Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex in 1980. Originally formed with the lineup of Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke, the band currently consists of Gahan and Gore.
Sixpence None the Richer is an American Christian alternative rock band that formed in New Braunfels, Texas, and eventually settled in Nashville, Tennessee. They are best known for their songs "Kiss Me" and "Breathe Your Name" and their covers of "Don't Dream It's Over" and "There She Goes".
Stereolab are an Anglo-French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's sound features influences from krautrock and 1960s French pop music, often incorporating a repetitive motorik beat with the use of vintage electronic keyboards and female vocals sung in English and French. Their lyrics have political and philosophical themes influenced by the Surrealist and Situationist art movements. While performing, they play in a more feedback-driven and guitar-oriented style. From the mid-1990s, the band began to draw from funk, jazz and Brazilian music.
The Afghan Whigs are an American rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio. They were active from 1986 to 2001 and have since reformed as a band. The group – with core members Greg Dulli, Rick McCollum, and John Curley (bass) – rose up around the grunge movement, evolving from a garage band in the vein of the Replacements to incorporate more R&B and soul influences into their sound and image. After releasing their first album independently in 1988, the band signed to the Seattle-based label Sub Pop. They released their major-label debut and fourth album, Gentlemen, in 1993. Pitchfork described them as "one of the few alt-bands to flourish on a major label" in the 1990s.
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth on the Firth of Forth by Robin Guthrie and Will Heggie (bass), adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981. They signed with the record label 4AD in 1982 and released their debut album Garlands. In 1983, Heggie was replaced with multi-instrumentalist Simon Raymonde. The group earned critical praise for their ethereal, effects-laden sound and the soprano vocals of Fraser, whose lyrics often eschew any recognisable language. They pioneered the 1980s alternative subgenre of dream pop and helped define what would become shoegaze.
Dreams Come True is a Japanese pop band formed in 1988 by Miwa Yoshida, Masato Nakamura (bass) and Takahiro Nishikawa (keyboards). Nishikawa left in 2002 to pursue a solo career.
Tetsuya Komuro is a Japanese musician, songwriter and record producer. He is recognized as the most successful producer in Japanese music history and has introduced contemporary electronic dance music to the Japanese mainstream. He was also a former owner of the disco Velfarre located in Roppongi, Tokyo.
Dubstar are an English indie-dance duo, performing songs with hints of Britpop, dream pop and synth, as well as the occasional pop ballad and guitar-laden rock with industrial twists. The group was formed in 1992 by Steve Hillier and Chris Wilkie in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Sarah Blackwood joined in 1993 as vocalist.
Daisuke Asakura is a Japanese musician, songwriter and producer who is known for his compositional work and skill at keyboards.
Falling into You is the fourteenth studio album and fourth English-language album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, released on 11 March 1996 by Sony Music. The follow-up to her blockbuster album The Colour of My Love (1993) and French-language D'eux (1995), Falling into You showed a further progression of Dion's music. Throughout the project she collaborated with Jim Steinman, who wrote and produced "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", among others. Several songs were produced by David Foster, including Diane Warren's "Because You Loved Me". In total, Dion worked on the album with fourteen producers and a variety of songwriters and musicians.
Iceman was a three-member Japanese electronica/pop rock group, consisting of Daisuke Asakura (keyboards), Kenichi Ito (guitar), and Michihiro Kuroda. They officially assembled on June 5, 1996, when a press conference was held in Tokyo to announce the two musicians who would accompany Daisuke Asakura in his next musical venture after the breakup of Access. Between 1996 and 1999, they released six albums, a multitude of PV and live concert videos, and even a video game. Their unique and varied sound bridged genres from hard electronic rock, to pop, and even techno ("Caution").
"It's All Coming Back to Me Now" is a power ballad written by Jim Steinman. According to Steinman, the song was inspired by Wuthering Heights, and was an attempt to write "the most passionate, romantic song" he could ever create. The Sunday Times posits that "Steinman protects his songs as if they were his children". Meat Loaf, who had collaborated with Steinman on most of his hit songs, had wanted to record the song for years, but Steinman refused, saying he saw it as a "woman's song". Steinman won a court case, which prevented Meat Loaf from recording it. Girl group Pandora's Box went on to record it, and it was subsequently made famous through a cover by Celine Dion, which upset Meat Loaf because he was going to use it for a planned album with the working title Bat Out of Hell III.
"Dreaming of You" is a song recorded by American Tejano singer Selena as the title track and third single for the 1995 album of the same name, her fifth and final studio album. The song was recorded several weeks before Selena's death, and both the single and album were released posthumously. The single was released by EMI Latin on August 14, 1995, with "Techno Cumbia" as its B-side track. The lyrics explore feelings of longing and hope that the singer's love interest is thinking about her while she is dreaming of him at night. Composed by Franne Golde and Tom Snow, "Dreaming of You" is a pop ballad. It was originally written in 1989 for American R&B group The Jets, who turned down the recording. Golde believed that the track had potential, and brought it to Selena, who recorded it for Dreaming of You.
Falling into You: Around the World was the seventh world concert tour by Canadian pop singer Celine Dion. It was organized to support one of the best-selling albums of all time, her fourth English-language and fourteenth studio album, Falling into You (1996). The album has sold over 32 million copies.
Cinderella is a Filipino pop group that rose to prominence in the 1970s. The group recorded for Sunshine Records, and together with contemporaries Hotdog, formed the impetus of what would be the Manila sound movement. Cinderella's most recognized single is "T.L. Ako Sa'yo". Other stand-out songs include such eventual classics as "Bato sa Buhangin", "Sa Aking Pag-iisa" and "Superstar ng Buhay Ko".
"I Could Fall in Love" is a song recorded by American Tejano singer Selena for her fifth studio album, Dreaming of You (1995), released posthumously by EMI Latin on 15 June 1995. "I Could Fall in Love" and "Tú Sólo Tú" were the album's lead promotional recordings and her first English language songs to be featured as singles, showcasing her musical transition from Spanish-language to English-language songs. The lyrics explore feelings of heartbreak and despair and express the singer's fear of rejection by a man she finds herself falling in love with. Composed by Keith Thomas, "I Could Fall in Love" is a pop ballad with R&B, soul and soft rock influences.
Desirée Annette Weekes, known by her stage name Des'ree, is a British pop/soul recording artist and songwriter, who rose to prominence during the 1990s. Known for her distinctive contralto voice and uplifting lyrics, Des'ree's biggest hits include the singles "Feel So High", "You Gotta Be", and "Life", as well as the ballad "Kissing You", which featured on the soundtrack of the 1996 film Romeo + Juliet. She was named Best British Female at the 1999 Brit Awards. Her other accolades include an Ivor Novello Award, a World Music Award, and four BMI Awards.
Lazy is a Japanese rock band founded in 1973 by young classmates Hironobu Kageyama, Hiroyuki Tanaka and Akira Takasaki.
Gently is a studio album by American singer and actress Liza Minnelli. Released in 1996, it is her first album under the Angel Records/EMI label.
Silent Siren is a Japanese all-female band formed in 2010 and associated with Platinum Production. The members consist of three fashion models: Sumire Yoshida, Aina Yamauchi, and Yukako Kurosaka (keyboard). Ayana Sōgawa was originally the group's keyboardist until she left in 2012.
