Solarstone
| Solarstone | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Richard Mowatt |
| Also known as | Liquid State, Z2, 2nd Element |
| Origin | Wales, United Kingdom |
| Genres | Trance |
| Occupation(s) | DJ, Producer, Remixer |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Labels | Touchstone Recordings, Molecule, Pure Trance Recordings |
| Associated acts | Young Parisians, Federation, Skyscraper, PureNRG |
| Website | www |
Richard Mowatt, commonly known by his stage name Solarstone (formerly spelled Solar Stone), is an Irish trance DJ and producer from Wales. The music project Solarstone was founded as a trio, and also used the pseudonyms Young Parisians, Liquid State and Z2. Over the years, Solarstone has developed a reputation for keeping to the original and classic trance sound. He is considered to be a veteran by fans in the trance music scene. Since 2012, Solarstone has been pushing forward a Pure Trance movement through tours where he aims to keep the trance genre true to his roots.
The music project Solar Stone was founded in Birmingham in 1997 by Richard Mowatt, Andy Bury and Sam Tierney. Since 1994 the trio had been known as the Space Kittens. Sam Tierney left the group in 1997 owing to musical differences, and in 2006 Andy Bury also left, leaving Mowatt as the sole member.
Solarstone has had three major hit singles in the UK. The most successful was Seven Cities, which reached number 39 in 1999. The song was one of the earliest and most famous examples of the Balearic trance genre, and has been re-released three times. The song has sold over 500,000 copies.
In 2003 and 2004 Solarstone collaborated with Scott Bond, releasing the three singles "3rd Earth", "Naked Angel" and "Red Line Highway". The group's debut album, AnthologyOne, was released in 2006. In 2008, the second studio album, Rain Stars Eternal, was released.
Solarstone has also produced several remixes and collaborated with renowned trance artists such as Paul Oakenfold, Matt Darey, The Thrillseekers and Ferry Corsten.
In 2014, Solarstone and Giuseppe Ottaviani began a collaboration project known as PureNRG. PureNRG have since released a number of singles, and perform live on stage regularly.
Together with the Trance DJ Robbie Nelson, since 2004 Rich Mowatt has produced the Solaris International Radio Show, which is distributed through various online channels. In the early years, the programme appeared irregularly and was a mix of interviews and new music, but since December 2006 (Episode 33) it has appeared as a weekly, two-hour podcast. It is hosted alternately by Nelson and Mowatt and includes new tracks and remixes, a half-hour guest DJ mix, and at least one classic trance track from the late 1990s or early 2000s. The music selection is increasingly influenced by members of the social network Solar, which was founded by Mowatt. The 250th episode was broadcast on 14 March 2011. Solaris International had its 466th and last episode on 25 August 2015.
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