Paul Van Dyk

Nobody will ever accuse Berlin DJ and producer Paul Van Dyk of changing the face of anything but the people occupying his dance floors. Still, there's something to be said for sticking to your guns, and Van Dyk certainly has. Over a decade, he's become one of the most popular dance artists in the world, pushing a progressive-trance style that differs from its more punishing cousin thanks to sweeping synths, lush melodic refrains, and airy diva vocals. That style is best heard on the recent Global, a best-of featuring a bonus DVD. If you want to go further, 1994's 45 RPM and 1996's Seven Ways are useful historically: Their mirror-smooth feel and pleasurably uncomplicated textures sent a ripple through the dance community, showing prog-trance's potentially wide appeal; when the latter was reissued in America a few years later, the spangly, evanescent 1998 single "For an Angel" was included on a bonus disc. Out There and Back, from 2000, offered more of the same, including vocal appearances by Saint Etienne singer Sarah Cracknell. The Politics of Dancing is a rather humdrum DJ mix, while Paul Van Dyk's Nervous Tracks is a cheap cash-in featuring four versions of a Joe T. Vanelli song and a couple of Van Dyk remixes. (MICHAELANGELO MATOS)

From 2004's The New Rolling Stone Album Guide