V/A – Project Eleusis
Cover: http://tinyurl.com/7kndk
Artist: Various
Title: Project Eleusis (The bible of psychedelics - 100 years of Albert Hofmann)
Format: CD (jewel case)
Label: Dropout Productions (US)
Cat. #: DPCD105
Distribution: Arabesque
Date: 9 January 2006
Track listing:
01. 08’57” Penta - Tollkorn
02. 08’02” Polyphonia - Illuminati
03. 07’57” The Nommos – Happy Hofmann 100
04. 07’15” Kindzadza – Ritm Corr
05. 08’20” Highko & Naked Tourist – Divine Blast
06. 06’39” Digitalist - Velotripper
07. 07’59” Candy Power – Time Racing
08. 07’34” The Galactic Brain – Mind Manifest
09. 08’13” oCeLot – Happy Birthday
Review:
Herzlichen Glückwunsch Hofmann!
On April 19, 1943 the world changed drastically: Dr. Albert Hofmann discovered the psychoactive substance known as LSD which has since been one of the most popular semi synthetic psychedelic drugs on the planet… And we all know that with the advent of acid, man discovered new ways to think and it had to do with piecing together new thoughts of mind… Hofmann acknowledged this, and perhaps most well-known are his storied bike rides through the streets of Basel, Switzerland whilst under the influence…
Celebrating the 100th birthday of Dr. Hofmann on 11 January 2006, the Gaia Media Foundation staged an International Symposium in Basel – and with this compilation Dropout Productions are providing the soundtrack… The track list looks impressive, and I for one can’t wait to start celebrating…
Let me take you thru the tracks…
#01: Penta – Tollkorn [146 BPM]
Russian-born, American-based producer Nikita Tselovalnikov cracks open the celebration with a track sporting a Swedish sounding track-title he made whilst on the Portuguese Azores Islands… Confused? Don’t be – this is trademark Penta: Elusive, fragmented, and action-packed psytrance… And as always, Penta puts a funny spin on the so-called darkpsy… This is somewhat spooky but also very playful and full of oddball twists and turns… Tweaked by the man himself: Penta! A solid first track!
#02: Polyphonia – Illuminati [152 BPM]
“This illuminati. This group, who calls themselves The Enlightened, had gained resistance of power through control of the banking system!” Polyphonia is Romolo Cherie from Greece and I only know his work from the 2005 Trishula compilation Crazy Goblins & Wicked Pixies… Honestly, I didn’t like that track very much due to its bleak and monotonous nature… Anyway, this track is not as minimal, but it still suffers from a few problems… It’s by far the fastest track here, galloping away at an impressive 152 beats per minute – which obviously leaves little space for ‘breathing’... Also, I not the biggest fan of the hardcore, high-pitched squelching going on here… Well, I guess I’m just not a Polyphonia fan… Bummer!
#03: The Nommos – Happy Hofmann 100 [150 BPM]
If you thought you’d experience an Albert Hofmann celebration without a friendly nod from Goa Gil, you were wrong… I mean, these guys must be just around the same age… Heck, we all know that Hofmann ‘sponsored’ countless fun-filled parties on the beaches of Goa… So, this is Goa Gil and Ariane paying their respect… The track starts with a German voice sample of Hofmann himself talking in his calm voice – and soon thereafter the track is in full gear… Not as dark as the previous track, but still pretty damn banging… Thankfully this works much better construction-wise, and it’s been a while since I’ve heard such a great track from Gil Baba… Hard-hitting, acid-ridden, squelching night-trance – with enough variation, thrills and frills to keep me smiling… Very well put together! Best track so far!
#04: Kindzadza – Ritm Corr [148 BPM]
From Russia with love! Leo Greshilov also sends his greetings with ‘rhythm core’… Another big-shot night trance producer with many releases under his belt – and quite a few personal favourites of mine… The intro here is very cool – some kind of industrial wailing sound is slowly expanding into a relentless monster of a tune… Banging, acid-ridden, edgy, twisted, dark, gritty and experimental – and that was just what the good doctor ordered! A fine, fine track!
#05: Highko & Naked Tourist – Divine Blast [148 BPM]
Here’s a German collaboration between Heiko Quast (Noise Poison Records) and Martin (Z-Neo) & Björn (DJ Iguana)… Especially Naked Tourist have impressed me with their work, and I’m still looking very much forward to their debut album Mad Different Methods coming soon on Parvarti Records… What we get here, is genuine, blasting psytrance… The bassline is more refined than in the previous tracks, and as such this is perhaps the most dancefloor friendly track thus far… As always with Naked Tourist we get a solid dose of raging mad, druggy night-trance – pure dancefloor fodder… Sweet!
#06: Digitalist – Velotripper [150 BPM]
Digitalist is Swiss producer Thomas Franske and I only just recently became acquainted with his work on the Peak Records compilation Utopeak… I liked his über-fast, nocturnal odd-ball trance – and this track is just that! Starts out kinda boring, but that’s only for short while – soon the madness is unleashed… Flaring, raging, pounding night trance – with a ton of digital burps, electronic farts and enough acid-lines to keep me interested…
#07: Candy Power – Time Racing [148 BPM]
Candy Power is a Russian duo consisting of Roman Dominator & Kety Equilibrium… Made up names obviously, but who cares really!?… Anyway, I’m not familiar with these guys’ work, so I don’t really know what to expect… So maybe I’m in for a surprise… Yes – I was... For a while at least! This track is pretty sweet! The first part is eclectic, multilayered, contrasting night trance… It’s riddled with funky, trippy darkish elements – the acid-level has been cranked up – and basically it’s just great! Well, maybe I should curb my enthusiasm, as the track seems to somewhat loose focus for the last couple of minutes… And that’s a damn shame – it was going so well… Arrrgh! But still – the first part of this track rocks!
#08: The Galactic Brain – Mind Manifest [147 BPM]
The Galactic Brain is another new project to me… The guys behind it are Mexican producers Chac Pakal and Jolly Jack and as far as I can tell, this is their debut release… What we get here is more alleged darkpsy, but whereas the previous ones were much more versatile, this one seems to be somewhat more formulated… That’s true for the rhythm section at least which is pretty uninspired… Luckily there’s other stuff going on here, which almost makes up for it… The breaks + the voice samples are pretty nice and the eerie, alien ‘crawling sounds’ really creeps me out… And I like getting freaked out… A good track – too bad about the shabby first half though!
#09: oCeLot – Happy Birthday [148 BPM]
And hey, this is a Dropout Productions compilation after all, so who better to finish things off, than label regular Aaron Peacock!? This guy has yet to let me down with his experimental, redefining psychedelia… And hell yeah, once again Mr. Peacock plays the oddball card – just listen to the warped, filtered, vocoded, tranced-up rendition of the famous Happy Birthday tune which is repeated both in the intro and outro parts of this track… Before long, this turns into a regular acid-fest… Twirling, playful, syncopated acid-lines are all over the place, and this is perhaps the best trip tool of the entire compilation… I mean, the psychedelia is coming out the woodwork here… It’s acid galore… Brilliant!
Honestly, I would have been disappointed if this turned out to be a collection of half-baked tunes profiting from the celebration of Hofmann’s birthday… But luckily it’s not – in fact, this is one hell of a compilation packed to the rim with kick-ass tunes… Oh yes, with only one ‘not great’ track and a couple of minor glitches, this is a real winner! The first essential purchase of 2006 for fans of eclectic, versatile, acid-ridden night trance…
The cover art by CristalSource is… Well, erm, different! But I can cope with that – after all, its a tribute to the good doctor, so I can deal with the fact that it sports his portrait… To conclude, this is a brilliant compilation, which I will not hesitate to give my warmest recommendations… Enjoy!
Now, let’s all stand and salute the man… Happy 100th doc!
Favourites: 1, 3(!), 4(!), 5, 6, 8, 9(!)
Review by: Deathposture (Denmark)