Another look at 90s Eurodance

The 1990s were over, but not before its fair share of sins were dealt out. Bill Clinton committed adultery, Martin Bryant murdered 35 people... and 'I like to Move it Move it' was created, recorded and sold to the public. That was just one of many songs that followed the exact same formula, to be pumped out (with alarming regularity) from commercial radio stations and party dance floors.

For a band to qualify as 'eurodance' (which seems to be the official term for the genre), it needs the following ingredients:

1. A singer capable of repetitive pop choruses
2. A not especially talented rapper (perhaps a white German rapper)
3. Tacky Synth hooks
4. Tacky, pounding bass beats (doof doof)
5. Cheesy lyrics

I think you all know what type of music I'm talking about. I can remember it being very popular at the time but now not many dare speak of it. One of the reasons why I think it was successful, is that it was dance music for people that didn't like dance music. It wasn't relentless electronic noise, or rather, it was relentless electronic noise but it also had infectious catchy pop tunes. To give credit where it's due, a lot of these songs will get stuck in your head all day if you have the misfortune of remembering one.

As bad as it was, I can't quite bring myself to completely hate this genre of music. I certainly don't like it, but sadly, these songs built part of the soundtrack to my formative years - as a result, they hold a lot of memories. If today, I were to hear a classic sixties song, or a brand new 2008 release, I would be free to listen to it and enjoy (or not enjoy) it without any connotations; it would just be a good (or a bad) song. But I can't do that with music from the nineties because I listened to these songs during a time when I was young enough to be heavily influenced by any kind of media and entertainment, and not old enough to think sensibly about the music I was exposed to. The nineties are a vivid memory to me; the eighties are a distant memory and anything before that is not a genuine memory (because I wasn't around). That, combined with the fact that 90s eurodance has been swept under the carpet, means that these songs will always trigger some kind of memory... which seems unfair because I never even liked these songs at the time!

If anyone wants to re-live their younger years, I have compiled a little You Tube tour for you. Take it at your own risk.

Real McCoy - Love and Devotion

Ace of Base - All That She Wants

La Bouche - Be My Lover

Culture Beat - Mr Vain

Corona - Rhythm of the Night

Whigfield - Sexy Eyes (This one might give you an aneurysm.)

Simply Red - Fairground (This could have been included in the cheesy songs list I did earlier.)

Haddaway - What is Love (This song is often associated with the awful Will Ferrell film A Night at the Roxbury. Don't let anyone tell you "it's so bad, it's funny!". It's not. It's so bad, it's unwatchable.)

Amber - This is your night