Many folks in the DJ industry are seasoned music lovers with a wealth of artist knowledge covering multiple sub-genres of electronic dance music, garnered over decades of their DJ careers. However, way back in the early 1990s, the average consumer was exposed to this music via radio plays as EDM was now being requested by dance fans in droves. This alone sparked a nightlife revolution, a total break away from the saturated and over-indulgent glam rock guitar solo's, big hair and shoulder pads of the 80's.
Almost overnight the entire club scene shifted as people were now looking to dance for hours on end instead of waving their lighters around to a power ballad, in this blog we'll have a look into some of the biggest and most influential tracks released per year that decade covering a broad spectrum of styles, tap the video links and get nostalgic while we talk some production elements and also have a small peek into the effect they have had on the history of UK Nightlife. So 10 songs that shaped the 90s - let’s flashback thirty years.
1990
Robin S - Show Me Love
Originally released in late 1990, Robin S had already put out one of the most iconic songs of the decade and this record likely still pays her electricity bill almost thirty years later. After the influx of synthesiser based music in the ’80s, this song utilised a lot of fresh sounds as they became available for studio use, keep in mind this was wayyy before the internet-abled bedroom producers came along.
It encapsulated an entirely new generation of clubgoers with empowering lyrics and easy to dance to house drums, you'll have heard this exact hi-hat groove in a thousand tunes of this era but this track specifically was the catalyst of a culture revolution that began to bring people of all age groups, races and sexualities together with the common goal of having an unforgettable night out with other like-minded people simply looking to have some well-deserved fun in a time of great social and economical depression.
1991
DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince - Summertime
A timeless classic from Will Smith and Jazz. After the remarkable success of NBC sitcom "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" The pair began to put music out together and Summertime was a carefully crafted, sample-based masterpiece that helped solidify the eras sonic signatures. After rap groups such as NWA took the industry by storm, Summertime lent its grooves from Kool and the Gang song Summer Madness.
Keen ears will recognise the theremin riser all throughout this song laced with groovy bass and guitar loops along with the concluding line of the track being “This is the Fresh Prince’s new definition of Summer Madness” cleverly nodding to its origin. Smith's lyrical style removed the aggressions and harsh truths which made NWA so influential and this inexplicit, family-friendly "G-Funk" was marketed to young American families to spread a message of community to combat the "Fuck Tha Police" mentality of the day, to minimal avail.
1992
Snap! - Rhythm Is A Dancer
By 1992 this new ground that was being treaded needed experimentation and like any experiment, you’ll have mixed results. Snap! released Rhythm is a Dancer in 92 and it would seem that unreasonably loud sawtooth bass lines and kick drums were the order of the day, giving crowds a simple 4/4 beat to easily focus on / dance along to. While this song may have seen a downslope in meaningful lyricism and cohesive music video direction, not many people seemed to really give too much of a toss as the song was absolutely huge regardless! This tune along with the re-release of Show Me Love inspired thousands of young female artists to get involved and be noticed in a male-heavy industry! #Progress
This track swiftly became a staple of every DJ set for ages but today, it's far more likely you'll catch it at the "cheese night" down at your local nightclub. The full 5:32 track removes the woeful rap verse in favour of these spoken word sections and all in all it is honestly the ultimate marmite song. Love it or hate it you can't deny it was attempting to break the boundaries of the time with its creepy monologues and artistic (irresponsible) use of delay during the intro and outro.
1993
Haddaway - What Is Love
Boasting one of the wackiest music videos I've ever seen in all my years, this song was literally inescapable and even in 2020, you'd be hard-pressed to meet somebody who has not heard What Is Love at least once. This song is produced fairly well stylistically for its time and it seems as though the parameters of what is ‘correct’ in EDM production were slowly beginning to be set.
Even though lyrics with substance were becoming less and less important, it did not stop every nightclub buzzing with this multi-award-winning single for ages and it has sold over 30 million copies since release. This song was recently used in the Netflix original show "Sex Education" introducing it to a brand new generation of listeners. I’d be willing to bet that you or even your parents have a hazy memory of getting down to this tune back in the day.
1994
Livin' Joy - Dreamer
Dreamer was one of 1994’s biggest dance releases, an interesting case again with more focused, dynamic and layered production value and a strong female vocal to boot. The track resonated with young hopefuls with its inspiring and relatable lyrics, something greatly missing from the time as specifically instrumental music was gaining more and more attention.
DJ’s of 94 must have had this song requested multiple times per night as it filled floors for months on end. The track's chorus is a phrase of four ascending notes, giving ravers that constantly uplifting feeling that perhaps tricked some of the more wilder ones into grooving deep into the night/morning. Subsequently, this song has probably been included in every 90s anthology record and playlist going due to its era-defining sonic direction.
1995
Faithless - Insomnia
The incredible Insomnia is one of the songs of the decade for sure. It opened up an entirely new avenue of EDM possibilities and quite literally added several new chapters to the rulebook in general. Faithless lead vocalist Maxi Jazz imparts a bedevilled sermon about how desperate for a snooze he is, while the offbeat accents in the beat and infectious lead melody carry the track through a whole host of inventive sound effects and percussive voicings.
These all take turns building and emptying themselves from the song before bringing the beat back only to repeat the process with additional layers in the next verse, this wild, rise and fall instrumental structure could be interpreted by some as a musical representation of Insomnia itself, being unable to rest and the mind whirring away well into the night. The band Faithless reminded the UK and beyond that art is an expression and this album is still regarded as one of the more vital stepping stones for today's modern EDM sound.
1996
The Prodigy - Breathe
Hailing from our own neck of the woods, Essex boys The Prodigy are revered as legends in the history of UK Dance and always will be. They bravely injected a touch of punk into their signature breakbeat sound and although The Prodigy was already five years into their career with a few big hits under their belt, it was seminal release Fat of the Land that launched them into the public eye for good.
Liam Howlett, chief songwriter of The Prodigy pumped this track full of expertly chopped up drum fills, sound effects and reversed cymbal effects which sound similar to actual intakes of breath. Acts such as Fatboy Slim and The Chemical Brothers were also on the rise at the same time pulling in their own legion of EDM lovers from far and wide, it was clear to see that the latter half of the decade was shaping up to be a dream come true for party animals all over the continent.
1997
Daft Punk - Around The World
French House heroes Daft Punk released Around the World to critical acclaim in 97, getting inventive with high/low pass filters which remains a greatly common DJ practise today. Mysteriously at the time, Daft Punk seemed to be invisible artists as few people knew their true identities, this fuelled interest in the duo with their peculiar music videos that still didn’t confirm who they were. Later on they would rebrand and be present in videos but still wore robot style masks to hide their faces.
Around the World fuses traditional funk sensibilities with a constant four on the floor drum pattern, these parts are trimmed just slightly short of where they should naturally end in the mix, giving them a tight, punchy feel while the robotic vocal track repeats the phrase Around The World a staggering 144 times in the album version, it seems extreme but if you had your head in the clouds at a 1997 underground nightclub, it’s likely this wouldn’t be too great a concern for you.
1998
Stardust - Music Sounds Better With You
Oooh baby! Admittedly this record is just a few vocal and instrument loops slapped together but the digital effects and EQ applied to them all give the whole mix so much character and generally just a lot of room for the parts to breathe in the mix, many songs that year were slammed full of compression and in some cases almost unlistenable but this one was a smash hit that was rarely off the radio and was a nightclub mainstay for months and months on end.
While repetitive in nature, Music Sounds Better With You is the definition of catchy, hit the link above and I can guarantee you’ll be tapping your foot or nodding your head to the beat right away. The lasting effect of just a few cleverly placed loops, mixed with savvy production is basically how most modern music is on the radio in 2020, again demonstrating how the 90’s really paved the way for young creatives for decades to come.
1999
Darude - Sandstorm
Perhaps one of the most unforgettable tracks in music history, hats off to Finnish DJ Darude. Everything about this song was game-changing at the time and it felt like the day after its release everybody knew about Sandstorm and the way it popularised what we’ve affectionately come to know and love as “The Drop” Finally the purely instrumental song format had hit the mainstream, who needs vocalists anyways!
With its relentless yet simplistic melody, dynamic snare rolls and clever sample usage, Sandstorm has inspired countless up and coming DJs the world over, some that have probably gone on to forge their own era-defining contribution to dance music themselves. As this new wave of European EDM washed into our shores our sound began to change yet again, we were looking ahead to the 00’s and preparing ourselves mentally for the rise of both garage and grime.
Honourable Mentions
Eiffel 65 - Blue (Da Ba Dee) // Fatboy Slim - Praise You // Phats and Small - Turn Around
ATB - 9pm (Till I Come) // Alice Deejay - Better Off Alone
In conclusion, it’s very clear that the influences of the 1980s have played a huge role in the conception of the 90’s sound. It’s a decade that is ridiculed by a lot of people (including myself a tiny bit in the intro of the blog) but in reality, it was these synthesised experiments that led 90’s artists to a MIDI-based musical awakening during their own formative years.
It’s fascinating how music stylistically lends itself to itself in a lot of ways, lends itself to fashion trends, lends itself to momentous culture changes / public behaviours. Everybody getting on, loving life and having a dance together is an uplifting powerful thing but as music became more disparate and communities became more divided by class and ignorance, nightlife in the UK has slowly been dwindling away over the years in favour of larger scale, more event focused DJ shows.
These songs really helped to mould the sound of the decade and however you feel about the 90s, it’s hard to deny the lasting effect it has left on modern music. If you have any more recommendations for quality songs from the ’90s, I'm all ears and would love to hear from you on our Twitter or Facebook page! Let me tell you, writing this has made me feel so very old.
