Matt Holliday is back once again at Bonzai Progressive with another stunning slice entitled Underworld. These last few years have been somewhat of a rollercoaster ride for Matt, on top of moving to a new country, he found himself in great demand after a plethora of quality releases and taking the helm at JOOF Aura. 2016 has been a huge year after what has been described by many as a 'killer set' at the Luminosity Trance Gathering in Amsterdam, and the release of his long awaited studio album on Phase Of Life. It's always great to see this guys work drop into the mailbox and we've no doubt we'll be seeing lots more in the future. In the meantime check out this latest offering and don't forget to tune in to Matt's radioshow Ethnoscience alongside Manu Riga, the first Saturday of each month on Progressive Beats Radio.
Underworld could be considered as some of Matt's deepest, darkest works. Right from the start we are drawn into a murky and moody sound that is steeped in glorious low end basses and sublime pads and FX. A fantastic ethnically charged vocal runs through the track delivering a chilling narrative given the tone of the voice. Quite a minimal piece with a lot of character and raw grooves that will definitely keep those late night sessions moving.
Belfast's Louis Irvine is up on remix duties and this one also marks his Bonzai Progressive debut. Louis normally resides over on our Progrez offshoot where he dishes out quality techno grooves, the latest of which - Alpas EP - is performing very well indeed. As this is Louis' first remix he set out to deliver a bad ass mutha, and we think he's done just that. After a bit of trial and error he found the path he wanted to take and decided to throw in the vocal which definitely takes things up a notch or two. He was thinking big on this one and he has certainly captured that big festival vibe which is sure to please many. The remix intros with thunderous kick drum that would be right at home at any festival and its massive sound system. Bright crispy hats cut through the low frequencies as hypnotic percussions start to fade up. The techno fuelled groove settles into its mesmeric state while some very cool vocals come through. An absolute stomper no doubt that will tear up any floor.
Dimitri Kechagias review:
[review top="1"]
[item value="10"]Beat and Rhythm[/item]
[item value="10"]Basslines and Groove[/item]
[item value="10"] Melody [/item]
[item value="10"] Synths [/item]
[item value="10"]Ethnic Vocals[/item]
[item value="10"]Breakdown[/item]
[item value="10"]Climax / Drop / Crescendo / Pay off moment[/item]
[item value="10"]Intensity, Drive and Energy[/item]
[item value="10"]Sound-design and Arrangement[/item]
[item value="10"]Overall Atmosphere[/item]
[item value="10"]Goosebumps / Shivers moments[/item]
[item value="10"]Emotional affinity and heartfelt moments[/item]
[item value="10"]Originality and Inventiveness[/item]
[item value="10"]Dancefloor Efficiency / Festival Arenas Effectiveness[/item]
[item value="10"]You can’t get this memorable track out of your head[/item]
[item value="10"]It has potential to become an anthem or a classic[/item]
[item value="10"]Matt Holliday - Underworld[/item]
[content title="Summary" label="Overall Score"]One of the biggest hopes in the global progressive scene is Matt Holliday. His releases so far prove his talent and Underworld confirms this with an emphatic tone. Underworld is a magnificent creation of tribal techno grooves, slow moving rhythm and fantastic organic feel of live like percussion. The ethnic vocal used offers great backbone for the track and adds its mysterious tripping out edge. The melodic input is minimal as the track moves dark and haunting and definitely will hypnotise the clubbers. On the other side Louis Irvine transforms the original into a straight forward techno gem that Chris Liebing or any other techno superstar can play in his set. He cleverly applies the ethnic vocal and If I was in his position I would do this even more often and I believe the track could have exploded in this way. However still is doing its job perfectly so drop it and get the techno vibes spreading. #PureGold Love It.[/content]
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