• Unexpected twist in the drop
• Club-oriented structure, less focused on the breakdown
• Effective fusion of the two styles
It’s been a while since I’ve been so impressed by a Revealed release, what a splendid job by Olly James and the major-debutant GIFTBACK! “Side To Side“, their latest creation, specifically targets live exhibitions with a rather interesting configuration. One can immediately discern its attitude in the intro, where a vocal accompanied by a minimal Aoki-style buildup encourages the crowd to break the humdrum. Nothing particularly pioneering, but the fun is yet to come.
The Dutch and Chinese artists added five seconds of pseudo-drop segment before the real one hits, effectively trolling the listener. I was first disappointed and then suddenly impressed by this twist… One of the best ideas I’ve seen around lately! Specifically engineered for live-sets, “Side To Side” can kill the monotony with its entertaining personality! Olly James (on fire lately, having just released the well-appreciated “Amsterdam“) used his lead and Electro experience, but GIFTBACK’s personality is evident in the Psy-Trance bassline! The Chinese producer debuted on Radar last year, and his signature is a “Psy-Tranceroom” hybrid genus, fitting well with Olly’s festival-oriented touch.
“Side To Side” then proceeds to use a standard-issue Big Room breakdown that didn’t particularly convince me. It was a bit predictable, as I felt more connected with the intro, which added hefty more to the climax. It’s not a deal-breaking issue since the structure rotates around the drops. The second one adopts the same “faux drop” set-up as well: even if I was ready for the antic this time, I fell in love with the final melodic structure, one of the best from James’ career for me.
“Side To Side” is a club banger that has a feasible idea in its inventory and develops it well, fusing two compatible styles. This is the fitting example that especially when paired with a senior figure, talents from Radar can do a Midas touch. I hope to see more results akin to these formulas!
What do you think?
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