Jan Johnston @ Tantra (15-12-2007)

[DIONYSOS]

I invested a great deal of thought attempting to coin the one term that fits Lady Jan's performance, but even the English dictionary's endless stream of expressions could not do her justice, though just one word came close enough to what our lady merits to be labeled: intoxicating.

Anyone who knows me well enough, or who's been around our forum long enough, knows what position Lady Jan occupies in my musical library. She has been my undisputed favorite Trance vocalist since the late 1990's, and I have been fantasizing about attending a live performance of hers ever since. To me, that experience would equal going to Ibiza, another musical objective I want to fulfill before I grow too old for this, i.e. before I die. I am not narrating this to share my personal preferences, but rather to warn you of how extremely biased this forthcoming review will be. Also, expect the term "intoxicating" to be raped throughout the review.

I arrived to Tantra with who is possibly the second biggest fan of Lady Jan in Lebanon (my friend Fadi), to be disappointed with a low turnout. It truly is a shame that such an amazing lineup of well-established local DJs, in addition to the intoxicating presence of Lady Jan, were not given the support they rightfully merit in terms of attendance. It was the loss of those who missed out anyway, and in this regard I wish to open a small parenthesis: SamEr - I hate you!

Sadly, Johnny and I couldn't make it on time to hear out our good friend Nino's opening set, but anyone who's seen Nino live before can acknowledge in advance that he offered nothing but tasteful music and skilled techniques. I was lucky enough to hear out Maximus live for the very first time after the sheer quality he's been dishing out on his weekly international radio show The Edge, and he sure fit in the warmup position perfectly! Playing a careful blend of lower BPM House and Trance, Maximus set the right mood for the night to come with a tasteful selection of tracks and solid mixing skills, proving to the attendees that there is more to Maximus than the broadcaster you hear on Radio One!

Meanwhile, Lady Jan graced us with her arrival to the backstage area, where she was greeted by her fanatic admirers. Lady Jan is unbelievably friendly and down to earth. We were chatting with her, taking photos of her, joking around with her, discussing music and such... just about anything you'd do with a friend whom you're going out clubbing with! It drew my attention that Jan refrained from drinking any alcohol and restricted herself to water only, which is somewhat concordant to the pure Trance spirit of deriving aural pleasure from music and nothing besides. It was such a thrill to be face to face with a true Trance legend, and the only Trance vocalist I allow myself to refer to as the "Trance Diva". But the hour of truth had arrived and it was time for Lady Jan to take on the stage and take over our hearts. Maximus hands over the decks to Nino for the latter to play the instrumental versions of Lady Jan's songs while she offers the live vocal treatment. We headed down to the dancefloor for support, and the intoxication process officially began.

Making her intro with the classic Freefall - Skydive, Lady Jan was quick to get rid of her heels and go barefoot à la Tiesto in Concert 1, adding the whole "natural" feel to her performance, again very trancy of her! We were immediately intoxicated from the very first vocal bits she threw at us, since it became evident from the beginning that, as opposed to other EDM vocalists that have performed in Lebanon, Lady Jan sings beautifully, harmonically, with pitch-perfect precision and studio-like quality of sound. Moving on to other songs in her setlist, such as the epic I Feel Wonderful, the new Armada release Rush, the shivering Flesh, and the new It's Cold Outside to name but the few that my intoxicated memory allows me to recall, all throughout the set Lady Jan maintained her stage charisma, vocal excellence, crowd interaction, and sheer Trance attitude that no other vocalist even comes close to achieving. A breathtaking, spinetingling, voyage into the finest vocal Trance ever written, produced, and performed, from the only vocalist that truly deserves to be called what the event organizers advertised her as: the first lady of Trance. We were intoxicated.

Lady Jan bid the crowd farewell for Undertaker to take over crowd control. It was also my very first time hearing Undertaker going at it, but after what I heard last night it surely won't be my last time. Undertaker kicked off with a self-produced melodic intro featuring the voice of none other than Maximus, announcing him and his weekly Trance radio show A State Of Mind on Radio One. Undertaker only played a relatively short set due to the low attendance rate, but it was long enough for us to enjoy and appreciate. Great taste in the faster side of Trance, and excellent transitions pulled out by Undertaker that night, adding him to my list of underrated local Trance DJs who deserve more recognition and exposure.

After they called it a night, we gathered up backstage again for some more quality time with Lady Jan. We congratulated her on the intoxicating performance she put out, took a few more pictures, had a few more laughs, then left the venue all together with massive smiles drawn wide on our faces. Through my lens, the even was a success - I am a musician, not a businessman, which is why I don't judge an event by the net income in generated, but my the music quality and organization standards, both of which were top notch last night: the local DJs performed at a global quality level, Lady Jan was just as intoxicating as I expected her to be for the past decade, and all the organization details were handled adequately by the team in charge. The only downside of the night was the humble turnover, but that sure did not keep us from spending one memorable night that will not be forgotten in a long, long time.

Lady Jan: You are a rare, precious treasure for the Trance scene. No other vocalist has even come close to offering Trance what you have offered ever since your first encounter with BT. Your sensual voice, poetically deep lyrics, and choice of producers to collaborate with and songs to release altogether set you in your own category of Trance vocalists, while all the other vocalists lie in a category of their own. Your category is what I call "Trance Divas" - sadly, it only offers one seat, the throne you have been occupying for the past decade, the majesty we hope to keep blessing us with more and more material in the coming years. Thank you for being the one and only Trance Diva, and for the unforgettable night you offered us last night. We want you back very soon!

[reemze]

I am blown away yet again by your "mad reviewing skillz".

I'm glad it was a night to remember for you Dio!!

[Icepick]

Glad you guys enjoyed it a lot...i had to refrain from going due to my exam period...missing 2 events over 2 weekends!!!
Great to see that the live vocal performance was professional on the half of Jan and on the half of technical parts !

[TranceFusion]

I loved your review as always Dio! i was sure that Jan wouldn't disappoint. You know i attend all events but unfortunately i couldn't attend because i wasn't feeling well yesterday (and i'm still not ). I hope that Johnny enjoyed the night too!
I hope that she'll come back though...

[crow]

Wow... that good huh?

[Nino]

Gr8 Review Saleem
Till the next 1

[@mr]

photos will be posted tonight guys.

[Nicoco]

thx for the review dio and for the organizers for making this event possible

[DJ_TRACID]

i was sad for the low attendance although i wan't there i'm sure her voice was breath taking i'm glad u had fun guys!

[JAD]

blah blah blah, did you get some?

[DIONYSOS]

^A gentleman never tells.

[A-Cube]