Having started the year with his Stine Grove-vocal-led ‘The One’, the Pure Trance artist now releases a vocal number with Evan Henzi. Evan’s will be a fresh name to some, but (through his work with Gareth Emery, Ashley Wallbridge and others), possibly already embedded for others. His teaming with Kristina Sky and Danny Stubbs on Pure Trance Recordings’ ‘Rollercoaster’ may bring the quickest finger-snap of recognition.
Solarstone and Stine Grove have discog history together, though thus far it’s an incomplete one. Stine’s released her solo material on Pure Trance and has been remixed (on ‘Against The Flow’) by Solarstone.
‘Hope’, the latest track from Solarstone, takes flight with melodies which gravitate straight to the production’s centre. Once aloft, they enter a slipstream of his piano notes, reflective pads and chords and vocal harmonies, all of which aim to bring an optimism to the track’s tone.
If ever there was a moment for Pure Trance to take a year off, it has to have been the least dancefloor-friendly one of the last century. By the same token though, if there was a 365 for it to return… So it is then that - on the cusp of hitting double-digits - the mix-comp series spawned by Solarstone (Richard Mowatt)’s grassroots movement returns in 2021.
Solarstone wrote himself an album during lockdown - an unplanned one obviously, and one - by his own acknowledgment - he wouldn’t have gotten to write in more conventional times. ‘A lockdown album’ by any other name - not the first and undoubtedly not the last.
The culmination of a project that now comprises 27 pieces of music, delivered over a 3-album/4-year arc - all heralded by many a meaningful dot and dash.