Israel’s Psychedelic Trance 1

Avi Nissim of Astral Projection compiled the tracks for the first release in the Israel’s Psychedelic Trance series. The concept is straight-forward: Israeli veterans appear alongside promising newcomers to promote their first productions. The quality of the selections is very mixed as a result. The initial response to this compilation, as recorded on the old review site TRiP, was overwhelmingly positive. Astral Projection and MFG had made Israeli trance the hottest sound of 1996 with the release of their debut albums Trust In Trance and The Prophecy. Israel’s Psychedelic Trance 1 served to fulfill the blooming demand for more of the same.

Mystica begins the journey with Expose, one of two tracks they released in 1996 to start their brief career. This is a stereotypical Israeli trance track loaded with spiraling melodies, energetic snare rushes, and Eastern atmospheres. Predictable and unimaginative.

Shidapu’s Paradise marks the debut of a couple of major talents in the Israeli trance scene. Erez Aizen (the brains behind Infected Mushroom) and Miki Litvak (formerly of Domestic) formed the group when they were 13 and 16 respectively. Oren Kislev and Roy Sasson are also part of the young group, but they did not go on to greater things. Shidapu’s early songs were composed in Impulse Tracker, a primitive DOS-based sequencer—an impressive feat given the decent quality of the arrangement. Unfortunately, the production quality takes a significant hit due to the limitations of the software. Erez and friends display an adept grasp of trance composition, but their promising abilities would not flourish until they began to work with real gear.

Kailum (Dave Saragosi) makes his self-titled debut with some help from Moshe Kenan (Xerox) and someone named Yurun Van Garling. Dealing with the darker side of the Israeli sound, Kailum lays down a fast rhythm cloaked in mysterious atmospheric sounds. It picks up a strange squirming sound after the big snare rush, driving on to the finish line. Interesting, but ultimately unremarkable.

Coma is Sharon Jakobson (Zoultan) and Hagai Shulemzon; Fusing of Tones is their sole release. Here we have a light Arabic-sounding track with some orchestral aspirations. The drum programming isn’t tight, and ultimately it seems rather washed out.

Astral Projection immediately halt the downward slide with the original mix of Time Began With The Universe. Initially appearing as a set of three mixes on a Matsuri vinyl single, the original is second only to the Another Time Mix. This version is powerful and energetic—a wholehearted demonstration of the full-on sound of Israeli Goa trance. Deeply satisfying.

Avi Nissim of Astral Projection collaborates with Guy Zukrel of MFG on the epic anthem The Sleeper Must Awake, a follow-up to the successful co-production Radial Blur previously featured on the Trust In Trance album. Despite the title, the pair do not sample heavily from Dune except in the introduction. This song unites Astral Projection’s cosmic trance style with the brooding industrial-influenced rhythms of MFG for a glorious blend of styles. The last big build is absolutely massive, reaching a feverish peak that should still send chills down one’s spine. Fantastic!

To Eternity is classic MFG in every way, from the gritty bass lines to the epic sci-fi atmospheres. It easily could have been taken from their debut album The Prophecy. The title of the song is implied by the sample from Star Trek: Generations: “now you’ll have to excuse me Captain—I have an appointment with eternity, and I don’t want to be late.” This is a fine piece of work!

Nada were a promising new act in 1996, having just released three tracks on the Black Hole from Nephilim. Transparent Future is a fast track with an aggressive throbbing rhythm and plenty of bubbling sounds. The sample on this one is rather smart: “the best way to predict the future is to invent it.” Nada make it a bit more interesting and original with their contribution, but it is still too sloppy to really satisfy.

Shidapu round out the album with Stay Strong, a pretty melodic tune with an evocative theme. Too bad the song is marred by severe and noticeable deficiencies in sound quality resulting from their choice of sequencer. The ideas are all very good, but the clipping and other problems spoil the mood.

As good as it may have seemed to listeners when it was released, Israel’s Psychedelic Trance 1 does not sound all that interesting years later. There is a clear demarcation between the veteran artists and the newcomers they are promoting. Erez Aizen went on to greater things after his time with Shidapu but the rest have not made much of a contribution to psytrance history. In essence, this compilation features a trio of quality tunes from the golden age of Israeli Goa trance and a whole bunch of filler. Israel’s Psychedelic Trance 1 is only for the hardcore Astral Projection and MFG fans out there.

Release Data

Title: Israels Psychedelic Trance 1
Label: Phonokol / Trust In Trance Records
Format: CD compilation
Released: 1996