Best Trance Music of All Time
Submitted by when44 on Tue, 10/18/2005 - 08:25
Tags:
- Alright. Finally I'm making this list. It will be endless, and take me probably forever, but I'll get started.
- For those of you who haven't seen my other list, (Best Trance music of 2003), I was endlessly requested to make a "Best Trance Music of All Time" list (ironically nobody who made those endless requests endorsed me (*shakes fist*) - lol actually I don't really care whatsoever)).
- Anyway for anyone who doesn't know, trance is a kind of music. If you're going to whine to me that it's all techno, and calling it trance is foolish, then just leave now. That pisses me off to no end, and gets tiring faster than politics and Eminem (sorry to Emineme fans, but there is more to rap about than drugs and yourself).
- Just clearing this up now - techno and trance have very few similarities. I will make a chart for you describing the differences:
- Trance:
- Layers:__________6-15
- Melodies:________3-7
- Made with:_______Synths, beatboxes, real instruments, samples, vocals, random sounds, electric guitars, acidboxes, etc.
- Melody lengths:__10 seconds, to 2 minutes
- Top 40 Hits:_____around 30 in North America, around 300 in Europe.
- Song structure:__Starts small, like a techno song, then adds layer after layer, building to climax of uber-layyered energy, often with tricks like taking away the beat to listen to the melody, then bringing it all back like a motha****a. Or maybe it gently reconnects them or something (there are hundreds of ways to build it up). By the middle there are a large number of melodies, most of which are parts of one another, and speeding up of the others. Sometimes vocals are added during the buildup, and sometimes vocals are added during the "breakdown", or when it builds up, or often not at all. Sometimes they are really repetitive, like one phrase over and over, and sometimes they're as ever-changing as classical. Most trance has crazy little "flying-sounds", and often contains really long air strings, and runaway melodies. Techno people hate it. It's WAY too memorable (read: good) and "poppy" (read: successful) for their snobbish razor-thin repetitive tastes.
- Techno:
- Layers:__________1-4
- Melodies:________0-2 (95% of all techno is 100% beats, although some detroit stuff has one or two short melodies)
- Made with:_______beatboxes, samples
- Melody lengths:__1 second to 7 seconds (7 seconds is rare)
- Top 40 Hits:_____0 in North America, around 30 in Europe.
- Song Structure:__A beat starts at the beginning, then a couple beat layers are added at some point, which then repeat throughout the song, for the entire length. Sometimes there are cool little effects in the song, and sometimes the beats do funky little things. But that's about it. (it's okay sometimes, and some of the cooler ones are good). A techno song would look like a flat line, where trance would be all over the place. There are no vocals in techno (although there is an occasional vocal sample, or a particularly innovative song that adds them. Not that vocals are neccessary.)
- Okay, now that I've cleared that up, for everyone who doesn't know, that's the difference between trance and techno. Argue with me any more, and I will kill you. I'm SURE I've made it clear at this point. This argument annoys me more than any others. Grrr. Okay, if you don't understand at this point find another list to read. On to the list! No more distractions! Nothing left to get in your way of reading it!
- I'll do this by year:
- The 80's (Trance doesn't really exist, but cool songs with very tranzy elements start to appear)
- New Order - Blue Monday
- Actually, many New Order songs fit here.
- 808 State - Pacific (1989) - Probably the first actual trance song, although many call it house.
- Amnesia - Ibiza
- 1990 (Not yet an official genre, but some tracks start appearing)
- Age of Love - Age of Love
- Orbital - Chime
- Dance 2 Trance - We Came in Peace
- Psychic TV - Infinite Beat
- Depeche Mode - Enjoy the Silence
- Man With No Name - Way Out West
- 1991
- Future Sound of London - Papua New Guinea
- Dance 2 Trance - Let's Get Rollin'
- Hardfloor - Acperience
- 1992
- Age of Love - Age of Love (Paul Van Dyk Mix)
- Cosmic Baby - Airplay
- Dance 2 Trance - Power of American Natives
- Jam & Spoon - Stella
- Jam & Spoon - Neurotrance Adventure
- The Visions of Shiva - Perfect Day
- Metal Master - Simply Metal
- Barbarella - My Name is Barbarella
- Sven Vath - Ritual of Life
- The Martian - Meet The Red Planet
- Visions of Shiva - Perfect Day
- 1993 (Trance is now an official sub-genre)
- The Martian - Star Dancer
- Energy 52 - Cafe Del Mar [This was an early version of a track that, when remixed later on, would become what is now considered possibly the greatest trance song of all time. The 98 mix is the best one. Little Known fact - Cosmic Baby + Kid Paul = Energy 52. Cosmic Baby, as in the inventor of melodic trance.]
- Cygnus X - Superstring
- Cygnus X - Positron
- The Visions of Shiva - How Much can you take?
- William Orbit - Water from a Wine Leaf
- Hardfloor - Lost in the Silver Box
- Underworld - Cowgirl
- Underworld - Dirty Epic
- Tranceformer - Humanoid
- Quench - Dreams
- 1994
- Underworld - Dark Train (AKA Dark & Long)
- Sven Vath - Robot (Hardfloor mix)
- Cygnus X - The Orange Theme
- Nostrum - Brainchild
- Dance 2 Trance - Take A Free Fall
- Spicelab - Amorph
- Hardfloor - Confuss
- Solar Quest - Acid Air Raid
- Man With No Name - Sly-Ed
- Man With No Name - Teleport
- Arpeggiators - Discover Your Innerself
- 1995 (People got bored of trance at this point)
- DJ Misjah and DJ Tim - Access
- BT - Embracing the Sunshine
- Faithless - Insomnia
- Digital Express - The Club
- Astral Projection - Mahadeva
- Humate - East
- PHD - Summerstorm
- Dynamix Maniax - Calling Middle Earth
- 1996 - 1997 (Progressive trance is born (aka trance in it's current epic/anthem state), and trance becomes an official genre. It's also resurrected, and starts being propelled to eventually become the worlds most popular dance music. This is a transition period between the oldskool sound, and the newskool one)
- Chicane - Offshore
- Nalin & Kane - Beachball
- Da Hool - Meet Her at the Love Parade
- Underworld - Born Slippy
- Tiesto - The Tube
- Robert Miles - Children
- Libra Presents Taylor - Anomaly (Calling Your Name) [Jan Johnson's first major track, made with BT]
- Armin - Blue Fear
- Way Out West - The Gift
- Paul Van Dyk - Words
- Lost Tribe - Gamemaster
- Moonman - Don't Be Afraid
- Chicane - Sunstroke
- Transa - Enervate
- Future Sound of London - Cascade
- Banco De Gaia - Last Train to Lhasa
- Transa - Prophase
- LSG - Netherworld
- BBE - Seven Days & One Week
- Astral Projection - Dancing Galaxy
- Astral Projection - Liquid Sun
- Underworld - Pearl's Girl
- Ascension - Someone
- 1998 (AKA the year of trance, and the peak of the genre. It's all epic and anthem now.)
- Energy 52 - Cafe Del Mar '98
- Three Drives - Greece 2000
- Paul Van Dyk - For an Angel
- Ayla - Ayla
- Faithless - God is a DJ
- Push - Universal Nation
- Art of Trance - Madagasca
- Chicane - Lost You Somewhere
- Dove Beat - La Paloma (Heliotropic mix)
- Agnelli & Nelson - El Nino
- Binary Finary - 1998
- TastExperience - Summersault
- Father's of Sound - Water
- Solar Stone - Day by Day
- Miro - Paradise
- Humate - Love Stimulation '98
- Der Dritte Raum - Hale Bopp
- 1999 [Another genre of progressive trance starts to surface - I guess kind of a progressive progressive trance, if that means anything. The elitists abandon conventional trance, calling it a sellout genre, and instead go for this progressive progressive stuff
- ATB - 9 PM (till I Come)
- Armin - Communication
- York - The Reachers of Civilization
- Gouryella - Gouryella
- Gouryella - Walhalla
- Solar Stone - Seven Cities
- Alice Deejay - Better Off Alone [AKA the uber trance hit that pop stations and hockey games still overplay today, 5 years later]
- Kamaya Painters - Endless Wave
- Chicane ft Marie Brennan - Saltwater
- Tiesto - Theme from Norefjell
- System F - Out of the Blue
- Sasha - Xpander
- William Orbit - Barber's Adagio for Strings
- The Thrillseekers - Synaesthesia
- Binary Finary - 1999
- Lange - I Believe (DJ Tandu mix)
- Rank 1 - Airwave
- Astral Projection - Another World
- Yahel - Voyage
- James Holden - Horizons
- BT - Mercury and Solace
- Tiesto - Sparkles
- Technique - Sun is Shining (Mash up Matt mix)
- The Quest - C Sharp
- Push - Universal Nation
- Matt Darey - Liberation
- 2000 (A trance backlash begins. Suddenly it's an "anti-elite" genre officially)
- Three Drives - Sunset on Ibiza
- Gouryella - Tenshi
- Darude - Sandstorm [AKA the other uber trance hit that pop stations and hockey games still overplay today]
- Chicane - Don't Give Up
- Delerium ft Sarah Machlachlan - Silence (Tiesto mix) [yet another uber trance hit, although the least overplayed of the bunch]
- Push - Sunrise at Palamos (Tiesto mix)
- Cygnus X - The ORange Theme (Moonman edit)
- Orinoko - Island
- System F - Cry
- Push - Strange World
- Salt Tank - Eugina
- Coast 2 Coast ft Discovey - Home
- Tastexperience - Tantrix
- Push - Till We Meet Again
- Mauro Picotto - Save a Soul
- Astral Projection - Aurora Borealis
- Rui Da Silva - Touch Me
- 2001 (It retains a following besides the backlash)
- Tiesto - Suburban Train
- Ian Van Dahl - Castles in the Sky (another uber-trance hit, though not so overplayed as the others)
- Kamaya Painters - Summerbreeze
- PPK - Resurrection
- Pulser - Cloudwalking
- Riva - Stringer
- Kamaya Painters - Wasteland
- System F - Dance Valley Theme 2001
- Push - The Legacy
- Jan Johnston - Flesh
- Fischerspooner - Emerge (okay, it's electroclash, but it's still really worthy of note)
- M.I.K.E. - Sunrise on Palamos
- 2002 (A resurgence of sorts this year. It lasts until late 2003, in where dance music then gets really confused and lost. That's where we are today.)
- Way Out West - Mindcircues (Gabriel and Dresden Mix)
- Gouryella - Ligaya
- Ferry Corsten - Punk
- Chicane - Love on the Run
- Oakenfold - Southern Sun (Tiesto mix)
- Solar Stone - Solarcoaster
- Andain - Summer Calling
- Nailn & Kane - Open Your Eyes
- Solid Sessions - Janeiro
- Push - Tranzy State of Mind
- Cosmicman - I Love You
- Oceanlab - Clear Blue Water
- Tomaz vs Filterheadz - Sunshine
- Underworld - Two Months Off
- Dirty Vegas - Days Go By [another crossover]
- Tiesto & Junkie XL - Obsession
- 2003
- Paul Van Dyk - Nothing But You
- Underworld - Born Slippy 2003
- Benny Benassi - Satisfaction
- Solid Globe - North Pole
- Holden & Thomas - Nothing (93 Returning mix)
- Motorcycle - As the Rush Comes
- Andain - Beautiful Things
- POS - Remember
- Three Drives - Air Traffic
- Telepopmusik - Breathe (Another Day) [The first "progressive progresive" trance top 40 hit]
- Aalto - Rush [Super8 vs. Orkidea mix)
- Dirt Devils - Music is Life
- System F - Spaceman
- Ferry Corsten - Rock Your Body Rock
- Alphazone - Rockin
- Blue Haze - We Feel
- Plummet - Damaged (this is actually cheesy epic vocal radio eurotrance [as in a style of trance that I mostly hate], but it's so good, and so perfectly done, that I love the song, and most others who share my taste in the genre like it too.)
- Mike Koglin vs. Jono Grant - Circuits
- 2004 (I have no idea what state trance is in. It's not quite as brilliant as it once was though)
- Fliterheadz - Yimanya
- Robert Gitelman - Things to Say (Push mix)
- White Room - The White Room
- Petter - These Days
- Nathan Fake - Outhouse
- Super8 - Alba
- Oceanlab - Satellite
- Rio Klein - Fearless (Push mix)
- Antiloop - Hello Strings
- Solid Globe - Sahara
- Nickelson - Yin (Solid Globe mix)
- Mark Norman - Phantom Manor
- Smith & Pledger - Believe
- Re:Locate - Typhoon
- Benny Benassi - No Matter What You Do
- Micahel Burns - The ambience
- The MFA - The Difference it makes
- Tim Deluxe - Choose Something like a Star
- James Holden - The Wheel
- Ernesto vs. Bastian - Stop 9.5
- Above and Beyond - No One on Earth (Gabriel and Dresden mix)
- Reflekt ft Deline Bass - Need to Feel Loved
- White Room - Someday
- Tranquility Base - Surrender
- PQM - You Are Sleeping (Luke Chable vocal mix)
- 2005
- 4 Strings - Sunrise
- Dominic Plaza - Sounds Rushing (David West remix)
- Vinylshakerz - One Night in Bangkok
- Motorcycle - Around You
- Gabriel & Dresden - Arcadia
- Mads Arp ft. Julie Harrington - Slow It Down (Mathilda Mix)
- Deep Dish - Say hello (Paul Van Dyk mix)
- Still not finished yet...
- This list is still being made.
Author Comments:
For those looking for trance as we know it today, search from 1996+
Cloned From:
Um...what did you change?
Hehe.. looks like you should have got copyright protection. lol!!
Umm... what kind of personal feedback are you expecting... on this...