Nostalgia 029

CJ Bolland – The 4th Sign [R&S Records] (1992)

Born in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham in 1971 but transplanted to Belgium when he was only three, CJ Bolland received an early education in dance music; his parents ran a club in Antwerp, and his mother DJed there. He grew up listening to the synthesizer music of several eras from Jean-Michel Jarre to Front 242 and the The Neon Judgement but began devoting most of his time to house and techno by the late ’80s.

Bolland began producing in 1988, when a drummer friend gave him access to the right gear, and his tracks were soon heard on several Belgian pirate radio stations. He then sent demos to several labels, and finally heard back from R & S Records.

CJ Bolland’s first production for R & S, the Project’s “Do That Dance”, jump-started his career, and he soon saw releases from his projects Pulse, Space Opera (with the Advent’s Cisco Ferreira), Cee-Jay, Ravesignal and Sonic Solution. His 1992 “Ravesignal 3 EP” (specifically, the track “Horsepower”) made Bolland one of the hottest names in the new global dance community.

Bolland made his album debut soon after, with “The 4th Sign”.

https://www.discogs.com/release/5185-CJBolland-The-4th-Sign

Atlantis – Awakenings [Data Records] (1994)

Essential progressive trance record.

https://www.discogs.com/release/253101-Atlantis-Awakenings

Oliver Ho – Listening To The Voice Inside [Meta] (2000)

Prolific London, UK based DJ/producer who debuted on Blueprint in 1996.

Founded his own label, Meta in 1997 and continued to develop his style towards a more dancefloor friendly brand of funky tribal techno, while retaining experimental elements and continuing to produce for other labels.

https://www.discogs.com/master/2037-Oliver-Ho-Listening-To-The-Voice-Inside

The Beat Bros – Acid Drop [Cosmic Records] (1997)

Electronic music producer duo based in Los Angeles, US. Founders of Cosmic Records.

https://www.discogs.com/release/61197-The-Beat-Bros-Acid-Drop

Eskimos & Egypt – Fall From Grace [Flying International] (1992)

This mid-90s group is a highly regarded, mellow groove coalition. Their name was originally invoked as a gesture in support of the Inuit people’s struggle for their own homeland.

https://www.discogs.com/release/89311-Eskimos-Egypt-Fall-From-Grace

Earth Nation – An Artificial Dream [Eye Q Records] (1995)

Trance / Ambient duo project from Germany

https://www.discogs.com/release/157420-Earth-Nation-An-Artificial-Dream

Vainqueur – Lyot [Maurizio] (1992)

Aka M or M-Series. The name of this label is tentative. It never had a proper name and most releases were shrouded in mystery. Since all releases feature an “M” (sometimes highly stylized), it is also often referred to as M. The name “Maurizio” is used here in relation to the main artist on these (though also not credited).

https://www.discogs.com/release/15711-Vainqueur-Lyot