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What makes a Tune Progressive?
I've never fully understood what makes a trance song progressive.
A definition and some examples would be quite helpful.
I think a progressive song is one which is layered. If you listen to a progressive song you can hear several layers of sound. I think there's more to it than that though but I can't explain it. Have been up all night doing a damn business report and can hardly string sentences together anymore!
For examples checkout anything by Airwave like 'Save Me' or their latest song 'Another Dimension'.
Progressive tracks start slow, and builds up and up but comes down to nothing, really. This has been discussed to death in the Crasher forum some time back- they didn't like prog because they think it builds up to nothing so it's a waste of time.
Don't get me wrong, I love progressive, it gets me in the mood, and to me it's kind of a high class categorisation of Electronic music- very moody, very deep. But some people just don't like it.
Listen to some Global Underground series ! That called "GOOD Prograssive"
Globalunderground is your best example indeed... Progressive Trance = Deep Trance = Not the kinda Trance you would see yourself jumping like nuts to... it more of a flat- type of Trance...
That's why PvD's not @ GU...
"When I play my music, I don't want people to stand there, look at me and say, 'Hmm, that's interesting' "
Natious - Amber [Natious Mix]
Orbital - Nothing Left [Breeder Remix]
these two tracks kinda define what Progressive means in MY mind.
So then a perfect example of progressive would be either:
(Older) Sasha - Xpander [Extremely layered and growing]
(Newer) Push - Tranzy State of Mind (Club Mix) [Builds up then back down]
That sound about right?
i have learned that every gender has to be heard LIVE 
its not how you hear it in your car, in your home on your system...when its Live its totally different...so when i hear people say that progressive is boring and they dont like it, i already know that they didn't hear it Live and just dont understand it 
progressive is huge in UK, most talent comes from there, thats wat UK is knowed for 
and progressive is a sufficticated style of electronic gender..its not like trance, where the beat and rhythm is the same, where you can recognize the tune, progressive plays with your mind...progressive starts off nicely, never builds up, its just keeps on adding sounds to it
no need to say more
theres probably a better way but sometimes i think about the mood. Uplifting is not progressive, if the song is real uplifting then it is not progressive. If the song is deep, moody, it is more progressive.
| quote: |
| Originally posted by litlitaly I think a progressive song is one which is layered. If you listen to a progressive song you can hear several layers of sound. I think there's more to it than that though but I can't explain it. Have been up all night doing a damn business report and can hardly string sentences together anymore! For examples checkout anything by Airwave like 'Save Me' or their latest song 'Another Dimension'. |
| quote: |
| Originally posted by Devbert So then a perfect example of progressive would be either: (Older) Sasha - Xpander [Extremely layered and growing] (Newer) Push - Tranzy State of Mind (Club Mix) [Builds up then back down] That sound about right? |
what i always hear after seeing a prog artist is: 'damn i wished i hadnt danced so much - he sucked'. it sounds stupid but its true. a prog artist uses the songs to build or break down a set, rather than letting the songs do the work themselves. this is the layered feel i believe. what you usually find is a dj that begins at a really slow bpm, maybe even as low as 90(hip hop) and then increasing it up to normal trance speed(145bpm). this is the variation, but with such different types of songs, speeds and sounds its def not boring if you are there...late/
I define Xpander as Progressive....
I think if you speak directly:
Progressive Trance is Trance that gets closer to House and Progressive House is House that gets closer to Trance...
Well the thing you've got to understand about progressive is that it's not what a song sounds like that makes it progressive, it's what it sounds like relative to everything else. Confused?
Just because a tune is deep and dubby it doesn't mean it's progressive (though that is the predominant sound within the genre), and, similarly, just because a tune is prgressive, it doesn't man that it has to be deep and dubby. Progressive is simply about going beyond all other existing genres of music, and as such the sound keeps on changing. What was progressive by the standards 5 years ago probably wouldn't be considered progressive today. Take Sasha's GU 13: most of the material on that, if released today, would probably be considered trance, as, in this day and age, both trance music and progressive music have become more subtle and understated. The goal-posts have shifted, the sound continues to evolve.
Also, quite apart from the fact that it is constantly evolving, progressive music incorporates a wide variety of sounds, from a wide variety of genres, which makes it even harder to pin progressive music down into one particular sound. For instance, the following tracks, each with an entirely unique sound from artists with unique backgrounds (their usual genres are placed in the brackets):
Adam Beyer - Remainings III (Techno)
Pete Heller - Stylus Trouble (Tech-House)
Harry 'Choo Choo' Romero - Suck My Clock (House)
Peace Division - On The Bandwagon (Tribal)
Max Graham - Airtight (Uplifting)
Plus, then there are tunes and artists that can only be called "progressive" because they redefine pre-existing boundaries (although, again, the sound of each artist is entirely unique):
Chab
Lexicon Avenue
Moshic
Steve Porter
Satoshi Tomiie
Bill Hamel
James Holden
Dj Remy
And I could go on and on.....
Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that progressive music incorporates a wide variety of sounds and influences, and cannot be pinned down to one particular sound (though, as someone pointed out before, the majority of progressive music can be described as layered and refined - the listener has to put some effort into the listening to appreciate it properly). Progressive music is all about breaking down genre boundries, not erecting new ones.
Oh, and a quick list of artists that are often labelled progressive by people on this board, but who aren't actually progressive at all (I think most fellow-minded prog fans would agree with me):
Push/M.I.K.E.
Marco V
Paul Van Dyk
Tiesto
And so on. Playing (or producing) beatsy, repetitive tracks doesn't make you a progressive DJ (or artist).
when you start falling asleep...it's progressive.
just playin with ya.
IMO, progressive is more for the DJ's, and the rest is for the people. that's kind of Ferry's attitude at least, and he is my god.
dude progressive is the SHIT! its soo deep. Yeh it is layered. So theres alot of beats, drumbs, etc. with progressive music...you build your set up with the last track. unlike trance u keep playing anthems after anthems. The thing bout progressive is groovy u can dance to it. many people @ clubs liek that because in trance theres too many breakdowns. people dont want to stop dancing they want to dance so many people like progressive. what i have also learned that Most older people like dancing to progressive. the youth likes trance cause of the energy. dont get me wrong progressive has alot of energy. u just need to get exposed to it more often. this is a tranceaddict web site so you will get mostly trance. here check out these tracks:
pappa @ gilbey- validate
Deceptions- deep underground
drax-twister
Ceballos & dj chus-africa <---i love this song
Oscar G.& Stryke-Hypnotised
those are some recent tracks that are my favs. but if you want more do some research on like dj charts on progressive music. u will find alot of stuff on that as well. You will notice that theres no uplifting or melodic tune in them (some will have them dont get me wrong but majorty dont). well if you want some more help feel free to pm me. i would be glad to help you become a progressive head!
| quote: |
Orginally posted by litlitaly For examples checkout anything by Airwave like 'Save Me' or their latest song 'Another Dimension'. |
ok , i believe its not progressive (airwave), but if its not progressiev what is it??
Uplifting:
*Starts slow
*Builds
*Builds
*Builds
*Silence
*BAM! Breakoff
*Melody and all at the same time
*Builds off
*Builds off
*Ends
Progressive:
*Starts slow
*Builds
*Builds
*Builds
*Builds
*Lotsof stuff playin now
*Silence
*Back to where it was before
*Builds
*Builds down
Progressive just goes on and on and on and on and then silence....and then on and on and on again. Its progressive!
Uplifting has a major breakdown where the melody comes in.
Thats what i think... This doesnt stand for all Uplifting and progressive trax but most of them...
I'm just getting confused now. Why should it matter if it's progressive house or progressive trance? Doesn't it relate to the beat structure and mood? So couldn't either one be progressive? I just need to have some popular tunes that are progressive named so I can figure it out for myself. I listen to Trance 24/7, and people always call some of it progressive, and I just want to know why it is labeled that.
| quote: |
| Originally posted by Devbert I'm just getting confused now. Why should it matter if it's progressive house or progressive trance? Doesn't it relate to the beat structure and mood? So couldn't either one be progressive? I just need to have some popular tunes that are progressive named so I can figure it out for myself. I listen to Trance 24/7, and people always call some of it progressive, and I just want to know why it is labeled that. |
btw global underground is shite.
its all pre recorded and mixed by computer. theres no liveness baout it. no crowd to read. no atmosphere. stear clear of these.
mkay.. well in my oppinion, uplifting and progressive are not genres.. because thier can be songs that arent' even electronic that are "uplifting".. uplifting refers to the feeling that the song creates, usually found in MELODIC TRANCE.. and there can be songs that are progressive that aren't electronic.. progressive is just the way the song moves from element to element, only to bring them back again.. i think progressive is a little more definitive than uplifting, but i think you get where i'm going here.. the only way to really learn, is by listening yourselfff
get james holden's horizon and you will know what progrssive is.. it is tectbook progressive.. slow builds until a each thing is being played and you feel almost overloaded.. but its beautifu.
-Marc
| quote: |
| Originally posted by randummboy mkay.. well in my oppinion, uplifting and progressive are not genres.. because thier can be songs that arent' even electronic that are "uplifting".. uplifting refers to the feeling that the song creates, usually found in MELODIC TRANCE.. and there can be songs that are progressive that aren't electronic.. progressive is just the way the song moves from element to element, only to bring them back again.. i think progressive is a little more definitive than uplifting, but i think you get where i'm going here.. the only way to really learn, is by listening yourselfff |
There's my definition then.
A song (of any genre) that feels as if it is layering, or moving from element to element, interweaving the sounds together.
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