Paris Blohm & Wasback – They Say (feat. Krigarè)

After releasing a statement coming to terms with his position atop the progressive house game and how it conflicted with how he wanted to present himself to the world, we finally have the first look at this new sound from Paris Blohm. Despite being Revealed veterans, the track has come out on the OG American label, Thrive Music. Especially considering Wasback’s close ties to Revealed, it must indicate that either Revealed declined this track or that the artists simply didn’t want to release there.

On to the track itself, when I read the words “new sounds,” I was expecting some riff on the STMPD style and prepared for the worse. When I finally heard the track, I was surprised to say the least, but also not impressed. Krigarè’s vocals service the track well and the instrumental backup by Paris Bolhm and Wasback are effective but not moving. All in all, it’s a decent track but doesn’t deliver anything game-changing from either party.

71/100

Jewelz & Sparks – Traffic

“Traffic” is certainly a very meta release. EDM often uses samples from older mainstream pop songs or obscure clips from this and that, but this release samples an original EDM track (which in fact was also sampled from a 1996 dance song, Psykofuk – Psykofuk.) It is of course fitting that this one comes out on Tiesto’s imprint but it just begs the question, “why?”

To its credit, it’s enjoyable hearing this iconic melody with Jewelz & Sparks’ signature clean, bass-forward sound. In the end, I suppose that’s all that matters. It just seems that EDM is now getting closer to Hollywood in that all the big releases are just revamped versions of songs and melodies that have worked before.

76/100

G-Sus & EMKR – Orbit

Genres moving towards more clean sounds seems to be the trend in 2020 as the once popular Brazilian Bass genre morphs into slap house and bass house moves towards softer kicks and crisper samples. The same can be seen in big room as it adopts more trance influence and now techno influences as well. There’s no denying that “Orbit” draws inspiration from “What The F” by Maurice West, but EMKR’s unique psy touch and impeccable melodies and synths from G-Sus sets this one apart and raises the bar for underground releases. The real kicker in this one is the absolutely insane switchup in the second half of the second drop where they go hard into the clean, percussive elements and somehow create even more energy because of it.

While the track could have benefited from a proper first break and maybe more of a vocal to hold it all together, “Orbit” is a standout track and pushes the limits of what big room can be.

86/100

TBR – Little Games

16-year old German producer, TBR has consistently been bringing solid festival tracks this year and making the rounds on labels like Smash the House, Intensity, Nik Cooper, Glow, and provided one of the rare big room gems on Radar. “Little Games” dropped on the independent label from Winning Team, Halla Recordings which has been cultivating a nice circle of rising talents. The track is set at a higher bpm than most of TBR’s tracks but still uses almost all of his signature elements like the leads, effects, and kick. I could have done without the overused sample pack vocal but the melodies partially make up for it and I’ve found myself humming it for weeks. All in all a solid release and a promising expansion of the Halla family.

78/100

KEVU & Giftback – LIbertalia

While it’s becoming clear that Revealed has become a home for bigger artists’ rejects from Rave Culture, it has led to some serviceable tracks like “The Launch” and now “Libertalia.” This collaboration also means that Giftback now has a collaboration with three of big room’s top artists, the first two being SaberZ and Olly James. It’s surprising that Giftback doesn’t do more to build his socials from these massive collaborations as it would have been a great opportunity to use the attention to grab some of those big room fans. At any rate, the track takes that signature KEVU kick and goes in a more percussive route similar to “The Night King” which proves to be pretty effective. This is one of those tracks that just makes you pump your fist when you hear it. The breakdowns are a bit empty but have a cinematic atmosphere to them matched with a quiet but effective vocal to hold it all together. All in all, this one is better than the last three of KEVU’s tracks on Rave Culture.

81/100

Stefan Bors & THRML – Chaos

Coming off of the release of “Solstice” on Intensity last week, Stefan Bors is back on Nik Cooper with a new Big Room Trance track on Nik Cooper. Those familiar with these two rising talents will realize this is an excellent combination of Stefan’s big room influences and THRML’s unique leads and arps. While the sound selection is great, the melodies hold this one back as you might find it hard to recall parts of the song after hearing it. Nevertheless it’s a solid addition to all of their discographies and goes to show that it’s really the underground that is keeping big room alive as the majors shirk off the genre.

74/100

AVAO ft. Mike Schmid – Over & Over

Reaching Altitude has run into quite some trouble after separating from Armada with many artists reporting problems with the management of the label, lack of communication, and poor promotion. Business aside, “Over & Over” is quite the melodic gem on the label. Mike Schmid drives the track forward while AVAO lends their clean yet powerful touch during the first half before taking things over in the second half. It’s a wonderful progression from start to finish and a wholly enjoyable journey to embark on every time you hit play on this one. The vocals get a bit repetitive during the buildup, but the good outweighs the bad in this case.

82/100

Brooks & Mesto – Long Time

After being played out consistently over the past two years, “Long Time” is finally out to the public on Spinnin’ Records. For me, Brooks has been on a downward path ever since “breaking through” with his first collaboration with David Guetta. The tracks have gotten more simple and less memorable compared to his earlier works, but “Long Time” brings back a bit of that underground future house charm and makes for a nice throwback track for all to enjoy. For release cycles like this, you often wonder what exactly held this one from being released considering the drop is largely unchanged from when it was first played out by Mesto on Slam! At any rate, it’s a refreshing release and a bright spot of the week.

84/100

Curbi – Superpowers (feat. Helen)

One of the artists that has been killing it in 2020 has been Curbi. His diverse range of identifiable sounds caters to a wide audience and always feels genuine and disregards the current trends as he paves his own path forward. Everything released this year so far has been masterful and Superpowers is no exception. While I prefer some of the more hard-hitting tracks like “Get It” or “Alcoholic,” I’ve also found myself coming back to listen to the predecessor to this track, “Feel” which also features vocals from Helen. It’s such a clean, calming track that sucks you in for the duration. Admittedly, the melodies aren’t as memorable as the ones in “Feel” but the vibe is certainly still there. Mad props to Curbi for being so versatile with his signature sound and excelling at everything he puts his name on.

79/100

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