It's been a while since U-Radio went on air and its absence leaves me dry without my electronic music fix. Gone are the happy days when I would travel from one place to another with dance music playing on my phone's radio. Furion's stolen and I can't even play my club tunes at Eclipse anymore. And since my dancing days are over, the current chart-toppers and club anthems have become unfamiliar to me.
It would have been easy to simply list down my current trance and house tracks, so I may lay claim to the sound that once shaped my nightlife. But to do so would not give justice to a blog entry telling about my deepest passions. Instead, let me share what I know about the genre and why it keeps me hooked even when the body craves the music no longer.
Dirty South feat Rudy - Let It Go (Axwell Remix)
House plays much slower than trance, resulting in a more danceable sound. Its important elements are the heavy bass, sample recordings taken from other music genres, (such as pop) and the repetitive kick-drum effect usually generated by a drum machine.
Shogun feat Emma Lock - Run To My Rescue
Soothing female vocals, ambient, airy background noise and fast tempo are the essentials of trance. Since I don't find the music danceable, it serves as my relaxing sound, (I'd fall asleep while Trance plays on my music player) or audio companion when lifting weights at the gym.
Morgan Paige feat Jan Burton - I've Had Friends (Jan Elan Extended Remix)
Electronica is such a versatile genre that a single track can spawn a dozen remixes. Some of these remixes end up being spun in the dance floor, or become part of compilation. After so many audio layers and vocal tweaks, some remixes turn out better-sounding that the original.
ATB - Ecstasy
Trance is seldom played in dance clubs and bars around Manila. Instead, they are being performed by the international DJ's themselves in big events such as those set up by Big Fish Manila. What we usually hear - in gay clubs - are house remixes of songs played on mainstream radio.
Offer Nissim feat Maya - I'm In Love
House and trance keep me upbeat in moments of sullenness. It keeps my mind wandering every time I go on a journey. With a sprinkle of imagination, a vocal trance can take you to a cold, vespertine place. While a house track, in all its seductiveness, can make you feel sexy even when the mirror shows a lie.
The five video clips above are some of my favorites.
Listen and feel uplifted.