The Phil-Harmonic Podcast Episode 28

Bonsoir, mes amis. I foolishly promised you 3 episodes in March. Unfortunately, due to birthdays and geography beyond my immediate control, I’ve had to delay Episode 28 by a couple of days. So you’ll all have to settle for 3 episodes in April instead. Here’s hoping. 2012 is disappearing before our eyes, summer approaches and TPHP marches on.

I've always promised with this podcast that I would constantly keep you on your toes. When it comes to doing what I call ‘normal episodes’, getting a balance between a familiarity of style that makes my podcast recognisable and regularly delivering episodes that tackle the EDM journey from a fresh angle is something I think about as much as anything. While by no means being the best episode I’ve ever done, Episode 28 achieves a bit of a milestone in terms finding this illusive balance.

Episode 27 was an intense, edgy and techy trip, with a distinct hint of moody melancholy. This week we’ve kept some of the moody darkness, with plenty more big riffs and, in some cases quite haunting, breakdowns. And there’s also a return for Craig Connelly’s Robot Wars in the shape of the Andrew Rayel Stadium remix, which this week wins my ‘Tune Of The Episode’. The melody of Robot Wars is my favourite riff of the year so far and I’ve found it hugely difficult to pick a favourite from the two version that were released. In the end, the Andrew Rayel edges it for being faster, moodier and more dramatic at the breakdown.

But this week’s outing has 2 very fresh angles. Proper ‘big room’ house, a la the kind of shit that is currently rocking dance floors the world over, makes a welcome return. A new ‘Koko-esque’ track by Sander Van Doorn, Swedish House Mafia’s absolutely red hot new single, Greyhound, and Nicky Romero’s full on 303-fest, Generation 303, all give the opening 15 minutes of Episode 28 a summery festival feel.

The other angle is a more interesting one. Normally a track as hugely popular and as powerful as John O’Callaghan’s remix of Concrete Angel would bring any mix to a thundering and earth-shattering crescendo. That’s the idea. This week’s fan-picked ‘golden oldie’ was a prime opportunity to show that we can push things to another level if required.

Fellow twitter user and regular listener of the show, Dušan Polek asked me if he could chose our final oldie this week and I was delighted to let him do so. The choice was Giuseppe Ottaviani’s Linking People on Vandit Records from 2005. By sheer coincidence, Linking People happens to be my all-time favourite Giuseppe Ottaviani production and it sits proudly at #74 in my all-time trance countdown on last.fm that I’ve mentioned on here a couple of times before. So as requests go, this was a belter.

But, more to the point, Linking People is quite a fast track at 143 BPM. It was time to delve back into my dusty old hard dance CD case to find something to really get those hairs jumping off your neck. Concrete Angel moves off quite nicely into yet another Goa-tinged record by Paul Oakenfold, Glow In The Dark. From there we really turn up the heat with the equally psy-tinted Extraordinary by hard trance producer, AfterShok. This track is really going back to my DJing roots and it felt absolutely amazing to play some of that uniquely ‘clean cut’, euphoric hard trance that came of age just before and during my Uni years. Really pumping melodic shit!

“Do you ever get the feeling like you were meant to do something... extraordinary?”

And if that wasn’t enough to get you listening, we have two more records from Anjunabeats - Heatbeat’s typically jackin’ remix Parker & Hanson’s Afterthought and the summery synth-bass combo that is New Dawn by Oliver Smith - we have a hot collab between Dutch tech masters Marco V and Marcel Woods and we have a brilliant new vocal by Julie Thompson.

One thing I can promise about this mix is that it will move you on very quickly. Just as you think you’re getting comfortable, it’ll pull you somewhere else. Flying up from 128 BPM to 143 BPM, this ain’t an insomnia cure.

THE PHIL-HARMONIC PODCAST EPISODE 28

1. Sander Van Doorn - Chasin' [Doorn Records]
2. Swedish House Mafia - Greyhound [EMI UK]
3. Nicky Romero - Generation 303 [Musical Freedom]
4. Delta3 - The Dream [High Contrast Nu Breed]
5. Boxer - Carden [Always Alive Recordings]
6. Oliver Smith - New Dawn [Anjunabeats]
7. Lisa Lashes - Illusionize (Kent & Gian Remix) [Lashed Music]
8. Marco V & Marcel Woods - Scream [In Charge]
9. Leon Bolier & Julie Thompson - Underwater (Marc Simz Remix) [Magik Muzik]
10. Allure - I Am (Sied Van Riel Remix) [Magik Muzik]
11. Parker & Hanson - Afterthought (Heatbeat Remix) [Anjunabeats]
12. Tenishia & Ruben de Ronde - Marsascala (Alexander Popov Remix) [Soundpiercing]
13. Manuel Rocca - Dark Brown [Only Trance Records]
14. Adam Szabo & Willem de Roo - Royal Blue (Falcon Remix) [Enhanced Recordings]
15. Wiegel Meirmans Snitker - Nova Zembla (Armin Van Buuren Remix) [Armada Music]
16. Craig Connelly - Robot Wars (Andrew Rayel Stadium Remix) [Garuda] <<<(Phil’s Tune Of The Episode)>>>
17. Manuel Rocca - Aquamarine [Crystal Source Recordings]
18. Static Blue & Oliver P – Crimson Skies (Akesson Remix) [Future Sound Of Egypt]
19. Gareth Emery feat. Christina Novelli - Concrete Angel (John O'Callaghan Remix) [Garuda]
20. Paul Oakenfold - Glow In The Dark [Perfecto Fluoro]
21. AfterShok – Extraordinary [Outbreak Digital]
22. Giuseppe Ottaviani – Linking People [Vandit Records]

Once again, I bid you farewell. Next weekend I return to London for more adventures. TPHP will see you on the 15th of April.