Shocking stuff that destroys what was once our trance scene

[Progrez]

The best Ayumi remixes were the 'dub' versions like Push's and Armin's...they were basically nearly original productions with vocals tacked on. I dont think many people want to hear full japanese vocals over trance tracks.

I would rather hear them the stuff I am hearing in the current asot vocal tracks where they are EDM style shouting tracks now.

 

[Nerio]

These are opinions I've gathered from the last forum and from a few foreign sites from different people:

Trance in early 1990 was styl in experimental stage and people was finding what they can do, but several songs from that time are shining like: "Velocity - Lust, L.S.G. - Hearts, Union Jack – Two Full Moons & A Trout (Caspar Pound Mix) (94 Version), Paragliders - Paraglide (Humate Remix)...etc"
In late 1990 (1997-1998) trance began to have its "packaging"
And now? Now trance is american pop electronic music.
Just look what is mainstream today and is called "trance" and what was mainstream back then (comercials, movies, charts, games, olympic ceremony) and what was called trance back then.

My thoughts what is wrong with today scene:
- The lack of soul, feeling, and originality in many tracks.
Highly generic sounds that you've heard a million times over

- Production style where the kickdrum and bassline overpower the rest of the track. Seems to be a common theme
- Those whitenoise filled tracks, that actually feel your ears hurting. "CHhhhhhhhhshshshshsh"

Give us clean production, clarity between each channel so we can hear all the sounds that make up the track.
- That generic rolling bassline found in about 90% of tunes
- Those amazing classics that are being 'dumbed down' to sound like everything else today. Terrible reworks
- Those cringeworthy 'Disney' level vocals and cheesy melodies
- Those cheap gimmicks such as EDM style risers that seem to fill so many tracks

All I look for really is a nice clean production, with some originality, some classic vibes and something you feel you might listen to for longer than a couple of weeks.

Sometimes I see producers boasting about 200 channels used etc on there production. The truth is sometimes the simplest of tracks are the best. Those tracks can be overdone, become muddy/messy etc. I've heard 32 channel tracks better than some of those. It's all about creating the vibe and the feeling.

Today I struggle to find almost anything I feel I can say "I' see myself still listening to this in 10 years time" . Far too much quantity over quality nowadays. Most tracks have a very limited shelf life and are quickly forgotten.
Kai Tracid says something about that


I think the move to VST's and digital over analogue equipment has also had some negative effect, but that's just my personal thoughts.
I know this is an old thread and im not replying to get a reply or anything but omg what a load of bullcrap.

This the nr 1 bullshit lie that so many people in the scene is trying to front over and over.

All songs need to be party songs, all songs need to be full of steroids and the drop need to be crazy and it needs to be mastered loud as fuck. Its absolutly completly bullshit.

Most people when they choose what gigs they go to they go to it because they have artists that make music they like to listening at HOME, and yes also they might like some of their songs because it gives them a certain mood of party but cmon mister nobody listen to music only for party and banging their head like crazy.

Trance parties was fully booked all over the world , sensation, trance energy, you name it way before the loudness war became a big issue. You guys have fixed a problem that didnt need to be fixed and now you saying that you had to do it, or nobody would come to your shows, its not true at all and nothing you say can back that up.

The melody is totally gone from todays scene, its mass produced fast food music. The scene is full of chefs who never learned how to cook. And then there is a selected few chefs who know how to cook but they have no pride and they are making fast food because the people will eat it anyways.

Some trance songs they give me shivers all over my body, they make the hair on my arms rise up, and they are not partysongs or crazy loudly mastered full of white noise etc, and i would pay to go hear them live in a second if i could.

If you think that party, rave like crazy is all people who listen to trance want then you are delusional."

After the summer of 2004, Dj's started adding that rough bass to their songs, which created a new genre, from whom dance music evolved to what it is today.

"Those were when the top sounding tracks were fresh, and since then everyone wants to 'experiment' but I mean, if you like classic rock, then you hear Metallica or Nirvana, sure it may be amazing, but its a different style completely right? So Trance like classic rock has a specific sound in the earlier days that is what defined it as trance, but as the years and iterations of people trying to do something new roll on, we saw of lot morphing like in the metaphor above... We mixed the "Classic rock" defining features with so much foreign entity that for those who had that itch... it wasn't getting scratched. It seems I believe with the new gouryella track topping everywhere it was sending a clear message to producers that we want that authentic timeless sound. We want classic rock style, in its purest form, but done with todays energy levels. Keep the formula of Trance!"

 

[dmgtz96]

The best Ayumi remixes were the 'dub' versions like Push's and Armin's...they were basically nearly original productions with vocals tacked on. I dont think many people want to hear full japanese vocals over trance tracks.

Japanese domestic market is huge (2nd largest in the world). I'm sure they would have liked to hear full Japanese vocals over trance.

The point of my earlier comment was, I wonder if trance could have thrived better in Japan, catering to Japanese audience tastes and taking on more of a jpop/jelectronica structure. I think it would have done well. We will never know.

 

[Magdelayna]

Japanese domestic market is huge (2nd largest in the world). I'm sure they would have liked to hear full Japanese vocals over trance.

The point of my earlier comment was, I wonder if trance could have thrived better in Japan, catering to Japanese audience tastes and taking on more of a jpop/jelectronica structure. I think it would have done well. We will never know.

Well im actually surprised aswell that it wasnt one of the biggest Trance biggest playing countries - when you think of its electronic 'hi-tech' history - they probably manufactured some of the hardware synths that a lot of Trance classics are made with! Youd expect the trance sound to really suit the 'culture'.

I can only look at my own Youtube channel numbers - out of 57 Million plays - only 0.6% are from Japan (258K) which is quite incredible and unexpected!

 

[Progrez]

This was posted on Airwave's Facebook. @Archon @Electronlyman

https://www.reddit.com/r/ClassicTrance/s/5BVNeCVqvF

At the age of 18, I signed a four-year contract with a record label, originally from 1997 to 2001. This business collaboration eventually lasted until 2021.
Imagine working in the same place for the same number of years, having landed the job on your first application while barely graduated. Unthinkable nowadays.
Academic studies and a job at a large multinational company were both available to me at the time, but I chose to abandon both paths in favor of a much more uncertain future.
Almost 30 years have passed since then, and as is often the case, the path has been strewn with pitfalls, challenges, and sometimes dead ends, but also and above all with wonderful encounters, incredible surprises, and victories both big and small.
Being a musician has given me balance, albeit unstable at times, but real nonetheless, and self-confidence. Above all, it has brought me friendship and connection with others, and sometimes this precious occupation has put love in my path.
How can one not love this profession when it offers things that are just as essential—friendship, connection, love, self-esteem—as those it no longer offers—the prospect of long-term profitability, fair commercial exploitation, public recognition by force of circumstance, and the search for new forms of expression. It's impossible for me to define myself in any other way than through this profession, despite the minefield we find ourselves in today.
Being signed right away was a huge surprise at the time because I didn't think my work was necessarily good. Certainly not on par with my idols at the time. And I had a hard time figuring out what could have been heard as remarkable to spark such interest so quickly.
I preferred not to dwell on it and threw myself into an open breach which, for very personal reasons, had become my new mission in life.
When I first signed, music creation was very different. You have to remember the context of the early 90s.
First of all, multi-track digital recording on a computer or any other device was financially out of reach for most young electronic music artists. Most young people my age often recorded on cassette tape recorders of very variable quality.
Secondly, any device, tool or instrument for creating music easily cost more than €300. I have fond memories of my purchases and the lists of equipment I wanted to buy when I wasn't even 18 and hadn't even left school.
My first Korg synthesizer, in April 1994, set me back €1,700. It was a single synthesizer, with lots of features, but it lacked personality. At 16, spending that kind of money while working every weekend, holiday, and school vacation was like something out of science fiction.
Samplers, often made by Akai, Roland, or E-MU, easily cost €1,300 to €1,400 for about 20 seconds of recorded sound. I couldn't afford that in 1994. I had to wait until much later.
My first 16-channel (mono) mixing console, a Mackie, cost no less than €1,200. My first effects processor cost €400, and my first compressor, a German brand with a very bad reputation, cost €350.
And that's not counting the computer I needed to sequence it all, which cost €1,500 for a Windows PC with a card that served as a sampler with 2MB of built-in memory.
The legendary machines everyone was talking about were already unaffordable in 1994. The 808 and 909 were already close to €2,000 each, not to mention the 303 at the same price. So it was unthinkable when one’s 18.
And eventually one had to record their final compositions on something stable and with CD quality. The format at the time was digital audio tape, or DAT. Add another $650 to the bill.
And I'm not even talking about the cables, which quickly inflated the budget. And to top it all off, these were the prices at the time.
Like most people who had chosen this path, I had to do with what I had, prioritizing results over expensive toys. I was sorely lacking both creative and technical experience. I was just trying to get closer to the sounds I heard in clubs. This caused me a lot of problems with originality at times, which I readily admit, until I discovered my personal identity. It was a bit unusual. Before releasing records, you first create a personal identity, or at least that's what I thought.
As I progressed, I realized that my assumptions about the talent and merit of many of my idols were the result of my naivety and credulity. In fact, I quickly discovered the unsavory underbelly of the music scene I had chosen as my outlet.
First of all, we were just a handful of true musical visionaries. Our knowledge of theory, harmony, and sound synthesis was already light years ahead of most of the artists releasing records at the time. I'm not even talking about being able to play it, as that circle was even smaller.We were motivated, and the music we released aroused envy, curiosity, and questioning in others, who were over-motivated to do as well. In our idealistic fervor, we were surrounded by DJs who were also releasing records that I admired.
And it was especially at that time that I discovered the greatest deception of the music business.Most of the idols of the time, some of whom are still active today, never created a single one of their own records. Despite this, they received acclaim, fan bases, and income, while the real musicians behind their discographies received only crumbs, resigned to having to repeat the process in order to survive, due to a lack of respect and attention given to their work under their own names.
The DJ superstar culture has spawned 30 glorious years of ultra-narcissism and neo-feudalism that are utterly unjust and destructive. I myself have collaborated with enough of them and had the painful experience of open doors and red carpets for DJs, while those same doors will remain closed to me forever. Why? Because of the blinders of a small number of privileged individuals. This is especially true as I write these lines.
The circuit in which I have evolved despite everything, for reasons I will discuss in a future chapter, is now dying under the weight of these impostures.
And to think that we thought we were leaving this rotten world behind by making electronic music, without realizing that because of this behavior we were going to create an even worse one…
For 30 years, I chose to remain silent out of fear, and I regret it bitterly.
Nevertheless, I prefer to remain positive. Telling the story of one's creative journey is a beautiful thing that all the imposture around us can never erase.
This picture is from 2002.

 

[Progrez]

It's such a strange track it turns from an annoying deep house track with annoying vocals to an annoying steroid 140 bpm EDM track. I think he is overrated and Armin seriously needs to get his brain check the new Deep Dish track is not trancey at all.



ARMIN VAN BUUREN PLAYS HAWK TUAH VIRAL CLIP ON TOMORROWLAND MAINSTAGE

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

www.youtube.com

 

[Magdelayna]

What does everyone think of this current dispute between Chicane and Calvin Harris......Chicane accusing him of ripping Offshore off with his new track??

 

[Gijs]

I see where Chicane's coming from but I don't agree with him and I don't think a judge will either. You can only copyright the overall composition and masters of a specific track, a particular style of production doesn't fall under this. These two don't share any harmonies as far as I can tell and using similar instruments to create a similar atmosphere is in no way copyright infringement. Whether Calvin was inspired by or even actively attempted to recreate Offshore I don't know, but I can say that the final product sounds different enough not to be considered a ripoff.

 

[Julian Del Agranda]

but I can say that the final product sounds different enough not to be considered a ripoff.

Im with Gijs on this one. I don’t understand the fuzz.

The “melody” in Offshore is two guitar chords repeated endlessly. Obviously stuff will be similar.

Lets see what @Jetflag thinks though, he’s the Chicane expert of the forum.

 

[Jetflag]

Im with Gijs on this one. I don’t understand the fuzz.

The “melody” in Offshore is two guitar chords repeated endlessly. Obviously stuff will be similar.

Lets see what @Jetflag thinks though, he’s the Chicane expert of the forum.

I don’t think Nick has a foot to stand on, legally, artistically, morally and pragmatically.

 

[LostLegend]

I don’t think Nick has a foot to stand on, legally, artistically, morally and pragmatically.

A very good video here by BtheLick on why Nick/Chicane is probably wrong.
He breaks it down in pretty good detail as well..

 

[Magdelayna]

I think its more the 'guitar sound' which is very similar to Offshore...whereas the melody is a simple 2 chord one.

Id be more inclined to feel honoured its a tribute to Offshore if i was Chicane hehe.

 

[LostLegend]

I think its more the 'guitar sound' which is very similar to Offshore...whereas the melody is a simple 2 chord one.

Id be more inclined to feel honoured its a tribute to Offshore if i was Chicane hehe.

The video above breaks it down pretty well.
It's not even in the same key and he has to isolate half a bar of Calvin's longer melody to get them to fit.
I think you are right and he has probably been inspired by Offshore, but as he said on the video, you can't copyright a 'vibe'

 

[Magdelayna]

The video above breaks it down pretty well.
It's not even in the same key and he has to isolate half a bar of Calvin's longer melody to get them to fit.
I think you are right and he has probably been inspired by Offshore, but as he said on the video, you can't copyright a 'vibe'

But having said all that,first thing i thought of when i heard it was Offshore haha. Looking at the comments,most do aswell...

 

[JohnnyBarefoot1992]

The best Ayumi remixes were the 'dub' versions like Push's and Armin's...they were basically nearly original productions with vocals tacked on. I don't think many people want to hear full japanese vocals over trance tracks.

I like listening to music in different languages and I like Japan and its culture therefore a Vocal Trance track in Japanese sounds great to me.

 

[JohnnyBarefoot1992]

This was posted on Airwave's Facebook. @Archon @Electronlyman

https://www.reddit.com/r/ClassicTrance/s/5BVNeCVqvF

We already know that neither Tiësto nor Paul van Dyk have ever produced their own music much.

 

[trancefan2020]

I think Calvin Harris took Armin's version of "Offshore"

 

[facade1984]

I love chicane as much as the next guy but he's reaching super hard on this. I feel like a lot of underground Vs commercial attitudes will come out on this issue though, which is pretty standard cult like behaviour

 

[Progrez]

I love chicane as much as the next guy but he's reaching super hard on this. I feel like a lot of underground Vs commercial attitudes will come out on this issue though, which is pretty standard cult like behaviour

Well, it's not that its more along the lines that Nick is allegedly accusing Calvin Harris of stealing his track. I mean this could mean all those xpander sample tracks should be taken down for copyright claims then. I hear a similar sounding guitar but I have a bias towards to the remix by Nick Bracegirdle.

 

[Jetflag]

I love chicane as much as the next guy but he's reaching super hard on this. I feel like a lot of underground Vs commercial attitudes will come out on this issue though, which is pretty standard cult like behaviour

Its much more basic then that even. This is very standard, very human, and something everyone will at one point experience in their lives.

loss aversion.

Intrinsic psychological bottom line: Humans have much less of a problem with stealing stuff, then they have a problem with being robbed from stuff, even if its the same stuff.

very nice documentairy about it pitch below.