Fight the Daylight

First off, it looks like something’s happened to the fonts on the site, not sure what’s going on, will look into it… but anyway, we’ve been a bit behind on posts, so time for some catch up.

Jordan Suckley has been making quite a name for himself recently. I first heard about him when he remixed Gareth Emery’s “Global” a few years ago, but recently he’s joined the likes of Simon Patterson in waving the classic trance flag with influences of psy and tech. He just finished up his residency on BBC Radio 1′s In New DJs We Trust, but fortunately you can still catch him on Afterhours.fm every first and third Wednesday of the month. His sound really hits the spot; honestly, he’s one of my favorite DJs right now.

When I first heard “Santa Cruz” on BBC a few months ago, I thought, “yeah this is definitely a reworked classic or something,” but I was pleasantly surprised when he announced it as his new solo release on Liquid Recordings. It’s a perfect blend of all the sounds he’s into right now: some tech, some breakbeat, and plenty of oldschool trance melodies, and they all fit together to form one great, coherent track. I especially love how he kicks the track off with a 30-second breakbeat intro, like a little hat tip to all of us listening to the track at home in its entirety and not mixed in a club. I do wish, though, that the melody didn’t disappear only 30 seconds after the main drop. I keep wanting to hear it for longer.

This track deserves a spot in your library, so go grab it now on Beatport. Jordan Suckley definitely needs to be on your map if he’s not already. It’s so refreshing to hear the younger guys in the scene move the trance sound forward in a healthy direction.

Not many producers out there can boast having their first release ever on a label as legendary as Perfecto, but Mikhail Nalobin, known by his artist name B.Exp, now can. With remixes from Thomas Datt and Magnus, “Overmind” is quite possibly the strongest Perfecto Fluoro release to date. Let’s dive right in.

What really makes this release is the vocal chop melody. Vocal chops were once a mainstay in trance music, but they’ve been shoved under the rug recently as maestros like Andy Moor and Gareth Emery have moved away from the style. When done well, they can make a track really stand out, which B.Exp has done here.

The original mix contains all the elements of an underground trance track, but at slower tempo. The acid countermelody – a change from the version we heard in Paul Oakenfold’s Essential Mix last July – and the piano breakdown perfectly complement the vocal chops. It’s all set over a very chunky bassline, making this track a great crossover between the underground and the commercial. It’s no surprise that Above & Beyond have already played it out on their Group Therapy show.

Sometimes, you hear a new track during a radioshow and think, “Hmm, this is really good,” but then a few months later you hear the remix, and then you think, “holy !@#$”. That’s exactly how to describe the Thomas Datt remix. He cranks up the tempo, brings the acid line to the forefront, and adds his signature Datt bassline and chord changes to make this a real banger. We’re huge fans of Thomas Datt here, if you haven’t noticed, but this might be our favorite production of his yet. This one’s getting support from Paul van Dyk and Simon Patterson, among others.

After 2012′s “Velvet” EP, we know we can trust Seattle’s Magnus with trance / psy-trance crossover music. His interpretation deviates significantly from the original mix, but that’s in no way a bad thing. This is more like a Magnus original track that incorporates some “Overmind” samples. If you’ve enjoyed his other work that we’ve featured on this site, you’ll like this one too. The Heads Down mix is just a less melodic version of the Heads Up mix, so no need to get both of them.

Verdict: Although we’re partial to the Thomas Datt mix, all three mixes of this track are phenomenal. This could easily be the strongest and most diverse release in the underground trance scene of 2013. Buy it now on Beatport.

Side note: other labels, can you please step it up? We’re tired of only talking about Perfecto on this blog

One does not simply remix one of the most iconic trance tracks of the last 15 years. When you do, though, sometimes it’s a good idea to toss all your previous impresions of the original out the window and start from scratch. That’s exactly what Germany’s Cold Blue has done to Paul Oakenfold’s “Southern Sun”, and the result is pretty epic.

The intro of the track starts off with a brief homage to the guitar line from Paul’s original, but after that, it’s a full on Cold Blue original. If you were a fan of his tracks on Monster Tunes last year like “Coconut”, you’ll definitely like the sound of this one: tough, grungy, rock-inspired trance with a huge new melodic riff in the breakdown / drop. Although a significant departure from all previous interpretations of the track, it works surprisingly well with Carla’s vocals.

Speaking of Carla’s vocals, it sounds like all the new mixes are using a different take of the vocals than was used on Bunkka. The lyrics have reverted back to the ones on DJ Tiësto’s In Search of Sunrise 3, and in general it just sounds like she’s resung it. That being said… 10+ years later, you still can’t understand a word she’s saying, and she’s still pretty out of tune. Oh well. Fortunately, if you’re not a fan of the vocals, Perfecto’s provided a dub mix, which you can think of as a new Cold Blue original.

More mixes of “Southern Sun” will be out later this summer on Perfecto Fluoro by Orkidea, Thomas Datt, and maybe more, but for now, enjoy the Cold Blue mix, available now on Beatport.

Let’s get back to some trance, shall we?

Brian Cameron’s “Fatality”, out now on Monster Tunes, is a great track that’s more traditionally melodic yet just as banging as last year’s dark, techy “Serotonin Syndrome” on Perfecto Fluoro. It’s a good ol’ trance tune with a dirty acid intro / outro, a strong melody, and some samples from everyone’s favorite childhood violent video game. He did include not one but two drops after the breakdown to change up the track structure, though, which is a really nice and unique touch. Honestly, Cameron’s nailed the production quality here, making this track is a perfect example of trance that’s energetic but not aggressive.

Definitely do grab this one now on Beatport, where it’s an exclusive for the next 2 weeks, and add him on Facebook if you’re a fan!

Here’s to hoping he’ll name the follow-up “Babality”?