Serenity - Culture Beat > Reviews > Got 2 Get It

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Average
Lyrics	Standard
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it rate alongside the competition	Good
Value for Money

Advantages:	See review
Disadvantages:	See review

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Back in the early to mid nineties, you may recall that club music was invaded by the commercial giants of the Italian dancefloors. Exploding from the credible dance floors in Trade and her friends, Gianfranco Bortolotti created the monster that was Cappella. The synthesised trance-pop sound became mainstream, and suddenly the Charts were awash with Germans, Italians and every other purveyor of Europop.

Bortolotti's biggest competitor was a chap named Torsten Fenslau. At much the same time as Cappella's U Got 2 Know blew the charts apart, Fenslau decided to get in on the act - and so Culture Beat were born. The idea of combining female vocals with a daft European rapper was something of a novelty, and the group had a massive number 1 hit - Mr Vain.

Immediately following the success of Mr Vain in the singles chart, the album Serenity was released. It could never be argued that Culture Beat were historically a musically influential act, but Serenity most surely rates as one of the definitive EuroBeat albums of the nineties.

The album eventually spawned four singles - three of which made the top five - and was successful enough to warrant a follow-up disc that bombed. The full-length version of Mr Vain is included - a superb tongue-in-cheek pounding club ode to vanity. The follow-up single Got To Get It is also included, although the single was remixed into a slightly zippier version. The third single Anything was also remixed into a frantic high speed piece, and the album version is more reserved. Culture Beat's biggest mistake was the fourth single - World In Your Hands, in which they attempted to go all mellow on us, effectively signing away their access to the top ten forever more.

The album could easily have generated a few more singles, as most of the content is extremely radio and club friendly. Rocket To The Moon demonstrates that the vocalist - Tania Evans - has got some tonsils alright, and in this track she gets to sing without being interrupted by the rapper - Jay Supreme. The single is about as fast as it could get without complaints that the DJ had his turntable on the wrong speed, but the hyperspeed arrangement and euphoric crowd shouting elevate the song to anthemic status. Perhaps the best undiscovered gem is the fifth track - Adelante!. Pop-pickers will recall that Sash! took a track with this name to number 2 in the charts a couple of years ago, but Culture Beat had already used the title on this album track. This time it's Jay who gets the solo spotlight, breathily rapping in foreign tongue with his distinctively European accent. The track has a rather sinister sound, and would not have been out of place in an underground techno club - albeit a few years ago now.

The album isn't quite all pumping and nosebleeds - there are a couple of semi-mellow tracks. As well as the single World In Your Hands - not a bad song, just not single material - there is the rather splendid The Other Side of Me which again allows us to hear Tania's voice at its best, as she chants hauntingly about her mysterious side - quite intoxicating, with an almost supernatural quality.

As with most albums there are some space fillers here. Serenity is an eight minute instrumental epilogue that, whilst not unpleasant to listen to, is singularly rather uninteresting. The real raspberry on the cd however is the ode to all things environmental - Mother Earth. Let this be a lesson to all you Eurobeat artists out there - Eurobeat is about hot pants and lycra - any attempt o convey a serious message is doomed forever more. Dodgy lyrics, dodgy singing - this track really lets the album down.

Nonetheless, Serenity is an excellent album - listening to it today it has dated much less than I expected. Sadly, Torsten Fenslau was killed in a car accident a few years ago, and although Culture Beat made a descent into the world of Eurodisco (don't ask) they are no longer recording. GianFranco Bortolotti had the last laugh of course - he is still ripping it up in Ibiza as Mauro Picotto and Mario Piu.

Recommended for anyone who doesn't take themselves or their music too seriously.