There are mixes built around what I played. Then there are mixes built around what I could have played. BPM 62 is the second one. The Set I Never Did.
For this edition of BPM, I’m stepping outside the trance lane and into late-90s and early-2000s Happy Hardcore. This isn’t a recreation of some forgotten set from the archive. There isn’t an old cassette, MiniDisc, CD-R or playlist I’m rebuilding.
This one never happened. And that’s exactly why I wanted to make it.
Happy Hardcore was part of that era. The huge melodies, ridiculous piano lines, pitched vocals, breakbeats and pure hands-in-the-air energy were everywhere around the scene. But while BPM was developing its own identity through trance and the sounds I was actually playing, I never sat down and built this set.
So more than twenty years later, I finally did. And if I’m going to go all the way into HHC, it probably shouldn’t be DJ Skott behind the controls.
Meet SkottOpotamus.
BPM 62 starts in 1998 with Innovate – The Universe and moves through a run of records from Brisk, Visa, Hixxy & UFO, DJ Energy, Scott Brown, Force & Styles, Styles & Breeze, Bang!, Sy & Unknown and more.
The goal wasn’t simply to stack twenty-two Happy Hardcore records together. I still wanted it programmed the BPM way. The keys mattered. The transitions mattered. Some tracks needed long rides, others needed loops, quick cuts or completely different mixing techniques than I’d normally use in a trance set.
And somewhere along the way, I had to learn how to mix this stuff on its own terms.
BPM 62 also gets something completely new: SkottOpotamus MC drops built specifically for the set. A little cheeky UK rave energy appears at a few carefully chosen moments, including the opening run through The Universe, Back In Business into Rebel Rhythm, and later as the mix charges toward the finish.
Not constantly. Just enough to give this edition its own personality. And that ending?
Future Shining.
Sunshine On A Cloudy Day.
Eye Opener.
Shooting Star.
There was no other way I wanted to close it. This isn’t an old Skott set rediscovered.It’s an old Skott set that never existed.
Until now.
Built on passion. Driven by sound.
Turn it up.
Download the MP3 Here!
BPM 62 The Set I Never Did: HHC Edition
01. Innovate – The Universe (1998) [React*]
02. DJ Brisk – Euro Love (1998) [Slammin’ Vinyl]
03. Visa – Fly Away (Visa Vocal Club Mix) (1997) [Nukleuz]
04. Hixxy & UFO – Eternity Has Passed (1998) [React*]
05. DJ Bee & Overflow feat. Vision – Sunrise (Dougal & Gammer’s Mix) (2003) [Essential Platinum]
06. DJ Energy – Waves Of Desire (Original Mix) (2000) [Nu Energy Records]
07. Breeze – Let’s Fly (1998) [Infinity Recordings]
08. Hixxy & Sunset Regime – Desire (1998) [React*]
09. Hixxy & UFO – Back In Business (1999) [Sony Music TV*]
10. DJ Energy & Reverend Mark – Rebel Rhythm (Original Mix) (2000) [Nu Energy Records]
11. Sy & Unknown – Bring Me Round To Love (VIP Mix) (2003) [Quosh Records]
12. Scott Brown – Rock You Softly (Original Mix) (2003) [Evolution Records]
13. Paradise – See The Light (Sy & Unknown Mix) (2005) [Quosh Records]
14. Force & Styles feat. Kelly Llorenna – Heart Of Gold ’98 (1998) [Diverse]
15. Scott Brown & Gillian Tennant – Everytime I Close My Eyes (1999) [Evolution Records]
16. Scott Brown – Turn Up The Music (Breeze & Styles Remix) (2003) [Evolution Records]
17. Styles & Breeze – You’re Shining (Hardcore Mix) (2004) [All Around The World]
18. Bang! – Sail Away (DJ Storm & Euphony Remix) (2005) [Juicy Lemon Music*]
19. Styles & Breeze – Future Shining (2004) [Raver Baby]
20. Bang! – Sunshine On A Cloudy Day (DJ Storm & Euphony Remix) (2005) [Juicy Lemon Music*]
21. Brisk & Trixxy – Eye Opener (Brisk 99 Remix) (1999) [Slammin’ Vinyl]
22. Bang! – Shooting Star (Ham’s Mix) (1998) [Next Generation Records]