Sven Väth

After two and a half years in the making, Cocoon label founder Sven Väth unveils ‘What I Used To Play’, a 36-track deep dive into the music that defined his first decade as a DJ. It comes as an exclusive 12 x 12“ vinyl box set, with silver hot foil embossing and twelve individually coloured disco sleeves with full-size portraits of Sven from the 80s, and as an exclusive 3CD deluxe digipak release.

‘What I Used To Play’ is a collection of not only personal favourites for Sven, but a superb overview of musical highlights from the early days of electronic music between 1981 and 1990. He has now been at the forefront of global techno for 40 years as a DJ, producer, label head and notorious party promoter. February 2022 saw him release his first solo album in almost 20 years, and the 50th album to be released on his incomparable label.

It was being in his London apartment during the pandemic that inspired Sven to start this retrospective. The restless traveler suddenly had time on his hands, like during his early days of DJing, and so reflected on how it was back then at the start of his career. "It was a great trip and with every track, beautiful memories came flooding back," he says of being cocooned in a "little music room" where he spent several days, "looking way back and reviewing my musical journey through the eighties."

He initially had a list of 120 tracks from the early 80s to Balearic late 80s together with excursions into afrobeat, European new wave, and EBM sounds and a few epochal techno and house tracks from the USA in between. Finally, after two years of research, curation, design, and administrative fine-tuning, the most important tracks from that playlist are now presented here.

‘What I Used to Play’ is the definitive record of Sven Väth's musical development. On each of the twenty-four sides of vinyl, you can trace track by track, what influenced him during which phase, and how he took off as a DJ from his parents' Queen's Pub straight into the spotlight at Dorian Gray. There and at Vogue (which later became the famous OMEN Club), Sven became the scene-defining DJ that he remains today.

This collection takes in definitive music from the wild and innovative 80s when synth-pop, funk, hip-hop and disco were all known simply as ‘club music’. Italian-American duo Klein & M.B.O., the somber, monotonous anthem ‘Where Are You?’ by 16Bit, one of Sven Väth’s projects together with Michael Münzing, Luca Anzilotti from 1986, the timeless deep house of Frankie Knuckles feat. Jamie Principle's 'Your Love', 'No UFO's' by Detroit’s Model 500 aka Juan Atkins, electronic Afro-jazz pioneer Hugh

Masekela's 'Don't Go Lose it, Baby,' Andrew Weatherall’s classic remix of Primal Scream's 'Loaded' and Manuel Göttsching's seminal 'E2-E4' plus Sven's off-the-wall club hit 'Electric Salsa' with OFF in 1986 are just some of the very many tracks that tell the tale of these vital decades in dance music.

‘What I Used To Play’ by Sven Väth is a captivating and autographical collection from one of electronic music's most fascinating and foundational artists.

The album is available to pre-order here - https://www.cocoon.net/merch/pre-order

Tracklisting: LP

1. (A1) Logic System – Unit
2. (A2) Kraftwerk – Computerwelt (2009 Remastered)
3. (B1) Whodini – Magic’s Wand
4. (B2) Rocker’s Revenge – Walking on Sunshine (feat. Donnie Calvin)
5. (C1) Klein & MBO – Dirty Talk (European Connection)
6. (D1) Liaisons Dangereuses – Los Niños Del Parque
7. (D2) Yello – Bostich
8. (E1) The The – Giant
9. (F1) The Residents – Kaw-Liga (Prairie Mix)
10. (G1) Clan Of Xymox – Stranger
11. (G2) A Split - Second – Flesh
12. (H1) Severed Heads – Dead Eyes Opened
13. (H2) The Weathermen – Poison!
14. (I1) New Order – Blue Monday
15. (J1) Anne Clark – Our Darkness
16. (J2) 16 Bit – Where Are You?
17. (K1) Phuture – We Are Phuture
18. (K2) Model 500 – No UFO's (Vocal)
19. (L1) Frankie Knuckles feat. Jamie Principle – Your Love
20. (L2) Quest – Mind Games (Street Mix)
21. (M1) Jasper van't Hof – Pili Pili
22. (N1) Guem Et Zaka Percussion – Le Serpent
23. (N2) Hugh Masekela – Don't Go Lose It Baby
24. (O1) Sly & Robbie – Make 'Em Move
25. (O2) Brian Eno - David Byrne – Help Me Somebody
26. (P1) Primal Scream – Loaded (Andy Weatherall Mix)
27. (Q1) The Ecstasy Club – Jesus Loves The Acid
28. (R1) Foremost Poets – Reasons To Be Dismal (RL Version)
29. (S1) Lhasa – The Attic
30. (S2) A Guy Called Gerald – Voodoo Ray
31. (T1) MARRS – Pump Up The Volume - USA 12" Mix
32. (T2) Bobby Konders – Nervous Acid
33. (U1) Meat Beat Manifesto – Helter Skelter
34. (V1) Raze – Break 4 Love
35 (W1) Sueño Latino with Manuel Goettsching performing E2-E4– Sueño Latino (Paradise Version)
36. (X1) OFF – Electrica Salsa

Tracklisting: CD

1. (CD1) Logic System – Unit
2. (CD1) Kraftwerk – Computerwelt (2009 Remastered)
3. (CD1) Whodini – Magic’s Wand
4. (CD1) Rocker’s Revenger – Walking on Sunshine (feat. Donnie Calvin)
5. (CD1) Klein & MBO – Dirty Talk (European Connection)
6. (CD1) Liaisons Dangereuses – Los Niños Del Parque
7. (CD1) Yello – Bostich
8. (CD1) The The – Giant
9. (CD1) The Residents – Kaw-Liga
10. (CD1) Clan Of Xymox – Stranger
11. (CD1) A Split - Second – Flesh
12. (CD1) Severed Heads – Dead Eyes Opened
13. (CD1) 16 Bit – Where Are You?

1. (CD2) The Weathermen – Poison!
2. (CD2) New Order – Blue Monday
3. (CD2) Anne Clark – Our Darkness
4. (CD2) Phuture – We Are Phuture
5. (CD2) Model 500 – No UFO's (Vocal)
6. (CD2) Frankie Knuckles feat. Jamie Principle – Your Love
7. (CD2) Quest – Mind Games (Street Mix)
8. (CD2) Jasper van't Hof – Pili Pili
9. (CD2) Guem Et Zaka Percussion – Le Serpent
10. (CD2) Hugh Masekela – Don't Go Lose It Baby
11. (CD2) Sly & Robbie – Make 'Em Move

1. (CD3) Brian Eno - David Byrne – Help Me Somebody
2. (CD3) Primal Scream – Loaded (Andy Weatherall Mix)
3. (CD3) The Ecstasy Club – Jesus Loves The Acid
4. (CD3) Foremost Poets – Reason To Be Dismal?
5. (CD3) Lhasa – The Attic
6. (CD3) A Guy Called Gerald – Voodoo Ray
7. (CD3) M/A/R/R/S – Pump up the Volume - USA 12" Mix
8. (CD3) Bobby Konders – Nervous Acid
9. (CD3) Meat Beat Manifesto – Helter Skelter
10. (CD3) Raze – Break 4 Love
11. (CD3) Sueño Latino with Manuel Goettsching performing E2-E4 – Sueño Latino (Paradise Version)
12. (CD3) OFF – Electrica Salsa

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