Various Artists - Occurrance
Oxygen Records, May 2006
Author: pr0fane
Date: Jun 9, 2006
Views: 2996
Review by:
Jannick Andersen // DJ pr0fane (Dance N Dust Records)
www.sunrisesupplies.com
Artist: Various
Title: Occurrance - compiled by Djane Nem
Label: Oxygen Records
Format: CD (Jewelcase with standard 4-page inlay)
Released: May, 2006
Cover: http://217.160.138.169/pic_b/oxy1cd004_b.jpg
Review:
Oxygen Records is a relatively new label, founded in Czech in 2005 by the two DJ\'s TV and Nem, but now based in Barcelona, Spain. The labels focus is on euphoric morning trance, and so far the first 3 releases (the compilations \"Satellite\" and \"Parsec\" and the debut album by Spectra) has had a quite high quality compared to similar releases in the scene. The newest output from Oxygen Records is the compilation \"Occurance\", compiled by the in-house female DJ Nem, and with a promising tracklist of well-known morning acts, plus a few interesting comeback-tracks from Native Radio and Highpersonic Whomen.
01. Setherian vs Highpersonic Whomen - Floripa Sunshine [140 BPM]
The first track is an interesting collaboration between the Brazilian DJ/producer Setherian and the Finnish progressive act Highpersonic Whomen. Finland isn\'t exactly well-known for progressive psytrance, but when Highpersonic Whomen, a sideproject to Haltya and Pelinpala, released their debut album \"Alternative Energysource\" back in 2002 it received quite good feedback, and I personally consider it one of the hidden gems of the progressive genre. With that album in mind I had quite big expectations for \"Floripa Sunshine\", but it never really reaches the extraordinary level of the highlights from the old album. That said, it is a good opening track though - not quite as fluid and epic as the old Highpersonic Whomen stuff, but more focused on the grooves.
02. Sound Field - One Step Above The Sun [140 BPM]
The Israeli act Sound Field is certainly established as one of the most loyal acts on Oxygen Records, so far appearing on all the labels compilations. The most well-known member of the act is Andy Yakovlev, who is also known for his projects ProSect, Sonify and ICO, and it looks like he and his acts have a bright future ahead of him. \"One Step Above The Sun\" is one of the best tracks I\'ve heard by Sound Field or the other projects he\'s been involved in: strong on grooves, and with different catchy layers of melodies that complement each other nicely, this a very positive and energetic progressive morning-tune. Nicely done.
03. Echotek - Endless Run [140 BPM]
Echotek from Israel is up next with \"Endless Run\". It\'s a quite intense progressive morning track, and the atmosphere is slightly darker than in the first two tracks, with only a small hint of melodies. It\'s basically an ok tune, not downright bad, but unfortunately I find it to quite typical for his progressive/full on crossover sound which, in my opinion, hasn\'t really evolved in the last 3-4 years.
04. Triptych vs. Sim 1 - Silver Trip [144 BPM]
Following up is a collaboration made by the french TurboTrances in-house act Triptych, and Sim1 from South Africa, who hasn\'t released much on his own, but is involved in the project Silver Surfers with his countryman Nate Protoculture. Compared to Triptychs recent releases, \"Silver Trip\" seems more straightforward and in this case this is definitely a good thing: very euphoric and no-bullshit melodic morning full on of the best kind - awesome.
05. Setherian - What Was Lost And Forgotten [142 BPM]
\"What Was Lost And Forgotten\" is the compilations 2nd contribution by the brazillian DJ/producer Setherian, and it is certainly the stronger of the two. It\'s a stunningly beautiful piece of music running for well over 10 minutes, with some truly amazing larger-than-life pads and long, airy melodies. What\'s most amazing about this tune though, is the way that he avoids going into a predictable cheese-fest, with some very clever melodic twists and turns, smart grooves and surprising breaks along the way. Excellent.
06. Chromosome vs Rumble Pack - Hypochondricals [138 BPM]
The Swedish act Chromosome (also known as Andromeda and Soul Surfer) team up with Rumble Pack (also known as Blue Vortex and Natural Flow) from Switzerland on \"Hypochondricals\". It starts out with a very promising intro, and develops into a more or less typical uplifting Chromosome/Andromeda production with naive, playful melodies. It doesn\'t really contribute with anything new, but on the other hand it really works, and I consider it one of the best tracks he\'s been involved in lately.
07. Spectra - Insane [135 BPM]
Next up is a the Portuguese duo Spectra, who released their debut album \"Beyond Belief\" on Oxygen Records last year - an album I consider one of the stronger full on albums from last year, despite the obvious recycling of old full on formulas. \"Insane\" is surprisingly enough in a whole different ball game though - the BPM is lowered 10 BPM, and the result is a very optimistic, tribal house-inspired dance-floor groover. Good track and an interesting development from these guys.
08. Visua - Sayonara [138 BPM]
Visua from Mexico has released a couple of very good tracks lately; most noteworthy was his track on the latest \"Spindrive\" compilation from Spintwist Records, and \"Sayonara\" is certainly also a solid track. It has some very nice upbeat grooves, melodic peaks that never really go too far, and is generally a good progressive morning/daytime tune with both dancefloor friendly grooves and a positive attitude.
09. Native Radio - Downtschaggi [140 BPM]
Last but not least is a long-awaited return of Native Radio. \"Downtschaggi\" is pumping progressive with a distinct tribal layer - it certainly has the Native Radio sound, but is more melodic and faster than their output on the \"Chiba City Blues\" album. Sadly it is maybe a bit to understated and \"old\" compared to similar tracks in the style, and even though the German duo don\'t do much wrong here, it just doesn’t leave as big an impression as I had hoped for.
Bottom line:
Oxygen Records are marketing themselves as a morning trance label, and I can only concur - the psychedelia might not be the absolute priority on \"Occurrance\", but the uplifting, non-stressful sounds presented on this release is definitely perfect for those blissful morning moments, after you\'ve been digging to harder, darker beats the entire night. Like expected it is a very pleasant mix of progressive and soft full on tracks, but it is definitely more on the progressive side compared to their first compilations \"Satellite\" and \"Parsec\". Like on those releases, the quality here is pretty high, but where the two earlier compilations both had some annoying fillers, the weaker tracks on \"Occurrance\" weren\'t downright bad.
In short, \"Occurrance\" is another enjoyable morning-compilation from Oxygen Records, and definitely a valuable DJ-tool for the summer season.
Favourites:
1, 2, 4 (!), 5 (!!), 6, 7, 8
Verdict:
8/10
Link:
Oxygen Records: www.oxygenrecords.com
Jannick Andersen // DJ pr0fane (Dance N Dust Records)
www.sunrisesupplies.com
Artist: Various
Title: Occurrance - compiled by Djane Nem
Label: Oxygen Records
Format: CD (Jewelcase with standard 4-page inlay)
Released: May, 2006
Cover: http://217.160.138.169/pic_b/oxy1cd004_b.jpg
Review:
Oxygen Records is a relatively new label, founded in Czech in 2005 by the two DJ\'s TV and Nem, but now based in Barcelona, Spain. The labels focus is on euphoric morning trance, and so far the first 3 releases (the compilations \"Satellite\" and \"Parsec\" and the debut album by Spectra) has had a quite high quality compared to similar releases in the scene. The newest output from Oxygen Records is the compilation \"Occurance\", compiled by the in-house female DJ Nem, and with a promising tracklist of well-known morning acts, plus a few interesting comeback-tracks from Native Radio and Highpersonic Whomen.
01. Setherian vs Highpersonic Whomen - Floripa Sunshine [140 BPM]
The first track is an interesting collaboration between the Brazilian DJ/producer Setherian and the Finnish progressive act Highpersonic Whomen. Finland isn\'t exactly well-known for progressive psytrance, but when Highpersonic Whomen, a sideproject to Haltya and Pelinpala, released their debut album \"Alternative Energysource\" back in 2002 it received quite good feedback, and I personally consider it one of the hidden gems of the progressive genre. With that album in mind I had quite big expectations for \"Floripa Sunshine\", but it never really reaches the extraordinary level of the highlights from the old album. That said, it is a good opening track though - not quite as fluid and epic as the old Highpersonic Whomen stuff, but more focused on the grooves.
02. Sound Field - One Step Above The Sun [140 BPM]
The Israeli act Sound Field is certainly established as one of the most loyal acts on Oxygen Records, so far appearing on all the labels compilations. The most well-known member of the act is Andy Yakovlev, who is also known for his projects ProSect, Sonify and ICO, and it looks like he and his acts have a bright future ahead of him. \"One Step Above The Sun\" is one of the best tracks I\'ve heard by Sound Field or the other projects he\'s been involved in: strong on grooves, and with different catchy layers of melodies that complement each other nicely, this a very positive and energetic progressive morning-tune. Nicely done.
03. Echotek - Endless Run [140 BPM]
Echotek from Israel is up next with \"Endless Run\". It\'s a quite intense progressive morning track, and the atmosphere is slightly darker than in the first two tracks, with only a small hint of melodies. It\'s basically an ok tune, not downright bad, but unfortunately I find it to quite typical for his progressive/full on crossover sound which, in my opinion, hasn\'t really evolved in the last 3-4 years.
04. Triptych vs. Sim 1 - Silver Trip [144 BPM]
Following up is a collaboration made by the french TurboTrances in-house act Triptych, and Sim1 from South Africa, who hasn\'t released much on his own, but is involved in the project Silver Surfers with his countryman Nate Protoculture. Compared to Triptychs recent releases, \"Silver Trip\" seems more straightforward and in this case this is definitely a good thing: very euphoric and no-bullshit melodic morning full on of the best kind - awesome.
05. Setherian - What Was Lost And Forgotten [142 BPM]
\"What Was Lost And Forgotten\" is the compilations 2nd contribution by the brazillian DJ/producer Setherian, and it is certainly the stronger of the two. It\'s a stunningly beautiful piece of music running for well over 10 minutes, with some truly amazing larger-than-life pads and long, airy melodies. What\'s most amazing about this tune though, is the way that he avoids going into a predictable cheese-fest, with some very clever melodic twists and turns, smart grooves and surprising breaks along the way. Excellent.
06. Chromosome vs Rumble Pack - Hypochondricals [138 BPM]
The Swedish act Chromosome (also known as Andromeda and Soul Surfer) team up with Rumble Pack (also known as Blue Vortex and Natural Flow) from Switzerland on \"Hypochondricals\". It starts out with a very promising intro, and develops into a more or less typical uplifting Chromosome/Andromeda production with naive, playful melodies. It doesn\'t really contribute with anything new, but on the other hand it really works, and I consider it one of the best tracks he\'s been involved in lately.
07. Spectra - Insane [135 BPM]
Next up is a the Portuguese duo Spectra, who released their debut album \"Beyond Belief\" on Oxygen Records last year - an album I consider one of the stronger full on albums from last year, despite the obvious recycling of old full on formulas. \"Insane\" is surprisingly enough in a whole different ball game though - the BPM is lowered 10 BPM, and the result is a very optimistic, tribal house-inspired dance-floor groover. Good track and an interesting development from these guys.
08. Visua - Sayonara [138 BPM]
Visua from Mexico has released a couple of very good tracks lately; most noteworthy was his track on the latest \"Spindrive\" compilation from Spintwist Records, and \"Sayonara\" is certainly also a solid track. It has some very nice upbeat grooves, melodic peaks that never really go too far, and is generally a good progressive morning/daytime tune with both dancefloor friendly grooves and a positive attitude.
09. Native Radio - Downtschaggi [140 BPM]
Last but not least is a long-awaited return of Native Radio. \"Downtschaggi\" is pumping progressive with a distinct tribal layer - it certainly has the Native Radio sound, but is more melodic and faster than their output on the \"Chiba City Blues\" album. Sadly it is maybe a bit to understated and \"old\" compared to similar tracks in the style, and even though the German duo don\'t do much wrong here, it just doesn’t leave as big an impression as I had hoped for.
Bottom line:
Oxygen Records are marketing themselves as a morning trance label, and I can only concur - the psychedelia might not be the absolute priority on \"Occurrance\", but the uplifting, non-stressful sounds presented on this release is definitely perfect for those blissful morning moments, after you\'ve been digging to harder, darker beats the entire night. Like expected it is a very pleasant mix of progressive and soft full on tracks, but it is definitely more on the progressive side compared to their first compilations \"Satellite\" and \"Parsec\". Like on those releases, the quality here is pretty high, but where the two earlier compilations both had some annoying fillers, the weaker tracks on \"Occurrance\" weren\'t downright bad.
In short, \"Occurrance\" is another enjoyable morning-compilation from Oxygen Records, and definitely a valuable DJ-tool for the summer season.
Favourites:
1, 2, 4 (!), 5 (!!), 6, 7, 8
Verdict:
8/10
Link:
Oxygen Records: www.oxygenrecords.com
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