"v/A - Full Swing"

[Trance2MoveU]

 

 

Artist: Various

Title: Full Swing

Label: Iono Music

Date: August, 2010

 

 

1. Funky Dragon (Featuring Djane Betty) - Dancing Desert (8:32)

 

2. Timedrained - Vildmis (7:32)

 

3. Loopstep - Atmosphere Inspiration (9:01)

 

4. Egorythmia & E-Clip - Paralel Worlds (7:44)

 

5. Sideform - Elektrik (8:20)

 

6. Ovnimoon - Gathering Of The Angels (Analog Drink Remix) (6:48)

 

7. Motion Drive - Drop Out (Etic Remix) (8:18)

 

8. Liquid Space - First Taste (8:13)

 

9. Klopfgeister (Featuring Nachtalb) - I Am A Cowboy (8:08)

 

 

Iono Music. Does anything else really need to be said? This German label headed up by Matthias Sperlich (aka Cubixx) and Olaf Mauer (aka Murus) has been extremely proficient in releasing top quality progressive trance music in a relatively short time frame. Artist albums, compilations, and EP's all done with superior sound that make this the best progressive trance label IMO. They now have a new website with a internet shop and a pretty cool player. I have reviewed a lot of their stuff and overwhelmingly it has been positive. In an age where psytrance has become stale they continue to drop albums that set the standard for deep, emotive music. Just when it couldn't get any better, they deliver this FOR FREE. An entire compilation that will cost the buyer nothing. Ladies and gentlemen, this is known as a steal.

 

The first track is by Funky Dragon and it is not business as usual. The effects and small attention to detail make this a great opening number. Percussion, sweeps, and a wide open break take what seems to be a simple track on the surface and turn it into an elaborate ordeal. Wonderful.

 

Timedrained's debut CD Dilemma still gets a lot of play in my deck. A nice bouncy tune dripping with more of the same detail. Nothing overly elaborate, but the delicate touches make it seem fuller than it is. Great track.

 

This is the one artist I am not that familiar with. He had a track on Abstract Visions which wasn't bad. This is quite nice. Soaked in reverb and full of the nice Iono touches that just give a track loads of atmosphere. In this style there isn't one predominant melody, but a sum of all the effects that drive this tune. Awesome!

 

E-Clip has been bowling strikes lately with his tracks and here he teams up with Egorythmia to deliver a dark track. It growls with a rumbling bassline and ominous clankings that speak of a post apocalyptic future. Very driving without a lot of melody but the ones that are there works very well.

 

The Sideform track is thin, but I enjoyed it anyway. Not a lot of variation, but it moves along nicely.

 

Ovnimoon is nothing if not proficient and lately he seems to be all over the place. I don't know if Analog Drink is a separate artist or not, but I wasn't that impressed with this one. Kind of boring, with some housey influences. Not my style.

 

I like a track that can get down to business right away and that is what Etic provides with his remix of a Motion Drive song. It's another bouncy track which is pretty light. Nice.

 

Liquid Space must have gone on sabbatical because they haven't released anything since 2005 and then exploded in 2010. Good to have them back because this track is worth the wait. A nice party number that is uplifting. Good job.

 

Final track is house all they way. It has a cowboy motif and all I can picture is a gay after hours club with Village People. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but the track has a very "enlightened" feel. Not for me.

 

I would say this effort was pretty rewarding. This compilation is a can't miss. Beautiful, rich progressive trance that will take the listener to far away places. Put the headphones on and drift away. The first half of the compilation is as described with the 2nd half becoming more house oriented. Having reviewed a lot of their stuff it must seem like I am on the company payroll. I wish, but I had to buy the CD's just like everyone else. I know times are tough and money is hard to come by; you want to feel like you're getting a good return on your investment. Once again this label leads the way and shows all how it is done. And let's not forget that this was free. So you literally have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

 

 

Iono Music

 

Mdk