The weekend has landed, and it's time for some music that keeps us occupied during the 2 days off. Some people might be going out tonight, and some might stay in. But whatever it is you are to do, do it safely. If you are going out, let this mix be your guide. A proper early Hardstyle mix, made by Iridium DJ. Yeah, you've seen his Soundcloud page: it is filled with so much music: it's mind boggling. As of now, 6514 tracks on his page. That's insane. But we aren't going to discuss everything he's ever uploaded, we are just to discuss the mix you are going to listen to right now!
I am a sucker for early Hardstyle music. I had to read a bit about the history of Hardstyle, to determine when it actually started. It doesn't give us a definitive answer, but it was the late 90s, and the first 'official' event that was held, celebrating Hardstyle, was in the year 2000. So yeah, the Millennium came, and gave us a new era of music. An era that would be dominated by Hardstyle.
It has got a distinctive sound, doesn't it? Iridium DJ decided to make a mix, 2 1/2 hours long, with 27 anthems, all from around 2003,2004, and 2005. The scene already had a few years behind them, and developed this sound, which I love and adore. I lost touch of who made which track, so when I saw this tracklist, I got a bit flustered, but once I actually heard the records, I was instantaneously 20 years younger, dancing in my bedroom. I know at least 80% of the records.
So what has he got in store for us? Which records are in this mix? And are they any good?
Tatarola - Who's Is Calling?
Mental Shock - Experience Vol. 1 (Hot Mix)
Y.A.G.O. - Mother F (MF Mix)
Raf Enjoy - Bam Bam (Psycho Hardstylers Remix)
Peter Damir & Charlie Brown - Bomba (Peter Edit)
Coca - Extreme Voice
Mono Guru - Clap O
555 - Radio Single
Junkk Fluid - Came With Me
Jimmy The Sound - Bad Yard (Nog Een Keer)
Mental Shock - Experience Vol. 2 (DJ Isaac Remix)
Maik Davids & The Demolition - Disintegration
J.Ru - Defected! (LaCargo Remix)
SOB Creators - The Noise
Crash Bass - Hardshake (Original Mix)
Kai Jaxx vs Red Base - Pump That Body (Le Brisc vs Red Base Mix)
Stylez meets Tonteufel - Abwehrton
Ya Ya - Game Over
Gono vs Offbeat - Busted
Y.A.G.O. - Music Creator
Nitro Man - Techno Primo
Tee & Pee - Provide (Techno Mix)
McLaren - Non Stop (Club Mix)
OS4 - All We Need Is Rock (Club Mix)
Krash - The World (Extended Mix)
DJ Rev - Fuckin' (Charlie Brown Remix)
Mat Wax - Insane
Wow, a blast from the past! Over the decade I've heard many early Hardstyle mixes, but they've never been this 'early'. This is exactly the early sound I fell in love with, and adored from the start. Yes, I was one of those people who 'abandoned' Hardcore music when it went more underground (still loved it though), and something needed to fill the gap, the empty gap left behind. It became Hardstyle (and also Trance music, but let's not talk about that right now). And anthems like the one used in Iridium DJs mix were the ones I fell in love with.
That era was just so damn good. And the amount of money I've spent at my local CD stored (in Heerlen you had the Free Records Shop, Van Leest, and Satisfaction Records), I just don't want to think about it. Thousands of euros they got from me over the years, and that urge continued until the late 10s, when I decided to leave that behind. If I'd continued, I'd be broke right now.
All jokes aside, this mix is filled with monster anthems you don't hear anymore. Forgotten tracks, but if you were to discuss with me what is and what isn't early Hardstyle, I would just show you this mix, and I would tell you that ''this is early Hardstyle''. Because it is.
A solid mix. And when I heard 'Techno Prime', I just jumped in the air, like a kid again, and raved my bollocks off. I loved those songs that weren't a 100% Hardstyle, but a mixture of Jumpstyle and Hardstyle, all in one. They were similar styles, if truth be told.
Fantastic mix, and I'm going to scour Iridium DJ's Soundcloud channel, to see if there's more of this. I hope there is more, as I need more now!
Maybe the only comment I've got, is the size of the file: nearly 1.5 gigabytes? Imagine downloading mixes that big onto your phone: your storage would be filled too damn quick!
DJ: Iridium DJ
Genre/Style: Early Hardstyle, Italian Hardstyle
Mix Info: Iridium DJ Presents Early Hardstyle Days - May 2021
Length Mix: 02L28:58
Tracks: 27 (twenty-seven)
Download/Listen (via Soundcloud): CLICK HERE
File Size: 1.46 GB
File Type: .wav
Audio: Stereo
Bit Rate: 1411kbps
Release Year: 2021
More Information: Iridium DJ - Soundcloud Channel