House Single

Willy Morales "Beat This" (Juicy Music)

Yet another awesome release on Robbie Rivera's fledgling label Juicy Music. This label has been getting my support since its first release but have to say that this is the strongest to date. It fits in nicely with the rest of the releases, using those now trademark buzzy sounds and top class production. The mix doing the damage for me is Williie's own mix, the track starts with a super hard kick, loads of on-beat crashes and a "Beat this" looped vocal. Into the first break and the buzzy lead line makes its entrance. Simple as fuck repetative melody, almost hypnotyzing. When the beat comes back in, a super heavy bassline follows. The looped vocal cuts in and out of the track brilliantly, keeping it sounding fresh. The 2nd break introduces another complimentary buzzy leadline over the first. With both the leadlines now in place, the beat comes back in and new rythmns are chopped between. The mix keeps building and building into a climax, before the drop-outs begin. This track is hard to pigeon hole, but thats what makes it work so well.

***9/10***

Tech-house Single

Phil Kieran "Carpet Bomb EP" (Skint)

The Belfast boy does it yet again, Phil has been on fire all year and nothing changes there on this release. This EP is Phils next outing on Skint after the absolutely massive "My House" last year. Its the main A side doing the business, and from start to finish it simply rocks! Wikid percussion, quirky rythms and a hefty kick lead the way into the break where a superb vocal sample is used. Firstly its looped and chopped up, but then the full vocal plays before the beat slams back in "Back up........Back the fuck up!" The main hook of this track is simply the on-beat basslines and the percussion rythmns but it works so well. The track is beefed up with some really good pad sounds and cuts in and out of the percussive loop. A definate club track that sounds so fat on a big system. Phil Kieran is going far.

***9.5/10***

Techno Single (Liam's Personal Fav)

Cave "La Verne EP" (Ingoma)

This track has been around for a while now but just refuses to go away. It has been pretty hard to get hold of up until now but is finding its way into more and more DJs boxes recently. Most Techno tracks are based around a percussion loop, but this track takes it to the extreme. From the outset, a "live" percussion loop filters up from nothing gradually getting louder and louder. This makes it a great track to mix with, as many DJs im sure will agree. Its something about the percussion sounding "live" that gives it that big carnival sound to it. After the build up the kick is removed leaving just the drums playing until everything is dropped out. The bongo solo that follows always stuns the crowd, and is quite unique. Big tribal drum hits are added (sampled from "The Goodmen - Givin it up") creating a frenzy on a big club system, when the kick is thrown back in all hell breaks loose, drums galore, whistles and reversed fills. This track will fire up any crowd and so will stay in my box for a very long time to come. Now to my only gripe about this track, the way it ends. What the producer was thinking of i will never know! After the last break all is going well, the kick drops out leaving just the percussion, then suddenly everything just comes to a hault (Like the stop button on a deck!) Makes mixing out a wee bit hard, but the track is so good no-one will care.

***10/10***

Trance Single

Jurgen Vries "The Wilderness" (Direction)

Have to say I was a little sceptical when I first opened this track. Although the past tracks were successful, I can honestly say I hated them after the second listen. "The Wilderness" however, did change my opinion. From the start of the track, the build up to the 1st break is by no means any different, but once the break dropped I was pleasantly suprised. Massive chords, which sound so "big" make it easy to see the damage this track would do to a packed club. All the complimentary chords together sound awesome, top production Mr Tate! After the break, the main leadline is brought in. Although he uses a sound very familular to "The Theme", to me it sounds the way he shouldve done it the first time. The sound itself is very quirky and my favourite part of the track. Now, the rest of the track is pretty predictable but for me the break and the main riff is enough for me. Is sure to be massive for the next month or so, it may not be ground-breaking, but it does all the right things in the right places. Just avoid the Vocal Mix.

***8/10***

Breaks Single

Adam Freeland "Smells like Freeland" (White)

Yep you guessed it, this is a breaks bootleg of Nirvana's "Smells like teen spirit". And who better to do it than Adam Freeland, this is his second bootleg in a row (The last being The White Stripes "7 Nation Army"). Now on paper this maybe doesnt seem the best of ideas for a breaks track, but believe me it so is! After a pretty simple intro for mixing in, the bass kicks in and it sounds so fat. From here little snippets of the guitar hook, and vocals are filterd up and down into the mix, giving a hint to the crowd of what is to follow. When the break comes around, the main guitar hook is played but totally filtered down. As it gradually filters up, vocal snippets are added before everything cuts to silence for a split second, and the guitar riff is played, uneffected. Belive me when it kicks in, the crowd will go mental! When the kick is reintroduced, the fat bassline is there again. The beat then cuts out every 8th beat and little vocal snippets are in its place...."Hey!" This track has found its way into some of my techno sets, as it is fierce as fuck! Im sure a broad spectrum of DJs will be on this for a while to come.

***8/10***