You know that I’m not a big fan of future bass, but in front of Illenium, you just have to take your hands out of your pocket and clap. His album “Awake” is spectacular, the final confirmation that the American artist is one of the best producers in the world.
He managed to entertain me for a whole hour, and don’t forget that I get easily bored by the genre!

“Awake” quality level is superlative. One of the best album of the year, and by far the best future bass one.

It has so many emotions, so much passion, it’s the final confirmation: Illenium is a relevant artist. I discovered him pretty late, just some months ago, but I immediately loved his incredible style.

I have two major complaints about “Awake”, but the final result is so good that I won’t give a lot of importance to them. Anyway, being honest, I didn’t like some particulars, and I think it’s fair to write them down.

First, the 13 tracks have the same scheme. Calm break, superlative vocal, future bass drop with some vocal chops. ALL OF THEM. Apart from “Taking Me Higher” and “No Time Like Now”, which are slightly chillier and with a more relaxing drop, but I will talk about them later.
The overall feeling is that the album is flat in terms of experimentation: Illenium used his signature scheme again and again, without daring too much. It’s a clever choice, but I still think that a couple of “different” songs would have been nicer! In fact the main critic about “Awake” is that “all the tracks sounds the same”. This is wrong, each one of them has a unique personality and passion, but I must agree on saying that they follow the same scheme.

Second point, the vocals. Illenium managed to find awesome singers, I loved basically all of them, especially Kerli and RUNN, but this brings up a question.

Is Illenium able to create a good instrumental-only track?

This may seem stupid, I don’t know the whole discography but I’m pretty sure that at least one instrumental track exists… Still, I would have liked an instrumental intro, or something “empty”.

Anyway, let’s stop being rude with this beautiful album and start with the compliments.

I liked very much 8 songs, disliked 2 of them, and loved 3 of them. Since I don’t want to write a super long and boring review, I will focus on the 3 I liked the most.

1. Where’D U Go ft. Said The Sky

I loved the way the song suddenly hits you with a fabulous drop! This is the most creative track of the album, because it’s unpredictable and it has an interesting vocal chops scheme. It reminds me the epic “Million Voices” by Otto Knows, maybe it’s a tribute to him. Said The Sky made an insane vocal, but Illenium perfectly balanced the dominant base with it, creating a memorable break. Nothing to say about the drop, explosive, solid and super catchy!

2. Leaving

Well, this is the first track I’ve heard, and I immediately fell in love. I hate the fact that the singer is not credited, because he made a super vocal! Goosebumps.
The break is nostalgic and magic, it was a perfect moment.
But guys, the drop.
The drop is majestic, the pure future bass perfection. I loved his slow but intense rhythm, it was short in duration but unforgettable.
Probably my favorite of the album, even if it’s hard to decide.

3. Let You Go ft. Ember Island

This one impressed me for its mysterious mood. It’s calmer and more introvert than the others, and I’m afraid it will be ignored, but it has personality and a unique mood. The vocal by Ember Island is, needless to say that, splendid, but the base is the best part. Illenium made something orchestral, elegant and sentimental, and this detail impressed me. The drop is, as always, effective and stunning. More reflexive and particular, appreciated that.

In conclusion, “Awake” is SPECTACULAR. From a future bass disliker like me, this compliment means the double. Chapeau, Illenium.

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