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Initially known for producing hard trance, German duo Cosmic Gate gradually shifted to a more accessible progressive trance sound on their way to becoming one of the genre's most successful duos, selling out arenas and releasing dozens of club hits. Claus Terhoeven (born 1972) and Stefan Bossems (born 1967), both from the West German city of Krefeld, first met in 1997, but started collaborating the following year when they found themselves in the same studio by chance. Driving singles "The Drums" and "Mental Atmosphere" appeared on EMI in 1999, but the duo's breakthrough came when "Fire Wire" (initially the B-side of 2000's "Somewhere Over the Rainbow") was given a stand-alone release in 2001. The commanding track hit the U.K. Top Ten and was remixed numerous times. Parent album Rhythm & Drums appeared that year, and reached number 30 on the German album charts. This was followed by 2002's No More Sleep, which spawned further hit singles such as "Back to Earth" and "The Wave." In 2003, the duo made the first of many appearances on DJ Magazine's Top 100 DJs poll. During the same year, the duo released the first volume of their Back 2 Back mix CD series. The second volume, released in 2005, marked the beginning of their long, fruitful relationship with Black Hole Recordings.

By the time Cosmic Gate released their third full-length, 2006's Earth Mover, their sound had changed, moving away from hard trance and exploring a progressive style. Released in 2009, Sign of the Times continued Cosmic Gate's venture into progressive trance, with tracks sung by vocalists such as Emma Hewitt and Aruna. Back 2 the Future, a double CD containing remixes of older Cosmic Gate tracks, arrived in 2011, and that year also saw the release of the duo's fifth album, Wake Your Mind, which included one of their best-known songs, "Be Your Sound." The duo mixed the 2012 edition of Ministry of Sound's annual Trance Nation series. They founded Wake Your Mind Records in 2013 and initiated their weekly Wake Your Mind Radio podcast in April of 2014, issuing their sixth full-length, Start to Feel, shortly after. Two volumes of Wake Your Mind Sessions mix CDs appeared in 2015 and 2016, and the studio album Materia arrived in 2017, first as two separate digital chapters before being issued as a complete double CD. ~ Paul Simpson

ATB is the alias of progressive house/trance DJ and producer André Tanneberger. ATB's catchy, vocal-driven singles crossed over from clubs to mainstream pop radio, making him one of the most recognizable artists of trance's late-'90s/early-2000s commercial peak. He is best known for his first single, 1998's "9 PM (Till I Come)," a euphoric yet chilled-out progressive house instrumental featuring a smooth, distinctive guitar riff. This guitar sound became ATB's trademark, but his lengthy discography has incorporated elements of ambient, drum'n'bass, and rock, with ambitious, multi-disc albums like 2007's Trilogy and 2017's neXt featuring collaborations with numerous guest vocalists and producers. His popularity has continued, earning him rankings in numerous international DJ polls, and he has a particularly strong following in Poland, where several of his studio albums and mix CDs have gone gold or platinum.

A native of Freiberg, Germany, born in 1973, Tanneberger started his career in the early '90s, forming Euro-house group Sequential One in 1993. The band were moderately successful in Europe, releasing three albums and over a dozen singles until their dissolution in 1999. In the wake of remixes for acts including the Outhere Brothers, Technotronic, and Haddaway, Tanneberger began using the name ATB for his original solo material. He scored a major hit with 1998's "9 PM (Till I Come)," which hit number one in the U.K. and went gold or platinum in a few other countries. The similar-sounding 1999 follow-up "Don't Stop" nearly duplicated the success, and full-length debut Movin' Melodies arrived later that same year. The album also featured the single "Killer," a remake of the Seal and Adamski hit, with Drew Williams on vocals. The song was another smash hit, and began ATB's successful run of vocal trance anthems.

At the end of October 2000, Tanneberger released his sophomore album, Two Worlds. For the record, ATB collaborated with Heather Nova, Enigma, and the Canadian rock band Wild Strawberries. The release was a double CD, the first consisting of more dancefloor-friendly tunes and the second featuring more downtempo/ambient tracks. Following a few more hit singles, third album Dedicated appeared in 2002, featuring a hit cover of Olive's "You're Not Alone." Fourth album Addicted to Music arrived in 2003, along with a DVD of the same name that collected his music videos to date along with a U.S. tour documentary, interviews, and other content. Toward the end of the year, he also released The DJ in the Mix, his first of many continuous mix CDs.

Fifth studio album No Silence was released in 2004, featuring another DVD in its bonus edition. The year 2005 brought ATB's first retrospective compilation, Seven Years: 1998-2005, which featured all of his hits from that period as well as six new songs. The 2007 album Trilogy contained two discs, the first being more pop/rock-leaning and the second more ambient. Future Memories followed in 2009, and also featured separate uptempo/downtempo discs, but this time the uptempo disc featured tracks with higher BPMs influenced by drum'n'bass. The 2011 release Distant Earth expanded the format, not only featuring pop-trance songs on the first disc and downtempo/ambient tracks (including an Armin van Buuren collaboration) on the second, but also a club-centric third disc with the album's bonus edition. The set was followed later in the year by the two-CD remix collection Distant Earth Remixed. Contact, ATB's ninth studio album, continued his tradition of two discs focusing on dance and chillout tracks, as well as a bonus version featuring a third disc of remixes. Released in 2014, Contact peaked in the Top Ten of the German and Polish charts. Under the Stars, a mixed compilation of ATB's ambient tracks, was produced for a pair of concerts at the Planetarium Bochum in 2016, and only made available at these events.

ATB returned in 2017 with his tenth effort, neXt. Like many of his albums, the first disc contained radio-friendly vocal dance-pop tunes, and the second focused on ambient and downtempo pieces. A brief EP titled A New Love was released in 2019. Under the Stars 2020 was made available at another Planetarium Bochum concert early in the year. In 2021, Topic and A7S collaborated with ATB on a vocal remake of Tanneberger's iconic debut single. "Your Love (9PM)" became ATB's first single to reach the German pop charts since 2009. ~ Jason Ankeny & Paul Simpson