The Vitals

Label: Queep Organic House
Genre: Progressive House
Number of Tracks: 4
How to Obtain: www.queeporganichouse.com, www.beatport.com  

Factor Scores:

Production Quality: 6.5
Programming and Arrangement: 6.8
Entertainment Quality: 7.0
Total: 6.8 – Above Average

Brian's Take:

Queep Organic House introduces their next release, entitled "Mankind". Coming from progressive house producer Fuzik, the original version is a listener-friendly throwback to progressive the way it used to be. For those who've been keeping up with prog. since the late '90s, think Sasha & Digweed's "Northern Exposure". Being a sucker for this era myself, I couldn't help but kick back and let the nostalgia take effect. The tune is a slow, heavy one, complete with a fully developed atmosphere of relaxation, along with a melody to please even the most epic of trance fans.

Tim Richards, among two others, steps up for remix duty. Richards', like the original, is slow-moving yet reminiscent of early Gabriel & Dresden productions. A solid drum kit is present, complemented by an extra tinge of vocal manipulation for the tech-house listener.

Next up, the L.O.S.T. remix provides a version more suited for the DJs/listeners who want something that sounds more like today's progressive. With sharp melodies and much more effective work on the vocals, this remix is a sure highlight.

Finally, the Hatstandy Andy Breaks mix finishes the release off. If you haven't noticed a trend yet in the other remixes, this mix follows the popular course of being loud and powerful-sounding. The title says breaks mix, but this remix is not for your average breaks DJ. On the contrary, it is aimed much more at DJs/listeners/connoisseurs of progressive music, breaks or not.

In closing, this release is definitely something to hear, but it will likely satisfy only a narrow range of listeners: those who love progressive and those who are looking for some tracks that sound like they were made 4 to 5 years ago (note that the latter is not necessarily a bad thing). I found the entertainment quality to be highest in the original version by far. The rest of the remixes, though produced well, did not exert the same level of energy, therefore keeping me from rating the release a lot higher. Needless to say, I found these tracks more than satisfactory overall and deem them all noteworthy.