David West - Suffering Island

An absolutely magnificent release from David West. In my opinion, ‘Suffering Island’ is his best production so far, which is all the more impressive given the quality of his productions and remixes. Furthermore, the extent of the contrast between the two mixes present here makes this an intriguing package; the Original is a much more melancholy production, effortlessly driving along on top of a powerful bassline, brisk looping synths and beautiful atmospheres. However, Joonas Hahmo’s remix is rather different; building his reinterpretation around a variation of a melody that develops late on in the Original, Hahmo incorporates a fuzzier bass section and some funky, almost disco influenced elements into the mix, elements recognisable from his individual production ‘The Fusion’. Significantly, Hahmo also comprehensively alters the emotions present within the production, turning it into a far more upbeat number that would sit comfortably within a house dominated set as well as a progressive or trance one. If you have a rather limited knowledge of either West’s or Hahmo’s work, then there is probably no better place to start than with ‘Suffering Island’.