Trance music is now the world’s biggest dance music genre. In the UK, Calvin Harris has taken the sound to No.1, and in a OJ-mixed form, trance regularly tops the compilation charts. When it came to choosing who should revitalise their legendary Trance Nation series, Ministry Of Sound had only one outfit in mind – Above & Beyond.
Officially Britain’s most popular DJs, Above & Beyond were recently voted Best Group at the International Dance Music Awards, ahead of the likes of Daft Punk, Soulwax, Justice, and Pendulum. Now ranked No.4 in DJ Mag’s Top 100 DJs Poll, their largest gig to date was in front of 1 million people in Rio, Brazil.
Through the mix albums on their label Anjunabeats, Above & Beyond have been awarded numerous compilation of the month reviews in the dance press, while their latest release is currently sitting at No.1 in the US iTunes Dance Album chart.
The trio are so renowned for their own compilations, that they’ve politely steered clear of mixing them for anyone else. That is, until now. When they were asked to relaunch the classic Trance Nation album series for Ministry Of Sound, the opportunity to stamp their mark was too good to miss.
“Ministry of Sound was keen to take the Trance Nation series back to its roots and approached us with the idea,” said Tony of Above & Beyond. “The early editions of the series were amongst the most complete records of their time, so we were keen to get involved.”
“We’ve picked the latest tracks from our favourite producers, remixers and artists to create a 160 minute mix that captures the trance scene as we see it in the summer of 2009,” he added. “As ever, our focus is on quality tunes, so we hope this CD will stand the test of time: that’s the Trance Nation legacy as we see it.”
Widely regarded as the world’s premier trance .and progressive house label, Above & Beyond’s Anjunabeats imprint receives consistent acclaim from critics and dance music . fans alike. Under their Ocean Lab guise, which also features vocalist Justine Suissa, the trio of Tony, Jono, and Paavo, have established themselves as a leading force when it comes to intelligently written vocal dance music.
1. Passenger 10 – Mikado (DJ Tatana Dub)
2. Andrew Bennett – Break Away (Martin Roth NuStyle Dub Mix)
3. Marco V – Unprepared
4. Stoneface & Terminal – Santiago
5. OceanLab – Secret (Andrew Bayer Remix)
6. Sunny Lax – Reborn
7. Josh Gabriel Presents Winter Kills – Deep Down
8. Firestorm Presents Coll & Tolland – Redemption (Cressida Remix)
9. Matt Cassar – 7 Days & One Week (Myon & Shane 54 Remix Edit)
10. Airplay 47 – Be Free (Mat Zo Remix)
11. Cosmic Gate – Sign Of The Times (Markus Schulz Mix)
12. Matan Zohar – First Glance
13. Airbase – Interfere
14. Carl B & Static Blue – Sunstruck (JPL Remix)
1. Mat Zo – 24 Hours
2. Lange and Andy Moor – Stadium Four
3. Ronski Speed – Are You? (Club Dub)
4. Gareth Emery – Exposure
5. OceanLab – Ashes (Oliver Smith Remix)
6. Saints & Sinners – Peace (Breakfast Mix)
7. Cold Blue – Fever
8. Nitrous Oxide – Magenta
9. Mike Koglin – The Silence (Prospekt Remix)
10. Activa Presents Solar Movement – Eclipse
11. OceanLab – On A Good Day (Above & Beyond Club Mix)
12. Nitrous Oxide – Aurora
13. Robert Nickson – Circles
14. Ferry Tayle & Static Blue – L’Acrobat
15. Ilya Soloviev – Universal Universe
Label: Ministry of Sound
Catalog: MOSCD197
Released: 3rd August 2009
