Energy 52 - Cafe Del Mar '98 (Three N One Mix)
How quickly things change without you realising. One minute you’re riding the waves of a scene in full swing, a mainstay in the box of every DJ from Sasha to some guy you’ve never heard of. The next, you’re on your knees, wondering what happened to most of the institutions you recognised. The nights, minutely categorised sub genres and even the mediums of choice are changing rapidly, and you haven’t kept up.
If one thing can define the era that directly preceded the millennium, and the post-2000 decline of club culture as was, it’s size. Everything, from the ticket price, to the venue capacity and lighting rig, was massive. But nothing was larger than the music.
As such Hooj Choons is a pretty era-defining name. Such that it belongs to a label that transcends trends, and defined a few, is fitting. The imprint began way back when (1991), and as with anything music-related, Hooj’s output wasn’t for everyone. But then it wasn’t really for anyone either. Genres from tribal to electro were covered on the 130 or so 12”s released in the12 years until pressings stopped, circa 2003. That means you can name-check everything from (greatest trance build up committed to vinyl) Café del Mar ’98, through to the low, rumbling house of Halo Varga’s Future!
We’d also like to shout out Peace Division's mix of Roaches by Trancesetters, Seven Cities from Solarstone, and, of course, Carnival Da Casa - the first Choon, courtesy of Rio Rhythm Band. All that’s before we’ve even got on a proper old skool tip, and mentioned producers like JX, Tin Tin Out and Felix. For us, and most though, the heyday was in the years that led the 20th into the 21st Century. So thanks for the proggy trance times, and for making us smile at the various exploits of the stickman-turned-DJ that adorned each sleeve.
Halo Varga - Future
Trancesetters - Roaches (Peace Division Remix)
Solar Stone - Seven Cities (V-One Living Cities Mix)
Rio Rhythm Band - Carnival Da Casa
JX - Son of a Gun
Felix - Don't You Want Me
Greece 2000 - Three Drives
Cygnus X - The Orange Theme
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