"V/A - Tribal Encore"

[Trance2MoveU]

 

Artist: Various

Title: Tribal Encore

Label: Anjuna Records

Date: July, 2013

 

1. UFOmatka - Vega

2. B.E.T.H. - Back To Blighty (Live Mix)

3. UX - Third Eye (Remix)

4. Aurax - Cone Nebula (Red Meatballs Remix)

5. UFOmatka - Alien's Lair

6. Aurax - Atomic Defloration

7. Jaia - Insomnie

8. Process - Funktion Junktion

9. Sandman - Starfinder (Live Mix)

 

 

 

Grand opening, grand closing.

 

This is the story of many goa labels. They come, drop a release that is filled with hope and expectations for the future and then like a cupcake in the hands of my kids...they just disappear. Gone before you know it. Moonquest Records, Ultiva Records, Phototropic Records (this one had some longevity, but had a lot more drama)...Tough to make it as a label in a niche market. For every Suntrip or DAT Records there is a Tranceform Records. So the labels have figured out that you have to release something extraordinary to get the hype machine working. Get people talking about your product. Release music that maybe wasn't catering to a large chunk of the psy audience.

 

But it can't be all about hype.

 

First thing is promotion. Get your message out there early and often. Next a tracklist that includes unreleased or hard to find stuff from the greats of goa trance seems to be the hotness right now.

 

Then you wait.

 

 

 

But there is a balance that must be struck. Too short a wait and you can't manufacture the adequate buzz. Can't let people's minds wander and imagine the possibilities. Wait too long and people will forget. We lose interested because, let's face it we're easily distracted.

 

 

"Holy sh*t it's a f*cking banana! Hey, come look at this!!! You know you never think you're gonna see one and then BAMMM!!! There it is!"

 

 

Oh and one more thing...make it a limited edition. Make people feel if they don't get this quick (preorder) they'll be missing out. It works, at least with me. To this day I still haven't heard Mind Rewind.

 

But ultimately (and rightly so) it comes down to the music. Anjuna is a new label that did all of these things. Our scene seems to release music daily and the majority of it is the same generic nonsense that sounds like everything else. This label's debut features a collection of rarities and new tracks that has put the psychedelic back into psychedelic trance. It's a mixture of belting goa trance and trippy psytrance. There are plenty of WTF sounds as well as soaring melodies in this compilation that touches several genres.

 

 

Vega sparkles with shiny lights but also has sharp 303 teeth hidden just beneath the surface. Back To Blighty has never been appealing to me, but this heavily techno influenced live mix...something about it. Then there was the next track.

 

 

 

 

I was excited as anyone would be when I saw a track from maestro Kris Kylven and here he does his best NIN impression with guitar crunch and primal screams. This isn't goa or psy (or even trance), but screaming rage over a breakbeat. Yeah, ummm...no, I'll see myself out.

 

Aurax gets things back on track with the Red Meatballs remix of Cone Nebula and c'mon who doesn't like meatballs? I'm not sure if the remix is old or he did it for this comp, but it's a good blending of psy and goa. Unfortunately UFOmatka's 2nd track isn't as deep as the first, but the second Aurax offering is cosmic deliciousness.

 

Then came goa Jesus. Apparently getting Jaia to release a goa track from the past is harder than a senior citizen with a lifetime supply of Viagra. I don't care how they did it, but I thank you (as I'm sure my dead grandpa's boner would) for releasing that classic. Hopefully the floodgates will opern for that project and we'll see a lot of great things.

 

Which brings me to the final two tracks. Funktion Junktion is a psytrance track with a plethora of cyber sounds that makes me feel like I'm deep in their hardware. The compilation closes with a long track by Sandman that has a moon landing feel to it. Alien sounds abound but I wasn't on board until the break. It was ok, but I believe this to be concrete evidence that increased track length doesn't always equate to epic status.

 

Anjuna is following Zion604's lead in releasing hard to find rarities and unreleased tracks from yesteryear. It sounds fantastic (nods to Tim Schuldt) even if I'm not thrilled with all the tracks. The mixing of old and new worked very well and there is something for anyone who follows our music. Congratulations Anjuna, a really good compilation that has me looking forward to what you will come up with next.

 

Bandcamp

 

Mdk

[aurax]

Interesting review,

 

The Cone Nebula remix was written in 1998 by MIki Litvak and myself, on impulse tracker if you wonder all channels were down mixed and the final mix was done recently.

 

Thanks!

[Balance]

Amazing release. Great to see some of the deep psychedelic getting reissued, a bit tired of super melodic sunny sounds, it has it's place but you need the darkness for the light.

 

The Sandman track is perfection. He has been my psychedelic shaman since I heard this track in it's original form on TIP. From 9 minutes on this live mix really flies. Gonna get some mushroom soon & go deep with this and Alien's Lair

 

Thanks to the label, keep it up

[Starkraver]

Ufomatka! Can't get enough of those 2.

[Goa-Head]

Yes Ufomatka is just outworldy. I like it so much that I recall it as 'track 5' from that CD.