Dark by Design and Dr. Willis
» Hells Bells / Insomniak
Reviewed by Dean Zone
/ Submitted 17-03-08 20:13
Label: Designed
Format: Digital
Genre: Hard Trance
“Shocked” is the word that came to mind upon hearing Dark by Designs latest collaboration effort with Australia’s Dr. Willis, the hottest talent to come out of Oz since Shane Warne (ok, maybe not, but anyway…)
Why am I so shocked? Well, quite simply, because as much as I have loved good old Gaz and his tunes for just about as long as I have been listening to music that has a 4 x 4 beat, I never thought he’d produce something quite as different as Hells Bells.
Let me get started by saying that I am NOT a fan of Electro, regardless of if it be the type from the 80’s or the new wave Electro House which seems to be growing in popularity by the day. However, if ever there was a bastard love child between Electro and Hard Dance, this would be it. And you know what. I LOVE IT!
After your standard 4 phrases of intro beats comes the bass introduction (as per 99% of DbD tunes but anyway!). The dirtiest bass I have probably ever heard outside of an Uberdruck tune then filters in, and when the kick comes back in if it doesn’t get you grooving away like a mad man then you need help. It’s got a lot of similarities to some of Vinylgroovers recent material, which is no bad thing at all.
Gone is the recent Hardstyle sound that Gaz has been pushing a lot of late, but I can only assume that this is due to the presence of Dr. Willis.
The main riff works perfectly with the bass, and the bells of the title serve to lighten the tone. I would maybe stop at calling this Hard Trance, but it’s certainly more than Hard Dance with Trancey bits. Even so, a genre busting track that whilst it doesn’t really do much, it’s so well made that it doesn’t have to!
8/10
Insomniak (yes it is supposed to be spelt with a “k”, it’s not a typo) is definitely much more of a typical recent DbD tune, starting with fierce double kicks and working its way into a almost Shranz type beat, before bringing in a subtle yet manic bass.
Some seriously cool old skool style Hard House stabs and Hoover fills give plenty of drive and energy, and what it lacks in subtlety it makes up for in retro coolness.
The vocal sample is rather annoying however, but I can look past this because the Hoover just sounds so dammed cool.
Again this is DbD out of his comfort zone just like with Hells Bells. A mixture of Hard House and Shranz makes this an interesting combination, but the production has Gaz written all over it.
Certainly something different, both to just about everything else on offer and the other release on this EP, but I don’t think it’s a sound that will take off, or prove particularly popular.
And will someone please shut that sample guy up? Yes we know you’re an Insomniak with a “k” and that you “must sleep”, but it’s quite irritating the number of times this is repeated. To be honest it’s not a great sample and it doesn’t add much, if anything, to the track.
7/10
Rating: 
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