- Aug 23, 2022
- 287 Posts
- 271 Thanked
In my previous post about Northern Lights as a discovery of the month, I somehow completely overlooked Psichometria, even though it just as rightfully competes for that title in my eyes. By 1995, the dream/Italo-trance wave was clearly accelerating, although the lack of precise release dates makes it difficult to determine whether this surge followed the impact of Robert Miles’ Children, or whether Children itself was simply part of an already forming organic movement.
Following the previously highlighted dream trance track Pleasure Voyage, here comes another ethereal, drifting, hypnotic example of 1995 Italo-trance, this time by Giancarlo Loi, an artist who had already been exploring dreamy, atmospheric soundscapes since the late 1980s. A particularly noteworthy trait (and one that sets it apart from many Italo-trance productions) is that the track does not ride a single hypnotic motif in a continuous spiral from start to finish. Instead, after the five-minute mark, it gradually disassembles and quiets down. In fact, the reduction between 5:54 and 7:15, where the music falls back onto sparse rhythmic fragments, arguably goes too far in diffusing the momentum.
Yet this restraint ultimately sets up a striking return: the track surges back like a boomerang with a sudden, powerful wave of energy, elevating the earlier themes to a far more intense level. The result is a fantastic piece overall, although a more focused mix trimming the less engaging section could have made it even stronger. Like many Italian trance records of the era, it unfortunately remains confined to vinyl, with no CD or WEB release available.
Following the previously highlighted dream trance track Pleasure Voyage, here comes another ethereal, drifting, hypnotic example of 1995 Italo-trance, this time by Giancarlo Loi, an artist who had already been exploring dreamy, atmospheric soundscapes since the late 1980s. A particularly noteworthy trait (and one that sets it apart from many Italo-trance productions) is that the track does not ride a single hypnotic motif in a continuous spiral from start to finish. Instead, after the five-minute mark, it gradually disassembles and quiets down. In fact, the reduction between 5:54 and 7:15, where the music falls back onto sparse rhythmic fragments, arguably goes too far in diffusing the momentum.
Yet this restraint ultimately sets up a striking return: the track surges back like a boomerang with a sudden, powerful wave of energy, elevating the earlier themes to a far more intense level. The result is a fantastic piece overall, although a more focused mix trimming the less engaging section could have made it even stronger. Like many Italian trance records of the era, it unfortunately remains confined to vinyl, with no CD or WEB release available.
