Search - Mauro Picotto :: Album

Stick to trance, Mauro!

Aaron D. Stigberg | Chicago, IL USA | 06/11/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I first became aware of Picotto's work without knowing it, with his rave classic "We Gonna Get". Close to a decade later, he brings that same uplifting, hands-in-the-air vibe with the anthems "The Lizard", "Komodo", "Proximus", and "Like This Like That", which feature insanely catchy hooks sure to stick in one's head for weeks. Recently, though, he's been dabbling in "techno" (the monotonous "bangin'" variety) with apparently great success, according to some of the press clips I've read. Personally, I find this to be a shame--all his maxis have boring techno remixes on them which strip the originals of their fun quality, replacing it with the repetitiveness that passes for depth and seriousness these days. Tunes like "Baguette" are indicative of this regrettable movement. I understand that it's hard to churn out masterworks like his trademark Megavoices Claxxix mixes day in and day out, but personally, I prefer throwaway eurotrance to throwaway techno.Luckily, this album contains all the hits and is worth the price alone for them--my only other complaint is that the mix of "The Lizard" isn't my favorite, the RAF by Picotto mix."