It's been quite a good year for Sunny LAX! Another release on Anjunabeats, a really neat EP on Deepblue and a now a fresh release on Red Force Recordings whom he has already done a few remixes for in the past. This release contains two tracks and an additional mix for those in wants it uplifting!
The original mix of Release is up first. A bit of minimalistic influences in the percussive sounds but a good bass to inject that needed dancefloor appeal. While this is far from being banging trance, I still love how it accellerates from one part of the song to another. Great quality progressive trancer with those destinct Sunny LAX melodies. There is also an uplifting version of Release. While the melodies are epic, playful and absolutely standout I'm sort of dissapointed that he had to cloud it with a slighty too hard kickdrum and a bassline which takes over a bit too much. I would have preferred that he brought that beauty from the melodies out and put them in the front a bit more. The breakdown is still fantastic plus somewhat different from what you will usually find in trance tunes these days. The next and last tune on this release is called Drive At Six O'Clock. I sat without even paying attention to the title and imagined this being produced very late in the morning after perhaps a long night, which could have given some creative input/inspirations. At the same time I can imagine myself standing in a club in the early AM and this being the last tune of the night. While this probably wont be a huge crowdpleaser, I still find it quite special. The ideas behind it and that atmosphere makes it worth a listen for sure.
Verdict
There is no doubt in my mind here, the original mix of Release is best out of the bunch. It's not a major peaker but it will do nicely as filler/intro tune in an uplifting set and generelly fit perfectly in a nice progressive trance set. Lovely track from Sunny LAX there and great to see that he is experimenting a bit, while he still keeps some of his oldschool influences that he is so well-known for.
Available Now on Beatport!
https://www.beatport.com/en-US/html/content/release/detail/191813/release