Tune #119: Stelios Vassiloudis - Entropy

I believe that I should have written a dedicated post about Stelios Vassiloudis a long time ago, but I guess better late than never.

Stelios Vassiloudis is a Greek electronic music producer and DJ, hailing from Athens. He has established a solid musical background at a very early age, given that he had started playing piano at 5 years old and had studied music theory along with other instruments. The first listening experiences from his parents music collection (ranging from The Beatles and Pink Floyd to Bach and Beethoven) and his studies at a music school have influenced him to evolve his style throughout the years.

His first productions can be found in the early 2000s, focused on progressive house (if you remember, it was the dominant electronic music genre of that era). His collaboration with Viton Mavropoulos to create Wooden Swordz (2004), a nod to the famous homonymous Greek rock band (Ξύλινα Σπαθιά) using a sample taken from the band's track "O Vasilias Tis Skonis", remains still a highlight in the history of Greek electronic dance music.

After this seminal release, he secured releases in various popular labels of that time (Audio Therapy, Electronic Elements, Armada, Renaissance, etc.) either as a producer or as a remixer; his remix on Arenok - Free Yourself is a representative example of his editing skills.

During the early years, Stelios Vassiloudis has adopted his alias Stel for his productions (a nickname still used for his late night DJ sets as Best Radio 92.6). In 2011 it was time to release with his original name the first studio album It Is What It Is, a splendid continous mixture of progressive and tech house with downtempo and ambient elements. The 2-CD album was released in Bedrock (the legendary label of John Digweed and Nick Muir) and has marked a long-standing collaboration until today.

Naturally, his works have been supported by prominent DJs (Sasha, John Digweed, Josh Wink, Laurent Garnier, Steve Bug) and therefore he was granted the opportunity to travel in several places around the globe to perform as a DJ.

In 2022, his second album All Else Fails was released (in the equally seminal record label Balance) and personally this specific work showcased his evolution as a music producer. The shift from club-friendy tracks to an ambient and experimental orientation indicate his versatility in the music production. While I am not familiar with all of his works (in 2023 his third studio album was released by Bedrock), I would dare to say that he is one of my favorite contemporary artists in the field of electronic music.

So, which track is to be selected for today's post? I choose Entropy from his first album, because acoustically (for me) it represents the first ambient signs that would be more evident in his later works.

STELIOS VASSILOUDIS - ENTROPY

P.S. Wishing everyone a Happy 2025!

Label Realm: Evoking music mEmoriEs

Another letter with a few labels to mention...

If you are familiar with the Balance series, then EQ Recordings should ring a bell. The Aussie label was set-up at the start of this century to release electronic dance music of international DJs. The legendary series was released on this label from 2001 until 2010, initially featuring DJs mainly from Australia (Sean Quin, Kasey Taylor, Phil K, Anthony Pappa) and expanding to others from all over the world. The fifth installment has been already mentioned twice in the blog, since it is considered the quintessential DJ mix by progressive house fans. The series continued to be released from 2010 until today by Balance Music.

Eternell is a small imprint of Swedish producer Ludvig Cimbrelius, set up to release his own works and collaborations. His two albums as Purl (Deep Ground & Stillpoint) are superb dub techno albums and they are a fine reason to reference the label!

What a legendary label Eye Q Records is! It was established in 1990 by Sven Väth, Matthias Hoffmann & Heinz Roth. The label encapsulates the true essence of old school trance: hypnotic, trippy and ethereal. The production trio of Ralf Hildenbeutel, Matthias Hoffman and Steffen Britzke produced a ton of classics under the label, such as
- Sven Väth - L' Esperanza
- Zyon - No Fate
- Cygnus X ‎– The Orange Theme
- Barbarella ‎– My Name Is Barbarella
and many more!
Even the seminal Energy 52 - Cafe Del Mar was originally featured in 1992 behind the Eye!

The history of label was basically over in 1997, since the parent German company went bankrupt in August of the same year due to financial problems by the American division Eye Q USA. The UK division continued for two more years, but the label has changed its musical style dramatically, resembling no more its contribution to trance music...

Happy 2020 to all!

Tune #99: James Holden - I Have Put Out The Light

James Holden is a no stranger in the electronic music industry. A prodigy of the progressive sound, he composed in 1999 his first track, Horizons, which was released one year later by Silver Planet Recordings and became an instant success. The track was a runaway club hit, supported by top disc jockeys like Dave Seaman, Sasha, John Digweed and Nick Warren (the latter along with Jody Wisternoff created even a banging remix). The subsequent releases were also successful, with Nothing (both the Original Version and the 93 Returning Mix) reaching the pinnacle of progressive trance of that era.

Holden's hits made him a highly sought name for remixes by the big players (Madonna, Britney Spears, Depeche Mode). In 2002, Sasha invited him to be part of the production team for his album Airdrawndagger (the album's eighth track, Bloodlock, was a collaboration between Sasha, Holden & Junkie XL). In the meantime, Holden showcased his DJ skills in mix CDs. His first one (Fear Of The Silver Planet) was supported by Silver Planet, mainly consisting of his productions and remixes. The second one was the fifth installment of the Balance series (curated by EQ Recordings) and it is till this day one of the greatest mixes ever conceived.

The "progressive" phase of James Holden lasted until 2005, when he decided to focus on different music styles. This transition is reflected in the early releases of Border Community, Holden's label home. His first works in the label can be described as minimal progressive house, which progressed to experimental IDM. Under the label's umbrella, several innovative artists produced solid compositions, like Petter, Nathan Fake, Avus, The MFA and Luke Abbott.

I haven't followed James Holden's work for years (as a matter of fact, his new orientation is not my cup of tea), but I recently discovered one of his early works, which has escaped my radar. In 2002 he created his third EP for Silver Planet, titled Solstice/I Have Put Out The Light. The B-side of the EP is presented in the current post.

JAMES HOLDEN - I HAVE PUT OUT THE LIGHT



IHPOTL is the characteristic sound of Holden's early output; hypnotic driving pads and tweaked vocals. In my opinion, it can be considered as a precursor to the acclaimed Nothing track. The ethereal yet sedate voice of Jenny Holden (James' little sister) is tweaked for a darker emotional experience.

An interview with James Holden from the old days can be found here.

Tune #83: Quench - Dreams

One of the most interesting waves that appeared in electronic music was the Aussie progressive breaks sound that blossomed during the first half of the '00s. This post however will NOT refer to this scene (ok, not the most conventional way for an introduction!), but to one of the tracks that defined the Australian electronic music of the '90s and set the path for new artists and genres. MUSIC MINER presents:

QUENCH - DREAMS (ORIGINAL MIX)


Quench was a project created by producer CJ Dolan and DJ Sean Quinn (with the occasional assistance of Kasey Taylor). The first release of the group was Feel My Love (1993), a plain house tune released by Melbourne-based label Vicious Vinyl. The minor success of the track changed the plans of CJ & Sean, leading them to the production of the hard monster track Dreams in the same year.

In 1995, Quench was continued as a solo project of CJ (until 2000), as Sean formed a new partnership with Kasey Taylor, in order to form Our House (until 2004). The popularity of Dreams had undoubtedly influenced the inspiration of the three guys. Their future releases for the first 5 years focused on harder compositions, accompanied by the peak of the prog movement:
·         Narcotik - Blue (a collab between CJ Dolan & Gab Olivier)
·         Chrome - Chromium (same line-up)
·         Our House ‎– Floor Space

In a seven-year-period, Quench released two studio albums (Sequenchial in 1994 & Conse-Quench-Ial in 2000) and a bunch of EPs. However, Dreams had already set the bar too high, so no other release reached a point of adequate success.

Dreams was originally featured in a sampler by Sirius Music in 1993. It is amazing how a primitive track compared to the today's productions has stood well the test of time. The atmospheric intro leads to a fat-nearly-to-explode bassline with the presence of ethereal bells (welcome to the Church of Quench!). The track creates a build-up, in order to release an anthemic synth riff that will certainly melt the dance floor at any given time!

Although it achieved great success with various releases, it became more popular in its rip-off format, titled Gamemaster by Lost Tribe (Matt Darey) and released by Hooj Choons in 1997.

LOST TRIBE - GAMEMASTER (ORIGINAL MIX)


Fueled by their success, several emerging artists followed their path, resulting to the Melbourne sound and especially to the Australian breaks scene. Most notable examples include Phil Krokidis (the master of breaks), Luke Chable (mostly remembered for the remix of PQM - Your Are Sleeping), Ivan Gough and Andy Page.

Which are the whereabouts of each guy today? CJ Dolan seems to have given up music production (no recent entry in Discogs) for a regular job in insurance industry. Kasey Taylor is a music label owner (the defunct Vapour Recordings & the new Lo-Fi-45) and occasional DJ. Last but not least, Sean Quinn continues his long-running tenure as a touring DJ.

P.S. Sean Quinn & Kasey Taylor, who had mastered the art of DJing, were honored to compile the first two installments of the legendary Balance series, which continues to this day!

Tune #67: Petter - All Τogether

Balance 005 (2003): ένα αξιομνημόνευτο DJ mix CD δια χειρός James Holden, το οποίο ανέδειξε το τελευταίο μεγάλο κύμα της progressive house. Το συγκεκριμένο mix απότελεσε το σημείο μετάβασης από τον ήχο της Hooj Choons (που μεσουράνησε από τα μέσα των 90's μέχρι το κλείσιμό της το 2003) σε πιο σκοτεινούς και μινιμαλιστικούς προσανατολισμούς, όπως τους έθεσαν τα labels Border Community (του Holden) και Yoshitoshi (των Deep Dish).

Ένα από τα highlights του mix από το πρώτο CD αποτελεί το κομμάτι All Together από τον Petter Nordkvist:

PETTER - ALL TOGETHER


Ο Σουηδός παραγωγός ήταν ένας από τους πρωτοεμφανιζόμενους καλλιτέχνες (μαζί με τους Nathan Fake, Avus και MFA) που ανακάλυψε και στρατολόγησε στο label του ο James Holden. Τα κομμάτια τους έγιναν η πρώτη ύλη για ένα ανεπανάληπτο mix, το οποίο συνδύασε μαεστρικά ήχους από τα φάσματα της progressive house, techno και electro.

Ο Petter εμφανίζεται μέσα στο mix και σε άλλα κομμάτια, όπως το These Days και Tonediary. Το πρώτο μάλιστα κέντρισε τον ενδιαφέρον του Sasha, ο οποίος το συμπεριέλαβε το 2004 στην πρώτη εκδοχή της σειράς Involver, σε μία διαφορετική εκτέλεση!

Μετά από 13 χρόνια, το All Together έχει ωριμάσει αρκετά καλά, καθώς εύκολα μπορεί να χωρέσει σε dj sets της τρέχουσας εποχής. Αν και το Balance 005 δεν προορίζεται για να ακουστεί σε clubs, το συγεκριμένο κομμάτι είναι ικανό να ξεσηκώσει τα dancefloors!

Τα τελευταία 10 χρόνια ο Petter Nordkvist δεν φαίνεται να ασχολείται ιδιαίτερα με την δημιουργία δικής του δουλειάς (πέρα από κάποια σποραδικά remixes), καθώς είναι αφοσιωμένος σε καθήκοντα παραγωγού για άλλους μουσικούς, μέσα από την δισκογραφική Studio Barnhus, η οποία ιδρύθηκε το 2010 από τον ίδιο μαζί με τους Axel Boman και Kornèl Kovács.

Τέλος, αξίζει να σημειωθεί ότι στο CD1 πραγματοποιεί την εμφάνισή του και το progressive anthem εκείνης της χρονιάς, You Are Sleeping, η ιστορία του οποίου είναι αρκετά ενδιαφέρουσα...