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A.M.R. - Afterhours [Perceptive]
Amr Hachicho recently released his huge track 'Sand Dunes' which was his second appearence on Enhanced Recordings. This time he is making a return on Perceptive Recordings with his much anticipated track 'Afterhours' which is already being discussed on various music forums. On the remix duties we have a wide range of talented producers from Romania, UK and Russia. Let's take a look at what Perceptive have brought us this time...
Review
Original Mix
Things have been going quite well for this young producer. Personally he has been one of my favourites within the 'uplifing area'. His tracks State Of Mind and Sand Dunes were both a blend of pure melodic bliss and some light tech twist surprises. This time there won't be any 'tech' involved. Afterhours relies on the melodic aspect of the track, and not so much the percussion nor the bass. That is however not bad. The track goes through phases building up to the the lead melody which has been tweaked and twisted. This lead goes very much hand in hand with the carm atmosphere which you will find the breakdown. My mind was lead to Adam Szabo's synth work when I heard this tune but still that is not an entirely fair comparisson as this track feels so much more 'under control' in a weird sense. I feels like AMR has really poured his heart into this production, to put it in a cheesy way.
Suncatcher Remix
To begin with, this mix feels like it has been stripped down. Already after the first phrase this shows, not to be the case. The pads are being filtered in, covering the track with lush surroundings. A rather short synth line helps lifting it up for just a few seconds. The track is quite pulsing and perhaps feels a little more aggressive than the original. Still the overall structure is similar. The lead has been re-used (would be pointless to cut it out) and the break has been reworked in an impressive 'Andy Blueman' style. It really does the trick.
Danny Powers Remix
It felt as if Suncatcher's idea was to improve the original by giving it a facelift. Danny has taken it in a bit of another direction by simply adding his own sound to the track and still keeping the main ideas of the original track; this involves a pulsing and banging bassline. Danny keeps a high momentum throughout the track and the progression of the track and the more aggressive synth covers up the lead a bit. I find this healthy for this release as 4 remixes with all the same main idea in focus would be dull.
Invisible Sounds Remix
The Perceptive boys have yet again pulled in a fresh remixer with a more progressive sound. For those who might not know Invisible Sounds, he has a single out on Enhanced Progressive and another gorgeous one on Insatiable. The percussion is minimal sounding and he plays well with the drum setup thoughout the whole track (not just the intro). He makes use of different sweeps, synth shots and cymbals. I am absolutely drawn by how colourful this track is, at least compared to todays standards. The bass makes the track move a bit and in the middle of it all the lead gets its time to shine.
Verdict
Again, the quality shines through in every mix, which has been common to the past few Perceptive releases. The two favourites are the Invisible Sounds remix and the Original Mix. There are places were Invisible Sounds could have created some more space in the mix as the drums just feels like they were squeezed together. I do like his approach in his mix and great to see him join the label. A.M.R. has yet to dissapoint me with his original tracks and this is another excellent track from him. Less exciting percussion but brilliant melodies!
Beatport: 13.07.2009
A.M.R.
Suncatcher
Danny Powers
Invisible Sounds
Perceptive
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