Rank 1

The Dutch project brings together Piet Bervoets and Benno de Goeij. Airwave introduced a sound that could make a relatively simple melodic phrase feel immense through its timing and arrangement. Their remix of Cygnus X’s Superstring became another important part of that early identity.

Such Is Life followed in 2001. The production credits connect Bervoets and de Goeij with Penny McCleery, while the recording is presented with Shanokee’s featured vocal. The relationship between the singing and the instrumental sections gives the record its shape.

The debut album Symsonic and Awakening appeared in 2002. Later records included It’s Up to You, Beats at Rank-1 Dotcom and Opus 17, showing that the project could develop beyond the first big melodic statements.

L.E.D. There Be Light became the anthem for Trance Energy in 2009. That connection makes sense for music able to hold a large room’s attention: a sustained phrase can become a shared point of recognition before the rhythm returns.

Such Is Life is still a rewarding first stop because it contains both sides of Rank 1’s appeal. The voice provides an individual presence; the production gives that presence a much wider space. The extended mixes allow the transition between those scales to become part of the experience.