Hardcell & Johan Bacto – Dead But Walking

Arguably the finest Devils Choice release of the bunch. The A side was an unavoidable world wide club crusher. It's an instantly recognizable off beat work out with an overpowering yet elegant hook, which could easily be used as an exemplary touch of majestic production technique finesse. Even though the overall feel of the music is pretty robust, these two lay down the simple loopy arrangement with such confidence that the final outcome is lavish and effective, despite the very conventional and linear structure of the track itself. Scarce with ornamental elements used, but the unblemished production vaults, the superb and tight orchestration and the larger than life booming percussion presented in a very moderate and restrained manner make this one of the pinnacles of the hydraulic, condensed Swedish techno sound. Loopy and repetitive down to the cellular level, but downright addictive like a sugar cane dipped in liquid heroin. A true to style post Y2K proto techno track. A rarity of appearance and occurrence within the realms of DJ friendly material that a tool jumps out at you so much and maintains all its charms over a decade since its initial release. Give it a spin, and if you fail to recognize the killer hook of Dead But Walking, maybe you were hanging around the wrong clubs back then.

The B side rounds things off on a pedestrian note, with a slick tribal pounder, with glib side chained synth stabs and prominent response from the compellingly lively sub bass section. The tribal section blends to perfection with the haunting passage introduced a few minutes deep, while the monotonous groove craves for dance floor attention. Great swede utensil, very much along the lines of their "Clips Of Fear" vinyl, but with a stronger emphasis on dance floor devastation, relieved of any digressions or flow impediments. Good for fans of earlier Drumcode, Mankind, Skunkworks or Inside. Nothing more than what you've come to expect from these heavy weights, although bleak in character and identity to a certain extent. Connoisseurs aside, this one is not likely to get spotted by the wider masses.

My money was justified on the A side alone. Play it and I guarantee it will be "that" tune the crowd will remember when the night's up. The flip is full fledged Scandinavian utensil goodness, but the A side really does bring some heavy techno business to the table, and sticks out head and shoulders above countless tools churned out of Sweden during the past decade. Very well done. Years later, and it's still in shape and heavy rotation!