A little known fact about this pre-millennium Gatecrasher anthem is the guitar melody was essentially lifted from an obscure New Wave track by Australian band Kids In The Kitchen. In 1984, the band had an Australian hit with 'Change In Mood'. 15 years later, the melody had somehow migrated to a Birmingham recording studio, and later, every country with a dancefloor.

Solar Stone - Seven Cities is simply one of the most brilliant trance tunes ever made. The melody is beautiful, and is a kind of uplifting ambient mix. The song is recognzied as one of the most important trance tunes after it was released in 2001, and at the same time it has been popularizing the Ibiza trance genre. A true trance classic.

Solaris Height's rerub of 'Seven Cities' was one for the deeper heads, the tempo is taken down alot and it's epic overtones is stripped off leaving a sweet Balearic redub. Most of it's original elements have been taken off and the main vocal sample have been pitched down a lot. The melody has been played on a accoustic guitar to great effect especially when it starts to noodle around.

For the flip you have Solarstone themselves taking off the four on the floor beat and opting for a breakbeat and infusing slightly darker undertones to the track. It would have been an idyllic rendition to go hand in hand with the epic Atlantis Mix except they seemed to have altered the melody which leaves a weird expression once you hear that last note go down instead of up.

This is a classic remix from Armin. He uses his usual rolling bassline and chugging percussion as a base to bring in layers upon layers of synths and fluid sounds. The use of key changes to build this track to its break is perfect, and is, as with this entire track, the design brief for the best uplifting trance. The guitar riff used by Rich Mowatt & Andy Bury has become legendary and drops this into luscious filtered pad arcs, then finally kicks back in for the full reveal. Get this remix!

The Marcel Woods mix is a much more banging affair with the ubiquitous rasping open hi hat and bubbly bassline. Also a great remix.

What is there to say about the Solar Stone’s Atlantis Mix of ‘Seven Cities’ that has not already been said? A sublimely atmospheric breakdown, beautiful use of vocals, hugely uplifting choruses, and of course that wonderful guitar riff. Quite simply one of trance’s finest moments, if not the very finest of them all.

Nevertheless, the listener should also check out the Solaris Heights Mix present on this CD; whilst not retaining many of the original elements that made the first two tracks present on the CD so good, its superb reworked guitar part and chilled-out atmospheres make it a refreshing and laid-back alternative.

This is a more interesting release than CD1 as it includes the V-One Remix, the most energetic and euphoric version of the track and also reported to be the last track Oakenfold ever played during his residency at Cream.

This is by far one of the more enduring releases on the Hooj imprint, with a brilliant selection of remixes to boot. Even though I've moved away from the commercial trance sound recently (as did Hooj), I can still listen to Solar Stone's Atlantis mix and appreciate its beauty and merrit, and instantly understand why so many have fallen in love with it.

Similarly, the Streetlife Originals' Solaris Heights mix is beautiful and beguilling in it's own way, taking the piece somewhere totally different, yet keeping its essence.

I must agree that the Armin Van Buuren remix was arguably an insult to the original piece; tired and predictable; taking only the essential elements, yet leaving out what made it work so well in the first place. There are a plethora of remixes floating around at the moment, many released by Hooj in a last ditch effort to raise some revenue, but everything that was ever needed is right here on this CD.

An all time classic.

The Atlantis Mix is the finest Trance track I know. Unfortunately the Armin Van Buuren remix seems to me to "dumb down" Seven Cities. I come back again and again to The Atlantis Mix because it's the most uplifting sound, particularly the second break.