Dropout: Cat. # DROP 0456-6
Released Nov. 1, 2004
Track List:
A. Sacred (Club Mix) (6:16)
B. Iron Eden (Club Mix) (7:35)
(2010 Update:
So much for really being an 'instant fan'. Granted, Erik didn't release much after this but it's not like I bothered to follow his career either. 'Tis funny how enthusiasm can be so fickle in dance music.)
IN BRIEF: Erik Vee's standing remains firm.
The trouble with becoming an instant fan of an artist's work after hearing just one of their songs is the expectation level on subsequent releases tends to be higher. I'll grant that such expectations are ridiculous but, truthfully, if the artist was good enough to draw you in with just one song, you kind of expect them to be able to produce something of at least equal quality.
This does not mean they have to copy the same formula. In fact, I'd be a bit disappointed if they did. I'd rather hear their musical talent put to use exploring other ideas instead of rehashing the same ones.
So it is with welcome relief to see that Erik Vee continues to keep things interesting on this EP. While no I Am Free, the two tracks on offer here still manage to deliver to some degree.
Sacred is a gimmick-free hard trancer, aiming straight for the floor with punchy percussion. Nothing fancy here -just four-to-the-floor rhythms and crunchy synth riffs for the opening two minutes. A brief breakdown gives us a thirty-seconds breather before the established elements are built back up. Once everything's moving along again, the synth gets a little more melodic as background pads harmonize with it.
It's a solid enough affair but perhaps more could have been done with it. I get this feeling Sacred is lacking that extra touch of ingenuity that would raise it above the level of other hard trance tracks. As such, it remains firmly in the middle of the pack.
Iron Eden is apparently a cover of a song by The Gate done in 1998. I'm not really familiar with the original but the melody does ring a distant bell, perhaps due to a striking similarity to much of the trance melodies that were coming out at the time. It's quite possible I heard it at a party back then. But enough dwelling on the past. How is Erik Vee's rendition, you ask?
Like Sacred, this is fairly straightforward in presentation but the similarities end there. Even though the track does contain some thumping rhythms, they're at a slightly lower BPM and less punchy. Really, it's merely there to service the main meat of Iron Eden, a somewhat distorted synth played on every kick. For the most part, this synth is played throughout the track, casually mixing things up between terse and harmonizing melodic notes as the pacing dictates. It's rather catchy and, thankfully, Vee allows it to carry the song without relying on any big builds or overlong breakdowns (there's a brief one some four and a half minutes in but it's more of a brief pause in momentum than anything obtrusive). By stripping this song to the basics of trance music, we can easily be drawn into the hypnotic nature of it.
Plus, Vee uses that wonderfully nostalgic ting, ting, ting hi-hat that Jam & Spoon quite often used way back in the genre's infancy -kudos for that.
Now, I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy these two tracks; like I Am Free, they really are good in their simplicity. Unfortunately, I get the impression these are just tide- overs until Vee produces more material for perhaps a full-length album or, at the very least, another big single. The production talent is still there but here's hoping for a little boundary pushing on the next release, Erik.
Score: 7/10
Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.
Released Nov. 1, 2004
Track List:
A. Sacred (Club Mix) (6:16)
B. Iron Eden (Club Mix) (7:35)
(2010 Update:
So much for really being an 'instant fan'. Granted, Erik didn't release much after this but it's not like I bothered to follow his career either. 'Tis funny how enthusiasm can be so fickle in dance music.)
IN BRIEF: Erik Vee's standing remains firm.
The trouble with becoming an instant fan of an artist's work after hearing just one of their songs is the expectation level on subsequent releases tends to be higher. I'll grant that such expectations are ridiculous but, truthfully, if the artist was good enough to draw you in with just one song, you kind of expect them to be able to produce something of at least equal quality.
This does not mean they have to copy the same formula. In fact, I'd be a bit disappointed if they did. I'd rather hear their musical talent put to use exploring other ideas instead of rehashing the same ones.
So it is with welcome relief to see that Erik Vee continues to keep things interesting on this EP. While no I Am Free, the two tracks on offer here still manage to deliver to some degree.
Sacred is a gimmick-free hard trancer, aiming straight for the floor with punchy percussion. Nothing fancy here -just four-to-the-floor rhythms and crunchy synth riffs for the opening two minutes. A brief breakdown gives us a thirty-seconds breather before the established elements are built back up. Once everything's moving along again, the synth gets a little more melodic as background pads harmonize with it.
It's a solid enough affair but perhaps more could have been done with it. I get this feeling Sacred is lacking that extra touch of ingenuity that would raise it above the level of other hard trance tracks. As such, it remains firmly in the middle of the pack.
Iron Eden is apparently a cover of a song by The Gate done in 1998. I'm not really familiar with the original but the melody does ring a distant bell, perhaps due to a striking similarity to much of the trance melodies that were coming out at the time. It's quite possible I heard it at a party back then. But enough dwelling on the past. How is Erik Vee's rendition, you ask?
Like Sacred, this is fairly straightforward in presentation but the similarities end there. Even though the track does contain some thumping rhythms, they're at a slightly lower BPM and less punchy. Really, it's merely there to service the main meat of Iron Eden, a somewhat distorted synth played on every kick. For the most part, this synth is played throughout the track, casually mixing things up between terse and harmonizing melodic notes as the pacing dictates. It's rather catchy and, thankfully, Vee allows it to carry the song without relying on any big builds or overlong breakdowns (there's a brief one some four and a half minutes in but it's more of a brief pause in momentum than anything obtrusive). By stripping this song to the basics of trance music, we can easily be drawn into the hypnotic nature of it.
Plus, Vee uses that wonderfully nostalgic ting, ting, ting hi-hat that Jam & Spoon quite often used way back in the genre's infancy -kudos for that.
Now, I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy these two tracks; like I Am Free, they really are good in their simplicity. Unfortunately, I get the impression these are just tide- overs until Vee produces more material for perhaps a full-length album or, at the very least, another big single. The production talent is still there but here's hoping for a little boundary pushing on the next release, Erik.
Score: 7/10
Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.
