Customer Reviews

Anjunabeats 5

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've come to terms with the fact that the linear progression of Anjunabeats albums has been nothing but an ever-increasing line of quality and stealthily mixed productions. It is almost hard to believe that the ethereal "Air for Life" single & brilliant "Tri-State" album were only the foundations for this group's amazing efficacy at administering the hottest new trance songs of the years gone by. The 5th Anjunabeats Volume is unique, relative to its predecessors. For one, it is the only Anjunabeats volume with two discs; purportedly, this was because the DJs had just *too many* fantastic tracks to condense into one disc! And I thank them, heartily. Secondly, in my mind there has been a mad dash in the summer of '07 for "Top Trance Album." `Progressive' notwithstanding, my top three picks are A State of Trance 2007, Nightmusic Vol. 2 and Anjunabeats Vol. 5. But for the purpose of this album, how do Above and Beyond compare?

The first disc is a ferocious and supersonically engaging journey through soaring trance which individually and collectively leaves me breathless. Picking out this track or that track seems futile since it really cannot be done in good conscience. Throwing conscience to the wind, however, a few tracks to look out for on Disc One are "Zeppelin," "Remember September," "Spacelift," and "My Name Is Jacques." Despite the superb track listing, "Needs To Feel" simply WHIPS this album into fine shape, and the "Wippenberg" remix is just awesome. It's been mentioned before, but Disc One has a bit more of a progressive-uplifting vibe, wherein every piece of the puzzle fits perfectly. About halfway through the mix the tone becomes slightly sinister, as if the tracks had been mixed with a serrated blade. These men are musical architects, without question, and I especially like the incorporation of such monstrous bass - the kind of stuff that vibrates walls and shakes bodies. Very mesmerizing. Disc One is an absolute winner, is *exactly* the type of stuff you'd be expecting from A&B after Anjunabeats 4 (only a bit harder, deeper), and is sincerely good competition for Nightmusic Vol. 2 and "In The Club" on ASoT 2007. The entire CD is a delicious meal for the ears, but hold the check - dessert's on its way, and this feast is far from over.

Disc Two relocates Above & Beyond into more familiar waters, rivaling the superb progression that distinguished Volume 4 from *its* predecessors; the similarities end there, however, and much more intriguing is listening to a new sinister form of uplifting trance. These "paradoxical" sounds genuinely garnish harsh criticism, but not from me; A&B simply move their reliability into slightly choppier waters and I find myself much more engaged with Disc Two than with Disc One, as well as any of the previous Anjunabeats releases. Again, *all* the tracks are Anjuna-worthy, but several distinctly stand out - including "Shapes," `DJ Shah's Savannah Remix' of "One Night in Tokyo," "Oceanic" and A&B's own "Home." I would think that the exploration of the deeper, darker side of "uplifting" trance would be risky business, and perhaps it is indeed for those lacking Above and Beyond's unmistakable talent. In my opinion, some of the sounds could be accurately classified as Steve Lawler-esque Armin van Buuren - quite the paradox, one would assume, until it has been listened to and calculated! This is one of the very few albums that are so fantastically engaging that I do not bother to mark time - before I know it, the disc is over but the orchestration is imprinted on my brain - similar enough to Thrillseekers' Nightmusic Vol. 2, CD 2. Anjunabeats 5 ends as strongly as ever with A&B's `Respray' of "Never Gone">"One Wish">"Suru." Suddenly, you'll yearn to start the journey over again; I guarantee it.

And so, while the transition between purist uplifting trance to uplifting trance with a slightly sinister twist may be vexing at first, Above and Beyond are able to pull off an Anjunabeats volume which is the best in the series, bar none. Fans of The Thrillseekers, AvB's latest and of course the other Anjunabeats catalogue will adore this mix, and come time to rate the "[Trance] Mix Album of the Year," I think AvB and A&B will be in strong contention with one another. But it's about time Above and Beyond got the type of recognition that van Buuren gets in the Electronic media. DJ Mag didn't deem Above and Beyond the "Saviours of Trance" for an illegitimate reason - Experience this reason for yourself. You'll be quite pleasantly taken aback by what you find contained within these two circular pieces of plastic. That is... pure, unadulterated visionaries in this tumultuous subculture that is ours.

~Lex

I was sick of DJ Tiesto, AVB, Ferry Corsten, and most of the other top trance names. Buying their albums inevitably became a way of spending $20 to get a few good tracks that I would listen to repeatedly. Followed by these standout tracks were periods of either monotonous, repetitive beats pounding out my eardrums, or songs so cheesy they could only be worthy of play on MTV. No wonder everyone's saying that trance is dead.

The problem is... there are still those of us who love it, and who get a certain feeling of joy and euphoria from it that's not comparable to any other genre. We persist, buying these crappy albums and responding to our friends' inquiries as to why we listen to something so cheesy and stupid. When I bought this album I thought it was just another one of them, but then slowly started to realize how this album was making me feel good about trance again.

It has the standout tracks (shapes, battery life, spacelift, good for me have all become instant favorites), the lack of cheese (I have a genuine emotional reaction to "good for me" that I can't say I've ever had from a trance track before... beautiful), and what's more an actual FLOW that propels me through the whole disc without skipping tracks (more so on disc 1). Sure, it's not perfect... my ears start to bleed a little towards the end of disc 1 with the pounding beats of tracks like "my name is jacques" and "buzz". But damn... it's the closest to a perfect trance album I've encountered since the early days of Tiesto.

I spend a lot of time sifting through today's garbage heap of electronic music looking for those gems that make the search worth it. After a year of listening to this mix I can say that this is definitely one of them.

This summer I got Anjuanbeats vol 4 and that was perfectly wonderful. Then I got Anjuanbeats Worldwide Vol 1 and it blew my mind away. Anjunabeats Vol 5 is better than all of them.

My suggestion is to put both CD 1 and 2 into a playlist and then just listen to the playlist on your iPod because I guarantee you that it will be difficult to stop listening to any one of the CDs. That is the only bad part. I dont want to stop listening to CD1 and then I feel the same about CD 2. Just listen to both of them as one long continuous playlist.

Good tracks: Basically all of them. I am particularily touched by "Good For Me" which makes me remember the love I have for a special woman in my life. I just took the lyrics for that song and sent them to her and she was really touched that it was the way I felt for her.

Basically, if you already have Anjunabeats and you don`t have this one yet, you`re REALLY missing out and you need to get this now. I got "A State to Trance 2007" and I like that one too but I have barely listened to it since I am so into Anjuanbeats, Vol 5 right now. If I don't listen to this, I listen to Worldwide Vol 1. I look with eager anticipation for Anjuanbeats Vol 6. Please A & B, release this very soon!!!!!!

If you listened to any of the previous Anjunabeats volumes, you already know what to expect. Just some of the best uplifting trance anthems around. My personal favorite tracks are one wish, suru, shapes, home, one night in tokyo and make me believe. Disc 1 has more of a progressive mix while disc 2 leans toward the uplifting sound.

If you like this album, check out Anjunabeats Worldwide vol. 1, another fantastic album.

Anjunabeats 5 & 6 and Armin van Buuren's 'State of Trance 2008' brought me back to progressive trance after a 3-year hiatus and made me question why I had ever put it down. I've had both Anjunabeats 5 & 6 on constant rotation the last 2 weeks and it's still just as amazing now as my first listen. I have a slight preference for the first disc, but both are really strong. Love, love, love tracks: #5 & 8 on disc 1, and #4 on disc 2. Definitely worth getting.

Geez, these guys are brilliant. Definitely some of the best trance I've heard - imaginative grooves & ideas, amazing energy, transitions smooth as glass & yet sometimes very surprising where they deposit you harmonically... As someone else said, it's pointless singling out tracks - basically each disc is one gorgeously woven continuous experience, just like the best dance floor moments. These guys know how to pace & shape an extended mix, and it just fires me up.

I'm not going to go track for track in my review. I'll just say that this is the best trance I've heard in the last 3 years. It is simply killer. CD 1 is the highlight, which is unusual given the make-up of most 2-disc trance CDs. CD 2 is excellent also but if you want beautiful, melodic trance with a nasty edge, CD 1 delivers big time. "My Name is Jaques" absolutely rocks (think massaging vibrating bass with spacey exterior notes to delight the ears along with an absolute explosion at 3:23....fantastic on good headphones and unreal on a big system) and then leads into incredibly satisfying and progressively melodic finishing tracks. Get it. You won't be dissapointed.

I gave this cd a 4 star simply because disc one didn't do it for me. That doesn't mean it isn't good for some and excellent for others, but just not my deal. That goes with saying however that disc 2 is fantastic! Above & Beyond has pulled off another victory and continues to stay true to the trance movement.

This CD is just amazing. A&B have entered a new era in trance and are pushing the boundaries like none before. Disc 1 is probably only worth 4.5 stars, due to the fact of putting Battery Life at track 2. Its not a bad song, but a bit out of place on such a great compilation of music. Track 6 "Needs to Feel" is when the album really starts to soar. What an uplifting beautiful piece of music. Disc 1 finishes with Good For Me, and I guarentee that when it finishes you will not be able to insert disc 2 quickly enough.

Disc 2... Well, if all the trance CD's I see get a five star rating are actually worth it then this orgasmic compilation is easily worth a 6! There are DJ's, like AVB, who put out great compilations of trance but something always seems to be lacking. I would call this "the club effect". How often do you hear music mixed in clubs that sounds mind blowing but at home it never quite makes it. Well this disc crosses that boundary and gives you that full blown club sounding mix of music that just gets better and better. The first three tracks are fantastic, but track 4 "Razorfish" is where this baby starts to fly. What follows is the most amazing mix of progressive trance that has ever been cut on one CD. Listen to this album on a good loud stereo and I will guarentee you will feel like you're in a club listening to the best music you are likely to hear all year... I can't wait to see these guys live!

I have been very impressed with the great work of Above & Beyond since I first heard their masterful "Air for Life." Since then they have continued to produce genre defining trance music. I had high expectations for this album and wasn't disappointed. This two CD treasure has two and a half hours of moving, beautiful, euphoric music that has left me wanting to hear the album over and over again. It's perfect for dancing, driving, relaxing. The strength of this album convinces me that in a couple of years Above & Beyond will be vying for the top spot with the likes of Armin van Buuren and Tiesto. In many ways, this compilation is better than anything Tiesto or van Buuren have come up with, and that's saying a lot as I have well enjoyed their respective mixes. Hats off to Above & Beyond for making great music. They keep the beats...and smiles coming.
Every song on this album is fantastic. Rarely does one encounter a trance album where every song just flows with the next song, and every song is a song that you want to replay after you hear it but, on Anjunabeats 5, Above & Beyond have managed to compile a collection of 26 great songs. Literally all of them are great. I seldom can rave about an album where every song is great, but this album is that exception. Not to rave too much but some of standout faves for the first disc are the opening and closing songs, "Zeppelin" (an emotional, energetic, synth-driven melody) and "Good for Me" ( a gorgeous club mix of the original that is thankfully close to eight minutes long for full effect). Other highlights on this disc for me were the catchy "Battery Life," the infectious grooves of "My Name is Jacques," the flourishes on "Formalistick" and the bouncy feel of songs like "Together" and "Spacelift." On CD two my favorite track is "Shapes" but I also loved the atmospheric "One Night in Tokyo" the expansive "Megashira," the cinematic "Oceanic" and also "Make Me Believe" and "Suru." Every other song is fantastic too.
Thank you Above & Beyond for giving me something to actually enjoy listening too this summer. I'm sure this album will be in my player for a very long time.