Well this is my first top 10 blog post and hopefully many more to come. I am going to list my favorite Juno Reactor songs and believe me when I say that it is very difficult to narrow the list into a top 10. This list will probably change over time so keep checking back to see if it changes. There are many Juno Reactor songs that could have made this list but I wanted to limit it at 10. There are also too many honorable mentions so I won't mention them (maybe I might make another list for those that didn't fit in my top 10). Also, I didn't include stuff that Ben Watkins did as the Flowerpot Men or Sunsonic (although most of those wouldn't be in this list anyways). Onto the list:
10. Biot Messiah
From the single "God Is God" on the UK version. Also know as "The Journey Kontinues" from the Mortal Kombat: More Kombat album. What I love about this song is that of the dueling guitar playing. If you ever have watched a Juno Reactor live playing of this, it is a very awesome sight seeing Ben Watkins jam on the guitar with Sugizo. There is a remix version of this song (Diabolic Art Remix) that's pretty good but I prefer the live version of this song the best.
9. God Is God
From the album "Bible of Dreams". This is one of first songs I fell in love with when I first started listening to Juno Reactor. I love the vocals of this track which was done by Natacha Atlas. What I love about this song is that it's definitely not your typical pop song, instead it makes you travel to another country. There is an official video of this featuring the movie "Colour of Pomegranates" (it's worth checking out). There are many remixes of this song (the CJ Bolland being one of worst ones ever), the unrevelation remix done by unseung is a very interesting one.
8. Zwara
From the album "Labyrinth". Zwara has kick ass vocals done by Susan Hendricks plus the taiko drums of Gocoo. Zwara is message that we shouldn't be sleep walking through life. Also it's a song used by the Sangomas to help protect the children. Very danceable song when it's played live. There is a very special video taken from the Juno Reactor Live DVD (2007) in which Mabi Thobejane gives a very intense performance. There are two versions of this song, the one I prefer is the one from the Zwara EP which has some added vocals. There was also a remix contest based on this song.
7. Mona Lisa Overdrive
Also from the album "Labyrinth". Used for the freeway chase scene in the Matrix Reloaded. This would have probably rated higher if it kept the original song from the Matrix Reloaded soundtrack (plus the one remix of this is pretty meh). What I love about this track (especially the soundtrack version) is the build up to actual freeway chase scene (often referred to as "Dante"). Not only does the chase becomes more intense, but so does this song. As soon as Trinity starts riding the motorcycle, the taiko drums of Gocoo start to kick in. A very good track to listen to while riding your car :).
6. Tanta Pena
From the album "Gods and Monsters". Featuring the vocals of Yasmin Levy. The original version of the song was taken from the anime short "Bombs of Dimension" entitled the war sequence. I loved the first listen from the "Bombs of Dimension" short and with the added vocals and flute makes this song truly special. Every time I want to shout out something, "Tanta Pena" comes to mind. Feel like cursing? Yell out "Tanta Pena". Feel like celebrating? Yell out "Tanta Pena". I think you get the picture. The Mickey Noise remix is also pretty good too.
5. Invisible
From the album "The Golden Sun of the Great East". When you hear this song you know a storm is coming. The vocals was done by Feroz Khan and it is pretty unbelievable that Ben Watkins managed to record the vocals while riding in a taxi cab. Not only do I like the vocals but I also enjoyed the sitar playing by Ravi Chary. Invisible much like God Is God transports you to different place but is way more upbeat than God Is God. The Ritmo remix of this song is very good.
4. Journey
From the album "Electric Pondoland". Although technically it's not a Juno track (it's listed as Amampondo - Journey (ft Juno Reactor)), I've decided to put this on the list. This song is truly amazing in that there are two very different parts. The first part features the lovely vocals of Taz Alexander and is very Celtic in nature. The second part involves the Amampondo, who are a percussion based band from South Africa. It is amazing how two different types (Celtic and South African vocals and drums) can seamlessly roll into one song. Ben Watkins is truly a genius.
3. Pistolero
From the album "Shango". Probably one of Juno Reactor's best known song. It has been used in "Once Upon a Time in Mexico" film. Used in every live show of Juno Reactor. Very danceable and
has a beat that makes you want to hum along. One particular live show performance was done by Steve Stevens from the Live DVD (2007). There are so many remixes of this song (too many to mention), probably been remixed more than any other song. One remix I do like is done by unseung (which is over 14 minutes long). But then again, listening to Pistolero over and over again isn't a bad thing.
2. Navras
From the album "Labyrinth". It was used as the end credits for the movie The Matrix Revolutions. The epic of the epics. This song truly has it all. Not only does this song have epic vocals (done by Lakshmi Shankar and Azam Ali) but it also has Deepk Ram on the flute and Mabi and Greg Ellis on the drums. I am surprised that only fans of Juno Reactor know about this song and that the rest of world have either not heard of this song or know how epic this song truly is. There are couple of remixes of this song, unseung (again) did a very good remix of it.
1. Samurai
From the album "Beyond the Infinite". My favorite all time song. I could probably write for days about what this song is about and what this song means to me. Maybe I will write a future blog post about this since I want to make this brief. Anyways, this song is basically me in a nut shell. When I first heard this song, I knew that I was listening to my new favourite track. Juno Reactor recently did a re-mastered version which kicks ass also there is remix done Juan Obando, which is a favourite of mine.
Whew, that took a long time to write lol. As you can see, there are lots of songs from the Labyrinth album, which means that Labyrinth is my favourite album of all time. I will probably do more top 10 lists in the future, although with maybe less detail since this took a very long time to write out.
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