Vision & Canedy - Another Life (Hadshot, 2004) - Review

[Guest Dr. Krelm]

Vision & Canedy – Another Life (Hadshot)

 

01. Privileged

02. Good Times

03. Aeroplane

04. Mindbender

05. Low Life

06. Laid Back

07. Loaded

08. Behind the Music

09. Sonntagmorgenheimfahrt

 

Vision & Canedy (aka Marco Mellmann & Marc Vision) have stormed onto the progressive trance scene in the last year with several 12” releases and compilation tracks on labels like Plusquam, Avalanche, Cosmophilia, and Yellow Sunshine Explosion. With each track meeting rabid support, their promised full-length album on Hadshot has been one of the most eagerly-anticipated progressive albums in the pre-summer rush. Does it meet the lofty expectations set for it?

 

In short, hell yes – and then some.

 

In length….

 

01. Privileged

Another Life starts out with the only previously-released track on the album, the wonderful “Privileged” that was the highlight on the Plusquam’s Revive compilation from 2003. I won’t bother talking much about this one –suffice it to say it hasn’t lost any of its luster since the original release.

 

02. Good Times

Now the new material begins… To open, Vision & Canedy turn in the darkest track of the album in the wonderfully deep groover “Good Times”. Warm chords combine with a plodding, dark minimal feeling to produce a brooding early night-time piece. Even in this track one can already hear what is IMO the strongest point of this duo – their immaculate sense of track structure. Every sound, atmosphere and break is flawlessly placed, and the overall progression is executed to absolute perfection. Great start…

 

03. Aeroplane

More upbeat than the previous track, “Aeroplane” features a pumping bassline, sharp percussion, and a plethora of trippy synth lines, sounds, and jabs. This is quite simply peak-time progressive rocker with wonderful structure that will work wonders on the floor.

 

04. Mindbender

This track IS the bassline. After a straightforward start marked by a dubby echoing synth stab, a positively huge system-rumbling bassline dominates the appropriately-named “Mindbender” for the remainder. This is more uplifting than the previous tracks, with a tasteful vocal sample, frantic percussion, and discordant atmospheres which slowly develop and build until the end. While simple in structure, this has all the goods to move the floor.

 

05. Low Life

After a simple beginning, in storms a massive throbbing bassline that seems destined for a rocking outdoor daytime dancefloor. While simply grooving from the start, “Low Life” undergoes an absolutely fantastic build through wistful liquid atmospheres and heavily modulated voice-like dubby synths. A massive break reveals the most tasteful acoustic guitar and piano riff I’ve ever heard in progressive trance, then continues on through the end of the track. This is a huge,huge tune that will doubtlessly *demolish* many open-air dancefloors in the coming months.

 

06. Laid Back

As suggested by the title, this is a chill-out track – or an attempt at one. This one really just sounds like one of their uptempo tracks slowed down to 115bpm for the sake of being chill, and it doesn’t work for me at all. I also am not such a fan of 4-to-the-floor downtempo.

 

07. Loaded

As the heaviest track on the album, “Loaded” is packed full of trippy sounds, full percussion, and a repeating wailing vocal theme. Driven by a sparse dubby bassline and interspersed with long well-constructed breaks, this would be a great track for an outdoor dancefloor at night. The overall effect is perhaps a bit too frantic and thematically varied for my tastes, but it will definitely do quite well on the floor.

 

08. Behind the Music

Towards the end of the album, we appropriately get a more chilled, groovin’ dancefloor piece designed for the final hours of a party. Once again propelled by a sparsely dubby bassline, “Behind the Music” is the most melodic and deep track on the album. An overall melancholic feeling and repeating low vocal sample assemble to a nice after-hours club track.

 

09. Sonntagmorgenheimfahrt

The title translates to “Sunday morning drive home” – and it’s a perfect match for this track. It’s relaxing and extremely hypnotic, but there is a happily uplifting sense that there is more partying to do next weekend. Still continuing the deep feeling from the previous cut, a sparse throbbing bassline, trippy sounds & pads, and a distorted yet restrained screaming synth create an overall uplifting feel. Around 2/3 through, a melody peeks its head through the clouds and elevates this track from being simply a funky progressive piece into an absolute gem. Once again, the overall structure is flawless and every element fits perfectly. They really saved the best for last here. Note to all DJs – I *expect* to hear this one at any open air I attend this summer. Don’t forget it.

 

Final verdict:

With their debut album, Vision & Canedy have not only managed to avoid disappointment, but they have shown their skills on many levels of progressive music. Another Life is an exceptionally varied album with a mixture of styles ranging from peak-time progressive stormers, to wonderful daytime groovers, to deep emotional after-hours feeling. This cleverly avoids the problem of so many albums where there are 7 or 8 excellent tracks, but with such little variation that it is difficult for a DJ to use more than 2 or 3 tracks without getting repetitive. This album has music for all phases of a party. While the tracks are surprisingly simple, there is such a wonderful sense of structure (one can tell there is at least one experienced DJ in the duo) and development. The album itself has a very nice flow to it and feels like more than a collection of killer tracks.

 

9/10

 

Favorites: 5 & 9 are my favorites, but I know I will be playing just about all of them (except maybe 6) in the right situations. As of now, this is tied with FREq’s Strange Attractors as the 2nd best album of the year so far.