Finally onto the 2013 comps, and by proxy, nearly caught up with where I first started my comp reviews back in 2023. Given the lengths of these comps however it will take me quite a bit longer to get through them all.
Anyway, here we are at Aftermath, one of my most listened-to comps back in the day. I gotta say I was really hoping this one would've managed better, but unfortunately it seems there were one too many stinkers on here, and not enough great tracks to offset it, to score ... read more
Return of the uncaged compilations (kinda)?!?!? AND they're specifically spotlighting more underground artists!? Yes please.
A great opening to this year's output for the label, even if only a handful of these tracks went over the edge for me.
Franky Nuts - Own It: 7.8/10
A solid showing from Franky, nothing so crazy it caught me completely off-guard, just a genuine banger to kick off the year.
Belik - Want It: 7.6/10
Combining some lowkey acoustic bass and guitar with heavier ... read more
Revolution was a weird one for me growing up, I certainly remembered many songs off of it, but hardly ever registered about half of them. Yet, it ended up being the best comp so far for me (despite the lows being lower), with so many classic tracks that have stood the test of time wonderfully now.
Hellberg - Follow My Heart: 7.7/10
The winning streak for Hellberg continues, this time with a vocal-driven festival prog outing. Nailing that piano- and riser- backed take on the genre which ... read more
With Conquest we continue the winning streak, with the floor on these comps raising even higher, and the ceiling continuing to climb.
Tut Tut Child - Run the Show: 8.4/10
A heavy-hitter with what is probably my favourite melody from TTC so far. This track is loud and in your face and while it's not quite as fun as something like "Dance to It" or "Malestrom" it still has a ton of the same genre of those tracks.
Stereotronique - Sexy Beast: 8.2/10
Probably the most ... read more
Reunion is the first Monstercat comp for me to completely pass the threshold from 'good' to 'great' all the way through, with so many genuinely fantastic tracks on here, and essentially no bad ones. It's just solid track after solid track, and I'm hoping the next comp keepa up the momentum
Hellberg - Dimensions: 9.0/10
Hellberg returns to the label with a renewed and more fleshed out sound. The melodies on this one are both so simple but goddamit do they work so ... read more
Generally the comp I saw as being the worst of 2012 back in my youth, alongside Embrace, Anniversary always had the songs I hated the most on it, but what I had forgotten going into this listen was just how much of anniversary I actually liked. Wow this was another solid one. There are definitely stinkers here, make no mistake, but way less than I was expecting.
Direct - Free My World: 8.0/10
This was one hell of a debut for Direct, delivering one of the most unique dubstep cuts on the label ... read more
Solace. The big one everyone seems extremely fond of. Does it live up to the hype? Well, if you couldn't tell from my rating: yes, it very much does.
Feint & Boyinaband - Time Bomb feat. Veela: 8.3/10
Ignoring one of the producers on this track, man is this one of Feint's best so far: great melody, excellent vocal performance from Veela, and some weight behind the drop. Outside of an otherwise shoddy mix, this is just great.
Project 46 - Reasons feat. Andrew Allen: 8.7/10
For ... read more
Vancouver-ass artwork. Going into Embrace I was expecting worse than what I got, though I definitely was not wrong in thinking it was inferior to the previous comp.
Project 46 - M.O.A.B. (Instrumental Mix): 6.7/10
For all my searching, I have never found a mix of this song that wasn't instrumental, so I still don't get the name. Anyways, this is essentially just what "Limitless" should've been, a properly euphoric festival prog bop with enough stuff going on with the ... read more
I normally listen to these comps through the album mixes, but ya know what for these earlier mixes they frequently cut tracks short, so I'll listen to these tracks in their original state, then add in a disclaimer for when i engage with them through those mixes again.
005 Evolution brings us into the 2012 output of the label, and shockingly enough I found myself...genuinely really enjoying a lot of it??? Considering it was one of my least favourite comps growing up, I'm surprised ... read more
Closing off the 2011 comps with Identity, and we have yet another big mixed bag of a track list. It is the introduction of several mainstays going into 2012, as well as the farewell to a couple acts who were only present on the label during this year. I was expecting this comp to score higher than it did negl. Such is the nature of comps much of the time however.
Project 46 & Gemellini - Deadline: 7.9/10
The first P46 track to genuinely nail all the fundamentals to a great festival prog ... read more
Momentum was generally the comp from 2011 I came back to the least growing up. Relistening to it today, it's very easy to see why, there are some real stinkers on this tracklist. Surprisingly though, I found this to be the best comp overall so far. Idk this comp might live in extremes even more than the previous but that honestly edges it out for me
Matduke & Metzen - Shivers: 7.7/10
This has long been one of my favourite tracks from 2011, I'm a huge fan of that vocal trance ... read more
And on to comp 002! Funnily enough I actually like this one more than Launch Week!
Ephixa - Some Wobbles: 8.1/10
Again the excellent atmosphere on the synths of this era of Ephixa continues. While not as striking as "Dubstep Killed Rock n Roll", this track still carries a really cool dystopian gnarlyness to it, honestly making it feel like a better version of GQs "Hello?" in essentially every aspect. Again, can't believe I'm saying this, but this is yet another ... read more
Felt like covering the rest of the Monstercat compilations after going through a bunch back in early-mid 2023, hopefully @knewnie doesn't mind me aping her reviewing style with these comps a bit, at least for the 2011 ones. If nothing else it will help to compare scores I'm sure!
Full disclosure: essentially none of the songs on Monstercat from 2011 sound particularly good from a mixdown angle. My scores are going to reflect that, and I am mostly judging them based on how well they ... read more
The most frustrating part of this record is that you can tell Black Sun Empire really tried with the production on this one. Everything is wonderfully dark and crushing throughout, and, aesthetically, this album nails what it's going for. The problem comes in with the rather spotty performances from Virus Syndicate, who often fail to deliver properly engaging verses, or have questionable bars that pull away from the otherwise great production behind them. A lack of strong hooks also brings ... read more
Eye Of The Storm: 7.4/10
Gravity: 7.4/10
Barghest: 6.7/10
Paradise: 7.1/10
Dawn:6.6/10
Midnight Pulse: 6.7/10
Fragments: 6.5/10
Across the World: 6.5/10
An absolutely great remix EP for an absolutely great album. Each remixer is bringing their A-game here, and it leads to a buttery smooth listening experience for me.
Big Drum (Glacier Remix): 8.7/10
Facets (WAVHART Remix): 8.7/10
Holonomy (Pedestrian Tactics Remix): 8.8/10
Badlands (Vorso & Clockvice Remix): 9.5/10
Offshore Platform (djeb Remix): 8.8/10
Searcher of Dockyards (BVSSIC Remix): 8.5/10
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On Mount Eerie - A Crow Looked at Me
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"@Baylen Corner of My Eye (AGGRESSIVE PHONK REMIX)"
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"??????????????? This is the Excision (pre2011) type of dubstep, not the Skrillex type though???"
On Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures (40th Anniversary)
"@Eruption78 the rougher mixdown helped to sell the desolation for me, also helped with a lot of the grooves which felt a bit spare in those anniversary mixes."
On Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures (40th Anniversary)
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On OctoMarkus's review of Gammer - Sun Will Rise Again
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On SPAMTON G. SPAMTON's review of Borgore - Switzerland
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On From First to Last - Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has a Body Count
"@voicelikehoney i don't hate all emo, some of the best albums I've ever heard are emo. Vocals are what tend to make or break this genre for me. I almost never go into a project expecting to hate it unless it's a project by an artist I follow regularly, And if I ever do I still hold onto the hope that I will still find something of value. Additionally, this was an album I happened to listen to on a stream. My opinion may have even changed on it at this point since it's been so long."
On 🪓lexa ☮️💖☯️🤝🇵🇸's review of Various Artists - Monstercat 007 - Solace
"Also i find it interesting you dislike Animal Instinct but like Breakdown, as I feel like our ratings are probably switched. Idk i think Animal Instinct has one of the most fun drumlines and melodies of any SW track from that era, while Breakdown is a limp, misguided headscratcher of a track for me, and it makes complete sense why the VIP would go on to completely overshadow it later."
On 🪓lexa ☮️💖☯️🤝🇵🇸's review of Various Artists - Monstercat 007 - Solace
"Ampersand actually wasn't on the original comp, instead it was pulled from the edm spotlight collaborative comp which came out the following year to fill in for the track House by OVERWERK, after he pulled that track from the label, you can still hear it on the album mix though. I will say that House is one of the better tracks on this comp as it was originally intended, though pretty aggressively 2012"
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On lilyth's review of Skrillex - hit me where it hurts x
"My journey with listening to music more seriously really started with EDM as well, Approaching Nirvana, Tiesto, and Daft Punk when i was young, before I found Monstercat and followed them religiously from 2015 until about 2022 when I branched back into some of the older hits I just never heard on the radio in my youth before finding Björk and getting hooked onto listening through albums over comps and EPs. After a year of binging through fantano's top 200 LPs of the 2010s, I found new ways to appreciate the music I'd grown up with, as well as a whole new selection of genres to listen to to prevent my experience with that music from ever going stale or myself becoming jaded towards it."
On Skrillex - hit me where it hurts x
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On Distorted Vortex's review of Riot Ten - Threats
"There is a blatant production error in the first 20-30 seconds of the track, this is something not even Borgore has done with his deluge of terra-slop.
A bad mix is generally all it takes to tank a riddim track in the present time, a production error is straight up inexcusable when being released on a major label."
On Sleep Token - DYWTYLM
"@Elysian_Wave ??????????"
On Schizoid man's review of Skrillex - F*CK U SKRILLEX YOU THINK UR ANDY WARHOL BUT UR NOT!! <3
"Great review! Though I should add QFF actually featured quite a bit of dubstep on it, he didn't really abandon them!"
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