In the newest of three releases, German electronica master Paul Van Dyk produces a two-disc gem that is soothing and rhythmically rich enough to captivate even the biggest techno-phobe.
"Out There and Back" is a continuous-play mix of fluid, pulsating tunes and piano melodies that are just as appropriate for relaxing as they are for dancing. In all of Van Dyk's tracks, the harmonious, lofty background tunes artfully blend into the more pronounced thumping noises that characterize this genre of music.
To the untrained ear, techno music seems like a preponderance of repetitious and dissonant noises. The beauty of Van Dyk's work is that a wider range of listeners can appreciate it. The stylistic complexity and the racy vibes that Van Dyk's music emanates puts him in the highest echelon of electronic producers in the world.
Much as Underworld created a splash among non-techno fans following its "Beaucoup Fish" album release, Van Dyk has the potential to attract a mainstream following.
Underworld fans will enjoy Van Dyk's music, although most of the tracks are more fast-paced and upbeat than Underworld's decidedly mellow tones. "Santos," on the second album, has the most in common with the Underworld style.
The second CD is predominantly remixed tracks from the first album that would more likely be heard in clubs. The first CD features 12 tracks, with songs the in the middle of the CD -- masterpieces like "Tell Me Why," "Face To Face" and "The Love From Above" -- being the strongest.
The introduction to "Face To Face" at first seems like a remixed version of Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time," but the soft electronic melody evolves into a more pronounced pulse that dominates the song. This moves the melody to a background noise that occasionally surfaces to the forefront when the beat subsides.
The transitional mixing between the conclusion of "Face To Face" and the beginning of the next track, "The Love From Above," is arguably the best sample of Van Dyk's mixing brilliance on the CD, though there are many close runners-up. As a result, these two songs are among the album's most appealing.
For about 50 seconds the transition occurs, incorporating melodies and beats of the concluding song with a preview of the tunes in the upcoming song. This section features perhaps the most intense pulsing of the CD -- an adrenaline-boosting beat that with much fanfare fades into a series of alternating high and low siren-like sounds before fully yielding to the melodies from "The Love From Above."
While most of "Out There and Back" is marked by an absence of words, "Travelling" and "Tell Me Why" are notable for its soft-spoken, well-placed female vocal interludes. The lyrics only consist of a few words, but Van Dyk is careful not to have vocals disrupt the more emphasized electronic beats. Instead, he seeks to artfully fuse the vocals together with the electronica.
In "Together We Will Conquer" lyrics take to the forefront of the song amid the backdrop of intriguing metallic echoing noises that decrease in volume.
The magical part of Van Dyk's work is that while lyrics are discouraged in much electronic and techno music, his music is a complicated language in its own right. Only when the alternating ebbing and flowing of ethereal vocals in the electronic tide is noticed is the complexity and richness of Van Dyk's music realized.
An especially catchy song is the last track, "We Are Alive." Its appeal, too, lies in the electronic mixing of vocals, which grow increasing higher in octave until you realize the vocals have been replaced by an alarm-like siren perfectly matching the vocalist's pitch. The upbeat, cheery quality of "We Are Alive" contrasts darker-sounding tracks like "Travelling," and literally ends the album on a high note.
