Search - Trendroid :: Transport 6

New talent have the old guard taking notes

Richard Diaz | 09/22/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"You've come a long way, baby. It was 1998, and armed with the world's most successful DJ, Paul Oakenfold, and a top 10 of trance anthems, you sold over 100,000 copies while simultaneously converting scads of new listeners to the energetic trance sound. Four years and six volumes later, unknowns Trendroid are headlining a double disc set of progressive music for the newly named Transport. So are Kinetic scrambling for acts or have they latched on to rising stars in Pankaj and Matt Edwards? Well how sneaky of those chaps to design their set as a calling card for their style: loud, noisy, exciting, resolutely house music. Big kick drum record after record that effortlessly translates a club atmosphere to plastic, you just want to crank up until it pounds in your head. So spice it up with a Spanish vocal (Sultan's "Sagres") or refreshingly melodic breather track, notably the sitar and symphonic synths of Cuba Computers' "Haunting Me," but always keep it energetic. And what the heck, chuck a strictly-party piece "The Pleasurist" in for good measure. With two discs to work with Trendroid switches faster and deeper the second hour, a one-two blast off of PQM's disturbed narrative "Insane Poem" and digital needle-pusher "Action Reaction" with sexy cybervoice in tow. Let's see. They pick good tunes that no one's on right now (Chris Fraser "Flash Point" anyone?) and make them equally as wicked, as their abrasive, funky "dedication to house music" "Trendication" shows. For two men new to the scene, Transport 6 should have the old guard taking notes."

Good, but to many loops

A. Gorodinskis | Boulder, CO United States | 05/20/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Trendroid 6In an interview after the release of "23 AM" in 1997 Robert Miles suggested that in the future trance should become darker, deeper, more progressive. The Tranceport/Transport series exemplify the evolution, from trance of the late nineties to trance of the early 2Ks. While Transport 4 is perhaps the most progressive, Transport 6 is the darkest and deepest, the sexiest, the most experimental. It is important to note that in a mix of such reputation as the Transport series, the DJs select the best tracks to portray the sub-genre. Off course the definition on 'the best' cannot be objective, but the fact that they are DJs taking upon the next Transport album shows that they have a pretty good idea of what people like. Moreover, the album should be viewed as an album, as one piece. A mix like this should not be considered a collection of 25 tracks, but as one melody. Like a producer selecting different notes for a tune, the DJ selects certain tunes for a mix. Thus I first view this album holistically: it is indeed dark, and perhaps on the very opposite side of the trance spectrum from the 'la-la' lyrics of euro pop or dance-trance. In the music, the samples are very carefully selected and engineered; none can be traced to any 909 Drum Machine or Roland. Very well done; signs of extremely meticulous production. Nothing comes out by mistake, everything desired is done, every sound effect, every drum pattern. Reverbs and Delays are there, but the producers seem to have total control over them, there is no extra overlay, the music seems to slow through the fingers of the producers. So they are good, good at production however sometimes the music lacks enlightenment, a sense of inspiration is almost lost. Perhaps it is me who does not understand this new style, but maybe there is a bit or truth in what I say. The most memorable track on CD 1 is No. 5, tracks such as 11, and perhaps 4 are also worth individual mention, the rest however all blend in my memory. These tracks show that is possible to be deep and dark and not become overly melodic, cheesy and predictable. On other sections of the mix, music seems to be sacrificed for sake of production, and one finds oneself amongst repetitive, often tribal beats accompanied by sound effects and a heavy, simple bass line. Sometimes the bass line achieves the desired hypnotic effect, but it's mostly there to fill a frequency gap. With the beautiful sound effect, the producers try to fill the melodic gap, some parts seem as preludes to an escalation in melody, yet they never end, there is no escalation before another beat begins. The sound effects should complement the melody, not totally replace it, I think. Clearly the producers of the genre try to achieve a hypnotic trance effect through the use of percussion and effects, but too often they fail, leading to music that is simply boring, and any sense of trance that is achieved is only a placebo effect, or a shear effect of over-repetition. CD 2 is better in many ways, in ways CD 1 was ridiculed. The epitome in my opinion is track 12, very dark and yet extremely melodic, with perhaps more individual tunes than the rest of the CD combined. The following track (13) seems to be ready to once again repeat the grandeur of 12, yet it falls short, it seems to be trying to break free, a distorted guitar sound seems to emerge as gradually as it is inhibited. The sequence from track 8 until 10 is very energetic trance, yet still adhering to the unique genre. Track 11 on CD 1 as mention before, does in fact achieve the hypnotic effect through the bass line, however it seems more of a house piece, belonging to Fat Boy Slim's "Live on Brighton Beach". As does, and perhaps even more so, track 12 on CD 1, whose place there I ironically do not understand. While most of the CD seems to be simply dark trance, these tracks are completely on the progressive house side, with overly repetitive lyrics and pompous wind-ups. In conclusion, it was nice to hear from some new and unheard of artists and listen to some excellent trance. On the cons, I think some tracks should be booted, replace by more melodic tracks, more euphoric with different chord sequences. Some you can dance to, others you can just listen to in the car, but the music is defiantly for the fanatic, not for everyone. People in hopes of discovering what trance is should first consult Transport 4 or Tiesto and then Oakenfold. Once they succumb to the sound of trance, this CD will bring great enjoyment."

TRENDRIOD

08/11/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Both Disks are excellent mixes. But Disk 2 is PHENOMENAL! I havent taken it out of my cd player for a week. Pankaj and Matt are definitely true innovators of the progressive sound. Mark my words these guys are about to BLOW UP!!!"