Taboo - I Dream Of You Tonight (Bab Ba Ba Bab)

Dance Pool: 1995

On the surface, this seems like any other run of the mill eurodance minor hit churned out by Sony's Dance Pool offshoot. And honestly, that's mostly what it is. Despite getting a video roll-out, ample compilation duty, and even a little market penetration on my side of the globe, this was the only thing Taboo released. Or at least, the only thing this 'group' released. Dig deeper though, and there's some surprising music associated with the players involved, but let's hear what we got first.

It's mid-'90s eurodance alright. The chorus is instantly earwormy, has a little scat-singing thrown in, and the synths punchy and buzzy as all good euro is. Then the dancehall rapper comes in to tell you how we're gonna' have fun dancing and all that. He even gets a little meta about it: “Now that me voice gwon deep in'a yo brain; The lady will sing you the chorus again.” And she does too!

Him though, he sounds familiar. Since Taboo was just a one-off project, did he do anything else? *goes Discoggin'* Wait... Barrington Levy? The Barrington Levy? Under Mi Sensi Barrington Levy? Ragga jungle mainstay Barrington Levy? What's he doing here? I mean, sure, may as well make some quick scratch for the German disco clubs, but man, never would have expected that when I grabbed this on a whim. Didn't even appear in the video, letting whoever it is in the video lipsync. In fact, I'm pretty sure everyone in the video is lipsyncing, which wouldn't be unheard of in eurodance, even this late in its age.

If you think that's a crazy 'Six Degrees Of...” factoid, how about the fact producers such as The Timewriter and Oliver Lieb have tangential ties to Taboo as well? One Piero Brunetti, or DJ Piero, and the main man behind this project, had quite the varied career throughout the '90s, flitting about many genres with many partners. His own Another World, an incredibly cheese-ball slice of operatic Italo-dance with sex-jazz saxophone, got an entirely undeserved deep house jam from Timewriter. And, when Daft Punk was taking off, he teamed up with Luis Rodriguez for the one-off Funky Musique as Sunday Afternoon. Which had a release on Silvereye Production Frankfurt, and who else lived in Frankfurt as a remixer-for-hire? It sure wasn't Frank Stallone, I'll tell you that much.

Okay, one more. The remixes on this aren't much to get fussed about (an extended version, a 'pan-flutes' version, a happy 'hardcore' version), except the final one, subtitled X-Rated House-Dreams. While it features some stock Visnadi euro-house tropes like farty basslines and deep organ licks (think Robin S' Show Me Love), that shuffle rhythm is straight garage. In fact, with the included ragga rap and sirens, the whole remix is basically proto speed garage. Mr. Brunetti must have realized it too, as he'd go on to make a few proper speed garage tunes during that genre's heyday. Ahead of the curve, for once!

God's Groove - Elements Of Nature

Logic Records: 1994

How on Mother Earth does this album exist with hardly a soul knowing about it? Like, I understand why it would get lost in the shuffle three decades ago. The music on here just doesn't tidily fit into any conventional genre of the era, liberally cribbing from its surrounding scenes, existing outside of time, sounding retro and contemporary. Okay, maybe not ultra-modern or anything, but boy does it ever predict a certain segment of dance music in the years to come.

It's not like God's Groove went out of their way to create some ageless, timeless masterwork that was unfairly neglected, oh no. I sense this was one of those happy coincidences, Misters Gauder and Herz just stumbling into this quite by accident. They never parlayed this project into huge things, God's Groove dutifully appearing on the requisite eurodance and trance compilations for a few years in the '90s (though nothing on this side of the pond), the players then moving onto other, more lucrative things. It's like they immediately hit a creative dead-end because in a sense, they did. Where could they even go from this album? They sure couldn't double-down with more of the same, because they seemingly layed everything out on their opening hand. When you start this high, there's only down after.

Am I overselling Elements Of Nature? You're damn right I am! When you stumble upon something this unexpected, you can't help but feel giddy about it, relishing in all its attributes that, on paper, should utterly fail. There's cheese on here - good Lord is there ever cheese - but such succulent cheddar, leaving you craving for bite after bite. There's eurodance, there's German trance, there's epic house, there's pan-pipes, there's New Age bollocks, there's proto-goa, there's women belting choruses like they're Tori Amos. There's melodies ripped from vintage Jarre and segments ripped from Enigma interstitials. And holy cow, if that titular cut isn't a direct style-bite of Jam & Spoon: moody, trancey lead-in with tweaky acid, then the biggest PLUR-goo breakdown you'll ever hear in the before times of Dutch trance nonsense, followed by a big ol' race to the finish that'll have all the candy kids melting. Yet, somehow not a happy hardcore track? How can this project be this extra yet credible?

Again, it's that timeframe. Had Elements Of Nature come out in 2009 or 2004 or 1997, I'd totally buy that. As mentioned, it kinda' does foretell where the sillier aspects of vocal trance would end up. Yet here it is, right in the middle of trance and eurodance's classic era, fitting in neither scene all the while feeling like it should be part of the other. How could God's Groove be credited with influencing anything when nothing off here gets name-dropped after the fact?

I've no idea if Elements Of Nature will find a new audience, its 1994-ness obvious and bare. If you've even a small inclining for that year of trance music though, this is definitely worth a listen.

Masterboy - Different Dreams

Polytel: 1994

Can't have a credible eurodance collection without at least one Masterboy album in it. And if there's any worth having, it's definitely this one. It's got their most recognizable hits, it came out during that scene's best year, the original line-up with Trixi Delgado is still intact, and... um... it's got the most comments on Lord Discogs? Heh, that's funny, in that the follow-up album, Generation Of Love, has none. Even their generic house debut, The Masterboy Family, has at least one review.

Let me backtrack. Was Masterboy that big a deal back in the day? For sure I remember seeing that iconic logo – how could you not miss such a vicious grin among all the Dance Mix collections? Yet what were their big singles? Everybody Needs Somebody, I Got To Give It Up and Generation Of Love seem like the obvious contenders, but they were just marginally successful on most charts, only once cracking the Top 10 in their native Germany (with Feel The Heat Of The Night).

Eurodance was massively spoiled for options when Masterboy was active, and some acts had to fall by the wayside when talk of the most noteworthy names carried on. I feel like the group Tommy Schleh and Enrico Zabler built turned into one such act, as the utter lack of Shuffle Dance videos featuring their tunes attests to. But hey, it's three decades later (!!), surely enough time to dust off some of their music to see if its gained overlooked gem status.

And the titular second track (first's an intro) bodes well: strong punchy riffs in that vintage buzzy, sawwave synth style, propulsive rhythms that get you hyped doing aerobic exercises, Trixi belting out an earwormy chorus and... Tommy just adequately doing the rap. Whoof, I know eurodance was never known for its brilliant lyrical wordplay, but even this stuff is some of the most basic material you'll ever hear. Gander: “If you wanna be in the galaxy; If you wanna take a trip inside a starship; If you wanna be President; If you wanna be from heaven sent; If you wanna be the guide of all; If you wanna be ten feet tall;” Okay, yeah, believe in your dreams and all that, but Mr. Schleh delivers such lines with all the enthusiasm of reading copy for a life insurance commercial, like he's afraid of tripping over every syllable.

It's far from a deal breaker, mind you, as all the other elements in play are peak-era eurodance, production as solid as anything you'll hear from '94. Those choruses from Trixi in Is This The Love and Do You Wanna Dance are just to die for, in that they'll get your heart rate soaring! I get the need for rap verses – it's was the successful formula everyone had to copy. When they don't even have a ragga gimmick going for them though, it's little surprise Masterboy isn't remembered quite so readily as other acts of the day.

M.C. Sar & The Real McCoy - Another Night

Hansa: 1993

It really is insane how many memorable hits '90s eurodance cranked out. This is a group that, behind the scenes, should never have had a hope. First emerging in a post-Technotronic hip-house world, M.C. Sar & The Real McCoy only saw marginal success, probably because they road Technotronic's jock so damn hard. Plus, their name had to be a put-on, yet another in a long lineage of German dance acts featuring lip-syncing. I guess this was still an era where white Europeans named Olaf just weren't seen as worthy rappers, so here's a black dude named M.C. Sar to sell that cover of Pump Up The Jam.

Fortunately, Freshline (the production team behind The Real McCoy that included long-time DJ Quickmix and Jürgen Wind) dropped that gimmick, letting Olaf Jeglitza take front-man status for their next single, Another Night. Also, instead of mimicking American rap, O-Jay adopted a low-throated sexy come-on cadence, which should never have worked with any credibility, yet stood out as something unique in a rapidly over-crowding eurodance scene. Still couldn't shake that lip-syncing itch, however, relying on studio singer Karin Kasar for the lady-led hook while having Patricia Petersen be the face. Gotta' keep that project name firmly ironic, I guess, especially since they retained 'M.C. Sar' for a spell.

Still, can't fault the resulting single. Made at that tasty cross-road between hip-house of old and euro house of not quite as old, it's got everything you want and need of the genre. A solid rhythm, simple keyboard stabs, pianos, buzzy synths, a rap, an insidiously hooky earworm, all mixed together for pop music perfection. I'm surprised The Weeknd hasn't ripped this off yet.

I had a rip of the Club Mix for ages, and never saw much need grabbing a proper single. I did wonder though, whether some gem of a remix lurked undiscovered. This was released when some crossover with German trance wasn't uncommon for eurodance hits. Maybe I should take a gander at this?

Well, the Dance Mix may have your Maxx tiggers flaring, what with the lack of Olaf and the use of panflute riffs. Which makes sense since this team did help produce Maxx, another act that had lip-syncers. Heck, apparently Olaf wrote the lyrics for Get-A-Way! As for the Inferno Mix, I guess this is somewhat close to the realms of trance, what with its minimalist, bleepy lead. Then it tries to go all Rollo with a big orchestral build, but sorry, those strings just don't have enough weight behind them, not to mention a weak-ass siren. Ah well, the remixes on these euro singles are always a crap-shoot. Maybe they'll get more love in one of those charming shuffle-dance compilations.

As for whether I'll get any more Real McCoy, I dunno'. Run Away is another fine tune, but I can't say I was a huge fan of the rest I heard. All too quick to start sounding like everyone else, frankly. Or was everyone else copying them?

Dr. Alban - One Love (The Album)

BMG: 1992

The man known on his Nigerian birth certificate as Alban Uzoma Nwapa led a fairly pedestrian life before becoming a pop star in Euroland. He had no ambition to score a clutch of dance hits in the early '90s, no desire to become fodder for Swedish tabloids. All he wanted was to practice dentistry! He had to pay the bills somehow while going to school though, so took up some DJing gigs at local clubs, even commanding the microphone during his sets on occasion. That was enough to catch the attention of another Swedish DJ by the name of Dag Krister Volle, who was looking to get into the production side of things. The two joined forces, the former performing as Dr. Alban, the latter taking on the nomme de plume Denniz PoP. Yes, that Denniz PoP, the Godfather of Contemporary Swedish Pop (Max Martin came up under his tutelage).

The result was one of the earliest and most famous of the eurodance stars – yes, more so than even Haddaway! Dr. Alban's success lay in fully embracing his ethnic roots, sing-rapping with a heavy afro-accent, all the while honouring his heritage with songs like Hello Afrika and Proud! (To Be Afrikan). Then he and Denniz topped it with an anthem for the ages: It's My Life.

Seriously, this song seems to age like fine wine. Already packing in the best of what italo house had to offer in rousing piano hooks and unashamed choir choruses, this is peak time eurodance, setting the template for what the genre would morph into in the coming years. Of course the Swedes would get there first.

What I find so resonate with it though is the song's message, especially in our modern clime's. It's a simple declaration from Dr. Alban, of letting him just be, without the intrusions of those who should mind their own business. Far as I know, it was written as a means of dealing with his newfound fame, but the doc' stumbled upon something that can apply to so much more, just... so much more. How hasn't this song become a rallying cry for the LGBTQ+ community these days, who's lives are nothing but intruded upon when they just want to live their lives unhindered? Or maybe it has, I just haven't heard about it.

Oh, right, the album, One Love. The titular single is more of a dancehall ditty, while Sing Hallelujah! was another big house hit off here. The rest mostly runs the gamut between hi-NRG dance cuts, and nods to Alban's musical influences of reggae and afro-dance. Oh, and the obligatory safe-sex song in Roll Down Di Rubber Man, because early '90s. Honestly, aside from those big singles, One Love really does show its age. It's well produced and remarkably diverse for a '92 record, but if this era does nothing for you, nor will these songs either.

Except that BASSLINE in No Coke, another timeless slice of reggae boogie! ...Erm, as performed by Swedes.

Grid - Evolver

Deconstruction: 1994

What exactly is The Grid's legacy? For those in the UK who “where there” during their early '90s heyday, I see a fair amount of rosy-eyed comments and plaudits. Fair enough, the duo of David Ball and Richard Norris certainly finding a niche of their own within the British acid house scene, the single Floatation even contributing to a growing interest in Balearic-leaning 'ambient house'. On this side of the pond, however, we knew little of that, our first exposure of The Grid coming by way of their global chart-topping spaghetti-western singles Swamp Thing and Texas Cowboy. While I'm sure there were such tunes before, their massive success set off a nuclear bomb of novelty tracks of similar ilk: Cotton Eye Joe, Pipe Dreamz, Harmonica Man... Canadian DJ Chris Sheppard was especially enamoured with the stuff, even going so far as to tap Canadian fiddler Ashley MacIsaac for his own country ho-down dance tune. It seemed like we were inundated with the stuff.

Long story short, Teenage Sykonee didn't give The Grid any serious consideration because of those two singles, and the cover art of the album from whence they came didn't do it any favours either. Never mind some of my peers proclaimed that Evolver was “good, actually”, my first impressions stood firm. Then John Digweed included Floatation on his Choices collection, which made me reassess my initial assumptions. Always those nagging reassurances that Evolver was “good, actually”. Well, okay then, should I spot it as part of a cheap deal, I'll take a dive.

And yes, this album is surprisingly good, actually. Maybe not mind-bending stuff, but for an LP that holds Swamp Thing and Texas Cowboy on it, better than you'd expect. The only other track that treads into their territory is Throb, where The Grid try to replicate the country novelty shtick with thrashy guitar licks. Frankly, I find Throb even worse than the other two. Wait, am I faint-praising Swamp Thing and Texas Cowboy? Okay, fine, I am. There are parts of those songs I kinda' enjoy, like the building techno groove between the hokey banjo and faux-harmonica hooks.

Anyhow, the rest. Is it just me, or does Evolver edge ever so close to goa trance? Like, obviously nowhere near what Eat Static and Juno Reactor were up to at the time, but opener Wake Up has spaced-out synths, cosmic ethnic chants, and squirrelly acid leads. Y'know, the sort of sounds associated with Megadog parties. Shapes Of Sleep gets on something a little more sci-fi in its sampling, while Higher Peaks could have been a System 7 tune, if Steve Hillage was on that guitar instead. Rise and Spin Cycle slow things down to more of a prog-house tempo, but are no less filled with the trippy, tribal overtones, while closer Golden Dawn is basically where world beat and psy-dub meet in the distant past. All this, on the same record as the freakin' banjo song? Just who are The Grid, anyway?

Captain Hollywood Project - Only With You

Pulse-8 Records: 1993

Though not as impactful as Haddaway's What Is Love, I'd rank Captain Hollywood Project's More & More just as influential on developing my eurodance tastes. Beyond that major hit, however, the musical conglomerate fronted by Tony Dawson-Harrison failed to have much presence in Canadaland, such that it was years before I heard anything else from him. By the time I did stumble upon CHP's debut album, I was well beyond my honeymoon years with the genre, wooed by the allure of goa and German trance instead. Love Is Not Sex sounded hopelessly dated and tired to those ears, and I utterly rejected it as anything worthy of future consideration. Not sure why I had such a knee-jerk reaction to it – was I just too over-familiar with Nosie Katzmann's songwriting?

Whatever the case, those are musings for a future review should I reconcile my impression of Love Is Not Sex. Instead, let's focus on the second single from that album, one that I do remember quite liking at the time. In many ways, it's More & More: Mark II, what with the simple, punchy synth lead, gentle backing pads, rugged eurodance rhythms, and sultry female chorus. Something about this one just hits better though, as though those elements have been further distilled and refined to peak perfection. Why, even the chorus is better, making more sense as lovelorn lyrics than the vague notions of More & More.

Then there's Mr. Captain himself. He was never a fancy lyricist (how many euro rappers were?), but he easily made that up through pure suave, with one of the most gravelly voices from that era. And for whatever reason, he sounds quite fired up here, dropping in with “You. Should. Just. Chiilll.” that sends shivers down my spine. In a totally ironic, cheese-adoring sort of way, of course, ha-rumph ha-rumph. Anyhow, his message is basically “yo', stop fucking up our planet so much”, which doesn't match the chorus in the slightest, but hey, I totally buy his “pleadin'” when he laments that “our Earth is bleedin'”. Poignant content even three decades on, darn it all.

If y'all haven't all turned away in contempt at getting my cheddar on, how about some 'serious' remixes then? The Faze II Mix was apparently done by a guy called Paul Newman, whom you may know as Tall Paul. It's certainly trancier than the usual fare I've heard from The Tall One, though not as trancey as the Trance Mix at the end of this single. Sort of that middle-ground where anthem house and trance could meet back in the day. Speaking of anthem house, Rollo's here with two remixes as well! They're... not as interesting, the Piracy Mix sounding like it wants to be a Jersey club option, the Relentless Mix adding some acid and anthems to the fray. And where's Captain Hollywood in all these remixes? It's weird hearing him just in the Trance Mix, where you'd lest expect him.

Haddaway - Haddaway

Arista: 1993

A reconciliation? After a fashion. I ragged on Haddaway's debut album before, though it was based on hazy recollections of it, only a few stand-out tracks surviving into my lasting music collection. As the years wore on, a part of me started wondering, was it really so bad? What Is Love?, Life (Everybody Needs Somebody To Love), and Rock My Heart remain solid jams, so surely there's a couple forgotten gems I was too stubborn to appreciate at the time. Like, that Mission Control Mix of Life that closed the album out, that was a dope tune. Maybe not a sterling example of anthemic prog-house, but definitely something that wouldn't sound out of place rubbing shoulders with a Rollo track (not to mention an “'Any crew?' 'Negative'” sliding nicely in with the rest of the radio chatter).

So into a bulk bundle of eurodance Haddaway went, and yeah, there's a few tunes on here I'd forgotten about that I don't mind hearing again. Shout is the closest thing on par with the aforementioned club hits, with our leading man belting out the title with just as much enthusiasm as the other titles. Only thing holding this peppy tune back is the questionable bassline, a tad over-aggressive for the What Is Love? guy. Sing About Love is a surprising bit of variety, Haddaway getting his rap on over a darn smooth beat and chill pad leads. And, um... ah... hmm.

I really don't want to call the remaining seven tracks 'filler', because they are well produced for eurodance of the time. Some housier jams (Yeah, Come Back), some down-time ballads (I Miss You, Mama's House, Tell Me Where It Hurts) and a cover or two (Stir It Up) are fine for padding an album out, but do little in elevating Haddaway's profile. He's a competent singer, but compared to how much personality he exhibits in the big hits, the rest lack in memorable moments.

That in of itself isn't a complete deal-breaker though, if the tracks are paced out well, but the North American version of Haddaway's self-title doesn't do him any favours. Two lead singles at the jump, then little of note until track eight. Not even the Rapino Brothers Mix of What Is Love? mid-album (aka: the version suitable for New York City clubs) is enough to maintain interest. Plus, even with the rest of the uptempo tunes where Haddaway shines all bundled in the back-half, they are broken up by ballads. The European version (titled The Album, and featured on Spotify) paced things out far better.

Why did Arista arrange the songs like this? Did the label think Americans couldn't handle so much eurodance all at once? Sillies, folks are getting this album because of one of the genre's all-time biggest hits. Give 'em more right at the jump! No wonder I had such wack memories of Haddaway's debut, a big ol' stretch of nothing smack in the middle. Still, t'was nice reconnecting with a couple forgotten tunes.

Maxx - Get-A-Way

Blow Up/Quality Music: 1993/1994

I never bothered with Maxx's debut breakout single because the copies I always saw in my neck of the woods didn't look appealing. Music-wise, I mean. There's no way that cover art is getting by without at least a casual glance, if not outright gawkery. Just, damn! Eurodance was never shy about its sex-appeal, but even this use of curves and shadows was pushing things ever so close into risque. What was I talking about again? Oh yeah.

So Get-A-Way was everywhere, a true classic in a year when eurodance was spoiled for hits. This naturally led to a slew of remixes, but the roll-out was rather weak. Even as a teenager with limited income, I knew getting only three tracks wasn't that good of a deal – all those 2 Unlimited singles I got had at least five. Now, that No More single, that's got some beef to it, and how can I resist remixes with names like “Terrordome” and “Paradise Garage” on them? A sight better than Twilight Mix or 2 A.M. Club Mix.

Get Get-A-Way I did though, as it was an option in a CD single bundle I happened across. Figured I may as well give it a shot, as these old eurodance EPs oftentimes contain some buried, trance-leaning treasure. Sadly, that's not what I get here, the 2 A.M. Club Mix essentially the same as the famed Airplay Mix, but with certain key features missing. None of the buzzy basslines, none of the bleepy leads (instead replaced with panflute toots), and none of that silly 'hardcore' orchestral sting in the song's bridge. Instead, everything flows smoother along pads, with piano lines in the bridges. What's funny is for the longest time, I thought this was the original version, at it was the one featured in my first exposure to it, on Dance Mix 94 (the club-dance compilation series in Canada). Ain't no way things like 'correct track titles' were a thing, and was shocked to hear the original had more similarities to No One than I thought possible.

Still, I cannot deny being a little disappointed in discovering this was it all along. That adorable 'shuffle dance' YouTube video with 2 A.M. Club Mix in the title led me to believe it was a little more bang-on. I'm not even sure if that is an official remix, as I can't find anything that sounds like it.

It does include elements of the Naked Eye Mix, specifically the bouncier synth lead that meets half-way between the original's bleeps and the 2 A.M.'s flutes. In fact, 'bouncier' is the best way to describe this mix – speed it up a bunch, and it could be happy hardcore. As for the Piano Remix, the same piano fills as found in the 2 A.M. rub get full shine, but isn't much different.

Really, the only Get-A-Way remix you should scope out is the (once) UK-exclusive Red Jerry Remix, because c'mon! The co-founder of Hooj Choons, remixing Maxx!