Armand van Helden
Until he began branching out in 1996 with a barrage of album productions and remix classics (several of which were heard by more people than the originals), Armand Van Helden was one of the best-kept secrets in house music, recording for such labels as Strictly Rhythm, Henry St., and Logic. Afterwards, he became one of the top names in dance music altogether. As one in the steady progression of top in-house producers for Strictly Rhythm during the early '90s, Van Helden joined such names as Todd Terry, Erick Morillo, Roger Sanchez, Masters at Work, and George Morel to record scores of club hits. By the late '90s, a clutch of crucial remixes and several albums made Van Helden's name as one of the most popular producers around. His fame continued well into the 21st century, thanks to successful collaborations with Dizzee Rascal, Steve Aoki, and especially A-Trak, with whom he formed the chart-topping duo Duck Sauce in 2009.
Van Helden spent time in Holland, Turkey, and Italy while growing up the son of an Air Force man, and listened to music from an early age. He bought a drum machine at the age of 13 and began DJ'ing two years later, mostly hip-hop and freestyle. Based in Boston while attending college, Van Helden proceeded to moonlight as a DJ; though he settled into a legal-review job after graduation, he quit in 1991 to begin working on production for the remix service X-Mix Productions (founded by his future manager, Neil Petricone). Van Helden also owned a residency at Boston's Loft, and soon made it into one of the most popular nightclubs in the city. After playing one of his production demos for the dance A&R guru Gladys Pizarro in 1992, Van Helden released his proper debut single, Deep Creed's "Stay on My Mind," for Nervous Records.
Later that year, Van Helden released "Move It to the Left" by Sultans of Swing, his first single for the premiere American dance label Strictly Rhythm. Though a moderate club hit, the single was eclipsed by another Strictly Rhythm offering, 1994's "Witch Doktor." It became a dancefloor hit around the world and introduced him to a larger club audience. Although he had remixed Deee-Lite, Jimmy Somerville, New Order, Deep Forest, and Faithless, a reworked version of Tori Amos' "Professional Widow" hit the clubs with the same impact as his "Witchdoktor" single. During 1996-1997, Van Helden became the name for forward-thinking pop and dance artists to recruit for remix duty from the Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, and Puff Daddy to Sneaker Pimps, C.J. Bolland, and Daft Punk. His own-name singles productions continued unabated, with hits like "Cha Cha" and "The Funk Phenomena," plus the release of his first album, Old School Junkies. Following a 1997 Greatest Hits retrospective, Van Helden returned to his old-school rap roots with the party breakbeat album, Sampleslayer...Enter the Meatmarket. The 2 Future 4 U album followed in 1998, spawning a U.K. number one single in "U Don't Know Me" (featuring Duane Harden) as well as the Top 20 follow-up "Flowerz."
In mid-2000, Van Helden returned with Killing Puritans, which contained the hit "Koochy," built around a sample of Gary Numan's iconic "Cars." Gandhi Khan followed in 2001, and New York: A Mix Odyssey appeared in 2004, containing hit collaborations with Spalding Rockwell ("Hear My Name") and Tara McDonald ("My My My"). Both of these songs also appeared on Van Helden's 2005 studio album Nympho, and "My My My" became a chart hit once again when it was re-released and remixed in 2006. Van Helden's Ghettoblaster album, influenced by freestyle and other '80s dance sounds, appeared in 2007. Retrospective You Don't Know Me: The Best of Armand Van Helden and New York: A Mix Odyssey, Pt. 2 both appeared in 2008.
In 2009, Van Helden collaborated with British rapper Dizzee Rascal for a fidget-house song called "Bonkers." The song hit number one in the U.K., and was a decent-sized hit elsewhere. Later in the year, he teamed up with Canadian DJ A-Trak under the name Duck Sauce, producing a track called "aNYway." It hit the charts in a few countries, but it was a moderate success compared to next year's "Barbra Streisand." Built around an infectious Boney M sample, the song hit number one in several countries, partially thanks to the viral popularity of its music video, which featured cameos by Pharrell Williams, Kanye West, André 3000, and numerous other famous musicians. A few other Duck Sauce singles followed during the next few years, leading up to full-length Quack, which finally arrived in 2014.
Van Helden continued to be an in-demand remixer, with stars such as Sam Smith, Madonna, and Disclosure among his clients. In 2015, he released a three-CD mix on Ministry of Sound titled Masterpiece, including one disc of early house tracks, one disc dedicated to yacht rock, and another consisting of '80s freestyle. Van Helden's recording career was given another retrospective in 2016, with Defected Presents House Masters.
© John Bush & Paul Simpson /TiVo
Artistas semelhantes
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You Don't Know Me (feat. Duane Harden)
Dance - Lançado por London Music Stream em 4 de dez. de 1998
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My My My
Armand van Helden, Tara McDonald
Dance - Lançado por Southern Fried Records em 11 de jun. de 2006
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wings (I Won't Let You Down)
Armand van Helden, KAREN HARDING
Dance - Lançado por Spinnin' Records em 2 de dez. de 2022
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Nympho
Dance - Lançado por Southern Fried Records em 4 de jul. de 2005
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Music Began To Play
Mark Knight, Armand van Helden
House - Lançado por Toolroom em 12 de ago. de 2022
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I Want Your Soul
Dance - Lançado por Southern Fried Records em 2 de set. de 2007
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Afraid To Feel (Armand Van Helden Remix)
Dance - Lançado por Warner Records em 22 de abr. de 2022
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ghettoblaster (Deluxe Version)
Dance - Lançado por Southern Fried Records em 1 de jan. de 2013
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Answer
Dance - Lançado por Black Book Records - Astralwerks em 20 de nov. de 2020
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Into Your Eyes
Dance - Lançado por Southern Fried Records em 20 de jun. de 2005
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Drugs From Amsterdam (Armand Van Helden Remix)
Electronic - Lançado por Island Records UK - Republic Records - Virgin Records Germany em 3 de mar. de 2023
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
LALALA
Duck Sauce, Armand van Helden, A-Trak
House - Lançado por D4 D4NCE em 27 de out. de 2023
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
I Want Your Soul
House - Lançado por Southern Fried Records em 15 de set. de 2023
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
aNYway (Low Steppa Remix)
Duck Sauce, A-Trak, Armand van Helden
House - Lançado por Fool's Gold Records em 26 de ago. de 2022
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sugar Is Sweeter (Armand Van Helden's Sugar Daddy Edit)
Electronic - Lançado por London Records (Because Ltd) em 22 de out. de 1996
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
NYC Beat
Dance - Lançado por Southern Fried Records em 27 de mai. de 2007
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Another Dimension
Armand van Helden, Brittles, MC Ghost
Pop - Lançado por Armada Subjekt em 29 de mar. de 2024
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Je T'aime
Dance - Lançado por Southern Fried Records em 10 de fev. de 2008
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Best of Armand Van Helden
Dance - Lançado por Southern Fried Records em 1 de jan. de 2013
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2 Future 4 U
Electronic - Lançado por London Music Stream - Because Music em 1 de jan. de 1998
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ask Me / Mesmerize
Duck Sauce, A-Trak, Armand van Helden
Electronic - Lançado por Duck Sauce em 5 de mar. de 2021
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo