And on the 8th day, God said "Let there be massive riffage in the Psychedelic Trance" and S.U.N. Project were born. It's hard to believe that S.U.N. Project have been banging their anthemic version of Metal Acid Trance for 13 years and 10 albums. I have always been a fan of the over-the-top energy that builds the S.U.N. Project world and I am so very happy that they have just released their most amazingly fun and exciting album since Macrophage back in 1998.
When I was getting into the world of Goa Trance back in the day, there was no one like S.U.N. Project. They were the originators of high energy acid trance with Megadeth style shredding. I say Megadeth because S.U.N. Project has always seemed to get the backseat treatment in the world of Goa. Which is highly unfair. Kind of. In a way, they are a novelty act. In other ways, they are far beyond novelty. If there were to be a battle between Skazi and S.U.N. Project, the three Germans in S.U.N. Project would annihilate Skazi all over the dance floor.
S.U.N. Project have had a couple of "Big Hits" in the Goa world over the years. Their first was a track called 'Sexdrugs & Acidtrance' which was a banging acid trance track. This is one of their tyles of music. High energy acid trance. It rules. Then they have another "Big Hit" called '380 Volt' (yes, I know 'Edge of Time' and 'Dance of the Witches' would have been big and also prior to '380 Volt', however I feel that '380 Volt' is truly the best representation for this example) which is their other style of banging. To achieve this other style, you take out most of the acid lines and replace them with some seriously shredding guitars. The tracks have just as much high energy as the acid trance, only with the addition of guitars. Some people are more into one style than the other, others love both equally. While the newest album has massive guitars all over it, it has a lot of the acid in it as well.
I remember when '380 Volt' was first released on an old M.A.S.H. 12" and it was just too stupid for most people to dig. I got a lot of shit for dropping it at parties because it was . . . well . . . it was '380 Volt' and you need to hear it to understand why the hippies hated it. But then I went to this awesome free outdoor party that summer called Twisted in the Forest and Simon Posford was playing a DeeJay set. And I heard that unmistakable intro, which motivated me to dance some shit up. And then, next thing I knew, other people were starting to appreciate, or at least tolerate, the S.U.N. Project more.
Ever since the beginning, I have heard about the S.U.N. Project live shows. Three guys wearing alien masks. One on midi drums, one on guitar and synth, and the other running synths and the masters. This is an experience that I desire deeply to be a part of. However, as much as I have loved the earlier works of S.U.N. Project, the past few albums haven't moved me much. They felt rehashed and standard. Like they were into their formula and didn't really bring anything new. Sure, each album had a track or two that might be good, but overall they felt lacking. I guess that in some ways this album isn't that different either, but damn, these tracks seem much more stellar than the previous few outings.
Tracks like 'Surprise' and 'Turbo Booster' fucking rule so hard, it is amazing that the Earth has not shattered from the amount of rock within. While Infected Mushroom are getting famous being massive douch-nozzles, S.U.N. Project are keeping it proper and bringing in some Nina Hagen for a couple of guest vocal spots in addition to refining their craft and skill. It feels like they are trying something a bit more complex here, a bit more fresh, but still being completely the same S.U.N. Project that you have always known (and for some, loved). Then, in honor of their 10th album, they toss in a nice remix of 'Dance of the Witches' as a closer. |
