On this week’s Unsung Heroes, we take an unwilling turn down a dark alley as we look for the blackest, grimiest Tech Trance that we can find. Often regarded as one of the most iconic Tech Trance singles ever created, Simon Patterson‘s legendary Bulldozer is a track that dominated dance floors, as well as completely changed the game for every single Trance producer in the scene. When this piece was released, it was quickly snapped up by Tiesto and was continuously slammed in many of his live performances, including sets in Copenhagen, Istanbul and The Netherlands. Since then, many artists today continue to hammer this single live and last year alone, it has been spun by the likes of Indecent Noise, Sneijder and Bryan Kearney. When Bulldozer was created in 2007, it initiated an entirely new style of Tech Trance that was fat, greasy, minimalistic and baffilingly powerful; a style that shied away from the classic Tech Trance into a harder, grittier sound that has transformed the genre to today’s trends. Along with classics like Thump and Smack, Simon Patterson brought together an immediate high standard that completely blew away any and all competition.
Within its high notoriety and lasting effects on our scene, it almost seems baffling that there wasn’t an official remix that would modernize the classic with a fresh interpretation. However, note that we said ‘official’ remix and not just ‘remix’, as there have been multiple attempts over the past two years to unofficially rework this track. The first is from Harmonic Rush, who gave an unusually deep and luscious Psy Trance retool that did away with most of the main elements and incorporated his own, unique sound. The second is from the horror-filled carnival world of Sektor V, an unusual Tech Trance artist who used to be well known under the moniker, Thr3shhold. His tracks are radically experimental and hopelessly deranged, as his ‘Metal Terror Trance‘ style seeks to infuse the elements of Metal and Rock N Roll into a dance friendly 140BPM Tech Trance construct. He has been very successful with his invention and examples of this style are evident in his unofficial reworks of Metallica‘s Enter Sandman, Rob Zombie‘s Enter Dragula and Rammstein‘s Links 2 3 4. With the inclusion of deadly, terrorizing Metal guitars and colossal, storming basskicks, Sektor V‘s rework of Bulldozer aims to demolish everything you hold dear within a mere eight minutes.
His remix begins with sub induced basslines and crunchy percussion sections, as the cacophony of various Psy sounds and horror-filled timbres fill the void within a hazy cloud of tension and uneasiness. The basskicks are pounding with carnivorous anticipation and the addition of crisp hi-hats add that extra sprinkle of delicious Techno. Interestingly enough, even though things have been building up the entire time, the phrase itself is still relatively tame, (which is actually intentional). As it moves into the breakdown, wisps of evil voices can be heard in the distance as the stage is carefully set in place. When the resulting drop occurs, Sektor V took the liberty of removing its iconic bassline and instead utilized Rock heavy guitars for a hard hitting, in your face bassline that swiftly encourages all things rowdy. He keenly kept the original breakdown in check and allowed listeners to bask themselves in the memories of club shows past, but the melodies suddenly begin to devolve into a twisted, evil pit where light seldom strikes and hope is but a commodity. Then, a hissing, spiteful voice of something foul and horrible gurgles this phrase: “Silly boy.., you still think you can see… me…? Ha..ha..ha..ha……You can’t see me. You’ll only see what your little mind will allow…..“. Instantly the thunderous rush of storming guitar triplets bombards the ears with the full might of Metal Trance and the resulting drop forces you to pick up your ripped off face from the ground during its brutal assault.
Sektor V‘s crushing rework of Simon Patterson‘s Bulldozer is now available as a free download on Sektor V‘s Soundcloud, so click on the down arrow in the above player and go support real talent!
Keep the music alive. -Q
Sources
http://www.1001tracklists.com/track/2456_simon-patterson-bulldozer/index.html
Unsung Heroes is a weekly segment where we take a look back at an amazing production and bring it back into the light for older and newer fans alike. These tracks were often overlooked, overshadowed by a huge release or are just not that well known to the public here in America. Here, you can find all the hidden gems in many genres and find a new favorite track (or another tool/weapon for aspiring DJ’s).
