React Music Limited was a British, London-based

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

, that was formed in 1990 by James Horrocks and Thomas Foley. James Horrocks was initially involved with successful

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...

independent

Rhythm King Rhythm King Records Ltd was a British independent record label, founded in the mid-1980s by Martin Heath, Adele Nozedar, DJ Jay Strongman and James Horrocks. It was based in Chiswick, London. History Beginnings Starting out as an offshoot of D ...

, and React pursued a similar approach — specifically electronic dance music,

house music House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...

acid house Acid house (also simply known as just "acid") is a subgenre of house music developed around the mid-1980s by DJs from Chicago. The style is defined primarily by the squelching sounds and basslines of the Roland TB-303 electronic bass synthesiz ...

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...

and

rave A rave (from the verb: '' to rave'') is a dance party at a warehouse, club, or other public or private venue, typically featuring performances by DJs playing electronic dance music. The style is most associated with the early 1990s dance mus ...

, along with newer "dance" oriented subgenres which emerged throughout the 1990s. These included

hard house UK hard house or simply hard house is a style of electronic dance music that emerged in the early 1990s and is synonymous with its association to the Trade club and the associated DJs there that created the style. It often features a speedy te ...

, tech house,

trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...

hardbag Hardbag is a genre of electronic dance music popular in the mid-1990s. Having evolved out of the handbag house scene in 1993–1994, the genre enjoyed massive, albeit brief, popularity, with several hardbag releases achieving positions in the up ...

, happy hardcore,

drum and bass Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-ba ...

and

chill out Chill-out (shortened as chill; also typeset as chillout or chill out) is a loosely defined form of popular music characterized by slow tempos and relaxed moods. The definition of "chill-out music" has evolved throughout the decades, and generally ...

Artists

React enjoyed commercial success within the dance/club scene. The artists at React varied, from short-term "one hit wonders" to longer-term acts, which released numerous singles/albums and included: * The Source featuring

Candi Staton Canzetta Maria "Candi" Staton (, ) (born March 13, 1940) is an American singer–songwriter, best known in the United States for her 1970 remake of Tammy Wynette's " Stand by Your Man" and her 1976 disco chart-topper "Young Hearts Run Free". In E ...

: Generally considered one of React's best selling singles, "

You Got the Love "You Got the Love" is a song by British songwriting team The Source featuring American singer-songwriter Candi Staton. Originally released in 1986, the song was remixed and re-released in 1991, 1997, and 2006. It reached number three on the UK S ...

" was originally a bootleg combining

Frankie Knuckles Francis Warren Nicholls, Jr. (January 18, 1955 – March 31, 2014), better known as Frankie Knuckles, was an American DJ, record producer and remixer. He played an important role in developing and popularizing house music in Chicago during the 1 ...

/ Jamie Principle's house track " Your Love" with an obscure recording from

. The single was a success and reached no. 3 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in February 1991 and no. 4 when it was re-released in March 1997. The Source also reached no. 38 in August 1997 with the single "Clouds". Candi Staton's music career was revitalised with "You Got The Love", and React also enjoyed UK Top 40 success with her singles "Love On Love", which reached no. 27 in April 1999, and her

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

track "

Young Hearts Run Free "Young Hearts Run Free" is a disco song written by David Crawford and originally recorded by American soul singer Candi Staton in 1976. In 1996, it was covered by American house music singer Kym Mazelle for the triple-platinum selling soundtr ...

", which was re-issued and reached no. 28 in August 1999. * " The Age of Love": was released by React in 1992 and is considered one of the first 'trance' records and had a slow burning effect in the dance/club scene. When re-released in July 1997 and September 1998 it reached no. 17 and no. 38 respectively in the UK Singles Chart and is one of React's most successful singles. *

Mrs Wood Mrs Wood (born Jane Rolink) is a British female DJ and record producer. Career Born in Barnsley, England she first became involved in the hardbag and UK techno scene since 1990. Mrs Wood first came to prominence via her output on the React r ...

: Joanna no. 40 (Sept 1995), " Heartbreak" feat.

Eve Gallagher Eve Gallagher is an English singer from Sunderland, County Durham associated with the house music scene. Career Eve Gallagher first came to prominence in 1990 with the release of her debut single "Love Come Down". Released on Boy George's More ...

no. 44 (1996), Joanna no. 34 (Oct 1997) and " 1,2,3,4" no. 61 (1998) *

Billie Ray Martin Birgit Dieckmann, known professionally as Billie Ray Martin, is a German singer and songwriter, known for her single "Your Loving Arms", which reached the top 10 of both the UK Singles Chart (#6) and the Irish Singles Chart (#8) in 1995, and re ...

: also known as BRM *

Blu Peter Peter Harris (born 1961), popularly known as Blu Peter, is a British electronic dance music producer and disc jockey from South Wales, who pioneered the nu-NRG music genre in the late 1990s. In the early 1990s, he served as resident DJ at major ...

* John '00' Fleming * GTO/Technohead * Antarctica * Seb * S-J: "I Feel Divine" no. 30 (Jan 1998) * Sundance: "Sundance" no. 33 (Nov 1997) and no. 37 (Oct 1998) "Living The Dream" no. 40 (February 2000) * Mash!: "U Don't Have To Say U Love Me" no. 37 (May 1994) * Millstart/Jeff Mills * The Hellfire Club * Shimmon & Woolfson * Elevator * Alex Lee *

Sharkey Sharkey ( ga, Ó Searcaigh) is a surname of Irish origin. Notable people with the surname include: * Bill Sharkey (1873–1946), Australian rules footballer * Brendan Sharkey (born 1962), American politician * Catherine Sharkey (born c. 1970), ...

* Fierce Ruling Diva * Armadillo * Contact * Subterfuge * Planets In Transit * Madame Dubois * Baby Doc * DJ Gee * Pepper Sweeney * Zouk presents Transcendental Experience * Rotterdam Termination Source * The Knights of the Occasional Table

Success with compilation albums

React was also successful with a wide variety of compilation albums which crossed a wide spectrum of the dance/club scenes. Notable releases included; * ''

Bonkers Bonkers is an informal British term that means "crazy" or "insane." It may also refer to: Television * ''Bonkers'' (American TV series), a 1993–1994 animated series * ''Bonkers'' (British TV series), 2007 comedy * ''Bonkers!'', a 1979 Brit ...

'': the UK's best-selling "happy hardcore" compilation. * ''Reactivate'': Techno/trance compilation. Volumes 1-9 were a single disc of unmixed tracks. From volume 11 onwards, the series included two discs of unmixed music and an additional one disc mix. Volume 10 had a single disc of unmixed tracks, and a separate one disc mix. The last true release in this series was Reactivate 18, with a two disc mix CD, Reactivate Energise, appearing later. Volumes 9 and 10 were re-released under Resist Music. * ''

Cafe del Mar A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-ca ...

/Real Ibiza'': covering the balearic/

Ibiza Ibiza (natively and officially in ca, Eivissa, ) is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of the Balearic Islands, in Spain. Its l ...

scene. * ''Artcore/Drum & Bass Arena'': Drum and bass based compilations. * ''Dope On Plastic!'': a

trip hop Trip hop (sometimes used synonymously with "downtempo") is a musical genre that originated in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom, especially Bristol. It has been described as a psychedelic music, psychedelic fusion of hip hop music, hip hop ...

based compilation. * ''Heavenly Presents Live At The Social'': a compilation capturing

Heavenly Records Heavenly Recordings is a London-based independent record label founded by Jeff Barrett in 1990. Heavenly released the first albums from Saint Etienne, Beth Orton and Doves, and early singles by Manic Street Preachers. Current Heavenly artists ...

successful club night The Heavenly Social. * ''

Technohead Greater Than One is an English electronic music band, founded by husband and wife Michael Wells and Lee Newman in 1985. They released many albums under this name, and also under the names Tricky Disco, GTO, John + Julie, Church of Extacy, Sign ...

'': a hardcore techno/

gabber Gabber (; ) is a style of electronic dance music and a subgenre of hardcore techno, as well as the surrounding subculture. The music is more commonly referred to as Hardcore, which is characterised by fast beats, distorted & heavier kickdrums, ...

compilation from GTO's Michael Wells. * ''React Test'': A series of low priced sampler CDs. A series of DJ-mix compilations were also developed by React. These were well received by the dance/club scene and notable releases included; *

Carl Cox Carl Cox (born 29 July 1962) is a British house and techno club DJ, as well as radio DJ and record producer. He is based in Hove, Sussex, England. Cox has won and been nominated for numerous awards. He has performed at numerous clubs and ele ...

: F.A.C.T : Future Alliance of Communication and Tecknology. *

Jeff Mills Jeff Mills (born June 18, 1963, in Detroit, Michigan) is an American DJ, record producer, and composer. Thanks to his technical abilities as a DJ, Mills became known as ''The Wizard'' in the early to mid 1980s. In the late 1980s Mills founded ...

: Live At The Liquid Room - Tokyo, The Other Day, At First Sight and Exhibitionist. * Laurent Garnier: Laboratoire Mix. *

Norman Jay Norman Jay MBE (born Norman Bernard Joseph on 6 November 1957) is a British club, radio and sound system DJ. He first came to prominence playing unlicensed "warehouse" parties in the early 1980s, and through his involvement with the then-pira ...

: Good Times. * Felix da Housecat: A Bugged Out Mix By Felix Da Housecat. * Dave Clarke: World Service. *

Dave Angel Dave Angel (born David Angelico Nicholas Gooden; 13 May 1966) is an English techno musician. Angel was born in Chelsea, London, England.Cooper, SeanDave Angel Biography, AllMusic, retrieved 15 June 2011 He is the son of a London-based jazz mus ...

: Flavours Of Tech Funk.

Administration / Resist Music

In July 2004, the company was owed in excess of £1m in distributed income from the Beechwood Music groups, that went into

voluntary administration As a legal concept, administration is a procedure under the insolvency laws of a number of common law jurisdictions, similar to bankruptcy in the United States. It functions as a rescue mechanism for insolvent entities and allows them to carry o ...

in June that year. React was then forced into voluntary administration as it was unable to extract any monies owed. React's James Horrocks and Melissa Kemp set up Resist Music in its place. It acquired the staff, rights and catalogue of React. In September 2009, Resist Music was sold to Phoenix Music International Ltd. On 25 October 2012, React posted they were "back on the block" with a revived website.

References

External links

Official site

React
on

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...

Resist Music
on

{{Authority control 1990 establishments in the United Kingdom British independent record labels Electronic dance music record labels Record labels disestablished in 2004 Record labels established in 1990

Artists

Success with compilation albums

Administration / Resist Music

See also

References

External links