Welcome to a new column featuring recommendations from the digital music service Beatport. I am writing this to augment my regular reviews, where I focus on music bundled into albums, compilations, and singles. Now that digital downloads have really begun to catch on, music is increasingly sold by the most basic unit—the song. Considering the size of Beatport’s catalogue and the dubious quality of their sample clips, it seems as if it may be useful to share the best of my findings every now and then.
Although I am a psytrance DJ by trade, I am usually scouring Beatport for their more progressive offerings. The economics of purchasing psytrance on CD still prevails over digital downloads in most cases, whereas progressive house, electro, and trance songs are often released on vinyl, which I no longer collect nor use. Purchasing individual songs online is not only cheaper than buying wax in such cases, but also makes the actual acquisition of the music feasible. This is perhaps the greatest thing digital music services have to offer: the overthrow of genre-segregated delivery channels, and the democratization of tastemaking, which was previously the sole domain of the labels. Now the individual is free to choose from a wide range of sounds that cross the fading boundaries of modern dance music; the future is wide open.
I would imagine that the material I enjoy may have an appeal to other psytrance listeners with progressive tastes, but such matters are notoriously subjective. Check the samples for anything that may intrigue you, and ideally a few of my suggestions may bring you musical satisfaction. Let’s begin!
Vision & Canedy – Check The Sound
The tumultuous upheaval of Cosmophilia left this track off the radar of many progressive psytrance DJs, but it will not go quietly into obscurity. In characteristic fashion, the two German producers have put together another pumping tribal house gem spiced with dark and mystic atmospheres. The production has all the punch you need, and the flow is silky smooth, making it a worthy candidate for the midnight power hour.
Martin H – Tromb (Alex Joon Remix)
Dirty, glitchy, groovy, and sick as hell, Alex Joon’s remix of Tromb is a serious piece of crossover material, drawing upon electro, house, and progressive trance for inspiration. The beat programming is impressive, featuring detailed drops and an intricate flow. With such a synthetic feel, it is sure to appeal to progressive psytrance DJs.
Roman Rai – Opportunity
This is possibly the moodiest piece I’ve heard from Rai, who usually releases progressive house with upbeat qualities. The chunky tribal rhythms are perfectly complimented by rich atmospheric work, which does grow to be charmingly melodic at times. Like most of Rai’s material on Beatport, this is not released anywhere else as of yet, so be sure to check it out.
Madoka – Thursday Night Hero (Eelke Kleijn Remix)
I have only known of Eelke Kleijn for a short while but I am already impressed with the wide range of styles this young Dutch artist produces. His remix of Thursday Night Hero features a massive groove line that expands into an all-encompassing wall of bass after the key breakdown. Funky as hell, quirky, and charming all at once—this is certainly one to check out!
Space Safari – Machines Music
Released last year on a vinyl with Flow Records, this song from Frank Beckers is a light and funky piece of trance with great production value. The melodic flow is so classy, and the vocal usage remains tasteful, letting the talents of this acclaimed artist shine.
Thomas Penton – Deeper Vowels (André Absolut Remix)
André Absolut is well known for his frequent appearances on progressive psytrance compilations, but many of his remixes have been confined to vinyl singles in the “regular” progressive scene. His take on Thomas Penton’s Deeper Vowels is exactly what you might expect, featuring a deep pounding groove and vivid floating atmospheres, all enlivened with considerable production value. This is worthwhile padding for any progressive trance collection.
Llopis – Lobster Tan
I have already reviewed the vinyl this track was sourced from, so I won’t say much more. Lobster Tan may be a couple years old already, but this dark tribal groover slides between current material with disarming ease.
Furry Nipples – Slackers (Martin H A Side Remix)
This one may be straying too far into electro house territory, but the grinding bass line mows down all my resistance. The sheer power of the dirty groove on this piece should adeptly shake the dust off your speaker stack. There isn’t much to it, and the later moments really could have used a new hook, but this will make a fantastic DJ tool in the right hands.
That’s it for this first round, but I imagine there is more to come! If you have any suggestions in turn, feel free to leave me a comment.
