Neelix - No way to leave

Worth a Listen 9 - Neelix

Another cracking track from the mercurial Neelix. An underrated genius.

Grendel – Timewave Zero

If you ever fancy some sample driven techno with an element of aggrotech  and a nod to Infected Mushroom then look no further than Holland’s leading exponents of industrial electronic action; Grendel. I’d already heard the excellent ‘Harsh Generation’ and enjoyed the tracks with the more up front sampling most. Sadly ‘Timewave Zero’ uses the samples more as embellishments and relies on gravel tonsiled vocals and pulsating rhythms for the entertainment factor.

That’s no bad thing, but the album definitely lurches towards a darker feel to proceedings not unlike a pumped up version of Aesthetic Perfection but not quite so seedy. It’s a pounding tour de force with just enough melody, hooks and singalongability to keep you interested, but not enough to sweeten the sour atmosphere.

 

 

I enjoyed all the tracks but worthy of special attention are the high octane rush of ‘Neon City Lights’ (which sounds not unlike X-Cabs, which is praise indeed), the shouty meets mellow vocal of ‘Chemicals + Circuitry’ and the eighties throwback charms of ‘Wheels in Motion’. Best of all  is the mid-tempo electro of ‘Deep Waters’ with its starkly contrasted lush arrangement and squeaky yet gorgeous vocal.

I doubt it’s to everyone’s taste but seriously, what’s not to like? Funky, trance driven techno with contrasting gritty/smooth vocals and a lovely android with an exploding head on the CD cover!

 

 

Johann Bley – Ramp Up

Pick of the Week 60 – Johann Bley

Intense gutsy psi-trance that no-one would give the time of day for from an underrated German producer. I’m loving its full on, no nonsense approach to the genre and it's never spoiled by any unnecessary showing off or noodle doodling. Psytrance TV do an excellent job on YouTube and you should check them out. Even with my new found tolerance of the tattoo, has that woman not heard the phrase ‘less is more’? Seriously though I’m sure she’s a lovely person and thanks for sharing your artwork.

Gareth Emery featuring Christina Novelli – Concrete Angel

Pick of the Week 53 – Gareth Emery featuring Christina Novelli

Hardly obscure, with 18million+ views on YouTube, but Christina is one of my favourite trance vocalists. Here she showcases her mellow tones and soaring tonsil gymnastics in this tantalisingly commercial euphoric trance floorfiller. It’s well worth checking out some of her other vocals, some obscure and others monsters, but she always delivers.

Infected Mushroom – Army of Mushrooms

Is there a better feeling in the world than furtively opening a brand new Infected Mushroom album and inserting it into the car stereo? Army of Mushrooms has a great cover, twelve mouth watering tracks to look forward to, and the first minute of the opening track is as good as anything they’ve ever produced. As I drive towards the south coast listening for the first time, what could possibly go wrong?

Well everything really! Believe it or not, after the first one minute the whole album disappears up its own backside. It basically descends into self indulgent, electronic noodle-doodling and faffing about of the highest order. Every track contains the obligatory show-offy extended breakdown, a complete lack of song structure and more big/breakbeat, choppy/changey meandering. In short it’s rubbish and it honestly pains me to say that about a Mushroom’s album. I’m reliably informed that the musical style of the album is akin to ‘dubstep’, which the kids are particularly fond of these days. Dubstep seems to combine my three least favourite things; showing off, noodle doodling and boredom, and as such it should be banned.

And do you know who I blame for this constant need for bands to change and try new ventures? David Bowie! Bowie is entirely responsible for the commonly held belief that to survive in the music business an artist must constantly reinvent themselves musically and revamp their image. For him this just meant wearing a new fancy dress costume like a clown or an alien suit, but for the Mushrooms it led to a complete change of musical direction and ultimately down the dead end street that is dubstep. Bowie is also responsible for Madonna, Lady Gaga and to a certain extent Elton John. Need I go on?

There are very few positives other than the first minute of ‘Never Mind’ which is pure perfection. A few other tracks have promising intros, but it’s always a false dawn as they descend into a formulaic muso-noodle-fest. Unbelievable I know, but best avoided!

Armin Van Buuren featuring Kerli – Walking on Air

Pick of the Week 44 – Armin Van Buuren

If you fancy a bit of commercial trance then Armin Van Buuren is the go-to guy. I loved his ‘Imagine’ album and this track featuring the vocal talents of Kerli carries on the quality work. It’s a standard issue trance stalwart with spooky vocals and an intriguing video where Alice in Wonderland meets the Ring. If you need a change from all that obscure stuff then look no further.

 

Aioaska - Power Of Ayahuasca

Pick of the Week 37 - Aioaska

 

I’m doubtful that the woman with the blue hair has anything to do with Aioaska, and from the little I can discover about the band, the whole thing has a certain whiff of balding, well muscled Germans about it. In a good way of course. This track is a pulsing, undulating ride into the recesses of your consciousness with the subtle use of vocal samples adding to the atmosphere and interest. It reminds me of Chilled C’quence and although it falls a little short in the elf head massage stakes it’s definitely a relaxing and pleasant workout for any tired brain. Nine minutes of magic.

Intersys – Recharge

Clearly influenced by Infected Mushroom , Intersys are Northen Israel’s latest supercharged, techno exports and these new upstarts must make their more established parents sit up, and say ‘That’s my boys!’ They follow the classically trained route into the world of Israeli Psi-trance, but Moshe Maman and Omri Azran deviate from the standard template with the introduction of tighter song structures, tricky disco style clickiness and lush female vocals. To say they compare favourably with the Mushrooms tells you everything you need to know.

Intersys maintain the sonic purity with some beautiful sounds that create a textured 3D soundscape. They must have some seriously expensive techno equipment to achieve this quality and the vocals, some with the trademark Israeli twang and some with more western roots, only enhance, contrast and compliment the faultless digital stream of aural integrity. If only the rest of the world had followed the influences of this middle eastern enclave of techno, the music industry would be in infinitely better shape and the stale repetitive state of dance music would be invigorated. Unfortunately we had to look to Sasha, Diggers and co. instead.

Needless to say, every track is a winner and at times almost made running with my new fangled i-pod-shuffle-walkman pleasurable. Almost, but not quite. ‘Power Supply’ is a pounding colossus with Mushroom style vocals, ‘Opera’ is starker, darker and classically inspired, and ‘Recharge’ is a head-on assault on the senses when played at dangerous volumes. It’s the surprisingly anthemic ‘If U Could B’ that steals the show however, with a coherent sandwich of trance beat bread, a filling of gorgeous cheesy vocals and layers of quirky sweeping sound relish. It’s only February, but this will take some beating in this year’s Festive 50. Get your bets on now.

It’s rare that you discover a great band and here’s hoping that they go on to make as many great albums as their fungus worshipping cousins. Only time will tell if Intersys have the stamina, originality and humour to entertain and enthral us for decades, but as far as debut albums go, things don’t get much better than this.

 

 

Armin Van Buuren - Imagine LP

What is it?
Dutch uber DJ Armin Van Buuren unveils an album of trademark uplifting trancey dance floor monsters.

Why should you listen?
Sometimes I need this kind of stuff just to revive my brain from over exposure to too much shouty screamo, obscure world music or hardcore techno. Armin fits the bill perfectly with his semi-commercial branch of trance with just a twist of something a bit different. This is up-tempo easy listening music with a hint of indie guitar, classical music and a range of interesting vocalists.

What's it like?
It's like alka seltzer in musical form.

What's the best song?
"In and out of love" is a minor classic and one of my favourite dance tracks of the last few years.

Who does it sound like?
Early Perfecto, Ferry Corsten, BT.

34. Infected Mushroom - I Wish

The Infected Mushrooms assume near legendary status for myself and Evlkeith. The Israeli techno duo produce the most perfect brand of psy-trance, but they bring so much more to the table than that. They experiment with tempo, song structure, they add vocals, sometimes there's a bit of rapping, now and then they go classical and once they even went ragtime.

No other techno producer sounds so good in terms of sound quality on your speakers. They must have invested in some serious equipment over the years and every album seems to be better than the last. I'm already giddy at the prospect of a new album in 2012.

On 'I Wish' they go a bit euro-pop, but I can't help loving the vocals. The accent gets me every time and the little clicks, sighs and gulps on the backing track just add to the whole experience. I could literally have picked any of about twenty of the Mushroom's tracks they have so much in their locker. If you've never heard them before, go out and buy one of their albums immediately.

Infected Mushroom Feat. Perry Farrell - Killing Time the Remixes 2010

Remix CD's are always hard work for me as it's like listening to the same track over and over again, and to be honest, this one is no different. But if you like all things Infected Mushroom then this is a tasty little stocking filler.

There's a range of mixes at a variety of bpm's with Paul Oakenfold's lush Perfecto style mix, John '00' Fleming's percussion based workout and a bonkers but brilliant Infected Trance mix; all decent enough offerings. I've got to say, I still prefer the original album mix though, even if  it's slower, chunkier and less trance based, I just like the singalongability of the vocal.

If you're new to the Mushroom's work, I'd buy the 'Legend of the Black Shawarma' LP instead of this if I were you.

BT - These Hopeful Machines LP 2010

Nothing has moved on greatly in the world of Brian Transeau since 1999's Movement in Still Life. It's still the lush production of semi-commercial dance music with some beautiful vocals thrown in for good measure.

With only six songs however, the whole experience feels a bit 'samey'. None of the tracks stand out as particularly memorable and you are left with the feeling that time and effort went into the perfect production values and not a lot of thought went into the quality of the songs.

It's essentially a candy floss experience of lovely, dreamy music that holds your attention for about five minutes and then you need something more substantial. As far as the songs go, 'Le Nocturne de Lumiere' is possibly the pick of the bunch, but BT is consistent if nothing else and there's really not much to choose between all six.

It's one of those reviews where I have to say; if you like BT you'll like 'These Hopeful Machines' but don't expect anything different or interesting.

Neelix - You're Under Control LP 2009

What is it?

Mysterious Hamburg techno-meister Neelix churns out exquisite little morsels of premium quality trance.

Why should you listen?

You should listen to a bit of Neelix at any time of the day but if you really need any convincing, pop it on the car stereo as you drive round late at night. It's the perfect urban soundtrack for a nocturnal cruise around Doncaster or perhaps Bury, Halifax or Wakefield. The production is crisp, pure and produces a lush soundscape rarely experienced outside of ambient music let alone in trance. You can imagine this was forged in some German bedsit by a geeky guy with glasses, crouching professorially over his techno gear, and it's all the more enjoyable for that image. The icing on the cake is the attention to detail with clicks, echoes, whispers and half heard samples drifting in and out of your consciousness. A work of genius.

What's it like?

It's like the soundtrack of the best dream you've ever had.

What's the best song?

"Contact" is a storming opener for the LP.

Who does it sound like?

X-Cabs, Vegas Soul, Chris Cowie. Being in the same breath as Hook says it all really.