Before I start this I have to admit that I am not exactly 'up to date' on the whole trance scene. I regard anything on Gatecrasher or anything that sounds like something on Gatecrasher as trance even though some of it – as I am reliably informed – is hard house and in some instances progressive house/trance etc. I will hereafter refer to all these forms of music as trance. I know I’m showing my ignorance but it all sounds the same to me.
I should probably give you a brief overview on trances history, and how it came to be the global monster it is today. I know I shouldn’t plagiarize, but I’m lazy.
So basically, the points we can derive from this are: 1. Trance, like house was directly influenced by disco (which ranks along with the Paul Holmes CD as the biggest musical atrocities of the 20th century) 2. Trance sounds “at its best” when the listener is on ecstasy. However, almost all music would sound “at its best” on ecstasy. Unlike other music, you basically have to be on ecstasy to get anything out of trance. This contrasts with other music that has gone hand in hand with e in the past, such as “Madchester” because that music could be listened to without the aid of substances.
Enough of the introduction, on to why I hate trance. First of all, I don’t like the actual music. I think it is dull, predictable and repetitive. The last comment could be construed as hypocritical coming from someone who thoroughly enjoys both drum’n’bass and dub – I suppose some of the most repetitive music you can get ('Mother' by Goldie went on for over an hour with much the same drum beat and the same "space noise" vocals all the way through it) – but the majority of d’n’b and dub I listen to has been coined as “intelligent electronica” in that it tries to be original in some way and constantly keeps you on your toes (check out anything by Aphex Twin or some of DJ Krust’s stuff – full of irregular drum beats and snare bursts).
I suppose my argument from the music and originality aspect can be best summed up if you compare two remix tracks – one trance, the other dub. The trance track is a remix of the awesome ‘Street spirit” by Radiohead (this track was recently voted the number three track of all time in a recent poll of Dutch radio listeners). This track is remixed by the hugely successful trance DJ, Paul Oakenfold (dubbed “most popular/biggest DJ in the world” by various sources and even “best DJ in the world” by a few over-zealous commentators). This track opens with approximately two minutes of generic “trance-beat” that does not vary at all (I skipped 30 seconds of it and honestly didn’t notice the change in beat) before the vocals even appear; and when they do you wish they hadn’t. Thom Yorke’s once-glorious vocals sound more like the “space noise” vocals that appear in drum’n’bass that everyone seems to hate so much. This brilliant track becomes boring, banal, and seems to lose all point (ironically the song itself sums this up well: “This machine will not communicate these thoughts”) after Oakenfold’s “magic touch”. Radiohead refused permission for this track to be released and now it can only be found on Napster. I wonder why? I’ll give you a hint – it’s not because Radiohead have something against electronic music.
Contrast that track with a dub remix of “For the love of it” by New Zealand band Salmonella Dub (who are admittedly a dub band in the first place however this song was more pop than dub). This track was orrigionally a good summer song that broke into the New Zealand charts but was lacking that extra something. Until fellow New Zealander the Nomad (aka Daimon Schwalger) got hold of it. His stripped it down, made it more minimilist, and elongated Tiki Taane’s arguably “samey” lyrics into dreamy lines you can get lost in; this track becomes perfect for relaxation – exactly what you want from dub. This track from a small corner of the world takes you on a journey of the mind. Oakenfold’s international release takes you on a journey of the toilet.
I guess the other thing I hate about trance is the image of it – and the images it conjures up when I hear that hated word: trance.
Whenever I hear that I think of pre-pubescent “teeny-boppers” that listen to ‘The Edge’ and their like-minded elders that crowd ‘The Outback’ every Friday and Saturday night. These people almost never know anything about the actual music – heaven forbid – but ‘dance music’ is hip now and they want a piece of it – plus that “Paully van der Dyke” (sic) chap sounds quite good when they’re plugging him on ZM every five minutes, doesn’t he? As a consequence these people rocket ‘Trance Anthems’ (or any like-minded compilation put out to exploit the ignorant and make a quick buck) to the ‘Top of the Pops’ and sell out every Gatecrasher (et al) party known to man.
You always see these people at things like the Big Day Out. They’re the ones (usually female from my experience) dressed in what I am informed are “tacky Glassons tops” (usually shiny and/or loudly proclaiming something braindead like “GLAM” on the chest) and white pants (with black g-strings of course). Usually equipped with glo-sticks, this “with-it” crowd are waving-their-hands-in-the-air-like-they-just-don’t-care (possibly doing the ‘house hands’), clutching their Pump bottles for all they’re worth and desperately trying to give the impression that they are on e – heaven forbid they actually try it (“Oh no it’s evil! Holmes said so! Look at all the people it’s killed! 3!”). In every photo of places like the BDO boileroom there are always a couple of people who are plainly hating the music, “but it’s cool” so they persevere.
If you can’t understand this, try and imagine that you are in the mosh pit of Limp Bizkit and between ‘songs’ you hear this conversation:
1: “this is so cool!” 2: “really, do you like this punk (sic) music?” 1: “no, I get a headache just looking at that guy up there, Fred Manson…etc Get the picture now?).
This is what trance is doing to people - and the dance music industry in general – by going mainstream and commercial (elitist? Bitter? Possibly). This ‘mainstream’ crowd know nothing about the music they are supposedly “into” and have collectively ruined it for any quality trance that might still be out there.
I could go on about the market being flooded with generic cash-in products and the continual degrading of this industry into a “style over substance” scenario, but I think you get my point. I might not have convinced you to change your mind about trance (did you even care in the first place?), but at least you now know where my preferences lie. Oh, and I should warn you about a new ‘trance’. It was a strong underground scene, a few musicians “sold out” and it went mainstream. It’s exploded in Britain. It’s called UK garage and now it’s winging its way to our fair shores! Craig David has already paved the way. Beware…
