Paros Stelar

Austrian producer of sample-oriented "electro swing," and winner of several Amadeus Austrian Music Awards.
During the '90s, Marcus Füreder DJ'd in nightclubs, which led to production and label operation. Under the name Plasma, he released the 2001 album Shadow Kingdom on his Bushido label. A few years later, the Austrian first used the new and more lasting alias Parov Stelar, the name credited with an impressive quantity of recordings released during the 2000s and 2010s, primarily on his Etage Noir label. His "electro swing" sound, enhanced with clever sampling, proved to be popular in the compilation and DJ-mix market, including Stéphane Pompougnac's Hôtel Costes series…

The expansion into and incorporation of jazz in the electronic scene is a concept far from new, but its impact is best felt on a disc like Coco. Parov Stelar approaches the double album from an innovative standpoint, dismissing the habit of ignoring less prominent tracks on an album by creating something of enviable proportions. Jazz and swing shine through on Coco, the bold brass and beautiful arrangements blending with minimal house and electro elements, melancholic piano and sax. With six singers from different genres making appearances, Stelar creates a melodious patchwork of sounds across 26 tracks. The first disc plays more with guest vocals (with eight of the 13 tracks collaborations), hitting the mark with songs like the evolving "True Romance" (featuring Lilja Bloom) and "Distance" (featuring Lylith)…

With his 9th studio album, Moonlight Love Affair, Austria's Parov Stelar returns to his exploration of the love affair between electronic dance music and organic elements. Moonlight Love Affair is meant to represent a relationship in which there are no boundaries. Longtime fans will find familiarity in tracks like "Candy Girl" or "Dirty Mariposa" with their retro-chic aesthetics, while vocalist Mani Hoffman (of Supermen Lovers fame) ignites "Better Believe" and "Black Bird." "Toxic Lover" revels in the use of a sample from the now-ubiquitous Shangri-Las' song "Remember (Walking in the Sand)." As with his last musical efforts, the artwork is done by Parov Stelar himself, this time with a captivating piece entitled "I Can See Music, I Can Hear Art." Moonlight Love Affair shows all facets of the artist: raw and unvarnished, thereby vulnerable, powerful and beautiful.

Unlike his albums, his EPs are aimed at the dance floor and "The Paris Swing Box", without coming across as simply a tool for DJ’s, is no exception. The five tracks reflect the mood of the swing era in an inimitable way. The samples are arranged subtly and sit perfectly. While staying true to the original sounds and their aesthetics, "The Paris Swing Box" manages to be a strictly modern production. With house beats always in the foreground, these are kicking club tracks which have nothing to do with soothing lounge music. What has emerged here is a virtually unique hybrid which, rather than falling between the genres of old and new, creates an altogether irresistible groove of its own.

Moonlight Love Affair is a love relationship in which there are no boundaries. The moon colours the world in a different light and makes us see and feel things with different eyes.