Few artists in the dance electronic industry are as revered, fewer still as
prolific, as German musical whiz DJ Andre Tanneberger, better known
worldwide as ATB. Over the course of the last 7 years, ATB has cranked out five
full-length albums (one a double-disc set), numerous mix compilations, and
now the staple of every catalog artist great and small, the greatest hits
package.
The aptly titled 7 YEARS 1998-2005 is a career spanning disc culled from his
five albums of original material: 1999's MOVIN' MELODIES, 2000's double disc
TWO WORLDS, 2001's DEDICATED, 2003's ADDICTED TO MUSIC, and last year's NO
SILENCE. The set is beefed up with six new or newish tracks, including a
gender-twisting remake of 2001's LET U GO; the original still a vastly
superior, haunting trance beauty, brought to shimmering life by former Wild
Strawberries ingenue Roberta Carter Harrison. (Quick someone; ATB's done
with her, somebody snap her up).
Now those of us who are honest with ourselves recognize that dance music,
moreso than any other style of music, tends to have a very short shelf
life, becoming dated very quickly. It's a testament to ATB's profound genius
that he is able to buck this trend with his music, creating lush, moody
soundscapes (THE FIELDS OF LOVE, THE SUMMER), bouncy dance pop (LONG WAY
HOME), and gorgeous trance tracks (HERE WITH ME and IN LOVE WITH THE DJ, which is too
short in its edit on this collection, but without doubt one of the finest
dance tracks in history). With longevity in mind, ATB has easily sat high on
my list of warmly regarded mix-masters. The hits included in the 7 YEARS
collection are each and every one inarguable classics, from early club smash
9 PM ('TIL I COME) to more recent winners, MARRAKECH and ECSTACY. It's nigh
impossible to find flaws in such lovingly crafted songs.
That, regrettably, is a detriment to the batch of new tracks included on
this set. Only HUMANITY, featuring the lovely-voiced Tiff Lacey (herself a
veteran of ATB's last effort, NO SILENCE) is a stand out here. The other
cuts, the reworked LET U GO, TRILOGIE PT. 2, etc, seem shoehorned in to
fill space on an already full disc. I just found myself anticipating the
hits all the more, but maybe I'm unfairly biased, and with time the others
may stand and demand to be counted. Be that as it may, nothing can diminish
the classic songs, gems every one, that have thus far comprised ATB's
stellar career. I can't wait to see what the next seven years bring.
