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Echomen - Truth - 28-Oct-08 01:21 PM
"Aint it funny how, a simple thought unspoken
Could change my perception
Of the image that I owned of you from the last time,
That I saw you, you changed my direction
From a lie you gave the TRUTH"

Lyrics from Echomen trios brilliant track Truth just cut right through the air of the dance floor from the speakers. There is not a bad mix of this track that Hooj put out.

The original take by Echomen is a fantastic blend of deep house and progressive house and is sure to work wonders during a warm up or even during the most peak hours, a very simple yet powerful arrangement.

Weekend Worlds take on the track is decidedly more aggressive and percussion heavy, and sounds very tribal and dark, but it stands on its own against the original quite well with its own darker and heavier vibe.

The Northern Lite Remix has a nice intro built into it if you choose to start (or restart) a set with it, but it works fine in the middle of a set as well, the guitar synth used in the track is not my favorite but its tough having to stand next to the other Remixes and the Original Mix on this release, certainly a solid effort still.

Chris Lums Remix is the most unique take on the track compared to the other two Remixes as it goes in a much more funky house direction with a staccato bass line and assorted sound effects all thrown across vibrant pads and a standard 4.4 beat. If it didnt share the same vocals I would have a tough time telling it was based on the Original of Truth.

All in all, this is certainly not one of the more popular releases on Hooj, but its without question one of the best. If you want a physical copy I would recommend completing the set, meaning purchasing both 12" (to get all four mixes) or purchasing the CD copy which includes all four. If you just want the tracks and havent gotten all of them this Hooj release is available digitally online.

Robert Babicz - Dark Flower - 30-Apr-08 06:43 PM
Robert Babiczs Dark Flower is a track of high level and quality production, yet it falls short overall due to its minimal approach to musical arrangement. There is a piece of melody in the original mix that is beautiful yet it is only used for a brief moment and as a result, doesnt stand out that much in the track. I felt that this piece, the strongest melody, was wasted in the track and the potential for this track to be classic wasnt realized.

I of course had extremely high expectations for the Joris Voorn Remix simply based on his track record with original productions and previous remixes. But, Joris Voorn exceeded my expectations entirely, taking the best parts of Dark Flower and making the idea of this track being a classic into reality. The Joris Voorn Remix of Dark Flower is outstanding and phenomenal in every aspect from the elements of melody and harmony, to the arrangement and production. The flawlessness of this Remix is remarkable and this is another momentous achievement for Joris Voorn.

I have room in my sets for the original mix of Dark Flower still, but the Joris Voorn Remix is my go to track on this record and will be the reason I keep this track in my record box for the long haul. This release is worth picking up for the Joris Voorn Remix alone, if not just grabbing a digital only copy.

Sébastien Léger - Jaguar - 31-Mar-08 09:09 AM
With Detroit being in an economic depression its understandable for UR and Submerge to allow their most successful offering, Knights of the Jaguar, to be remade on a different label.

But this is about the most distasteful remake possibly. The entire track has been stripped of its individuality, essence, and soul, and remade with a bare minimum of class and style. The production is low-level, and the arrangement just falls flat.

Personally I would have rather seen another Knight of the Jaguar Remix package on UR or Submerge. The way this is released, as Leger - Jaguar. Its as if hes taking credit for writing and producing the original track, the melodies, harmonies, when it fact this is nothing more than a cover, a terrible one at that. People new to the scene, and unfamiliar with the original UR Jaguar will probably think Sebastian Leger is a musical genius because of this song, when in actually he had almost zero musical input into this track.

Its hard to criticize UR because they are so consistently good, are usually set the bar for electronic music, but this business tactic of selling out one of their strongest and greatest tracks hopefully will be avoided in the future.

EnMass - Avalon / Bass High - 04-Mar-08 02:36 PM
Bass High is an average track by itself, nothing special. But next to Avalon, nothing can really compare.

Avalon is one of the finest examples of breakdown and buildup style trance. Once the first breakdown begins with harmony and melody, and a monstrous bass, flowing in and out sans percussion, you know that a something big is coming. And this track does not disappoint.

The progressive and slow buildup of instruments escalates into a climatic bombardment of harmony, melody, and drums, that is unparalleled in most underground electronic dance music tracks. These are the kind of songs that shape and define underground dance music and give it its separate place in music. The sonic and harmonic achievements in Avalon are worthy of a place in dance music history and should be missed by none.

I am primarily a house and techno DJ, with a focus on progressive house, but such a classic trance track like this should be in every electronic dance DJs record box regardless of preferred genre.

Bart Van Wissen - Hard Soil - 20-Jan-08 04:07 PM
Pako & Frederik take Bart Van Wissens original work and turn it into an epic masterpiece that should be an essential record for the more progressive house enthusiast and DJ. At nearly 12 minutes long the track is filled with outstanding building production that keeps a nice momentum throughout the entire piece. The original melodies and harmonies have been enhanced and optimized to near sonic perfection and every separate instrument and effect enter and leave at best moments.

The track begins beat-less so its best suited as an intro track (its what Ive been opening sets up with, with tremendous success, for the last two years) but it ends with percussion so its simple to mix out of. Progressive house, and even trance, fans and DJs should track down a vinyl or digital copy of this without hesitation.

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