Aux-In

Finishing up Part II of my Chill Out Sessions with five more tracks.


This trance track might require some patience at a total of nine minutes long. It starts off slow for the first half, but by the time we get to the 4:40 mark, it delves into bigger-sounding synths. However, the producers didn't overdo it and the track remains true to its chiller roots. Laura Aqui on vocals, and the story she narrates is that of a lover who is hurt and angry. And yes, she wants her love interest to know about it.

What makes you think that we,
Could fall in love again,
After all our trials,
I still wish,
That what we had was real,
But I know…
There is nothing but space between us,
There is nothing but cold dead air.

She's not done, either, as in the very next line after the above, she goes on to drop a rather pointed expletive. "Oooooh no, an expletive," you ask? That's correct. That kind of thing can come across as unnecessary or tacky depending on its application in a song like this, but here it is pleasingly unexpected as it adds another layer to the emotional impact of "The Space Between."


It's aight. Kind of slow, obviously. While not a go-to, it's nice to put something like this in the rotation from time to time.


This deep-house track is either a cover or an adaptation of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game," or something like that. I'm splitting the difference of the "s" as the reason for my uncertainty, not to mention the fact that I simply have no interest in diving that far into things. With "Wicked Games," the Parra for Cuva version, the effects that were put on the vocals sound weird, although they don't ruin the track too much as long as you don't let that kind of thing get to you. Deep house and I don't always see eye to eye, but I'm alright with the beat on this one. More of a background track for me.


My favorite versions of "Lost" are the [Chillout Mix] and the [Dance Mix], but the uptempo dance mix loses some of the warmth of the aformentioned, so the chillout mix it is. The video I'm posting is the official upload, but it's not the full version (that can be found by searching YouTube or whathaveyou). When playing this particular video, it gives a good description of the song via a bunch of text scrolling across the screen, so anyone wanting more info on the track can check that out.

"Lost" is a song to put on for when you're going through a difficult time in life; when you're looking for a song to fit that kind of mood.

- Sunlounger is German composer Roger Shah.


Perhaps one of the more powerful and emotional songs in my playlist, and it doesn't need to beat you over the head to do it. At the moment, I don't have anything creative to say about the lyrics or meaning, but my lack of words in no way detracts from the quality of this tune.

"Center of the Sun" was co-written by the singer of the song, Poe.


Even though I have a lot more ambient stuff upcoming, I wanted these two Chill Out Sessions to focus on downtempo-type tracks. For Part II, I like the lyrical content in these selections, particularly "The Space Between," "Lost," and "Center of the Sun."

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"All over a bowl of bitter beans."

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I can only make a couple of definitive statements about the music I listen to. In fact, when I sit down and think about it, I can only come to three total conclusions out of tens of thousands of tracks that I've ever heard in my life. And since this is my journal, I should be able say this with impunity from some sort of peanut gallery, so please hold on to your rotten tomatoes.

1) "Would?" by Alice In Chains is the greatest hard rock/metal song of all time.
2) "Universe" by Xilent is the greatest melodic-dubstep song of all time.

This leads me to my third definitive statement:

3) "Lick The Rainbow" by Mord Fustang is the greatest electro-house song of all time.

I don't make any of those statements lightly, either.

Originally, I was going to include "Lick The Rainbow" when I did my road-trip write-up, but when I went back and looked at the dates where I officially gave songs a thumbs up during that time, this wasn't on the list. However, that could be a cloud of a memory, because I'm pretty sure it was playing on Pandora when I was driving through all of that desert. In all likelihood, things were so new to me then that I probably didn't get around to thumbs-upping it until a few weeks later. Had the dates aligned, I would've added "Lick The Rainbow" as the #1 pick for my Desert Driving Mix, which I'm now adding to and renaming Music For Your Automobile: Drive-Time Circuit (Mix).


There are all kinds of things going on in this instrumental, from spacey ambient vibes, long builds, complex breakdowns, and a couple of turntable "wikah wikies" thrown in for good measure. I don't produce any music, but I can tell when an artist is putting his or her all into what he/she is creating. This is a perfect car song, essential for long drives to nowhere. Having a Mustang isn't necessarily required .

Artist Info: Mord Fustang is clearly the reverse of Ford Mustang. I'm hoping that reversing the two letters between words isn't becoming a trend, but there are a few artists that do this, San Holo being another one that comes to mind. Now, I know that some producer/DJs feel that being secretive and anonymous gives them a bit of panache, if you will, but I went to Fustang's YouTube, Soundcloud, Facebook, and his official Web site, and the only bio he had at all was on his Facebook, which simply read: "Hi." That's it! So that's where I'm going leave it.

I'm adding this as well:


Also an instrumental, Gering's remixing added some catchy hooks that aren't present on the original.


~ aux-in

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This is an entry by Zendaya, a Disney actress, turned model, turned singer. Even though I've had this top-shelf track for over a year now, all I knew about Zendaya and Jason Nevins before doing this write-up, were their names. So, another Disney alum that wants to be a pop star? What's the difference here? The difference, aside from the fact that Zendaya can sing well, for this specific track, is actually Jason Nevins. I may have never heard of him before, but he's no stranger to the music industry. Nevins is the producer responsible for RUN-DMC's "It's Like That," and he has worked with artists such as 2 Live Crew, Cypress Hill, N.E.R.D., Duran Duran, Florida Georgia Line, and Nelly, among others.[1]

The original version of "Replay" is from Zendaya's self-titled album, and it would peak at #40 on the Billboard Hot 100 and later become certified platinum.[2] Unfortunately, while "Replay" features Zendaya's piercing vocals, the beat seems like a throwaway beat that someone plopped the vocals on top of; it doesn't add anything to the song, it doesn't fit the vocals, and I'm not quite sure what they were going for with that. This is where Nevins' experience comes in, and his remix results in a balanced, club-oriented sound where neither the instrumental or singing overpowers one another. Certainly, at 6:42 in length, that leaves enough time and space for the instrumental to become an integral part of the experience, rather than a detractor. Melody + movement = stuff I'm more inclined to like, and it's that combination that is reason enough to continuously press "Replay."

I looked up this remix on Beatport just to try to satisfy my genre-labeling OCD, but no dice, as it's not a track they have in their database. All I'm left with is guessing games. I say it's electro house, but it could just be music.

Current YouTube views for "Replay"

Original: 115,262,902
Jason Nevins Remix: 329,336

^^ Big difference, but not same difference.

[1] Jason Nevins - Wiki
[2] Zendaya - Wiki.

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Krewella is one of those love 'em or hate 'em electronic acts. Formed in 2007, they wouldn't take off until 2012 with their release of the Play Hard EP. In 2013, they would release their first full-length studio album, Get Wet. Originally a trio, Krewella was comprised of sister singer-songwriters Jahan and Yasmine Yousaf, as well as Kris "Rain Man" Trindl, the producer for the group. "Rain Man" would later leave the group, suing the two sisters for $5 million. The whole thing was rather public, which you can read here: Krewella's Jahan Yousaf Op-Ed: Deadmau5 Saved Me From Going Into Porn. As you can tell by the title, Deadmau5 felt it necessary to insert himself in the brouhaha, which has become his schtick within the electronic community as of late.

But enough about all of that, let's get to the music.

Their biggest hit:


It's nice, solid, cheesy dance-pop.


Some more variation here in the instrumental. This is an electro-house banger.


I prefer the remix for this one.


Has some acoustic guitars. An emotional song.


A club banger.


The lyrics to "Play Hard" are like most of Krewella's lyrics: immature. Still, I like the music.


Finishing off things with an awesome remix from DotEXE. This is drumstep, a subgenre of drum & bass.

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It's back to my typewriter as I try to whip up some descriptions on some hand-selected goodness.


This is one of my personal favorites. This progressive-house track is a sleeper, as it takes a full two minutes to get to the bass drop. That is to say, what you spend in patience is rewarded with a drop(s) that is nothing but pure energy. The people who made this song did a good job in transitioning between the smooth, harmonic parts and the bassline drops. Another thing I like about this song are the lyrics. This line in particular makes the track for me: "Dream of days when we were young, breathing in the rising of the sun." Overall, I feel that the lyrics bring a reflective tone to the piece. I was young once, so yeah, that one line does evoke an image of taking in a sunset, looking back on some parts of my life that were more care-free.

I tried playing "Sunrise" for my dad, who is no fan of this kind of music, and he said it sounded like the vocalist had indigestion. I don't think that's fair, as this was coming from a guy who is obsessed with fidelity and flat music. He probably had trouble processing or understanding the editing/stutter effects properly, as he's not used to groove music. Anyway, I love the vocals on this, so I'm going to chuck it up to the fact that he doesn't know what he's talking about. :/

Of the videos available on YouTube, the highest view count for this version of "Sunrise" was a little over 3,000. Without a doubt, this track is criminally underrated.


Some darker, vocal dubstep. I found this while doing a completely random search on YouTube. From time to time I will do such searches, on purpose, just to see what I can find. This was some time back when I found this; it's been awhile since I've conducted such a search, although it's a reminder of how many times I've been able to find ace tracks that aren't anywhere else. The reason I clicked on "All I Want" was because I liked the background art, but I certainly wasn't disappointed with the music, to say the least. Crunchy tune.

I'm going to stay crisp by finishing off this entry with another dubstep tune from 501.


Nothing like dubstep with both melody and crunchiness at the very same time.

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I first came across the original track of Hellberg's "The Girl" which features singer Cozi Zuehlsdorff. You can hear that version here. I knew when I heard it that whoever wrote the song (I'm assuming Hellberg) knew what they were doing from a musical-theory perspective. However, I didn't find that the instrumental synced-up well enough with the way the structure of the vocals were written. Not that the instrumental is all that bad, but I felt that the lyrics and vocals deserved something more. Luckily, the "The Girl" was part of a remix contest, so I was able to sift through over ten remixes to find something more to my liking. Well, it turned out that I didn't like any of the remixes, either. At that point, I was going to drop the song altogether, even though there was so much promise in it. That's when I just so happened to click on a piano cover version featuring Aloma Steele, who I know has been in some other tracks put out by the label Monstercat.

Steele's vocal performance is darn good, although she does struggle in some spots to stay on key. It seems to be a live cover, and as far as I can tell it has not been edited with any kind of voice-correcting software, which is why you can hear her breathing patterns. I could be wrong, but that's what I hear. Because of that, and the fact that the instrumental is pure piano/keyboard, it is more intimate, so it fits the lyrical content better than the original.

---

I'm going to go ahead and add this next one. This falls in the guilty pleasure category.


Now, "Baestation" features crude lyrics, so I gotta hang up an NSFW tag on it, albeit it's all done in a humorous way. From what I can gather, Steele is a Call of Duty player, so she's making [lighthearted] fun of fellow Call of Duty players. I'm not sure if she also made the beat for the track, but if so, I'm impressed. "Baestation" is just for fun; not something to be taken seriously. Even though that's the case, this has a direct-from-artist feel to it like a lot of my selections do; it's ground-level stuff, which is why I like the electronic scene so much...artists making music they want to make, whether serious or to have a good time. This was released on the label SectionZ Records.

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"All over a bowl of bitter beans."

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This is another one of those tracks that gives me a sense of nostalgia for some reason. Not all older songs do that. In fact, most don't, so it's always curious to me what it is about a song that does that, especially when it comes to recent finds that I had not experienced beforehand and/or have no other attachment attributed to it.


Now going on almost 12 years since its release, "Anything But You" still delivers the same good vibes and solid production that it did when Way Out West dropped it upon the world in 2004. The YouTube video, which has an unassuming thumbnail, is comprised of footage from when Way Out West performed at the Glastonbury Festival. This, of course, is the radio edit, as the original stands at 5:43 in length. Teeeeeeechnically, the genre is breaks, but it sounds more like trance to me.

Lyrically, "Anything But You" is a love song:

When my heart stands still for a reason, I'm in love with you
When my heart stands still for a reason
There's nothing that I cannot do and my breathing follows you

While that may be true, two lines add a larger dynamic, as the song transitions from relatively generic love quotes to more global themes.

To dream in a worn out world, in a plastic world is to win
To dream in a sought out world, in a broken world is to begin

Great lines. Even though the larger points are not explored beyond that, and while it may be nothing more than a fancy way of saying "our love against the world," I like to think there's a political, socioeconomic theme to that. Overall, the positivity is inferred, and understood. You feelin' those hippie(ish), coffee-house vibes?

Fun fact: "Anything But You" would appear on the Tiger Woods PGA Tour '07 soundtrack.

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"All over a bowl of bitter beans."

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This is a compilation album put together by Aruna Abrams, a writer, singer, DJ and producer who also hosts a radio show called The Hot List. This album is a representation of her work on said show since she started it in 2011.


(1) "The Other Shore" [Aruna vs Steve Kaetzel Radio Edit] (Aruna Intro Mix): I'm getting an icy- and/or aquatic-type vibe on the intro, which is what the producers were going for given the track's title. Later in the song, things feel more "summery." Aruna is on vocals, however, I feel that they're a miss here. It's an intro mix, so I'll cut the song some slack in that regard. "The Other Shore" stays at just below a medium pace, and it does have some decent synth work.

(2) "Toys": A more abrasive track than the first. This is a heavy instrumental. The background beat on this is light and playful, but man does the main beat sound grating.

(3) "Again": At least starting off, this sounds indistinguishable from the previous track, except for some vocal sampling and piano work. Later in the track, the flow opens up some, although the underlying tone stays in the abrasive-instrumental arena.

(4) "Leave The Light On" [Wrechiski Remix]: Power-vocal track. The vocals are extended in a high-pitched fashion in the buildup phase, which is kind of annoying. Now it drops @ 1:57 into a conventional, progressive beat.

(5) "Demon" [Kago Pengchi Remix]: Vocal track. It's a balanced track production-wise, but nothing that produces an OMG moment for me.

(6) "Phoenix": This sounds promising. I really like these types of sound effects. It's the best instrumental so far on the disc, even if it only lasted for all of 2:41.

(7) "The End" [Alex Klingle vs. Blasterz Remix Edit]: My first instinct is that this sounds like something that Anjunabeats would release. Aruna is back on vocals, and they're the best on the disc so far. I've heard this one, although I'm not sure where. The instrumental isn't too bad, but it does seem a tinge out of touch with the vocals.

(8) "Oceanside": A light instrumental that gives off the vibes of being in clouds or whatnot.

(9) "What If" [Ost & Mayer vs. Aruna] (Original Mix): Aruna on vocals, and they're on par with track #7. It's okay. Has a preppy feel to it; makes me want to shop at the mall or something. Those still exist, right?


(10) "Prank It": Some decent variation in the beat. This wouldn't be a bad track for the club, but for personal listening, I'm going to pass.

(11) "Signus": Standard tune.

(12) "Helpless" [Monster Mix]: I like the vocals, but the track doesn't stand out to me.

(13) "Helion": Standard tune.

(14) "Closer": A vocal track with some good vibes. The singer has a distinct accent which reminds me a little bit of Allisa Rose, but as you can see, it's Sarah Russell. It's an okay track. "I'm getting closer to you" is the refrain.

(15) "Miracle of Dark Paradise" [Aruna Mashup]: Like the vocal stuttering and subsequent vocal inlays on this one.

(16) "Move on the Great Divide" [Aruna Bootleg]: Definitely hearing elements in this that were in a different remix. I have not heard the original or this bootleg version, but I can hear now the genesis of the other remixes.

(17) "Horizontal": Choppy trance. Otherwise, I have no opinion on it.

(18) "Junky": An upbeat and driving instrumental. This sounds like the sort of video-game music that would play after you've beaten a main boss and completed your final journey.

(19) "Sunrise" [Aerosoul vs. Aruna] (Original Mix): Above standard. "Racing to the sunrise" or "I will race you to the sunrise" is the refrain.

(20) "Clash": No opinion.

(21) "Wayfarer": This is only 58 seconds long. Why? Pointless.

(22) "Lights" (Club Mix): This is only 1:31 long. Yawn.

(23) "Skyfall": This is only 58 seconds long. Deja vu. The track also added nothing to the mix, but it wasn't even given a chance to do so.

(24) "Reason To Believe" [Paris Blohm vs. Fractal Remix Edit]: Structurally, "Reason To Believe" is the best song here, but that's more because I'm thinking of the original. The latter half of this mix goes off into a meandering direction that doesn't work for me.


I would say this album works better as a full listen, rather than pulling out the hits and listening to them separately. This, I suspect, is exactly as Aruna intends her show/podcasts to be, and in that sense, this output does its job. However, I'm constantly listening to similar types of music as to what is presented here, across all electronic genres, so I have progressed to a higher plain of understanding in regard to what I'm looking for in my selections. The unfortunate downside to that is that it has become harder for things to stand out to me if I can't automatically pick up on a sound that I like. Much of The Hot List: Volume One is comprised of the newer, standard sounds of trance that feature larger synths and more abrasive effects. While I have no problem with that at all -- just listen to anything in this journal -- a lot of the tracks on this album simply weren't hitting the melodic, euphoric notes that satisfy my individual taste in trance music.

An important thing that must be noted is that most of the songs are shortened, and there isn't an explanation as to why. This is an Enhanced Music issue, as it's the second signed CD that I've purchased where the songs were shortened. With some tracks at 0:58, those don't even qualify as radio edits. If labels are going to release an album, which people are actually paying for, then the full-length tracks should go on it. When I looked this album up on Amazon, I saw that the songs were listed at their full lengths, so I'm at a loss for why it is not the same for the CD release. As such, if the album is incomplete, then this review might also be considered incomplete, save the fact that I'm reviewing an official release, exactly in its intended form.

This was another opportunity to pick up a signed album from an artist that I like, so I gladly took it, importing this puppy all the way from the UK. While the lack of track length throughout is unfortunate, I did only pay $10.56, and that's after the currency conversion; the digital album is $8.99, with some tracks only available on the hard copy. When considering the price, and the fact that I was able to get an autograph (autos are cool) from an industry stalwart, this purchase was an easy choice to help keep my collection red hot.

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Reviews l YouTube Playlist: Another Dimension

"All over a bowl of bitter beans."

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The above is a link to my Pandora station if anyone is interested. I have also added the link to my signature.

• I still plan to put everything in this journal and think it's the best bet, but this is a way to listen to similar material in a radio-type format.
• A lot of songs I have discovered outside of Pandora's service, so they won't be on there.
• With that said, it will have many of my liked tracks, as well as the plethora of songs that Pandora's algorithm is able to pull out of its hat.

I named my Pandora station The Golden Egg because of how much success I have had at finding new artists and good tunes via this utility. It is a culmination of years worth of continual listening, manually adding artists, and carefully selecting thumbs-upped tracks, all in order to get it to where it is today.

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Reviews l YouTube Playlist: Another Dimension

"All over a bowl of bitter beans."

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A Tort reform so dizzying it'll make your head spin:


Enjoy...

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Reviews l YouTube Playlist: Another Dimension

"All over a bowl of bitter beans."