A sub-genre of House music, especially popular in Europe. It began in the late 1980s as an offshoot of the rave scene, but was equally inspired by the early Ibiza sounds of ‘Balearic beats’ and the later German ambient house sounds of ‘Teutonic beats’. The best works of early trance are noted for their use of soft electronic percussion and repetitive synthesizer pads combined with a fast tempo. Examples include Jam & Spoon's Stella and its subsequent remix by them as Age of Love's Age of Love (Watch Out for Stella Mix), most early work by Sven Vath and, more commercially, Dance 2 Trance and the output of Logic Records. By the mid-1990s, it had become more of an underground style and assumed a darker feel, as in the many compilations from Rising High records (The Secret Life of Trance, volumes 1–4) and the Platipus label. In the late 90s trance experienced a revival, aided by UK clubs such as Gatecrasher, leading international DJs such as Paul Van Dyk and Tall Paul, and the renewed popularity of the Ibiza scene. This enabled trance to cross over into the commercial arena again with hit singles for the likes of ATB, Salt Water and Chicane.
IAN PEEL