Hardcore gets happy on The Final Chapter
Music: Sixth installment in hardcore dance series strong but not for all tastes
By VIM NADEMANEE
Staff Writer
Happy
hardcore is among the most energetic forms of dance music that exists
today. Hardcore, the bad boy of techno music, surfaced in the late '80s and
early '90s, and with the popularity of groups such as the Prodigy, the
genre became all the rage in London.
One significant
offshoot that evolved from hardcore is happy hardcore, which stands on the
lighter side of its fiercer relatives. Happy hardcore maintains the pace of
hardcore but lightens the mood, creating a positive, rave-like atmosphere
that many hardcore ravers find less substantial. Its fast, basic beats,
ultra-quick piano lines and helium-like vocal samples produce an angelic
atmosphere.
Happy 2B
Hardcore is an album series within the realm of happy hardcore. Mixed by DJ
Anabolic Frolic, the series has finally come to a close. This edition,
Chapter 6 The Final Chapter is like any other CD in the series fast-paced
and euphoric.
Whether your
convictions lie in drum and bass, trance, techno, house or any other genre
of dance music, you'll find this mix uplifting. Its mystical and musical
score, compiled with seductive breakdowns, leads to infectious buildups. In
fact, that is exactly what happy hardcore is a roller-coaster ride of
insane beats and infectious grooves. The music is designed to make
listeners dance like madmen, with periodic buildups and then breaks to cool
down and rest.
This is a
premiere dance album and nothing else. One is not advised to sit while
listening to this music because it really does get the feet moving.
Starting from the first track, "Drift on a Dream" by Kaos and Ethos, the
album rips into a frenzy of beats and sounds. Happy hardcore is repetitious
and thrives on its ability to take listeners on a voyage of pure dance
tracks it takes adrenaline and a love of dance to get into this album. It
also takes a strong will or at least strong dance moves to keep up. Happy
2B Hardcore is not for just any person who likes dance music.
Anabolic Frolic
is the perfect DJ to take on this music, and while it isn't for everybody,
Happy 2B Hardcore as a series has found its fan base, as this album will as
well.
Copyright 2001 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved.
This article was published in Vol. 144, No. 52 (Thursday, November 8, 2001), beginning on page 8 and ending on page 10.