The term 'resurrection' means the following, according to several websites: ''Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death.'' It is so fitting for what happened to Hardcore in general around the end of the 90s, beginning of the Millennium years. But was it really dead, and worth being resurrected? Was it as dead as the title of this compilation suggested? Something was indeed happening, but it wasn't dead. It became more underground, which it needed. But dead? No, not at all. And proof of it lies within the continued support throughout the early years of the noughties, and how it's still alive and kicking.
ID&T released many Hardcore compilations, for example: 'Ravers Paradise', 'Thunderdome', 'Hellsound', 'Earthquake', 'Heroes Of Hardcore', and the list goes on and on. But these were the well known ones. They also tried to release new concepts, which failed, or weren't as successful as they hoped them to be. Hardcore Resurrection was one of those. Only two albums were ever released, one in 2000 and one in 2002, but it faded away into obscurity. The logo, as seen above, would still be recognised years after its initial release, but the concept just disappeared.
Maybe to revitalise the 'return' of Hardcore under the ID&T umbrella, they thought they had something that might bring back the ravers that lost faith in the leaders of the genre. Those that went to MoH for their dosage of Hardcore instead. A few events were organised under the Hardcore Resurrection name, but to no avail. Maybe it was because of the fact that true Hardcore fanatics, also known as die-hard gabbers, would not accept that it ever died. As Ross & Rachel would use in their famous show Friends, 'we were on a break'. It never died. Never.
Commercialism destroyed the scene, and we were deeply upset about the direction it was going toward. We needed to take it back to its roots, and decided to not let the commercial side take it and destroy it, but let it fade into the underground scene, and let it dwell in the abyss of darkness. Let it simmer, and see what happens. If it's really worth dying, only gabbers would let it die, not the media. But DJs, producers, organisers, and fans would keep it alive. We saw value in it being revitalised, but only at our own terms.
Hardcore was still ace around 2000. Hell, some of the tracks released around the Millennium were better than anything we'd heard before! It gave new and well known producers the opportunity to come up with a new style, a new sound, moving away from the commercial side of Hardcore, and for some even moving away from the happier side of Hardcore. It was needed, and the result is a genre of music that is still alive and kicking, even to this day. Hell, it could even be bigger than before?
But on this Hardcore Resurrection album, what was on this album? Was it worth your euros? Was it worth your precious time? Could it bring back the fans that were left disappointed by ID&Ts decisions to go a different path? Could this bring back the love?
Catscan - WO III
The Viper vs Mad-E-Fact - Control The Party
DJ Bike - Pass Me
T-Wisted - Come With Me
50% Of The Dreamteam - Open Sesame (Theme From Hell)
Unknown - Fuck The Rumours
DJ Promo & Trickstyle - What U Want
The Masochist - Wanna Fuck
Buzz Fuzz vs Bass-D & King Matthew - It's Alright (The Masochist Mix)
Dione - In The Air
Masters Of Ceremony - A Way Of Life
The Headbanger - I'm In Your Head
3 Steps Ahead - Fever
The Masochist - Antimix (Neophyte Mix)
Catscan - Groundfactor
Dione - Resistance = Futile
T-Factor - How Many More Out There
Dione - Mayhem
The album starts strong, with Catscan's 'WO III'. And from that moment on it is a bit hit and miss. Some records are still going on strong on dancefloors all over the world, and some have just vanished completely. But unfortunately that was ID&Ts way of composing albums. It was never a 100% album, and by that I mean an album was perfect from start to finish. There were always shitty songs on it, and hell, even ID&T fucked up on composing the tracklists on the back of the CDs. It's like spotting the mistakes. I feel like there are errors on each album they've ever released. And by error, I mean a typo.
Hardcore in 2000 was in a weird state of mind. It was trying to do new things, become new things, but it was still trying. But wasn't that a standard thing, even throughout the 90s? Compare the sound from 1993 to 1995, or 1996 to 1999, and they are completely different? Hardcore went through phases, and 2000 wasn't different either. It was trying to gain a new audience and retrieve lost respect from those that abolished the scene. I was one of those that decided to venture into other styles at the same time, but my heart still belonged to the scene.
Was this album a good representation of what was going on in 2000? Yes and no. There were much better songs out there. A handful of those great songs are on this CD, but yeah, it's hit and miss. Not all are great, but some have transcended into timeless classics. But it obviously depends on your own views. You might adore this album and like each record. I do not. It's an OK album, like most albums released around that time.
The concept I stood behind. And it's sad to see it never actually kicking off a new path for ravers to follow. As far as I can tell, there were 2 albums and 2 events, and that's it. What it did prove, was the fact that there's no escape from the Wizard. It is everywhere.
2000 was an OK year for Hardcore. It got better after. But this Hardcore Resurrection album didn't do much to revitalise the sound/genre/scene. It's a bit of a forgettable album.
Did you ever own this album? Did you go to one of the two events (or even both)? What are your views on this album? Curious to know. Leave a comment below!
Best record on this album? 'WO III'. Without a doubt. Worst record? 'Fever'. Not 3 Steps Ahead's finest work.
Artist: Various Artists
Genre/Style: Hardcore, Gabber, Millennium Hardcore
CD Info: Hardcore Resurrection
Length CD: 01:13:34
Tracks: 18 (eighteen)
Release Year: 2000
Label: ID&T
Product Number: 7003382
More Information: n/a