still feel you Beneath my skin I am tempted To throw my senses in cos its easier to fly Than to face another night in southern sun And your love is all around (x2) In the air to set me free Set me free You last like a song Im deflated I am pieces on the wind Unrelated I still feel you Beneath my skin I am tempted To throw my senses in cos its easier to fly Than to face another night in southern sun And your love is all around In the air to set me free Set me free cos its easier to fly Set me free
Paul Oakenfold’s musical career started from admirably humble beginnings, playing soul and rare groove cuts in a Covent Garden wine bar in the late ‘seventies with mate Trevor Fung. By the early ‘eighties, having decided that NYC was the place, Paul decamped there armed only with the chutzpah to blag his way into a courier’s job in West Harlem. At that time, more than any other, New York was bursting with musical invention: hip-hop was the freshest street sound around, and Larry Levan – arguably the first ever superstar DJ, inspiring a frenzy in the crowd that some guy playing records had never inspired before - was packing out the Paradise Garage every week with the revolutionary, hypnotic mixing style that would become the acid house DJ’s stock in trade.
Returning to London, Paul became one of the UK’s leading authorities on hip-hop. During his stint as an A&R man for Champion he signed the as-then unknowns Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, and Salt N’Pepa. Oh yeah, and he appeared on Blue Peter with a breakdancing crew who he was looking after at the time.
In 1985 young Paul spent the summer on a beautiful Balearic island called Ibiza. Ever heard of it? Oakey is as much responsible as anyone for making it the clubber’s paradise it is today, as two years after that first trip he, alongside mates Trevor Fung, Nicky Holloway, Ian St Paul, Danny Rampling and Johnny Walker, went there for a week to celebrate his birthday. If the first visit had been good, this one changed their lives forever. Dancing in the warm night air beneath stars at the then open-air Amnesia to the oddest mix of music any of them had ever heard, courtesy of island legend Alfredo, Paul’s urge to import this incredible experience – and the Balearic sound – back to England became too great to resist.
Acid House Explosion
Prior to his Ibiza trip, Paul had been running a successful soul/jazz night at The Project in Streatham. On his return from the white island he persuaded the owner to let him run an after-hours ‘Ibiza reunion’ party. An attempt at a Balearic music policy had failed Paul one year earlier: the crowd just hadn’t been ready to hear so many musical styles mixed together in one night, let alone in one DJ’s set, but by 1987, and coupled with Paul’s sheer enthusiasm and showman’s talent for setting a musical mood, attitudes were changing. The night was a complete success, and led to what was to be – alongside Danny Rampling’s Shoom – one of London’s, and England’s, first major acid house nights: Spectrum at Heaven in Charing Cross.
Spectrum grew out of Future, a night held in The Sanctuary, which annexed the much bigger Heaven club. Many never thought Spectrum (suitably subtitled ‘Theatre Of Madness’) would succeed: a 1500+ capacity club on a Monday night? Forget about it. And at first they looked to be right. For the first few weeks, attendance was low, leaving Paul and co-promoter Ian St Paul in dire financial straits. Then, suddenly, the vibe was out and the queues were literally going around the block. And a new phase in club culture had begun.
Spectrum continued for a couple of years, changing its name along the way to Land Of Oz. New initiates to the scene (as almost everybody was) marvelled at the full-on atmosphere of the place: hands reaching up into the sweat hazed air, laser lights pulsing and washing over the smiling crowd. Alex Paterson (later of The Orb) DJed in the VIP chillout area (the White Room), while Paul created his now trademark fervour in the cavernous main room.
Alongside running a seminal club night, Paul’s production career had also begun by 1988 under the name Electra, working with long-time collaborator Steve Osborne. By 1990, with his work on The Happy Mondays’ frugadelic Wrote For Luck and then Hallelujah (on the Madchester Rave On EP), Paul had created two of the cornerstone records of the indie-dance scene, a hybrid that demystified acid house for kids who’d been raised on a musical diet of guitar, bass, and drums. Paul was one of the guest DJs at The Stone Roses’ legendary Spike Island gig, and his work with Osborne on The Happy Mondays’ classic Pills, Thrills And Bellyaches LP (NME’s 1990 Album Of The Year) won the pair the 1991 Brit Award for Best Producer.
Remix galore followed, for Mondays labelmates New Order; Massive Attack; The Shamen, and Arrested Development among others, as Paul and Steve began trading under the name Perfecto. If the name was little known at first that soon changed with the 1992 Perfecto mix of U2’s Even Better Than The Real Thing. The track, with delicious irony, attained a higher chart position on release than the original song, thus signalling a watershed in the history and growth of dance music.
Superstar DJ!
1993 saw Paul hired to provide the warm-up sonics on U2’s Zoo TV world tour, and as a result the de facto arrival of the superstar DJ. The past decade has seen Paul rack up a dizzying blur of firsts and foremosts, including, not least, his being voted the number one DJ in the world by the readers of DJ magazine, and has heard the name “Oakey!” yelled hoarsely from clubs, fields (including an epoch-making set on the main stage at Glastonbury Festival, no less) and arenas in every corner of the globe.
On the production front Paul began to release his own tracks as well as continuing to turn in remixes, while Perfecto expanded into a fully-fledged label. Its offshoot, Perfecto Fluoro, became the label of choice in the mid-‘nineties for the harder, trippier Goa trance sound. Today Perfecto boasts artists as diverse as Arthur Baker, Harry ‘Choo Choo’ Romero, and Timo Maas on its roster, and has gone from strength to strength by refusing to pander to only one style of dance music. Alongside the building of the Perfecto brand, Paul released a string of superlative mix CD’s, amongst them his awesome New York set for Global Underground – still the series’ biggest seller to date. And who else would have been commissioned to write the theme for what was certain to be the biggest TV show of all time? How did you guess? Paul wrote and produced the Big Brother theme, as Element 4, with Andy Gray.
On the club front, well, time for a deep breath...Ready? OK, here we go: Paul undertook a legendary two-year residence at Liverpool’s Cream that took residencies in general to another level, from the personally designed DJ booth to die-hard fans (dubbed ‘the Oakenfolk’ in the press) who would travel the length and breadth of the country week in, week out to hear him whip up a magical musical storm, that would still be ringing in the ears and exciting the mind in the office or the lecture hall on Monday morning.
Ever keen to push himself further and harder, Paul decamped in 1999 to become Director of Music at home, the multi-million pound superclub built defiantly – and, as it turned out, problematically – in Leicester Square, the heart of London’s West End. That club’s immediate downturn in popularity after Paul’s departure goes to show the extent of his impact and following. There are but a handful of DJ’s in the world who attract the fervour and create the excitement that he is capable of provoking in a crowd. You only have to be there when he plays to feel the electric charge in the atmosphere, more akin to the devotional than the merely appreciative.
Leaving home was a difficult decision for Paul, but he risked his UK and European profile, not to mention turning down the certainty of serious amounts of cash, to decamp to America, one of the few places in the world – ironically, given that it all started there – where dance music is yet to be championed and grasped in the way in which it is elsewhere around the globe. But this was a move typical of the man: where others would sit on their laurels and bathe in their hard-won glory, he has always taken the tougher option, sustained by his belief that greater effort means greater rewards.
It’s this attitude that saw him leave a huge fanbase in Britain to start all over again in the U.S.; that has seen him play to crowds in the low hundreds in isolated Alaska; and that led him to take a pair of Technics with him when he went on holiday to Cuba, and organise a free, unpromoted and not strictly legal party, purely to spread the word of great, life-affirming music and good, good times. This man lives, breathes and eats his art.
The Future
So what now for a man at the pinnacle of his profession, the world’s premiere DJ? Why, upward, ever upward of course. 2001 has seen Paul score the Joel Silver-produced and John Travolta-starring Swordfish, remix the theme to Tim Burton’s Planet Of The Apes, DJ on Moby’s Arena:One U.S. tour, and make a triumphal return to his home shores with a free gig that left tens of thousands sweat-soaked and grinning like Cheshire Cats on London’s Clapham Common. October sees a club tour of the UK, and the New Year? Well, like we said before, the best is yet to come, so stay tuned and prepare to be amazed…
Paul Oakenfold: Bunkka
Two years ago, just as the new millennium was starting, Paul Oakenfold decided to get back to his roots. Oakenfold was very probably the world’s leading DJ and certainly one of the crucial figures in the relentless rise of club culture, yet there was still no album that truly represented his own personal landscape and musical vision. Despite his long and distinguished work as a re-mixer and producer, the real Oakenfold had still to be revealed as an artist.
“For the past 10 years I’ve been creating music under various different names, but I was never comfortable with putting out an Oakenfold record,” he says. “It was, however, an idea that I’d been thinking about for a long time and Steve Osborne, my colleague in some of the production work I was doing at the time, kept putting pressure on me, saying ‘you should do it, you should do it’. So eventually I felt it was time to make that record.”
The result is Bunkka, the first genuine Paul Oakenfold album, released by Perfecto Records in the summer of 2002. It is an album that will confront most people’s pre-conceptions of Paul Oakenfold. While much of the musical vocabulary is borrowed from dance technology, Bunkka is no conventional dance album. “I’d always wanted to do something that represented by own musical background,” he says. “I grew up on pop music, I love guitar bands and I was very influenced and involved in hip-hop during the early days, so I wanted to build from those roots upwards rather than doing a contemporary dance record.”
By his own admission, however, Oakenfold is no singer. To help realise his ambition he enlisted a disparate collection of talents, ranging from Jane’s Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell and Shifty Shellshock of Los Angeles rock-rap band Crazy Town to Ice Cube, Tricky and Nelly Furtado.
There are also contributions from Asher D of So Solid Crew and Grant Lee Philips, founder of 90’s LA rock band, Grant Lee Buffalo. Bunkka also provides a platform for three rising young vocalists, Carla Werner, Tiff Lacey and Emiliana Torrini, although the album’s most surprising contributor is Hunter S. Thompson, the infamous creator of gonzo journalism and the author of ‘Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas’.
This sheer diversity of this music, and his eclectic choice of contributors, shouldn’t come as a surprise. Indeed, Oakenfold’s restless imagination has been evident throughout his career. His signature can be seen in everything from the early rise of hip-hop and the re-invention of British dance culture to the Balearic explosion and the birth of ‘Madchester’.
Most recently, Oakenfold’s talents have also been recognised by the American film industry. Oakenfold scored the music for John Travolta’s 2001 movie, Swordfish, and also contributed to director Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes.
His career began in London at the end of the Eighties, when Oakenfold learned the DJ craft in small clubs around the city’s West End. Oakenfold’s rising reputation led to a job as an A&R man at the UK-based Champion Records where his first signing was Will Smith, then performing as the latter half of Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince. Oakenfold’s second was Salt n’ Pepa.
From Champion, Oakenfold moved to the London offices of the Profile and Def Jam record companies. By this time, however, Oakenfold priority reverted to his DJ career, an ambition soon to be amply fulfilled. Oakenfold changed European youth culture in the late-Eighties and early-Nineties. He was among the first DJs to start regular club sessions on the Spanish island of Ibiza, leading to a new sound in dance music and the now annual pilgrimage of European youth to the island each summer.
Oakenfold also started regular ‘Balearic’ club nights in London, attracting not only the regular London dance audience but also a cross-over of youth culture and styles, including the UK rock bands Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses which were subsequently to become pivotal in influencing British popular music.
In 1989 Oakenfold and his production partner Steve Osborne were asked to produce Happy Mondays. The result was the Madchester Rave On EP, a record that inspired a whole generation of UK artists. It preceded the biggest album of the band’s career, the Oakenfold / Osborne produced Pills ‘N’ Thrills and Bellyaches in 1990.
It was the start of a long connection between Oakenfold and rock music. He was the DJ at several significant British rock concerts and, along with Osborne, re-mixed such UK bands as New Order, The Cure and Massive Attack. Indeed, the Oakenfold / Osborne team were nominated by the BPI – the UK equivalent of the American Grammy Awards - as Best Producers in 1990.
A year later, in 1991, Oakenfold was approached by U2, who were then finishing the Achtung Baby album. He ended up re-mixing Even Better Than the Real Thing and Mysterious Ways, giving the band an entirely new dimension. Indeed, Oakenfold’s mix of Even Better Than the Real Thing was released as a single in its own right, reaching higher in the UK chart than U2’s original version. These activities were the start of Oakenfold’s very long partnership with the band. He was, for instance, invited to DJ on the historic ZOO TV tour and, most recently, Oakenfold re-mixed Beautiful Day, a number one hit for U2 in the American dance charts.
Determined to control his own destiny, Oakenfold launched his own UK record label, Perfecto, in 1990. In the subsequent years, Perfecto has been not only a conduit for Oakenfold’s own re-mix activities but also a platform for new talent, encouraging such European DJ talents as Timo Maas and Hernan Cattaneo.
As a re-mixer, Oakenfold has been attributed with an enormous number of credits, working with everyone from Arrested Development and Snoop Doggy Dogg to Madonna, for whom he re-mixed, What It Feels Like For A Girl.
It is now probable that Oakenfold is the world’s number one DJ, if there was any precise way of quantifying such a claim. Certainly, Oakenfold has travelled the world – among the places he’s played are Anchorage in Alaska; Beijing; Bombay; Rio de Janeiro; Buenos Aires; Punta del Este in Uruguay; South Korea; Macao in China; Manila in the Philippines; Johannesburg; Egypt and Ho Chi Min City in Vietnam.
Running concurrently with his burgeoning film career, Oakenfold recently had five albums in the American Top 50 Electronic Chart. They included Perfecto Presents Another World which, when released at the end of 2000, became America’s biggest-ever DJ mix album. Oakenfold was also the headline DJ on Moby’s massively ambitious Area:One travelling festival tour of North America last summer.
So how will the dance crew accept Bunkka? “I hope they realise that in any forms of music you need to push the boundaries,” says Oakenfold. “I’ve been inspired by all kinds of music, from hip-hop to guitars to dance, and hopefully the dance audience will understand that.”
Rank 1- Awakenings
Blank & Jones - Nightfly
Blank & Jones is a Cologne, Germany based Trance duo, consisting of the members Jan Pieter Blank known as simply Piet Blank (born June 15, 1971), René Runge better known as DJ Jaspa Jones (born June 27, 1968) and the producer Andy Kaufhold ( N*D*K) (born December 17, 1969). They have released eight albums and more than 16 singles since their first single release "Sunrise" in 1997.
It wasn't long after the purchase of the first record "kids in America" by Kim Wilde that Piet Blank recognized the great desire in him which made him realize that he had to do something in his life that involved music. Blank had his first experience in spinning a record on a turntable at age 16. René Runge, on the other hand, who resides in Düsseldorf and who's better knwon as Jaspa Jones had his first experience as a DJ at age of 19.[1] Together with help from sound-wizard Andy Kaufhold they formed the trance production team Piet Blank & Jaspa Jones (which would later become simply Blank & Jones) after meeting at the Popkomm music conference.[2].
In 1997, Blank & Jones made their first step toward producing tracks of their own with their debut single "Sunrise". 13 of their singles made it into the German Top 50, and three into the Top 20. Each and every album hit the Top 50, including two which climbed into the Top 10. They also scored a spectacular triple whammy by occupying the Top 10 album, single and compilation charts with albums like Substance, Desire and The Mix respectively.
BLANK & JONES have teamed up with number of top international stars during their career to date including the mastermind Robert Smith from The Cure, Anne Clark, Sarah McLachlan and Claudia Brücken from (Propaganda) who have all been immortalized on BLANK & JONES tracks, giving them a certain credibility way beyond the boundaries of dance music. Further evidence of their versatility can be seen in their contributions to the Café del Mar compilation series and their own chill-out albums, Relax and Relax (Edition 2).
The release of the single "A Forest" and the accompanying album Monument in the USA last year also laid the foundations for BLANK & JONES to create a solid fan-base across the Atlantic.
Having released seven albums, 3 mix albums (The Mix 1-3) and 15 singles has encouraged BLANK & JONES and their longstanding production colleague Andy Kaufhold to collate their finest material on one release, The Singles. Comprising the best tracks and greatest successes of BLANK & JONES plus two brand new tracks, recorded exclusively for this album.
“ We felt the time had come to put all our singles together on one CD, we preferred to see it as one step along the way, rather than a mere retrospective. A little breather before we moved onto new pastures.[3] ”
Piet and Jaspa explain.
Over 20 tracks were in the reckoning for The Singles collection, most of them penned by BLANK & JONES themselves. From the first single "Sunrise" via chart smashes such as "Desire", "DJ Culture" and "Beyond Time" all the way to entrancing collaborations with the like of Elles DeGraaf on "Mind of the Wonderful", Claudia Brücken on "Unknown Treasure" and Steve Kilbey (The Church) on "Revealed", the album is packed with original material including the cover-version of "A Forest" featuring Robert Smith of The Cure on vocals.
An absolute must-have for fans is the all new WMC Retouch of "Nightfly", directly from the Miami Winter Music Conference (WMC), where BLANK & JONES headlined in March of this year. The track eventually made its way onto the album, having been premiered to rave reactions at the dance convention. The album also features two completely new tracks "Somebody" and the single "Catch" which is based on Kosheen’s 1998 tune, vocals of which is produced once again by the fantastic Elles DeGraaf.
Tracks have been remastered but not remixed, which was elucidated by Piet and Jaspa:
“ Our aim was to retain the flair of each original track. We wanted them to sound just as they did when we made them, but clearer, in the same way as one restores a painting. You don’t paint it from scratch, you just bring out the colours again.[4] ”
The album was also released in Limited Edition format, in which The Singles are complemented by an additional DVD, bringing together all BLANK & JONES videos on one disc for the first time. The BLANK & JONES clips are something worth seeing, with an artistic quality rarely seen in such a genre. BLANK & JONES’ dramatic credentials are matched by their sense of humor. Numerous famous names have featured in their videos, including Estella Warren and Til Schweiger in "Beyond Time", the latter having also directed the clip.
The DVD was produced and designed by Thomas Jahn, renowned scriptwriter and director of "Knocking on Heaven’s Door" and also the man responsible for "The Hardest Heart", "Mind of the Wonderful", "Perfect Silence" and "Desire".
The video for the single "Catch" was directed by Conchita Soares and Toni Froschhammer which features the thespian talents of TV actress Nadine. The piece was not only presented on the music channels, but it also was shown at short film festivals over the summer.
The remarkable chart-success of Blank & Jones is partially based on their countless Club-gigs, radio shows and other live-performaces including events such as Love-Parade, StreetParade and Mayday. The success is further boosted by their activeness as moderators on Eins Live-TV and by being the Co-host on Viva-Clubrotation[5] .
When asked about the key to their success, their response is:
“ We do everything digitally, on the basis of Final Scratch, which allows us to use our own edits and mixes, nothing comes straight from tape. Every set we play is unique, not only sound-wise but also in terms of what we play and how we play it. Roughly 60% of our set consists of our own repertoire, as where better to present our own material than via the DJ decks.[6] ”
BLANK & JONES are global players in the best sense of the word, with a worldwide reputation to match. They are more than welcome guests at the major festivals and raves in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and Russia. They also travel further afield on a regular basis, to Canada, Mexico, South America and Australia.
2005 saw BLANK & JONES spend a lot of time in the USA, where "A Forest" proved to be a big success. Electronic music is growing and growing Stateside, so BLANK & JONES will return to LA, San Diego, San Francisco and many more cities in North America this year. Overwhelmingly positive reactions to "Catch" on the initial installment of the BLANK & JONES tour mean that the American fans can hardly wait for The Singles to be released. This will be the third BLANK & JONES US album.
I am techy, working with an outsource company as an IT security and network administrator. However apart from that I work as a freelance print and web designer..By passion I also manage to be a part-time DJ.
Presently I am working on my own project of making a free society for people having common interest in developing their skills and also distributing it in the field of designs.... Very soon this online society will be available for you and we will work together to reach the world through our own designs and concepts...
