Phaethon’s Voyage

Phaethon’s Voyage is the second release from Oktava, a Greek label working in conjunction with the Samothraki Dance Festival. The idea behind this compilation was to showcase some fresh material from a few of the acts appearing at the festival that same year. Perhaps due to the promotional nature of the release, the label went all out with the packaging. The digipak case contains a fold-out insert that features a version of the Greek myth of Phaethon, son of Helios. This is fairly cool but alas, the music does not play off the theme in any serious way.

Please note that this CD appears to have some form of copy protection on it. Not only is it somewhat difficult to rip the CD to burn a copy to play out, but the original actually skipped on me once when I was playing something from this release. Very embarrassing, and completely unprecedented in my experience. With that said, I have never been able to confirm any of this—and it is entirely possible that I simply received a defective CD. Caveat emptor.

Tristan & Psyberant open the show with Wait And See, a typically subtle psychedelic track from Mr. Cooke, with some help from Ian Cox. Tristan’s style is unmistakable; few other artists possess his original combination of detailed cerebral sound design and intricate pumping rhythms. Like most other tracks from this British artist, the arrangement meanders without ever taking off. Perhaps the most notable characteristic is a sample from Babylon 5: “it is the dawn of a new age / mankind has reached the stars, colonized new worlds, contacted new races…” An enjoyable introduction.

Orion (Jean Bourelli) is one of the most consistent producers out there. Don’t Panic is another solid tune from the Danish veteran, showing off what makes his sound so appealing. Energetic liquid grooves and smooth flowing melodies stream through the speakers with total confidence. The sound canvas is perpetually filled with detailed layers and subtle atmospheric effects. With an eerie high-pitched vocal hook to top it off, Orion has composed another gem!

The Antidote’s Apple Q is composed in a style that I have little appreciation of. This rather straight-forward mish-mash of clattering rhythms, squelchy acid riffs, and noisy retro motifs comes across as frantic and forced.

Space Tribe provides an ample slice of old school influenced full-on with Reverse Time, which was later released on Olli Wisdom’s eighth studio album: Time Stretch. Don’t expect a fresh approach from this prolific Australian; he knows his style well and sticks to it. That being said, Olli astutely keeps a keen eye on contemporary trends in psychedelic dance music, integrating new techniques into his repertoire whenever it seems prudent to do so. In this instance, alongside the standard quirky breakdowns, trippy samples, and psychedelic melodies, one will hear a rambunctious full-on bass line, typical of the high-energy style in 2003. It isn’t anything special, but Reverse Time will probably get the hippies hopping on the dance floor.

Eat Static and ManMadeMan, two titans of the English psychedelic trance scene, collaborated to produce the track Regen. After a long introduction flavoured with words about aliens and UFOs, a tense yet bouncy rhythm begins to churn up some dust. Eventually it builds to a strong plateau, exhibiting a curiously bold yet fluffy blend of morning trance themes. The atmospheres are quite powerful, although the oddly textured guitar sample might seem out of place. Altogether, it is a noteworthy track that fans of either group should check out.

Psycho Drug is only the second release from Tube, who would later go on to release with Israel’s notoriously awful Chemical Crew. A funky bass guitar heard in the early minutes suggests a bright future for this track, but it never really develops into anything special. Although there are a few mildly intriguing aspects to be heard deeper into the track, by and large, this shallow early production is crafted with little more than dance floor damage in mind.

Oscillocore is one of the very last songs Koxbox wrote as a duo. Frank E and Ian Ion dig deep into aggressive techtrance on this one—a development that might surprise any long-time fan who hadn’t been keeping up with the group since The Great Unknown. These stark beats are raw and relentless, topped off with squelchy riffs and thick atmospheric layering. The sinister sample work contributes to the forlorn mood, triggering the punishing return from the big breakdown with the phrase “there’s one thing I don’t understand…” While it may be a mystery to anyone familiar with Koxbox, this modern take on dirty psychedelic acid techno is a real winner.

Prisma provides the real surprise of the compilation. Apparently, the Greek duo of T.F. and B.K. were behind the underground project Interstellar Overdrive, long known for a series of intense psychedelic productions that remain unreleased to this very day. In strong contrast to their alleged history, Prisma’s Running Time conforms to most of the trappings of the full-on fashion. Luckily, the producers inject a great deal of emotion and soul into their creation. The melodies are gorgeous, flowing from moment to moment with delicious melancholy, pregnant with hope. It is too bad the group resorted to cliché: samples from the cockpit concerning the operation of an aircraft. Still, I am quite impressed with the depth of their debut, and can only speculate as to why there have been no more releases from this talented duo.

Phaethon’s Voyage is a decent product of its time featuring a number of quality tunes that deviate from the norm. There isn’t anything essential or exceptional, but the compilation is enjoyable just the same. Had they worked with the concept of the Greek myth as a starting point for a themed journey, perhaps the results would have been more impressive. As is, it is just a decent collection of tracks. Orion provides the best tune of this compilation, but the songs from Koxbox, Eat Static vs ManMadeMan, and the newcomers Prisma are also worth mentioning. As it is an ageing, obscure release, I would only recommend it to collectors unless it is found being sold for cheap.