I present some examples of the best and most tasteful European Europhoric music I can think of, leaving behind my own tastes and sense of what's "cool" and trying to honestly enjoy the selection process.
Obviously this all started with Early 90's Madchester and Raves. So let's put it in a 1991 framework:
New Atlantic / I know
Shaman / Move Any Mountain
Invigorated and free, modern man simply looked to share optimism & communicate our own desire and ability to control our future; make the world a better place. The fact that this was openly "cheeseball" was more than a 'happy accident' -- the style was defiant of cultural snootery and criticism. "This is your life. Own it."
European Classic Euphoric: Some Has Stood the Test of Time
Primal Scream / Together
Despite the tempo, and general differences between this and the others on this list, this song is a really really important member of the UK euphoric 90's dance movement. You can't deny how prevalent and amazing the sample is. See Herve - Together as One, which Annie Mac debuted at some point this year. Fast forward to 3:30 if you just dont get it.
Underworld / Born Slippy
Certainly lauded as one of the most relevant, artistic, important examples of this genre, generation and attitude, this song almost cannot be ignored. It's lyrics are poetry that speaks for a generation of sexually confused, energized, city dwellers who really just wanted to break down the walls and celebrate together. Was this generation an illusion? It seems almost too good to be true.
America's Various Attempts to Join The Party
Disco Boys / Hey St. Peter
America birthed electronic dance music, and made the drugs and parties incredibly famous. Naturally there's a kind of bitterness about how well the europeans did with it. They have a governmentally funded radio program for dance music. They have the famously stable and huge Ministry of Sound that grabbed Levan and other icons after NYC rejected them. They have a string of huge, amazing and famous superclubs and afterhours parties, and never had to deal with an oddly and harshly puritanical set of laws seemingly designed to prevent artistic and cultural movement.
So yeah, many dance-music loving Americans reject this type of music as "too easy" and overlook it. Some try, and occasionally it works out (and doesn't become an intensely personal and embarrassing trance music journey...).
Unfortunately, America Never really "GOT" European Euphoric Rave or Dance Music
Orbital / Halcyon + on + on
How could I not pick the Mortal Kombat Youtube version. Not only would it be a serious misstep to not mention that this song was a major part of my musical childhood, but also that hearing it in the Mortal Kombat movie was a pretty awesome experience for a lot of 12 - 15 year olds out there. But this is a perfect example of America's attitude towards Euphoric dance music. Can we make it a happy meal please? Is my son a drug addict for dancing to this, or am I showing signs I may have used drugs by liking it secretly?
Either way it's certainly a joke.
Modern Euro Euphoric
Example / Watch the Sun Come Up
In this music video, Euphoric dance music is a part of life, something that is personally liberating and energizing on a daily basis. A world in which your own lifestyle is an integrated and fun part of your taste in music is presented. You don't just party and take drugs to it; you live in it's world. You wake up in the morning and feel empowered by this music. It's a fresh and interesting way to see it.
Calvin Harris / I Am Not Alone
And Where on EARTH would this genre be without Ibiza and Pete Tong
Pryda / Pjanoo
Insanely Epic, Anthemic, Musically just barely interesting enough to carry the song. Most importantly, shifts in the song are purely textural -- there is 0% songwriting as a component. Each layer of the track, by joining or leaving the blend, affects the overall energy level and aesthetic at that point in the song. This is the purest form of what a DJ aims to do, and amazingly effective at running that energy. you may not believe me, but I really doubt that, in the right setting, this song would not completely tear your lid off -- especially if you had not heard it before on a very large sound system.
Michael Mind / Ride Like the Wind
What I find completely amazing about that youtube post is the pictures of women on it. I'm never able to discern completely whether that kind of objectification is a boring and out-tread new variation on the classic repression of women, or just a straight man (or strange lipstick les?) who has a more gay attitude about sexuality, seeking the most beautiful bodies for a night of hedonistic liberation? It seems to be caught somewhere in between, and the motivations are artfully masked by the internet, blurred beyond repair, in my mind.
A Final Thought: Sensation
The Ultimate European Decadence & Commercialism? Or the largest successful global electronic dance party?
Only time will tell, but I don't want to miss it.
Also, let mainly by minds like Sebastian Ingrosso & Axwell, It's hard not to mention them, or they're ideas -- and how important they have been. Not only to European Euphoric music, but to House Music, and to the Circuit. I'll only provide one example, but I know it's enough:
Since internet music laws are still in retarded puberty, I'm not allowed to embed this.. Please check out Axwell / I found You
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