Frequencerz and E-Life – Miami Vice

Usually, one would expect composers to transport its viewers to another world with ascending chords and pop-like melodies. Frequencerz and E-Life’s Miami Vice have managed to challenge that expectation or standard with a gritty, down-to-earth track.

The uniqueness of this track is made apparent from the intro, containing some 80s-inspired, old-school sci-fi effects. It’s a great reference to the American Miami Vice crime drama. In each set of four notes, the second note is the highest, while the fourth note, last of the set, is lower than the second. This is followed by a build-up section that follows a similar pattern of starting off high and ending it low.

The rap segment, minimal and appropriate, helps to keep the vibes rooted to the ground: “I’m the untouchable undercover Miami Vice”. Once the kicks come in after this point, I can’t help but imagine myself jogging through the hustling and bustling city streets, on a bridge, looking down at the cityscape lighting up the night. When the chorus starts to sound more victorious, my imaginary self seems to stomp even harder in the jog.

This is a great workout kickstarter, but also a simple, down-to-earth track that can be rewarding to hear while you’re hard at work. We face the facts, live without fear and fight for justice, just like the Miami Vice cops. Frequencerz and E-Life challenged the standards for melodic Hardstyle and it definitely paid off.

Malice – Stronger

How much harder can Hardcore get? Once I played Malice’s ‘Stronger’, I was floored by its intensity. What a start to 2020!

The kicks and bass are so deliciously dirty. If you first listen to this track on free Spotify like I did, it’ll seem as though it’s just dying to burst through the fuzz, as if no amount of compression can tame this beast. That was when I knew that if I were to listen to it at a higher quality, I’d be blown away. I wasn’t wrong. I bought the track on iTunes, and now I can’t stop repeating it.

The melody is also extremely satisfying. Typically, artists represent the sound of victory through ascending, victorious chords in the chorus. This track brings the notes up high within 2-3 notes before bringing it down step-by-step. Malice even puts a kick for every melodic note in the chorus. You could produce an outline of a rocky set of stairs just by following the melodic pattern.

Moreover, the descending chords and bass have sufficient variations and are not repetitive. Through Malice’s melodies, strength becomes a fearsome force that penetrates through any obstacle. This is appropriately sandwiched between some Dubstep-like grinds every now and then, giving the track some serious edge.

How many trials and tribulations must Malice have gone through in his life to produce something so powerful? Whatever those trials and tribulations were were, they’ve certainly proven to be worthwhile. This empowering piece will remain in my mind for years to come.

‘Stronger’ by Malice is now available via Aggressive Records.

 

Mark Sixma and Emma Hewitt – Missing (Andrew Rayel and Mark Sixma Remix)

The first time I heard the Andrew Rayel and Mark Sixma remix of ‘Missing’ was on a day when my colleagues finally asked for a Trance playlist. Imagine how surprised I was when I first heard the loud, sharp sounds accompanied by the bass at 0:16. “Ooft!” I said aloud. It grabbed my attention instantly.

Compared to the rather chill and solemn original mix, this was a 360 degree turn. I liked how this element was placed at the very beginning of the track, which is quite surprising and unexpected. However, to me, it would have worked better if it were like an alarm clock: Goes when you need it to alert you and gets turned off once you’re awake. It lasted just a little too long to my liking. Perhaps it would’ve been better if it stopped at 0:22?

Also, I was not too pleased with the way the loud, trumpeting sound effect was first introduced in this track either (1:34). It sounds like what would be heard in a lot of cliche Hardstyle tracks. In fact, probably even more bland than that. There was no variation in its levels, causing it to lack substance, depth or complexity.

Fortunately, there was a slight effort of redemption when the aforementioned sounds were mixed together at the 2:17 mark. Variation in levels, harmoniously mixed layers, clearly defined and well prioritised.

To conclude my thoughts on this, I think that most listeners would get a pleasant surprise from their first playthrough, especially if they’re a fan of more impactful sounds than the more relaxing vibe of the original. However, the more I repeat it, the more I hear room for improvement. It’s a shame that the ‘first playthrough’ value trumps the value for further repetition.

Andy Moor, Somna and Diana Leah – There Is Light

Listen to the background units pulsing and travelling from one ear to another. The auditory illusion of this kinetic movement is so addictive and satisfying. it’s bound to get crowds moving as their anticipation for what the producers are going to do next is at its peak. Then, the breakdown comes in and soothing vocals with lyrics of longing come in with ethereal synth modifications in the background. Melodic notes rain in, making the bass and background pulses electrify every small strand of hair on my body. Its sweet caress easily transported my mind into an euphoric state.

One minor downside to this would be the repetitive vocal snippets of vowels, which are unnecessary, annoying and cliche. This would have been a perfectly simple and beautiful piece without these fillers. In an earlier segment of the track, the phrase “there is light” was also repeated several times. A more effective rendition would have been to allow a word to somehow echo and fade, possibly even by whispering.  Although, the word ‘light’ itself ends with a rather annoying ‘t’ sound, which probably would not have sounded great if repeated, so I would suggest using the ‘there’ in “can we go there”.

Sometimes the simplest of structures, when well executed, make tracks like this absolutely unforgettable and stunning. Black Hole Recordings’ ‘There is Light’ certainly does sparkle beautifully in the dark of the night.

Killshot and Nolz – Rauwdouwer

Languages are weird. Some languages sound quite aggressive in a regular tone, so when you really know how to stress the most aggressive bits, things go off the walls! Start it off with a few cliche gangster notes that are simple yet repetitive. You’ll start walking funny, feel like the king of the world, feel rebellious, feel like shooting someone…Okay, please don’t do bad stuff, but, you get the idea.

Of course, that’s merely what the track starts with to really hook people in, before it explodes with the roughest kicks. Good things come to those who wait. The kicks that come in at some point aren’t harsh in a sense that there’d be a high-pitch that would pierce your eardrums in an unpleasant way. In fact, it acts like the rough sandpaper that caresses freshly cut wood, or the smooth coffee that awakes and soothes those addicted to it. It perfectly satisfies the craving of Hardstyle lovers like me.

If you’re not keen on having Hardstyle mixed with other genres, like how some people don’t like fluff in fiction, or how some people don’t want anything else with their shots, this might turn you off from the beginning. However, if you ever hear the main bit played in a set, you might skip to the good part and give it another chance. It might be worth it!

‘Rauwdower’ was released as part of Nolz’s new album, ‘Nocturnolz’, on the 11th of May 2018 via record label Minus is More.

Da Tweekaz – Komon

I never thought I’d ever use these words to describe how much I love ‘Komon’: I. Am. Mindf*cked. I have never heard a Hardstyle producer combine vocal and style elements of Trap, Dubstep, Reggae, K-pop (I think there’s a sample is from Psy’s Gentleman‘) and Hardstyle into one until now!

Let me get the forgivable aspects out of the way before I give more praise: Cramming everything into such a short edit makes things quite messy. I wish they spent a bit more time on each genre combination, just so I could have time to revel in it, or let it seep into the deepest parts of my soul

Even if they decided not to cram it all in one short edit and just release different versions with multiple genres grouped together, I’m sure people who love genre mashes would still buy every single version. I wouldn’t even mind seeing a super, unusually long, extended version of this. Just imagining the potential release formats or versions that could have been considered for this piece makes my eyes light up.

Yet, being the impatient person that I am, who gets all fired up about something and can’t wait to get it done once I get that strong urge, this would have been something I couldn’t wait to show the world. Maybe they felt the same. Finishing such an ambitious project in time was probably not an easy feat to pull off. I suppose I can let them off the hook just this once.

As for the chorus melody, I find that Da Tweekaz’ recent releases (including ‘Bring Me To Life‘) have rather tame choruses. They don’t exactly have notes that take me to the peaks. Instead, they sound rather like military anthems. Solemn yet inspiring. I personally prefer crazy, dark melodies these days. However, the exciting fireworks generated from this genre-mish-mash just makes up for that melody.

This track opens up possibilities, fun, excitement, ears, mind and soul. I have never heard anything so thrilling in such a long time! Da Tweekaz have always fearlessly incorporated mainstream genres into their music. I love them for it. I just hope they don’t rush more of their releases. Please take time to really make a track shine. Uncover its true potential!

Brennan Heart and Jonathan Mendelsohn – Follow the Light

Ah, the melodic territory. Something I haven’t immersed myself in for the longest time. To return to this spectacular sub-genre, to a track composed by none other than the veteran, Brennan Heart, is an absolute honour. This is one of those moments where I feel blessed to have ears.

I would never have imagined that ‘Imaginary‘ (pun intended) could have a sweet little sibling. Mendelsohn’s vocals, in this particular song, gave me strong Coldplay and Maroon 5 vibes. If I ever heard this live, I’d like to say to the person next to me: “I promised I wouldn’t cry, but I did.” Mendelsohn’s vocals have a charming, soothing quality, yet the falsetto just brings out all the strongest emotions.

Of course, how could I forget the master behind the knobs, Brennan Heart? The notes in this track are not too squeaky, thanks to the jittery effect. Every segment, well timed; every transition, well planned.  Kicks, mild yet rich in flavour with a bit of coarseness, as though it were refined by the ups and downs of life.

I’m reviewing this in 2018, with the purest feelings of thanks to this magical duo.

Headhunterz and Sub Zero Project – Our Church

It seems that Heady has been back in the Hard Dance scene for quite a while now. Also been a while since I can honestly think “hoooly” when I listen to the intro to a track. Of course, there’s more than just that: The “kicks”, if I can call it that, are definitely something people might be surprised by.

The beginning was like a call to arms. I felt as though my spirit was marching into an alternate reality. The music video reminded me of what was in Heady’s first comeback song ‘Destiny‘, which had a pretty obvious reference to ‘Outlast‘. Except, this time, the church visuals matches the music perfectly. I know it sounds like I’m complimenting the visuals in the video, but if you can listen to a piece of music and feel as if it paints a picture of something very clearly, you know it’s done well. Also, the “kicks”: I’m not even sure it would be considered a Hardstyle kick. It’s more like a generic Hard Dance kick, with a Hardstyle ring or influence to it. Pumping a hard-hitting sound in it’s own special, muffled way. What a lovely surprise.

The downside for me, would be the Heady-style melody that comes in at around the 2.05 mark of the music video. Some might say that if you can recognise something from an artist, their own little trademark sound or style, then they’ve done a (good) job. However, times change, tastes change, people change, music evolves. I will give the same advice as I have in many blog posts I’ve done in the past: Do not use it as an excuse for non-improvement. I will admit that as a listener, there are things that I want to be kept the same, but I want to be excited by what I’m hearing too. Even a slight, miniscule change will do. I want Heady to give me something that says: “This is Heady, but it’s 2018 Heady.” Not: “Oh, it’s Heady again.” I think a lot of Hardstyle artists are afraid to tip that scale by even just a little bit, which is a shame.

Nightfall ft. MC Sik-Wit-It – Whispers of Twilight

Once again, I have emerged from my cave. Sometimes, I deprive myself of the music I love most so that I can come back to it and go absolutely crazy, but you should know that it takes a lot of stimulus to draw out a hermit who is so picky about music. My Hardstyle senses decided to make ‘Whispers of Twilight’ my lullaby for tonight, so I couldn’t resist writing about it.

After a few cricket noises, the track starts of with a connected string of long notes, held by a lady with a wonderful voice. Was it intentionally manipulated to sound unnaturally connected? Or did the lady take a super deep breath before she sang? I don’t know, but the technicalities don’t matter here. It was a risk that paid off. If this unsettling segment went on for too long or repeated too often, I would have gotten annoyed and lost interest early on. Thankfully, this unnatural vocal component only lasts briefly, allowing this segment to become an interesting intro that doesn’t turn people off for sounding too whiny.

This hint of artificiality from the beginning marks the beginning of an epic journey. I feel as if Nightfall wanted to sprinkle this handful of magical sand from the get go, causing his listeners to become unconscious and unable to comprehend the words that were sung. As the darkness descends and listeners fall “in the dark”, they slowly awaken in the alternate, magical realm. The main melody slowly begins to emerge amidst well-controlled variations of volume and compression: Subtle, balanced and not too frequent or drastic.

I would disagree with the part where the MC says “all hell breaks loose”. In fact, the imagery I conjured in my head was rather different: Drifting across the Sahara desert on a dark night, we marvel at the aurora lights. I can imagine the sound waves, reflecting or refracting navy, neon pink and violet lights across the night sky. Honestly, this track can light up any stage. The rich, ascending chords of the chorus are gracefully enveloped by the velvety kicks like mist around a pond. Of course, one must also acknowledge the amazing screeches, which are not too sharp because they are kept under control with the right amount of compression. As a whole, every element of this track is adequately balanced.

Hardstyle doesn’t have to always be about chaos or hell. It takes a lot of skill to produce a piece that is beautiful yet powerful at the same time. I don’t know if my interpretation and feelings towards this track goes against the composers’ or the MC’s intentions. All I can say is, this track is magnificent to my ears.

Advanced Dealer and Kutski – Killscreen

I’ve always associated the name Kutski with UK or Happy Hardcore and never expected him to produce something slightly darker. Looks like I was wrong. Kutski’s collaboration with Advanced Dealer, titled ‘Killscreen’, is filled with a flurry of effective combos that hit some targets nicely. Although I wouldn’t say the track is completely flawless, I did think it was a decent track.

Let’s start by talking about MIDI sounds. I think MIDI sounds are more likely to be enjoyed by an older crowd that has played games which make those sounds when they were very young, because it evokes nostalgic feelings. I can applaud Advanced Dealer and Kutski for creating original MIDI melodies. However, I can’t help but think that the MIDI melody should make reference to actual games at some point of the track. After all, I was able to feel more joy from listening to a Hardstyle track like ‘Game Over’, which makes a direct and obvious reference to Tetris.

The other element that bothered me in this track was the fact that Advanced Dealer and Kutski decided to distort, repeat or tune a vocal snippet and a siren, then turn it into notes of its melodic segments. The melody was enjoyable, but not when those sounds were repeated in such frequent succession. I think they should have made things less harsh and forceful, because it takes away the fun it started off with. Or, at least make the transition from fun to sinister a bit smoother.

Now that I’m up to the fun part, let’s talk about the positive aspects of this track. Around the one-minute mark, I could instantly identify a Kutski style and the speed added excitement. Apparently, the vocal snippets and sirens actually sound less annoying when the track is sped up. Perhaps it’s because I was more able to identify those sounds as a vocal snippet or siren when it was at a much slower tempo and the brevity of these effects made things forgivable. Or, perhaps I’m just a biased Hardcore lover who finds tracks at a faster tempo more energetic. Who knows?

Do I have any complaints about the kicks? Nope. In fact, I adore how its trails are followed by the Mario-ate-a-mushroom MIDI effects. Around the 3.05 mark, it sounds as if the kicks and MIDI effects have tug-of-war, before exploding into the Hardcore kicks reverted to the initial tempo.

I would look forward to hearing more Kutski collaborations with Traxtorm artists. Alas, I have a feeling that it would be a rarity and that’s what makes this track quite noteworthy.