Trance2MoveU
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
50
Posts :
129
Posted : Jun 16, 2008 13:54:34
|
Artist: Pitch Hikers
Title: Sting
Label: Nexus Media
Release: August, 2007
Track Listing:
01. 7’34” Can’t Please Everyone
02. 7’40” Creation
03. 6’25” Valhalla
04. 8’27” Taste Our Medicine
05. 6’58” Wormhole
06. 8’02” Rattlesnake
07. 7’04” Mud & Guts
08. 7’35” Infinite Nature
09. 8’00” Columbia (Remix)
There are a few labels out there that I will buy whatever they try and sell me. Timecode, 3D vision, and Nexus Media. These labels make the insane, beat heavy melody driven psytrance that I love. Pitch Hikers is Shift (Chris Hoy) and Slug (Liam Gibbs) from South Africa. I reviewed Shift’s latest Alternator and that was an awesome ride. The last Pitch Hikers album Twilight Zone was a delight and I hope the same for this release. Let’s get to it!
Can’t Please Everyone- Ain’t that the truth! This is pretty standard stuff right up to the break that brings absolute silence. A new melody flowers above the bass line and then it reaches its filtered peak. Not a whole lot to describe really. Powerful without a lot of variation.
Creation- Once again, pretty standard stuff on the dark side of things. Big kick, rumbling bass line and some sharp leads. The break brings back the soft Detroit-like pad, and soon we are off again. I feel there is a too much dead air in this track. Also, I’m not a big fan of the key change. Average track.
Valhalla- Ah yes, the ancient hall of Odin in Norse mythology. I would love to visit Norway one day. This track begins as the previous two have, with full-on bass lines and psy sounds from all around. The break brings a moment of peace with a soft string pad which is short lived. The melody at 4’30” sounds familiar but I can’t place it. When it gets going with the beat behind it, it sounds quite nice. Good track!
Taste Our Medicine- So far their medicine isn’t having the desired effect. This one sounds a lot like the other tracks. Galloping bass line, metallic leads, but this one gives a little more to focus upon. Thank you, yes, there is the acid I have been waiting for! The break sounds quite dark, as if something is crawling about in the shadows. As it winds down it all comes together for a pretty good track. However, I again didn’t like the key change at the end.
Wormhole- This one gave me the feeling that it would keep growing. It would rise only to fall back down again. All part of the buildup I suppose. I will say I enjoyed the latter half of the track more than the former. The 2nd half is truly pumping! Again not a whole lot of twisted melodies, but the ones that are there are very thick. Good track!
Rattlesnake- The beginning lead here is nice and shiny as is cascades over the grumbling bass line. The break brings a forlorn melody that is replaced with more industrial slams. I like the mood here, and this track does change up a bit. The shiny lead comes back and I am in groove mode. But again, what’s with the key changes? Enough already! Good track that was weakened by the last bit.
Mud & Guts- There is a nice bass line here but more of the same sounds and “dead air.” I like the melody at the 3’39” mark as it slams into the break. The tribal drums right out of that break are cool, but other than that, nothing special.
Infinite Nature- We start out with a gurgling lead just ahead of the bass line. There are some interesting parts here, but once again, too much dead air. The parts of the tracks that are full, are grandiose. The 2nd half of this track brings a nice melody and the full power I have been yearning for. Very good track!
Columbia (Remix)- I liked this track a lot when I first heard it so it will be interesting to see what they can do to improve it. We’ll call me Johnny Skeptical but this one is just as good as the original. Lots of power, dark atmospheric leads, and an all out banger! Best track on the album!
Summary: Sad to say, I was disappointed in this release. I was expecting full-power acid insanity, but that just didn’t happen. The tracks aren’t bad, but when the bar is raised so high, it is difficult to maintain that type of quality. Maybe they do their best work as solo artists. You know what they say about too many cooks. While the beats were good, I felt they could’ve been more powerful with more intricate melodies. I found myself waiting to see what would develop only to find that nothing developed. A lot more variation in melody and sounds wouldn’t have hurt either. I know this sounds like I am trashing it, but I don’t want to leave you with that impression. This is a good CD, it just could’ve been better. 7.5/10
 Mdk
|
|
|
