It would be easy to call this a Border Community rip off but I personally think that the Border Community sound has reminded a lot of producers what they enjoyed about trance to begin with. Girl In Water is a very solid release with the subtle Dan Berkson & James What being the pick of the liter. It takes the track into a techier and more sedated route perfect for early sets or cooling a crowd off for a moment. The only real gripe is that it's a bit by the books but for those looking a continuation of the Border Community sound it's worth looking into.
This isn't a bad release. Just not very original.
Both mixes of "Girl in Water" are incredibly derivative of the James Holden / Border Community sound.
If you don't understand this obvious rip of production style, refer to Nathan Fake's "Outhouse" or practically any Border Community release.
"Girl in Water" is solid, so I'll keep it on my hard drive. But I won't be purchasing the vinyl since I already own the best Border Community releases, which I prefer for their elegance (Fairmont's "Gazebo") and psychedelia (Holden's "Lump").
Matzak isn't the only artist guilty of copying the Border Community sound, as it IS infectious, and there have been plenty of poor BC clone records in the last two years. In fact, some of them have even been released by Border Community, as the past couple releases might be an early indication that the label has run out of new ideas and is now recycling old ones.
So now that the Border Community sound is an officially influential and copied phenomenon, what do we call it...?
Emo Tech...?