On 29th March we saw the birth of a fabulous new compilation brand Club Republic which is set to change the face dance of compilations forever as it breathes a breath of fresh air into dance music compilations. This new kid on the block gives DJs complete artistic control ensuring giving music lovers an authentic taste of today's dance-floors. First up is Hard Dance Republic which has mixes from three of hard house supremos Ed Real, Rob Tissera and Mixmag future hero winner Amber D.
The CD is also the official CD for the 2004 Hard Dance Awards which took place at Polysexual at Air in February. The feature length DVD contains exclusive interviews with the winners and footage from the awards party which took place in February - So if you were there you might see yourself and if you weren't you can catch up on the gossip.
To find out more about the CD I asked the DJs themselves what they thought of the album and why they think it's going to be a big hit with clubbers.
Describe your CD. Why will people love it?
Rob Tissera: I've created a CD which will get people excited every time they play it. Whether they're getting ready to go out, dancing at a party or while driving along in the car. I've re-edited every track and burnt them back to CD before mixing it live. This means you will get a very unique Tissera experience.
Ed Real: My CD contains tracks voted for by you the public in the 2004 Hard Dance Awards. It's the biggest trax of the last 12 months and the public with cream their pants when they hear the selection!
Amber D: Because its got a lot of great tunes on it, and quite varied tunes on it. I've even got a tune by Eric Prydz on there!
What is your personal favourite track on your disk?
Rob Tissera: Attack of the 50ft DJ by Sol Ray & Captain Tinrib. It's harder than my usual tastes, but it dares to be different so it just rocks.
Ed Real: It's wall to wall anthems so I can't pick a favourite I'm affraid.
Amber D: The first one on the CD. It's the one by Eric Prydz (Cirez D)
How difficult do you find putting the CD together? How long does it typically take for you to create a CD
Rob Tissera: It's always a stress doing compilations. You go through blood sweat and tears, but on this occasion I had some gems which made the job much more pleasurable than usual.
Ed Real: It took me 70mins to mix and the hard dance fans did the hard work picking the selection. Overall, one of the most pleasurable compilation experiences of the last 5 yrs for me!
Amber D: I had a week to work on this CD and I worked at it constantly!
There are lots of compilations out there. Why will this new compilation series be better than the rest?
Rob Tissera: The combination of Ed Real, Amber D and myself takes the listener on a fantastic journey across the whole harder edged musical spectrum resulting in a true representation of what's happening on the UK's harder dance floors. In clubs I often get people coming up to me in a club to ask if they can get a copy of what I've just played. My CD is just that. It's exactly what you'd expect me to play in a club such as Goodgreef, Tidy Frantic or Twisted.
Ed Real: The DVD! An hour of music, interviews, sexy girls and boys on the dancefloor and of course, the Hard Dance Awards presented by two old trouts!
Amber D: Because this compilation is made by us three of course, and we rock! Ha ha, no seriously, I think it's going to be a fab compilation as the three of us have quite different styles within Hard Dance so there's going to be something for everyone.
What track do you predict will be big in 2005?
Rob Tissera: My Favorite track of the year so far is Mad & Confused by Technikal and Mark French. Guyver's Remix is awesome.
Amber D: Anything that Nick Rowland produces. He's one of the best producers Ive heard in recent years. I really love his stuff.
Is your dancing as good as your DJing?
Rob Tissera: You can't beat getting down. I quite like dancing too
Ed Real: Better - come to one of my gigs and I'll show you 🙂
Amber D: No! It used to be though - I used to be a great dancer (especially when I was a cyber kid), and now I'm not! It's true what they say.... DJs cant dance.
