[Defected (UK), Illegal Beats (UK), Stereo (Spain)]
Nominees "Best Remix 2006" Deejay Mag Awards for:
Fish Go Deep´s "The Cure & The Cause" (Balearic Soul Remix)
Friends since childhood, Ramon Lopez and Gonzalo Luis (a.k.a. Balearic Soul) have consistently grown together, both personally and musically, each one complementing the other. This at first may seem trivial, but is truely essential to understanding their synergy as much in the dj booth as in the studio.
Working professionally as djs in Spain since 1995 (the year Gonzalo won the D.M.C. Spanish National DJ Championship), they have developed their sessions, and sound as year-round residents in the best clubs on the Costa Blanca and Valencia: Pacha, Penelope, Desafinado and Apache amongst others; and been invited to play across Europe and the Middle East in clubs such as Trilogy (Dubai) and Fruit (Russia). Gonzalo is currently resident dj at Vissazzi (Elche) and Ramon at Byblos (Alicante) - arguably the 2 most defining house clubs on the Costa Blanca. In summer, Balearic Soul move to the white island...Ibiza.! Having played in some of its best venues (Pacha Main Room & Funky Room, Privilege, Amnesia and Bora-Bora) last summer 2006 they were made monthly residents on the terrace of Space Ibiza @ Balearic People.
Balearic Soul´s style is basically house; from soulful garage, lots of funk, disco and latin, to tribal, with deep and electronic touches. Their technical, energetic sets ooze musical quality and are typically laced with their own reworkings, edits, and live bootlegs. This incorporation of their studio work into club sets keeps their sound fresh and original, while their mutual understanding creates a rarely seen symbiosis and dynamism in their creative, back-to-back sessions. Add this to their heavy focus on building a relationship with the crowd, and a picture of a Balearic Soul session begins to come to life.
As producers, the music they make represents a fusion of original funk, latin, jazz and disco; always geared to obtain maximum effectiveness on the dance floor - without losing its essential roots and musicality. Well known djs on the international scene are supporting the Balearic Soul sound: Sandy Rivera, Dj Chus, David Penn, Andy Ward (Soul Central), Grant Nelson, Roger Sanchez, Martin Solveig, Pete Tong, Jamie Lewis, Brian Tappert, Louie Vega, Simon Dunmore, Copyright, Hardsoul, Kid Cr..me, Sebastian Gamboa, Matt Caselli and Sarah Main amongst others.
The massive support has come, in greater part, thanks to their much hyped remix of Moloko´s "Forever More". After being one of the most listened to tracks at the WMC 2006, the Balearic Soul remix was finally signed up to the prestigous English label Defected.
Their continued working relationship with Defected is indicative of the exciting period Balearic Soul are going through: Since making their Moloko mix official, the label has again enlisted their services for the remix of one of its star tracks of the 2006 Ibiza summer - Fish Go Deep´s "The Cure & The Cause".
But the success of Balearic Soul´s productions outside Spain has also been due to their previous work for the London based label Jalapeno - Illegal Beats. Their two mixes for this label, "Pass the Funk" and "One Of These Days", were both tune of the week on the British BBC/Radio1 and were charted in both Dj Mag´s "Hype Chart top 20" DMC´s "Cool Cuts" - Their "One Of These Days" remix was played by Pete Tong on his Essential Selection Radio Show weeks before the official release date. "Pass The Funk", released in May 2005, was included in both the "Privilege Ibiza Summer 05" and "Ministry Of Sound Big Tunes" compilations, and became one of the anthems at the mythical Fabric Club in London (thanks to the support of its resident Guy Williams who played it every week for months). The track also reached number 1 in WDM´s Top 20, Spain´s most listened-to dance radio show. In 2005, in their native Spain, Balearic Soul joined the team at Stereo Productions releasing their own vocal remix of Dj Chus´s legendary "That Feeling". The remix again reached ..1 in WDM´s Top 20 and garnered them nominations from the Spanish Deejay Mag in the categories of "Best Remix" and "Breakthrough Producer". Stereo Productions has since released Balearic Soul´s own project "Da Revolution" which was included in the "Privilege Ibiza Summer 05" and "Balearica" compilations.
This year they have once again been nominated in the prestigous "Best Remix" category of the Deejay Mag Awards for their outstanding remix of Fish Go Deep´s The Cure & The Cause, which has also reached ..1 in WDM´s Spanish Top 20.
