Monday 05th, January 2009
Dan Ascherl - Hello From New York
Updated: Sunday 11th, January 2009
Vaccine Records 005 – Dan Ascherl – Hello From New York
The latest offering from Vaccine recordings label is from Brighton based dj and producer Dan Ascherl. Dan is a regular of the Vaccine night held each month in London at the Ministry of Sound nightclub and also of the Honey Club in Brighton.
Original mix
The original mix starts with a heavy pounding kick drum and simple closed percussion. The bassline is effective and has a good driving feel to it. Before long, the melody kicks in and it is a slightly raspy sounding lead each note sharp and concise. Leading into the breakdown the notes have a bit more sustain to them and sound like a nice build emulating the early styles of Discover records. There is a hint of the Viceroy in here too with the buzzy sound effect he likes to use laced on top of the breakdown. The melody becomes more complicated here which adds to the suspense of once it all kicks back in.
When it all does kick back in, this more complicated melody laced over the previously less enthusiastic combination of bass and percussion makes the tune far more enjoyable. After a few phrases of this melodic trance, the tune strips back down to the bare basics again. The original less energetic melody kicks back in and the song gradually winds down to a close.
Frase mix
When I opened my inbox and saw this release, it was this mix which instantly had more appeal to me. Frase makes the use of a little melodic jingle type effect to bridge between phrases which makes the track very catchy from the get go. The kick drum and basslines used are a little softer than in the original aiming for a more melodical approach rather than a driving type approach. The use of more distinguishable percussion helps add the more peak time feel to it. The breakdown is very epic indeed, Frase does a superb job on this and adding a more rich sound and more layers to original.
The payoff to the epic breakdown is not one of euphoria but one of the more anticlimactic senses. Normally I am not a fan of this style because it doesn’t usually work. However, in this case I think it works well. The mood seems to change from a bright and bubbly floaty feel to a darker, broodier feel. The synths feel harder and stab a lot more with a healthy attack feel to them. The bassline and percussion feel more aggressive too. From this point on the track winds down to it’s conclusion with a little tease of the main melody coming back as an underlying extra to the now main stabbing synths.
Opinion
I like the both of these tracks. But for picking a favourite, I have to opt for the Frase mix as I feel he went the extra mile in terms of the overall production. Quirky little extras like what he adds make an average track good and a good track special. Dan’s original mix is a good effort for a first original production release from him. Look for the quality of his productions to get even better in the future.
The downsides to each mix is that in the original, the best bit ie the bit after the end of the breakdown is a little too short to be fully appreciated. The Frase mix could have a little bit more going on after the breakdown even with the melody creeping back in as a background sound, perhaps a small second breakdown just to add a little more variation.
Overall I will give this one a 4 out of 5 as the songs do exactly what they say on the tin, they can be played at almost any time of an evening and hold a good reaction. Look out for these artists in the future as they are going to become more well known. Vaccine as a label is starting to pick up some steam and I expect to see some nice releases soon.
Full release due later this month.
Written by:
AntAttwood
Updated: Sunday 11th, January 2009
Vaccine Records 005 – Dan Ascherl – Hello From New York
The latest offering from Vaccine recordings label is from Brighton based dj and producer Dan Ascherl. Dan is a regular of the Vaccine night held each month in London at the Ministry of Sound nightclub and also of the Honey Club in Brighton.
Original mix
The original mix starts with a heavy pounding kick drum and simple closed percussion. The bassline is effective and has a good driving feel to it. Before long, the melody kicks in and it is a slightly raspy sounding lead each note sharp and concise. Leading into the breakdown the notes have a bit more sustain to them and sound like a nice build emulating the early styles of Discover records. There is a hint of the Viceroy in here too with the buzzy sound effect he likes to use laced on top of the breakdown. The melody becomes more complicated here which adds to the suspense of once it all kicks back in.
When it all does kick back in, this more complicated melody laced over the previously less enthusiastic combination of bass and percussion makes the tune far more enjoyable. After a few phrases of this melodic trance, the tune strips back down to the bare basics again. The original less energetic melody kicks back in and the song gradually winds down to a close.
Frase mix
When I opened my inbox and saw this release, it was this mix which instantly had more appeal to me. Frase makes the use of a little melodic jingle type effect to bridge between phrases which makes the track very catchy from the get go. The kick drum and basslines used are a little softer than in the original aiming for a more melodical approach rather than a driving type approach. The use of more distinguishable percussion helps add the more peak time feel to it. The breakdown is very epic indeed, Frase does a superb job on this and adding a more rich sound and more layers to original.
The payoff to the epic breakdown is not one of euphoria but one of the more anticlimactic senses. Normally I am not a fan of this style because it doesn’t usually work. However, in this case I think it works well. The mood seems to change from a bright and bubbly floaty feel to a darker, broodier feel. The synths feel harder and stab a lot more with a healthy attack feel to them. The bassline and percussion feel more aggressive too. From this point on the track winds down to it’s conclusion with a little tease of the main melody coming back as an underlying extra to the now main stabbing synths.
Opinion
I like the both of these tracks. But for picking a favourite, I have to opt for the Frase mix as I feel he went the extra mile in terms of the overall production. Quirky little extras like what he adds make an average track good and a good track special. Dan’s original mix is a good effort for a first original production release from him. Look for the quality of his productions to get even better in the future.
The downsides to each mix is that in the original, the best bit ie the bit after the end of the breakdown is a little too short to be fully appreciated. The Frase mix could have a little bit more going on after the breakdown even with the melody creeping back in as a background sound, perhaps a small second breakdown just to add a little more variation.
Overall I will give this one a 4 out of 5 as the songs do exactly what they say on the tin, they can be played at almost any time of an evening and hold a good reaction. Look out for these artists in the future as they are going to become more well known. Vaccine as a label is starting to pick up some steam and I expect to see some nice releases soon.
Full release due later this month.
Written by:
AntAttwood
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