London, United Kingdom · 2000–present · Still releasing
Anjunabeats
“Above & Beyond's label, and the last great classic-era institution.”
The short answer — what is Anjunabeats?
Anjunabeats is the London label founded in 2000 by the three members of Above & Beyond — Jono Grant, Paavo Siljamäki and Tony McGuinness. It carried the melodic, vocal-led strand of trance through the mid-2000s and beyond, and its Anjunadeep sister imprint extended the same A&R philosophy into deeper, slower territory.
Founded 2000 in London by Jono Grant and Paavo Siljamäki and Tony McGuinness · Sublabels: Anjunadeep.
How Anjunabeats shaped the era
Anjunabeats was founded by producers who needed an outlet for their own records and grew into a label with one of the most identifiable house sounds in dance music: melodic, emotionally literal, built around vocal writing that treats the singer as the lead instrument rather than a garnish.
Its timing matters. Founded at the very end of the classic era, it spent the years when trance was least fashionable building an audience — through the Anjunabeats Volume compilations, the Group Therapy radio show and a touring model borrowed from the superclub era — rather than waiting for one to return.
Anjunadeep, launched in 2005, took the deeper and more progressive material. Between the two imprints, the operation is the clearest example of classic-trance values surviving intact into a completely different commercial environment.
What a Anjunabeats record sounds like
- Vocal-led melodic trance with song-shaped writing
- Compilation series as the primary A&R showcase
- A deep/progressive wing on Anjunadeep
Who founded Anjunabeats?
Anjunabeats was founded in 2000 in London, United Kingdom by Jono Grant and Paavo Siljamäki and Tony McGuinness.
Is Anjunabeats still active?
Yes. Anjunabeats has released records continuously since 2000 and remains active.
Which artists released on Anjunabeats?
Artists associated with Anjunabeats include Above & Beyond, OceanLab, Andrew Bayer, Ilan Bluestone, Super8 & Tab.