Search - Eddie Halliwell :: Cream Ibiza 07: Mixed By Eddie Halliwell

Worthy of Ibiza

LexAffection | Philadelphia, PA USA | 06/25/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Eddie Halliwell's genius is primarily housed inside his residency at clubs in Ibiza and on BBC. But his talent has been expanding from these venues; Cream Ibiza 2007 is a full-fledged musical testament to this remarkable DJ's feel for mixing fantastic club music, and while many of the tracks are obviously recognizable, Halliwell performs a musical lobotomy on the lot to create something worth purchasing. I've seen that Ibiza-inspired mix albums are a dime a dozen recently, littering music shelves in stores worldwide; 2007 has proven itself a worthy year for the sounds of Ibiza made for compact disc (honorable mentions go to Azuli's Space Ibiza 2007). As an implicit bonus, both discs include Eddie's exclusive re-edits of selected tracks available only on this compilation thus far.



The atmosphere for a brilliant night out in the clubs takes form from the moment the coy rhythms of M.A.N.D.Y. vs. Booka Shade's classic "Body Language" enter the ear canal. Disc one pumps out a scorching twenty-one tracks, leaving not a dull moment. This is very similar to Steve Porter's "Porterhouse Vol. 2" where many of the tracks are under two minutes long but there remains a sizeable selection of six+ minute tracks as well. Bottom line: No disappointments and no frustrating frills. "High Volume" and "Freak Me" hit hard from the beginning, illustrating one of the most interesting facets of Halliwell's mixing - that there is no unnecessary pretense. As with any decent mix album, there are the inevitable build-ups and breath-catchers. Cream Ibiza 2007, however, employs this formula much differently than the average DJ album would dare to: The first peak, in fact, occurs roughly four minutes into the first disc and each subsequent peak blows my mind with its raw and jubilant intensity!



"Space & Time" lends the introductory hand to the second disc, touching softly on the melodic side of ambience as the introduction crescendos. The second disc is a blistering combination of tech-trance and conventional techno club bangers which not only turn up the heat, but the bass as well (re: "Need To Feel"). Seventeen tracks grace this mix, turning up a potpourri of slightly longer, more ambitious clubbing tracks that certainly do the Cream label a good bit of justice. 4 Strings' "Mainline" introduces a quicker timbre that is as driving as much as it is addictive. Much of the second disc sounds akin to The Thrillseekers' "Nightmusic, Vol. 1": Sonically moving music that soars into the heavens, carrying your mind with it.



I cannot stop moving to this: Cream Ibiza 2007 is probably the best club mix album of the year so far. Eddie's first disc is an unstoppable juggernaut of ecstatic dance floor mania, and it is difficult to put the atmosphere into more proper words. His second disc is a planetarium of wondrous and stunning melodic constellations. Almost every track warrants mention, but there are several that, for me, make the mixes. As far as disc one goes, these include "Freak Me," "Discopolis," "R U Sure?" "Hit Girl" (my personal favorite), "Witchi Tai To," "Volta" and "Faithful Nights." The second disc brings fantastic beats riding on the spines of like-minded tracks including "Mainline," "Open Our Eyes," "Battery," "Fire Devil" and "Volcano." Eddie Halliwell's track selection moves effortlessly between Balearic trance, techno and conventional house to electro-funk and light breaks, lending the soft kiss of coherency to an abundance of scattered EDM styles and producers. Perhaps not worth the enormous price tag ($20 dollars would be more appropriate), but a great album nonetheless in this reviewer's eyes.



~Lex"