Basilisk
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Posted : Mar 30, 2005 00:16
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V/A - Groove Zone [Groove Zone 2004] CD
Japan's Groove Zone makes it's first foray into the progressive psytrance circuit with this, their first label compilation. The selection of artists ranges from three hotbeds of musical creativity: Australia, Japan, and Sweden.
FREq opens the album with Time Traveller, another one of his deep groovy progressive bombs. The style will be unfailingly familiar to you if you've been tracking Aran's work since his album Strange Attractors was released on Iboga - though this is also the downside to the song. While the structuring, production value, and flow are all on the ball, this one fails to sound all that different from many of his other songs. There's no question that this is good - if you enjoy FREq's style anyway - but it does not add any real value to this compilation. Solid stuff but we've heard it before.
Sensient is another artist responsible for creating a good share of distinct hits throughout 2004. Phobial continues in the tradition of thick and chunky night-time grooves. The percussion is excellent - industrial and mechanical sounds soaked in creepy acidic utterings. Quite honestly, the minimal approach never sounded so good - Tim is almost single-handedly responsible for bringing the resurgent movement a wealth of creative credibility. The element which helps the most is no doubt the absolutely staggering amount of psychedelic atmosphere he injects into most of his songs. This specific offering isn't one of his very best but it is certainly quite good, and should have many trancers bopping and grooving to these deep and dark sounds.
Sweden's Metronome drops another decent song with Too Rough to Cough. He's previously appeared on Z.M.A., and this is an early follow-up. To my ears this sounds like a fusion between the continental sound of progressive (mainly Germanic) and the smooth grooves of Scandinavia. The beat is a thick and bouncy affair, with light layers of percussion and a smooth tribal feel in certain segments. The melodic elements are few and far between - with most of the song remaining beat-oriented, often lacking even the most basic atmosphere. Right near the end a hint of distinctness is finally heard as ethereal pads sweep across the soundscape, reminiscent of early S>Range. Samples from the matrix are completely unnecessary in this day and age. Is anyone not tired of Hugo Weaving's voice in trance? There is potential in this artist's work but I wouldn't call this early effort particularly good - merely adequate, and there's enough of that out there already.
Chromosome join forces with Stella Nutella to produce Le Groove, an intriguing guitar-laced tribal journey that will surely delight the dancefloors. In 2004 we heard a lot from the primary artist here, and it grew to be that a distinct approach in their music was required for their work to rise above the ordinary... here they've managed just that. The first four minutes are standard sounds from the Swedish artist - Logic Bomb on a more progressive trajectory essentially. The guitar strikes provide some interesting colour to the proceedings, and the stark melodic stabs compliment the sound nicely. Following the initial run the song drops to a sequence that features tribal singing that you will either despise or thoroughly enjoy. One must admit that it is quite catchy, and the approach differs from many songs that take the primal path... the rest is fairly predictable, and while the song may avoid claims of depth it will certainly go over well at the outdoor festivals when the moment is right.
Fine Diner is apparently Sensient's brother, but Catalepsy is clearly an amateur attempt at the moody night-time progressive sound. The throbbing beat gets old fast with its monotonous pulse and double-pulse approach. Smooth sounds curl around in the background without making much of an impression, and the percussion seems dreadfully uninspired for long periods of time. The artist should have spent a few more production iterations developing his sound before stepping in to release anything I would opine.
Japan's own OMB provides the next one - entitled BBL. The production sounds rather dirty and dissonant, and the song is too slow to develop to maintain interest. What sinks this track is the nature of the few distinct noises that can be heard as the track goes on - they are irritating and often mask any of the more pleasant sounds to be found hiding in the shadows, barely perceived. Another dud, in my opinion.
FREq drop in for a second appearance with We Communicate, displaying a more sedate side to his sound. The track's title is repeated far too many times for my taste, but the song grooves along in a pleasant way - slowly picking up energy as time goes by. Unfortunatly it does suffer from being somewhat too bland, all things considered. The artist has made much nicer songs than this, and while the production is great and the journey quite enjoyable, this offering remains easily overlooked.
Andromeda closes the album with Slip Streamed for a groovy melodic finish. An unnecessary Hollywood conversation punctuates the introductory sequence, but otherwise the approach is warm and friendly. The sounds are all vintage Chromosome - pleasant melodies with a slightly eastern influence at times, as if plucked on the strings of a strange alien harp. An enjoyable end to the compilation and one of the better songs I've heard from this side project.
Unfortunately Groove Zone misses the mark in today's competitive progressive psytrance market. Current favourites FREq and Sensient deliver a trio of decent tunes that fail to be overly noteworthy, and Chromosome delivers a pair of his better works. If you're like me and you already own plenty of material from these groups, there really isn't much reason to pick this compilation up. If you haven't had your fill of progressive in 2004 this could be another compilation for the stack but overall I consider it merely average. A handful of better songs, a bunch of uninteresting ones, and nothing that really stands out and has the consistency of a lasting gem. A decent beginning for Groove Zone records, but it is one that may be overlooked in favour of better compilations released this year.
Faves: 1, 2, 4, 8
Rating: 5/10
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