Detroit Disaster

Progressive Chart: 2009/10

October was an incredibly busy month for me—with more major gigs in a single month than I’ve ever had before—and November isn’t likely to be any less hectic! I missed out on posting a monthly progressive/techno chart but it’s never too late, is it? Here are 20 cuts that really worked wonders on my stereo in the month of October:…

Metal Siding

Progressive Chart: 2009/09

Summer is almost gone and I’m in school again. This hasn’t restrained my explorations of new music, however, and I continue to dig deep into the emerging fusion of psytrance and techno that I’ve been so excited about recently. So here you have it: a set of 20 tunes that have been circulating on my stereo this month. As with…

Kensington Aesthetic

Progressive Chart: 2009/08

After playing four festivals this season—Sacred Earth, Entheos, Eclipse, and All Stars—I am gearing up for my fifth and final open air event of the season: Harvest. Barring any unforeseen changes to the schedule I will be playing the closing set at the psytrance stage, a perfect time for the techno/psytrance crossover style that I have been so into this…

x-2009-flowers-1

Progressive Chart: 2009/07

I return again to share a 25 recommendations from the progressive side of psytrance–where the genre bleeds into cutting edge techno. “Progressive” is a word with several meanings; it describes a specific sound as well as an approach to writing music. Truly progressive music must integrate new ideas and influences to remain viable. Consequently, there is little in the way…

DONT

Dark Psytrance Chart: 2009/02

Here I have collected a list of thirteen killer tunes from the dark side of psychedelic trance. Most of these were purchased on CD from Saikosounds, my main physical media supplier these days. In alphabetical order by artist name: Atriohm – Pagan Anesthetic (Encephalopaticys Remix) [Noise Poison Records] Baal – Rite Of Passage [Underground Sound Promotions] Derango – Via [Parvati…

Perfect Stranger 2009/03/28

Progressive Chart: 2009/02

Here is another list of twenty progressive tunes that have been rocking the speakers here at Ektoplazm in recent months. Most can be purchased at the regular digital download shops but some were released exclusively on CD. Ace Ventura – Sao Paulo (Astronivo Remix) [Iboga Records] Astronivo – Bonanza (SQL Remix) [Tribal Vision Records] Astronivo – Nature of Destiny (Brisker…

va-momentum-vol-1

Ektoplazm: The Best Albums of 2008

2008 was a fantastic year for free music. Now, having had more than a month to reflect, I have compiled a list of personal highlights. I’ll own up to being involved in some of these projects in some capacity or another, but this bias shouldn’t come as a surprise—I wouldn’t be working so closely on some of these projects if…

Harvest 2008 on Sunday Morning

Progressive Chart: 2008/10

The term progressive refers to a number of different aspects of electronic dance music. In a technical sense, the word progressive suggests deep rhythms, slow-burning arrangements, hazy atmospheres, and a subtle approach to composition. Progressive can also mean cutting edge, fashionable, or “forward thinking.” It is a slippery concept, always changing.

Eclipse 2008 at Night

Dark Psytrance Chart: 2008/10

I recently wrote about top tens and hinted that I might get back into the practice. After all, compiling and publishing a top ten chart is an easy way to recommend music, something we all like to do. Here is the first set of tracks I have compiled in recent weeks—ten dark thrillers to light up the night: Alter…