Various - Trance Nation America

This is not your typical Trance Nation CD! Normally I can't stand any release from Ministry of Sound, DJ Tiesto, Armin Van Buuren, Ferry Corsten, etc. It's not my style of electronic music. I like something more subdued, more clever, something a little off kilter, like for example, your typical John Digweed, or Dave Seaman release. I don't enjoy trance music where they beat you over the head with the beat, and try to allure you with an sing-along synth line that doesn't attract your attention but instead strangles you for it. This is not what you will find here.

That said, fans of progressive house will find plenty to enjoy here. Taylor takes the middle of the road with his mix, dropping plenty of big name anthems, but when all is said and done he leaves a little to be desired. His mixing is excellent, but his track selection is a little too obvious. BT's "Dreaming", Taylor's own "Anomaly", and Pink Bomb's "Indica" have all been overplayed. These are not bad tracks by any means, but they've certainly lost their edge due to over exposure. Since these are the highlights of the set, the rest of the tracks seem mediocre by comparison. Overall, good but unremarkable. Three stars.

Jimmy Van M's set however, is beyond good. I find comparing albums is the best way to convey the sound of an album through words. In this case, Sasha & Digweed's Northern Exposure: Expeditions to me, is the closest sounding album I've heard (which for those who've heard, know that this is among the greatest progressive CD's yet to be released). Starting off with Cass & Slide's absolutely chilling "Opera", you know your already in for a hell of a ride with this mix. In fact, the opener is so good, the rest of album has a hard time reaching this same pinnacle. The rest of the set bumps and burns with trickles of melody at just the right moments to keep your interest. "Klein Aber Doctor" by Almos is the perfect example of this suspense and release style. Other highlights include Revolt's "Dive Into The Deep", Science Dept's "Repercussion" (as heard on John Digweed's "Hong Kong" mix), and Timo Maas' remix of Kee Mo's "Madness". The album's conclusion in LSG's "Hidden Sun Of Venus" ends up being more of a deep sigh rather than an explosion of dramatic build-ups and anthemic trance. I cannot recommend this mix anymore for fans of the Sasha, Digweed, or Dave Seaman style of progressive. Simply amazing. Five stars.