One beautiful aspect of Armin's latest release in "Universal Religion" is the regular and timely occurrence of "drop-out" moments where the beats cease to drive the song and the gossamer voices guide the way. Any trance artist is going to incorporate a certain amount of deft spaces and pauses in the tireless mix, but Armin seems to be extra sensitive to the inherent beauty of the singers and melodies that can be explored in the midst of pulsating purpose. This selection of records embodies the timeless Ibiza sound, and that is why the Dutch DJ and producer Van Buuren received the 2007 annual award for the number one most popular global DJ the British DJ Mag. Also he became the number one DJ after previous winners Paul van Dyk and Tiesto.
Universal Religion 2008 was recorded live in the summer of 2007 at a legendary nightclub called Amnesia. This set started out as a spontaneous activity that wound up as the ideal CD release. Armin chose a random selection of records that embodies the classic Ibiza sound against the roar of his crowd having a dance party blast. He says that he based the rest of the mix after the first two tracks on the crowd's reaction, and you can tell.
There are some incredible tracks on this recording, and just a couple average ones. I love Armin's intros, because they usually offer a stirring symphonic movement cut into a developing vocal theme and emerging trance beat. Thus, "Another Day on the Terrace" by Sunlounger provided the perfect opener with its romantic undertones. The other tracks with a similar "Balearic" structure and bliss are track 6 – "Daydream," by Andy Moor and one of my faves, Markus Schulz and track 12 – "Big Sky" [Agnelli & Nelson Remix] by John O'Callaghan with vocals by Audrey Gallagher. Additionally, I enjoyed the techno-pop sounds of Dash Berlin's "Till the Sky Falls Down" [dub], Jose Amnesia's Invincible [Sied Van Riel Remix] featuring Jennifer Rene with deluxe sensual vocals, David West's "Welsh Morphology", Mungo's "Summer Blush", and finally, Thomas Bronzwaer's "Resound" with its fun & spiraling galaxy of positive and uplifting major chords augmented by classic analogue synths. Looking forward to Armin's next fantastical project, around the corner…
