Lemmiwinks

oh yes but I was speaking about the MWNN alias cause I somehow supposed that he made trance under that name. Anyway, it all makes you wonder why it took him so much to make the killer melodies for which he was later known for. Ah well, better late than never as they say

discogs link 1 Zee - Say My Name (Eddy Fingers Midninght Epic Mix (5:58) 2 Grace - Hand In Hand (Legend B Remix) (6:20) 3 Legend B - Lost In Love (Red Jerry's Mix) (9:22) 4 Tilt - My Spirit (Dizzy Remix) (6:56) 5 Grace - Orange (Album Mix) (6:50) 6 Juno Reactor - Jungle High (Oakenfold Edit) (3:18) 7 Jelle Boufon - Hope (Hold My Hand) (3:39) 8 Virus - Moon (Our House Mix) (8:06) 9 Our House - Floorspace (4:00) 10 Angeles - It's Alive (Original Mix) (5:04) 11 Man With No Name - Floor-Essence (Dayglo Mix) (6:02) 12 Man With No Name - Teleport (Original Mix) (6:58) 13 Perfecto Allstarz - Reach Up (Papa's Got A Brand New Pigbag) (Indian Summer Remix) (6:42) Paul Oakenfold always had the habit of blending goatrance with more commercial trance and purist goatrancers hated him for this. That said, today the psy scene is pretty different and with full-on artists churning out commercial dance remixes as if there was some software who was doing it for them, comps like this one don't seem as cheezy as they once were. Zee starts with a vocal (classic) trance track, there are some nice ideas but it's overal sound is a bit too commercial for me. NEXT! Grace ah now that's more like it Still in commercial territory but not as commercial as the first track, and definately not as commercial as the original version. There is also a VERY nice melody in there that wasn't in the original, me likey Legend B up next with a remix of the classic Lost in Love which I suppose that every trancer who knows their classics knows. Well interestingly enough this sounds like a blend between the original Lost in Love and another classic with the word "love" in it: Age Of Love. Next is a remix of Tilt which is sounds pretty minimal, I have to admit that I admit the original by far. Then comes the Perfecto classic Grace - Orange well, actually this was originally named Skin On Skin (Orange Mix) but it is that version released on Oakenfold's classic The Goa Mix that made him famous (and made goatrance known to many people who knew nothing about the scene back then). What can I say? I love this track just as much in 2009 as I did back then Yet another classic Juno Reactor's Jungle High, again what can I say other than if you don't know this track already, you missed out on something big? Back to more cheezy territory with Jelle Boufon, which is quite irritating actually, I prefer to skip this one. Virus up next with a progressive (commercial) trance track. Nice but nothing particularly memorable here... Our House with a pretty average track as well. Some 303s in there, but nothing special IMO. Angeles up next with a very nice track. It is also on the commercial side but the melodies are very nice. There's also a bit of a MWNN feeling in there, which is probably why I like it so much. Then come 2 massive classics from MWNN that I suppose don't need any comment if not to remind newbies to the scene that these are 2 of the best trance tracks ever made The closer is a remix of Perfecto Allstarz best known track (and one that annoyed the hell out of me when a teen). But rest assured, this remix was made by the master MWNN and has nothing much to do with the original. It was also first released on Oakenfold's Goa Silver Mix so I guess most people also know this one as well. Conclusion: Very nice showcase of the best classics released by Perfecto Records. OK, sometimes it goes overboard into commercial territory (after all, we're talking about Paul $Oakenfold$ here lol) but there are still enough decent tracks here to compensate. If you don't already have Oakenfold's The Goa Mix (which is IMO a must-have for any goatrance and/or classic trance lover) then this is a pretty interesting comp to have. 3,5/5

discogs link A Way Out West B From Within The Mind Of My 909 Being a big MWNN fan I was always intrigued to see that he was already releasing music in 1990. So I got this EP thinking I'd find some early trance with the typical MWNN touch. Well, once I finally got hold of it I was utterly dissapointed cause this has absolutley nothing to do with MWNN's later style, and even nothing to do with trance. Side A is a silly acid house track with samples from the classic western The Good The Bad and The Ugly. Actually if I didn't see "Martin Freeland" specifically written on the record, I would've thought it was just another artist who happened to have the same name. Side B is a bit more underground and even a bit of a trancy feeling here and there but still nothing close to his later style. So if you get this one it should be for historical purposes ONLY, the musical value is close to 0...

discogs link A1 Interpretation Of Dreams (9:06) A2 Subconsciousness (8:54) B1 Mind Travel (6:41) B2 Aliens (10:29) After some searching I've finally managed to get a hold of THE first ever release by Elysium. Actually at the beginning Elysium was 2 people: Kristian Thinning Andersen which we all know and Carsten Wigant who eventually split and got forgotten by music history. Interpretation of Dreams is "morning trance" as it used to be called back then: slow trance with many nature samples, very nice to get in the mood. Subconsciousness is a pretty "normal" goatrance track, although when you think that it was made in 1994, a time when most goatrance artists were still searching for their sound, it is pretty impressive. Mind Travel is a downtempo track, I won't call it chill-out cause it's not really soothing, more on the disturbed and twisted side. Still, a nice track Aliens is closer to the classic trance sound, Eye Q style: not too fast, not too slow, with a great slow buildup and nice atmospheric pads. It is also the one I prefer here

discog's link A Mahatma (The Lords & Ladies Of Shamballa) (12:55) B Mahatma (The Lords & Ladies Of Shamballa) (12:55) Extremely obscure project by a certain Marc Mitchell, only one EP was ever released under this name and the label only survived for this EP which is a real pitty cause this is one of the best tracks I've come across!! It is very long, dreamy classic trance with samples saying "I am the Mahatma. I am that I am." and various other samples probably taken from one of Gandhi's speeches. Then there's a breakdown around 8:00, then come some nature sounds and didgeridoos, then the melody picks up in a different way, even more dreamy than the first part. It all fits in perfectly and the 13 minutes that the track lasts IS NOT ENOUGH, that's how beautiful this sounds. A and B are identical as far as I can tell, unless there are some minor changes. It is a real pitty that this project didn't have a bigger recognition, I would've loved to hear more stuff from him.

discog's link A Blighty B1 Back To Blighty B2 The Incredible News To Access B.E.T.H. (which stands for Brain Energy To Human) was a very short-lived collaboration between 2 of goatrance's biggest names (at the time) Dino Psaras and Tim Schuldt, and lesser-known Steve Ronan. It is also Aurinko's first ever release AFAIK. The tracks sound, as you might exepect, like a blend between Cydonia and Tim Schuldt: dark, twisted (in a goatrance kindof way of course, don't expect any dark psy here), and that trademark Schuldt filtered guitar that does wonders on the dancefloor. B2 is my fave track here, and the reason why one should get the EP cause most comps from the time picked the Blighty track, leaving Incredible News To Access pretty unkown. That said, all tracks here are pretty potent, making me wonder why these guys only released one EP together?

don't know, but top right looks like the gorilla is reaching for its penis lool

hehe it's funny you mention that cause I remember that when I was a teen, me and basically everyone else who I made listen some goatrance had the same reflection: this is the music of the future, in a few hundred years eveyone will be listening to this. Now, only a decade later it all sounds sooo outdated. I spoke with someone who was into Kraftwerk in the 80s and he thought the same thing about them back then. So in short, music evolves so fast and in such unpredictable directions that noone can tell what will be listened to in 10 years, let alone 100...

yes but that was 2 years AFTER the version on this comp

discgos link 1 Dharma 7 - Inner-Spirits (8:29) 2 Shiva Chandra - Trancetime (6:57) 3 Narcoter - Spacestomper (6:58) 4 Cybersnack - Inzenrock (6:08) 5 Narcoter - Venus (7:11) 6 Boombay - Iquitos (12:08) 7 Akasha Project - Tumping Monk (6:21) 8 Surya - 25th Hon (9:16) 9 Jaffa Project - Egyptian Magician (9:30) FANTASTIC comp filled with what I call "tribal morning" trance: umptempo but rather calm trance with a lot of tribal influences. Most of the names here are one-off projects that were just used for this comp or a handfull of releases, but that doesn't mean their efforts aren't great. Dharma 7 is actually a project by the artist behind Xenomorph (bet you didn't see that one coming ). It is a very nice tribal track, NOTHING to do with Xenomorph's dark style. Then comes Shiva Chandra which is probably the name you all know best, although from my checks on discogs, this track hasn't been released anywhere else but on this comp. It is his typical (old) style, also with some tibal influences, also very nice Narcoter up next, never heard of him but anyway... compared to other tracks here, this one is more average. Cyber Snack with a more "agressive" track compared to the other ones, also a bit of a darkish atmosphere. I like this one a lot as well. Then another track by Narcoter with a more uptempo and dymamic track compared to Spacestomper (which is wierd cause personally I would've given the Spacestomper name to the more uptempo track but anyway). Boombay up next with a pretty generic oldschool track, one of the weakest on the comp IMO. Akasha Project, and I must admit that I didn't know that he was already active back in 1996, with a midtempo track, a mystical feeling to it, although nothing that really impresses me. Surya with a track that sounds very old, 1993-1994 sound, although I like it anyway The comp closer is Jaffa Project which was a killer melody and actually reminded me of some Dimension 5. Conclusion Judging that basically all the tracks featured here are impossible to find anywhere else, the collector's value is skyhigh. And for those who like tribal goa it is a very nice comp to have, there are some very nice tracks in there. 4/5

well nice to see that someone gave it the digital treatment after all

discogs link 1 Karmic Energies - Tapovan (7:32) 2 Brainman - Ferengi Dance (9:30) 3 Biotecs - Cyclus 4 (7:30) 4 Green Nuns Of The Revolution - Cor (7:10) 5 Shanti & The Chillum Wallahs - Placid (7:05) 6 Karmic Energies - M.P.C.A. (7:20) 7 Einstein - Einstein's Nitelife (7:25) 8 Synchro - Jensonic (Rezzo Mix) (6:43) 9 Space Dimension - No Time In Space (4:18) 10 Invaders - Spirits Of The Future (6:14) 11 Sungun - Star Fringe (5:33) Another early psy release, with some very early releases by some names that were well-known a few years later for other projects like Sungun (Total Eclipse), or Synchro (GMS). Actually for the Synchro track I see a "Rezzo Mix" which makes me think that it was mixed by Etnica's Andrea Rizzo, although it is not confirmed on the tracklist.... That said, I can't really say that I like most of the tracks here. Exceptions are (obviously) GNOTR - Cor which I suppose is the one everyone knows already so I won't comment on that one. That said, I was amazed to find 2 tracks that didn't really get much attention in the psy world: Space Dimension - No Time In Space and Invaders - Spirits of the Future which are 2 projects by a certain Brian Morton of which I must humbly admit that I have never heard of until now. Just when you thought you knew them all all hehe So, not really a comp I would recomend unless you just have to have all the hidden gems of goatrance 3/5 PS Click on the link to DJ Holeg on discogs... seeing his pic is totally worth it, I laughed for 10 minutes straight lol

discogs link A Le P'tit Matos B Unify Feeling Following a discussion on the forum asking for forgotten releases that never got the digital treatment, here is one that I could find. Underhead is a long-forgotten French project by Jean-François Bire and Olivier Abitbol (which you might know better for his Chronomyst monicker that was brung back to life with Suntrip's Lights in Motion comp). Le P'tit matos is a name that will make any french speaker smile, as for how it sounds, well it is some pretty dreamy oldschool, it has some fast acid lines in the background but the overall sound is pretty gentle IMO, not unlike some stuff that you might find released on Suntrip today. Unify Feeling eventually got released on some comps so I guess it is better known and is also the track I like most from this EP. It has a faster pace and an overall mysterious sound, kindof reminded me of some oldschool Prana.

discogs link A1 The Dreammer (Dreammer Mix) (4:30) A2 The Dreammer (Sound Track Mix) (4:15) B The Dreammer (Tech-No-Mix) (5:27) Yet another early trance EP (and who said that trance was rare at the beginning of the 90s? ). This one actually sounds a lot like the stuff you'd find on the SFX Unreleased Trax album, but at the same time it's a bit generic compared to other early trance EPs I've reviewed latley. There's almost no difference between the 3 different versions of the track but personally I find that A2 has a bit more of an underground feeling to it. So let's say that if you're a collector it's a nice addition to your collection, otherwise there are better stuff from the period.

discogs link A Ultimo Imperio (6:55) B1 Ultimo Imperio (Tendenthia Mix) (8:35) B2 Ultimo Imperio (Reprise) (2:55) Yet another EXCELLENT forgotten early trance EP. Atahualpa is a group of italian producers (you might know them better for their Ramirez project) who use a lot of native south american (guatemalan to be exact) influences. This is really a one of a kind track, there are New Beat and trance influences, guatemalan influences and also a KILLER melody that just stays in your head for hours after listening. Makes you wonder how it remained so obscure and unkown. A definate must-have!! A check on discogs shows that these guys were active until 2000, I will definately try to track down their later stuff.

lol it says "this is the high res version". I wouldn't like to see the low-res then lol

+1

then I shall click on that link 10 times a day until it happens Although there's no way to know if the person who wrote that is actually Matt Coldrick (and somehow I doubt he is...)

Well keep in mind that it is impossible to represent the scene with ONE comp. That said, if you want to get a better feel of it all without the painful experience of digging through piles of old vinyl EPs, you get a more comprehensive view of the scene with retro comps made later on by DJs who were in the scene back then like the Retrodelic Vibes series, the History of Goa Trance series,Classic Traxx compiled by Guy Sebbag or 20 Years Of DJ Madness mixed by DJ Dag...

actually this gives me an idea: why don't newschool labels specifically mention "Goa" on their covers?? After all, they are much closer to the goatrance sound than the YSE stuff.

check out the 1990-1994 section of the review section of this site. I regularly put reviews of such EPs when I get hold of them and consider they are worth the effort. OMG I can't believe noone mentioned Dance 2 Trance - We Came In Peace which is seen by many as THE first "proper" trance track. other interesting finds that were not already mentioned here: Metropolis - Time of War (1991) Mr Klaus - The Dreammer (1991) also check out the comp V/A - Classic Trax, a selection of some of the first trance tracks (all tracks were made between 1990 and 1993) compiled by one of the pioneers of the israeli trance scene, Guy Sebbag. I've found some real gems in there PS I find all the infatuation with Juno Reactor way overhyped since his stuff can't really be qualified as trance IMO...Watkins himself described his High Energy Protons track as being "progressive techno"... I think most people in the scene mention him simply because he's one of the rare artists from the time who still releases stuff today...

hahaha funny and true! You just made my day :lol:

I take it noone bothers to read my psynews reviews...

yep, that pretty much shows how many people go to parties for the music and how many just consider it a background for taking drugs... I have some friends who would never dream of listening to psy at home but see it as the ultimate music to listen to when high. It is sad IMO...

discogs link A Time Of War (A.C. Mix) (6:31) B1 Time Of War (DD 1000 Mix) (3:35) B2 Poseidon (Epplar Mix) (7:10) Yet another one of those missing link between New Beat and trance records that have been forgotten by time. You even had the hippie messages on the cover and everything: "The Gulf War is over. However this doesn't mean everything is alright again... Everywhere in the world wars take place all the time. We did produce that record to remind you that the 20th Century still is the 'Time of War'." Pretty prophetic message when you think this was made at the beginning of the 90s Anyway, on to how it sounds: pretty much a crossblend between New Beat and trance but also some very distinctive goa-ish melodies in there which make listening to this totally worth it IMO. The AC Mix (might be mixed by AC Boutsen but not sure since it's not specifically mentioned...) has some female voices that are NOT Anne Clark although it sounds very much like it. DD 1000 Mix is basically the same track but without the vocals and a bit faster. Poseidon is slower and has some german speaking (sorry I don't speak german so I don't have any idea of what they're saying ). This one also has a pretty mystical goaish melody in it, not bad but I prefer the A-side.