Reviews
TRANCE: FEBRUARY
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COMPILATION OF THE MONTH
Mixed by Paul van Dyk: VONYC Sessions 2011 Vandit!
Although 2011 was seemingly a quieter year for PvD on the production front, the 2011 edition of his legendary radio show’s annual hall of fame is the most in-depth and varied of recent years. CD1 is the most experimental, ranging from the techno edged Jon Rundell’s mix of Carl Cox ‘Family Guy’ to the big vocals on his own remixes of ‘Can’t Stand The Silence’ and ‘The Falling’. CD2 is a bit more fluid and inside the box, an uplifting trouse and progressive journey with familiar names like Mat Zo, Tritonal and Cosmic Gate. The perfect mix of well-known tunes and hidden gems which has made his show such a flagship for trance over the years.
5/5
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TUNE OF THE MONTH
Full Tilt feat Deirdre McLaughlin
Surrender (Subculture)
Pushing boundaries is all well and good, but from time to time we want good old-fashioned, obvious trancers made for the floor. John O’Callaghan’s label has always stuck to its guns, and the latest from fellow Irishmen Timmy & Tommy is a prime example. With a nod to one of his best-loved releases, ‘Big Sky’, JOC turns an OK original into an uplifting and energetic peak-time track with sing-along appeal and hands-in-the-air power.
5/5
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Joey V
Laura Mae (Musical Madness)
Young producers like the UK’s Joey V are what keep this scene moving forward. He continues his alliance with Marcel Woods label for the latest chop ’n’ slice tech-trancer, and with ‘Laure Mae’ he drops his most melodic for some time. Ensuring the filth levels aren’t eased up a bit with the dirtiest and most twisted of basslines and his notorious techno synths, the break opens up to a speaker-thrashing riff which will no doubt be stomping around your head for days.
3/5
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Cold Blue
Coconut (Monster)
Cold Blue fires out another big-room future classic for Monster with a unique and exciting blend of rock- influenced EDM. Born out of his position as a drummer in the indie rock band Sugar From Soul, ‘Coconut’ is a fine combination of rock and electronic sounds that should appeal to fans of both styles of music. It defies the run-of-the-mill sounds that flood the modern dance music market, and avoids the charge of gimmickry, too.
4/5
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Boom Jinx & Daniel Kandi
Azzura (Enhanced)
When two artists like this combine you can expect one thing: fireworks. ‘Azzura’ goes off with more than a bang with a tough, electro-
fied bassline and beautiful melodies making this a track that delivers a spine-tingling hands-in-the-air moment but still has enough raw power to devastate. Remixes from Rafael Frost and Juventa vs Willem de Roo are so hot we couldn’t even have a full listen at time of print, but will no doubt stand proud in the same league as the original.
5/5
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Akira Kayosa & Hugh Tolland
Always With You (Perceptive)
Forces to be reckoned with, Akira Kayosa & Hugh Tolland return to Perceptive once more with Danish vocalist Stine Grove behind the mic. ‘Always With You’ is a glorious production, with Euphonic regular Steve Brian and up- and-coming Aussie Lee Canning offering enhanced progressive house and trance versions respectively. The original mix heads down the road of epic banging trance, with a dub version also on hand to front this high calibre package in style.
3/5
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Richard Durand Feat Hadley
Run To You (Magik Muzik)
Durand’s original disguises its ultimate intentions in a thumpy, tough-prog intro, with Hadley’s vocals injecting a satisfyingly emotional edge to proceedings. At the drop, with the synths swelling as though their lives depended on it, ‘Run’ drops the act and goes flat out for the uprush moment. Sean Tyas’ shovelling beats and the furious super-sawing of Orjan Nilsen rework provide comparably fine alternatives.
4/5
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Vicky Devine
Give Me Love (Slinky)
Following on from former Tune Of The Month ‘Forgotten Lies’, Judgement resident Vicky Devine follows with another absolute corker, this time covering the 90s Diddy classic ‘Give Me Love’. Vicky has catered for both ends of the musical spectrum (as heard in her Eden sets) by producing a Warm-Up Tech mix and a banging End Of The Night mix. While elements of the originals remain clearly audible, she manages to pull the track bang into the 21st century by introducing tough, techy percussion and big-room synths which, combined with the old-skool riffs, are a sure-fire winner.
3/5
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Matt Lange feat Cristina Soto
The Other Shore (Air Up There)
Tritonal’s Air Up There label has got off to a great start, with a high standard set by the pair in everything they pick up. The latest comes from New Yorker Matt Lange, who, along with Tritonal’s songstress Cristina Soto, delivers his finest production to date. It’s a simple arrangement with crisp percussion and gentle lead lines. His Club mix will sound great in progressive sets, though the original is perhaps a little lightweight to have any real staying power on the floor.
3/5
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Solis & Sean Truby
Timeless (Infrasonic Progressive)
The Infrasonic label was one of our favourites last year, introducing a plethora of new talent to us, as well as nurturing more than a couple into fully fledged A-listers. To kick things off for the new year, label boss Solis locks horns with Sean Truby with some charming vocal lines from Anthya. The original is a solid, albeit fairly formulaic arrangement which does work, although the spotlight is stolen by Armin favourite and no doubt superstar of 2012, Protoculture. The South African lays down a blistering remix that harnesses all the beauty of the vocal with some wonderful, rich, melodic magic.
4/5
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Jaytech
Overdrive/New Vibe (Anjunadeep)
What was initially a sub-label of A&B’s Anjunabeats has since become, to many, the favourite of the two, with everyone from Pete Tong and James Zabiela to Armin counting themselves fans. The latest from regular Aussie fixture Jaytech is another solid example of a gross-genre track. ‘Overdrive’ is a hypnotic, progressive builder which is given an extra (and needed) shot of adrenaline by PROFF on the remix, while ‘New Vibe’ is a housier and more uplifting piano-led tune which comes with a wicked nostalgic cut from Giran’s Old Vibe mix.
3/5
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