Temperance (group)

Temperance was a Canadian musical group, best known for its 1996 cover of the Alphaville song "Forever Young" which was featured in Season 1, Episode 18 of the North American version of the TV series Queer As Folk.^[1]

Biography

Temperance was the brainchild of Canadian music hobbyist Mark Ryan (birth name H.A. Der-Hovagimian). Starting out as a solo commercial Tech house project, Ryan signed his first recording contract with the newly found Canadian independent house music record label Hi-Bias Records in early 1991.

Temperance's first commercial release was in early 1992 with the 5-track EP titled Phantasy. The song "Losing Touch" featured the vocals of Ryan's schoolmate, Lorraine Reid. The follow-up was a 5-track EP titled Obsessive.

Although the first two releases charted on multiple underground charts throughout the world, Temperance crossed over to commercial pop dance charts with the release of "Music Is My Life" in early 1994. It was the second single on which Lorraine Reid appeared, and thereafter Temperance became known as a group project with Ryan as the sole songwriter and producer, and Reid on lead vocals.

Throughout the next 3 years, Temperance released back-to-back successful commercial Dance-pop singles; a successful debut album titled Virtues of Life; numerous international licenses; toured worldwide; and was nominated for and won multiple music awards, including seven Juno Award nominations.^[2]

Temperance was considered one of the Canadian pioneers of the early to mid-'90s Eurodance movement, and although most eurodance singles were considered too aggressive for radio play, Temperance's singles received great airplay on radio as well as in the clubs.

Ryan parted ways with Temperance in mid-1997, launching a music production imprint titled 22 Green, and his duties as the sole songwriter and producer of Temperance was replaced by Hi-Bias Records label founder Nick Fiorucci.

With the release of the follow-up second album If You Don't Know in 1999, Temperance took on a more commercial House sound, attracting a more mature audience.

As Temperance has not had any commercial releases since 2000, it can be considered an inactive band. Lorraine Reid has been focusing on her profession as a linguist, residing in Canada. Nick Fiorucci continues directing his label Hi-Bias Records, as well as producing under a few aliases such as Fierce, DJ's Rule, The Polorbabies, and more. Mark Ryan has relocated to Yerevan, Armenia, producing for local Armenian artists and once in a while producing remixes for international artists. He now credits his releases under his pseudonym DerHova, a variation of his birth surname.

Band members

• Mark Ryan – songwriting, production, vocals (1990–1997)
• Lorraine Reid - vocals (1993–2000)
• Nick Fiorucci – songwriting, production (1997–2000)

Discography

Albums

• Virtues of Life (October 1995)
• If You Don't Know (1999)

EPs

• Phantasy EP (February 1992)
• Obsessive EP (1992)

Singles

• Music Is My Life (1994)
• Never Let You Go (1995)
• Let Me Take You Away (1995)
• Do They Know It’s Christmas? (1995)
• Forever Young (1996)
• Lost in Love (1996)
• Universal Dream (1997)
• Hands of Time (1998)
• Dancing in the Key of Love (1999)
• Chains of Love (1999)
• If You Don't Know (1999)
• Before You Never Call Me Again
• Believer
• My Sentiments Exactly
• Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now

Compilation appearances

• Mystic Reality (1993)

Related projects

In 1996, Mark Ryan launched a solo project under the artist name S.P.O.T. (an acronym for Side Project Of Temperance). S.P.O.T. had two commercial releases, a 4-track EP titled Drum-Head as well as a single titled "Welcome to Paradise". It was a departure from the more commercial sound of Temperance, focusing on a more raw house sound. "Welcome to Paradise" became a huge hit throughout many parts of Asia, and finally charted nationally in Canada a few years later.

The name "Temperance" can also be found on countless singles remixed by Mark Ryan for various artists, including soulDecision, Vapourspace, Emjay, Bran Van 3000, Arthur Baker, Urban Cookie Collective, and more.

References

External links

• Mark Ryan site