Basilisk

Wicked album!

I was hooked by the HUVA Networks album but none of their other full-length releases have captured me in the same way. That being said, I absolutely adore their "ambient trance" style (typically 120 BPM tunes with a steady hypnotic beat; Solar Fields and Aes Dana both have a few of these tunes out)... I wish they would put together a whole compilation with a focus on that style.

I would like to hear more experiments crossing psytrance with jazz, classical, and Latin music styles...

Yes, and it's brilliant! Although the style is very stereotypical of psychedelic trance (Terence McKenna samples and all), the quality of the music is excellent... so, it might not be groundbreaking, but I don't think that was the point.

If you're ever up for it, check out my for sale/trade list on Discogs

Damn, that reminds me, I still need to get a copy of Equator on CD...

I mentioned Harvest earlier in this thread... here are some photos, in case you're curious about it: http://www.ektoplazm.com/blog/harvest-fest...07-in-pictures/

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I might see what I can do about that... this one is difficult to read with the use of bevel/glow effects as they are.

Fantastic cover!

What series avoided light mixing and clipping tracks to fit? I think Destination Goa would come out on top based on that criteria.

The tracks were really good for the time--sort of a funky take on the full-on style that was big, somewhat like Psychoid's work (and I also had contact with them before they too dropped off the face of the Earth). Andy (pr0teus) sent an apology to me at one point, promising to fulfil his end of the deal, but it's been five years now... I can't say I have much hope, but I'm too stubborn to simply give in and forget about it. The situation is, of course, ironic, for he stood to benefit more than I ever did... and I'm out several hundred bucks for hoping to help him start his career. Dumb move on my part, that's all. While waiting for the tracks that were to be pressed, I made contact with Andy C. on behalf of CHI-A.D., and so their material went toward that first, ill-fated 12" single... Weird trivia: even I released some modules back in the day... some so obscure I don't even have a copy, but supposedly they're out there on the Internet somewhere or another. I shudder to think of what they must sound like. Interesting bits: has anyone collected Erez Aizen's first modules? Furthermore, does anyone know what released tracks were in fact composed with Scream/Impulse/Fasttracker? I heard that Magic Mushroom song on what was it--Full-On 3?--was the product of such software.

I wish Matrix^3 had stuck around... he had some absolutely great material in the works as Mantis when contact was lost. The same goes with pr0teus, who released on Ultrabeat. Speaking of which, I really wish he would respond to my emails one of these days... five years ago I sent him several hundred dollars to license some tracks of his for release and he simply never got around to sending the masters or anything else I could use. Weird, isn't it? You'd figure a musician would like to get his music out there. Live and learn, I guess.

James Monro played an amazing set at Eclipse 2007, but his style is firmly rooted in the deep progressive/electro/breaks style these days... think Minilogue, for instance. Still, he was a very impressive DJ. Flying Rhino revival, eh? I guess we'll see where this goes...

Thanks very much for your list of early influences, Seraph. About MFG, for example, what do you think their impact was? As much as I love their work, they always seemed to follow Astral Projection. UX might cover what I think of as the "industrial/psytrance crossover" (Atomic, Aurinko, Tim Schuldt, Cydonia, etc.) for which I have no specific track as of yet. I might be more inclined to go with Life Support Technology however. What do you think? Radio is pretty much essential--for me, it is just a question of getting at which track was most influential from the lot. The argument that The Frog wins precisely because it was first holds water, but I think Psychomachine might be the track to beat precisely because it is completely synthetic, without any sort of spiritual feel to it. Now THIS is a grand revelation for me! Thanks, this is exactly what I was seeking! Now to determine what track might serve as the best example... would I be right in assuming T. Bentley is Tim Thick? Where does Pasi Hartikainen fit in? Was Pepe involved in this old CD at all? I see that Mac Mavis was. Perhaps Peruna Is Round would serve as a good example? I think Xenomorph is very influential, so it is just a question of selecting what track really made it in the world... Obscure Spectre is a good choice, perhaps better than Neurotoxin. I'll check into it. I really think Nobody could have had more influence than it is traditionally credited with, but it is also hard to say. I find the Hacking The Reality Myth compilation extremely influential on a whole host of alternative psytrance sub-variants. Shaolin Wooden Men intrigues me. Like many people, I suppose I had heard only their later, more experimental output, and generally disregarded that first CD of theirs. After listening to it, I think it serves much as Flippin' Bixies does for Australian trance, as a key release from which other artists developed their own way of thinking. Ohar and S.W.M. strike me as the most completely expressed songs on the self-titled debut; does this square with what others perceive? Short Life Again was also on my mind, and it was released a year earlier. I vividly remember the buzz surrounding FREq's initial success--it was quite obvious, even then, what a strong impact his return made on the scene. For minimal, I think Jammy Wizard covers the UK, so it is just a matter of sorting out Germanic/Scandinavian influences (precisely because minimal was so strong from central Europe). Planet B.E.N. may have this covered with the earlier release of Ant Invasion, or Atmos might have it covered with the highly influential Klein Aber Doktor. Son Kite, for example, wasn't exactly doing anything new--they were just bringing an old influence back into vogue. At least, this is one way of looking at it. In the liner notes to Perspectives Of... they speak a little of their early influences... and in fact, now that I think of it, I'd be amiss without including something from Robert Leiner on this list. Anyone have a suggestion for a key contribution from The Source Experience? Organic Noise has been resting in my notes for some time. Shpastic Elastic, for instance, made huge waves in the scene. But after thinking about it, earlier work from both artists seems to have been more decisive... which is why I threw Ant Invasion on the list. It was released in 1996 but originally produced in 1993. Good point about Online Information. Thanks everyone for the great feedback, this is really helping

My extensive review/essay on the subject of Digital Alchemy can be found here: http://www.ektoplazm.com/reviews/digital-alchemy/

Similar to what Mike A was trying for in this recent thread, I would like to ask the Psynews community for help in developing a list of the most influential tracks in psytrance history. I do not speak of songs that influenced the original conception of Goa trance, but rather, songs within the extended psychedelic trance family that pushed the movement forward in some way, opened new sonic pathways, and so on. [Previously I had posted a list in this area and asked for some responses... at this stage I am going ahead with compiling something close to final from which articles and other content will be generated.] If you're growing a bit weary of all these lists and "best of" topics, I understand. What I think would be interesting here is developing something of a top 25, uploading samples of all the tunes, and writing a bit about the history of each--ultimately to provide trance fans new and old with a bit of history they can actually listen to. I would suggest that electronic music culture suffers from ahistoricity--the denial or disregard for history. New listeners hardly ever gain a familiarity with all that has come before, which just feeds the increasingly disposable nature of the releases that come out. Plus, if you scour the web looking for any similar resource to what I imagine, you'll end up with Ishkur's Electronic Music Guide, and really, couldn't we do better? Your thoughts are very welcome. Thanks

Keep in mind this reflects a pre-millennial mentality (I believe this was compiled near the end of 1999) so some material of that time had not aged enough to become both popular and recognized as a classic.

I dredged this up using archive.org enjoy.

The argument can dip into non-scientific territory when we consider that music is a feeling, and we don't have all the answers as to why it makes us feel a particular way. Music tests are accomplished with conscious faculties, but are such practises really giving us the full story? I rather err on the side of caution, as I said, and all it costs me is a bit more disk space.

Visit Toronto. Make the trip up for Harvest. Come out for Eclipse (in Quebec). The scene isn't huge here, but there's very little of the flakiness you speak of. Harvest is coming up in just a few weeks--check out their web site, even if you're just curious. The language they use, the conventions, and the general approach is miles away from the stuff you're ranting about. Another great event I often speak of is the Kajama boat cruise--essentially, 200 people take a trip on this historic 1930's schooner, sailing around Toronto harbour to the accompaniment of quality electronic music. On the opposite side of the coin, I have fully enjoyed the West Coast vibe, with all of its associated mystic practises and new age customs. I think there's a difference between the outright flakiness widely exhibited in some locales, and the genuine application of the lofty ideas many psytrance fans adhere to. I tend to visit B.C. once a year and always get right into their particular way of going about things... but musically speaking, B.C. has no appreciation for the "stomp" or darkpsy or neurotrance or traumatrance or quantumfrungle, or whatever it is being called down south these days. This is another thing I enjoy about B.C.: I can hit up a festival and hear the most luscious progressive and downtempo all weekend long, BPMs often never rise above 140, and the spirit remains blissful throughout. That is a bit of a leap from the typical understanding of musical progress over the course of a night, but you know what? It is soothing to the soul. What I absolutely cannot fathom is what the "Aum" festival must have sounded like: devastating head-ripping noise all weekend long (this is based on reports I read and established expectations). Anyhow, I hear what you're saying... but luckily things are NOT like that everywhere, and lucky for you, your friendly neighbours up North offer a reasonable alternative if you ever wish to go to the trouble

Yeah, I was liking it Coma especially.

Haha... nice one.

:posford: Reviewed on minimal.net: http://www.minimalnet.org/sonify-olbiz-ep/