Since it’s now the end of the year and I have Itunes vouchers burning a hole in my pocket, I will start on safe(ish) ground with the help of Armin Van Buuren.
A State of Trance Year Mix 2009
Tracklist link
My God there’s a lot of music here! If I played this back-to-back I’d be sat here for well over 11 hours. For obvious reasons, I won’t review every song but I’ll select the gems and (if there are any) the WTFs. The songs get a little mashed in the continuous mixes (nice to see a little effort in them) but I’ll review the originals.
This is the best of the year so here goes….
This is good in the continuous mix, it’s voiceover guy like the one from Armin’s
Imagine Mix. Even this is uplifting
“These are dark times my friend, no one knows what is waiting around the corner. Wars, made up of beats and rhythms rage across the World and genres splinter into a million fragments constantly creating new signatures….listen, the power is streaming beneath your feet and it’s building day by day….”
A good way to start the mix
The first few songs though are a bit ‘meh’, I get the impression the DJ is trying to guide us in until we arrive at
Jerome Isma-Ae - Hold That Sucker Down. I originally posted this on the forum accompanied by a smiley. It’s a great instrumental track that is instantly recognisable. I’ve heard a few tracks from this guy during the year and I feel he has a great future ahead of him. There’s no strong emotion or attitude to this song, just a ‘let’s go out and party-hard’ vibe. This mix just got going!
Matt Darey & Urban Astronauts – See the Sun (Aurosonic Remix). Given how Armin likes to have day & night mixes, I’m surprised to see this a little way in, relatively speaking. This is a dreamy trance track produced by a legend of the scene. Its vocals compliment the melody and maybe even elevate the song to greatness. I find this relaxing though and it rather kills the mood after Jerome’s party starter. It’s a reset button :/
Arnej – Dust in the Wind. Armin picks it up again with this track and I love it, especially a couple of BPMs higher. It can really define a set right in the middle of the night. What do I like about it? It’s me against the elements. Take the first breakdown and imagine you are in a desert with only one ruined wall for protection, everything stops but you can hear the wind. One violin, you feel weak, but as the track builds you begin to believe. Your energy builds until you know nothing can beat you. You will see this though to the end
The next few tracks are a little edgier and electro sounding which isn’t really my bag but they’re still very much worth a listen
Nitrous Oxide – Magenta. This one starts off much in the same way as recent tracks in this mix, electro with a thudding bassline. An operatic voice then breaks through and draws you in and makes you want more out of curiosity. Once I get to the drop, I’m instantly satisfied as this song has an excellent progressive sound that justifies it’s place on this album. It’s unique and incredibly uplifting.
That rounds off mix one as it moves into stadium trance and some real feel-good stuff.
M6 – Opus Sectrum. While I sit here, this tune makes me come over all reflective. The breakdown consists of an wonderfully emotive string symphony (? not sure of proper term) that for some reason induces a form of deep thinking. I’m not sure if I’d think too much of it while out clubbing but right now, I feel it deserves a mention.
Oceanlab – Lonely Girl (Gareth Emery Remix). TBH I could’ve picked any one of the four Above & Beyond efforts on here. They really have been that good this year. I suppose I chose this because it’s about the closest I’ll ever come to having a break-up song. The lyrics strike a chord because I’ve done this in the past (except I drove to the sea) and it give me feeling of neutrality/reset/zero/move on. It’s hard to describe.
From here on in it’s getting a little more into the heat of the night.
RAM - Ramsterdam (Jorn van Deynhoven Remix). I think I first heard this early on in the summer when it went by the name of id in my collection. I’ve always had a soft spot for pianos and this fairly common type of female vocal in my House and Trance (I think it reminds me of my rave days) and this builds on them to produce a feel-good progressive tune that has become a firm favourite in my library. When I close my eyes I visualise being above the clouds and feeling like nothing can touch me, for those 6 or so minutes I’m the greatest and this is why I had to include this song in the list.
There are a great deal more tracks that I would’ve liked to have shared but these are just some of my favourites and there are some pleasant surprises on this mix that I wasn’t expecting. There are a few ‘meh’ tracks in my opinion and there are a couple of omissions, most notably tracks from
Reeves, Sander van Doorn and Marco V but I’m content with my purchase and I’ll sign off with the final track from this mix.
3rd Moon – Monsun. What an excellent track to finish the mix on. Hugely uplifting and guaranteed to put a smile on your face. The song itself just builds and builds and as each layer is added, my smile grows bigger. It’s almost a celebratory song of the year. 2009 a mini-renaissance for trance