May: 10 trance tunes you need to hear this month

Andrew Rayel 'Moments' (Armada)

For the last three years, Andrew Rayel has been touring nonstop – and that’s something that’s reflected in his latest LP. Following on from 2014’s ‘Find Your Harmony’, his second artist album is all about the energy and doesn’t include any downtempo tracks whatsoever. Lead track ‘I’ll Be There’, featuring Eric Lumiere, sets the tone for the album with its its reverberating bassline and bouncy beat. The rest of the LP is just as good for singing along to as it is for dancing to: Emma Hewitt and Christina Novelli also provide powerful vocals and, if that wasn’t already enough, Andrew has collaborated with ATB and Jochen Miller too. Unlike most artist albums, ‘Moments’ isn’t really a journey; it’s more a collection of anthems that’ll make you want to stay on the dancefloor.

7/10

Farius 'Sweet Deception' (Delirium)

The classically trained Farius has only been releasing records for a few months, he’s managed to make it onto the playlists of some of the world’s top DJs, including Armin, Markus Schulz, PvD, Cosmic Gate and Ferry. His new track is all flowing melodies, emotional chord progressions, soaring leads and hard-hitting bass. He reckons trance is our modern interpretation of classical music; judging by this, we’d have to agree.

8/10

Sunlight Project 'Heaven/Maui' (Sunlight Tunes)

When it’s cold and grey outside, you can always count on Balearic trance label Sunlight Tunes to bring a little ray of sunshine. With no less than 14 releases in 2016, Sunlight Project is never one for resting on his laurels, and this year he’s making a return with this new two-track EP. They may not be as notable as some of his other tunes (‘Pacific Blue’, ‘I See You’), but both are as warm, melodic and uplifting as we’ve come to expect from the Italian producer.

7/10

Mert Butuner 'Follow The Bass' (Mert Butuner)

Manchester’s Mert Butuner sells himself as an electro, progressive and big-room producer. His latest release is labelled as ‘trance’, and it’s definitely been made with arenas in mind: with its pounding bassline and vocals that resemble a war chant, it’s got a tribal feel – and although it features a tense breakdown, the drop could afford to be much bigger. It has the makings of a huge festival track, but will be better suited to EDM events than trance ones.

7/10

Adam White 'Ballerina' (Scott Bond & Charlie Walker Rebooted remix) (Rebooted)

Originally released back in 2005, Adam White’s aptly titled ‘Ballerina’ is a beautiful, elegant and graceful track, featuring emotional vocals from Martin Grech. Although they haven’t name-checked him, Scott Bond and Charlie Walker have retained those vocals here and thankfully give them the podium they deserve, especially during the breakdown. But apart from some extra energy, they’re not really adding anything new. That said, it’s still good to hear the record again, and it’s also being supported by names such as Aly & Fila and Alex MORPH.

6/10

Moby 'Are You Lost In The World Like Me?' (AJ’s Late Nite Acid Psy mix) (CDR)

It seems that, ever since Above & Beyond reworked ‘Porcelain’ last year, remixing Moby has become the thing to do. And with the help of Mark Sherry, rising talent AJ now has a mastered, extended club mix of ‘Are You Lost In The World Like Me?’ that’s gaining a fair amount of support online. As you can guess by the title, this remix is darker and more frantic than the original, with the vocals sounding even more desperate than they already did; if you’ve seen the thought-provoking video that goes with the track, this new version will make a lot of sense to you.

7/10

Oleg Farrier vs Blaze Sulinski 'Samanta/Red Hill' (Freegrant Music)

While previous releases on Alter Ego and Big Toys Production mean Oleg Farrier is better known than Polish producer Blaze Sulinski, his lead track on this new Freegrant EP is a little disappointing. It may have a good beat, but the vocals sound strained and it’s a bit too repetitive; Sulinski’s ‘Red Hill’, on the other hand, has anticipation and pace as well as a captivating piano melody. But the two tracks do work well together, and make for a solid EP overall.

7/10

Myon feat Alissa Feudo 'Omen In The Rain' (Anjunabeats)

Last year, Hungarian duo Myon & Shane 54 announced they were parting ways to focus on their solo projects. Now, Myon makes his debut on Anjunabeats. Premiered by A&B at their Group Therapy 200 concert last September, the record has been around for some time; it’s no wonder, then, that momentum has been building, and with its upbeat melody, captivating bassline and poignant vocals from Alissa Feudo, we can see why fans love it. But while we appreciate what they’re doing as solo artists, we hope it doesn’t mean the duo are over for good.

8/10

Dedalena 'To Live To Love' (V4UGH4N & Costa Pantazis dub mix) (Metamorph Advance)

It’s fair to say Dedalena’s ‘To Live To Love’ wasn’t a smash hit when it was first released back in 2011, but that hasn’t stopped V4UGH4N & Costa Pantazis from remixing it anyway. They’ve binned the lyrics and added a euphoric trance breakdown to create a 4am club track for the purists. There’s also a hard trance vocal mix, which is more the pair’s usual territory.

7/10

LTN vs Seawayz & Sollito 'Winterfell' (FSOE Excelsior)

Released ahead of the new season of Game Of Thrones, LTN’s collab with Seawayz & Sollito (named ‘Winterfell’ in honour of the stronghold of the North in the HBO show) adds to the hype surrounding the series. Featuring a bouncy melody, grooving bassline and some sleek synths, it’s a nice progressive trance track, but it’s not nearly as epic as you’d expect it to be from the title – especially when compared to Gareth Emery’s tribute ‘Kings & Queens’.

7/10