RAINDANCER SLEEPLESS EP NINTHWAVE RELEASE: MARCH, 2003 REVIEW: APRIL 13, 2003

I was very impressed with Swedish synthpop act Joyce (and later Joyce Inc.) when I first heard them. A few of the tracks off their early demos are truly fantastic and I sincerely hope they will recycle some of those gems on their upcoming album as Raindancer. The reason behind the name switch was the band's wishes to move more towards dance and euro sounds, a undisputable fact on, for example, the new EP "Sleepless". The title track is very dance flavoured with a skittering melody line to start things off. While old, it's still good enough to deserve wide spread attention. What sets Raindancer apart from the anonymous euro techno scene is the use of real vocals and a different approach in song writing. Erik Skalin and Thomas Sandberg have said their aim is to combine the energy and tempo from the club dance music with classic synthpop; something which also shows on this first officially released disc.
No less than five versions of "Sleepless" are included, three of which can be considered very good. Accompanied by the bonus tracks "Raindance" and "Theme", this is no doubt worthy of a purchase. A debut album, as mentioned, should be on its way.

NIKLAS FORSBERG