And here are the others that I bought - not reviewing Princess F. or Dave Rodgers because they sound horrible and I wasn't wasting my cash on them. Same goes for the remixes...the_ditz wrote:Anyway, time to start my review of the tracks I bought which are:
Tracks in red are reviewed below - those in black will follow soon...
01 CooLoveR / IRENE (SCP)
02 READY FOREVER / CHRIS STANTON (Eurogrooves)
03 DREAMLOVER / PAUL HARRIS (Delta)
04 HANKY PANKY / BUBBLES (SCP)
05 GO SHINKANSEN! / CHERRY & LUKE (DELTA)
06 MY HOT GUITAR / GO GO GIRLS (Go-Go's Music)
07 I CAN'T STOP LOVIN' YOU / DREAM FIGHTERS (Dima Music)
09 PLAYBOY / APPLE (Eurogrooves)
10 NEW TECHNOLOGICAL WORLD / F.C.F.
11 I WANNA RUN TO YOU / MICKEY B.
I'll review the first 5 tonight and finish them off when I have the time!
01 CooLoveR / IRENE (SCP)
Irene definitely seems to be the top female at SCP nowadays considering the number of recent appearances she's had, and I worry that she may quickly fall out of favour with the masses. But for now it seems, she can't really put a foot wrong. With the help of the production team, she is developing a fusion style of dance-pop-disco-funk-Eurobeat that is as infectious as it is cute. The intro is a bit dischordant to my ears with the tone of the laser effects seemingly clashing with the background chords, however after a few listens I can't really hear it that much anymore. The muted trance synths leading into the first synth hook will put some people off, but for me they work perfectly - this is exactly the kind of track that Pamsy used to nail time and time again. The vocals are crisp and vibrant with plenty of energy, and I adore the little "Coolover" refrains during the main hook. As if things weren't awesome enough, there's even a hot key change halfway through the hook - I was in heaven!! The synchopated bassline adds to the bouncy feel of the track as a whole. If there is one flaw in this track, it's the lack of a really unique and distinct "middle 16" section - instead, we just have more trance layers. It's rare that I think a sub 4:30 track could actually be made shorter, but in this case I don't honestly think that middle section adds anything significant to the track. That being said, in every other way it is another awesome Irene performance - not as instant as Power Of My Love, but far cuter and with just as much groove and energy
Score: 10
02 READY FOREVER / CHRIS STANTON (Eurogrooves)
I had a very lukewarm response to Chris' last track "A Perfect Hero" (especially considering the sheer adulation that other members gave it), so to be honest I didn't really have a great deal of expectations regarding this song. It is for that reason that I am pleasantly surprised when this track starts pounding through my speakers. The intro is very "Mission Impossible" and creates a soundscape that brings to mind espionage and action thriller movies. This is pretty much the theme that carries on through the whole song. Chris puts on a very strong performance, but truly shines during the anthemic chorus - to be honest I could listen to a loop of the hook and the chorus for 5 minutes and would be perfectly happy! The overall production is definitely from the fresher end of the Eurogrooves spectrum, and I still love the way the breakdowns are handled using the classic "drop random sound layers in a random fashion to mix it up" method - only Eurogrooves, and very ocassionally Hi-NRG Attack, are still able to do this uniquely Eurobeat structure well. All in all, Eurogrooves strongest track in a while - not quite Euronight (still the male-vocal benchmark for all their future productions for me), but very close...
Score: 9.5
03 DREAMLOVER / PAUL HARRIS (Delta)
While most of the tracks on this album have actually turned out to be equal if not superior in quality to their 30 second samples, this song is probably the most disappointing for me. I still enjoy the chorus and its somehow superhero feel, and the riff is quite pleasant and playful, but the vocals just sound so half-hearted during the verse and bridge sections. I am beginning to wonder if perhaps Luca was having a bit of an off day when this was recorded, as it is nowhere near the level of energy that should be conveyed in a song like this. Delta has been very hit and miss recently - not to the degree of their massive slump during the 150-160's, but they seem to have lost some of their consistency and spunk that was so evident at the label around the time of the mid 180's. Don't get me wrong, this track is by no means bad and I will happily listen to it again, but overall is was underwhelmed and left wanting more. In fact, I had to play Super Rider after hearing just to remind myself exactly what Delta is capable of when they do a male track right...
Score: 7.5
04 HANKY PANKY / BUBBLES (SCP)
Oh jeez, this track has me soooo confused. On one hand, it's Kiki & Fancy's more continental European brother and sister singing a Bubblegum dance ditty that is fairly inane but catchy. But on the other hand, I have started singing along and bopping my head in the car when it comes on in my car now - could I actually be starting to warm to this unashamed slice of sugary silliness?? The cutesy baby sound effects are present in large doses, but they make sense in this context. Certain parts of the vocal melody sound like an eerie Scream Team-style track, but then you are hit with another slice of goofy male "ralking" - it's not rapping and it's not talking...it's ralking! The split personality nature of the track (the bonkers, cutesy, silly verses and the more strangely eerie chorus and hook) pretty much reflect my opinion of the song - split. I enjoy the chorus and the hook has a really nice kick to it (more so than a lot of Kiki & Fancy tracks), but on the other hand I feel that SCP have tried to hard to manufacture a contrived kiddy act using a vocalist that they are trying to develop in a serious way in the Eurobeat world if track 1 is anything to go by. For that reason, I can't score this high, but it may well turn out to be my guilty pleasure of this decade....time will tell I guess.
Score: 7
05 GO SHINKANSEN! / CHERRY & LUKE (Delta)
Thank god Delta remembered to waken up their vocalists properly before they recorded this cool little track!! This was my second most anticipated sample of the bunch, and on the whole it has retained its appeal in full version. As Jay said, the Japanese announcement during the intro really took me back to May 09 and all those times I stood on random train platforms waiting for the Shinkansen to thunder into the station. From the first beat, this track captivates me - the guitar bursts, those wispy synths and the strong rhythms all draw the listener in. I was also really happy to hear that this is far more of a duet than the sample suggested - Cherry still dominates the chorus, but the verse uses both vocalists to great effect. I the same way that GGM advertised a radio station in Nack 5, this track could easily be used to advertise Japan Rail to the world as a whole - it has that sort of infectious appeal that makes you smile and want to ride a Shinkansen right now!! The easy sing-along nature of the chorus (try punching the air with every "Go!" - you'll smile!!) adds to the appeal of the track, and overall there were very few things that disappointed me. Could the synth hook be a bit meatier - probably, but to be honest the sparse nature of it just adds to special feel that this track has.
Score: 9.75
More to follow soon...
06 MY HOT GUITAR / GO GO GIRLS (Go-Go's Music)
07 I CAN'T STOP LOVIN' YOU / DREAM FIGHTERS (Dima Music)
09 PLAYBOY / APPLE (Eurogrooves)
10 NEW TECHNOLOGICAL WORLD / F.C.F. (Asia)
11 I WANNA RUN TO YOU / MICKEY B. (A-Beat C)
06 MY HOT GUITAR / GO GO GIRLS (Go-Go's Music)
GGM has really been getting a lot of flack from all angles recently for using the same synth sounds, and for not being all that varied in their productions. Personally, I love the fact that they have very quickly developed their own unique sound, and while this track uses elements of the traditional GGM sound, I love the sort of Grease meets Broadway air of the melodies in the verse. The connotations in the lyrics are clear for anyone to hear, and while Elena Gobbi has lost a little of that "cheeky minx" tone from her voice, she still injects a sense of fun and mischief into proceedings. Of course, the guitars are what set this track apart, but I like the fact that they never overpower the production (unlike Dreamlover's chorus or a lot of A-Beat C male productions). For all the things I like about this song however, there are a few things that irritate me - the bad grammar in the chorus being the main thing for some reason!! The riff doesn't merge well with the other parts of the song either, although after many listens I don't notice this as much. Overall, this track is fun and cheeky and shouldn't be taken too seriously - just what GGM do best.
Score: 8.5
07 I CAN'T STOP LOVIN' YOU / DREAM FIGHTERS (Dima Music)
Oh wow, right from the outset this track sounds special! The lingering layers of synths create a real dreamy atmosphere, and it really reminds me of a more mellow version of the "Save A Prayer" intro from 193. This track is always going to be about the vocals and lyrics really, but that doesn't stop Dima from doing what he does best and unleashing one of his almighty Saw lead hooks at us. If every producer had the musicality that Dima displays, I'd be a very happy man! The vocal melody has a really nice sense of rise and fall, and it is easy to connect with the emotion behind the lyrics and melodic progression even if the vocals don't particularly portray a great amount of emotion themselves. I still wonder why the Dream Fighters alias was chosen for this track considering the far more aggresive tracks they have done in the past, but I can't deny that this track has become my #1 Eurobeat sing-along track in my car - it gives me that warm fuzzy feeling inside and makes me want to play it over and over again!
Score: 10
09 PLAYBOY / APPLE (Eurogrooves)
Okay, let's see what the big deal is about this track. The major thing that I notice is that we have a very different sound from the bass-heavy, smothering tracks that the label has a tendency to spew out. The hook is brought to life by a sprightly and springy synth that has a real 90's retro vibe to it. The main issue that I have with the song is that the vocals and melody don't really offer anything drastically different from so many other Eurogrooves/Time productions (that note progression at "desire" is getting a bit old in the bridge sections, that's for sure!) I don't really hear the massive similarities between this and Hey Boy, apart from the similarities between the pronounciations of the titles of course! I don't know - this track really doesn't set me on fire as much as Ready Forever did. There's something missing, but frustratingly as is normally the case with this label, I just can't figure out what it is! I just don't think I am a massive fan of their standard sound, and this track - despite the fun hook - is a prime example of an paint-by-numbers Eurogrooves track.
Score: 7.5
10 NEW TECHNOLOGICAL WORLD / F.C.F. (Asia)
First of all, it's great to see Avex picking up on this track, as it definitely deserves more exposure. The thing that first drew me to the original was the unique structure, and the fact that the hook was more of a battle/duet between the robotic vocals in the background and Mauro in the foreground. Sadly, I feel the this new version has dumbed down the track slightly, and - if this is actually possible - it has made it more commercial. The intro features that jingle-jangle arpeggio layer adding to anticipation as the intro progresses, but it somehow doesn't sit right above the old intro, that was a lot more monotone and industrial in its structure. However, the main bug-bear I have is that horribly crass synth sound that they have forced into the main hook. There is no need for it to be that loud or that sharp - the original version had the same melodic line but with a far more muted synth sound that didn't try to overpower the vocals. It's weird how a couple of synth sounds can more or less ruin the atmosphere of a track, but in this case the track has been ruined. Personally, I would listen to the original Technological World over this any day, but as this is the only one that will be on SEB I guess I have to be thankful that Avex have at least seen through the rubbish and found one of Asia's only good recent tracks.
Score: 7.5 (but 9.5 for the song)
11 I WANNA RUN TO YOU / MICKEY B. (A-Beat C)
Here we go again with A-Beat C and their slightly disjointed and erratic intros - I just don't understand how a track can sound so amateur and unfinished before the hook, and then completely change as sound as the steady 4/4 beat kicks in! Speaking of the hook, I can easily say that it is from the better end of A-Beat C's library of synth hooks - a hark back to the glory days in every sense. Mickey's vocals always sound like they are being forced out a little, but at the same time they are being coated in honey giving a delivery that is both urgent and gentle, harsh but soothing. The typical key change and ascending chord progression in the chorus gives the track another classical Eurobeat edge to my ears and while it perhaps doesn't have the same bite or edge as Never Ending Night, it still draws me in and leaves me wanting more. In the absence of any other major female vocalist (Futura will never be a major female vocalist at the label in my eyes), it's good that Mickey can continue stamping her authority and reminding us why she has been successful in Eurobeat circles for so long.
Score: 8.5
Overall, I really enjoyed this album and find myself singing the tracks at random points during the day a lot more than I did with the 201 tracks. I think in the long-term, more of these tracks will stay with me and continue to sound exciting and fresh in the future (only really Power Of My Love and perhaps Super Eurobeat (Gold Mix) will have that honour from 201). The signs are good that the series will continue growing stronger looking at the mouth-watering tracklist for 203, so right now I'm a very happy Eurobeat fan
