Posted: 15 Feb 2012, 21:14
Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyy, new Eurobeat!! It may just be 6 new female Hi-NRG Attack tracks, so not a massive amount of variety, but it's most definitely a welcome sight.
I think Bore hit the nail right on the head - the lack of new Super Eurobeat is making these sound even sweeter than I think they normally would, although most are from the better end of HRG's speedy spectrum. Queen Of Your Nights is probably my favourite at the moment - it just has a really nicely written chorus, and of course a super-catchy melody.
Sinclaire might sue for Shake Me To The Power (the line in the chorus "1,2,3,4, FIRE!"...hmm, where have we heard that before?
) You Got The Power has a slightly different approach with the more stripped back main hook, and it seems to use auto-tune which isn't something I've heard much with in Hi-NRG Attack songs. Your Smile's beats and instrumentation seem to have much more of an 80's feel - I quite like it, although I think it probably has the least interesting vocal melody of the new tracks.
And so to the two new tracks that are probably the more unique of the compilation - Back Into The 80's and Welcome To My Heaven. Back Into The 80's seems to be getting the most attention, and it is definitely the track that stands apart from the rest, but in my opinion it's not in a good way. The major issue I have is the horrible warped vocal effect used throughout, which is particularly bad in the chorus - it makes me think of those awful HRG tracks from the 170's with all the ridiculously ugly vocal effects. I just don't understand how making the vocals so grainy and warped to the point where they are barely decipherable makes for a pleasurable listening experience. The melody and certain production ideas show potential, but the vocals kill it for me. Also, there seems to be the most random over-reliance on little drum-fills all the way through - it gets quite irritating.
As for Welcome To My Heaven, it's far more my bag! Love the warped guitar riff during the intro, and that aggressive hook captures the best sounds from the Hyper Techno and 90's dance music. Every layer of this production adds to the rich, industrial sound that this one has. I kind of hear what Megan was hearing in terms of this being the HRG version of Alix's "Maximisin'", but I also think it is strong enough to stand on its own. Also, it's really good to hear the team finding a happy middle ground between the 160 BPMs and the super-slow Italo-style BPMs that were getting a bit too regular on the SEB series. I also have to say that I absolutely the way the breakdown section is handled from 03:07 - the beat synchopation is so unique in the Eurobeat scene and yet so current when compared to the current pop trends with the 16th note spacing. Awesome stuff.
Can't wait for the other labels to catch on and release some more digital albums for us - come on SCP!!
I think Bore hit the nail right on the head - the lack of new Super Eurobeat is making these sound even sweeter than I think they normally would, although most are from the better end of HRG's speedy spectrum. Queen Of Your Nights is probably my favourite at the moment - it just has a really nicely written chorus, and of course a super-catchy melody.
Sinclaire might sue for Shake Me To The Power (the line in the chorus "1,2,3,4, FIRE!"...hmm, where have we heard that before?
) You Got The Power has a slightly different approach with the more stripped back main hook, and it seems to use auto-tune which isn't something I've heard much with in Hi-NRG Attack songs. Your Smile's beats and instrumentation seem to have much more of an 80's feel - I quite like it, although I think it probably has the least interesting vocal melody of the new tracks.And so to the two new tracks that are probably the more unique of the compilation - Back Into The 80's and Welcome To My Heaven. Back Into The 80's seems to be getting the most attention, and it is definitely the track that stands apart from the rest, but in my opinion it's not in a good way. The major issue I have is the horrible warped vocal effect used throughout, which is particularly bad in the chorus - it makes me think of those awful HRG tracks from the 170's with all the ridiculously ugly vocal effects. I just don't understand how making the vocals so grainy and warped to the point where they are barely decipherable makes for a pleasurable listening experience. The melody and certain production ideas show potential, but the vocals kill it for me. Also, there seems to be the most random over-reliance on little drum-fills all the way through - it gets quite irritating.
As for Welcome To My Heaven, it's far more my bag! Love the warped guitar riff during the intro, and that aggressive hook captures the best sounds from the Hyper Techno and 90's dance music. Every layer of this production adds to the rich, industrial sound that this one has. I kind of hear what Megan was hearing in terms of this being the HRG version of Alix's "Maximisin'", but I also think it is strong enough to stand on its own. Also, it's really good to hear the team finding a happy middle ground between the 160 BPMs and the super-slow Italo-style BPMs that were getting a bit too regular on the SEB series. I also have to say that I absolutely the way the breakdown section is handled from 03:07 - the beat synchopation is so unique in the Eurobeat scene and yet so current when compared to the current pop trends with the 16th note spacing. Awesome stuff.
Can't wait for the other labels to catch on and release some more digital albums for us - come on SCP!!
