Super Eurobeat 159

1.Lolita - Loving Tonight (A-Beat C)
So another album and an another Lolita song, when will we see the end of Elena? Me and my fanatism regarding the title Lolita have forgiven a lot of the actually weaker songs through out the years, but I can slowly start to see why some of the eurobeat fans might not be too thrilled with it. Loving Tonight started as a really strong song and I loved it for a really long time, but slowly by time the song got really repetitive and in the end I only loved the beautiful intro that pretty much sums the best parts of this song. A typical Lolita ride, only a tad more boring and slower.
Rating : 8

2.Melissa White - Fine (SCP)
SCP has created a solid fan base during the past few years and many of the faithful SCP fans love everything that the label releases. Melissa White has been one of the more unknown titles from the label, but time after time the songs she's been on have turned out to be pretty great actually. Fine is a good example of Melissa's songs, it sounds as somewhat bland at first but slowly becomes more and more powerful. In the end I noticed loving this song a lot and it being one of my favorites on the whole album. Thank you yet again SCP.
Rating : 9+

3.Franz Tornado & Bazooka Girl - Motto-Motto Inamoto (Caballero Remix) (HI-NRG Attack)
The song that really struck me big time when it was originally released on Euromach as Caballero With Sombrero. The small changes to the song over time have been magnificent and I ended up loving this version even more than the original. The original song was all around perfect HI-NRG Attack music: Speedy, wacky, catchy as hell and over all very well produced and it also stands out on this album. The only complaints I have to say is that the song isn't exactly new, but as a eurobeat masterpiece like this one, I can't really complain all that much.
Rating : 10

4.Stylophones - Never Say Goodbye (Time)
The previous release from this new Time title was a small surprise to many of the eurobeat fans as it was catchy as hell and suited SEB152 really well. Never Say Goodbye follows a similar path, but this time around we only have a typical slower Time presentation. Vocals are well sung and the nice acoustic elements add a nice spice to the song, but over time I just grew more bored with the song every time I heard it. I know Time can do better than this.
Rating : 6½

5.Vicky Vale - My Body Sweat (Delta)
If favorite Delta titles are discussed, it's often Vicky Vale that is brought up, and for a very good reason. Many of the old school fans remember the classic titles like Dancing and Let Me Be Your Baby and the newer generation of fans recognize such masterpieces as Shibuya Girl and Superdance. I had huge expectations from My Body Sweat as the previous song turned out pretty nice, and this song had been in the Delta catalogue for quite a while. The song turned out way different than I thought it would be, but none the less: I love it. The pure energy that made Shibuya Girl an instant hit isn't present but the unique sound worlds and catchy vocals by Clara still work like a charm and work really well here.
Rating : 10-

6.Sophie - Eternal Simphony (Time)
Elena Ferretti's long career has consisted a lot of mediocore eurobeat, but every once in a while her vocalistic skills are really revealed. Eternal Simphony is one of these moments. The song starts off rather boringly and actually the whole song is pretty much boring, but what really works in the song is the vocals. Over all the soothing and beautiful vocals make this song worth the while. Nothing to go crazy about, but I can imagine many fans of the slower type of eurobeat enjoying this.
Rating : 7-

7.Karen - Love Forever (A-Beat C)
I was expecting for a specific kind of a song when I saw this title originally and sort of amusingly I got a huge deja vu feeling when I heard Love Forever for the first time. The song is a pretty typical fare for any A-Beat C fan and you'll probably know after the first few beats if you'll like the song or not. Don't expect anything new or anything special either.
Rating : 6+

8.Madison - Special Love (Delta)
Delta has lately been doing lots of yo-yo movement with the releases and yet in the end they are the ones who come up with the most unique and different performances. I may not love what the label releases every time, but I have to give them a lot of credit for daring and putting out new experiemental titles like Queen 26. Madison has been around for quite a while now and Special Love is yet a new direction for this title. The song has lots of classic eurobeat elements mixed with interesting little details like piano in the background and excellent background vocals. The song itself isn't very distinctive but the originality in the production values make it memorable, over all a pretty interesting song.
Rating : 8½

9.J.A.F. - Beat On (Time)
Without knowing better I would've placed this title originally under A-Beat C for some reason. The first few beats make it clear though that it's a Time song. You can take the bass line from any of the previous 150s male Time songs, put the same vocals on top and you'll have Beat On. At least the chorus and c-melody sound sorta catchy so the song isn't a total failure, yet I would really hope for some kind of a radical change to this constant repetition of the same formula.
Rating : 5½

10.Ricky M. - Love Is Power (A-Beat C)
A-Beat C has been known for the repetitive style and longrunning titles doing the same thing over and over, but what they've managed to do in the past is to renew their image and bring out a new wave of excellent titles. Ricky M. is one of the interesting titles we've been introduced in the nearby past. Love Is Power is a very powerful basic song that doesn't bring anything new to the genre but it still sounds fresh and very catchy. Excellent sounds used all around the song and vocals work like a charm.
Rating : 9-

11.Betty Blue - Changes (Vibration)
The previous Betty Blue song Lollipop Banana was pretty much hated by most of the eurobeat listeners and I can just imagine many people fearing what Changes would be like, I bet they were surprised big time. I myself loved Lollipop Banana and also had my expectations high for this song and I most certainly wasn't let down. Vibration hasn't done much to change their sound, but Changes is really a change of pace and offers a new aspect for this label. The vocals are absolutely wonderful and the song also has that Vibration touch to it, but it sounds really fresh and unique. Would go to as far as saying that Changes is possibly one of the best Vibration songs through out the years along the fantastic classics like Guardian Angel & Hey Hey Baby Cry.
Rating : 10

12.Cody - Solid Rock (Delta)
The title Cody had many puzzled as it was in the Delta catalogue for some time before anything was released. Now we're receiving a 2nd song from this interesting title and we're still getting something very special. Solid Rock starts off sounding like a traditional Delta song from pre SEB100 era, but suddenly turns into a more modern piece of art that relies mostly on the mixture of classic eurobeat elements and bizarre dance sounds. The vocals seem slightly out of place and don't really give justice to the song otherwise. A great song that has a couple of strange elements that might please others, but to me they were a slight annoyance.
Rating : 8+

13.Brian Ice - I Believe In Lovin' You (A-Beat C)
A song from Initial D has a lot of potential even before it's been officially released, so we obviously need a girly series that could use some Virginelle & Suzy Lazy! I don't often see where the praise for these ID songs come from as this song is a good example of that. I Believe In Lovin' You sounds tedious, the vocals sound dreamlike (in a bad way) and the song just doesn't offer any kind of hooks what so ever. A boring song without anything in it that'd make it memorable.
Rating : 6-

14.Priscilla - Dancing Days (Delta)
A song title like this brings up a lot of questions... My first thought was the Vicky Vale classic song Dancing, but I also at the same time knew not to expect the same. The song relies on the light dance sounds that Delta has been recycling a bit in the 150s and of course Clara Moroni doing the vocals. This song has the same problem as many of the past Delta titles as it just sounds so similar to 10 other releases and it hasn't really got that punch I wish to get from listening to eurobeat. Energy is not present and the typical pop elements just don't work this time.
Rating : 6

15.Go Go Girls - Nothing Can Stop The Music (A-Beat C)
A lot of the Go Go Girls fans were apparently disappointed with this release, but I honestly can't see where the dislike could be coming from. This song reminds a lot of the Eurobeat Disney releases that A-Beat C did back in the days. The song has a very similar tone to it and over all I could even easily mix it up with a few of the other Elena Gobbi releases from those albums if I only heard a short clip. But why change the pattern that worked marvellously then? Nothing Can Stop The Music is a perky song with lots of potential if you can put up with the happier kind of eurobeat that doesn't really aim to saving the world but just keeping you bouncy. A cheery chorus with the vocals by the queen of eurobeat is all I need right now.
Rating : 9

16.Neo - Go Go Money (A-Beat C)
Sometimes you just get a song, that you listen to a single time and after that you just know it's a hit. Go Go Money is one of those songs, simple and perfect. The new A-Beat C title had many people awaiting for quality and that's exactly what was given. If you've heard the previous titles by Giacomo Caria, Digital Planet or Manuel you know what to expect with this song as well. The vocals are by a newcomer apparently and they sound excellent. When vocals work and the catchy background sounds as great as this song you know you got a hit in your hands. Hope Neo comes back soon with more quality such as this song.
Rating : 10

17.Dave & Nuage - Don't Make Me Cry (A-Beat C)
Car Of Your Dreams was one of the biggest hits from the 140s era and no doubt that this song was probably the most anticipated release from this album. Nuage the new rising star and diva of Eurobeat and Dave the grandmaster of A-Beat C together make a great pair, but a good pair isn't anything without a good song. Don't Make Me Cry is a huge disappointment after the energy and catchiness that their previous song was. This track ends up sounding very plain and like a reject from the Dave & Domino era. The song has a really nice background beat and the vocals sound nice, but the rest just sounds too plain. Bring back the cars!
Rating : 7

18.Go 2 - Funky Funlover (SCP)
So the next anticipated title... Not For Sale alongside the previously named hit from the 140s is warmly remembered by pretty much every eurobeat fan. We all know Fastway and Ace well and their combined project just has way more punch to it than them doing solo projects. If Dave & Nuage ended up sounding tame, that's not what we get from Go 2. The song sounds really bouncy and with a bit of a change in the backgrounds we'd have a perfect song for a few female vocalists to perform. Catchy, energetic, easy to sing along to and two big eurobeat names... Could this have gone wrong? Probably not, and will be 99.9% surely on The Best Of Super Eurobeat 2005.
Rating : 10

Final Words :
This album is a very hard piece to evaluate. The level of the songs is very uneven and there are a lot of excellent songs, but at the other end is very strongly present as well. The album has songs that will please a lot, but too many of the songs on this album will be forgotten and burried deep. What was refreshing to hear is that all of the labels offer something unique and different. Each label does their share and we get an album that won't be remembered as a milestone in SEB history but maybe some of these songs will remain in Eurobeat History for a long time. I sure hope so at least. An album that gets a low grade for the fact that I wasn't pleased with the general feel of it, but I would still recommend you to listen to a few of the better songs on the album and see for yourself.

Final Score :
Bore : 7

Reviewed by Bore