Yanni - A Night To Remember

Who hasn't heard about Yanni? Hailing from Greece, Yiannis Hrysomallis (his real name) is a self-taught (!) pianist/composer who gained world fame in the 1990s by being nominated for multiple Grammy awards and accumulating dozens of platinum and gold albums globally.
His music has often been likened to that of compatriot composer Vangelis and often described as "new age" (a term disputed by some critics) or "contemporary intrumental". He is also known for his outdoor live concerts in front of tens of thousands of people, with "Yanni Live At The Acropolis" (1994) being the most famous.

From his 8th album, "Dare To Dream" (1992), I have selected "A Night To Remember", an instantly feel-good track that I felt was a suitable track for this special day.

Merry Christmas!!!

Max Melvin - Seaside

Max Melvin is not a person, as you might think. It's a group of two German producers (Andreas Bruhn & Stefan Rekittke). As many downtempo projects before and after them, they also released just one album, entitled "Seaside" (2002), after which the project went on hiatus.
"Seaside" is a totally sun-drenched album that, while not being a landmark of originality, still manages to deliver a nice, warm atmosphere. There are many tracks that I enjoyed from the album, notably "Magnolia" and "Flying High", but the homonymous "Seaside" is my favorite track. Moving at slow speed and featuring some great airy vocals, this is one track you'd rather listen at the beach. But since I like it so much, and for people who want to warm up their Winter, here it is, in all its Summer glory:

Tilt - Rising Son / New Day

You probably heard of Tilt. They had a successful hit back in 1999, entitled "Invisible". Click HERE to listen to it on YouTube. If you still don't remember it, let me put you in theme. Tilt are a group of UK producers (after Jonh Graham (Quivver) and Mick Wilson left the group, only Andy Moor and Mick Parks remain) who are known and appreciated within both progressive and trance communities for their distinct crossover style that had a great impact on early to mid-2000s EDM scene. Their most critically acclaimed album is 2004's "Explorer", featuring the absolute prog trance classics "Twelve" and "The World Doesn't Know". Their last album to date is "Vaults", released in 2006, but with less critical & commercial success than its predecessor.

So here one track from each of those albums. First there's "Rising Son" from "Vaults", an impeccably polished progressive/breakbeat/chillout gem with great vocals. My favorite track from the entire album.



And then it's "New Day" from "Explorer", a gorgeous vocal chilltrance track with broken beats throughout.

Jeff Kashiwa-Hyde Park

Alright, time for another electronic music break. This time it's smooth jazz in store, so get ready as we emulate some 80's coolness with the help of a very contemporary artist.

Smooth Jazz is a musical genre that has received, over the years, a good share of criticism, some of it justified, some not. While it is true that a lot of generic, kitschy and lifeless stuff has been pumped out in this field since the very beginning (the famous 'elevator music'), it's undeniable that smooth jazz, just like any other musical genre, also has its fair share of talented artists and good music.
Jeff Kashiwa is an American saxophonist who falls into the 'good' side of smooth jazz. Having released 8 albums since 1995, he is one of the more recognizable names in the scene, although most people probably never heard of him. but then again, smooth jazz is not a popular genre.

From Jeff's 3rd album, "Another Door Opens" (2000), here's my favourite track, "Hyde Park (The 'Ah, Oooh' Song)". Catchy and lighthearted, it makes a wonderful choice as a 4-minute dream getaway. As many smooth jazz tracks, this one reminds me too of the 80s America I saw in the movies from that period, with tough cops, hot babes, flamboyant clothing and classy urban nightlife. Have a drink and relax. :)

Bent -Sing Me / Now I Must Remember

Formed in 1997, British electronica duo Bent have gained over the years somewhat of an (electronic) pop culture icon status. As far as I'm concerned, they already secured their place in electronic music history. Known for their ethereal sound and heavy use of sampling (mostly on their first two albums), Bent have not once been compared to artists like Air or Moby.

I think the most remarkable thing Bent have ever achieved (until now) is their 2004 album "Ariels". Bent left their history of sampling other tracks behind for this project, everything on "Ariels" is their original work featuring original sounds. The result? One of the most beautifully crafted pieces of music I've ever heard. It's one of my favorite music albums of this decade! I would honestly post every single track from the album, each one is an extraordinary artistic achievment. But since I can only post a couple of them, here are "Now I Must Remember" and "Sing Me" (feat. Rachel Foster of the Weekend Players).
Trust me, this is one album you don't want to miss, a true musical masterpiece. One of those rare albums that once experienced, never leave your conscience.

Vincezo-Summer Breeze

Vincenzo is a name that should certainly ring a bell if you're into house and particularly into the deep side of it. This guy has released a LOT of music in the past 15 years, covering pretty much every area of house music. In spite of his numerous single releases, both as Vincenzo as well as under other guises (including many collaborations with other artists), he only released one album under his name, the 2002 "Welcome To Zanarkand", a forward-thinking fusion of deep house, breakbeat, ambient music and even a bit of electro. Tracks like "Don't You Ever Stop", "Can You Feel What I Feel" or "The Nightlife" rank as some of my favorite deep house tunes.

But by far, the track that stood out the most was this deep house/broken beat gem entitled "Summer Breeze". Listening can only lead to acknowledging:

J Axel-Every Part Of The World

As promised in the previous post, here is more from J Axel. "Every Part Of The World", the opener track to his 2009 album, "Start Receiving". A chilled deep house tune with some very relaxing harmonies and a nostalgic vibe. Enjoy!

J Axel feat. Astrid Suryanto-In A Distant Bar

One magical chilled track we have in store today. J Axel (Jonathan Axelsson) (aka Ronin) and Astrid Suryanto deliver one of the most emotional pieces of electronic music I've heard in the past 4 or 5 years. Actually this is not a new track, it was released in 2006 on Axelsson's debut album under the J Axel alias, entitled "Deepness Is Served". At the beginning of 2009 it was re-released as a single under Astrid Suryanto's name (and its name was changed to just "Distant Bar") and featured remixes by progressive house heavyweights 16 Bit Lolitas and Paul Keeley among others.

J Axel has released his 2nd album this Summer. Entitled "Start Receiving", it is, in my opinion, almost as good as the first one, a confirmation of this artist's great talent. Tomorrow we'll feature J Axel once again, with a track from "Start Receiving". Until then:

Buy "Deepness Is Served": Beatport.com
Buy "Start Receiving": Beatport.com

Groovecatcher - Intoxicated

Groovecatcher is a musical project (currently less active, even their website is down) by Simon Cooper and Phil Webb featuring Manuela Van Geenhoven on vocals. You might know the boys from their other alias, GXR, under which they did (in 2007) a highly appreciated remix of "Billie Holiday-Long Gone Blues". They also recorded an album as GXR, as they did under the Groovecatcher guise. Entitled "After The Rain", it was released in 2006 on the respected Elektrolux label.
My favorite track from the album is undoubtedly "Intoxicated". The "climax" at ~1:20 is just wonderful, lots of layered harmonies happening in a dreamy tune with even dreamier and airier vocals. Just perfect!

It's interesting to know that they do their own videos and graphics (Phil Webb is responsible for the visual side of this project), so that adds up to their already huge pile of talent.

Leama & Moor-Everything Matters / Coming Of Age

I'll start by saying that these tracks would make my all-time downtempo top 50 any given day. Produced by a legendary progressive trance duo, they take the best of the electronic feel of trance and layered melodic nature of progressive and transforms them into this. Flawless.
About Leama & Moor there is a lot to say, but I'll keep it short. Composed of Marty Smith (Leama) and Andy Moor, the duo are best known for the remixes they did during mid-2000s for artists like Avril Lavigne, Orbital, Paul Oakenfold, Brian Eno, Starkid, Above & Beyond and for many others. They also released their own album, "Common Ground" in 2006, featuring only original compositions. I strongly recommend you checking it out, as I do with anything these guys ever produced or remixed. Class act!

Buy the album from Beatport: LINK

Chicane-Hiding All The Stars

I won't even bother introducing Chicane or Gary Numan (whose song "Cars" is covered by Chicane). I feel like I'm back in time listening to this track. 1999 to be precise, when I discovered Chicane.
I'm sure there are many 12 or 13-year-olds who will cite this as their introduction to electronic dance music in 10 years' time. Nuff said. Enjoy!

Kylie Auldist-Community Service Announcement

Although she has been on the scene for around 10 years now, I only heard of Kylie Auldist last year, when she released her first solo album, "Just Say", a nice combination of soul and funk.
Often a vocalist for The Bamboos, you can check more about her on the web if you're interested, as I have to excuse myself this time for not knowing to provide you with any relevant info on her.

But I can provide you with one of my favorite tunes from her, "Community Service Announcement", a really funky piece of music that I enjoyed from the very first listen.