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The radio edit style is an SCP choice as they believe the song becomes redundant when it has an extra minute that is repeating the same stuff. The longer songs will include a guitar solo or a synth solo or rap or something in the manner. The song length is set at 3:40 to 4:30 at the max.

thejti

The radio edit style is an SCP choice as they believe the song becomes redundant when it has an extra minute that is repeating the same stuff. The longer songs will include a guitar solo or a synth solo or rap or something in the manner. The song length is set at 3:40 to 4:30 at the max.

Come to think of it, I have never really heard an extended version from SCP that has blown me away. Maybe they just havn't mastered the art of creating an extended without cut and paste. I do think they create some great songs using the 4:35 limit line.



Jay

I was just thinking about this decade in general and I realised there hasn't been a single song that's really blown me away yet; the whole decade has really been quite lackluster. Every decade has had at least one "OMG" song ('A Perfect Hero' by Chris Stanton, 'Save Another Day For Me' by De Leo, 'The Magic of Sunshine' by Ciao Ciao/'Ready Forever' by Chris Stanton), and it's looking as if this will be the first which doesn't have any. Of course, 218 might prove me wrong, but I'm not holding my breath.

Not including the Italo Disco songs from HRG Attack; There is a lot of truth to that statement. Of course ;the asbesence of any original Eurogrooves material, could mean every reason for that too.

Alright so it's time to get this complete review of SEB 217 started. I'm not going to post everything in one go now, but rather in bit sized chunks of about 3 tracks at a time so it's easier for you guys to read and so that it doesn't feel like writing War & Peace for me (believe me, I have a lot to say about this release!)

Remember I will only ever give a maximum of 10/10

So I guess we'll start with...

SUPER EUROBEAT VOL. 217 REVIEW - Tracks 1 to 3

01. KEN BLAST / THE TOP (Delta) - 04:36
Delta are a label that I am finding increasingly difficult to place in my hierarchy of SEB labels. They have a tendency to produce good tracks more often than awful tracks, but I often find it difficult to proclaim them as the true pinnacle of excellence since very few of their tracks ever truly capture that spot of my brain that keeps me reaching for the repeat button. The last time a Delta SEB track had that effect on me was with SEB 184, and the amazing Super Rider - a track that to this day can still fight its way past the "new blood" to shine in the upper reaches of playlists. And so we come to THE TOP - the 3rd appearance on the series from Ken Blast and, without a shadow of a doubt, the moment that he became a true Super Eurobeat superstar! The piano used during the intro, middle 8 and outro has just the right amount of anthemic joy but with that small hint of melancholy that ties in to the epic journey that this song takes the listener on, both melodically and lyrically. It's rare that I find a lyric so engaging and appealing as I find here - the racing-themed gimmicks aside, I love the story that this track tells, and it works on so many levels; on a personal level, to reflect Ken's journey so far; on a general level when thinking about Eurobeat in the massive genre-pool of dance styles, and also on a personal level as the fight against adversity and negativity to reach the top is something I too have experienced. Melodically, the vocals have a beautiful rise and fall and the song is in a perfect range for Ken. The synths used give one of the richest soundscapes I've heard in the past couple years from Delta, and everything just seems to fit perfectly. The spoken part could have so easily been a car crash, but amazingly this comes off as being perhaps the most dynamic and memorable part of the entire track. As a listener, we seem to find ourselves standing right beside Ken as we give the proverbial middle finger to anyone that has doubted us in the past - it truly is a fantastic middle section! And finally, that beautiful piano melody brings us back full circle to a perfect conclusion - I cannot express how much a adore this song, and I am absolutely certain that it will be at the very top of Eurobeat playlists for years to come. Look out Mark Astley - there's a new Delta king in town!!
SCORE: 10/10

02. ROBERTA / ROCK MY HEART (SinclaireStyle) - 04:37
It's no secret that I've had pretty big issues with the quality of the female-led releases from Sinclaire since he returned to Super Eurobeat. Let me briefly take you back to SEB 187, when a new female alias Megan released her debut track "Move On Now Baby". That song for me was so melodically different and the production far tighter than any other SinclaireStyle female track that I was instantly hooked by its charms. Fast forward to August 2011, and only 1 other female SinclaireStyle track has even come remotely close to matching the awesome heights pf Megan's debut - funnily enough, it was Tora's "No Turning Back", with the SCP-inspired disco-style melodies. So my expectations were low here, and I was expecting another 3 years of echoey vocals, bland synths and uninspiring melodies. Imagine my surprise when the intro to "Rock My Heart" danced out of my speakers! The chirping synths were jovial and playful while the guitars growled menacingly in the background - a great contrast that is pure Sinclaire gold. The melody of the chorus has a very classic and welcoming sound to it - almost like you've heard it so many times before and you are so happy to be hearing it again. The vocals still have less of a wind tunnel effect on them too, which is a big plus - if Sinclaire could ever change one thing for good about his productions, it has to be the vocal effects he overuses, especially on the poor female tracks. The verse melodies are wistful and dreamy, which contrasts nicely with the more sing-a-long anthemic quality of the chorus. Then the arpeggios during the bridge help to build a nice bit of tension as the vocals ramp up again for their star turn in the chorus again. If there is one thing in this track that I have to question, it has to be the use of the lunatic male vocal shouts - it worked on the loopy "Toy For Love", but in a more sincere track like this, they just sound like an unwelcome stage invasion from a drunk fan! That aside, I am left feeling very happy with this track, and I am even more happy that Sinclaire now appears to be putting in as much effort on the female-led tracks as he normally does with his male-led tracks. Great stuff!
SCORE: 9.5/10

03. SALLY / FEEL THE MAGIC (Dima Music) - 05:08
Wow, okay, so Sara has only had 2 tracks at Dima in quick succession and she already has two aliases going? I could say overkill, but to be honest I'll gloss over that just now to get to the important stuff. Now, as a vocalist, I've never been a massive fan of this vocalist - she always sounds like a mixture of a drunk karaoke singer and a dodgy cassette recording of a cartoon character (you remember, when the tape inside started to scrunch up and the sound got distorted with all the weird pitching and stuff?) Perhaps you don't have a clue what I'm talking about, but let's just say "Sally's" vocals are some of the oddest I've heard in the Eurobeat world. So, on to the song itself. It seems that Dima is really pushing these sorts of "middle-of-the-road" female tracks that are neither 100% aishu nor 100% aggressive - they occupy some kind of uncomfortable middle ground that I'm going to call aggraishu! Here, I was hooked quite a bit by the guitar section just after the first iteration of the chorus - that seemed to add a nice extra easter egg to spice up proceedings. Aside from that, I find myself humming along to the chorus - for me, it seems to occupy a similar melodic field as the previous track from Sinclaire, but doesn't quite have the same strength to the hook. The rest of the vocal melody is fairly forgettable sadly - I would find it difficult to listen to this a lot in a few month's time since the overall addictiveness of the hooks isn't quite there. Of course, Dima's high production quality is clear again for all to see here (although I don't really like the way the hand claps are clipped at 04:13 if I had to be picky), but again the actual writing and composition have failed to match his high production standards for me. I'm hoping and praying for another smash hit from Stephy or Aleky soon, since Dima's female productions really need a shot of adrenaline in my eyes.
SCORE: 7.5/10

Keep your eyes peeled for my next post soon - can any track match the almighty THE TOP?

great review ditz, i am now super eagerly awaiting my cd in the post!!


on another note, can we please drop the song length topic within SEB volume threads, i am over reading the same thing about scp song length in every album thread
(i know its not every album and i am only adding this part in because someone will be a smart ass and say this thread didnt, this thread didnt)

....it feels like ever since avex went back to the extend format thats one thing that keeps poping up....and only with scp...

cant we just have a song length thread, so when people feel like reading/typing the same thing they can just open it and type it there??

Gorgia_v

on another note, can we please drop the song length topic within SEB volume threads, i am over reading the same thing about scp song length in every album thread
(i know its not every album and i am only adding this part in because someone will be a smart ass and say this thread didnt, this thread didnt)

....it feels like ever since avex went back to the extend format thats one thing that keeps poping up....and only with scp...

Well, they are the only offenders. besides aspects like these will always pop up when reviewing these cds. Along with this one, you always see the ones about sounds, volumes, vocals, ect...It all goes with the trrritory. Are we to create seperate threads for all these topics too? That makes no sense. and I'm only responding, because when I write my review it will come up again and you and others might be offended, but I don't feel I'll be true to myself if I start editing my opinions to appease anyone. besides, what's the point of a review if its not truthful?

drnrg wrote:Gorgia_v

on another note, can we please drop the song length topic within SEB volume threads, i am over reading the same thing about scp song length in every album thread
(i know its not every album and i am only adding this part in because someone will be a smart ass and say this thread didnt, this thread didnt)

....it feels like ever since avex went back to the extend format thats one thing that keeps poping up....and only with scp...

Well, they are the only offenders. besides aspects like these will always pop up when reviewing these cds. Along with this one, you always see the ones about sounds, volumes, vocals, ect...It all goes with the trrritory. Are we to create seperate threads for all these topics too? That makes no sense. and I'm only responding, because when I write my review it will come up again and you and others might be offended, but I don't feel I'll be true to myself if I start editing my opinions to appease anyone. besides, what's the point of a review if its not truthful?

i am not offended at all i think it just makes you and others sound like a broken record...we all know the song lengths with scp are shorter, there is no need to go on and on about it..

if scp arnt changing their ways after this long i doubt they will for a select few that keep complaining about song length, they make great music regardless of time length....just accept that is what they do.

i dont think every one wants to see 1-2 pages in a seb volume thread with the same comments over and over again...now i am not speaking for other and i am not trying to...

This album actually isn't too bad. It's at least probably one of the best albums of the 210's. In comparison to SEB 214, I think that album was more consistent as a whole, but this one has more true standouts.

There are plenty of tracks that, for me, are easily in the 10's range. Travis makes a stellar performance on the masterfully-written The Top, Marika sounds slickly smooth, yet super infectious on Forget My Heart (which is just as good as, if not even better than Stay With Me); Federico Rimonti heats things up with Hi-NRG Attack's most energetic piece in a long time, Flying Over the Sky; and Mega NRG Man blasts to the top with style on Rocketman. Honorable mentions to go all three SCP songs, as well. Disconnected's chorus uses the same hook as Wheelpower & Go!, but it's still a hit in all general respects. Up & Dance, Up & Go satisfies my desperate hunger for a new Eurogrooves original, while Every Heart Wanna Fly elegantly continues Linda Ongarelli's string of musically complex, yet well-sung performances. Rock My Heart is also actually pretty good, though it's still not as strong as the real highlights on here. It has a very good verse and a rather so-so chorus.

Unfortunately, the rest of the album ranges from okay to kind of forgettable. Touch Me is easily the weakest italo track from HRG so far. It actually reminds me a bit of Nuage's cover of You'll Never Stop Me Lovin' You, which I LOVE, but unlike that, it sounds incoherent and overproduced, not to mention the vocals just don't work. Dima's songs are decent, but not at the high standard they set in the 190's and 200's decades. Both A-Beat C tracks are dull and disposable, and while Dance Boom Boom is listenable, I'm still holding an intentional bias against it because I am so sick of covers flooding the Asia catalogue and I really want something that actually had some serious effort put into it. Coming to think of it, the last time Mauro Farina took the mic on anything was on Merry Christmas by F.C.F. almost a full two years ago.

Continuing my review...

SUPER EUROBEAT VOL. 217 REVIEW - Tracks 4 to 7

04. HOTBLADE / DISCONNECTED (SCP Music) - 03:56
SCP are really seeing a resurgence in their popularity at the moment, and this guy has been right at the forefront of taking this label back to the top. Bizarrely, it seems that to evolve the label's sound and identity, SCP have decided to look back to the past and take inspiration and cues from their previous successes. Hotblade is definitely the alpha male at the label as things current stand, and he is continuing to develop his style through his trademark powerful and charismatic vocal delivery. I've seen many people put-down Hotblade's vocal performances as too "shouty", but I don't really remember such a big fuss when Fastway started the same trend during the peak of Go 2's popularity. Anyway, back to this track - a trademark SCP anthem in every way! The big melodic chorus combines with the bright and energetic synth hooks and the strong percussion and bass keeps everything tight. Melodically, I think this track has the best chorus of any Hotblade thus far - I can see certain melodic similarities to Wheelpower & Go, but for me this track's chorus is far more dynamic and evolves far quicker that the SinclaireStyle track (which I also love). I also like the fact that SCP didn't feel the need to add a long drawn out set of arbitrary layers and arps in the intro - instead, they were straight down to business, no messing around. I may be one of the few people who appreciate this approach as it gives us all of the good stuff with none of the unnecessary delays. For all of its merits (and there are many) I do feel that this track takes a dip in the energy and interest during the verse - it's not a major issue, but I just don't feel that a few Fastway-style shouts are enough to live up to the amazing energy the chorus creates. That said though, I will be playing this track for a very long time to come - and as far as I'm concerned, Hotblade can remain the King of SCP for as long as he's putting out quality material like this (Jager can be the loyal prince, second in line to the throne! )
Score: 9.5/10

05. LOU MASTER / UP & DANCE, UP & GO (SCP Music) - 03:59
So after all of the detective work with more candidates in the mix than a series of The Apprentice, it turns out that the voice behind Lou Master is completely new to the Eurobeat scene. It's good to hear that the big labels are still keen to employ new blood, as it gives the impression that they are planning for the future. Of course, the big talk around this track has been regarding the Eurogrooves parallels, in terms of both the song style and the artist alias. There is somewhat of a style-shift in this track that anyone who has followed the genre fairly closely should hear straight away - the bass is beefier, the synths seem a bit richer with a longer sustain and release mechanism, and the overall structure of the backing track seems to have subtle differences when compared with the more traditional SCP set-up, like in Disconnected. I'll be honest, I was taken in at first with this new approach - it sounded quirky and added some extra interest to the new artist. However, the shiny lustre has started to rub off somewhat with repeat plays. The track somehow has a tendency to sound a bit repetitive, despite having a virtually identical running time to Disconnected. A found myself starting to glaze over, especially during the final repetitions of the synth hook - there's something about it that seems very samey, and when it's repeated it compounds the problem further. The vocals, while assured and well-delivered, don't really blow me away - they are more Van TK than Fastway, in the sense that I could never really see Lou Master being the numero uno at the label in terms of male vocalists. I don't know - something is just missing in terms of the repeat play appeal, but for a "listen every now and then" track, it's a blast!
Score: 8.5/10

06. TIPSY & TIPSY / DANCE BOOM BOOM (Saifam/Asia) - 05:10
To be honest, I'm done with complaining about the fact that Asia has been turned into just another cover version machine that is hardly distinguishable from all of the other Saifam sub-labels. I find it odd that Mauro Farina doesn't really seem bothered about providing his vocals to original tracks anymore as it means that this label has truly lost its identity and its mojo. This track - horror of horrors - is a cover version of one of Saifam's own 90's dance tracks, so we're already treading in that familiar and stale water that is Saifam Coverland. From the outset, we have a really cheesy sounding disco vibe permeating through every beat of the music, and it makes me think that I have stumbled into a really bad family birthday party (you know the ones - they always end up playing "Macarena" and "Saturday Night" when everyone's too drunk to even have any idea what their name is anymore!) This bad taste is carried over into the awful rapping which reminds me a lot of the horribly cheesy background rapping in David Tavare's "Hot Summer Night" (search for it on YouTube if you dare!) I hate the "ooh-ooh, yeah yeah" section halfway through this track, and to be honest the vocals sound like a bad cabaret act that thinks it's being "cool" and "down with the kids" whereas they really just come off sounding a bit sad and completely out of touch. The chorus has a bit of life and is fairly catchy, but it's hardly ground-breaking and it's such a small proportion of the overall play-time that I don't think I could stomach the rest of the song just to hear the chorus. Whoever decided this track should be showcased on SEB above "So Close To The Heaven" really ought to get their hearing checked. And sadly, this track confirms what I already knew - Saifam/Asia are now at the bottom of the pile when it comes to the labels on Super Eurobeat. Such a shame... I'm only glad I have their back catalogue from 5 to 7 years ago to console myself.
Score: 3/10

07. NIKITA JR. / TOUCH ME (Hi-NRG Attack) - 05:07
I've been a massive fan of the slower style that Hi-NRG Attack has developed during the 200's so far, and I had feared that with the supposed changes in style (back to the future if you like) we may have heard the last of the slower and more melodic side of the label in favour of carbon-copy speedy tracks. Thankfully, Nikita Jr. keeps the slow revolution rolling with "Touch Me". There has been a feeling from certain members of the community that Hi-NRG Attack shouldn't be releasing these slower tracks, and they should be sticking to the 160BPMs that have characterised them for the past decade or so. Even I had the feeling that this time around, they seemed to have slowed everything down a bit too much. The intro sounds very utilitarian and harsh - there is no dynamism in the synths used and the bass notes sound a bit too clinical. I even tried speeding it up by 10%, but bizarrely it came out sounding worse! So I stuck with it, and aside from the intro, I am really starting to warm to the melodies and touches used in this track. Nikita's vocals are too pitched for my taste if I'm honest - but I guess that's where the "Jr." in her name comes from! The main synth hook has a very classic italo feel, and the chorus is a real triumph with it's soaring vocal lines and synth trills. The verse and bridge are a mixed bag for me - the verse sounds somewhat dischordant when compared with the more melodic bridge and chorus sections, but I adore the shorter bridge and the way the beats drop out and let the guitars shine. It's clear to me that this track isn't the most dynamic or melodic slow track that Hi-NRG Attack has written - it comes nowhere near that almighty "Magic of Sunshine" or "Rainy Days" in my eyes. Having said that, it still brings that excellent flavour of 80's italo kicking and screaming into the 21st Century in a way that Hi-NRG Attack have quickly made their own. Viva la slow revolution!!
Score: 8/10

If someone is interested ...

HELENA - Lonely Night

ITALO GROOVE VERSION
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIWUZwweOBo

HEALING VERSION
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6Ur_oxhEQo

thejti wrote:The radio edit style is an SCP choice as they believe the song becomes redundant when it has an extra minute that is repeating the same stuff. The longer songs will include a guitar solo or a synth solo or rap or something in the manner. The song length is set at 3:40 to 4:30 at the max.

It's their choice not to make longer versions. However, just repeating the same stuff for an extra minute isn't the way to make a proper and interesting extended version. If they really think it's all about adding redundancy, they should take a careful listen to some good extendeds to hear it's not.

jeurobeat wrote:

thejti wrote:The radio edit style is an SCP choice as they believe the song becomes redundant when it has an extra minute that is repeating the same stuff. The longer songs will include a guitar solo or a synth solo or rap or something in the manner. The song length is set at 3:40 to 4:30 at the max.

It's their choice not to make longer versions. However, just repeating the same stuff for an extra minute isn't the way to make a proper and interesting extended version. If they really think it's all about adding redundancy, they should take a careful listen to some good extendeds to hear it's not.

But again you guys are missing the point, they really don't want to do extended versions. They prefer to have these 4 min versions. I know there's a lot of people on the forum that prefer the long 5 min plus extended versions but it's not as effective in SCPs eyes in distributing their music. Just their personal choice.

In my personal opinion, the only label that has really released epic extended versions has been SAIFAM. I used to get the extended versions of A-Beat C tracks because a lot of the electrorock style eurobeat tracks had that guitar solo that was missing in the radio edit version. The extended version released of Disconnected is the closest in structure to the SAIFAM extended versions. Other than that song and SAIFAM extendeds, there haven't been too many real reasons to go to an extended version over a radio edit.

thejti

In my personal opinion, the only label that has really released epic extended versions has been SAIFAM. I used to get the extended versions of A-Beat C tracks because a lot of the electrorock style eurobeat tracks had that guitar solo that was missing in the radio edit version. The extended version released of Disconnected is the closest in structure to the SAIFAM extended versions. Other than that song and SAIFAM extendeds, there haven't been too many real reasons to go to an extended version over a radio edit.

Depends on the era. TIME and DELTA made the best extendeds in my eyes. DELTA could actualy feature a damn good SEB edit. Newfield knew how to edit a track. I can't say the same for TIME's adits, but when they reverted back to Extendeds, Dall Ora was magic with extendeds.

Try to compare the edits on SEB or Eurobeat Flash to the atual vinyl extendeds and you hear a world of difference.

Final comment. The whole point of the extended was for mixing purposes. That's a thing of the past, so some labels got lazy, but it takes imagination and inspiratioon to cut a memorable extended. Listen to 90s and early 2000s and hear what I mean.

thejti wrote:But again you guys are missing the point, they really don't want to do extended versions. They prefer to have these 4 min versions. I know there's a lot of people on the forum that prefer the long 5 min plus extended versions but it's not as effective in SCPs eyes in distributing their music. Just their personal choice.

So I suppose it's SCP's personal choice to cut out the introduction to all of their songs on SEB as well, am I right? That's one thing I'll never be able to fathom, regardless of whether it's SCP's or Avex's doing.

But anyway, to stop the 'broken record' police from spoiling the fun, I'll supplement this post with a review of my own.

1. KEN BLAST / THE TOP
Melodically, this song epitomises everything I adore about Delta, but those narcissistic lyrics (especially during the breakdown) stops this song from achieving the highest rating. Stebbins' pride(/ego?) is supplanted all over this song and that just doesn't rub me the right way - it's cringe-worthy at best. I prefer just skipping the breakdown entirely, which is a shame; however, if I treat 'The Top' like any other eurobeat song and try to block out the lyrics subconsciously, it's a great song. Despite my criticisms I consider this to be the best Ken Blast song to date.
RATING: 【★★★★☆】

2. ROBERTA / ROCK MY HEART
I must admit, I'm surprised at the number of decent reviews this song has received. To my ears, 'Rock My Heart' just sounds like every other SinclaireStyle song released this century so far: undercooked, bland, and forgettable. I've been bored of this style ever since 'Looking for Lovers' on 191. I miss those incredibly catchy and explosive female productions that Leonardi produced shortly after he returned to the eurobeat scene (e.g., 'Move On Now Baby', 'Flame & Fire'), and although this song makes a valiant attempt to return to that level, it's not quite there yet.
RATING: 【★★☆☆☆】

3. SALLY / FEEL THE MAGIC
Although 'Feel The Magic' didn't make a great impression on me initially, this song has grown on me heaps over the past week. Whenever I listen to this song, it makes me feel like I'm back in the 150s, and that's definitely not a bad thing considering that was one of my all-time favourite decades of eurobeat. I can't fault this song much, but I wish the vocalist sounded a tad more sprightly. Most labels could take a page out of Dima's book by listening to their own songs from the not-so-distant past (150s-160s), figure out what worked well back then, and try to recreate that. I'm looking at you, Saifam!
RATING: 【★★★★☆】

4. HOTBLADE / DISCONNECTED
Well, SCP have produced another aggressive male song. Did any of us expect anything else? While 'Disconnected' is a nice song to listen to once in a while, it's not something I'd have on constant rotation due to those annoying, headache-inducing 'dis-co-nec-teds' during the chorus. Other than that, the SCP 'samey syndrome' that I've complained about oh-so-often is present yet again. While that isn't necessarily a bad thing when the quality of the song is relatively high, is it too much to ask for something different from their male titles once in a while? Give us pop, disco, a ballad... Something new to quash the testosterone overload, please!
RATING: 【★★★☆☆】

5. LOU MASTER / UP & DANCE, UP & GO
Upon my initial listen of the album, this was my favourite song, but it's funny how time can change so much. I suppose my exhaustion with SCP's male titles and the accompanying testosterone overkill has taken its toll on me here, but nevertheless, I still think it's more memorable and less irksome than 'Disconnected', hence the higher rating. 'Up & Dance, Up & Go' is a solid SCP male production with lots of initial impact and short-term replayability... Not much more to say really.
RATING: 【★★★★☆】

6. TIPSY & TIPSY / DANCE BOOM BOOM
Remember when Tipsy & Tipsy treated us to some amazing songs like 'Simon Samurai'? Oh how the mighty have fallen. There are so many annoying aspects to 'Dance Boom Boom' (from the cheesy rapping to the creepy 'yeah-yeahs!') that I struggle making it through alive! Granted, the introduction is extremely catchy and has a nice summery feel to it, but it's a real shame that the rest of the song can't maintain that level. Perhaps the introduction set the bar too high for the rest of the song? I don't know, but I think I've listened to the introduction more than I've listened to the song in its entirety. Reminds me of 'Sandy' by Mela, actually; that song also had an excellent introduction but I thought the rest of the song didn't quite deliver the same 'wow.' Oh well. Coupled with my abhorrence for Saifam's barrage of covers, I doubt I'll be returning to this one much in the future.
RATING: 【★★☆☆☆】

TOP 3:

1. ???
2. ???
3. SALLY / FEEL THE MAGIC

BOTTOM 3:

1. TIPSY & TIPSY / DANCE BOOM BOOM
2. ROBERTA / ROCK MY HEART
3. ???

---

I'll do the rest later.

Part 3 of my review...

SUPER EUROBEAT VOL. 217 REVIEW - Tracks 8 to 10

08. DAVE & FUTURA / SUN FIRE (Sun Fire) - 05:01
With a title like that, this track should pretty much opitimise everything that is brilliant about Sun Fire - pretty much like an internet dating profile, telling us all that we need to know about the re-born label. So, just what is it that this track is telling us about Mr. Rodger's new baby? Well, first of all, it's clear that it will take some time to get the new studio equipment producing the kind of awesome sound quality that we used to hear from A-Beat C. Granted, we don't have as many issues this time around (no super-loud bass, for example) but I still feel like there is a magic ingredient missing - maybe it's the percussion, or the lead synths used. Anyway, back to the song itself - we are in familiar territory with another "Dave &...." duet. The last time he teamed up with Futura was on the excellent "Dance In My Town" (a track that was cruelly overlooked since it was shoved unceremoniously onto a non-stop release!) so the expectations for this track are high. I noticed almost immediately that the chord progression during the chorus is virtually identical between this track and "Dance In My Town", which is a shame since it makes it even easier to compare the two songs like for like and in my opinion, Sun Fire comes away looking slightly worse off. Futura's vocals still lack the raw power to drive home a melody, particularly during the chorus, and I find myself wishing Dave would takeover more of the vocal work to give the chorus more body. Aside from that, I have to say that I really enjoy the synth hook melody and the production through the verse and bridge seems to have an old-school A-Beat C vibe. I love the "Sun Fire" adlibs during the hook in the second half of the song, but I do get a little annoyed that the verse has a melody that makes it sound completely separate from the rest of the song, but I do find myself singing along more often than not. I guess as a signature track for the label, this one does the business as it is among the best tracks produced thus far, but there is still some way to go in my eyes to reach beyond the good to the awesome!
SCORE: 8/10

09. DEE DEE / THE DARK SIDE OF YOUR MOON (Dima Music) - 04:50
Did anyone order one massively over-rated track for Super Eurobeat vol. 217? Well, you're in luck, since Dima has just delivered this one! I honestly don't understand the high praise that this track has been receiving from a lot of people, as to me it has an overwhelming stench of...well, mediocrity. Dee Dee is clearly the alias that Dima uses for the tracks on the more aishu side of the sentimental scale, which probably explains why I have never really gone crazy over a Dee Dee track. The intro to this track sounds quite sickly sweet for a male Dima production - the muted horns in the background border on the cheesy - and when the main hook kicks in, there is no doubt that we are far away from the world of testosterone and raw power. The thing that irritates I guess is that Dima can, on occasion, produce tracks that have a more thoughtful and sentimental edge but that still retain a core of energy and power - a prime example of this is "Sunrise ~You'll Always Be Alive~". Where this track differs is the fact that the synths and production as a whole seems to have been wrapped in cotton wool - everything just sounds a bit too fluffy. I like the subtle melodic change going into the verse, and the bridge is pretty good in the way that it builds the tension and intensity. Sadly, the chorus is just a bit of a letdown - I don't actually like the lyrics or idea behind them that much, and in a song with this level of emotional importance the lyrics do play an important part for me. Probably the best part of the whole song comes at 03:15 - I love the way the synths build the tension and then we have the menacing synth chord with the vocals laid bare; that works really well. I guess every genius has his off days, and this track is in no way awful, but I would find it difficult to keep coming back to this track over tracks such as Somebody To Love & Sunrise - they just seemed to have more poignancy and power to match the emotion.
SCORE: 6.75/10

10. MARIKA / FORGET MY HEART (Delta) - 05:26
Before I review this track, I have to get this out of the way - I have convinced myself that during the chorus at around 01:22, Marika sings "Forget my eyes, my pasta bake". It's cracking me up everytime I hear this song now and it must be made into an animated GIF file! Anyway, back to the serious business. Marika had a great debut with Delta - her track "Stay With Me" had a great mixture of emotion, catchy melodies and a killer key change towards the end that made it an instant hit for me. It would seem that perhaps this is a tough act to follow, as although "Forget My Heart" has a similar overall feel for her debut, I just don't feel that Marika connects with the lyrics and the emotions in the same way here. During the intro, I have no idea why she has been told "Forget my art" - perhaps she doesn't appreciate a good watercolour. The synth hook has that trademark catchy and highly melodic approach that Delta has used to great effect recently, but the vocal sections never seem to reach any sort of high point for me. The verse is fairly pedestrian, with Marika sounding quite glum/bored throughout. When the bridge kicks in, we struggle to move up to the next gear so by the time the chorus kicks in, we are in the middle of a fairly mediocre melody delivered in a fairly mediocre style. Certain quirks in the production do spark my interest and make me smile - for example, the piano adlibs during the second half of the verses is a nice touch, and I like the way the bass emulates a heartbeat during the section starting at 02:55. However, little quirks in a song's production can never truly elevate it to the top of the tree without an amazing melody and vocal performance to match, and that's where this track falls down. Again, much like the Dee Dee track, this is by means awful, but I know that both the producers/writers and the vocalist can do so much better. Maybe next time Marika (with a "k")
SCORE: 7/10

I don't even want to review this album... All I can say is that The Top, Disconnected, Up & Dance Up & Go, Dance Boom Boom, Flying Over The Sky and Rocketman are 9 and 10s. And the rest is 7.5 and below.