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Artist ............ : Riley & Durrant
Title ............. : Research & Development
Label ............. : New State Music
Catalog Number .... : NEWCD9017
Source ............ : CD
Playtime .......... : 00:54:39
01. Riley & Durrant - Introduction 1:34
02. Riley & Durrant - Experiment No. 1 4:28
03. Riley & Durrant Feat Gina Dootson - Hollow 5:26
04. Riley & Durrant - Aurora 4:15
05. Riley & Durrant Feat Gina Dootson - Dead Of The Night 5:56
06. Riley & Durrant - Interlude: Monday Blues 2:18
07. Riley & Durrant With Paul Maddox Feat Gina Dootson - Tear Down The Walls 4:18
08. Riley & Durrant With Hauswerks - Experiment No. 2 6:04
09. Riley & Durrant - Rock School 4:02
10. Riley & Durrant Feat Ben Renwick - My Enemy 5:55
11. Riley & Durrant Feat Gina Dootson - Magnificant Love 5:26
12. Riley & Durrant - Candesco 4:57
[align=justify]It's often said that writing an artist album in dance music is one of the hardest things to do.
As a producer of club music do you make ten bangers or do you drift into the 'artist' realm and make album tracks that bear little relationship to what you're initially known for?
Well for Nick Riley & Andi Durrant - award-winning radio presenters, international DJs, remix and production artists for some of the biggest artists and labels in the world - the answer was easy. Create an album spanning a multitude of genres with such apparent ease that this could be one of the finest commercial dance albums of the year!
'Research & Development' features twelve killer tracks which see the lads drift effortlessly from the finest dirty House to deep Techno, Ambient interludes and of course not forgetting a dash of more Trance-led moments all wrapped up in the finest production to give 'Research & Development' such a well rounded edge to create a modern masterpiece.
Featuring strong vocal collaborations with Gina Dootson on the tracks 'Hollow', 'Dead Of Night', 'Tears Down The Walls' (alongside the production skills of Paul Maddox), and 'Magnificent Love', the duo also work with vocalist Ben Renwick on 'My Enemy', producers Hauswerks on 'Experiment No.2', and a brand new version of their classic 'Candesco', resulting in an album that crosses boundaries into many genres.
Having met behind the decks at the now deceased Gatecrasher in Sheffield, Riley & Durrant quickly formed a strong partnership. Andi already presented two of the highest rated specialist radio shows in the UK on the Galaxy Network whilst Nick promoted hugely successful nights in Sheffield and toured the world from New York to Japan on Gatecrasher's world tours, the pair finally teamed up in 2004 when they launched their 'Nu Breed' radio show (again on Galaxy); a showcase for underground, unsigned, and unheard of talent. alongside Andi's two other shows, the pair found themselves reaching millions of people worldwide every week!
Through his radio work, Andi recently won Bronze Award for 'The Music Broadcaster Of The Year' in the Sony Radio Academy Awards, just behind Radio 1's Colin Murray & Steve Lamacq whilst beating Jo Whiley. The pair's hectic DJ Diary sees them tour the world with gigs taking them across Russia, Asia, Europe, and the USA, regularly rocking clubs like Cream, Godskitchen, Slinky, Passion Goodgreef, Judgement Sunday, and their diverse playlist sees them booked alongside the likes of Tiesto, Sasha, and Pete Tong.
2006 saw the guys take a step back from remix work and take time to focus on their debut artist album 'Research & Development'. Stripping their sound back to basics, they teamed up with a variety of hot singers, songwriters, musicians, and engineers from scenes as varied as Folk, Indie, House, Minimal, Trance, and Electro, making their first album impossible to pigeon hole without losing their unique sound. It's the same combination of electronic beats, big basslines, melancholic vocals, guitars, synths, and strings that you'll hear in a Riley & Durrant DJ set, but carefully brought together to create something that works as well in the club as it does on a Sunday afternoon.
The boys will also be launching their Nu Breed Music record label in the next few months, taking some of the new and exciting talent from their radio program and giving unsigned and underground artists a platform to showcase their tracks and mixes.
Look out for dates at Godskitchen's OpenAir Festival, Gatecrasher's Summer Sound System, Creamfields UK, and a return to Amnesia in Ibiza over summer, alongside their busy schedule of radio shows, live sets, and album tours.[/align]
