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Artist: Schallusion Title: Morphologic Tales Label: Self Released Date: March, 2012 1. Shaman 2. The Aborigine 3. Transcendance 4. Harmonic Tales 5. Crossover 6. Collaborator 7. Future Stomp Wow if you believe what the announcement thread says sounds like these guys hit a home run. Let's start with this. If you open your debut with a 17 minute track you better know what you're doing. Yeah they did. Luckily this German project seems to have a pretty good handle on this whole psychedelic thing. Coming out of nowhere they dropped this hot potato right into our eager laps. For free. 5 years ago. This album is loaded with long tracks that reside in a variety of psychedelic genres. As others have said that opener was quite spectacular. Very lush and not boring for any of those 17 minutes. Aborigine only has one way to go and unfortunately doesn't come close to the depth or scope of Shaman. Just 11 minutes of noodling. Transcendance is a bit better, but again it fails to maintain the high hopes brought about by the opener. Harmonic Tales is better still with a haunting vibe and more of an alien flare. It's futuristic and heavy. Crossover charges full steam ahead for a pretty good track. Collaborator goes full goa with some glitch riding shotgun. Future Stomp closes it out with some more alien goa. When you make an album that only has long tracks you walk a fine line between overload and boredom. For the most part I think they straddled it pretty well. The album was psychedelic and sounded great even if some tracks went on too long. Is it a classic? Nah, but several tracks kick some ass. As I mentioned this came out 5 years ago so they're due to release some more music. Schallusion Soundcloud

Artist: Globular Title: A Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Label: Gliese 518C & Omnitropic Date: March, 2012 1 - Feeding Back Forwards 2 - A Singular Synergy 3 - Subversion 4 - This, Here, Now 5 - The Loon 6 - A Highly Sprung Spring 7 - To The Other Side Of Fractal Phase Space 8 - From Mind, There Spills Forth Light Ektoplazm is a great resource for discovering new music. No matter what you're into (and I would keep what you're into locked away...you nasty). This is Morrison Bennett with his full length debut and it's a treat to be sure. Like Dub? Well come on over f*cknut! Like slow grooves? Don't just stand there with a confused look on your face! Real world instruments can be found here with ethnic (is that politically correct or did I just offend a hemisphere) melodies aplenty. It's like walking through a crowded Indian bazaar without the smell. Don't touch me. Funny that an Englishman can get what I perceive to be the Indian essence right. What's that? Oh, really...for that long. He loves long tracks and intros which is great because details are a strong point of this album. A Singular Synergy made me feel like I was amongst African tribesmen (f*ck did I get off on the wrong continent?) He also likes layers so there is plenty to pick through. Of course I prefer to listen to all my music with headphones sos I can isolate all the wonderful sounds, but also because I live in the South. Blast the foreign language chanting and singing at high volume and you run the risk of the redneck brigade stringing you up and complaining you're what's wrong with 'Merica. yes this happens. Subversion has a water theme and you might as well put a Jamaican with a bong right next to me. No f*cking way. Anoebis? What the hell are you doing at Paul Mitchell? Dubby reggae in style it's smooth and "Hey are you gonna pass that over or what you unemployed motherf*cker?!? Yeah, Irie, mon." How do you not bob your head to This, Here, Now? "Come let's mix where Rockefellers walk with sticks or umberellas in the mix"...surely this was his intention. The Loon is a series of jumbled sounds and voices thrown in a food chopper over a dubby beat, but still has that ethnic shine. It moves very slowly making it seem twice as long as it is. A Highly Sprung Spring is very psychedelic with more manipulation of Indian song. Like a third world auto tune. "Girls back in 45 minutes!" An Indian pimp? Score. I'll stop making fun of you when you stop gang raping women (pssst...no I won't) And the rest is more of the same. The drawback to having a series of long, lush tracks in the same style is that it can be laborious to get through the entire album. And it is. Maybe a series of EP's would've been better. Ironic since there is such a relaxed vibe throughout. Mostly. But it can be tough so I recommend carving out some time to give it the attention it deserves. Free at Ektoplazm Mdk

Artist: Radioactive Sandwich Title: B-Sides Vol. 1 Label: Self Released Date: March, 2012 1. Facebreaker 2. Falling Down 3. Make It Clap 4. Jabberwockey 5. Flying Guillotine 6. Resolution 7. The Wall 8. No Sound 9. Tundra 10. Sun In The Sea "I'm an American...you're a sick asshole!" Take that metric system! When I don't know what to write I go get a sandwich. My favorite is a radioactive one. These two are a better version of the Chemical Brothers. Big beats, moody vocals, and not afraid to use the latest trends in music. This is a collection of stuff they made before 2012 that never made it onto an album. Some of them sound like sketches and are pretty short. So what do you do with it? B-sides baby! You cannot pigeon hole these guys cause just when you're comfortable they turn the tables on you. It's electronic creativity at its finest that jumps genres and treats tempos as a suggestion. Check out this lyric: "You're f*cking ugly and I hate you. I wish you would just go and die...in a fire." Wedding vows...they ain't what they used to be. This was offered for whatever you thought it was worth awhile ago, but now that's over. They've given away a lot on Ektoplazm in the past so now it's time to throw a few scheckles their way. So for less than 4 bucks you can have some great stuff in your inbox. When you need to take a break from psytrance, but still want to keep it psychedelic check this out. B-sides...Maybe. If the b stands for bad-ass. Radioactive Sandwich Bandcamp Mdk

Artist: Kyoto Title: Astraverta Label: Space Baby Records Date: March, 2012 1. Time Tunnel 2. On Mars 3. Anahata 4. Forest Cat 5. Astraverta 6. Shivaz Dance 7. Floral Fractal Don't know what to think about this one. Do I want to kill the Batman or do I remember that being a lawyer required incurring expensive student loans and should therefore attempt to build my client base? At times I like its varied styles and tempos. Other moments I find myself bored with it. There are nature sounds aplenty so the outdoorsman in me likes it. Guitar is also prominently featured so the unemployed redneck who hates brown people can relate to this. Kyoto is Vitaliy Zenkov and with his second album he travels between aggressive breakbeats and dreamy marijuana cloud watching. The tracks are long episodes that undergo various changes. Sometimes I got lost in them and other times I was counting the minutes. The last track is like a long Santana solo over just such a break beat. So....long story short. Not bad, but not the first piece of chill I would reach for. Beatspace Psyshop Mdk

Artist: Suduaya Title: Come Back To Life Label: Uxmal Records Date: March, 2012 1. Snow and Stars 2. Cellular Memory 3. Patience 4. Amethyste (feat Sati Bodisattva) 5. Eternal Angels Uxmal is a Mexican label that has been quite prolific, seemingly releasing an album or EP every week. Their progressive trance has never wowed me, but their downtempo efforts are usually quite solid. Suduaya is Louis David Roquefere from France and here he mixes mournful electric guitar and slow beats with lush pads. It's like viewing a panorama from an exposed mountaintop. Emotional. Thought provoking. Uplifting. Having been atop many a mountain you would think this would appeal to me. And it does. At times it's cold, but always clean. The vocal in Amethyste has a Fifth Element quality about it mixed with anime. I liked the ep and thought it was good. Not great, but good. Psyshop Beatport Mdk

Artist: Various Title: When Melancholy Speaks Label: Uxmal Records Date: March, 2012 1. Solar STRAY THEORIES 2. Nerium Oleander DEEP IN MIND 3. Camel Jockey SQUAZOID 4. Eye Level Two PERPETUAL LOOP 5. Tiempo De Misterio CHRONOS 6. Nova ZEN GARDEN 7. Pantha Rhei MAGMAN 8. Forest Cat KYOTO 9. Rhodes MAGMAN Lemons are awesome. They make everything better. Carolina sweet tea is great, but put a f*cking lemon in it and it's slap yo momma good. But lemons have way more to offer than being a summer drink garnish. When you absolutely, positively need to protect your pussy. Leave it to the Middle East to make lemons delicious and explosive. And most importantly without lemons how the hell would Consuela keep your house looking and smelling so wonderful? "No...no...you go buy...lemon pledge." So it stands to reason that a compilation of downtempo music put together by Lemonchill would be very appealing. And boy is it. Dreamy and floaty this melodic music is masterful. Highly emotional and lush this opens the mind up to untold avenues of neuronal exploration. There are so many good tracks here. Camel Jockey aside from being outstandingly racist and funny is an epic mid tempo journey heavy with tribal overtones. Eye Level has the feel of progressive rockers Emerson, Lake, and Powell as it bounces through its dubby break beat. Tiempo Final combines the gentle plucking of acoustic guitar with some goa 303 bubbling. Real Antonio Banderas Desperado type stuff. This compilation basically takes the genre box and punches a hole in it. And because it's so varied it's also a lot of fun. As average as I perceive Uxmal to be in the progressive arena they sure do shine when the beats drop. Psyshop Beatspace Goa Store Mdk

Artist: Escape Into Title: The Dream EP Label: Enlight Records Date: March, 2012 1. Stillness (Intro) 2. Faint Evolution 3. Ooze In My Eyes 4. Future Memories 5. Neuroleptic Tales It's getting harder and harder to find time to do reviews so when a request is made I do everything I can to provide one. This is the debut EP by Dan Flict and Werther Azevedo two gentlemen from the land of thongs and Carnivale. Looking at the cover you got a train track winding around a tree with multiple doors as Grimace and Amelia Earhart take a spin in a rail car that was made by that guy in my shop class. Yeah, you don't know him, but he gets visitors on the weekends. So the cover adequately represents the title, but what about the music? To me, this is what you get when you put Talpa, Tim Burton, and some crazy Finnish guys in a blender. It is so remarkably deep that there is no way you can digest this in one sitting. Case in point, he asked me to do this a month and a half ago. It takes the road less traveled so like the Griswolds it takes f*cking forever to get there. But sit back and enjoy this ride. There is an eerie quality (Talpa) that is present throughout and reminds me of A Nightmare Before Christmas. So many changes of direction it really invites you into the dream. Just when you think you know where it's going it takes a turn that is anything but cliche. This is to psytrance what Paul's Boutique was to rap in the eighties. RIP MCA. This isn't about power, but about the journey. A wonderful trip that was a joy to follow that I will liken to classical music. It has jazzy elements, an outer space feel at times, and just loads of character. Throw in the fact that it was free...well, could there be anything more awesome? Ha! Got you Suge, you bloated motherf*cker. Got you. Thought you could hide in Japan? So like...are we cool now? Link Mdk

Artist: Various Title: Super Cereal Label: Disasterpeace Records Date: March, 2012 1. Hiyamyzo - Soaring 2. Wired Vs. Zinx - The World is At War 3. Dirty Motion - Schyzophrantic (Sinful Reactions Rmx) 4. Hiyarant - Express 5. Ironstein - Absolut Carnage 6. Mr. Jack - Alter Ego 7. Frozen Ghost - Global Thermonuclear War 8. Orca - Spaceships 9. Tryambaka - Acherion Orchid 10. Hysteria - Deviant 11. Critical Mass - 16 Volt "Truth is for pussies." Yeah, this might hurt. Ever been overlooked? "Yeah I really like the direction Timecode is going." "What about Disasterpeace?" "Oh! And that new joint from Nexus Media is the sh*t!" "It's like you don't even hear me. By the way, does your Mom and Dad know you came out?" Disasterpeace is that other South African label. Timecode and Nexus Media are king, but these guys somehow get overlooked. Which is a shame because they have delivered the goods. Whether it's Frozen Ghost's Sin for Dinner, Ulterior Motives by Rubix Qube or Badass by Xatrik, this digital label offers up the most intense hyper trance around. Pounding rhythms, bass lines with a mind of their own and usually enough of the sticky icky to satisfy your neighborhood whore. Compiled by Myzo it says for twilight goodness all you have to do is just add milk. I have milk. Haven't checked the date on it, but it's probably still good. And it's gluten free for all your unfortunate digestive requirements, so you got that going for you. "Same sh*t...different day." Hey you said it I didn't. I love the twilight stuff. And fairly or unfairly I compare everything to the Midnight Storm series because for me that is the pinnacle of the twilight genre. Bombastic and epic. Sorry Ben, this is not that. Hiyarant, Dirty Motion, Tryambaka, Orca, Frozen Ghost...a lot of major players are represented here. All have made awesome tracks. They just decided not to put them on this compilation. Look at the cover. Even the superhero has a disappointed and disapproving look. Not feeling so super are you? Gone is the thick and brooding atmosphere and acid for acid's sake is easy to spot. There were parts of each track I liked, but none of them brought the heat or was memorable. It seemed a little more geared for the commercial crowd with frequent stops and starts and too many samples. That said it is thumping and in spots it will quench your thirst for aggressive hyper trance. Middle of the road I think. Seems like there is a reason Timecode and Nexus Media are top dogs. Beatport Juno Download Mdk

Artist: Osher Title: Groove Box Label: Blue Tunes Records Date: March, 2012 1. Groove Box 2. Beautiful Destination This is Osher Swissa from Israel who has long been part of the full-on project known as Ananda Shake. While their first album was pretty good, the quality seemed to dip with each successive release until they were trying to get blood from a stone. Then something miraculous happened. He began to make progressive trance. His debut album as simply Osher called Twilight was a revelation. Combining eerie melodies and funktastic grooves it was greatly received by this reviewer. Which is why I felt like this after I heard this little two track EP: Oooh, sorry. Wrong gif. I was interviewing housekeepers earlier and she...uh, she really was enthusiastic. Ahhh...there it is. Please don't get me wrong. This wasn't bad. Solid 4 out of 5. Unfortunately when you set the bar so high expectations rise right along with it. This EP is what you expect when you want to hear progressive trance, but that's just it. Been there, done that. Other artists have done this millions of times before and it doesn't come close to the originality he produced with Twilight. I imagine rent was due or he really wanted that hair transplant so he had a few rough drafts lying around and shopped them to Blue Tunes. "Hey man I delivered with the album, why don't you help a brother out?" I don't know, I wasn't there. But while competent and solid it left me wanting. Stretches of a kick and bass line went on too long without anything else happening. Gone were the twists and turns. I still bought it because I'm a fan, but I've heard him do better than this. Psyshop Beatport Audiojelly Juno Mdk