‘The Comeback of Hard House’ Both Celebrates and Commemorates

Armada Music releases The Comeback of Hard House, a documentary celebrating the return of the timeless ’90s genre.

Remember the 20-30 year trend cycle? In case you don’t, in the BT (Before TikTok) era, trends used to last for roughly ten years or so and would make a comeback 20-30 years later.

Over the past several years, as a result of this trend cycle, ’90s rave themes have been experiencing a resurgence. One of the latest genres of the era to make a modern-day impact is hard house. To celebrate the return of this old school phenomenon, Armin van Buuren’s dance music label, Armada Music, has announced the release of The Comeback of Hard House, the latest of their documentaries honoring rave history.

The ten-minute documentary both commemorates ’90s hard house while acknowledging the role the genre plays in rave today. Gritty, raw, and hyper stylized, this version of house music regained popularity after the pandemic.

The film credits people’s insatiable need to release pent-up emotion as the reason for hard house’s recent resurgence. Since 2022, artists like Marlon Hoffstadt, KI/KI, and KETTAMA started fully embracing its faster BPMs, some even embodying it as their whole brand.

For the producers who pioneered the genre in the ’90s, this comeback was unexpected. Few of them had ever even dreamed of it. Original hard house producers like Club Caviar, Klubbheads, and B.O.B. Ltd (aka Sax Brothers) are all featured in the film, and they are clearly honored to be sitting there. It’s almost as if they’re smitten over the genre they created, a once-forgotten rave favorite that’s now being consumed at a scale never before achievable. The film is a gentle reminder of the severely humble beginnings of our rave forefathers, the scene, and the culture itself.

To celebrate the premiere of The Comeback of Hard House, Armada will host a special hard house night at its own club in its Amsterdam headquarters on Thursday, June 5. The evening will open with a 15-minute preview screening of the film, followed by a mixing session featuring Kara-okay, Kyle Starkey, Club Caviar, and Eva Vrijdag.

Watch The Comeback of Hard House on YouTube and follow Armada Music on socials to keep up-to-date with all of its latest news.

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