Current Hi-NRG

[DeepBeat]

Thanks! I will try p2p ASAP! I agree that this was Prince's best period and I have practically every project he was involved with back then.
The Jill Jones album was absolutely great. She released another album last year which I got for ol' times sake and , as expected, it sucked big time...

[MiaBocca]

I haven't picked 'Two' up yet, although I've kept an eye on Sheila E's career, she's great :)

[stuckinthe80s]

Thanks for that list. I knew every song on the 80s NRG list, but only one or two from the others. I feel like "Grampa" from the Simpsons when Homer told him that he wasn't "with it anymore". He answered "I used to be with it until they changed what it was".

[jonny boy]

I strongly recommend listening to the works of 2 current NY producers. Danny Wang and Metro Area - the former has done some really interesting italo-esque work whilst metro area have another fresh take on the genre - morgan geist, one member of metro area is very fond of italo artists such as gary low, and his EP moves definetely took its influence from 'You are a danger'. Their website is
www.environrecords.com

[JAMES C]

Very interesting thread, going back to the original question. As a HI-NRG/EURODISCO Fan, I must say the closest dance music got the 80's HI-NRG was such groups as La-Bouche & other up-tempo Italo Dance acts from around '95-'96/'97, after that it went all Club Vocal Trance & slower BPM'S.

I've followed the progression to this date & at the moment I have to say the most up-tempo, Happy Vibed & Melodic style of Dance that I as an Old-Skooler can suggest with great Vocals that Hark back to both 80's HI-NRG & that 90's Euro-Dance has to be Uk Hardcore Trance. I know alot of people talk about electro alot & I've even been listening to some modern nu-wave synth stuff which is more trancey but I get the same energy rush when listening to Uk Hardcore as I did when I first heard HI-NRG in the 80's.

If you're familiar with changes in chord progressions, have a listen to how producers in this genre change the baslline progression regularly through a track.

Best artists to listen to are Breeze & Styles, Scott Brown, K-Complex (more instrumental & euphoric), Gammer, Brisk, etc. Labels such as Evolution, Raver Baby, Nu-Energy, Next Generation, Essential Platinum. If you want to listen to samples or download MP3'S, good place to start is trackitdown.net, nuenergy.co.uk, evolution.com.

Basically you have about 5 Years of modern Hardcore to sift through, & know it's not the same cheesy Happy Hardcore as it was 10Years ago. I guess listening to the BONKERS SERIES (VOLUMES 10-15) OR HARDCORE HEAVEN (1-4) would also be great place to start.

The only thing is that this music is fast, as in 170 bpm & plus, however, this has made the genre stay underground for the last couple of years & has allowed the genre to develop to high standards, basically if you slow down the traxx, then you''ll understand what I mean by sounding like HI-NRG.

Unless anyone else can suggest any new genres (other than electro or house), that have that drive & energy & the melodies that we're big in the 80's as well as the rich synth stabs & well written vocals (that are not repeated samples like in house), than I guess Uk Hardcore is the closest you can get.

[Magnifique]

Sadly the heyday or glory days of hi nrg are over. HI NRG music of the early eighties was the best IMO. If you haven`t got a copy of MATB 14 (Mad about the boy) from KLONE Records (www.klonerecords.com)
in London don`t miss out on this fab release of (fresh) non-cover original energy tunes, and lots of updated & energized cover versions of pop and dance tracks. The 2-cd set was released last September.

[Thereza bizarre]

Correction on the 80s being analogue only where the dance drum sound is concerened you could not be more wrong!!!, that was the analogue, 70s...... i am a music technologist and theorist and have studied the medium very hard (a passion i am afraid) and the main stay of drum machines from 1979 onwards were actually digital! the linn drum mk1 made by roger linn and used by just about everyone (who knew it was amazing) and sti is! came out in 1979 using samples of individual drum sounds and then a sequencer added to record and chain patterns together with it being the first to have quantization on it very innovative at the time go check out thevintagesynthexplorersite.com and you will see i am right i own these instruments myself so i know what i am talking about.
i know it bores most people but "looping" is an old hat thing from 1979 and before that they used what is called "music concrete" which is pieces of sounds put together using tapes and loops and disco frequently used tape looping for drum parts before the 1979 digital revolution!!!!. then in 1980 the digital oberhiem dmx came out it is the drum machine featured in new order's"blue monday" obviously it is digital samples of the real thing sequenced on its own machine othewise you would never get the flam and fast stacato.... the only analogue 80s drum machines were by roland the tr 808 using digital procceses but analouge aproximations of drum sounds.and the hybrid analogue/digital sample 909 and sampling was brought to us also in 1979 via the fairlight cmi 1, with emulator mk1 followuing in late 1980 and the ensoniq in and various samplers long before 1985 it was a known science by 1981 fact. digital reverb and effects units became widely available by 1980 it took a while for them to filter through but as most people know by mid 1982 most music was being recorded with one digital instrument or another and remember sequential circuits brought out the industry standard midi that we are all used to in the autunm of 1982.

phew i will faint now.........

[metalbearuk]

Gigi D'Agostino's 'I'll Fly With You' is a classic Hi-Nrg song, just updated slightly, very anthemic and uplifting in it's original single edit.

Sadly, it's been nicked by the 'donk' and 'scouse house' brigade who have just speeded it up and taken away it's beauty.

Why it wasn't a bigger track on the UK NRG scene I'll never know.

It's about 5-6 years old now I think.

Well worth tracking down.

[normvork]

Originally Posted by MiaBocca

Almighty and Klone Records are UK Hi-NRG - both been around some years and still going - mainly doing cover versions and (in the case of Almighty) remixes for CD singles and promos of pop acts.
Almighty Records.com
KLONE RECORDS!

Some of the older releases are better, since Almighty especially seem to be moving more to a pop/trance sound.

The difference between House, Hi-NRG, Trance, Techno?

It's a very difficult question to answer, just to put it into words. All these styles have evolved originally from Disco I guess, with other influences like Electronic Music along the way. It might be easier to list some songs in each Genre:

>> Hi-NRG -
- Divine - Shoot Your Shot
- Dead Or Alive - My Heart Goes Bang
- Hazell Dean - Searchin'
- Lisa - Rocket To Your Heart
- Miquel Brown - So Many Men, So Little Time
- Lovrde - Backstreet Romance

>> Mid-80s House -
- JM Silk Hurley - Music Is The Key
- Marshall Jefferson - Move Your Body
- Chip E - Time To Jack
- Farley Jackmaster Funk - Love Can't Turn Around
- Rhythm is Rhythm - Strings Of Life
- Frankie Knuckles - Your Love
- A Guy Called Gerald - Voodoo Ray
- Lil' Louis - French Kiss
- Mr. Fingers - Can You Feel It

>> Late 80s/Early 90s House -
- Gat Decor - Passion
- Inner City - Big Fun
- Alison Limerick - Where Love Lives
- Ten City - That's The Way Love Is
- Mantronix - Got To Have Your Love
- Jimi Polo - Better Days
- Adeva - Thank You
- Degrees Of Motion

>> Early/Mid 90s House
- Lisa Lisa & The Cult Jam - Let The Beat Hit 'Em
- CeCe Peniston - Finally
- Jamiroquai - Space Cowboy [ Morales Classic Club Mix ]
- C&C Music Factory - (Gonna Make You) Sweat
- Tina Moore - Never Gonna Let You Go
- Robin S. - Show Me Love
- Crystal Waters - Gypsie Woman

>> Early/Mid 90s Rave/ Happy Hardcore
- Altern8 - Infiltrate 202
- Zero B - Lock Up
- Shamen - Ebenezer Goode
- Prodigy - Charly
- Prodigy - Everybody In The Place
- Prodigy - No Good (Start The Dance)
- Dream Frequency - Feel So Real
- Hyper Go-Go - Never Let Go
- SL2 - On A Ragga Tip
- N-Trance - Set You Free
- Praga Khan - Injected With A Poison
- Urban Cookie Collective - I've Got The Key
- Happy Clappers - I Believe

>> Drum & Bass / Jungle
- Baby D - Let Me Be Your Fantasy
- Goldie - Inner City Life
- Ganja Crew - Super Sharp Shooter

>> Mid-90s Euro-Dance
- Culture Beat - Mr Vein
- La Bouche - Be My Lover
- Alex Party - Don't Give Me Your Life
- Motiv8 - Rockin' For Myself
- Sandy B. - You Make My World Go Round
- The Time Frequency - The Ultimate High
- JX - Son Of A Gun

>> Mid/Late 90s Dance
- Bizarre Inc. - Playing With Knives
- Livin' Joy - Dreamer
- Barkin' Brothers - Gonna Catch You Baby (Gordon's Groove)
- Capriccio - Everybody Get Up
- Camisra - Let Me Show You
- OT Quartet - Hold That Sucker Down
- DJ Flavors - Your Caress
- Ruff Driverz - Deeper Love
- Camisra - It's Alright
- Klubheads - Discohopping
- Sash! - Encore Une Fois
- Sneaker Pimps - Spin Spin Sugar (Armand Van Helden Mix)

>> Mid/Late 90s Trance
- Robert Miles - Children
- Atlantic Ocean - Waterfall
- Planet Perfecto - Bullet In The Gun
- Binary Finary - 1998
- Binary Finary - 1999
- Paul Van Dyk - For An Angel
- Energy 52 - Cafe Del Mar
- Veracocha - Catre Blanche
- Draz Ltd II - Amphetamine
- System F - Out Of The Blue
- Art Of Trance - Madagascar

>> Late 90s Big Beat
- Chemical Brothers - Hey Girls, Hey Boys
- Chemical Brothers - Let Forever Be
- Fatboy Slim - Rockerfeller Skank
- Fatboy Slim - Right here right now
- Skanty Sandwich - Because Of You
- Cornershop - Brimfull Of Asha (Norman Cook Mix)
- Underworld - Born Slippy
- Prodigy - Smack My Bitch Up

>> UK Garage
- MJ Cole - Waiting For The Day
- TRJ Feat. Xavier - Just Gets Better

>> Late 90s/2000s Nu-Disco
- Soul Searcher - Can't Get Enough
- Stardust - Music Sounds Better With You
- Peter Heller - Big Love
- Basement Jaxx - Red Alert
- Cassius - 1999
- Daft Punk - One More Time
- Daft Punk - Digital Love
- The Ones - Flawless
- Supermen Lovers - Starlight

>> Hard House
- Cortina - Music Is Moving
- Lisa Lashes – Looking Good
- Perpetual Motion – Keep On Dancing (Lets Go)
- CRW – I Feel Love
- Public Domain - Operation Blade

>> 2000s Euro-Trance (very cheesy!)
- Kelly Llorrena - Tell It To My Heart
- Flip 'N' Fill - Shooting Star
- Scooter - The Logical Song
- Scooter - Posse (I Need You)
- Lasgo - Alone

I have wondered for a long time how to classify certain songs, as I have trouble figuring out why "this is this" and "that is that".
So here are a few songs I would like to hear you guy classify for me:
Locomotion Kylie Minogue
Too Many Broken Hearts Jason Donovan
Strong Enough Cher
This is Hot Pamala Stanley
Always on my Mind Pet Shop Boys