Sasha - Invol2ver

[Jonny68]

Just listened to it with an open mind, and asides from one tune which is not too bad,it's a pretty p*ss poor effort,plain boring prog/trance that is going nowhere, better suited to chill out sessions than a club,"chin strokers" music would be an apt term for this.

Sasha has seriously lost his way IMO, he used to be up there with the very best of them,and at one time probably was the best, a classic case of a DJ who should stick to what he knows best which is dj'ing.

No doubt the hardcore Sasha devotees will love this but it couldn't even be compared to classic like the old Renaissance or Northern Exposure albums,if this is the state of prog/trance thesedays i fear the worst

 

[Olly]

I gave up on sasha around 1998, about the point where he and digweed disappeared up their respective backsides, and the sycophantic fawning from the mainstream superclub-obsessed dance press became unbearable

I liked northern exposure 1&2 at the time, but both sound dated to me now

similarly, that whole "epic" BT sound where the tracks would last 15 minutes without so much as a beat, eventually did my head in too

NOW though, in fairness, I think digweed (at least) is doing more interesting things these days and going deeper, which is good by me and sasha including stuff like beanfields on his GU comp suggests they're thinking harder than SWOOSH, SWOOSH the whole time

 

[Dicey]

Well I absolutely LOVE it - I think it's pure genius and very cleverly put together. I haven't stopped listening to it since i got it. I've always enjoyed him but never been a cuckoo Sasha fan like someone else i know but this is right up my street!

In particular, i love the beginning, middle and end!

 

[perleman]

Sasha is by an absolut mile my favorite producer, I have listened to his CDs more than any others & I've been into dance music for 18 years. The Renaissance mix cd was uter rubbish though, but from NE onwards it's just pure magic. I just can't understand the haters, but then again that is what individual preference is about.

 

[Jonny68]

Sasha is by an absolut mile my favorite producer, I have listened to his CDs more than any others & I've been into dance music for 18 years. The Renaissance mix cd was uter rubbish though, but from NE onwards it's just pure magic. I just can't understand the haters, but then again that is what individual preference is about.

I've been into the scene since 1990 too!!
You cannot be serious about the Renaissance album it's revered as being the greatest mix album of all time and most probably is, after Northern Exposure Sasha lost it, and this is coming from someone who used to have Sasha as one of my fav dj's.

"Renaissance 1 - The Mix Collection" from Sasha & Digweed is widely considered the best mix album of all time. On its first release, it was the first club mix album to go gold. And why wouldn't it? It had the two world's most famous DJs, three CDs packed with the best tracks of the time, and superb, eye-catching packaging from this ingenious label. October 2004 was its ten year anniversary, it was re-released on November 8th 2004. It is available in the US early 2005. Renaissance has re-released the three CD pack in two formats, deluxe and special limited edition.

http://www.internetdj.com/article.php?storyid=498

 

[jjinit]

I've been into the scene since 1990 too!!
You cannot be serious about the Renaissance album it's revered as being the greatest mix album of all time and most probably is, after Northern Exposure Sasha lost it, and this is coming from someone who used to have Sasha as one of my fav dj's.

http://www.internetdj.com/article.php?storyid=498

Jonny!!

again we agree that compilation was the benchmark..before that you just had the odd dodgy mix tape to listen to post club, my mate had about 100 weeks worth of "graeme park hacienda sat night". Still listen to it now, it's timeless and to be honest not much that has been released since can stand up to it, say a few global underground releases. On the other hand, I do really like the stuff sasha has been doing of late, involver, fundacion & his avalon cd so that said I will be buying Involver2 because in my eyes "the man like" can do no wrong.....

 

[Gavvodka]

i thought this cd was amazing, really dar underground prog... loved it. dont get that kind of prog much, to mainsteam, but this i like because of the underground sound

 

[jjinit]

puchased it sat morning, have listened 3 times now from start to finish and I like it more each time!!! Excellent piece of work!!!

 

[perleman]

I bought the original Renaissance album 1st time round, and it is in my opinion, the most overated album in dance music history, it may have inovated because it was one of the first mix CDs (and I believe there was a journey by DJs mix out before anyway), but that's like saying Mercedes inovated by inventing airbags & crumple zones, it doesn't mean one of those 1980's cars is safe now compared to something new. The Renaissance mix is like an early "Ministry Annual" CD, all it is is just the big tunes from the day mixed together sequentially, if memory serves, 3 mixes of 'song of life', tunes like Bombscare, and 'my friend Sam' that when 5 years old, sounded dated as hell. Northern Exposure 2 is nearly as good as 1, and Airdrawndagger, Involver 1&2, Fundacion, Avalon & the EmFire collection have got far more debth & lasting appeal. in my opinion, I've already listened to any of them more than the renaissance mix cd and for me sasha's sound is from mid 90's on, not that cheesy crap at the beginning. Saying that sasha's sound was better in the beginning is like saying that 'Help' was the best album the Beatles made, before they actually started making music with substance. If anything the 2nd mix collection from renaissance was the unsung classic in my opinion as by then Renaissance had a sound of it's own after the scene had segmented in the early 90's.

Now you may love the 1st mix CD because it reminds you of your first few times on the 'little fellas', but that's another matter!

Invol2ver is absolute genius & I look forward to getting to know it better over the next few years

 

[Hypersky]

It was very good for the first week. Its now annoyingly slow.

 

[grego]

i suppose i'd call myself a fan. sasha's alrite i guess

i think the involver concept is great. it's like an artist album, so if you like the artist then it's interesting to hear it and something different.

i don't think i've ever really liked, per se, a sasha comp the first time i heard it but as someone else has said, that gives it a lasting appeal that keeps you entertained for years.

i personally love the slower stuff, remember those gus gus tracks on NE and raff n freddy on gu13. love it.

sasha's studio work is not particularly club friendly IMO, obviously there are examples like scorchio or be as one that really work, but airdrawndagger is the best chill out/car music going.

the mix collection echoes of that era, which is not a bad thing, but nearly all the subsequent comps by sasha have got longevity, particularly i'd say from involver 1 onwards.

the truth is, and it pains me to say it, the magic has gone from sasha the DJ, there are lots of reasons why but it just has. i'd still rather see him play out than nearly any other jock but it's not just quite the same. however, his studio stuff is still great and his sound has changed and developed and evolved through the years.

also, anyone who thinks he still plays prog, probably thinks he has hair too!

 

[grego]

Well I absolutely LOVE it - I think it's pure genius and very cleverly put together. I haven't stopped listening to it since i got it. I've always enjoyed him but never been a cuckoo Sasha fan like someone else i know but this is right up my street!

In particular, i love the beginning, middle and end!

who?

 

[grego]

sasha's studio work is not particularly club friendly IMO, obviously there are examples like scorchio or be as one that really work, but airdrawndagger is the best chill out/car music going.

oh yeah and xpander!

 

[IbeefaR]

not someone I enjoy live (apart from at universe with peng). will I be listening to this for ages - yes. Another slice of music pie for me

 

[perleman]

Er... all the EmFire tracks are masssive dancefloor anthems too aren't they

 

[Dicey]

who?

Oh just this guy i know

 

[Dicey]

It was very good for the first week. Its now annoyingly slow.

It's slowness makes it extra dirty and super sexy for me. Not going to get tired of this for ages. Can't wait to listen to it 5 times in a row when i drive up to Malawi in 2 weeks time! Just me, invol2ver and the 4x4. Vroooooooommmmm!!!