Hardbag is a

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

of electronic dance music popular in the mid-1990s. Having evolved out of the

handbag house Diva house or handbag house is an anthemic subgenre of house music that became most popular in gay clubs during the second half of the 1990s. ''The Encyclopedia of Contemporary British Culture'' defines handbag house as having "prominent female ...

scene in 1993–1994, the genre enjoyed massive, albeit brief, popularity, with several hardbag releases achieving positions in the upper echelons of the UK chart. It was at the time sometimes confused with nu-NRG, yet the styles were discernibly different. "

Don't You Want Me "Don't You Want Me" is a song by British synthpop group the Human League (credited on the cover as The Human League 100). It was released on 27 November 1981 as the fourth single from their third studio album, ''Dare'' (1981). The band's best k ...

" by

Felix Felix may refer to: * Felix (name), people and fictional characters with the name Places * Arabia Felix is the ancient Latin name of Yemen * Felix, Spain, a municipality of the province Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, ...

is largely considered to be the track that launched the hardbag explosion. Produced by

Rollo Armstrong Rowland Constantine O'Malley Armstrong (born 8 May 1966), known professionally as Rollo, is an English music producer. He is one half of the remix/production duo Rollo & Sister Bliss and is a founding member of the electronic music group Fait ...

of Faithless,

Red Jerry Hooj Choons is a house record label formed by Alex Simons and Red Jerry (real name Jeremy Dickens) in 1990. The first release was "Carnival de Casa" by Rio Rhythm Band, however, it was not until 1992's release of Felix (dance music), Felix's ...

and

, "Don't You Want Me" was released in 1992, scoring a Top 10 placing on the UK singles chart. The popularity of the hardbag genre reached its zenith in 1995 with releases by Commander Tom, Candy Girls, Rollo & Sister Bliss and Mrs Wood all crossing over into the mainstream. Indeed, the sound began to meld with

mákina Mákina is a subgenre of hardcore techno, originating in Spain. Similar to UK hardcore, it includes elements of bouncy techno and hard trance. The tempo ranges from 150 to 180 BPM. History Early 1990s: origins Dance music in Spain became promi ...

, evident on tracks such as "Forever Young" by Interactive and "Rainbow Islands" by Seb. The two most influential exponents of the sound were

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

producer Patrick Prins (who, recording a variety of aliases, scored several large UK club and chart hits such as "Bits & Pieces" – Artemesia) and the late

Tony De Vit Antony de Vit ( ; 12 September 1957 – 2 July 1998)
- accessed May 2011 was an English DJ and music producer. He is consi ...

, whose hardbag composition "Hooked" is still considered one of the definitive examples of the genre. Another great presence in the hardbag scene was

, former head of

Hooj Choons Hooj Choons is a house record label formed by Alex Simons and Red Jerry (real name Jeremy Dickens) in 1990. The first release was "Carnival de Casa" by Rio Rhythm Band, however, it was not until 1992's release of Felix's "Don't You Want Me", ...

. Other influential producers include

(later of the group Faithless) and

Paul Masterson Paul Kevin Masterson is a Northern Irish DJ and record producer, originally from Belfast and now living in London. He is best known for recording as Yomanda. He is also part of the dance music duo Hi-Gate, along with BBC Radio 1 DJ Judge Ju ...

, the latter of whom diversified hardbag remixes to incorporate

hi-NRG Hi-NRG (pronounced "high energy") is a genre of uptempo disco or electronic dance music (EDM) that originated in the United States during the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a music genre, typified by fast tempo, staccato hi-hat rhythms (and the ...

elements. By early 1997 the Hardbag craze had died down, since then Hardbag created an influence on

UK 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 (nightclub), Trade club and the associated DJs there that created the style. It often fe ...

and

electro house Electro house is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by heavy bass and a tempo around 130 beats per minute. The term has been used to describe the music of many ''DJ Mag'' Top 100 DJs, including Benny Benassi, Skrillex, Steve Aok ...

. Labels such as Tripoli Trax expounded this sound via releases such as "Bells Of Revolution" by Lemon 8 and "Raise Your Hands" by Knuckleheadz. Several hardbag producers went on to become big names within the trance scene in the late 1990s. These included

Matt Darey Matthew Jonathan Darey (born 29 November 1968) is an English trance music producer and performer. Darey has sold over two million albums and singles with numerous top 10 and top 20 chart hits. Music career Darey was born in Leicester, England. ...

(as Bi-Boy Action Squad, Orgasmatron and Space Baby), Sister Bliss (as a solo artist and co-producer with

Rollo Rollo ( nrf, Rou, ''Rolloun''; non, Hrólfr; french: Rollon; died between 928 and 933) was a Viking who became the first ruler of Normandy, today a region in northern France. He emerged as the outstanding warrior among the Norsemen who had se ...

and Jon of the Pleased Wimmin), and John Graham whose Quivver alias had a hardbag hit with "Saxy Lady" (1994).

Examples

The following releases are considered notable examples of the genre: *1992: Don't You Want Me – Felix (Deconstruction label, UK #6) *1994: La luna – The Ethics (produced by Patrick Prins) (Effective label, UK #13) *1994: Crazy man – Blast (Media label, UK #22) *1994: The Ultimate – Antic (Hooj Choons, UK #71) *1995: Burning Up – Tony De Vit (:VC: label, UK #25) *1995: Hooked – 99th Floor Elevators feat. Tony De Vit (Labello Dance, UK #28) *1995: To the Limit – Tony De Vit (:VC: label, UK #44) *1995: Play this House – BB Club (Positiva label, UK #65) *1994: Bits & Pieces – Artemesia (Hooj Choons, UK #46) *1995: Let's Whip it up – Sleaze Sisters Feat. Vicki Shepard (UK #46) *1995: Listen to the Rhythm Flow – Diva Rhythms (Tripoli Trax) *1995: Fee fi fo fum – Candy Girls (:VC: label, UK #23) *1995: Wham Bam – Candy Girls (:VC: label, UK #20) *1995: Oh!What a World – Sister Bliss (Go! Beat label, UK #40) *1995: U Girls – Nush (:VC: label, UK #15) *1995: Passion – Amen UK (Deconstruction label, UK #15) *1995: Joanna – Mrs Wood (React label, #34; "Joanna" was remixed by

Sash! Sash! (; stylised as SASH!) is a German DJ/production team, fronted by Sascha Lappessen (born 10 June 1970) who works in the recording studio with Ralf Kappmeier, Karl Xander, and Thomas "Alisson" Lüdke. They have sold over 22 million albums ...

in 1997, peaking at #31) *1996: Forever Young (

remix – Interactive, UK #28) *1996: There's Nothing I Won't Do - JX (Hooj Choons, UK #4)

References

{{House music-footer English styles of music House music genres