Super Eurobeat 194

2.Stephy Martini - Fever Of Love (Dima Music)
Releasing an album with a love song theme could only mean ballads, but surprisingly enough Avex decided to gun my prejudices down right at the beginning. Stefania is back with a fairly midpaced lovesong that instantly conquerors your consciousness. Fever Of Love is a simple track in every way, but the simplicity this time around feels thoroughly wellthought instead of leaving it bare. The midpace tempo fits the song perfectly and it is nice to have a track for a change where the beat is basically the biggest force pushing the song onwards. Great vocal work, great melody and an especially effective chorus make this track one of the better entries from Dima Music so far. With some extra hooks on the verses this could have been a true perfect cut gem.
Rating : 10-

3.Leslie Parrish - My King Is You (Delta)
This title is absolutely perfect for the theme this album has, the unfortunate part is that it does somewhat get lost amongst the stronger entries. My King Is You is like the previous track, a fairly plain song that emphasises the athmosphere a lot. The  song features one of the better synth hooks this album offers, but the sad part is that while the verses offer a lot of hooks, the chorus is rather uninspiring and easily forgettable. The song itself is oddly uplifting though, the minor flaws in the structure don't drag the whole production to the ground. The great synth and nice verses always make me feel good, so it is sad how the chorus then seems like the weakest link. A decent song that gets stuck between two stronger tracks and is rather easily skipped.
Rating : 7½

4.Domino - Call Me (Go Go's Music)
After the awesome Para Girl I wasn't expecting to get more of as high quality material, but yet again Alessandra and her crew managed to surprise me. Call Me is yet an another japanesey song with an upbeat melody that seems like a straight follow up to the ever wonderful Playing With Numbers. Upbeat melody and a slighty more aggresive approach with this song stands out instantly with this album, for the songs advantage. The song is your basic eurobeat without much extra to pull you in, so if you enjoy upbeat female type of eurobeat I'd assume you are perfectly at home here. For the fans of more masculine music, I can foresee people having trouble with the bubbly attitude present. A great song with a great athmosphere.
Rating : 9+

5.Mike West - All I Want Is You (Time)
Time has definitely produced their fair share of slower love songs through out the year, from my perspective most of them have been fairly forgettable. All I Want Is You is basically more of the same old with a few good points that show signs of motivation the writers have had while creating the music. The sounds are completely hollow without any edge at all, the synth is absolutely too neutral to actually sparkle any kind of emotional attachment to the song. Vocals work alright, but can't really bring life into an otherwise empty carcass. Boring in pretty much every meaning of the word.
Rating : 6

6.Ai Yamamoto - Happy Valentine (SCP)
Ai Yamamoto's previous entries divided the listeners pretty strongly. The vocal work is easily identifiable with the other SCP girls, but the songs are even slightly more airy than what the label usually does. Happy Valentine is a love song, but in a slightly unconventional way. An upbeat mood throughout the song makes the song like a mental follow up to the bouncy songs the label produced during the Euromach years. The structure gives out a very strong vibe to the Melissa White song L.O.V.E. You & Me, from 2002. That does show the genre and label haven't really moved too far from the older roots. Melody wise the song is fairly catchy, the chorus itself works like a charm and the c-melody also sounds fun and bouncy. A nice song that still can't quite become as addictive as some of the past hits.
Rating : 9-

7.Pamsy & Jay Lehr - Give It All Up To Me (SCP)
Hearing two rather big names from SCP working in unison is definitely refreshing, but what do you know, they might have been better off doing things on their own. Give It All Up To Me sounds very much alike to Big Heart by its melody and mood, but this one unfortunately seems like the reject version. Listening to the song is a bit of a snoozefest since pretty much all parts of the song just sound uninspirational. The chorus especially is a huge let down since it can't create any power at all. The sounds have absolutely no edge at all and it's rather hard to remember the song at all after a while. A disappointment all around.
Rating : 6

8.Pistol Girl - Si La Do (HI-NRG Attack)
Out of all the entries on this album I have to admit that by far Si La Do surprised me the most. The song breaks down the typical HI-NRG Attack pattern in such a graceful manner it becomes one of the label's more memorable songs in years. The track has that strong HRG trademark attached to it, yet it still sounds refreshingly different and instantly catchy, something that has lately been missing on a lot of their productions. The track is not a slower track as one could have expected due to the album's theme, but instead it's a upbeat track with an extra memorable chorus. Somehow the syllables in the title also sound really pleasant when sung, I do admit that I don't know whether it actually means anything, but I still like how it sounds. Si La Do is conventional and unconventional at the same time, a really refreshing production that combines old and classic elements with a new approach and a very catchy melody.
Rating : 10

9.Norma Sheffield - For Your Love (A-Beat C)
Well now I can say that Norma is definitely in the right place. Love songs have been her strong (and weak) suit all throug the years. When one thinks about eurobeat and love songs it's definitely Norma Sheffield who is thought of first. For Your Love is exactly what you could expect to hear from her though. A light production with light vocals and a slightly romantic approach with acoustic elements. There have been times when her tracks have been really memorable, but this track is unfortunately one of those. For Your Love is in every way perfect to have as a background music when working, but it's not solid enough to be 'listened to' full time.
Rating : 6

10.Rick Castle - Dolcevita Tonight (HI-NRG Attack)
If Si La Do was unconventional, Dolcevita Tonight doesn't get left too far behind. Quite truthfully I had a hard time choosing which one of these two jewels is better in the end. Rick Castle was the title that brought a slower approach to HI-NRG Attack tracks in the first place, so it's naturaly to hear him again on a ballad album. This time around the track isn't exactly slow but it still has a beautiful and a serene mood to it (as much as the label can really do with their typical sounds). Dolcevita Tonight is surprisingly well balanced and it sounds also much more mature than what you usually hear from the label. The lyrics are the only real flaw again, since too frequently they just sound like random words linked to eachother. A great melody, great vocals with slightly silly lyrics, but still an effective track by HI-NRG Attack.
Rating : 10

11.Hely - Forever Sad (Eurogrooves)
A sorrowful title, that isn't exactly an every day thing in eurobeat. What is even more uncommon is that the tracks would actually accomplish at sounding mellow and sad. Forever Sad is a good effort though, but still only comes halfway. The melody does produce a slightly sad mood to it, but for somehow the vocals still sound rather perky and maybe are a bit contradictional to the lyrics. As far as sad music goes, the track still has miles to go before it could actually sound like something one would listen to when heartbroken or when you are completely torn down. That is in general a hard feature for eurobeat to produce while still sounding like eurobeat, well maybe one day we can get a truly sad song. Forever Sad is not a half bad song itself though, the sounds are generic but still work out rather fine. Chorus is catchy and the acoustic c-melody is fun to listen to to.
Rating : 8-

12.Kasanova - I Remember (Time)
I am not an overly romantic guy, the moods and cuddliness comes by here and there, but quite rarely in the long run. When I am actually feeling tacky and romantic, I do want my music to also be similar. Most of the time the sappy Time tracks don't really come anywhere close to the kind of music I prefer listening to, but oddly enough I Remember does somehow fall into that small niche of my emotional distortion. I can't call the song one that I would value above anything else, but if I do feel sappy I can identify with the mood a whole lot. The vocal work sounds really emotional and while the melody itself isn't instantly catchy, it does grow on you over time and eventually it became a fun track to replay over and over. Not for my usual mood, but those few days of the year I feel like embracing someone, I can see myself listening to I Remember.
Rating : 9-

13.Angie Sweet - Valentine's Day (Eurogrooves)
Well since Valentine's Day has never really made it big in my country, I can't really say much about the celebration itself. The song on the other hand is something I can easily golfclub to the ground. The track is absolutely amazing, amazing in a boring way. The song sounds really neutral and has absolutely nothing going on for it. The odd church athmoshpere the track has just makes it seem even more out of place on a SEB. Maybe it could work out fine in a church in a slower pace, but here it just sounds like a bad attempt at a love song. Seeing how the label is capable of producing good love songs, I can easily say that this is not worth the notion.
Rating : 5

14.Virginelle - Fantasy (Sweetest Mix) (A-Beat C)
Everyone in the eurobeat world has heard Fantasy, if you haven't, shame on you. Without a doubt, this song is one of the most influential ones throughout the years so it does seem justified to get a remake on a love song themed album. I'm obviously a big fan of Elena Gobbi, so it's nice to hear her redoing an old classic. The acoustic intro is one of the most beautiful ones I have come across in the eurobeat world, and it also fits the old song structure perfectly. In a way the modernization of the sounds takes some edge off the song, but at the same time the A-Beat C producers have managed to properly redo a classic in a completely different way. Chorus is as beautiful as ever plus the stronger synth somehow fits the track very well. I originally wouldn't have expected this remake to be as good as it turned out, but I still have to admit that I enjoy the original tad more, maybe the nostalgy adds up in the end. Either way, a very beautiful way to end up a slightly different Super Eurobeat album.
Rating : 9½

Final Words :
When this album originally came out, I skipped buying it since I have never considered myself to be a big fan of love songs or ballads for that matter. But over time I patched up the missing albums here and there and have to admit this is one of the very few eurobeat albums that really needs a lot of attention and time until you can fully appreciate it. After its release I wouldn't probably have considered liking too many of the songs, but in the end I came to realize this is actually a very strong album. The level does sway a lot from the excellent HI-NRG Attack productions to the more forgettable tracks, but the good points really make up for the flaws. A strong album with a lot of beauty in it, the final piece of art in the form of Fantasy (Sweetest Mix) perfectly sums up the whole album. More aishu, more relaxed and definitely something more feminine. An album you have to give time to instead of judging it right off the bat.

Final Score : 8

The Best 3 songs

- Pistol Girl - Si La Do
- Rick Castle - Dolcevita Tonight
- Stephy Martini - Fever Of Love

The Worst 3 Songs

- Angie Sweet - Valentine's Day
- Pamsy & Jay Lehr - Give It All Up To Me
- Mike West - All I Want Is You

Honorable Mention

- Virginelle - Fantasy (Sweetest Mix)

Labels present on the album:

A-Beat C: 2
Delta: 1
Dima Music: 1
Eurogrooves: 2
Go Go's Music: 1
HI-NRG Attack: 2
SCP: 2
Time: 2

Reviewed by Bore