The Best of 2023 - RESULTS!

Hensmon

Admin
TranceFix Crew
Jun 27, 2020
3,459 Posts
3,025 Thanked
UK
The Best of 2023 results are here! Below we’ll take you through the best tracks, artists, albums, labels and compilations from the Trance, Prog and hypnotic dance scenes, as voted on by members here on TranceFix.

A record vote turnout and a whopping 1826 tracks were submitted this year, the most to date, so thanks again to the great community members who helped us put this together with your all votes, sharing, thoughts and discussion throughout the year in the forum. Let's go!




Best Artist

Winner: Enigma State

Runner up: Rambal Cochet
Special Mention: The Digital Blonde

Big congrats to @EnigmaState, who gets the Artist of the Year award! What a great year for Nath, giving us more music than his two previous years combined, with the amazing State of Mind / Sacred Art EP, the soaring Transolar, an amazing remix of a Transa Classic, an Ayla throwback EP with Lunar’s Theme, and also featuring on Movement: One with his awesome Waiting For You. He dominated the track voting with all those aforementioned hits, none of which is surprising considering the level of quality and consistency he sets the bar at… unquestionably the best sounding trance music in the scene and delivering it with arrangements that bring tension and creativity back into the uplifting and anthemic trance sub-genre. Fully deserved and can’t wait to see what's in store for next year. Nice one!

Rambal Cochet deservedly gets 2nd place. For us he is one of the most interesting producers in the scene, with a huge output of music throughout the year that ranged from chuggy Goa, dreamy and atmospheric Progressive and hypnotic Trance. He is one of the most diverse and creative producers in the scene currently, you never really know what to expect with each release and most importantly he seems to have his finger on the essence of what makes good, lovely sounding music. Legendary stuff @rambalcochet

Special mention to The Digital Blonde, whose new Synthazia project kicked off right off the bat with 2 incredible releases, as well seeing a bunch of other quality tracks from him the year throughout the year, keeping up the high standard he’s been holding for years now.





Best Album

Winner: Alan Backdrop - Insane World

Runner up: Mikkel Rev - The Art of Levitation

Congrats to Alan Backdrop, who gave us a monster 32 track album this year, one that was filled with driving and atmospheric Trance that is an undeniable joy for the ears. It really showcased how good he is at sound design. Lots of beautiful synths can be found amongst the thundering percussive work and dark atmospheres, often with a familiar feeling, with clear nods to certain producers and their styles from back in the day. It’s not an album that aims to create clear standout hits, instead feeling at times more like extended jam sessions that are tailored for atmosphere and mood rather than memorability. That said, many of you voted for his tracks so clearly it hits personal niches that resonate on more individual level, rather than relying on collective hype and catchiness. Great work!

The Art of Levitation by Mikkel Rev is a beautiful album that develops from ambient atmospheres into breakbeats, before eventually hitting a full trance flow. Regrets, Subsea and Insula were just phenomenal tracks and contributed overall to a seriously strong album which showcases how diverse and skilled Mikkel Rev is as a producer. He seems to produce at least 1 or 2 albums every year and this has been one of his best.




Best Label

Winner: Borderline

Runner up: UTE Recordings
Special Mention: Forescape Digital

Congrats to Activa and Borderline, who for the second year running get the vote for best label, dominating yet again and as you’ll see we have many of their releases featuring in the top 100 tracks. It felt like they never stopped releasing material for us this year. One every 2 weeks we believe? Usually this high quantity approach would lead to reduced quality, but thankfully this is not the case. You could argue the releases from 2023 were even better than their previous years work, despite the output increase. They still remain one the few Trance labels that reach a consensus with both underground and mainstream listeners, something not easily done in the modern scene. Got to attribute this in part to the clear vision Rob has for the label and the signing of tracks that strike the balance between a serious trance experience, balanced sound design and within the familiar realm of conventional styles that much of the scene still resonates with.

Second place for the underground heroes over at UTE. Unlike Borderline they are more limited with their release schedule, but when they drop one it’s always with great excitement and anticipation to see what they have for us. Out of all the underground labels they are the ones that bring the most consistency and trance focused sounds, and the small roster of producers they use all have what it takes to make top tracks. You can tell they really love Trance and want to contribute in an authentic way and that’s all that matters ultimately. Omformer in particular deserves a shoutout, he’s been making incredible tracks for the last 3 years and his EP from the year killed it.

Special mention to Forescape, and @Enlusion, who tirelessly works to bring his brand of deeper trance progressive to us for years now, always giving us tracks that remain standout as highlights when we come to the end of year selection. We are lucky to have a label like his that continues to find artists and develop this specific sub-scene of the genre. Long may it continue.






Best Compilation

Winner: Movement: One

Runner up: Pure Trance: Vol. 10

Movement: One is easily one of the best compilations we’ve had in years. Activa first dropped a hint he would be putting together this “passion project” back in December 2022, and even reached out via the forum to look for new material from upcoming producers. Clearly he had a vision in mind and it paid off brilliantly, with a fantastic selection of artists with a wide representation across the different sub-scenes, as well as bringing together scene veterans alongside a bunch of newcomers we’d never heard of before. That’s exactly how it should be done! Many of the tracks would become highlights of the year and the mixes only got better over time as the listens rolled in. We can only hope that this will be a yearly endeavor for Rob and that he keeps pushing to get the most out scene producers who still want to make serious melodic Trance. So happy with this compilation, big congrats to Rob.

Pure Trance takes 2nd place, hitting its legendary 10 year milestone with 45 tracks spread across 3 CDs, packed with all the names in the scene you would hope to see and more. If you love melodic and uplifting music, with tons of memorable melodies, big vocals and epic breakdowns, then there really is no better compilation out there. It really is levels above what other similar labels in the scene try and do, and Rich’s passion and taste still shine through as strongly ever.




The Top 100 tracks

Now for the best part... the top 100 tracks from the year. Another congrats is in order for @EnigmaState, who for the THIRD YEAR running takes the number 1 spot with his brilliant Waiting For You, released on Pure Trance Neon. Not just that but he also grabs spot number 2 as well, with State of Mind! Huge year for him, just awesome work all round. Borderline dominates the label entries and @rambalcochet gets the most featured artist, with 7 tracks in the top 100.

Ranked
  1. Enigma State - Waiting For You [Pure Trance NEON]
  2. Enigma State - State of Mind [Enigma State Music]
  3. Synthazia - Siren [Pure Trance]
  4. Omformer - 10,000 Ohm [UTE Recs]
  5. Aerium Pres. Avalon 62 - Eneabba [Borderline]
  6. Alan Morrow - Willingness [Borderline]
  7. Activa - Valika [VII]
  8. Rigson - Princess of Discs (Rambal 5am Mix) [Self Release]
  9. Omformer - Yengo 3AM [UTE Recs]
  10. Chris Johnson - These Days [Borderline]
  11. Enigma State - Transolar [Enigma State Music]
  12. Rambal Cochet - Ray Tracing [Griffe]
  13. Satoshi Fumi - Ion Tail [Bedrock]
  14. Tywi - Reality Checkpoint (Maruwa Remix) [Duality Trax]
  15. Andre Maeir - Es Vedra [TF recordings]
  16. Enigma State - Lunar's Theme (E-State Remix) [Enigma State Music]
  17. Mac & Monday - Kara's Theme (Extended Mix) [Borderline]
  18. Filterheadz - Indian Summer [Tronic Music]
  19. Synthazia - Lumi [Pure Trance]
  20. Definitions & Slipstream - Subterfuge [Boderline]
  21. Capetown - Tears of Jupiter [FSOE]
  22. Enigma State - Sacred Art [Enigma State Music]
  23. Mikkel Rev - Regrets [A Strangely Isolated Place]
  24. The Noble Six - Astral Projection [FSOE]
  25. Coredata - Geometric [Borderline]
  26. Transa - Carla’s Theme (Enigma State Remix) [Transa]
  27. Rambal Cochet - Mixed Reality [SpaceLab]
  28. Enigma State - Lunar’s Theme [Enigma State Music]
  29. Narel - Tensile [Forescape]
  30. Caldera 5D - Dolphin Skii [Nummer]
  31. Uptopian Streams - Now Is The Time [Gestalt]
  32. Eivind Vullum & Telephones - Tustna (Telephones Suenotechno Rush Mix) [Vibrajson]
  33. Slam Duck - Allure [Pure Trance]
  34. The Noble Six - Rings of Saturn [FSOE]
  35. Sneijder - Dawn [Pure Trance NEON]
Unranked (Random order)
  • Emkay - In Bloom (Sansibar Bobo’s Whip Remix) [Escape Noir]
  • Julian Del Agranda - Suneno [Borderline]
  • Reflex Blue - Breathe The Air (Piano Mix) [Self Release]
  • AA Meeting - Air [VII]
  • Sleep D - Punch Drunk (ft. YL Hooi) [Self Release]
  • Simon O'Shine - Eternal Dreamer [Audioresearch Music]
  • David Pasejero - Awareness [Self Release]
  • Allende - Horizon Painter [Pure Trance]
  • Adam Nickey - Escape [Pure Trance]
  • Pletnev - I Stole It Somehow [Sans Music]
  • Emkay - pa'af lai [Escape Noir]
  • The Noble Six - Moon That Never Sets [FSOE]
  • Mikkel Rev - Subsea (Peace Remix) [A Strangely Isolated Space]
  • Rambal Cochet - Archangel [Second Sight]
  • Enlusion - Amethyst (You Are My Salvation Remix) [Forescape]
  • Ovnimoon & Hedustma - Escilotrance [Forescape]
  • Will Rees - Sanctuary [Kearnage]
  • Mikkel Rev - Insula [A Strangely Isolated Place]
  • Digital Blonde - Synphony [PsyWorld Records]
  • Andre Maier - Citra [TF Recordings]
  • Reflex Blue - Overview Effect [Self Release]
  • Chris Johnson - The Calling [Borderline]
  • Spray - OT Rails [Spray]
  • Breakfast - The Spice [EDM Recordings]
  • Thurlow Joyce - Lemon Citrus [NAFF]
  • Alchemy - Deestopia (Digital Blonde Remix) [Pure Trance]
  • Be from E - In My Hive (Instrumental Mix) [Self Release]
  • Naden - Journey (Breakfast Remix) [EDM Recordings]
  • Sunda - Pillars [Borderline]
  • SEO John - Circuit of Life [Wex]
  • Estiva - Via Infinita [Colorize]
  • SY - In Your Mind (Sunrise Mix)[PRZ4four]
  • Luke Terry & Sonic Element - Andromeda (Luke Terry Remix) [Borderline]
  • Pico Boulevard - Society [Forescape]
  • CAIVA - The Love Inside Me [Raw]
  • Andre Maier & Gosto - Mi Amour [Borderline]
  • Coredata - Geometric (Warehouse '91 Mix) [Borderline]
  • Narel - What Your Cause Will Be [Pure Trance]
  • Satoshi Fumi - E1 [Bedrock]
  • Digital Blonde - Spectre [PsyWorld]
  • Super-Frog Saves Tokyo - Reactivate (Solarstone Retouch) [Pure Trance]
  • Øna- Øna (Extended Mix) [Borderline]
  • Atlantis - Fiji (Allan Morrow Mix) [Blackhole Recordings]
  • United Trance Division - God of Dreams [TF Recordings]
  • Sunda - Mirage [Borderline]
  • Luke Terry - Amaranthine [Borderline]
  • DJ Dazzle - From Within (Activa Remix) [Borderline]
  • Caldera 5D - Turbine (Underwater Sunset Mix)[Nummer]
  • Enlusion & Soundbreeze - Starchitects [Forescape]
  • Rambal Cochet - Kitaro [Transmigration]
  • Asphalt DJ & Gzardin - Southern Expedition [Gestalt]
  • Fantastic Man - The Beach [Basic Spirit]
  • Bliss Inc - Higher Vision [Magic Wire]
  • Spray - V-Trad [Kalahari Oyster Cult]
  • Alan Backdrop - Nootropic [Self Release]
  • Activa & Glynn Alan - Titration [Borderline]
  • Clint - Cyber Coral (Tribal Sensation Mix) [Gestalt]
  • Mick Gristle & Hasvat Informant - Swordbox (Omformer Remix) [Headnoiz]
  • Abdul Raevera - Codeine [Self Release]
  • Magnevi x Marnix Mulder - Legatum (Julian Del Agranda Remix) [Legacy of Trance]
  • Rambal Cochet - Sundowner [Les Yeux Orange]
  • Adam Pits - Take a Moment [On Rotation]
  • Cold Blue - A Beautiful Mind [Cold Blue Records]
  • Rambal Cochet - Nibiru Trax [Griffe]
  • Alan Backdrop - Oneiron [Self Release]
  • Naden - Journey [EDM Recordings]

Thanks again to everyone who voted. With over 1500 track submissions this one really was a beast to put together. What do you think of the results? Personally we think it’s stronger than last year's, but maybe less diverse in terms of sub-styles on offer. However the ratio between underground and conventional sounds is satisfyingly balanced. The split between State of Mind and Waiting for You for the no1 spot only came down to a handful of votes in the end, and Siren was not too far behind. Borderline has 18 tracks in the final 100!



2023 Scene Review

This felt like a solid year. Anyone else agree? Although there were no big album drops in the conventional trance scene, the two big compilations from Activa and Solarstone easily filled that void and gave us a whole host of tracks that will definitely be enjoyed for a long time. Meanwhile the underground guys produced quite a few quality albums, almost always multi-genre, and again with some timeless tracks on offer too. Overall the scene appears to be moving in the right direction. Looking back to 5 years ago, we don't remember there being so much music to enjoy, new producers popping up and new styles to discover.

The underground Trance and Prog scene gives the impression that it is growing, and looking at our votes we observed the amount of new labels and artists making an appearance growing exponentially compared to last year. It feels like there is a new Bandcamp label or Soundcloud account to follow each week, almost too much to keep up with (thank god for the posters here who do the ground work. Nice one guys!). It actually feels exciting to follow this part of music again. It feels truly alive out there and the combo of oldschool influences with the modern arrangements is giving us some of the best music we've heard in years. Is this the first time in electronic history where we've had such a merging of two different periods of music together?

All and all the energy and growth is a wonderful thing. Trance and Prog is clearly ‘in’ again with this current generation of listeners and producers… at least it is for very specific styles and interpretations of Trance... either way this ultimately means greater longevity for the genre. What’s taking place now will likely set the momentum going for another 10 years of Trance music, taking the age of the genre potentially to over 40 years by the time this decade is up. Incredible when you think about it.

Some of the criticisms of the underground's approach still remain however, notably that tracks can lack a sense of journey and building of tension, which to many are considered hallmarks of tracks from when the genre was in it’s prime. Some nu-prog producers are also sounding very similar to each other as time goes on, with particular tracks feeling somewhat tropey or overdone, even despite the scene's relatively short existence. No problem though… these are passion filled scenes, rooted in vibrant club events across the world and the producers have the authentic mindset and drive to keep things heading in the right direction.

Despite the efforts of a few, the conventional and more mainstream Trance/Prog scene remains in what feels like an endless limbo, where producers and labels are still pushing out the same styles that are more or less unchanged since 2010. Almost 15 years of the same sounds, how long will it continue? It's almost impressive when you think about it. They somehow avoid the same relentless change that all over artistic forms are subject too. It may only need small changes in sound design and a less templated approach to have a big improvement, but for whatever reason this particular segment of the scene remains in quite good favor with how things are going. We spoke of a disconnect in last years end of year review between the different scene groups, and it doesn't seem to be changing anytime soon. A shame because it genuinely could be united again if small changes are made on both sides of the isle... in our opinion anyway!





Forum Updates

Millions of visits to TF!? - This October I plugged in TranceFix to analytics software to measure activity and to my shock the numbers were way higher than I could have imagined. For example in the last 3 months we have over half a million visits to the site, meaning that all year we may have had over 2 million visits. Crazy! Unfortunately it's clear that only a very small percentage want to actually make an account and post, because active members remain similar, but I guess thinking about it this is how most people use the internet, simply to browse casually and find stuff they like. As long as the site is providing value to people we are happy! The good news is that the active member number is trending positively, reversing the trend that the old platform had for years! Hurrah!

For other stats, we had visitors from 122 countries!!! Again, this is crazy..., that's well over half the countries in the world. The most visitors are (in order) UK, USA, Ukraine, Russia, Germany and Netherlands. UK and USA have way more than anyone else.


Forum News - We have a few more visual updates and fixes to make but the site is finally getting to a point where we are happy with the design (for now). Once that's done we can start looking into other fun stuff (for example we really want to do a TF top 1000). We're going to interview way more in 2024 too, and if any members want to submit their own interviews or reviews please just message us and we can facilitate that with you.

Label News - Only 2 releases this year with God of Dreams EP and Citra EP, which is less than we hoped, but this continues to be a side project for us and finding the time (and tracks) can be difficult. That said, we have 2 releases already in the works for next year, so if things go smoothly could look to up the release to 4. Your support is always appreciated as it helps fund the costs of the forum.

That's it! Thanks everyone.
 
Last edited:

Katadunkass

The Banhammer
TranceFix Crew
Jun 27, 2020
1,516 Posts
1,380 Thanked
Age
33
Denmark
Where's the spotify playlist for these top 100's?. I listened to the lot of it now and was for the most part pure class.
Most of these, especially the underground ones, aren't on Spotify, unfortunately. Best we can do is a YT playlist, which would take forever to put together, lol - but if it's something people want, I might get it done
 

Hensmon

Admin
TranceFix Crew
Jun 27, 2020
3,459 Posts
3,025 Thanked
UK
I will try and make some time to add all of this to spotify. We did for 2021 and 2022, but yeah as Kata mentioned a good 30% will be missing, mostly underground.