Elite Psy-Trance
Starcadia | Alexandria, VA USA | 11/22/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I'd officially give this album 4-1/2 stars, minus half a star for spots of recording level discrepancies. Besides that, however, this album is truly one of the best Psy-Trance albums on the market. From the Dragonfly label, which is known for its aggressive Psy-Trance acts like Pleiadians (look 'em up), Shakta's "Enlightened Ape" gives you everything you'd want in a Psy-Trance album. It starts cooking around track 3 and really turns on the afterburners at track 4, "Of the Essence," a fast and furious song with razor melodies and sexy drums. Track 6, "Between Worlds," which can be found on Goa-Head volume 9 (look that one up, too), is as close as it comes to a perfect Psy-Trance song: punchy, thick, fast, climactic and melodic, with expertly layered textures of rhythm as well as highly-crafted theme variations. Track 8, "Enlightened Ape," is the album's most "worldly" song, though still rapid and riveting, with an Asian feel combined with fantasy sample elements. The rest of the songs have enough rhythmic and stylistic variation, from ambient to Juno Reactor-style triplet beats, to make this album interesting - one of the highlights of my collection to be sure."
