october / november reviews - your comments please

not that many of you care but if you do then :)

NOVEMBER REVIEWS 2003
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Scott Mac + Simon Eve - "Always" (Recover) RECOVER 030 [Tune Of The Month]

It's fair to say that both Scott and Simon are leading the way in the production of UK trance at moment and this release is literally as good as you expect it to be! With tough percussion and a solid vocal plus a remix by Wavestorm, hopefully this will be huge! 10/10

Northern Soul - "If You Love Me" (Northern Soul Red) NS1

The newly formed Northern Soul imprint have decided to rework Nylon's classic "If You Want Me" and give it a much harder edge. With a tough kick drum, a reasonable update on the riff and a cool trancecore wind up, this one should find it's place into most harder DJs record boxes. Not Bad. 7/10

Leigh Green + L-E-V8 - "Everybody Say" (Distructive) DISTRUCTIVE 002

As much as I am into the A side of this (it is quality), my advice is to flip over to the 2003 remix of "Emphatic" which has fantastic vocals and a riff that will cause serious damage when played. Definitely a fantastic follow up to "The Way", Check it out! 9/10

Jon Doe - "Darkness" (M.O.A.S) MOAS 2

Currently doing the rounds on a one-sided release. Personally it has got to the stage where I am buying all the latest productions from Jon before hearing them as you know too well they will be fantastic and this high octane trancer certainly doesn't disappoint. Check it! 10/10

Martin H - "Liftin" (ACDC) ACDC207

ACDC are one of the imprints you can rely on to provide some really mellow warm up material and tough techy grooves. That is exactly the order of the day with this release from Martin H. With a minimal yet hard progressive influenced Original and a lighter mix by Jonathan P this is worth checking. 8/10

Razzle Dazzle Trax - Rattlebrain (Pounder) POUNDER 007

Coming from Belgium, this double pack features a wide variety of mixes but the stand out ones for me are both the DJ Isaac and DJ Zany interpretations of "Rattlebrain". You know full well that these are both going to be extremely high quality hardstyle and that is exactly what you get. Noice!! 9/10

Floress - "Read My Lips" (Tremolo) TREMOLO 2037

The output on the Tremolo label is a little odd because at times they come up with some of the best tunes around and at other times, well, they don't! This thankfully is an amazing uplifting trancer which has a riff that some may say is cheesy but it really hits the spot with me and makes me grin like a loon. 9/10

Guy McAffer - "R.A.W 10 Remixes" (R.A.W) RAWR02

This is one of the defining techno anthems for me, having gone mad to this tune many a time I was first in the queue when I heard that remixes were out. Rest assured they do not disappoint with Guy himself concentrating more on chopping up the vocals and Roland the Bastard taking a weirder (yet banging) option. Don't miss out! 10/10

Dave Kane - Clarkness Remixes (Tranced Out) TRANCED OUT 023

I remember first hearing this a few years ago when it was on Plastic Fantastic with it's strong rave-induced hook, unfortunately the remixes on offer this time around do not complement the original at all in my opinion being both too slow even when pitched up and having too weak a kick for me to play. Shame really as all the mixes have fantastic ideas. 5/10

Lasgo - "Surrender" (A+S) A+S7022

Why am I reviewing Lasgo I hear you ask, especially as I am such a hard trance + techno junkie? Well I quite liked Something when it first came out and still do and Surrender is a similar vocal led number with some catchy synth work. I am not so sure if this will do as well in the UK as their previous releases but we shall see. 7/10

Kay D Smith - "Battlefield Brain" (Construct Rhythm) CR12039

The amount of material this guy produces astounds me and it is also true that every thing he touches has a hard as nails edge to it. I think this is the main reason why Construct Rhythm are there as one of the best techno labels in my opinion. Dirty hard techno is the order of the day and it certainly gets thumbs up from me! 10/10

LNG - "Inter City" (Tsunami Special Blend) TSUSB013

Lange has been a busy man of late and this latest release for the Tsunami Special Blend imprint brings up two sides of deep melodic trance. Neither tune is below the 10 minute mark and both manage to sustain enough interest to keep the listener hooked all the way through. How epic trance should be! 9/10

D-Tek - "Keep Ya Pumpin" (Atomic) ATOMIC002

Atomic are apparently the new techno imprint of Honeypot records and that D-Tek is indeed Roosta. If that's the case then most of my vinyl purchases of late have come from Honeypot and fair play to Roosta for coming up with a blinder of a techno number. Why this is on the B-Side is beyond me, it's funky as with tough percussion that works exceptionally well! 10/10

Breather - "Come On" (Y2K) BR001

Having heard this when it first came out at the end of 2002 and not being able to get a copy due to limited numbers, Y2K and FFRR have done the wise thing of getting this beauty repressed. Prime Mover provide the stand out mix and you can see why with their fantastic riffs and dark and dirty percussion. This is lush! 9/10

Mat Silver - "Lost In Time" (Above The Sky Limited) ATSLTD003

Above The Sky are a name you can rely on for some serious down to business trance, which is why I was a little surprised by the A side of this release (Sensory). Featuring a little too much cheddar for my liking I flipped over to the exceptional B-Side "Lost In Time" which is definitely one of the better trancers this month. Wicked. 10/10

Leigh Green + L-E-V8 - "The Way" (Distructive) DISTRUCTIVE 001

Kicking off the Distructive imprint is this two tracker from Yorkshire DJs Leigh Green and Rich L-E-V8. Both mixes are vocal trancers that cater nicely for fans of the Recover sound, with the Leigh Green mix being the preferred mix out of the two with its fantastic riff and energetic percussion. Quality Stuff! 9/10

United Boys - "Away From You" (Illuminate) ILLUMINATE 032

The reaction for this release describes it as "Powertrance" and this is certainly the case. With an A-Side mix by Next Exit (who in all fairness can't go wrong at the moment) this features one huge uplifting riff that defies belief. On the flip is also a Factor-E remix and they have done a great job too (similar to their recent remix for Resistance Records!). Excellent 9/10

Pirate - "Leaving The Sun" (Tsunami) TSU6043

First surfacing on a limited Continental CD-R earlier this year comes this belting trancer from French producer Jerry Bouthier. Featuring some cool male vocals and a quality lead line on the Original with a tough electro working by Ferry Corsten, this is another one that is set for big things in my opinion. 9/10

Tukan - "Wonder Of Life" (Drizzly) DRIZZLY 2024-77

Drizzly are one of my alltime favourite labels. Ever since "Odyssey 3000" came out in '99 their releases have worked wonders with me. With that in mind I so wanted to like this tune especially as F+W did a remix, but both mixes feature some vocals which instantly put me off. Thankfully there is an instrumental though so all is not lost on this trancer! 8/10

Decoy - "Wayback" (High Head) 875148

This release is another pounder from Germany's High Head collective and what's on offer are three tracks of supreme funked up techno. Featuring dark and hard loops and tough percussion, this tune has left me speechless and I find it exceptionally hard to resist dancing to. Amazing stuff! 10/10

OCTOBER REVIEWS 2003
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Blyant + Tusch - "Hell Fire" (Sushi Tunes) SUSHITUNES 006 [Tune Of The Month]

Hailing from the nordic regions (well Denmark) is this pounder. Sampling the classic "I am the God of Hellfire" vocal and placing it over a really uplifting trancer, this one has after a wait been signed up with an excellent Michael Splint and F+W mix to go with! Fantastic. 10/10

P.B.S - "Execute" (Rising High) RSN2017

Going from strength to strength, Rising High's latest effort from Dave + Nick is certainly a worthwhile release. With the original consisting of a full on trancer and a DJ Cyglas mix that is also worth checking, this is quality stuff. 8/10

Reysan Khan - "Shiatsu" (Planet Traxx) PTRAXX2033

Remixers of the moment, "That Mucho", turn their hand to this uplifting monster and the results, as expected, are fantastic. I can see this becoming huge over the forthcoming months and with a remix by 2 Players on the flip, this is an essential buy. 10/10

Trance Generators - "Banging Sounds" (Future Sound Corporation) FTS 025

The Italian wonders of Hardstyle have finally released an album, on first listen it feels rather empty what with the newer productions being a let down. However, after listening again the remixes of tracks such as "Connected", "You Can't Stop Us" and the original mix of "Rock To The Beat" are definitely worth checking out. Not Bad. 6/10

Jon The Baptist - "Protocol 17 / Time Machine" (Future Sound Corporation) FTS 024

Causing quite a stir at the moment with his upcoming productions (how shit hot are they?!?) Weymouth bey Jon delivers two hard trancers that left me stunned on first listen. As is the case with certain records, the flip, being the wonderful "Time Machine" is my preferred production. Exceptional release. 10/10

Powerpoint - "Whajamaster" (Hotwaxx Traxx) HOTWAX TRAXX 026

The amount of techno and hard house fusions that have popped up over the last six months have certainly impressed me. This is especially the case with "Whajamaster", which is so outstanding that I've played it on radio every week for ages now! The flip "Technophobia" is wicked too. Happy days. 10/10

S@D - "Dinero" (Fakten) FAKTEN 002

It has to be said that the M@ss In Orbit mix of "Dinero" proves its worth as one of the finest trancers of the year. With twisted vocals and a riff that works so effectively, you would be a fool to miss this! Unfortunately, that is what I did! Check it. 9/10

Dave Holmes + Shaf Da Bass - "The Arrival" (Fevah Trance) FEVAH TRANCE 016

How I remember Dave Holmes productions under his Steve Morley alias (look at how good Reincarnations or Sacred City was!), here he teams up with Shaf Da Bass for a fantastic number that will no doubt get severe play from fans of both hard and uplifting trance, if it hasnt already! Quality. 9/10