Just what the Youtube commentator said: More (808?) cowbell!
141 G - WHAT YOU GONNA DO (12" DUB)
In 2012 Tako Reyenga and Ilias Pitsios (a.k.a. DJ Dynamons) compiled the collection Into The Light: A Journey Into Greek Electronic Music, Classics & Rarities (1978-1991), a finest mixture of obscure & classic Greek electronic tracks that were released a long time ago... I am starting to think that an alternate title of the collection could be After Vangelis, Before Stereo Nova!
The collection includes tracks of different genres, varying from Ambient & Experimental to Synth-Pop & Italo Disco. According to Discogs, only 750 copies of the compilation circulated in the market (this fact could explain the high prices in market places 5 years later).
One of the standout tracks (and possibly the most club-friendly) is the dub version of What You Gonna Do?, a rework of an Italo Disco song by 141 G, consisting of Costas Charitodiplomenos & Marina Skiadaresi. Needless to say, Costas was a prominent figure of the 80's, as he was dominating the Greek music scene of this era with classics such as Lost In The Night, Fill Me Up and Talk About Love. Concerning Marina, I was not aware that her career had already started so early, since he gained more fame during the 90's in the Greek Folk Rock genre.
WYGD? was originally released in 1984 by EMI in Greece. While the original is (in my opinion) pretty much forgettable, the dub version is rather interesting. Twangy bass, playful piano and (more) cowbell blend together to form an electrified psychedelic result. The highlight of the track is undoubtedly the distorted vocals (the benefits of the vocoder!), which are sounding like Costas was replaced by his robotic equivalent!
Besides WYGD?, the compilation by Into The Light Records is a must-have for listeners interested in the Greek experimental music of this era, curated by masters such as Akis Daoutis, Dimitris Petsetakis, George Theodorakis (son of the legendary Greek composer Mikis) and Lena Platonos (a major influence on Stereo Nova's music)...
What can we except from Into The Light Records in the future? Hopefully, a repress of the compilation!
Κυριακή 9 Ιουλίου 2017
Κυριακή 11 Ιουνίου 2017
Tune #79: C.M. - Dream Universe
A forgotten gem from the past:
C.M. - DREAM UNIVERSE
C.M. stands for Crystal Manoeuvres, the birth child of Belgians Crisci Mauro & Marino Stephano. Little information can be found for Mr. Crisci, so the spotlight belongs to Mr. Marino.
Marino's first exposure to electronic music dated back to 1995, when he partnered with Meo Lorenzo to form Zodiac and M.Zone. Their first works were released in Belgium by Rhythm And Groove Records, an offshoot of Mackenzie Records. The latter has long served as a musical home for many young Belgian artists (even for the relatives of Marino & Mauro!).
In 1996 Marino teamed up with Mauro as C.M., in order to produce their first EP After Dream/Dream Universe. The presence of DU in the B-side of the EP indicated that the duo possibly believed more in the potential of the first track. However, Dream Universe was the track that captured the interest of trance community, so in the next year it was released as a maxi single in German label Fog Area. In 1998, it was presented to UK crowd by Hooj Choons, one of the most famous progressive labels. Remixes of the track were performed by DJ George's (resident DJ of Belgian club La Bush), Tilt, Taucher and Man With No Name (an essential curator for Goa trance). According to Discogs, 34 releases of the maxi can be found throughout the years (mainly by Fog Area & Hooj Choons), while the different versions of the track were featured in dozens of DJ mixes and compilations!
Marino had a great talent in crafting melodic trance tracks, being melancholic and blissful at the same time. Other known tracks produced by him are Eternal Rhapsody, Dream's Harmony (a collab with Stephane Kalpakidis aka DJ Kalpa) and Good Shot as Hand's Burn (another alias of Marino & Crisci).
Unfortunately, on 8 September 1999 he found a tragic death at the age of 25 years. On his way to meet fellow producer Dirk Dierickx (most known for his M.I.K.E. and Push aliases), he was involved in a fatal car accident. Dierickx's track Till We Meet Again is dedicated to memory of Marino, whose sudden passing was a tremendous loss for the electronic music community.
P.S. I definitely found another reason why I like the track so much (except that it is great!). The background bassline is similar to that of the legendary Odyssey To Anyoona!
C.M. - DREAM UNIVERSE
C.M. stands for Crystal Manoeuvres, the birth child of Belgians Crisci Mauro & Marino Stephano. Little information can be found for Mr. Crisci, so the spotlight belongs to Mr. Marino.
Marino's first exposure to electronic music dated back to 1995, when he partnered with Meo Lorenzo to form Zodiac and M.Zone. Their first works were released in Belgium by Rhythm And Groove Records, an offshoot of Mackenzie Records. The latter has long served as a musical home for many young Belgian artists (even for the relatives of Marino & Mauro!).
In 1996 Marino teamed up with Mauro as C.M., in order to produce their first EP After Dream/Dream Universe. The presence of DU in the B-side of the EP indicated that the duo possibly believed more in the potential of the first track. However, Dream Universe was the track that captured the interest of trance community, so in the next year it was released as a maxi single in German label Fog Area. In 1998, it was presented to UK crowd by Hooj Choons, one of the most famous progressive labels. Remixes of the track were performed by DJ George's (resident DJ of Belgian club La Bush), Tilt, Taucher and Man With No Name (an essential curator for Goa trance). According to Discogs, 34 releases of the maxi can be found throughout the years (mainly by Fog Area & Hooj Choons), while the different versions of the track were featured in dozens of DJ mixes and compilations!
Marino had a great talent in crafting melodic trance tracks, being melancholic and blissful at the same time. Other known tracks produced by him are Eternal Rhapsody, Dream's Harmony (a collab with Stephane Kalpakidis aka DJ Kalpa) and Good Shot as Hand's Burn (another alias of Marino & Crisci).
Unfortunately, on 8 September 1999 he found a tragic death at the age of 25 years. On his way to meet fellow producer Dirk Dierickx (most known for his M.I.K.E. and Push aliases), he was involved in a fatal car accident. Dierickx's track Till We Meet Again is dedicated to memory of Marino, whose sudden passing was a tremendous loss for the electronic music community.
It is really a shame that none of his works appears in the retrospective collection TSOB - The Sound Of Belgium, which focused more on Belgium's EBM/New Beat era (1988 - 1991) and featured only the most famous tracks of other genres (like Joey Beltram - Energy Flash, T 99 - Anasthasia and others). In my opinion, his tracks were a proper interpretation for the melodic side of trance, compared with the anthemic Dutch sound, which ruled the EDM industry in late 90's - early 00's.
Κυριακή 7 Μαΐου 2017
Tune #78: Leftfield - Space Shanty
Leftism is a landmark album by Leftfield that defined the electronic scene of the 90's. Released (for the first time) in 1995, it was the apotheosis of old school progressive house, which was already blooming in UK. Leftfield was originally a project created by Neil Barnes in 1990 with the production of Not Forgotten, which is claimed to be the first progressive house track ever*. One year later, Neil teamed up with percussionist Paul Daley, who remixed Not Forgotten in its most popular form: the Hard Hands version! Both versions of the track were released by short-lived Outer Rhythm records, which ceased to exist in 1992.
The closing of Outer Rhythm led the duo to form their own label, which shared the same name with the Hard Hands remix. The label acted as a beacon to promote the dubby-house sound with deep basslines and tribal rhythms. Leftfield was still the central point of Hard Hands, followed by new artists.
In 1999, the second album Rhythm And Stealth was released by Hard Hands: dub elements & fat basslines were still dominant here, but in a dirtier and darker manner. Although it is also a great album, it never reached the status of Leftism for most listeners.
It was certain that the presence of Leftfield would be everywhere in the 90's. The seminal Renaissance: The Mix Collection featured 3 different versions of track Song Of Life, one after the other. Their music was also included in the original music scores of Gen-X films (Hackers, Trainspotting, The Beach). Neil Barnes and Paul Daley are also responsible for one of the most influential Essential Mixes (1994), as featured in Pete Tong's weekly radio show.
Leftfield stopped as a duo in 2002, when the two guys decided to pursue different paths. The project was revived in 2010 by Barnes for a live tour, in order to relive the great times of the past. In 2015, the third album Alternative Light Source saw the light of day, having an extremely different style in comparison with the classic "Leftfield sound" (Mr. Barnes should have chosen a different alias for ALS).
Twenty-two years after its initial release, Leftism is back again in a new remastered version and with new remixes! It is time to remember some of the finest moments of the original album:
- the acid prog monsters Song Of Life & Space Shanty
- the African tribal feeling of Afro-Left
- the collaboration with John Lydon of Sex Pistols in Open Up
- the dub breakbeat of Inspection (Check One)
LEFTFIELD - SPACE SHANTY
For some funny reason, this track reminds me of Dhalsim's theme in the innovative Street Fighter II (also a landmark in video gaming history!!!).
* The same claim exists for Andrew Weatherall's remix on Sly And Lovechild - The World According To Sly & Lovechild. According to Neil Barnes, Andrew Weatherall's early sets had a large influence on him and helped shaping the basic elements of progressive house.
The closing of Outer Rhythm led the duo to form their own label, which shared the same name with the Hard Hands remix. The label acted as a beacon to promote the dubby-house sound with deep basslines and tribal rhythms. Leftfield was still the central point of Hard Hands, followed by new artists.
In 1999, the second album Rhythm And Stealth was released by Hard Hands: dub elements & fat basslines were still dominant here, but in a dirtier and darker manner. Although it is also a great album, it never reached the status of Leftism for most listeners.
It was certain that the presence of Leftfield would be everywhere in the 90's. The seminal Renaissance: The Mix Collection featured 3 different versions of track Song Of Life, one after the other. Their music was also included in the original music scores of Gen-X films (Hackers, Trainspotting, The Beach). Neil Barnes and Paul Daley are also responsible for one of the most influential Essential Mixes (1994), as featured in Pete Tong's weekly radio show.
Leftfield stopped as a duo in 2002, when the two guys decided to pursue different paths. The project was revived in 2010 by Barnes for a live tour, in order to relive the great times of the past. In 2015, the third album Alternative Light Source saw the light of day, having an extremely different style in comparison with the classic "Leftfield sound" (Mr. Barnes should have chosen a different alias for ALS).
Twenty-two years after its initial release, Leftism is back again in a new remastered version and with new remixes! It is time to remember some of the finest moments of the original album:
- the acid prog monsters Song Of Life & Space Shanty
- the African tribal feeling of Afro-Left
- the collaboration with John Lydon of Sex Pistols in Open Up
- the dub breakbeat of Inspection (Check One)
LEFTFIELD - SPACE SHANTY
For some funny reason, this track reminds me of Dhalsim's theme in the innovative Street Fighter II (also a landmark in video gaming history!!!).
* The same claim exists for Andrew Weatherall's remix on Sly And Lovechild - The World According To Sly & Lovechild. According to Neil Barnes, Andrew Weatherall's early sets had a large influence on him and helped shaping the basic elements of progressive house.
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