Dark Soho- 'Light in the Dark' (Alchemy Records, 2004)
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| Dark Soho
'Light In the Dark'
Alchemy Records 2004
1, Non stop to Nowhere
2. Light in the Dark
3. Aliens Cream
4. The Toy
5. Long Way Home
6. Away
7. Magic
8. All the Brightness
9. Peace of Mind
This is the third full length release from Israeli trance duo, Dark Soho (Boxer and Rizo). 'Light in the Dark', arrives as a highly anticipated follow up to their December 2002 release on Alchemy Records, 'Combustion'. In the two years since their last release, Zeev Dukman has left the project, and Boxer and Rizo have progressed onwards, creating a new Dark Soho sound which is well showcased throughout the new album. As Zeev was the Dark Entity third of the group, it is only fitting that from the remaining two thirds, Boxer & Rizo, Soho, (the sun), comes an album that is indeed the Light in the Dark....That being said...here are the tracks...
'Non stop to Nowhere'- A perfect opening track, 'Non stop to nowhere' begins with the signature Dark Soho guitar elements, this time a more acoustic sound that evolves into a funk groove, laid back and just when one begins to wonder where the trance is in all of this, the groove breaks down, the strings take over and the track kicks in, a beat reminiscent of Infected Mushroom's BPEmpire, this track has a distinct morning feel, a dancefloor killer that is guaranteed to get any crowd moving. The synth melody has a distinctly brighter sound to it than much of Dark Soho's earlier tracks, and although I am typically a fan of darker music, this track is a refreshing change...I only wish the acoustic guitar melody had been more incorporated throughout the track :(, but none the less, 9/10.
'Light in the Dark'- A darker synth melody and somber ambiance open up the title track, which immediately slams in, reminds me a bit of a softer Cat on Mushroom...with a more refined sound and a definate groove. I am definately feeling the funkier sounds on this new album so far, although I love dark, relentless beats :), this is a refreshing and well welcomed change! Yet another track I can imagine dancing my ass off to at sunrise...Though much of this track has more of a bright, uplifting feel, the somber ambiance and fat crunchy synth maintain a darker side to this track, while not as catchy a melody as the first track, I like the hints of darkness in this track and the Wizzy Noise-esque buildup at 6:15, therafter treating us to a more traditional Dark Soho melody which emerges-- dark, evil & relentless as always...before returning to a lighter groove. 8/10
'Aliens Cream'- Zeev Dukman (ex-Dark Soho) appears on this track, which has a decidedly darker, more hypnotic, techno feel to it. A very mysterious feel.....and killer percussion.....the synth line slams in, yet again another very dancable track, this time one with more of a night time feel...love the percussion in this track, how it feels like it is coming at you from all directions...the main synth melody seems set back a bit, which highlights more of the intricacies of the track....a breakdown around 5:00 and its unpredicatable where this track will turn next, as we are then treated to the intertwining of these few darker synth lines...which contrast nicely with the brighter sounding bassline and percussive rhythms. 8/10
'The Toy'- Impending doom upon the start of this track....a darker melody that wanders around....leading up to a sample before continuing on....leading us to a more traditional Dark Soho sound. This is the chugging sound prominant in many of Dark Soho's previous tracks. With a decidedly more techno feel to this track, this is my favorite so far on the album....killer bassline drops out....leaving us falling until it kicks back in with a chaotic synth line that is just killer...I'm definately feeling this track, as the scattered chaotic synth lines i've been really into lately, wow. this track just keeps twisting around is more and more slamming by the second.... 10/10 for sure!!
'Long Way Home'- This track showcases yet another new musical direction Dark Soho has headed, and is a nice change up for halfway through the album, a track that is more 'rock' than 'dance', featuring a collaboration with world renowned sitar player Anoushka Shankar, daughter of Ravi Shankar, the signature Dark Soho guitar sound is back with a new twist...it is nice to see sitar used in such a non-traditional manner, fitting together so nicely with the melodic synth, heavy driving guitar, and 6/8 feel. Not a track for the dancefloor, but most definately the kind of stuff i would want to hear from a Dark Soho live set. And KILLER synth line at the end... A very nice segue into the second half of the album, and a nice change from the 'obligatory downtempo track' that has become so commonplace on artist full lengths these days. Musically (and in practically any other way I can think of), this is an excellent track. I love it. 10/10
'Away'- The second half of the album...opens with a sound that floats up and down...before leading to a more softer emotional melody incorporating a more orchestral sound...before abruptly cutting off, allowing the beat to kick in....this track is faster and more driving than the previous....with many shorter stabbing synths incorportated well with the percussive lines....and resolving in a darker melody that glides along with the beat.....the track then introduces a more dissonent sounding melody which is a nice contrast in the track....this then resolves into a smoother ambient pad.....and a more driving beat....yet another lead in to a Darker melodic progression...a breakdown, and a darker, more, mysterious emotional feel....and an orchestral melody is introduced along side a more infected mushroom sounding synth...I love this melodic line, definately my favorite on this album, it is complex, dark, and seemingly tumbles down in a roundabout manner before returning to its starting point....a very strong track from the start with many interesting musical ideas 9/10
'Magic'- Yet another track which showcases the new Dark Soho sound, a buildup starts off this track, and a driving beat introduces a more organic guitar sound....before introducing a lighter melodic synth sound....and vocal synth stabs, which I feel are a bit out of place in this track...a groovy synthetic melody contrasts well with the organic sounding guitar....and a more ethereal melody evolves in the background of this track....the vocal synth stabs are introduced again as a lead in to the next section of the track, the main melodies in this track seem to hide out a bit....and then the breakdown.....where the organic/synthetic contrast stands out well, the melodic line that develops out of the breakdown, i like a lot, though much like the vocal stabs, I am not sure that it fits well with the rest of the track. 7/10
'All the Brightness'- This track opens up with a somber orchestral sound, a nice violin sound (being a violinist myself, I always appreciate hearing the violin used in trance)...this track has a much lighter bouncy feel...one would say maybe a bit on the goofy, light hearted side, (this is by no means a bad thing)....it reminds me a bit of Infected Mushroom's Tasty Mushroom, it has that same groove that makes me want to jump and creep around....and then yet another funky, melodic line that twists and turns around, perhaps not what we are used to hearing in psychedelic trance today, but yet another example of the musical talents of Dark Soho. 8/10
'Peace of Mind'- Yet another track which features the talents of Anoushka Shankar, this one opens with a slower, half time feel, and a synth line which weaves and twists is way around and through the body of this track...a more laid back groove kicks in, and a wah guitar sound nicely compliments the sitar, the downbeat groove of this track is a nice variance on the typical 'last track on a psytrance full length rule'......it is nice to see that the two sitar collaborations on this album are so different from each other. This is a very nice end to the album, and will be a nice addition to a downtempo set of mine :) 10/10
Bottom Line: I think the two sitar tracks on this album are what really tie this album together in the end. Not only are they musically two of the best tracks on the album, but they also show off the two contrasting sides of the Dark Soho sound... "Long Way Home' uses the sitar in a darker, driving fashion, more reminiscent of older Dark Soho, whereas 'Peace of Mind' (although more of a downbeat track) is more representative of the emerging brighter sound of Dark Soho. What I love about trance music so much is its ability to be constantly evolving and changing, and any artist who is unable to do that is not likely to capture the attention of psytrancers for long. Yes, this album has a distinctively different sound from Dark Soho's previous releases, but what makes it so great is the variety of tracks appearing on this release. The previous two albums have been more about the Dark in the Light, now is time for the Light in the Dark. Overall Great Album 9/10 :) |
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