Transwave - Backfire

The legendary Goa trance act Transwave was formed in 1994 by Christof Drouillet and Fréderic “Dado” Holyszewski. Following in the footsteps of Man With No Name and Astral Projection, Transwave championed a powerful melodic style of Goa trance. Over the course of the next few years they released several classic albums—Hypnorythm, Phototropic, and Helium—and enjoyed enormous success worldwide. At the peak of their popularity (late 1996 or early 1997), Christof and Dado dissolved Transwave in order to pursue their own individual careers as Absolum and Deedrah. Despite the passage of years, Transwave remains highly regarded by trance fans with a passion for the classic mid-nineties Goa trance sound.

Nearly ten years after the Transwave project was put to rest, rumours began to spread that Christof and Dado had rekindled their collaborative spirit. Eventually, plans were announced for a long-awaited comeback—a world tour as well as the promise of new productions in the studio. Naturally this ignited a huge amount of speculation, debate, and pre-emptive slander online. Old school Goa trance fans can be quite unreasonable in their expectations, as anyone who has spent time on any psytrance mailing list or online community would know.

Transwave appeased fans and critics by making their first new release an authentic return to their glory days. As work on the forthcoming album progressed, Christof and Dado simultaneously assembled material for Backfire, a collection of older tracks subtitled “A Transwave Best Of (1994 – 1996).” Fans and collectors were involved in the process from the very beginning. Dado made a public appeal on several international forums for old DAT tapes that might contain obscure tracks from the early years of Transwave as many of the originals had long been lost. The effort was not entirely fruitful; some tracks, such as Quasar—originally released on a vinyl single from Symbiosis in 1995—were never found. Luckily, many others were successfully reclaimed from the ravages of time. As a result, Backfire is a patchwork of classics and rarities, many of which are incredibly difficult or even impossible to find.

For a “Best Of” release, Backfire features a rather unremarkable presentation. There is nothing like a collage of photos or any kind of text to provide historic context. The cover art is commonplace, but at least they got the font right. Finding something special in the liner notes would have been nice, but at least the songs are nicely remastered by Dado at his studio in Ibiza. Lastly, the album is lightly mixed, with ambient fades between songs.

The first two tracks are sourced from Hypnorhythm, Transwave’s incredibly rare debut “mini-album” release on Step 2 House in 1995. Adoration To The Aum is an acknowledged classic, often cited by fans listing their favourite songs from the early years. It works well as the opening track as it features an introduction close to two minutes in length. Once the beat kicks the drums are surprisingly tough at first, but after a melodic break they soften right up. Near the end a well-known sample is heard: “cravings are the root of unhappiness.”

Hypersphere has always been my favourite from Hypnorhythm—I am glad to find it here. As with many early Goa trance songs the theme is human space flight. Transwave integrates spoken samples from both the American and Russian space agencies, seemingly in the spirit of global cooperation. Fittingly, upbeat melodies and cosmic atmospheres fill the air, provoking an awe-inspiring sense of wonder. Beautiful!

Anahata is taken from a Return To The Source compilation entitled The Chakra Journey, one of the great releases of 1996. There is not too much to speak of in this case—this song sounds very much like a blend of several pieces from Phototropic. That is no complaint, mind you—this is very good even if it is not quite as distinct as some of the others.

Arsonik and Code S9 were originally released on the Cypher-O vinyl single (1996) as Arsenic and Luis respectively. A few factors have kept these songs off the radar despite being previously released: they were attributed to Cypher-O—not Transwave—and they have never made it to CD. Arsonik is a powerful song in the slower style of the group. It lumbers along with a fat electric rhythm, surging toward the melodic heights as the track peaks. Code S9 is quite different, churning by at a rapid pace with rough production value. Screaming riffs explode from quiescient sequences almost without warning. This one was made to be a full-on head blaster.

Cycles Of Life is widely considered to be the very best song Transwave ever wrote. It has been a key fixture of psychedelic trance gatherings ever since it was released on the Symbiosis Records compilation Accidental Occidentalism back in 1995. This is largely due to the sheer emotional power of this classic song. In many ways, Cycles Of Life is Transwave’s own Angelic Particles (a legendary track by Hallucinogen renowned for its stunning beauty). Transwave capture the ecstatic essence of the trance experience with this brilliant piece of art. Nothing more needs to be said!

Flamicogyre originally appeared on a somewhat obscure DJ mix by Goa Gil entitled Spiritual Trance 2 but was never released in full for one reason or another. As a result, it has remained by far the most wanted Transwave song amongst old school collectors. With the release of Backfire, the complete version of Flamicogyre is finally available after a decade of waiting. There is just one slight problem: the track contains a noticable error at the 7:48 mark. This has been the cause of no shortage of outspoken frustration, but as it turns out, the error is not in fact accidental! Dado explains, in a passage that I won’t even attempt to clean up:

first of all it s a bad dat tape noise . it was on the only tape we had . we could have erased it but then you miss a bar . we though ok, let s be old school and put it on the cd like this . i personnaly like it , this noise, reminds me of the good times .you know , dat tapes , shiva candles , incense and stuff .

There you have it—an error in the name of authenticity. As for the track itself, it is as good as its reputation would suggest. The complex fractal harmonies and intense melodic highs are sure to send any old school trance fan into outer space.

Bombay Night is the only genuinely new song on this album. This piece is slower and more spaced out, with an atmosphere best described as mystic. The breakdown is full of vibrant colours and tingling sensations. A lightly acidic return increases the energy for the final run, and soon enough this short track reaches a fine conclusion. This is a nice treat for dedicated Transwave fans.

Ulysse Voyage No. 2, taken from Distance to Goa 3, completes the trip through time. This slow and hypnotizing track flows in a smooth and relaxing way from start to finish. Even if it isn’t one of Transwave’s stand-out tracks, it works well as the final song here on Backfire.

Transwave fans and old school Goa trance collectors are likely to enjoy Backfire immensely. Although the presentation is not as good as it could have been, and the decision to leave the error in the final edition of Flamicogyre is sure to promote controversy, Christof and Dado have done well to expose these archaic classics to the light of the new century. The music may sound dated but the spirit will forever remain strong however much technology may advance. If you are keen to take a trip through time to the gold age of Goa trance, Backfire is your ticket out of here.

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