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 ULTIMATE NRG – Megamix
(Central Station)
Genresize Me!™: Commercial/Hard House/Crap
Perfect for: ‘Testin’ out the new subs in me Gemmy!’
The drop: Eww, eww, eww. This thing is mixed by Sydney DJ Alex K, who can’t do it that well because of the obvious gain differences between tracks. The songs are f’ing old: Get Shaky, Riverside, Got To Be Love; I had to do a double-take to make sure this was a current release, and not something that fell down the back of the office pigeonhole during the Beijing Olympics. And finally, each of these poorly-mixed old-ass commercial house tunes have been turned into stupid garbage hard house for idiots, where the only thing between the pitched vocals and kick drum is the same wooden 303 bass note, over and over. Dear DJs, producers and labels: if your upcoming release sounds like this, feel free to take any sentence here as feedback from media instead of sending me the disc.
*
 MARKUS SCHULZ – Do You Dream?
(405 Recordings/Stomp)
Genresize Me!™: Progressive Trance
Perfect for: Getting lost in the sound of whispy vocals.
The drop: Markus Schulz’s first artist album under his own name in three years isn’t quite on par with last year’s album as Dakota, but even with a clear club orientation, it still has remnants; the shimmering, summery synths of Away and Lifted add some welcome departure from the cookie-cutter prog trance easily found under the new Armada-Vandit monolith. Only some though, since Schulz has spread the vocals on the album thick to the sides and beyond. I stopped counting vocal tracks at 12, with a couple to go. Although it has a fair (and reasonably successful) share of male vocalists, much of it gets stuck in that prog trance rut that befalls every producer with dreams of getting on A State Of Trance. Schulz has his own show though, so what gives?
***
 JOHN DIGWEED – Structures
(Bedrock/Stomp)
Genresize Me!™: Deep/Progressive House
Perfect for: Every great house night you’ve ever been to.
The drop: The pack looks a little like an inch-thick Lego block sandwich from the side, and the music within is just as cool as Diggers slides us into a psychedelic filtered pads and deep house grooves. This is a side not always seen from the mayor of Bedrock – a full, deep and sexy mix that was modelled just for grinding in between cocktails. For those looking for their prog fix, the second half brings out the big players like Warren, Muir, Bailey and Marzenit – though the intensity sometimes drops a little below recommended levels. Throw in an additional DVD of a live performance during this year’s WMC, and Structures has a value rarely seen in most retail packages; Digweed’s method of making sounds completely reach out is an amazing thing to hear regardless.
****
 KABUKI – Warrior Soul
(V Recordings/Inertia)
Genresize Me!™: Liquid/Atmospheric Drum & Bass
Perfect for: Hanging out with the Dutchies.
The drop: Looking for a break from all that militant hood brigade wankery? Kabuki’s Warrior Soul flows by the gallon and has plenty of groove time; On The Double is a definite pick, with cheeky bass strings slapping the funk in the centre of all the fast-paced action. Flip the channel to Fever Pitch for kick-ass sub-30hz action and piano lines vying for your attention at the same time – and again to Crosswords, with a lead that seems dedicated to summer poolside action. The only downside is something that’s really no fault of the album itself; we’ve been spoilt by so much top-shelf liquid stuff coming out of the Hospital wards recently that the standard has definitely been raised – probably to the surprise of talented veterans like Kabuki.
***
SCOTTY HARMS
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