(04 September 2000) The debut album from Before Dark entitledDaydreamin' (RCA (USA) RADV 67691-2, 2000) was released inJuly. Before Dark—Mia, Arike and Jeni G—deliver a mix of R&B and hip-hop on their debut album and share the same goal of living eachday to the fullest and striving to achieve as much as possible beforethey are too old. This goal is the meaning of the group's nameBefore Dark.

Before Dark had two hit singles in 1999—"Come Correct" and "Baby."Those two songs set the stage for the rhythmic tune "Monica." Before Darkhave made a video for this track and is airing on The Box Music Network.Daydreamin' is a mixture of harmonic voices fast beats, slow jamsand passionate lyrics. Even though the group says they still have a lotto learn about. "We may be young and inexperienced in the deeper aspectsof love relationships," says Arike, "but we know how it feels to reallycare about a guy, and the happiness and pain that goes with it. It comes from honest feeling and real emotion, but not necessarily actualexperience."

The "Jazzy Interlude: Going to the Movies" sets a base for what weare to expect from Before Dark. We hear that these girls are uniqueand we are introduced to what they can do in "How Could You." Thistrack is fast and upbeat; the harmonic voices blend together perfectly."Monica," the most recent track released off of the album, is anotherupbeat track. The song is much smoother and brings out the R&B inthe group's sound. These two tracks deal with popular issues of "she's trying to take my man" or "how could you do this to me."

"As Far As They Know" is another upbeat song that is more hip-hopishsounding like the musical artist Pink. "Baby," another upbeat song,brings back the R&B flow in Before Dark. "Always On My Mind." thefirst ballad on the album takes an R&B beat to it with the the threevoices making perfect harmony. The tracks show that Before Darkfeels true emotions for love with powerful deep meaning words. Thepassionate R&B ballad "It's All About You" seems as though it takes areal love situation and it was put into a beautiful song. Harmonyfueled, the song relaxes just before the interlude into "ComeCorrect." This upbeat song is much more hip-hop based and muchless harmonic voices but it shows the versatility of the group.

"Tough Love" is a powerful R&B rocker, hungry for love and emotionwhile the title track "Daydreamin'" is a beautiful harmonic mid-tempomasterpiece. "She (Could Never Be Me)" is a moving track that blendsR&B and hip-hop together with three lovely voices evocatively singing from a deep emotional experience. "Push-N-Shove" and "Back Around"conclude the album blending vocal harmonies with hip-hop beats.

These super talented young ladies possess strong, wide-rangingvoices, an energetic, fresh visual presentation and the determinationto succeeed, all of which are sure to take Before Dark further intothe limelight. You can order Before Dark's Daydreamin', read editorial reviews and hear soundbites at amazon.comhere. A well-produced R&B album, from an up-n-coming female trio, it is a very nice listen!-Deborah J Elliot