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One of Germany’s most important producers during the ’90s, Mijk Van Dijk recorded an abundance of early techno/trance classics under the aliases Microglobe, Mindgear, and Marmion. A bassist for several funk bands during the early ’80s, Van Dijk moved to Berlin later in the decade to work as a journalist and began producing house tracks in 1988. Two years later, he issued the “Hate” single, recorded for Low Spirit as LoopZone. An alliance with fellow Berlin producer/DJ Tanith resulted in a 1991 LoopZone EP (What Is Noise?) as well as singles under Tanith’s name and as 9-10-Boy. By 1992, the release of two solo singles — “High on Hope” as Microglobe and “Don’t Panic” as Mindgear — pushed Van Dijk’s name into the global realm, and he collaborated with fellow German up-and-comer Cosmic Baby to produce a seminal compilation on MFS, Trance: Formed From Beyond.|In 1993, Mijk Van Dijk’s third major project, Marmion (a co-production act with Marcos Lopez), debuted with the Berlin EP, a release on Superstition that hit the world’s dancefloors after the track “Schönberg” became a big mover in DJ circles. His first full-length, Microglobe’s Afreuropamericasiaaustralica, followed in 1994 and Van Dijk developed his DJing and remixing skills with dates all over Europe and reworkings of tracks by Denki Groove and Parts of Console. Later releases under his own name began to cultivate a more melodic brand of trance that fit in well with the growing Hi-NRG/progressive trance scene in Europe. The 1997 Glow LP under his own name presaged his first mix album, Multi-Mijk, consisting mostly of his own tracks and remixes. In 1999, he released Teamwork, a full album of collaborations with producers including Tanith, Claude Young, Thomas Schumacher, and Quazar. In addition to production, remixing, and DJing, Van Dijk also moved into the soundtrack realm with scores for two movies as well as the video game soundtrack Ghost in the Shell. He also developed a music-making game for Sony’s Playstation named Depth. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide |
