The first release of the New Year for Hotwax has two mixes to choose from. A Driving Trance mix being the more uplifting track containing a very nice filtered riff and frenzy of building hoovers whereas the hard mix is similar in production and build but has a tougher feel to it. They are mixes that will appeal to everybody into their banging sounds. M Ramone has appeared frequently on Elasticman as an artist in his own right and since teaming up with Paul Clarke, the duo have impressed with remixes and smash hits for the likes of Frantic and Nukleuz.

Andy Farley, Frantic resident and one of the finest DJs around, delivers a two track 12� designed to herald in the new age of hard house. Both tracks kick ass and have been road-tested at Andy�s many gigs over the last few months� �Hyperventilate� uses monster vocal hooks and savage stabbage to create a slice of dancefloor intensity that�ll find favour with all the purists, whilst �Connected� travels down the well-worn path of hard trance that see's even the most stubborn of floors losing the plot! With this variety, Andy�s first release on Frantic records will see yet another step up the ladder for this fledgling label�bring the noise!

This awesome limited edition release from up and coming label Wallop is the mighty Aetherius. Already firmly established in the quality house stable, he is back with a corking two tracker that�s already been aired on Radio 1 two weeks in a row by Seb Fontaine. It is always refreshing to hear simple but highly effective and innovative arrangements that immediately hook into your mind and Aetherius continue to produce material that will spawn a host of imitations. Top marks for the 'Tribal Earth Dub', that will turn dancefloors into rubble. Already coolcutted by Plastic Fantastic (London), Trax (London), Eastern Bloc(Manchester), Massive (Oxford) and 3 Beat (Liverpool).

DJ Bismark is a well respected BXR producer from Rome who produced the massive �Make A Dream� on Noisemaker vol. 8 and �Just A Moment� on Noisemaker vol. 9. 'Primitive Love' is a 3 track outing with three different styles of tracks featuring twisted techno grooves to hands in the air tech-trance riffs. The a1 mix is the �Train mix� and it's a pumping techno track that uses filtered percussion to push the track along, whereas the �Club mix� uses very solid techno based grooves and African chants in the breakdown which results in a friendly uplifting mix that would blow the roof off clubs. The b side is the �Tranclub mix�, a typical BXR trancer with a funky groove building to a massive hands in the air break. The breakdown builds well with euphoric sounds and when the track kicks back in the riff takes the energy of the tune to the maximun. This mix is already becoming an anthem at Gatecrasher and God's Kitchen with support from Fergie, Judge Jules, Mauro Picotto and Dave Pearce.

Bluephaze is up and coming Australian producer Nash T and this single was quickly snapped up by label boss Kasey Taylor for full release on Vapour across 2 x 12s. This is the 2nd of the set and features remixes from Ocean Wave and Main Element a.k.a. Gwill Morris. Gwill Morris has turned heads in the last year with a variety of work for labels such as Bedrock and Silver Planet. Gwill�s A-side main mix is a Slacker-esque full-on growler of a track with a finale that�ll leave you scratching your head! Kasey opts for the more minimal approach and pulls off quite possibly his best remix yet. Hard and atmospheric with a kick like a rabid mule. A killer of a tune for any big systems.

After a lengthy hiatus, the UK Hard boys, Billy Bunter and Jon Doe return to the mix, providing more hard house and hard trance anthems for the masses. Between the two of them they currently have remixes on Tripoli Trax, React, Nu Life, Mohawk, Honeypot and more. As both producers are forward thinking, they decided from the outset that the hard trance path was worth pursuing. The original UK Hard track 'Slammin� was released in early 2000 and showed that hard trance was popular in the clubs and has been a mainstay of the UK Hard sound ever since. This is no exception�..

Black is the new label from Bedrock Records, emerging as the natural means of representing the massive talent in underground and diverse progressive music from around the world. This first release comes from the darker, edgier side of progressive music. Shmuel Flaishler, i.e. Deep Amok production credits include independent work as Deep Amok, where his association with Bedrock also includes a forthcoming remix on O.B.A.'s 'Noah's Ark', as well as work with his brothers under the name Schmoo. Other associations include work with Perfecto and Paolo Mojo's Enter Music, as well as appearing with guest mixes on John Digweed's Kiss 100 show. The a side is an intense brooding cut that maintains the atmospheric edge. The aa side, 'Darkness' speaks for itself. A throbbing, building track that is brought to life with a reverberating background vocal that drives through the layers of the track whilst intermittent synths pierce the atmosphere, bringing the whole thing up and down, disorientating and amazing. An excellent track to launch 'Black' and a fantastic indication of the nature and quality of production that can be expected from it. For further information see www.blackrecords.co.uk.

Hill sixty are DJs Steve Butler and Jo Mills. Jo is now an international DJ who has appeared in numerous countries over the last 12 months as well as establishing herself with UK residencies. 'Deep London mix' is by Dean Thatcher & Dave Hedger who have recently recieved critical aclaim and support from Pete Tong.This is twisted deep vocal house for the headstrong.

This track was personally requested by Ingo for Vacuum after seeing it explode in the clubs. His enthusiasm for this track can be seen in the effort that he has put into his remix - a stunning piece of music that shows his maturing production style. Already signed to Tidy Trax as DJs and producers, Jez & Charlie are certainly rising stars on the hard house scene. They have future productions coming out on Vicious Circle, Bulletproof and the forthcoming Sundissential Records and established names such as Steve Thomas and Anne Savage are big fans.

Signed from Spain and produced by David Gimenez and Jordi Robles (BlancoyNegro), this little gem has been causing a stir ever since it was featured on the Tidy Boy's mix of Hard House Euphoria. 'Birds' was one of the tracks in the mix that really seemed to grab people�s attention, and after a few plays out the Boys made the right move in licensing this hard house monster. The track is definitely of Dutch appeal with a quality quirky riff and solid rocking bassline. On the flip we have a superb interpretation by the new Tidy Trax in house producer Paul Maddox (hot on the heels of his remix of N-Trance which reached number 4 in the Nationals). He delivers a cool OD404 style remix that really does hit the back of the net, and complements the release well.

The Realm is a brand new act from London, tipped by Paul Oakenfold as the next big thing. He quickly snapped up this, their debut track for his latest Ibiza Compilation, (which has just entered the top 20 independent album chart in the U.S.) and been hammering the track in his DJ sets across the globe.The original mix is a cool minimal club track with a solid b-line. It gradually builds with crazed percussion and sound effects and a quirky infectuous male vocal with lyrics that will stick in your head for days! The dub too is a pumping club friendly track with bold percussive stabs and scattered vocals � definitely one for the main room! Licensed to: Paul Oakenfold - Travelling CD, Ministry Of Sound - Clubbers Guide 2002 (forthcoming)

Following on from his monster remix of the Mexican vs. Harry Diamond's 'Spectrum' this is Mark�s first single on the purple label and it won't be the last. The original mix is pumping stuff with excellent production and is very uplifting. The groove is tough and uses strong percussion to build the typical German hard trance sounding track up. The drop is euphoric but still has dark underground elements that delivers the big room sound typical of a purple Nukleuz release. The remix on the b-side is more groove based with mini drops and a massive riff based breakdown which just builds and builds until the snare roll takes the ceiling off. This mix is amazing as it adds an uplifting edge that is similar to DJ Scott Project and the overdose sound that is kicking off at all the uk clubs such as God's Kitchen and Gatecrasher.

Licensed from Staub, Germany and originally released there as a limited 10� during the Summer of 2001. Featured here with the original are new mixes available for the first time. The original track was produced by Mark Green, producer of Mark NRG �Don�t Stop� among others. Remixed by Chris Liebing (Stigmata), Germany�s greatest techno DJ (Tunnel Club Frankfurt) and producer, who is behind the Horrorist (�One Night in New York�.) The second remix by the KlubdoctorZ, residents at the Saturday night Curious club at Bournemouth�s Opera House, who have also recently remixed Red Alien for Nebula and Cosmic Gate's �FireWire� for Ministry amongst others.

The long-awaited second release from London�s freshest producers is here with one message � �Vinyl Coup are here to stay�. The first track, �Play it to the bone� offers a roof-raising experience that everyone is sure to enjoy. The punchy, driving bass line provides the momentum for this track and it is complimented with a clever combination of top leads that weave their way throughout this uplifting experience. Whilst being very easy on the ear, this tune un-expectantly breaks with a rough edge vocal before exploding into a crowd-frenzying mixture of excitement that will leave smiles on all faces. The flip side offers something that is bound to appeal to a broad-spectrum of house DJs. This track begins with an almost tribal rhythm that is joined by a fat bass line that is always reliable with 12 Inch Thumpers releases. The difference between this tune and others is that it is a tongue-in-cheek observation of hard house. Whilst maintaining the sounds one would expect, it has a cheeky lead that draws you in to the huge build-up that revolves around a brilliant vocal. To tell you any more would give it all away.

The Wackdaddies (now down to just one Wackdaddy, the all-conquering Tony Senghorn) unleash 'Return of a Wack Planet' and our loveable Wackdaddy shows that he has lost none of the South Park attitude to music making that won 'Fear of a Wack Planet' full marks for funk and a gold star for fun. After a suitably bizarre and effects-laden intro, the album jumps headlong into 'Defectors', a typically wack groove jam-packed with electrically charged beats, oddball squeals and twisted vocals. If George Clinton were nineteen - he'd be a Wackdaddy. Tony's currently completing several projects which include a track for Moody (Chicago) with remixes by Derrick Carter, a 12" for Paper called 'Lovechild' featuring Juju and a mixed LP of Tony and La Cienda Honduras releases from '96 onward to be released on San Francisco's Panhandle records. As well as finishing a remix for Phil Cheesmean's new label Essence, he's just back from a DJing tour of America.

Track Listing:

1. Intro
2. Defectors
3. Fight The Power
4. Blow Shit Up
5. Caught Up
6. Disco World
7. Wa-Di-Da
8. Papa Pusher
9. Pass The Joint
10. Wack Is Back
11. Pay Up