Natural Selection: Top 10 Artist 2011

This year has been full with new musical discoveries. Many new artist conquered both my music and my heart! My previously posted top 100 was filled with the best singles and remixes this year had to offer. Now it's time who contributed the most...

01. Mat Zo - 36975 Points

It was on the very last moment that I was writing this post, that I put Zo on number 1 personally. Zo personally made my 2011 with his astonishing vision and take on the music as I once knew it. All of his tracks were stunning and completely new. Not a single sample or tracks that sound alike. But when I was counting the points, Zo didn't appear to come one the number one spot.

That really didn't feel right, and it turned out my feelings were true. I completely forgot about a recently freebie of his that I've been waiting for, for a loooong time: "The Loop"This 0.5 version of "Frequency Flyer" shows again how versatile Zo is, and it couldn't be left out the top 100! But not only this track, but also "Superman", "The Full Frequeny Flyer", "Rebound", his brilliant collab with Arty, and timeless remixes for loads of artist make 2011 the year of Zohar.

And that while his best track's have yet to come! In 2012, Zo will release his debut artist album, and the ID's and previews have been all over the web since that announcement. But that doesn't take away that I have already experienced his unknown versatility as an producer. Samples from a limitless selection of genres (Reggae in Frequency Flyer and a recent Beyonce sample) and the unique way of presenting himself as an artist (I believe the only electronic genre he hasn't proven himself in is dubstep) make it very assumable that Mat Zo is on his way of becoming as timeless as Daft Punk. His tracks have no guide line, which makes him my number one artist of the year.  But it sure was a close call, the closest one ever to be in this list I think.

02. Solarity/Dusky - 36725 Points

Alfie Granger-Howell and Nich Harriman hooked my on their fantastic music the moment I heard "DNA" on Anjunabeats 02. I used it instantly in my 2010 yearmix and since that day, I've been watching their every move. It seems my intentions were right, because every release of the duo has been gold till this day. From their stunning remix for "By All Means"  till their last release in December called "Tiny Black Circles", they've been intriguing me massively. 

But the two absolute highlights of their and my year have to be "Marsch" from Anjunadeep 02 and "Stick By This", released under their moniker Dusky. It has been quite a year from them, and with Anjunadeep 04 on the way, I can only hope it features another series of brilliant Solarity productions.

03. Andrew Bayer - 29425 Points

Andrew is another great new find this year. Andrew Bayer stands for the delicacy that can sometimes be called, electronic music. The first track I came across on, was his fourth track on the ordinary "Distractions EP". Just this EP alone shows that Bayer isn't your everyday artist. On that EP, he took a concept from his workbench, and created four different "movements" (hench the name) with it. 

Although all the tracks were great, the last one really stood out. "Distractions (Movement 4)" made it clear that Andrew knows how to think outside the current EDM box. Then his remix for "Rift" followed, in collaboration with his partner in crime, Matt Lange. That track really made the summer of 2011 for me. After those two anthems, I just had to check out his album "It's Artificial". Although the album only counted 9 tracks, it was more than satisfying. But "Counting The Points", "A Drink For Calamity Jane" and "Dedicated To Bostons Waste Management System" (love to know the story behind those titles!) were so well produced that I just had to put them in my top 100. Although an new album is far from now, I know that 2012 will be another bright year for Bayer!

04. Arty - 23350 Points

Arty is quite a strange story. I already heard of him when I first started listening. In the beginning of 2010, Laidback Luke played one of his singles called "Hope" in one of his sets, which I quite liked. But since it was Trance, and I was quite narrow minded, I didn't went after it. But when I started listening to Anjunabeats, Arty came back into the picture. I was astounded by what I had missed over the past couple of years. This kid was mental! I liked everything of him! I first began with some of his remixes, and eventually "Zara". But I was really blown away by "Rebound". That collab with Mat Zo shook off my narrow minded view, and truly got me into the state of Trance I am today. Since that release, I've been following Arty closely. "Around The World" followed. Wow, what an anthem! I was speechless! Must have been one of my most positive post on Upcomingsoon when I still did that stuff.

But not knowingly, that single changed the whole game for Arty and his trance roots it seems. As soon as Axwell got his hands on it, he made sure the whole world got to hear it. And boom, Arty was truly born. His next single was "Kate", for his girlfriend. I liked it, but I noticed a difference in his genre. I noticed a lot of complaining to under the video. After that, I haven't heard any real Trance from Arty anymore. With "Mozart" and his remix for Dirty South, it was made clear that he will continue to follow the path of House. I'm really curious what will do that to him and what he will do to the scene. Not long ago, Arty was chosen number 8 of the "DJ's" to follow in 2012 by MTV. It was an confirmation for me, that he will not return to Trance any time soon. I can only hope that he will not choose to go down the same road as many House producers do nowadays, and that he will still create tracks with some soul and heart put into it. The house scene is full of slackers, and I can only hope that Arty will show them the right way to do it!

05. Nero - 21575 Points

Nero, the only commercial dubstep producers I can appreciate. They are no life changers for me. No heroes. No examples. No, they are just Nero, and they were plainly insane this year. Their album Welcome Reality exploded like a bomb this August. One of those albums that you are patiently waiting for. It took me a while to fully listen to it, but when I found the time I was glad I did. This is music that needs to be made. Music that you can just put on without having to feel anything but satisfaction. All of those singles and their remix for Calvin were so enjoyable that I kept returning to them. This was the year of Nero, but I'm not sure if they can top that with the remaining album singles next year.


06. Axwell - 13391 Points

Axwell is still my number one when it comes to producing tracks, at least for now. He has got handfuls of ID's and unreleased shizzle under his name, his label is my favorite in the scene and his only 2011 track "Heart Is  King" instantly made it to the number one spot on my Top 100 List.

The reason Ax is not number one though, is because the man takes his time. Like I said earlier, he has only one or two tracks a year, followed by some small remixes for his label and some stuff with Swedish House Mafia. His work is always quite stellar, but few in numbers. But I luckily prefer quality above quantity, so the tracks that he delivers are usually enough for the whole year.

But it can't hurt ofcourse for him to do two tracks this year, or maybe more! There are so many tracks of him that need to see the light of day...


07. Laidback Luke - 17388 Points

I couldn't leave Lucas out of my top ten, just for the principal of the fact that he still is my idol. But I'll be honest with you, this year wasn't great. There were very few good Laidback Luke tracks, and I often felt liking the track because he made it. Without the name of Luke on it, it might have not ended that high on the list. His first single "Turbulence" for instance, didn't felt right at all. Then followed his strange remix for Better Off Alone and some other strange remixes.

The first real good LBL production this year, came out in June. His remix on his own label for "U & I" reminded me of that old fashioned good melodic Laidback Luke again. A month later, he struck again with the brilliant "Natural Disaster", which was the best and loudest Luke track in a long time! But nothing really exciting followed. It was on the very last day of this year that he released his remix for "Sundown", that somehow really worked for me! But when you look at the past few years, the amount of good Laidback Luke tracks is really slimming down.

He will always be my favorite artist, but it's clear that he was not the best this year.

This 2012, he announced to release 6 singles. One of those singles will be "Cambodia", and that single alone will make this year much better I think. Not the best year, but he still managed to squeeze some good productions in. But I'm sure 2012 will be better.

08. Tim Mason - 17600 Points

It took him only two tracks to make it on the list. Both "Anima" and "The Moment" have become anthems to me for this 2011. His mature way of producing music brings a smile on my face! A lot of house producers nowadays, tend to follow the bandwagon of easy happy sounding garbage. I'm glad that there is still a newcomer who refuses to do so, and make his own future. i can still hear the echoes of "The Moment" while jumping and shouting like an idiot to Steve Angello, who played an absolute killer set at the time. Tim Mason will be remembered because he chose to be different in these dark days of House. I salute him!

09. Above & Beyond - 14675 Points

I always wondered what their music would be like when I saw them so high on the DJ Top 100. Now I regret I have always wondered instead of listened. Their music is so soulful. So full of life and meaning. I didn't do a review on their album "Group Therapy", because I would do it short. It's too complex an album, to be doing a review on it. I did liked it incredibly well though, and it's clear in the top 100. I could really relate to their music, both remixed as in the original state. I'm really glad I didn't skipped them and their label. It's because of them I got into Anjuna this year. Maybe with Spotify, I will not make this mistake again and check out the artist in question right away! In many indirect ways, Above & Beyond directed my whole year.

10. Kim Fai - 14300 Points

Just like Tim Mason, Kim Fai needed just two tracks to make it to this list. His "Era" was of epic proportions, and I was waiting eagerly for him since I heard it on his essential mix in 2010. After a long period of waiting, SIZE finally announced the two sided EP! It was even better than I remembered and it ended on the third spot of a total amount of 100 tracks!

I originally never knew he remixed my new found favorite labelbosses, Above & Beyond, but when I heard his incredible take on cult hit "Sun & Moon", I knew that Kim Fai was going to end high. Again, just like Tim Mason, he is one of the few left who still possesses that unique sophisticated house sound.

He is currently busy with his kid, but when he returns to the scene, I hope he will stay true to his fantastic sound.

Tuesday Has Survived | CD Review: "Welcome Reality" by Nero

I've bought this CD many many months ago, but as I said in my last post, I never fully got around listening to it. But now, after being inspired by the gorgeous "Reaching Out" single, I gave the whole album a few listens. I can already tell you, I wasn't dissapointed!

Nero is the duo that got me interested in dubstep. Last year, I became intrigued with their single "Innocence", and soon enough I was listening to all kinds of dub. Although I was listening to many artist, Nero still stood out for me. Over the year, the duo Dan and Joe have been giving their final touch on their album "Welcome Reality" that I bought without hesitation. I wasn't even that big of a fan at the time, but the amount of previews that where played on radio stations were enough to convince me this album is full of sick tracks.

Now it's time to find out if my hunch was spot on!

What Do You Get?
The whole album has has a pretty basic ex and in-terior. The whole thing is pretty easy to the eye, nothing more. The CD is classic black, I guess, and the album is filled with copyright issues. The setting is somewhat post apocalyptic. 2808, the opening track, is supposed to be the year of the world's demise.  It's not very clear what the album stands for, but maybe you need to be a hardcore Nero-fan to get it.

The Nero Cloud
My personal guess is that the duo themselves are welcoming reality with the release of this album. Nero has become something iconic, something almost everybody knows. Their producing talent aside, they also had an insane amount of sudden followers after just a few singles. Their timing with when they stepped into the EDM scene apparently was perfect. Dubstep was fully exploding due to the likes of Bare Noize, Doctor P and Flux Pavilion. When Nero stepped in with "Innocence", they were greeted with open arms. No wonder the first single of theirs was this very track.



Every single that followed after "Innocence" became an instant hit. The fluffy cloud of euphoria they were riding on these last couple of years, had to be risk by releasing this album. Al that tension and excitement has to be fulfilled. I can imagine that  both Dan & Joe were nervous as hell for this. Welcome Reality could make of break their entire career.

Being a somekind of Nero fan for all these cloud years, I became very curious about what I myself thought about it.

So, let's press play.

The Album

2808
The first sound of the CD emerges softly. Synths slowy creep up to your ears, to get you to feel used to the musical atmosphere that is Welcome Reality. Pretty forgettable, but comfortable at the same time.

Doomsday
The first real record kicks in after 2 minutes, and immediately reminds you of what Nero is all about. That raw yet euphoric driving sound, perfected to a dynamical mix of all types of instruments. "Doomsday" may have sounded like a everyday dubstep track, if not for the incredible versatility of Nero. Tempo is all over the place, but somehow it works perfectly. It's not really doable to explain "Doomsday", but it pumps you up for the other 12 tracks right away!

My Eyes
Being absolutely pumped for the rest of the CD, the pace suddenly slows down dramatically with a seemingly soft third track. Slowly calming you down, "My Eyes" is the first 80's inspired record I find on the album. The duo seems to have a crush on those neon/palmtree/casino retro times, as seen in their latest video. This is one of the coolest tracks on the album. The haunting guitar play in combination with electronics and classic vocals make this incredibly awesome to listen to. The pumped up feeling I lost for a few seconds, instantly comes poring in again!

Guilt
The first iconic Nero track has revealed itself. "Guilt" is so iconic for Nero, because they tend to make the best tracks when a female vocalist is on board. The whole vibe is hovering between drama and rawness, and certainly forms a well follow up track after the equally energetic "My Eyes". The lyrics are not too deep, but just right to make for a comfortable listening experience. "Guilt" reveals the force of the duo. The simpleness, the easiness. You don't listen to them to get inspired or touched. No, you just do it because you feel like it. Another perfect example is the followup track, "Fugue State".

Fugue State
I think Nero used to have two different versions of "Guilt" and decided to choose one as the original and another as a 0.5 single. "Fugue State" is the somewhat louder and more instrumental darker brother of the two. Doesn't feel like it's contributing to the whole album at first, since I used to skip it. But it slowly grew on me as one of the most energetic tracks of the album.

The song falls silence, and then suddenly...are you ready?

Me And You



Nero's big 2011 hit, played the world over by many respectable artist and no other than Laidback Luke! I will honestly say, that I didn't like the whole thing at first, but when I was forced to listen to it again on on the Cream Ibiza CD, I came to understand the awesomeness of this track. The incredible flow of this track is certainly the catchiest of the whole album. Like all of the other Nero hits, "Me And You" is delightfully easy to listen to.

The track is nearing it's end, and I'm hearing THE distinctive Nero sound once more, but this time it's different.

Innocence




This is the track that got me stuck to Dan and Joe. This is the first Nero track I've ever heard. "Innocence" was huge last year, also due to the awesome video (above) that went with it. Again this track, yet another one of their hits, blossoms due to simplicity. The subtle presence of Dubstep patterns in combination with perfectly synchronized vocal chops, make this once again on of their successive Nero-formula-children.

In The Way
The pace has been quite fast the last couple of track, and to release some listening pressure, Nero made an electronic chillout track as an cooling off point in the album. "In The Way" may have some characteristics of an typical Nero track, but it differs into his tempo and calmer vibe. A nice bridge where you can catch your breath, before Nero pumps up the basslines again with "Scorpions".

Scorpions
"Scorpions" must be the weirdest track on the album. I really don't know what to do with this one, the vibe is really unexplainable. Blurry distance vocals, in combination with slow but haunting basslines leaves you utterly confused until a sudden breakdown comes to rescue. The breakdown seems to color the rest of the track a bit, making it sound less weird. Quickly, the synths take over and "Scorpions" reveals itself as the track it should have been in the beginning. A tad too experimental at the beginning, but saved in the end!

Crush On You
The first Welcome Reality track that I skipped at first. The track is experienced as brilliant by some, like resident advisor (it was number 50 something in their top 100 list) but also hated by many. I myself, really didn't feel the track apart from the brilliant breakdown inspired by a single by The Jets.



At 2:28, it is clear that Nero wasn't the only one inspired by this gem. Fred Falke and Alan Braxe were there first!

It's no secret that Nero has a crush themselves on the 80's. This section of the album is dedicated to the time of groove and neon.

Must Be The Feeling
This will be the first single release of 2012, but I'm not looking forward to the original mix it too much. It truly has some potential, since it's strongly reminds me of the likes of Grum and Fred Falke, which were my neo-disco heroes last year. But the vocal and the instrumental parts just don't feel synchronized. Really too messy for a Nero track, since they usually stand for smoothness. Luckily, we discover that their visit to the 80's eventually works with "Reaching Out"

Reaching Out



This is one of the absolute highlights of Welcome Reality. The use of another 80's sample together with an stellar blend of dubstep and keyboard, makes this single gold. No wonder it's number two on my top 10 of December. Everything about "Reaching Out", with an amazing use of sampling (Hall & Oates), is iconic. From he opening keyboard until the the last solo, this track defines himself as one of the best on the whole record. I go back again and again to this, and it wasn't that odd that when the single came out, I didn't even hesitate to make it the "Rex" of the week.

Promises




This track convinced me to buy the album. It's simple as that. The incredible energy this track possesses hooked me right away when I heard it first on BBC Radio 1. And again again again ect. this is considered a typical Nero track. Energetic easy vocals with an incredible bassline and track-progression. But once again, again..., this is the hidden power of the duo. It's straight to the point and clear: This track is called promises, and those promises are the core of an track that will destroy both your speakers and your heart. Every Nero brilliant track on this album seems to have this brutal yet subtle thing u going on. "Promises" is the queen of this type of Nero production. The dramatic finale can leave you standing breathless for a while. Best track after "Reaching Out" for sure.

Our journey throughout "Reality" is at it's end, and what better way to with a track called departure?

Departure
This closing track pleasantly surprised me. Honestly, in time that I have bought this album and started reviewing it just now, I hadn't properly listened to it. Shame, because it's actually really really good. Good? I meant incredible? Incredible? I meant legendary! That's how this track should be described. As it progresses, "Departure" get's better and better.

Boom, silence. Just briefly. The track starts building up again, and before you know it, you're back riding the awesome train to the closing credits of my personal best dubstep album of the year. Best closing track I heard in a while on an album. Props to Nero.

The Final Verdict
Well, it has been quite a ride. Before started analyzing the tracks one by one, I said that this will probably be a deal-maker or deal-breaker for them. I've read some other reviews here and there, and they are generally favorable. I can understand why some of them are not as positive as they should have been.


Welcome Reality shouldn't be looked at as an deep groundbreaking collective assembly of inspiring records, but as going to the movies or having one of your favorite snacks. It sounds a bit harsh, but I'm saying this with nothing but positive intentions. Welcome Reality offers entertainment en fulfillment on the spot, any given place and time with almost every track on the record. It is an album that offers a quick and satisfying musical fulfillment. That's how I listened to it and that's how I will judge it.


Almost the entire album delivers from 2808 to Departure. It's a shame that I didn't listened to it properly at first because I really enjoyed it these last couple of weeks. The tracks are comfortable easy and more importantly, very satisfying to listen to. Nero made a fun album, which I will probably return to more than often.

Monday Has Survived | The Rex: Reaching Out

Music is a strange thing. I've bought the Nero album months ago, but I never got to properly listened to it. I simply heard of a new Booka Shade remix and it turned out to be for Nero. The remix is, as you can see of the title, astonishing.

But but but, I soon realised that the originpal from Nero isn't half bad either! So after almost 4 months, I came to realize that Nero had more to offer than just "Promises" and "Innocence". I found myself listening to my previously bought album over and over again. It happens to be an exceptional one and I have Booka Shade to thank for discovering it!

The original was released besides the almost equally brilliant Booka Shade version on a single EP together with some other remixes. The EP was announced via one of the most brilliant EDM vids I've seen this year. The video shows that video-editing can actually be considered as a craftsmanship.



I'll soon be doing a review of Nero's "Welcome Reality" since it is full of exciting tracks, but for now, enjoy this stellar EP.