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Artifakt - The Magus


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Artifakt

The Magus

Timecode Records

2008

Tracklist

 

01. LCD

02. Bulk

03. Crystal

04. Psylocibin

05. Macbeth

06. The Magus

07. Viagra Bastard Spawn

08. Gather

09. The Probe

10. No Present

11. The Pole

 

Well I was never too impressed by the first Artifakt album but the second one blew me away so much I felt the need to share it with my friends and family, even buying extra copies for them. Hearing that there was a third album made me really hope that Artifakt would be one of those artists that just got better and better and this album has not just lived up to my expectations but actually surpassed them.

 

Well starting from the horrible sample at the start of the first track LCD this album gets infinitely better. The pure funkiness of the first track with the deep electronic orchestral influences make this short intro a great one.

 

The next track Bulk, also starts off in less than impressive fashion sounding like a glitchy minimal nightmare but it slowly evolves into a really nice deep quirky. The sci-fi samples towards the end are some of the best I've heard and really add a deep darkness too the music.

 

Crystal is another techno influenced track with a lot of spacey effects in it in such a glitchy random way that on paper looks awful but manages to work here most wonderfully. The guitar at the end of it just punctuating it all.

 

Psylocibin is a high octane track with touches of eastern melody but dominated by tech and glitch.

Macbeth has some Shakespearean samples and a really old world feel in it's brief insurgency.

 

The Magus, the title track embodies the album so far for me. It's a mix of all the tracks before it. It's energy, it's glitchy randomness and it's deep feeling. The piano section feels like it's going into some classical concert before the electronic atmosphere covers everything and the dark sample drags the atmosphere down into the catacombs of the mind.

 

Viagra Bastard Spawn is a bastard of a track. The synths are all over the place and the rolling bassline while quite ordinary is one of the best fitting I've ever heard. It fits around everything really well and everything else is as random as possible. Great stuff!

 

Gather is one of the best tracks I've heard in years. It feels classical at the beginning leading into to crazy glitch and then blending into a mix of the two. The electronic feel of course wins out but there is always that underlying feel from years past in it. The mix culminates in the end into such a weird mix of classical energy. Fantastic.

 

The Probe tries to be spacey with it's star like melodies and Space Odyssey samples. It initially seems to fail after trying so hard but manages to glitchily go deeper with what would have been a spacey atmosphere twisted into a weird hyperspace anomaly. The sci fi samples might seem a bit obvious but they fit perfectly and add to this dancefloor sci-fi brilliance.

No Present starts as a simple melodic full on track but creates deep journey like feelings with strings and deep bass Throughout most of the track. There are guitars in this but they get almost completely overlooked as they fit in rather than destroy the music. It's a good feeling. Later on they become more obvious but never shit.

 

The Pole may be the energetic culmination of the whole album with the beats driving and the bassline in perfect sync with the melody and the beats as well as the synths. Great stuff all sound as you'd expect.

 

So I was expecting the follow up to Artifakts II to be good but to be honest I didn't expect to like it as much as I did.

Don't listen to anyone but yourself. Take people's recommendations, try the CD and hear for yourself. It's even better than the street says.

Get it now, it's one of the most enjoyable albums you'll have heard in years I'm sure of it :)

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Firstly, "The Magus" is a very impressive blend of styles - psy-trance meets techno (which includes all the latest minimal and electro influences - which i like a lot these days :wub: ).

 

Secondly, Artifakt manages to mix-up those pretty different sounds in one very tasty soup.

 

I mean i've heard so many attempts from so many talented artists to combine those styles and elements and all they failed - i want to say there were some great moments for example latest Benza's album but still Artifakt's "The Magus" became a champion for me.

 

... and Abasio wrote very well that you should listen to your own opinion on this - just the best way to appreciate the music. :clapping:

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AHhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!

 

A NEW ARTIFAKT ALBUMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

AHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh13%!!%!$!###!!#!%#$^$#^$^

 

What more can be fucking said?

 

Haven't heard it, but I'm sure I'll love it - just like I loved everything he did since Artifakts II (such as Baal, Broken and Reborn in different compilation).

 

Artifakt is quite simply the best South African (or should I say South Afrikan?) trance artist out there.

 

Amazing, amazing.

 

I'll review as soon as I hear it.

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oooooooooooooew

 

According to the review I neeeeed to have this asap!!

You need it yesterday :P

 

Brilliant album, but then again I knew Artifakt would never let us down :posford:

 

5/5 :clapping:

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I'm gonna have to listen to this some more - only heard the first 2 tracks - I have found Artifakt's music very hard to digest in general - it is generally quite rude and noisy sounding - can either be bliss or a headache... Very often not harmonious...

 

Will listen again but at home in a mellow mood, not in rush-hour traffic :P

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I got it today. I'm listening to it right now, for the first time, as I type this.

 

I have to say that it's a first for Artifakt to offer anything so easy to digest! This is melodic, way more melodic than the previous albums.

Not to say that it is cheesy - the melodies so far are a plain stroke of Artifakt genius. All the quirky, insane Artifakt style is there, but with a production quality that I haven't heard from him.

 

This album could easily be a "mainstream push" album - and I speak about the psytrance community, not the global music community. Artifakt will gain many fans because of this album.

 

I'll write a more detailed review in a week or so, when I come back from a vacation in France. I'll have heard this album tens of times by then :)

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Can someone tell me, is this CD like his tracks released on compilations?

 

I love his tracks on TC & Nexus CDs but I didnt like his albums so much.

 

First album didnt like at all, second album was a 50/50 so Im hesitant to buy.

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Can someone tell me, is this CD like his tracks released on compilations?

 

I love his tracks on TC & Nexus CDs but I didnt like his albums so much.

 

First album didnt like at all, second album was a 50/50 so Im hesitant to buy.

If you like the track The Pole, which is on the album, that was released on VA - Future Cuts you will for sure enjoy this album.
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One of the best albums of the last years. All the tracks are special, they all stick to your mind, superb production and strange but genious melodies.

I like it more than his two previous albums (awesome albums BTW).

 

What can I say? Brilliant. Simply brilliant...

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finally some orginal full on again

 

so far it sounds really nice!!

I agree with u it is super original, thats some fresh sounds, finally what i looked for a long time.

but it's not a full on. its everything, that album combines anything and place it perfectly.

i see that album more as techno meeting the psy like someone said above me.

i heared that album so many time and this is amazing. Artifakt built his own genre, and a fresh new

style for psy music.

that album is like nothing i heared before...

there are few things that make this album to one of the best all time to me.

the melodies are new. 100% fresh new material by artifakt. and to those amazing melodies

he gave amazing build up. for example "the magus" track (that im actually dont like it that much) has

that medium melody, at the end, but that build up before to it, that's what making that melody

so amazing, thats like i can feel the melody at my hands. but what realy made that album

so good to me, is the combines of genres and styles. that album made my year. thank u artifakt

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I agree with u it is super original, thats some fresh sounds, finally what i looked for a long time.

but it's not a full on. its everything, that album combines anything and place it perfectly.

i see that album more as techno meeting the psy like someone said above me.

i heared that album so many time and this is amazing. Artifakt built his own genre, and a fresh new

style for psy music.

that album is like nothing i heared before...

there are few things that make this album to one of the best all time to me.

the melodies are new. 100% fresh new material by artifakt. and to those amazing melodies

he gave amazing build up. for example "the magus" track (that im actually dont like it that much) has

that medium melody, at the end, but that build up before to it, that's what making that melody

so amazing, thats like i can feel the melody at my hands. but what realy made that album

so good to me, is the combines of genres and styles. that album made my year. thank u artifakt

yeah true it isn't really full on, but still it has some of the full on elements the most and that's why i call it full on in his own style :)
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WOW! Just fucking wow, this is innovative!!!

 

And the magus... What a driving track, that bassline is just mad, suck you inside the track and surrounds you in chaos... The breakwith the piano slows you down, and the build up, the break and then the beautiful bassline and the samples is tearing my head apart.. Think i will dance to this, all alone in my livingroom right now!

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i just gave it my first listen, and i have a very mixed feeling !!! sometimes i just love it, i want to jump on my chair and :posford:

but sometimes it's too cheesy for my taste !!!!

 

7/10 after my first listen. i will edit if i change my mind !!!! :ph34r:

 

Gather is awesome tho !!!! :posford: :posford:

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