Saturday, August 13, 2011

Trance I'm Listening To

My previous post on the best trance songs has remained one of the most popular posts on the blog (it's one of the top three most visited). So I guess it's time I at least post a list of top trance songs I'm listening to right now. These aren't in any particular order (as per the other list). It's just quick list of songs I'm listening to (and yes, I'm aware that some of these don't necessarily qualify as trance... but remember, I don't care).

The quick list is below with embedded videos after the list. Enjoy.

1.) Above & Beyond - Hope
2.) Gareth Emery - Soul Symbol
3.) Orjan Nilsen - So Long Radio
4.) Slusnik Luna - Sun 2011 (Radio Version)
5.) Dinka - Road to Perdition
6.) DJ Shah &  Laruso - Zanzibar



This is a fantastic song, and I think it could maybe make it my Top Ten Trance Songs of all-time, but its not one of the foundational trance tracks yet. However it's still fantastic (as are most of the tracks on Tri-State, I'd give the entire album a run-through if you like Hope, or if you're a casual trance fan who's never heard of Above & Beyond before). I think I could have included the title track, Tri-State, on this list but figured I wouldn't overly populate this list with songs from one DJ or group.



I'm not sure why I like this song so much, but its probably got something to do with the underlying baseline (an Emery specialty). The steady build-up is fantastic and Emery really layers in each new 'chorus'. After each bridge he adds something new and the piano work throughout is fantastic. For you non-trance (or non-electronic) fans, please remember tha the embedded version of this track is a DJ track which means it's got a lead-in beat so DJ's can synch to it when performing live. Click ahead 30 or 40 seconds or more to skip over the intro beat. And, on a sidenote, if you choose to download any trance tracks, a free music mixer like WavePad will let you edit your mp3s so you can take out the long intros and outros and even make the track fade in or out. For advanced music editing (like crossfading and adding effects, the software requires a $19 purchase... but if all you want to do is trim tracks and fade in or out, WavePad is pretty easy to use and it's free.


This is a pretty popular track in heavy rotation at most clubs right now and deservedly so. Time will tell if this holds up well for me, but for right now it's in my own personal 'heavy rotation' list.


Slusnik Luna - Sun 2011 (Radio Edit) [HQ]

I could write almost the same thing about this track as I did for Nilsen's above. It's in heavy, heavy rotation for me right now and I can't tell if I'll get sick of it yet.


Road to Perdition is a lighter than most of the tracks I've already listed and I'm really starting to like Dinka's stuff, but a lot of her tracks do tend to sound very familiar. I really enjoyed Claes Rosen's remix of her song  Cannonball from a few years back. Anyway, Road to Perdition is a solid, softer trance track that I've been listening to for a while now.


DJ Shah (who sometimes goes by the alias Sunlounger) and Larruso teamed up to create the album Global Experience. The album was good, but Zanzibar stands out as the best track. The underlying 'chorus' evokes a native African feel and rhythm, and for that reason it reminds me of the relaxing nights I've had on the more quiet, exotic beaches that aren't in touristy areas (basically, it's not an Acapulco club track, it's more like a relaxing, quiet night of wave watching in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua... or, more obviously a track that's probably appropriate for the tranquil beaches of Zanzibar, but I've never been there so I wouldn't know).

Enjoy...

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