'V/A - Kosmics Playground"

[Trance2MoveU]

 

 

Artist: Various

Title: Kosmics Playground

Label: Prog On Syndicate Records

Date: June, 2010

 

1. Expect No Less / Monod

2. Synthetic Life / E-Clip

3. Flash Point/ Jiser

4. Are on the sky / Elfo

5. Desire / Time Stretch

6. Save Us / Querox

7. Obsidian / Flegma and Nerso

8. Dark Light / Sideform

9. Prosperity / Zyce and Talpa

10. Present / Vertex

 

Here is a new label with a progressive trance compilation. Label head Querox has put together a selection of artists with an international flair not seen since the old Benneton commercials. Most of the artists are familiar with a few relative unknowns. There is a discrepancy I have noted, albeit minor. Track 3 on my disc reads as above, but checking Psyshop's site, they have it listed as "Sub Motion" by Infinity. Probably just a misprint.

 

So another new label jumps into the scene, what can you expect? Some pretty good tunes.

 

"Expect No Less" - Great track to begin the compilation. Not too heavy just floating away with your thoughts on a space ship. It goes by very quickly.

 

"Synthetic Life" - Wide open and tumbling through the vastness of outer space is how I would describe this. This is the perfect balance of melody, atmosphere and trance. My favorite track on the disc.

 

"Flash Point" - Simple bassline again, but rich bass sweeps along with fresh twinkly sounds fatten this beast up. The break at 5:20 really shows this artist's ability to meld sounds in a captivating way. Time enough to catch your breath, but not so lengthy to sound like a different track. Awesome.

 

"Are On of Sky" - This track has a familiar melody, but I cannot place it. Almost like a child's lullaby. On the whole, it's a nice playful song, but doesn't hold my attention like the others did.

 

"Desire" - Snorefest until the break takes over and then it seems like a different track...well, almost. It's still pretty minimal, but cannot compare to the rest of the gems here. Skip it.

 

"Save Us" - With a deep bass and thunderous kick this track blends chopped up vocals and sounds. The melody is in the distance growing a little more bold. The break is clever, with more short vocal snippets. This is what it would sound like if Artifakt made progressive trance, just less chaotic. Different, but welcome.

 

"Obsidian" - This track is a continuation of the great partnership between these two artists. A track that is loaded with atmosphere and clever bass manipulation. The swirling melodies have lots of ancillary company, giving it a very deep feel. Superb!

 

"Dark Light" - This track has the simplest one note bass line, but contains plenty of other sounds that thicken the track. A soft pan-flute tone is surrounded by analog flutterings, The break is short, but effective providing a seamless re-entry back to the beat. There is an odd key change in the final 3rd of the track, but it is interesting. Very good effort.

 

"Prosperity" - Talpa is back with Zyce and this is an example (IMHO) of two artists going in opposite directions. Talpa's last album for me was a colossal disappointment, while Zyce continues to put out great music. So what happened here? Did Zyce lift Talpa up or did Talpa bring Zyce down? The former is true, with sparkly synths and good motion to the track. The melodies undulate amidst melancholy sounds creating a great feeling. The break is dreamy as the track flows along. This is an excellent example of a great collaboration.

 

 

"Present" - "Much of the work we do cannot be measured in standard terms." This is a floating track with a really cool break about aliens. The sounds are very delicate and soothing providing a nice exit.

 

Well worth it. Aside from a couple of clunkers, this is a fresh ride down the progressive highway. The artists deliver a very high quality selection of tunes that a deep and emotive. Recommended!

 

 

Psyshop

 

Beatspace

 

Mdk

[recursion loop]

Curious why the tracklisting in the review doesn't quite correspond to Discogs.  One of my favourite trackis from here, Infinty - Submotion, is thus left out.

Overall except for a couple of offbeat tracks and a pretty lame Requiem for a Dream remix, very solid compilation. Infinity, E-Clip, Flegma, Nerso and the other Tesseract guys were in very good shape back then.