Customer Reviews

A State of Trance 2008

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Until Amazon fixes the track listing for this CD here it is:

CD 1 - On The Beach
01 Armin Van Buuren - Unforgivable (First State Remix)
02 DJ Tatana - Spring Breeze (Martin Roth Summerstyle Remix)
03 Mike Foyle - Bittersweet Nightshade
04 M6 - Amazon Dawn
05 Andy Moor - Fake Awake (The Blizzard Remix)
06 Blake Jarrell - Punta Del Este (Beach Mix)
07 Benya feat. Penny Nixon - Serendipity
08 Ohmna - Satori Waterfalls
09 Signalrunners & Julie Thompson - These Shoulders
10 Myon & Shane 54 feat. Carrie Skipper - Vampire
11 Julian Vincent feat. Cathy Burton - Certainty (Mark Otten Dub)
12 Tenishia feat. Tiff Lacey - Burning From The Inside
(Tenishia's Burning Dub)
13 Mr Sam feat. Claud9 - Cygnes
14 Lange feat. Sarah Howells - Out Of The Sky (Kyau & Albert Remix)

CD 2 - In The Club
01 Arnej feat. Josie - Strangers We've Become (Intro Tech Dub)
02 Sunlounger feat. Zara - Lost (Club Mix)
03 Offer Nissim - For Your Love (Sied Van Riel Remix)
04 Ilya Soloviev & Paul Miller - Lover Summer (Orjan Nilsen Remix)
05 Markus Schulz - The New World
06 Robert Nickson & Daniel Kandi - Rewire
07 Giuseppe Ottaviani feat. Stephen Pickup - No More Alone
08 The Thrillseekers feat. Fisher - The Last Time (Simon Bostock Remix)
09 Stoneface & Terminal - Blueprint (Club Mix)
10 DJ Shah feat. Adrina Thorpe - Back To You (Aly & Fila Remix)
11 Andy Blueman - Time To Rest (live guitar by Eller Van Buuren)
12 Thomas Bronzwaer - Certitude
13 8 Wonders - The Return
14 Jochen Miller - Lost Connection
15 Armin Van Buuren feat. Sharon Den Adel - In And Out Of Love
(Richard Durand Remix)

Sorry to take up space w/ this. Hope this helps!

Let me start by saying I own just about everything this DJ has released. Most are quite good.

A state of Trance 2008 is ok. The 1st CD is about what you would expect from Armin's "On the Beach" CD. A bit laid back. The problem is that has gone so electronica that maybe it has lost it's uniqueness. After a few listens, I find myself bypassing tracks. This is rare for me.

CD2 is just amiss. The songs are very over-produced and lack anything to grab on to and feel like "Yeah, now it's time to crank up the volume". It is very lackluster. The songs sound very generic and full of the same loops, over and over again.

Quite honestly the pose on the CD cover fits what I think Armin must be feeling. "What can I do, I need to do something different and unique". Unfortionately, this isn't the way. Believe me when I say that you will find CD1 "On the Beach" satisfying to a point. You will listen to CD2 "At the Club" several times, often asking yourself, where is the buildup to a climax. The music never builds. It feels like track 1 just kind of morphs throughout the CD and none of the songs are that great.

A State of Trance 2007 leaps over this release in many ways. Only those with money to spare should get this at the price. Wait for it to go to the bargain bin. It is simply Armin Confused 2008.

Flat out, I am EXTREMELY impressed with this mix. First of all, if you are new to trance, THIS is how it is supposed to be listened to. With other genres of music, you usually are looking for a good artist. Not necessarily the case with trance though, you really want a good DJ that can mix different artists' songs together, giving you tastes of the best of everybody's flavors. Well, Armin is the #1 DJ in the world right now, and for a reason.

The mixing last year was impecable, and this year, better than ever. Songs flow into each other beautifully. Some thought was definitely put into not just the song selection, but song order for the mixing of the songs into each other. Other DJ's can just throw songs into each other and it usually comes sounding ok or good. Armin here, adds the extra touch, the whip cream and cherry on top if you will, with little ambient noises added in here and there. Little things that make everything flow into each other. Basically, if you gave the original songs a listen, they are slightly different than on here. Armin takes em', puts em' together, and then molds them into each other creating one big melody of trance bliss.

Also I've found with other DJ's that try to do this, choose songs that are very similar and put them next to each other thinking that they mix well together. Well... there is some truth to this, but this can not be followed, because this gets boring after a while. A DJ CHANGES the mood, doesn't keep it the same the whole time. Imagine if you went to a wedding and every song was a country song... even old Uncle McGraw would get sick of this after a while. Song selection and mixing have to be perfect to perform a drastic change in musical moods like this to be received well by the crowd, or in this case, us listeners. Armin is wonderful at this. Example is "Satori Waterfalls", which is a beautiful song, with melodic 'tribal' chanting that provides the main melodies. Well right after Armin turns the "electro" nob up and gives us "These Shoulders". If you listened to these two songs separately, you wouldn't think they would go well together... Armin thought other wise. He thought right.

One more thing, there are some things done here I have not heard before, even on his shows or Tiesto's. It's a good change. Trance has been kind of doing the same stuff for a while here, it's time it evolves some more. Armin is doing this, pushing trance where it hasn't gone before. Different styles of songs, different ways of building up and climaxing. Again, I'm just really really impressed. A large fan should be supplied with this so whenever you get to one of these moments on ASOT '08, it can add to your "blown away" effect.

All in all, this is beautiful. From the melodic uplifting songs that will make you want to chill out on the beach and just listen while taking in the waves coming in, to the catchy electronica that will have you up and dancing, sending electrical signals to areas of your body that you didn't know existed, everything here is Grade AAA.

I find myself wanting more out or this album. The songs he picked are great a good range of artists, just didn't mix it up as well as he has done in the past. I found that both cds had very little variation like they have had in the past which i have loved. Maybe a little too much time on Imagine left him less time for this album.

I agree with the other review in that the cover says it all... 'What next?' After ASOT 07, I was wondering how Armin was going to top that. Well, sadly, this mix isnt it. It is an ok compilation of songs that never seem to go anywhere. There is promise of more in many tracks but they just seem to fall apart. It is not a bad mix but I expect far more from Armin. 06 and 07 were far better than this. And Tiesto's latest, ISOS-Asia is brillant and a recovery for him

Ill start off by saying that i havent always been the biggest fan of Armin Van Buuren's ASOT (A State Of Trance) series. They always sounded kind of shallow or cheezy, and played more like a random compilation. I am more a fan of deeper progressive trance DJs that can tell a story with their track selection and mixing abilities, like Sasha, Digweed, Above and Beyond, and Markus Schulz. I will say that the ASOT series has gotten progressively better each year. Last year's 2007 ASOT was pretty good, but still didnt quite meet my expectations. His newest offering takes the series to a whole new level that the previous ones never seemed to quite reach. This ASOT is by far the best of the series. Armin's taste and mixing abilities have matured by leaps and bounds from his last ASOT. For once, he exceeded my expectations. CD1 is phenomenal from start to finish. I can honestly say i havent heard a CD that has held my undivided attention from start to finish since Markus Schulz Ibiza 2006 CD1. CD2 is also extremely good, but i prefer the 1st one personally. If you are a fan of Progressive trance, buy this album. You will not be disappointed.

Ok, I'm not going to drag this out, so here is the nut shell review: I live in Miami, been to Ultra every year as well as WMC. I am 23 yrs old...go to all the clubs on South beach.. I have seen every Trance artist worth seeing.. been listening to electronic music since the age of 8 and I am a complete addict.

Out of every Cd, song, remix, mash-up, set, etc. This Cd is the best compilation of Trance I have ever heard. Ever. It beats Tiesto ISOS Vol. 4 and & Anjunabeats vol. 5 - Two of the best Cd's of Trance ever. Every song is perfect...and some songs are just beyond words. If you don't get this CD you might as well give up life. I would pay easily $100 for this CD if I had too. This Cd makes all other Trance and artists obsolete and irrelevant. You will probably never hear anything better period. I am a harsh critic, so know that this is not an exaggeration. Whatever... I am listening too it as we speak.. I don't need to listen to any other Trance ever again. Who is Tiesto? Armin did it... he is perfect. The end.

Yeah, he finally did it again! Both discs are ridiculous they are so good. i always compare any Armin to his in the club 2006, to me that was his greatest mix he has ever produced so to have something even come close is amazing. I really dont know how other Dj's dont take a clue from him> i would say the closest thing to him is now Above & Beyond or Tiesto's ISOS vol 4 Latin America disc 2, which is the best he's ever produced in my opinion. I hope Armin keeps this up and knows why people are loving his mixes, cause i dont want him to go the oaky road and start making what sound like early 90's dance albums. Buy this...

Wow - Elegant, edgy and very refined! State of Trance 2008 could be the perfect balance between tempo and content. Mr. Van Buuren is getting very serious about delivering an experience that moves into another realm allowing you to suspend thought and ride a trance audio vibe that is truly fresh. Aside from the volume of pure music (2 CD's) the quality of the content is flat fantastic. I own all of the State of Trance series and 2008 is the one CD I would grab on my way out the door of a house fire - Buy it!

All I have to say is... WOW!!

Talk about some amazing and beautiful trance melodies! ASOT 2008 was definitely worth the long wait! Before listening to ASOT 2008, my favorite compilation of the year was Tiesto's In Search of Sunrise 7: Asia. But this one blew Tiesto away! I own the entire A State of Trance series and this album is tied with 2007 as the best! The first CD "On The Beach" is filled with gorgeous, melodic tunes that fill up your car, your living room, your workout at the gym, or, like the cd says, on the beach at a beach gathering! Alot of trance can be repetitive with the same old ambient sounds and beats. Not in this selection. You get melodies and beats from songs that are unique and original in their own way with exotic and beautiful vocals. But the beautiful and impressive part is how Armin put these tracks all together into one continuous dance marathon. That's the most difficult part that will make or break a compilaton CD, and Armin created a masterpiece! The second CD "In The Club" is filled with high-energy, beat-pumping, trance and progressive trance that will give you goosebumps and make you feel like you're in the middle of a club on the island of Ibiza -- known as the greatest and most popular party island in the world!

Overall, this is an absolutely amazing album and the best compilation in 2008! You can listen to this album in almost any setting... if anything, buy it for your workout at the gym. Forget creatine and use this music as your fuel for your weight training and cardio! I usually play the ASOT podcasts from Armin's radio show on my iPod in my car and use it as my morning coffee on my way to work. This album will be playing in my car for quite some time! ASOT 2008 shows why Armin Van Buuren deserves to be ranked as 2007's #1 DJ in the world, and if the new DJMag polls do him any justice he will be ranked #1 again for 2008 (DJMag new rankings released Wed, October 29th, 2008 in London, UK). Thank you Armin for your time, consistency, and dedication in creating the best trance and dance music in the world! Long live Armin!!