London, United Kingdom · 1991–2003 · Closed
Hooj Choons
“The connoisseur's label — where Café Del Mar became an anthem.”
The short answer — what is Hooj Choons?
Hooj Choons was the London independent founded in 1991 by Red Jerry (Steven Sutton). It specialised in melodic, progressive and Balearic-leaning club records, and its 1997 licensing of Energy 52's 'Café Del Mar' — in the Three 'N One remix — turned a 1993 German techno cut into the most-remixed record in trance history.
Founded 1991 in London by Red Jerry · Sublabels: Hooj Toons.
How Hooj Choons shaped the era
Hooj occupied a specific and unusual position: a label with genuine underground credibility that repeatedly produced records the mainstream could not ignore. Red Jerry ran it on taste rather than genre boundaries, which is why the catalogue moves between progressive house, Balearic instrumentals and outright trance without ever sounding scattered.
The 'Café Del Mar' campaign is the label's defining act. Energy 52's original had come out on MFS in Berlin in 1993 and sold modestly. Hooj licensed it, commissioned the Three 'N One remix that welded the melody to a 138 BPM peak-time chassis, and released it in 1997 — creating a record that has been officially remixed by Michael Woods, Nalin & Kane, Deadmau5 and Marco V, and bootlegged past counting.
Hooj also housed Tilt, Salt Tank and Way Out West, and its sister imprint Hooj Toons handled the more club-functional material. The label wound down in the early 2000s as the independent distribution model that supported it collapsed, but its catalogue remains one of the most consistently reissued of the era.
What a Hooj Choons record sounds like
- Long, patient breakdowns over peak-time drums
- Balearic melodies treated with club-record discipline
- A licensing instinct for records other labels had given up on
Anthems released on Hooj Choons
Who founded Hooj Choons?
Hooj Choons was founded in 1991 in London, United Kingdom by Red Jerry.
Is Hooj Choons still active?
No. Hooj Choons ran from 1991 to 2003 and has since closed, though its catalogue is regularly reissued.
Which artists released on Hooj Choons?
Artists associated with Hooj Choons include Energy 52, Tilt, Salt Tank, Way Out West, Chakra.