Solarstone – Electronic Architecture 2
Pin It‘Electronic Architecture 2‘ mixed by Rich Mowatt aka Solarstone, is the follow up to ‘Electronic Architecture‘. Nothing much has changed in a sense; the quality of the music is second to none, as is the mixing in which becomes apparent very early on a lot of work has gone into, but I’ll talk about the actual music side soon. For the moment I want to give a mention to the amazing artwork, the design, though I don’t know exactly what it is, is wonderful. The uniqueness draws you in; it screams professionalism and is on par with the high quality music inside. The obvious hard work that’s been put into every design aspect of ‘EA2‘ is one which has long since been lost and is a real credit to Solarstone and everyone else involved.
Disc 1
So then, the music! Deep progressive; a sound that most of us in 2011 may be a little unfamiliar with, but just because we’re unfamiliar with it and the ‘big boys’ don’t play it very often doesn’t mean we should turn our noses up at it, especially when Solarstone’s in charge of the decks. Being a bit unfamiliar myself I personally I didn’t think I’d enjoy it, I’m not the biggest fan of slower progressive music, but the high standard of every track on here makes a very enjoyable listen.
An almost chill out intro to the album in the form of "Solarstone – Reconstruced Intro" sets the subtle tone for the next 6 or 7 tracks. A dreamy, mellow, progressive sound mixed to absolute perfection feels like there’s a story being told.
To give you an idea of what that story might be, I want you to imagine yourself late at night laying down looking at a clear night sky; it’s a lovely thing to do. Now if you were to listen to music whilst doing so then the perfect soundtrack for that moment would be "Hybrid – Numb (Kill City Sounds 03 Remix Reconstruction)". This is deep progressive as its best! The break down is sublime being one the dreamiest I’ve ever heard with some of the most subtle violin play known to man. No one needs relaxation therapy anymore, just put this on and you’re away!
As the mix carried on I was bobbing away but in deep thought, one could say I was in a trance. One thought provoking track which sticks out for me is "Kazusa & Shingo Nakamura – Dice"; a slightly higher tempo track as you would expect with it being towards the end of the disc, has a blissful melody that doesn’t out stay its welcome giving the ability for the listener to close their eyes and let the track take their mind elsewhere, on a magical, deep journey.
The disc finishes with a more bass heavy track in the name of "Elfsong – Eta Carinae"; possibly a track the wider dance audience would recognise as trance. It’s pacier and easier to dance to than the rest of the disc, the only problem now is I didn’t want the mix to end… so onto Disc 2, let’s find out what that brings us!
Disc 2
As soon as the second disc starts with "Aeron Aether & Embliss – A New Dawn (Reconstruction)" there’s a noticeable summer feel which followed by the soft beat in "Janeiro & Sovt’s – Dreams Of The Sea" along with the crashing of the sea and seagulls chirping puts you in a true relaxed trance. Now after just two tracks it’s easy to picture yourself on a sunny beach on the coast of Brazil with the rays shining down on you, as the mix continues through blissfully dreamy tracks masterfully mixed together.
A third of the way through, Solarstone’s own track ‘Touchstone‘ has been remixed by Orkidea. Back when the original was released there was huge talk about what a great track it indeed is, but as is the theme of ‘EA2‘ however, it wouldn’t of fit in. Orkidea’s remix though, does fit in; the unique and fantastic sounding balearic melody is still there with a beat and added samples making it sound spacey and futuristic.
The seamless mix continues and as the music plays through and the tempo rises, the overall quality of the music doesn’t diminish one bit. Track 8 onwards we get to hear what some might consider more indoor club music. There feels to be a harder beat and more bass with less minimalistic melodies but still dreamy and absolutely brilliant. "Peter Liu – City Of Dreams" is a fantastic example to show exactly what I mean, yet another track with a gorgeous, drifting, thought provoking melody that again doesn’t out stay its welcome.
The faster paced tracks continue up until the last track "DJ Orion & J.Shore – Architect’s Dream (Dub)" which sounds more like a lullaby than anything else. Acoustic strings and subtle bird song added to the softest beat imaginable, with the sound of falling rain towards the finish line makes this a beautiful end and a perfect come down to a fantastic album.
Final Thoughts
As many releases nowadays become monotonous and predictable, Solarstone has proved that with the patience and correct capabilities it is possible to create a unique and professional album. The one and only thing that anyone could say is predictable about ‘EA2‘ is that you know the quality isn’t going to stop. This isn’t 140bpm anthem trance – this is deep, dark and beautiful progressive trance as its finest.
9/10
For more info related to Solarstone check out the following link:
www.solarstone.co.uk
www.twitter.com/richsolarstone
www.facebook.com/solarstonefanpage
www.myspace.com/solarstone
www.youtube.com/solarstonetube
Reviewed by: Matt Lees
