Various - Trance Divas 2 (Original TC Review)

Water Music Records: Cat. # 302 060 535-2
Released March 22, 2005

Track List:
Disc 1
1. Jessy - How Long (Vandoren & Vanhoyland Remix) (8:25)
2. Lange featuring Leah - Don't Think It (Feel It) (7:50)
3. Freeloader - Two Become One (3:39)
4. Skye - Venice Freaks (4:01)
5. ATB - Marrakech (Alex M.O.R.P.H. Synthetic Empire Remix) (9:05)
6. Taybe - Sarah Said (Fragma Remix) (5:16)
7. Antonia - This Night's Forever (4:02)
8. DJ Tatana featuring Jaël - Always On My Mind (Ronski Speed Edit) (3:52)
9. Matanka featuring Sheryl Deane - Near Me (7:02)
10. Marc et Claude featuring Maria Nayler - Free Spirit (7:13)
11. Aven - All I Wanna Do (Ferry Corsten Remix) (9:05)

Disc 2
1. Kyau vs. Albert featuring Julie - Not With You (Ronski Speed Radio Edit) (3:53)
2. Kate Ryan - The Promise You Made (Extended Mix) (5:59)
3. Above & Beyond featuring Zoë Johnston - No One On Earth (Gabriel & Dresden Mix)
4. Michael Splint featuring Sasja - Secrets Broke My Heart (Radio Extended Mix) (4:31)
5. Rock Ryders - Don't You Know (Full On Vocal Mix) (6:40)
6. Sun Decade - I'm Alone (Mirco de Govia Vocal Mix) (7:56)
7. Damae featuring Londonbeat - I've Been Thinking About You (Extended Vocal Mix) (6:41)
8. Galimar - Sunshine On A Rainy Day (Radio Mix) (3:33)
9. Novaspace - Time After Time (Novaspace Mix) (6:05)
10. Van Eyden featuring Susanne Webb - The 1 (Danny Wild vs. Peewee Vocal Remix) (7:08)
11. D:Fuse - Living The Dream (8:58)


(2010 Update:
This could have been a really hilarious review, had I been more confident in my quips at the time. Instead, I kept things rather objective and straight-forward, resulting in yet another wordy, track-by-track, dry review. Man, is it ever painful reading some of these again. Breeze through it for the jokes about vocal trance lyrics.)


IN BRIEF: At times fun, but ultimately unremarkable.

Trance divas. Just say that to yourself for a moment. Trance... divas…

Something about it doesn't quite sound right, does it -don't worry, there's a pretty good reason for it. You see trance, in the traditional sense, isn't something that aims to be the center of attention (we'll ignore the commercialization of it for the moment). When you are in a trance, all you are aware of is yourself; the music helps achieve this state of consciousness. In contrast, divas are the exact opposite. They demand your attention be turned to them because they are the center of the world. And, in most cases, they have the vocal skills to back up their outlandish claims and attitudes, which is why they often get a pass for their behavior.

So, when you try to combine music that lets you focus on yourself with vocals that force you to focus on them, you have a clashing of ideologies where one aspect has to give. In most cases, it's the vocalists that suffer.

Firstly, most trance singers just don't carry the same presence most singers do. For instance, whereas a house diva will belt out her lyrics with just as much soul as a black church choir (indeed, many were raised as such), a trance gal tends to drone along, attempting to either sound ethereal or euphoric, essentially trying to complement the music rather than draw attention from it. Unfortunately, this can lead to another problem.

It seems with most trance that use vocals these days there also has to be big synths to hit you with a rush of energy. When these synths are so loud and pronounced, hogging the spotlight at the peak of climaxes, the poor girl providing lyrics gets so overshadowed that whatever she had to say becomes inconsequential. The whole purpose of the track is no longer the lyrical content but the synth climax. She could either be singing about love or quantum physics; it really wouldn't make a difference.

Now, I'll grant there are a few vocal trance tracks that find a decent equilibrium (most famously the one that spearheaded the whole movement, DJ Tiësto's remix of Silence) but they do remain few and far between. For a form of music that relies more on the melodies than the lyrics, vocal trance is a hit and miss genre if you take it literally.

That all said, Trance Divas is an incredibly misleading title for a compilation. For one thing, you'll find no divas on here. Pretty much all the gals on offer have neither the voice nor the presence of a typical diva. Second of all, not everything here is trance -which is actually fine with me, really. The last thing I'd want to have to endure is two discs worth of poor-man's Silence-es. Sure, a number of these use Ferry Corsten pre-sets as their sound base, but that in itself does not make a track fit into a typical genre. If so, then one of these would actually be heavy metal! (Dont worry; you'll see what I mean).

Anyhow, enough ranting from me, as I have two discs to get through here. As such, this may not be as detailed as most of my reviews but, trust me, if I was that detailed, I'd end up becoming more repetitive than a Daft Punk track.

This first track by Jessy is a perfect example of the trouble with I find with a lot of vocal trance. Most of the lyrics (either about a jalapeno that hasn't quite digested from the day before, or love) are relegated to the opening few minutes. After that, the song focuses almost entirely on a melody introduced in a breakdown for the duration of the track, with a few returns to the two-line chorus. As a slice of moody anthem trance á la Silence, this is actually quite nice but the vocals are hardly needed, and tend to get drowned out when the melody is in play.

Lange and Leah provide a better offering with Don't Think It (Feel It). Leah's singing is suitable for the theme of finding a lost pet (or love), and Lange is smart enough to not overdo it with the main synth melody, finding a nice balance between the two. Okay, there is a pretty useless breakdown a third of the way through to introduce the melody (since when did everything else have to stop just to have melody start in a dance song?) but I can overlook that nitpick as Leah actually gets her second verse on the other side of it. It's a nice change of pace from your typical Silence wanna-be.

Freeloaders' Two Become One, a touching story of two water drops forming into a single drop (or love), may at first glance seem cheesy to trance lovers but might I remind you that not everything on here is trance. Really, this is a euro song, which is a nice change of pace after going through two typical trancers. As such, almost all the emphasis is on vocals and no major hooks at all. Sure, there're some little pianos and string pads, but none of these get major prominence and none are required for a short pop song such as this.

Next up is, um, er... What on earth is this? I think the lyrics have something to do with a race of Mr. Hydes living in Venice (or love) but, with singing this saccharine and what appears to be some sort of brand new genre I'll tentatively call 'happy hardstyle' (and yes, it really is as bad as it sounds), Skye's Venice Freaks is completely skippable. Okay, if they were going for something stupid, I can't really fault it. It doesn't mean I have to like it either.

Fortunately, ATB's Marrakech (with Alex M.O.R.P.H. providing the re-rub here) gives us something a little more grimy to clean us of that cheese. The baseline is a wonderfully grumbling, pulsing sucker that works nicely in setting a sinister mood. Mind, this is still more of a melodic track than a vocal track but when the lyrics are almost rendered unintelligible by effects (my guess is it's about love), you aren't really going to be paying much attention to them in the first place, are you.

Sarah Said by Trybe is also quite a cheesy little thing (well, what did you expect from a Fragma remix?) but it's kind of goofy fun too. The synths suck but I do like the lyrics, with their psuedo-lesbian indulgence. No, I'm serious! This might be a cover of another song but whether this was initially sung by a guy or not does not matter. There's a gal singing here now (and one with a cute voice, I might add) so, when she starts singing about falling in love with a girl named Sarah, what else could it be about?

This next track reminds me quite a bit of many a euro song from back in the glory years of the genre. This Night's Forever is a fairly straightforward dance track that uses a more typical verse/chorus structure, a simple synth riff, and lyrics sung by Antonia that are quite catchy without being annoyingly so. And, when the topic of your song is about the end of the Earth after the suns light has been extinguished as it goes nova (or love), the slightly more moody atmosphere feels quite appropriate.

Ronski Speed gives DJ Tatana and Jaël's Always On My Mind the Silence treatment here but, even in this edit, I just can't get excited about it. Jaël doesn't sound all that interested in singing about having lost something (probably love) and the big, euphoric climax is quite boring. Everything's just on a muddy cruise control, really. Thank god this is just an edit; I'd hate to have to sit through a typical eight minutes of this.

Things are now starting to get into anthem territory with Matanka's Near Me. Featuring the vocal talents of Sheryl Deane (of The Thrillseakers' Synaesthesia fame), the gal holds her own against the peppy synth builds and breakdowns, supplying decent enough oohs and aahs during the fills while singing something about trying to grab a hold of the air around her (or the love around her) when given the chance sparingly. It's just a shame the melody is too hokey to be taken all that serious. Yeah, I know it wants to be an uplifting, euphoric anthem like the great ones of yore, but if you need to use two bloody breakdowns and two bloody builds to hammer the idea home, you are just trying too hard, my friends. Besides, the hook isn't all that interesting. Moving on.

Marc et Claude may have cut their teeth on the harder side of trance but they seem to be getting softer in their old age. Here, they tap the lyrical talents of one Maria Nayler (most famously doing the lyrics for Robert Miles' One & One) to give us a slice of syrupy dance pop with useless breakdowns, builds, and bad synths. On the plus side, Nayler's innocently sweet, soothing vocals are pleasant when she gets a chance to sing about fireflies (or love). Free Spirit is one of the rare instances when the vocalist actually outshines the synths in their competition for attention.

Finishing off the first disc is Aven's All I Wanna Do with Ferry Corsten doing, well, Ferry Corsten. This is pretty much Corsten trance at its most basic really, with a catchy, rhythmic opening that eventually moves into by-the-numbers Corsten breakdowns, builds, synths, and riffs. Fine enough if you are new to it but, having heard it for over half a decade from him and countless copycats without much variation, I'll pass, thank you very much. On the plus side for all you fans of this type of trance, there are hardly any vocals utilized to get in the way of all those bright, finely produced arpeggiating synths. Of what's sung, it may be something about a woman's enjoyment of her vibrator, or about love. Does it really matter? Well, maybe if the Corsten synths weren't so prominent, it might.

Disc two picks up right where disc one left off as Kyau and Albert's Not With You gets yet another useless synthy breakdown less than a minute in. Don't worry, though, as it only lasts half a minute and we are treated to a decent slice of euro on the other side of it for the rest of the track. Julie definitely has a good voice to carry this song about more love.

Kate Ryan seems to have a slowly rising star at the moment and, if The Promise You Made is any indication, it is justifiable. Yet another decent slice of euro, little guitar strums and synth washes make up the musical bulk but plays second fiddle as Ms. Ryan carries this track on the strength of her vocals. A rather mellow song, she doesn't have to belt out anything and is able to nicely croon along to the theme of the devil coming for an unfortunate soul who made a deal with him (or love).

In Gabriel & Dresden's remix of Above & Beyond's No One On Earth, the boys rip off, er, pay tribute to many a classic EyeQ trance track by utilizing that wonderfully sounding distorted pad that producers such as Oliver Lieb and A.C. Boutsen used to great effect back in the day. I don't even mind it being introduced in a standard breakdown, as it really is great to hear on its own. Sadly, Zoë Johnston's vocals leave something to be desired. The theme of it, a serenade to an alien abductor (or just love in general), isn't bad but Johnston just comes off sounding like a poor-woman's Sarah McLachlan. I've heard her do some fine stuff in the past but she completely misses the mark here, sounding woefully off-key I'm afraid. Maybe it's just her lyrics don't quite match up to what Gabriel & Dresden are trying to do in this case. In any event, this one is not a strong vocal outing.

Secrets (Broke My Heart) by Michael Splint is another fun little slice of hi-nrg euro. Tapping Sasja for some vocal duty as she sings about crooked, lying politicians (or just a lying lover), a nice balance between lyrics and synths is met. Okay, the synths aren't all that great sounding, but there's a low-fi quality to them I find quite nostalgic.

Ah, now here's where those metal guitars I mentioned way before, finally make an appearance. Rock Ryders' Don't You Know is pretty much a tame hardstyle track that, I have to admit, is some good stupid fun. All of the lyrics are dealt with in a breakdown, and thusly rendered pretty much a non-issue since the track would work with or without them. No, as with most hardstyle, the following big synth build and peak is the main attraction. With its march-a-long theme you can't take it all that seriously, but when the track has some chunky power chords playing at the beginning and end, I doubt that's really the point. Sure to be a guilty pleasure for many.

For a change of pace from all the love themes (assuming that's what all these previous songs have been about), Sun Decade gives us something a little more, well, serious. I'm Alone seems to be about suicide, of all things. It's not really a topic touched upon by most epic trancers, and for good reason, as epic trance likes to be uplifting rather than introspective. In this sense, I'm Alone works wonderfully as a trance song. Even the requisite clichés like breakdowns and synthy builds don't feel obtrusive. This is probably mostly the work of Mirco de Govia's remix, though, as the man knows how to craft a decent tune.

Damae (of Fragma fame) does a cover of the Londonbeat euro classic I've Been Thinking About You, which isn't too bad at all. I quite like the idea of throwing bits of the original into this instead of just doing a weak dance cover and, coming off the emotional I'm Alone, it's nice to hear something fun. Aside from that, without much deviation from the original there's not much else to comment on. After all, we've all heard it played on our local radios for ages now.

Galimar returns us to euro territory with Sunshine On A Rainy Day, making use of many a supersaw to try and convince us this is actually trance. Who do they think they are kidding? Hey, I don't mind Euro one bit, especially when it's an ode to the good folk of my hometown, Prince Rupert (or just a metaphor for love). But, as I've said before, using a Corsten pre-set does not make your track trance. It just means you've used a Corsten pre-set.

Covering Cyndi Lauper's Time After Time is Novaspace here, doing a rather boring job of it. They only use a couple lines of chorus and repeat them sparingly throughout the track, the rest of it used up by weak synth chords and halting breakdowns. Plenty of rhythm intro and outro, though, for all your DJing needs.

Van Eyden gets Susanne Webb to sing an ode to Neo of The Matrix (or an ode to love) but her vocals aren't really important in this case, as most of this track gets used up with some horribly out-of-tune synths. I guess they were trying to go for something sinister sounding but really missed the target here. No energy is built up during this song, which isn't a good thing considering you have a breakdown mid-way through to allow some more trivial lyrics to play out before returning to the fray. How can they expect to maintain our interest while no rhythm is playing?

Finally, at the end of these two discs, we come to a bit of deep house, of all things. Well, maybe not pure deep house, but it's certainly more that than any kind of trance I've heard, as D:Fuse focuses far more on rhythm and vocals (about a DJ's girlfriend, I think, but maybe not, and no, he doesn't sing them) than melodies. The breakdown is pure vocal and chilled out piano; nothing uplifting or euphoric at all. I can see folks wanting the more energetic trance and euro offered on this compilation being mightily turned off from Living The Dream but it's their loss as this is a nice, mellow track to finish a night off.

And, having come to the end of this compilation, I have to say this has been a relatively middling affair. While some of these were fun in their own right, there really isn't anything on offer that I'd deem memorable either. A few of the hooks did manage to stick but not for very long. I can't see a single one of these tracks being thought of a year from now, much less becoming a classic. Sure, a couple of the more moving trancers may find their way into a DJ's bag but since they are so similar sounding to much of what else is out there, they'll hardly stick out from the pack either.

I will say this, however. It is so refreshing to come across a compilation that has the word 'trance' in the title (even if only half of it could even sparingly be considered trance) and isn't mixed by some DJ -although the diva part would then make more sense if it were. After all, aren't the real divas of the trance world the DJs?


Score: 5/10

ACE TRACKS:
Sun Decade - I'm Alone (Mirco de Govia Vocal Mix)


Written By Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.

Armin van Buuren - A State Of Trance 2004 (Original TC Review)

Ultra Records: Cat. # UL 1202-2
Released April 10, 2004

Track List:
DISC 1
1. Mark Otten - Tranquility (7:10)
2. Solid Globe - Sahara (5:48)
3. Whirlpool - Under The Sun (Solar Stone Remix) (7:18)
4. Three Drives - Signs From The Universe (4:14)
5. Airwave - Lady Blue (Original Beat) (5:53)
6. Kyau vs. Albert - Velvet Morning (Aalto Remix) (5:01)
7. Fictivision vs. Phynn - Escape (Phynn Mix) (5:36)
8. Perpetuous Dreamer - Future Funland (Astura Remix) (5:00)
9. Active Sight - The Search For Freedom (6:01)
10. Super 8 - Alba (6:00)
11. Oceanlab - Satellite (Original Above & Beyond Remix) (5:45)
12. Robert Nickson - Spiral (6:54)
13. Armin van Buuren featuring Justine Suissa - Burned With Desire (Rising Star Remix) (7:07)

DISC 2
1. Perry O'Neil - Kubik (8:06)
2. Valentino - Flying (Sultan & The Greek Remix) (5:37)
3. Michael Burns - The Ambience (4:35)
4. Anthanasia - Perfect Wave (6:43)
5. St. John vs. Locust - Mind Circles (Perry O'Neil Remix) (4:47)
6. Remy & Roland Klinkenberg - Fearless (5:42)
7. Scott Bond vs Solar Stone - Naked Angel (6:07)
8. Fascinated - Totally Fascinated (6:18)
9. Mono - Rise (5:37)
10. Envio - Time To Say Goodbye (Passiva Remix) (6:04)
11. True From - Forbidden Colours (7:28)
12. Artic Quest - Offbeat (5:31)
13. Water Planet - Introspection (John Askew Mix) (5:06)


(2010 Update:
Pretty benign here, I must admit. I'll grant I didn't have the highest opinion of Armin but the second CD of this was quite good, so I could see the potential of an excellent trance DJ, and even buy into some of the hype a number of his fanboys were gushing on about. You can't help but wonder what would have happened to his career if he'd followed CD2's style instead of the cheesier CD1.

By the way, does anyone know what the hell I was going on about in the Brief? I wrote that, and even I don't have a clue.)


IN BRIEF: One of the world's most popular DJs shows us two sides of the same face.

Is there any point in doing a brief background on Armin van Buuren and his A State Of Trance radio show? Any passing fan of trance will have heard of it after spending a short time around online trance communities. Between acquiring massive amounts of admirers and massive amounts of detractors, there's been a tidy niche carved out for Armin in the genre.

However, for as many people who've listened to his radio show (thanks in large part to online feeds), there are probably far more who haven't checked out what the big fuss was about, whether due to technological limits, time limits, or flat out apathy.

Truth be told, I was one of those folk.

It's not so much the curiosity wasn't there; fact of the matter was as A State Of Trance was starting out, I was putting my interest in trance on the backburner when the overdose of anthems had sent me fleeing to the wonderful, back-to-basics vibe of electroclash and disco punk. By the time I'd come back to the fold, the Sashas, Digweeds, and Oakenfolds had been replaced by a flurry of new cats as trance's movers and shakers -oddly enough, almost all of them Dutch.

At the time of its release, A State Of Trance 2004 held some of the most recent hits of Armin's show. Looking to find out just what the current 'state of trance' was (ho ho!), I figured this would be as good as any place to check out what I'd missed in the previous two years.

Judging from the first disc, things have gotten a lot mellower. This isn't to say trance didn't have a mellow side to it before; it's always kind of lurked about while the heavier tracks held the limelight for the first decade or so. But by the turn of the century, you could see that Ibizan atmosphere starting to emerge from the background when acts like ATB were dominating pop charts. It would appear that aspect of trance has now completely taken over.

The first three tracks are quite similar in this respect with their use of gentle guitar strums and light pad work. Solid Globe's Sahara stands out a bit more than the others, though not for the better. Instead of relying on the strums to carry it, they use a rather goofy sounding cousin of the ATB Hawaiian guitar. You can tell Sahara so desperately wants to be the Next Big Anthem but with a flaccid hook like that, it'll probably receive a mere token footnote in trance's history.

Anyways, we briefly leave the Ibizan fronts with Three Drives' Signs Of The Universe, then make a return as we head into the quite lovely synth pads of Airwave's Lady Blue. Seems a bit odd to arrange tracks like that but I'll give it a pass this early on -compilations of this sort can be troublesome to arrange into a flowing, continuous mix sometimes.

Things start to get more energetic as we move into Velvet Morning, at least until the song breaks down for a minute and a half to let a few sung lyrics and mild breakbeats play out. This isn't too bad, though, as the breakdown does help change the tone of this mix, leading to a wonderful payoff.

Oh, not in Velvet Morning (although it's not too bad in that song). Rather, Fictivision & Phynn's Escape completely leaps out at you with energy, thanks in large part to one major factor: bass. Sure, there's been bass on this mix so far, but for the most part it plays second, even third, fiddle to the more melodic elements the former songs were intent on providing. Escape's bottom end instead fills out the low frequencies as it rolls along to some energetic rhythms. Pair this up with simple, effective synth arpeggios and melodies, and this mix seems about ready to be taken to the next level.

Whoops! Looks like I spoke too soon.

Um, Armin, what are you doing here? You do not give your audience a song that has just as much ass shaking goodness as hands in the air vibes, only to follow it up with a track that is almost completely devoid of bass that can match pace. Without that extra emphasis on the rhythm being maintained, you're going to lose your momentum.

Any hope of seeing that energetic charge created by Escape carry over is lost instantly with Future Funland, and Active Sight's The Search For Freedom doesn't get any better when a ninety second breakdown slows things right down to a crawl. Sorry, but as fine as these tracks are, coming off the heels of Escape just makes them sound inconsequential.

Alba by Super 8 passes us by without much fanfare and we're now into one of the most notorious tracks of 2004: Above & Beyond's remix of Satellite.

Why is it notorious? Well, it seems to have gained a reputation for polarizing more epic trance fans than any other track. Either you absolutely love it for Suissa's vocals, sputtering supersaws, and grandiose build, or hate it for those exact same reasons.

How could such a simple song have such an effect? Well, it probably has to do with the fact this track bares more than a passing similarity to DJ Tiësto's seminal remix for Delerium's Silence. The fact Satellite really is nothing more than a carbon copy of it will please those who couldn't get enough of Silence, and chase off those who were sick and tired of the endless wanna-bes that followed in the wake of the remix's success.

Okay, the fact I've spent the last two paragraphs going on about one song's reputation instead of how it actually sounds kind of shows how much interest in this mix I have left. Sure, the remaining songs are fine (quite wonderful if you have someone to tenderly embrace, I might add, so cynics of lamour may want to stay away) but when I still have those infectious rhythms of Escape lingering in my head even after six other songs have played, there is a serious problem here.

As a test, I started the disc at Future Funland, just to see if it might be something to do with the tracks themselves. Without Escape's rhythms so recently in my mind, the second half of the disc sounded much better. Granted, there were still a couple of nitpicks I could point out but, for the most part, the flow of the tracks made more sense and, most importantly, I did not feel as though the momentum took a huge dive (it didn't exactly gain any either, but steady momentum is much preferable to a drop). Had Escape been left out of this mix, it would have been a pleasant enough listen. Instead, we are given a rather substantial tease to something bigger only to have it cruelly snatched away, the remaining tracks sounding like nothing more than filler as a result.

Anyhow, enough moaning about woulda-coulda-shouldas, as I still have another CD to listen to here.

The second disc starts out much like the first in terms of atmosphere. However, there are grooving prog rhythms at work instead, allowing you to be swept up in their hypnotic patterns. Relying more on soundscapes than melodies, the opening stanza of this mix manages to do in its first two tracks what the first one couldn't even manage in its entirety namely, allow my mind to drift with the music. Sultan & The Greek's remix of Valentino's Flying perfectly captures that hypnotic feeling with its eerie pads and grooving bass.

The Ambience by Michael Burns keeps the mellow tone going, tiding us over nicely into the subtly stuttering chords of Peter Martin's Perfect Wave. As these chords gently get tweaked with pitch effects, the mind is taken on an entrancing sojourn. Additional synth pads join in some four minutes in, bringing with it a wave of bliss.

It's strange how these four opening tracks have managed to move me more physically and mentally than all but one of the first disc's tracks (no prize for guessing which one, I'm afraid). I get the impression that Armin was allowed to get a little more creative in track selection for this second disc than the first, creating a mix with excellent flow. I'm quite impressed by this turn of events but I'll hold off on full praise for the moment; I've been let down by strong openings before.

The rhythm gets a little heavier with Mind Circles, and the mood gets deeper with Fearless, taking this mix into darker pastures. Taking its cue from these tracks is Solar Stone's and Scott Bond's offering of Naked Angel. This song hits all the right notes with driving rhythms, ghostly pads, and heavenly female voices. A mild breakdown over halfway through adds a simple piano melody to create a wonderfully benign vibe over the song.

As such, using M.I.K.E.'s Totally Fascinated (under the Fascinated guise) is a great contrast to follow with. Borrowing more than just the habit of using tons of aliases from Oliver Lieb, this track has much in common with many a Lieb produced release. In what may be the most inhuman song on this entire two-disc set, the electronic heritage of trance is given a chance to show off sinister sounds as subtle, synthesized melodies pulse and meander in the background. The climax to this song adds hauntingly ominous effects to the fray with superb skill, ending it with a rush of primal energy.

Feeding off that rush, the busier rhythm of Rise by Mono works brilliantly in keeping this mix on a steady upward climb of excellence. While the main melody may sound a little whiny in other mixes, it plays remarkably well as a follow up to the comparatively unmelodic Totally Fascinated. As fine it is that tech-trance can hypnotically draw you deep within your psyche, having a little melody thrown in for good measure at points can help accentuate points.

With Envio's Time To Say Goodbye, things start to slow down a bit. Actually, they slow down drastically as this song uses a breakdown and build that lasts over two and a half minutes. Good lord, but does this ever go on. Considering how good this mix has been thus far, I normally wouldn't be too annoyed by such a long interlude, especially since this track has an air of wrapping things up soon. However, there's a rather weak, er, 'melody' used in the breakdown that doesn't add anything at all. The fact we have to endure it for so long quickly takes us out of that trancey state of mind everything else before it had expertly put us in. "Reality's on her way..."

Anyhow, the climax of Time To Say Goodbye manages to recover a bit but it's quite apparent Armin's changed lanes now. With True Form's Forbidden Colours, he takes a complete one-eighty. With its peppy synth arpeggios, this is a stark contrast to much of what's already been played but not a bad offering, really. I guess it's quite nice to go out on this album with an uplifting note.

Oh, wait, Armin's not done yet. He takes another one-eighty with Artic Quest's Offbeat. Returning to the more ominous, darker textures of much of this mix, there is a wonderfully mysterious little melody introduced in a breakdown, building subtly into some tech-trance rhythms. Never overdoing it, this is a great way to go out on an enigmatic note.

Oh, wait, Armin's still not done yet. Geez, these last two tracks certainly had an air of finality to them; it's quite disconcerting to keep having another track follow it up. Still, Introspection by Water Planet is a pleasant enough excursion. Nothing too fancy here with some bright melodies, mellow pads, and stomping rhythms, this kind of encapsulates most of the elements heard throughout this mix. This is probably the honest-to-god best method to end the mix on; a nice way to go out on a summarized note (for real this time).
And now, I am stuck with a dilemma.

The first disc really sounds more like a compilation of big trance tunes put into a continuous mix, mainly because of the lack of any type of consistent momentum. Like any compilation, you are given a selection of tracks to enjoy, but very little in terms of that proverbial journey to follow; much like a typical radio show, actually.

The second disc sounds more like a DJ mix, as the flow is more logical and actually builds towards something. Despite the final act of it sounding more like a random mish-mash of leftover tunes Armin wanted to include on this release (but was unable to find any logical place to include them without things sounding even more jarring at points), everything else up to that point is quite enjoyable.

So what's the dilemma? In a nutshell, do I rate this as a DJ mix release, or as a compilation release?

Actually, it isn't too hard to choose as my answer lies in the front cover. The fact the DJ's name is in big, bold letters with a photo of his face (albeit slightly hidden) leads me to believe the marketing team expect folks would be after this for the DJ rather than the material. As such, how do I rate Armin van Buuren, the DJ?

Well, he can beatmatch the percussive lead-outs and lead-ins of each track. That's about it, really. There aren't any other fancy DJ tricks to be had here so it boils down to track selection. As I bemoaned at length already, the track selection for the first disc is very off kilter for a DJ set, with very little in terms of surprises to be had (most of the tracks follow the melodic theme, with a slight increase in energy towards the end) a two star rating from me in most cases. On the other hand, the second disc's choice of music for a DJ mix has much better flow and diversity, creating a far more pleasent excursion into trance, a four star rating from me in most cases.

I guess this leaves this release smack in the middle: three stars. There is enough enjoyable material to keep me interested in the more popular forms of trance at present but I hope things show a little more innovation in the near future than what is on offer here. I'd imagine trance could get even more mundane than after the anthem boom of yore if this melodic form dominates for too long.


Score: 6/10

ACE TRACKS/MIXES:
Fictivision vs. Phynn - Escape (Phynn Mix)
Anthanasia - Perfect Wave
Fascinated - Totally Fascinated


Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.

Various - Tunnel Trance Force Vol. 30 (Original TC Review)

Sony Music Media: Cat. # SMT 517977 2
Released August 30, 2004

TRACK LIST:
Disc 1
1. DJ Tiësto - Adagio For Strings
2. Paul van Dyk - Crush (PvD Remix)
3. Nature One Inc. - The Golden 10 (Festival Mix TTForce 30 Edit)
4. Cosmic Gate - Tomorrow
5. DuMonde - Kalt (Original Mix)
6. Kindervater - FTP://013.07.974
7. 4 Clubbers - Sonar (Club Mix)
8. Age Of Love - The Age Of Love (Marc Et Claude Remix)
9. Niels van Gogh - One Way Out (Oliver 'Reloop' Klitzing Remix)
10. Danny C vs. John Moon - No Way Out (Danny C Mix)
11. Abel Ramos - Aquarius (Randy Katana Remix)
12. Mike Dragon - Orange Song (Alex Megane Remix)
13. Sensorica - Few Days Away (Nostrum Remix)
14. Marty van Nilson - The Fear
15. CreamTeam - Samurai
16. Derler & Klitzing - Dedicated
17. Accuface - The Change (Reworked 04)
18. High Power - Hypnosis (DJ K-Van Remix)
19. Krid Kid - Another Dimension
20. Hunter And Lauks - Everything I Want

Disc 2
1. Special D - Dust To Dust
2. DJ Ornator - Next Life (DJ Ornator Remix)
3. Rocco - One, Two, Three
4. Crash 'N' Burn - Sunrise
5. Axel Coon - Lamenting City (Lacoon Remix)
6. Dynamic Ds - Rock Da Floor (Arena Mix)
7. Mission Control - Standby 2004 (89-er's Remix)
8. Mario Lopez - Sound Of The City (Nature 2.4) (Mario's Club Mix)
9. Calderone Inc. - Maximum Power (Mike Nero Remix)
10. Angel Beats meets DJ Merlin - Power To The People
11. Busted - Bitches (Paranoid Remix)
12. Modern Art - Let There Be Light (DJ CID Remix)
13. DJ Greenhead - In The Name Of Love (Dave Joy Remix)
14. Sa.Vee.Oh - Nohacker.exe (Original Mix)
15. Lagoon - Beam Of Love
16. M.U.M.M.S. - Up To Find My Mind (Late Night Mix)
17. DJ Enjoy vs. Punisher - No Rules (Club Mix)
18. DJ Shane vs. Waveliner - Connected
19. JFS - The Raider
20. Voodoo & Serano - This Is Entertainment (Club Mix)

(2010 Update:
As mediocre as this release was, it was actually quite significant as far as my early writing goes: it marked the first time I realized the ridiculousness and futility of detailing every single track. I just couldn't bring myself to do it, as it seemed pointless when all the tracks did the same damned thing. Of course, it'd be a while before I actually abandoned track-by-track writing altogether but at least I'd gotten the hint.

Can you believe this CD goes for nearly $60 on Amazon today?)

IN BRIEF: Energetic, but my neck gets sore after half an hour.

Believe it or not, despite having followed trance music since, well, damned near the beginning, this is my first foray into the Tunnel Trance Force series. Apparently Tunnel Records has been doing these compilations for as long as I've been listening to this branch of EDM so it feels kind of weird that I should take a gander at one of their many, many, many compilations so late in the game.

However, if this volume is any indication, it doesn't seem like I've been missing much. I wouldn't go so far as to say this is a bad release but it certainly leaves a lot to be desired.

The trouble here is the fact there are twenty tracks to get through on each disc and only eighty minutes to work with at the most. That leaves an average of four minutes per track, which wouldn't be so bad if but for one problem: the incessant need for so much trance these days to use breakdowns and builds that can last from a minute to nearly three minutes. It doesn't leave much room for any kind of momentum to get going when there is more 'stop and go' than a traffic jam in L.A.

The opening twenty minutes of the first disc is a prime example of what I'm talking about here.

Things start fine enough with Tiësto's own interpretation of Samuel Barber's Adagio For Strings. While I feel Adagio has been played out and covered enough by other acts, Tiësto does manage to do a few interesting things with those familiar opening string chords by playing them with several different sounds, including chunky distorted acid, symphonic strings, ethereal pads, voice pads, synth pads, space pads, rocket pads, parachute pads, pillow pads, yo' momma pads, and so on. Coupled with heavy rhythm that cranks and pummels the bass to ten on the dial, and we're off to a good start here. The breakdowns that occur along the way are fine, as opening tracks can often use them to set melodic tones for the rest of a mixed CD.

The mix into Paul van Dyk's Crush is brief and functional (as will be the rest of the mixes on these discs, really, so there's no need to bring up DJ Dean's mixing from here on out). However, it mixes right into a breakdown of the song and, while the synth stabs keep some semblance of momentum going from before, it does go on for a while. By the time the song builds back up into fast driving rhythms again, the song is already mixing into Nature One Inc.'s offering of The Golden 10. Not even a minute later, we're right back into another breakdown, this one even more halting than the previous as the rhythm disappears altogether to allow some synth pads to play while one of those Menacing Voice vocals goes on for some time. It's nearly two minutes before any kind of rhythm returns and, while the thundering kicks cranked to eleven are energetic, we only get a minute of it before we're quickly mixed into Cosmic Gate's Tomorrow.

I'd carry on but I'll just end up repeating myself. This cycle continues for half the disc's playing time: quick mix into the next song, maybe a minute at the most of opening rhythm (with the kicks still pummeling at twelve on the dial), followed by a breakdown that slows things right down for a time directly proportional to the amount of time there was rhythm previous to it. Stop, go, stop, go; it never feels like we're going anywhere.

The second half of the first disc isn't quite as bad with the overuse of breakdowns and builds but it wrecks havoc with another aspect here that makes it such a chore to listen through: the overuse of the same bloody screaming synths. Aside from a few exceptions (Mike Dragon's Orange Song, which opts for a plinking sound for half its duration, and Accuface's, The Change, which uses some synth washes at points instead), you'd swear you were going in circles; barely any song changes much. And, although Hunter & Lauks's Everything I Want makes some improvement with an entirely different crunchy synth coupled with the screaming synths, it's too little and too late since it's the last track of this disc.

Now, I'm not faulting the individual tracks themselves. There are some truly exceptional tracks to be had here like DuMonde's Kalt, Marc Et Claude's remix of The Age Of Love, and the aforementioned Everything I Want. Additionally, the rest would hold their own in a mix or compilation with more variety but that's the problem here. Since all of these hard trance tracks bare so much similarity to each other, and they don't have time to really do much beyond give you their main screaming synth melody before being shoved aside by the next track, nothing stands out from the rest.

The second disc fares somewhat better, though. Hardstyle's the name of the game here, which means whereas the first disc had its beats cranked to thirteen, they get turned all the way up to fourteen here. Also, for a good chunk of this disc, the momentum is kept going at a very steady pace.

Okay, so it opens up with Special D's Dust To Dust, a track that's almost malicious in its use of false builds (click here for more details on my thoughts of it) but it works, mainly because it's at the very beginning of the disc. With no momentum yet built, you aren't really killing it either.

When the quick mix into DJ Ornator's Next Life occurs, it is into another breakdown as well but this stands out and remains interesting for the simple reason that the plinky little melody and benign pads are different from the sounds used in the previous track; it isn't treading the same ground already covered, unlike the first disc which was guilty of doing so. With this unique element, the screeching synths that come back at the peak of a build don't become superfluous, instead harmonizing quite nicely (well, as best as hardstyle can harmonize, I guess).

The trend continues into One, Two, Three by Rocco and Sunrise by Crash 'N' Burn, always keeping things interesting with distinctive synth melodies accompanying the screaming synths and intense rhythms cranked to fifteen. Axel Coon's Lamenting City really stands out from the rest thanks to some female operatic samples providing a wonderful contrast.

Things take a slight dip with Dynamic D's Rock Da Floor, though, partially because the Menacing Voice makes a return here to try to pump the crowd up (he's never really had much appeal to me) but mainly because compared to the previous five tracks, this one's just kind of monotonous. It can't be that difficult to keep the diversity going, can it?

Standby 2004 by Mission Control (with a remix done by The 89-ers) helps rebound a bit thanks to a melody that's admittedly catchy but then Mario Lopez's Sound Of The City drags us down again due to a breakdown that just had to use that other annoying voice, the Mother Gaia. She goes on about how man and nature have to come together or some other damned thing but do we really want to hear this now? This is hardstyle, man. We want to get off our tits with beats cranked to sixteen pummeling us! Go away, y'tart!

Calderone Inc. returns us to form quite nicely with a screeching synth melody that is infectious in how it sticks to the mind, setting us up for the next track which is, put simply, incredibly energetic. I may have ragged on DJ Merlin's collaboration with NXP as being trite but working with DJ Dean (using the Angel Beats alias here) seems to have helped both of them in making a stomper of a track.

Using a very familiar vocal sample, Power To The People makes use of supersaw synths to great effect. Normally, I'm a bit of a detractor of the supersaw synth but that's normally due to their overabundance in many trance sets. Being the only use of such in this two disc'r, their big punchy notes stand out wonderfully from the usual barrage of screeching synths. A breakbeat breakdown with the title's vocal sample getting time stretched gives us a breather while still keeping things pumping. A brief build-up later, and the synths are blasting with gusto to the thick kicks. This is energetic EDM on overdrive -outstanding work here.

Where can you go from this peak? Only down, it seems.

Busted's track here brings things to quite the crawl, actually. Sure, the beats are still cranked to seventeen but there just isn't any intensity carried over from Power To The People. Rather, we seem to be starting over again, which makes some sense, as we're already halfway through the second disc.

Unfortunately, this disc suffers from the same thing the first one did with its second half: too much of the same thing over and over, namely overuse of overlong breakdowns and builds that lead to screaming synths. There's only so much of the same thing one can take before it gets redundant. Where did the diversity from the first half go?

The breakdowns here are really long, with the wait for those thundering kicks that are cranked to eighteen lasting up to three minutes sometimes, and the intensity hardstyle is known for is severely lacking because of it. Without the energy to keep us pumped, the tracks at the end here just come across as tired; the leftover scraps of a DJ's vinyl bag that is only played to those who are still jacked up on amphetamines. What a shame.

Wait a moment! What's this? Bitchy vocals? Low-fi analogue synths? Could it be?

Oh, YES! Disco punk! ...or at least the hard trance equivalent of it. Where did this come from? Ah, who cares. Voodoo & Serano's This Is Entertainment certainly is coming out of leftfield considering what's come before it but it's a breath of fresh air after the rather mundane run of tracks that filled up the latter half of this disc. It's a shame it has to come at the end of the disc. It would have been an interesting tangent for DJ Dean to follow had it been used after Power To The People.

All in all, if you are looking for a primer of sorts to the hard trance scene, Tunnel Trance Force 30 would probably do; you certainly get a lot of songs for your dollar here.

Unfortunately, dedicated fans of this style of music will probably be left wanting. Despite some fleeting moments, this release doesn't have much going for it to raise it above the majority of trance compilations out there. Most of the standout tracks are available on other discs, and either in their full incarnation or in mixes that complement them better. Best to seek those out instead if your funds are limited.

Note: To hardcore/gabber fans whom felt I was giving hard trance too much benefit with the intensity of their pummeling kicks, your beats are cranked to mother-fing five hundred!

Score: 5/10

ACE TRACKS/MIXES:
Angel Beats Meets DJ Merlin - Power To The People
Voodoo & Serano - This Is Entertainment (Club Mix)

Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.

Eat Static - Abduction (Original TC Review)

Mammoth Records: Cat. # MR 118-2
Released 1995 (1993 in the UK)

Track List:
1. Prana (7:24)
2. Gulf Breeze (6:33)
3. Kalika (6:50)
4. Splitting World (8:44)
5. Kinetic Flow (6:44)
6. Forgotten Rites (8:13)
7. Abduction (8:00)
8. Intruder (6:11)
9. Xenomorph (6:32)
10. Inner Peace (6:08)

(2010 Update:
Another thing I wanted to do for TranceCritic to differentiate the website from all the other trance sites of the time was ample coverage of older releases, specifically from the genre's infancy. Browsing through several forums of the time, I was quite dismayed by the utter lack of knowledge regarding the genre's history. It seems things have managed to turn around in recent years, as there's more looking back going on now than there ever was in 2004. Not that I'm saying TC was responsible for the shift, but hey, at least I can claim to be ahead of the curve, right? Er, maybe if I'd written a better review for this.)

IN BRIEF: It's Eat Static... before the aliens abducted them.

Longtime mainstays in the psy trance scene, Eat Static (Joie Hinton and Merv Pepler of Ozric Tentacles) may have become associated with all things alien but their music wasn't always so. In fact, some of their earliest work was more in vein with what much of the initial goa tunes thematically tried to capture, namely the vibe of outdoor dance parties and tribal gatherings. It wasn't long before the extra-terrestrial soundscapes of trance music had an influence, though, and Abduction seems like as fitting a title for this debut as it gets.

How so? Let's dive into this release and I'll show you.

Granted, the opener on this release, Prana, has its fair share of sci-fi bleeps, samples, and effects. However, for most of its duration the emphasis is placed more on the rhythm as acid and subtle electronic sounds meander throughout. Don't go looking for any clear-cut leads in this song; you won't find them. Instead, just let the rhythm take hold and bob your head or feet along.

Gulf Breeze may have gained fame more due to Sasha's remix of the track but the original here is worth a look as well. Starting quite deep with thick, grumbling bass and pulsing electronic effects, various melodies come and go throughout. Some, like arpeggiating sounds and mechanical pads, come off quite interesting. Others, like chanting samples, come across as a bit redundant. Still, the good outweigh the bad here.

Keeping things still on Earth is Kalika, a track which easily exemplifies goa trance. Plenty of Indian sounds, both percussive and melodic, are used throughout and easily conjure up images of beach parties held in Goa under the stars. Compared to the last two tracks, this one is quite mellow. Sure, there is still some speed to it but the rhythm doesn't dominate quite as much, allowing the sounds of India to let the mind wander.

With Splitting World, we get to hear Eat Static's real strength at work. Always more of a live act, Joie and Merv have a tendency to embellish with numerous patches throughout their songs. The former tracks already presented on this release used this to some degree but with fewer patches so you'd hear familiar sounds coming and going. Splitting World has all sorts running through it, keeping things shifting and unpredictable.

For instance, after four minutes of leisurely rhythms and stuttering native chants, the song changes gears into a breakbeat with mechanical sounds and synths. Former and latter patches switch up and intermesh for the rest of the track as even more elements come and go. Much like jazz or prog rock, this embellishing is amazingly coherent. Great stuff.

However, throughout this whole album, the alien influences that Eat Static is known for still have yet to surface. Kinetic Flow gets a little more spacey with bright electronic sounds and effects fluttering about in a rather light-hearted track but it remains somewhat insubstantial. What follows, however, is dripping with imagery.

Oh, not aliens. Forgotten Rites instead takes us back to the beginning -that is, the beginning of humanity's association with dance. This is overflowing with primal energy. Starting with eerie effects as organic percussion is progressively added, the tension is gradually built for three minutes before the main kick hits. For the next two minutes we are treated to some fierce tribal rhythms as dark sounds weave about, conjuring up shaman bonfires at twilight.

But all this is just building us to the heart and glory of this track: a bright, sputtering synth that tickles at your consciousness as your feet keep moving to the heavy rhythms. You want to know how trance got its name? This track is a perfect example. Once everything comes together for a rousing finish, you are absolutely enraptured by the sounds on display here.

Forgotten Rites is probably the most human sounding track on this release, so it makes a great deal of sense to follow it up with the aptly titled Abduction. It is here that the aliens of Eat Static finally make their presence felt. After a lengthy intro of creepy starship sounds, we are treated to a bit of a mellow excursion of bizarre noises and peculiar effects. There are some melodic moments thrown in for good measure as well but this is mostly a chance for Joie and Merv to musically indulge with quirky sounds.

Having let the aliens snatch them from Earth, Eat Static take us into the cosmos with Intruder. Spacey synth pads soar in a minute long intro, eventually fading back as arpeggiating electronic effects and acidy, tribal rhythms take over. During a brief pause in the momentum of this track, we are treated to some mechanical sounds and spoken samples -one repeatedly utters, "Consciousness expanding." When the synth pads return to the fray, I'm inclined to agree.

Xenomorph is quite a bizarre sounding track, much in line with Eat Static's later works as they experimented with futuristic noises to make stomping dance music. Letting their alien influences completely dominate here, there is nothing human to this track at all. It can come off very disconcerting after so many tracks of ground based rhythms and melodies. That's not to say this is a bad track; in fact, it's quite a remarkable piece of work to behold considering all the unusual patches in effect here. Just be prepared for something very different than what you've heard thus far on Abduction.

To finish off the album, Inner Peace brings us back to the more familiar tribal gatherings that we bore witness to in the first half of this album. For the most part, this is a very straightforward track, with ethnic samples alternating between benign electronic sounds and string pads. While decent enough, compared to much of what's come on this album already, Inner Peace comes off as very simplistic; perhaps not the best way to end an album on as it kind of leaves you wanting for a bit more.

But for that, you'll have to seek out Eat Static's subsequent releases, as we've come to the end of Abduction. Overall, it is an enjoyable listen provided you don't come looking for aliens aplenty. While making brief appearances here and there, they tend to be lurking in the shadows of this album, lightly influencing the sounds while we mere humans have fun dancing under the stars to our own tribal sounds.

What a chilling thought.

Score: 8/10

ACE TRACKS:
Splitting World
Forgotten Rites
Intruder

Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.

Terra Ferma - Turtle Crossing (Original TC Review)

Platipus: Cat. # plat 30CD
Released 1997

TRACK LIST:
1. Lunar Sunrise (10:14)
2. Fire (7:44)
3. The Scream (8:13)
4. Visions (7:57)
5. The Poet (6:32)
6. Floating (9:46)
7. The Snakecharmer (10:53)
8. Planet Ogo (7:56)
9. Crazy People (7:10)

(2010 Update:
Ugh. Another meticulously detailed review. I find these read better if you just ignore the whole middle sections, as the first couple and last couple paragraphs basically sum up my thoughts. Still, if you don't mind long, dry descriptions of music, I suppose this is alright.)

IN BRIEF: Music and themes best not forgotten.

Claudio Giussani created some classic acid trance numbers with Simon Berry such as Red Herring and Two Full Moons And A Trout when they produced together as Union Jack. Their collaboration seemed to be short lived though, as Berry went on to do big things as Art Of Trance and Giussani went onto, um, not-as-big things as Terra Ferma.

Which is a shame really, because if this album is any indication, Giussani is an exceptional producer. His ability to utilize natural percussion so they co-exist with your typical trance patches - rather than stand out as gimmicky - is uncanny. Coupled with creating stirring, somber melodies being melded with fast-paced acidy rhythms, and you have some truly captivating tracks on offer here. The added bonus is Giussani manages to keep things thematic, namely drawing upon Tibetan milieus, a bit of a unique setting as far as trance tends to be concerned.

As the opener for this album, Lunar Surprise makes abundant use of such elements. After a woodwind intro, things begin to speed along quite nicely with suitable patches of dark electronic squelches and effects offset by melodic string pads and piano arpeggios while the percussion is a nice blend of the synthetic and organic. Layers are continuously added, building up to a breakdown some five minutes into the track. Here, we're introduced to some tribal chants as strings and pianos play in the background and things build back up to right where we left off with this interlude. Things play out quite typically from here: previous elements coming and going for the remainder four minutes, with extra layers of organic percussion being gradually added to a rousing climax. All and all, Lunar Surprise is a strong start to this album.

Aiming straight for the dancefloor, Fire starts out with quick kicks and acidy basslines. Layers of synth pads, acid squelches, and organic percussion are continuously added, building momentum for over three minutes into a minor breakdown. A high-pitched acid melody is introduced here and, in a surprising contrast to the darker overtones of the start of this track, it has quite the melancholic tone about it. Once Fire gets going again, the melody doesn't stick around for long, instead letting the rhythms dominate here with subtle stuttering strings taking over for the duration.

Moving away a bit from the somber melodies is The Scream, despite the use of voice pads in the beginning. That isn't to say this track is devoid of emotion, rather it's just not as important here. Darker and harder than the previous two, many pitch effects are employed on its acid and synth patches. Structurally, this song isn't all that far removed from the previous two as it follows the more traditional lead-in, mild breakdown, brief build, rush to the finish template of many trance tracks. Even with some string pad moments, the acid lines are the dominant element throughout, keeping the energy going. After all, if a sample going, "WHOOooooooo-rrrAH!" doesn't spark an adrenaline surge, I don't know what will.

Visions starts things off a little slower compared to what's come before but it too is a fairly energetic track. A deep bass line is introduced, something that, while not completely lacking, hasn't had enough attention given to thus far on this album. The main riff uses some stuttering synth stabs but it doesn't really come across as anything that hasn't been heard on the album to a varying degree yet. In fact, Visions has quite a bit that is structurally similar to everything else that has come before on this album. There are some tribal-like male chants in a breakdown but, unlike Lunar Surprise, they don't really add much to the overall texture of the song. Probably one of the most unique aspects I noticed are the hand claps in the percussion. At some point midway through (I'll let you discover where; why should I ruin all the fun?), they go from straightforward strikes every second beat to a far more energetic pattern. It's quite subtle but the energy it adds is remarkable.

On its own, Visions is quite good. However, since all the previous tracks have made use of the same structure, it doesn't seem to stand out as well as it should. There's an unfortunate feeling of 'been there, done that,' and I hope this trend doesn't continue for the rest of the albums.

With more prominent organic percussion, The Poet has more of a bouncy start to it after some acid lead-in. Don't be fooled, though, as, like those that came before, there is a somber atmosphere to this track as well. Shorter than the rest, the use of the breakdown method mid-way through isn't as prominent, serving more as a brief pause in the momentum rather than a full-out break as no new melodies are introduced. A few additional elements like pianos and extra acid come and go but, for the most part, The Poet is a subtle song compared to the rest, making it a nice respite from all the simialarily structured tracks that's come before.

Floating comes across as a collection of elements that have already been used thus far, stripped down to their very basic components. Really, this makes some sense as Floating was the first single Giussani produced as Terra Ferma. Things build quite nicely in this song as percussion meshing synthetic with organic instruments accompany melodic string pads, synth stabs, and piano solos. As with the tracks that came before, a breakdown slows things down again midway through before building back up again, peaking with stuttering voice pads. Yet another strong song but perhaps a change of scenery would benefit this album's overall effect.

As if heading the call, The Snakecharmer opens up outdoors, with a campfire and crickets chirping while a large drum beats in the distance. A woodwind and string pad intro goes on for nearly three minutes but it's quite nice to listen to after six straight songs of straightforward trance numbers. Once things get going, The Snakecharmer opts for minimal use of trance elements, foregoing organic percussion, breakdowns, and evident melodies. Granted, there are some somber moments to be had thanks to pad work and subtly stuttering acid effects but, for the most part, this is a simple, hypnotic song, entrancing you with rhythms and sight leads.

Like the light at the end of a somber tunnel, Planet Ogo has a more optimistic tone about it. With mellow strings and voice pads, this song very simply goes about its business with the usual assortment of organic percussion and acid lines that we've come to expect thus far on this album. Neither trying to outdo anything already given, this track seems to be quite aware it's nearing the end of Turtle Crossing. And to finish off, Crazy People takes us through an ambient excursion of Gregorian chants, dark synth pads, progressively layered organic percussion, piano melodies, and a long sample of 12 Monkeys. All in all, it's a nice diversion from what's come before, and a fine way to finish off the album.

Any song on Turtle Crossing could make for a strong single but there is a problem to be had with cramming your album as such. The flow of it can come off a little repetitive without something to mix it up in between. Perhaps some of the differently themed songs toward the end could have made the transitions between the songs more intuitive had they been placed in a different track order.

This niggling nitpick isn't enough to not recommend this release though. In fact, there is more than enough on here that fans of trance old or new can equally enjoy. You have acid and quick rhythms for those who prefer the more hypnotic era of the style, and nice melodies for those whom discovered trance at a later date. It's quite remarkable that Giussani managed to craft an album that crossed these two time periods of trance's short history without loosing any credibility.

Score: 8/10

ACE TRACKS:
Fire
Floating
The Snakecharmer

Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.

Erik Vee - Sacred/Iron Eden (Original TC Review)

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.

Erik Vee - I Am Free (Original TC Review)

Dropout: Cat. # DROP 0346-6
Released 2003

Track List:
A. I Am Free (Club Mix) (6:44)
B. I Am Free (Original Mix) (6:24)

(2010 Update:
Sometimes one will write a positive review that they may look back on and wonder, "how could I have ever liked that?" This is not one of them! Yeah, it's a cheesy tune, but everyone has a few guilty pleasures in their music collections. Still no shame.)

IN BRIEF: Italo lives!

Say what you will about Regeanomics, arena rock, and fashions that could make your hair stand on end even more than the hairspray that abounded in the decade; the 80s had a lot going for them. One such thing was the music known as italo disco, a wholly European phenomenon that time has been quite generous to.

I'm not sure if Erik Vee intentionally set out to make an italo-esque track with I Am Free (especially considering his first single, Wildside, was as straightforward a hard trancer as it gets) but that's the feeling I'm getting from this single here.

Why? Simply put, everything that made italo so much fun is abundant. The breathy vocals with a touch of reverb; the simple yet effective floating pads; the catchy, primitive synth hooks; and a bouncy rhythm that will get parts of your body moving even if you are lying inert.

And even though I Am Free does follow the typical trance format of lead, breakdown, build, etc., they don't come across as tired here, probably thanks to the lack of so many of the clichés plentiful in other tracks (mega snare rolls, gargantuan synths, overtly pretentious presentations). Everything here has a stripped down, back-to-basics feel to it.

Okay, so some might label this vocal trance but, really, vocal trance tends to come across as the offspring of euro dance, which in turn was the offspring of italo. It all ties together, guy!

If you came looking at this release for something a little more akin to Wildside, the Club Mix provided on the A side will probably be more up your alley.

This is a simple yet effective piece of trance here. The track starts out with punchier rhythm as heavy bass bobbles in the background and grating effects are thrown in about for the two and a half minutes worth of lead in. The breakdown fades things down and, wisely, this mix gives us a bit of yin to the lead-in's yang. Instead of the synth pads that were used in the original, however, we are treated to voice pads instead, lending the ambience of I Am Free to a more benign nature. Adding to that ambience is the main hook being played with a rich piano fed through a little reverb rather than primitive synths as well.

Things start moving along again at a fair pace soon enough and extra effects are utilized to play off the piano melody wonderfully. Things play out typically as the song finishes off, with the rhythm dominating the last minute's worth for all your DJing needs.

I highly recommend this release to either fans of italo or melodic trance. Both versions of I Am Free are very effective in their simplicity, and, even if you aren't exactly a fan of one of those styles of EDM, you just might become one after listening to this single.

And as for Erik Vee, count me as a new fan of his material if he continues to produce songs of this caliber. Here's looking to the future with the past firmly in tow.

Score: 9/10

Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.

L.S.G. - Rendezvous In Outer Space (Original TC Review)

Superstition: Cat# 2038CD
Released 1995

Track List:
1. Wrong Time - Wrong Place (9:50)
2. Lonely Casseopaya (3:56)
3. My Time Is Yours (5:53)
4. Can You See The Yellow Turtles (5:40)
5. Miss Understanding (2:42)
6. Sweet Gravity (4:43)
7. Sweet G #2 (2:43)
8. The Hidden Sun Of Venus (5:05)
9. Lunar Orbit (2:27)
10. Everything Is (2:18)
11. Enter Paradise (7:02)
12. Fontana (8:17)
13. Reprise (1:43)

(2010 Update:
When I first started writing for TranceCritic, I had a few writing projects in mind, one of which was to review every single L.S.G. album in a monthly series. Er, it's still a work in progress, though I only have a couple left to do. Patience, my friends, patience.)

IN BRIEF: The L.S.G. debut album. Ten years later, it still hasn't lost its shine.

Everyone knows Oliver Lieb, even if they don't realize it. His tracks have appeared on countless trance albums, compilations, and DJ mixes (from the superstars to the not-so-superstars). His contributions to trance as a whole have been felt from the earliest days of the genre's existence, rightfully earning him the title of the Godfather of Trance. Yet, because he has more aliases than a centipede has legs, Lieb has maintained a remarkably low profile, consistently releasing excellent material without much fanfare aside from those in the know. One of his aliases did manage to gain notice though, thanks in large part to prominent DJs playing out Lieb's music: L.S.G.

After a string of singles, Lieb released the first L.S.G. full length album in 1995 with Rendezvous In Outer Space, a rather suitable title considering what's to follow on this album. Yes, my friends, Rendezvous In Outer Space is trance... as in original trance (classic trance, real trance, old timer's trance, 'techno'), the kind of stuff that uses plenty of spacey, hypnotic, electronic sounds to draw the listener into other-worldly soundscapes.

But wait, progressive-anthem-epic trance lovers, don't flee just yet. One of the reasons the L.S.G. releases became so popular was for Lieb's talent of infusing soaring synth melodies into his tracks. Indeed, much of what is heard at even this early stage of L.S.G. productions still sounds amazingly up to date, as though they could have been produced just this past year and fit snuggly into any trance DJ's set at peak time.

Still, Lieb often crafted his albums with certain themes in mind, so not everything on Rendezvous is pure trance.

In fact, the first track, Wrong Time - Wrong Place, really is nothing more than an opener; a teaser of things to come. Sure, it is a nine minute long track with plenty of momentum but half of it is fairly standard lead in, with layers of synths, effects, and percussion progressively being added. By the time the main lead starts up, we're already four minutes into it.

This isn't a bad thing by any means, of course. All too often an album will put all its eggs into the basket with the opener, leaving the listener with not much to look forward to. By letting Wrong Time - Wrong Place just subtly hint at what to expect, the anticipation can only grow.

As the song finishes up, the melancholic, stuttering synth chords of Lonely Casseopaya emerge from the background, eventually given time to just play on their own -and why not? They really are quite lovely to listen to. A bit of simple rhythm is eventually added but it doesn't take away from the main melody, allowing it to carry this song throughout.

My Time Is Yours materializes as Lonely Casseopaya ends, treating us to an ominous contrast to the previous track with a looming sample uttering the track's title. The pace picks up as eerie, raspy synth pads weave about with sputtering electronic lines. In a mild breakdown halfway through, an innocent sounding melody counteracts the menacing atmosphere, creating a wonderful play on contrasts within this track as it rushes towards its end.

So far we've been treated to some great sounding individual songs here but Lieb seems ready to take us further into his trip through the cosmos with tracks that complement the next very well.

Can You See The Yellow Turtles certainly gets us going on the right foot, as it drives with even more energy than My Time Is Yours did. After some three minutes of vigorous rhythms, a distorted, stuttering pad creates an incredibly moving melody, feeding off the heavy percussion to create an unforgettable, sonic treat. Miss Understanding slides quite comfortably in as Yellow Turtles ends on its main pads, matching the former track's atmosphere quite nicely with punchy rhythm that doesn't lose anything during the switch. In fact, they harmonize with each other so well, for a while I thought they were the same track.

However, Miss Understanding doesn't get much of a chance to show off, as it ends almost as soon as it begins. A bit of a shame, I suppose, as there are some interesting effects at play here, but Lieb has relegated this track as a transitional song to lead us into Sweet Gravity.

Now this is what I love to hear in trance: unique sounds creating new melodies. At first, the guttural effect used here certainly doesn't sound like it could be used to make any music out of, but as Lieb adds higher pitches to this sound, notes seem to emerge. The low and high pitches play around about for a minutes worth of lead in but never mingling, merely hinting and teasing at things to come. Thus, when the two octaves merge just as the kick hits, the release of primal energy is potent.

However, Lieb doesn't play this up as much as he potentially could. Instead of coming on even fiercer, he seems quite content to let a flat, muted version of this lead take over for most of the rest of Sweet Gravity, only bringing the original sounds back towards the end. Sour grapes, I guess, but perhaps he wanted to take the energy level down a bit following the previous two tracks as we are beginning to head into the more ethereal part of Rendezvous In Outer Space.

Sweet G (#2) more or less retains the same basic melody as its former compatriot, except relies on spacey synth chords and atmospherics than infectious hooks and driving rhythms (although, it does briefly have some of that, too). As the song fades out, eerie pads emerge as The Hidden Sun Of Venus takes us on an ambient excursion through space. Mechanical effects pulse their way along as these synthy sonic textures meander about, which makes the shift into Lunar Orbit very smooth, the latter's atmosphere even more mechanically ominous than anything else on this album. After this ten-minute sequence of three tracks, one could feel as though they'd taken a brief tour through the inner solar system.

A fairly simple little trancer with Everything Is takes us back down to Earth. Relying more on rhythm and hypnotic effects than anything else to carry it forward, the track merely serves its purpose to segue us nicely into Enter Paradise, a track that flies with fantastic synth chords, stuttering electronic lines, and energetic rhythms. As this song ends, the synth chords are replaced with voice pad chords to end off on a harmonious note. This would have been a perfect cap on an already solid album but Lieb manages to go one better with what follows.

Abandoning all the standard rhythmic structures that have been previously established on Rendezvous, Lieb explores the frenetic percussive elements of breakbeat tracks in Fontana's lead in. The rhythm gets really busy as layers are continuously added for nearly two and a half minutes, yet no solid kicks of any sort surface. Mildly breaking down at this point, a soaring melody emerges, using a similar distorted, stuttering synth pad that was wielded wonderfully in Yellow Turtles. Some two minutes later, the main melody takes a seat to allow Lieb to get creative with the percussion, embellishing with hi-hats, snares, and toms like a kid with his first drum kit. And, while that wonderful melody doesn't exactly return in Fontana, in the aptly named Reprise, it gets the full glory to play out with orchestral strings as a gentle pulse throbs in the background like a heartbeat -now that's a way to cap off an album.

While Rendezvous In Outer Space isn't exactly the greatest album Lieb produced as L.S.G. (although still leagues above many contemporary trance acts), it is undeniably the most comprehensive of them. Touching upon all facets of the alias, it serves as the best primer if you are just getting into the L.S.G. works, as the various themes throughout would be explored in greater detail in later albums. From here, you could leap into the harder sounds of The Black Album from My Time Is Yours, or the otherworldly Into Deep from The Hidden Sun Of Venus, or the trancey favorites of Volume 2 from Lonely Casseopaya and Fontana, depending on your particular taste.

Score: 8/10

ACE TRACKS:
Lonely Casseopaya
My Time Is Yours
Fontana

Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.

Cosmic Gate - Different Concept, Part 2 (Original TC Review)

E-Cutz: Cat. # EC 2004/2
Released April 2004

TRACK LIST
A. Bilingual (8:37)
B. Monotune (9:02)

(2010 Update:
Wow, who would have thought this was going to be the end of Cosmic Gate's hard trance era. This review is definitely a product of its time, as the duo's whole change of direction isn't even touched upon here.)

IN BRIEF: More quality from the Cosmic Gate crew.

With some good, solid percussion that progressively adds layers driving the first two minutes of Bilingual, Cosmic Gate's most recent EP sets us up for quite the stomper of a track. Things calm down briefly as bass kicks begin to throb from beyond a murky veil, allowing a pulsating saw synth to slowly emerge from the background. Less than a minute later, the percussion kicks back in, the synth becoming more focused and punctual in time to the rhythm as it slides across the stereo spectrum. Soon though, things fade off again to the throbbing bass kick permeating the background. A great little piano melody fed with a bit of reverb plays out, eventually gaining momentum in itself as some synth pads join as well. This breakdown goes on for perhaps a little too long (a minute and a half) considering how driving Bilingual started out but there's enough momentum carried over into the piano melody to keep at least some part of the body moving.

And anyways, once things do get going again, the anticipation built up to the return of the main synth lead and percussion is enough to really get you moving. Things play out quite typically from here, with the main synth lead and piano melody alternating turns in carrying the song to a brief percussion lead-out; however, when the elements used are as good as they are here, this can make for a good set piece.

Monotune on the flip gives us techy percussion to start out, setting up a respectable pace. Over two minutes later things calm down, allowing a crunchy, stuttering saw lead to emerge from the background, eventually gaining enough momentum on its own to allow the percussion to fade away for the time being. As it gains intensity, the synth smoothes itself out, becoming fuller in sound until...

Um, it just dies, actually.

After a second's pause, the synth starts up again, starting from a low tone to build in intensity as it leads into heavy, driving percussion, embellishing from Monotunes opening percussive elements. When these two ingredients feed off each other's energy, we are fed some incredibly vigorous stuff for a good minute. After we are given a chance to catch our breath with some reduced percussion, the song cycles itself over again, adding a bit of a pulsing bass and a few extra effects to mix a little diversity before capping off some eight minutes in with a simple percussion lead-out.

I rather enjoyed these two cuts from Cosmic Gate. Granted, they aren't going to re-define trance anytime soon but neither do they dilute the name either. This is solid, four-to-the-floor material that knows its role as set pieces tailor made for getting the crowd moving. The pauses in momentum are, for the most part, welcome respites from the intensity of these tracks, although I did feel Bilingual's carried on a bit longer than it really needed to. Still, this is a welcome release to any fan of hard trance's collection.

Score: 7/10

Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.

DJ Merlin & NXP - Deep In My Mind (Original TC Review)

Tunnel Records: Cat. # TR 3078
Released 2003

TRACK LIST:
A. Deep In My Mind (Extended Mix) (9:04)
B. Deep In My Mind (Barbarez Remix) (6:59)

(2010 Update:
My first 'below average' review, which stunned TranceCritic's owner quite a bit since he recommended this to me for coverage. It was pretty bad then, and the fact these guys seemed to have fallen off vindicates my early assumptions. So, hah! Take that, Jon!)

IN BRIEF: Aren't we all tired of screaming synths by now?

There's an absolutely great moment in the extended mix of Deep In My Mind, where the beats are thumping, the bass is galloping, and a subdued riff screeches inconspicuously.

Unfortunately, it comes nearly eight minutes into this track and lasts a mere twenty seconds, at a point where its role is 'lead out' from the main bulk of this song. What do you have to deal with to get to this point? Some fairly unremarkable moments, to say the least, but since I have no word count limit on the internet, I'll say more.

After some typical shuffling percussion lead in, a rather perky bassline starts up with a bleeping effect playing off it from behind. Two minutes later, we get a minor breakdown, allowing the built up percussion to be stripped away in layers as a little singing of the song's title unfolds. Soon enough, all the introduced elements are completely gone, allowing a gargantuan synth to blast forth, spurring on a breakbeat build.

A decent enough technique but for one problem: despite its zealousness, this synth sounds far too whiney. Add to this the fact the riff it plays is nothing more than straightforward boshing to go along with the thumping kicks, and, well, it's just superfluous. There'd be just as much energy to this track without it thanks to the throbbing basslines, as is evidenced at the end of this song when the synth recedes and allows a background lead to do the work.

Two builds are in this track, the second of course bigger than the first, but I'd take eight minutes of the lead out of Deep In My Mind over these builds any day.

Marty Schmidt (better known as DJ Dean but using his Barbarez alias here) seems to be aware of the main synth's lack of ability to carry the song on its shoulders so, for his remix on the flip, he adds some more elements to help it along.

The lead in is much punchier, laying the beats on fierce with chunky acid blurps and snappy percussion. Over two minutes later, things recede and allow a throbbing synth line to emerge in a minor breakdown. Crowd noise is added and, as the main synth of the original is brought in, the extra throbbing synth really brings texture. Another synth line plays off the main one, doing what needed to be done in the first place: adding depth to an otherwise basic banger of a track.

Granted, the synth still sounds whiney but at least it isn't the focus of the entire track anymore. There are whole stretches where the other synths get to show off a bit as well; disappointingly, nothing overly remarkable is done with these extra elements either. For the most part, they just thump or throb along with the kicks. Schmidt's remix is better than the original but not by a whole heck of a lot.

Despite a few things that work, these two tracks don't really bring a whole lot to the table. There's far better offerings of hard trance out there.

Score: 3/10

Written by Sykonee. Originally published 2005 for TranceCritic.com.© All rights reserved.