Review by:
Jannick Andersen // DJ pr0fane (Dance N Dust Records)
www.sunrisesupplies.com



Artist: Vibrasphere
Title: Archipelago
Label: MPDQX/Digital Structures
Format: CD (Jewelcase with 6-page inlay)
Released: April, 2006
Cover: http://217.160.138.169/pic_b/dig1cd018_b.jpg


Review:

After 3 years of waiting since their last album \"Lime Structure\", the Swedish duo Vibraspheres 3rd full-length album \"Archipelago\" is finally on the market. For me, the timing couldn\'t be better - after experiencing their, despite some technical difficulties, amazing liveset in the morning at my last day at the Soulclipse in Turkey, the album was available on Psyshop when I got home, and I ordered the album immediately. Vibrasphere is, to me, one of the best acts around, and alongside acts like Son Kite, Ticon and Atmos they are the forerunners of the Scandinavian progressive sound, so my expectations for the album where - to say the least - huge.


01. Tierra Azul
The album starts out slow with \"Tierra Azul\" - a dubby chillout tune in the classic Vibrasphere vein with a beautiful piano, acoustic guitars and generally a smooth, organic feel. A wonderful album-opener - not too hasty unlike too many albums these days, and fans of \"Manzanilla\" will most likely love this lovely, optimistic opening tune.

02. Sweet September [135 BPM]
After a stunningly beautiful intro with sweet female choir-pads, \"Sweet September\" slowly but steadily gets the party started. The first trance tune on the album, is laidback and beautiful, and the atmosphere is uplifting but still with incredible depth. The melodies are gentle and soothing, and the groove is really attractive. A very enjoyable track that sets the standard for the following tracks.

03. Reservoir [136 BPM]
Next up is \"Reservoir\", which was recently remixed by Antix on the great \"Landmark\" single. The track starts with the sound of rain pouring down, and generally the atmosphere is quite suitable for rainy days - melodic and shifting back and forth between the melancholic and the positively uplifting. Another track with exceptional high sound quality, although one of the more anonymous on the album.

04. Landmark [138 BPM]
\"Landmark\", the title-track for the album-teaser cd-single, kicks the tempo up a notch and takes the album to the next level. It is perhaps one of the strongest and most dance floor oriented tracks Vibrasphere have ever created, and it\'s simply an extraordinary listen - melodic, epic and downright outstanding. Definitely an anthem-tune for the upcoming summer festivals.

05. Seven Days To Daylight [140 BPM]
As if \"Landmark\" wasn\'t melodic enough, the Vibrasphere guys take the album one step further with \"Seven Days To Daylight\". The melodies are deep and emotional, but still amazingly simple, naïve and sounds like they are clearly inspired by Jean Michel Jarre. Psytrance purists may find this too cheesy, but to me this is excellent optimistic trance, and in my opinion one of the best tunes released so far this year. Superb.

06. Morning Breeze [138 BPM]
The groove in \"Morning Breeze\" maintains the intensity from the previous 2 tracks, although with a slightly more techy edge. Generally the track is also a bit more subtle - the melodies aren\'t as in-your-face and instantly likeable as in the previous 2 tracks, but overall this is yet another great track. Morning goodies.

07. Sudden Comfort [135 BPM]
The last dancefloor track, \"Sudden Comfort\", move the album into a lower, more laidback gear. The \"It\'s gonna be alright\" male vocal-sample is gentle and soothing, and the track generally sounds like it\'s the oldest of the dancefloor tracks on the album - it\'s definitely the closest to the sound on \"Lime Structure\". This is still a very fine track though, and a wonderful ending for the dancefloor section on the album.

08. Baltic Resonance [126 BPM]
\"Baltic Resonance\" is, to my knowledge, Vibraspheres first charter into breaks-territory, and the result is pretty good. This is downbeat breaks for the chillout with Vibrasphere-trademark pads and huge atmospheric effects - an interesting track, although I don\'t consider it among their very best downbeat productions.

09. Late Winter Storms
Last but not least is another chillout track, \"Late Winter Storms\". Like the title suggest, the mood is rather cold, and this is the most relaxed track on the album, but in my opinion also the weakest. It is by no means bad, but by no means does it leave a big impression as the rest of the album either - a fairly good chillout tune that doesn\'t really stand out, but a quite pleasant ending for the album.


Bottom line:

Like expected, this is another wonderful album from Digital Structures and Vibrasphere. Psychedelic trance purists should probably stay clear of the album, as this is some of the cleanest, smoothest and well-produced morning trance on the market today, but I personally love the sound. It\'s deep, engaging and very atmospheric, embellished by some splendid, highly uplifting larger-than-life melodies, and all dancefloor tracks are highlights in their own right. A must-have for morning DJ\'s and listeners alike, and it is definitely up there with \"Lime Structure\" - although faster and more straing-to-the-point.

I consider this the cream of the crop of Scandinavian trance 2006, and it\'s definitely one of the essential releases this year.


Favourites:

1, 2 (!), 3, 4(!!), 5 (!!!), 6 (!), 7


Verdict:

9,5/10


Links:

MPDQX/Digital Structures: www.mpdqx.com/ds
Vibrasphere: www.vibrasphere.com