Renaissance

The Master's Series Part 10 simply has to be Dave Seaman's most cohesive, polished and inspired double-mix album since, though perhaps a stretch, his groundbreaking opus - The Master's Series Part 1 (2000's Awakening). Given the quality of the aforementioned album, such a bold statement has not been made in haste. The music, however, clearly speaks for itself.

The first disc expands upon the modernized electro-house theory Seaman presented us on the fourth "Therapy Sessions." The tracklist is peppered with exciting new tracks and well-respected artists. Moreover, disc one finally finds Seaman adhering to a purposeful and determinable path; many, including myself, would argue that the first Therapy Sessions disc marked a several-year period of inspirational complacency for Dave. 2005's TS was a rightfully decent mix, though unremarkable - and 2006's TS fared little well amongst Dave Seaman loyalists. The selling point for disc one of the latest Master's series is smooth resilience; a dream made musical. Near-flawless mixing cements together fragments of beautiful and esoteric waves of sound. Seaman is back in control; on tracks such as Fairmeont's "I Need Medicine" and Dusty Kid's "Cowboys," he displays his unique craftsmanship that captures the ear and does not surrender to scrutiny. Seaman signals his triumphant return by bending sounds as though they were elastic bands before segueing into delicious body-wriggling bass. Contemporary selections, including those from Gui Boratto, Wally Lopez, Samim, Sasha, MOS and Underworld, reveals modern electronica's deepest secrets whilst keeping them whisper-quiet. The quality of Dave's composition even fiercely rivals that of the preceding Master's Series - which is itself indeed a masterpiece. Disc one is a superb and diversely crafted hands-on approach at gracefully welding together those aspects of World music, electro-house, tribal grooves and unimaginably deep lo-fi bass that would, by any other hand, conflict. Instead of discord, Seaman strikes harmony through sexy elements of electronica from all over the musical map, weaving a haunting and tasteful tapestry that captures both the mind and body in sensual motion.

Dave Seaman makes his most unique album-entrance on disc two with Johannes Heil's "The Coming." Each tribal drumbeat oozes with feeling and sweet pretense. The track compounds slowly, creeping along with the tension until the flood gates break and the nasty synth-and-bass grooves of Tim Deluxe's "You Got Tha Touch" (Martin Buttrich Vox Mix) whisp away the ambience in favor of a wholly tripped out techno ride around pitch increases, melodic fades and buttery-smooth four-to-the-floor kick. Disc two no longer represents pop rocks and caffeine; what has for Seaman traditionally been the after-dinner glass of Port has transformed into a second meal with its own distinct flavor and an attitude all its own. As bass resonates and spoons tap glass, "Trip to Amaltea" and "Deadman" allow the vibe to wax extraterrestrial (and with astounding grace!). Seaman's clubbier disc takes me back to "Awakening;" a dark, moody, brooding cataclysm of tamed energy gathers, wrenches and unfolds before your very ears. The forceful kickdrum powers forward like the boots of marching soldiers; strings cascade to and fro, seemingly listless - until you feel your heart pounding. Tracks by the likes of Popof, Sol & Grimm, Oliver Huntermann (with Meat Katie, D Ramirez and Odissi), Rekorder, Solaris Heights and Umek steam past with frightening elegance. Remember Dave's face, because it is behind the disc's every internal movement. Disc two is a marvelous and abysmal proclamation of sinister energy; it cannot be missed.

Dave's most personal, intense, driven and brilliant work in six years. The Master's Series Part 10 finds itself the subject in the most superbly driven mind experiment, and is brimming with some of the purest electronica to be found today.

~ Lex

It was a nice surprise listening to a mixed electronica album released in 2008 that wasn't from the minimal genre (or dump). I have a feeling I'm not alone in saying this? The last 2 years have been pretty diappointing in regards to my music collection with a slew of weak productions.

Leave it up to Dave Seaman to snub his nose at what is fashionable in the world of electronica and what is not...and fellow fans...in case you were wondering...progressive is not "in" anymore. We are becoming the new generation of electronica left-behinds. Soon we will be similar to the hoards of trance purists that fiercely hold on to ancient but familar sounds. Lucky for them they still have the likes of Tiesto, Armin Van Buuren, and Paul Van Dyk who will never evolve/abandon their sound.

Although this album was given very high praise by fellow reviewers, I do not think it is a five star and/or Seaman's best. That honor still remains with his Renaissance Desire album.

Disc 1 shows a lot of early promise with its track selection, tempo, creativity and feel. Unfortunately it doesn't hold for the 66 minutes of the set. There are lulls here and there throughout the set, but most notably near the end. The set becomes very uninteresting for me during "I Am with You" by Sennh and "Who Killed Sparky?" by Sasha. It recovers with the final 2 closing tracks. You can never go wrong rounding out a set with a good remix of an Underworld track!

Disc 2 puts forward a completing different sound than the first. Many more trance overtones. Initially it had me pulled in hard. Again though, through unspiring track selections near the middle and at the end of the set (ie the last 4 tracks), disc 2 quickly loses its power over me. Sorry, just too many average tracks. Another good not great set by Dave Seaman.

It took me a long time to rate this CD. Although this album is a mixture of progressive and tech-house, I was so excited about hearing some good progressive sound again that I initially thought this album was amazing after my first listen. I knew that was my genre bias creeping in. Many listens later, I still like it...but neither disc is far from epic.

Disc 1 gets 4/5 stars, and disc 2, 3.5/5 stars.

I've also attached a review from RA which slaughters this album. Just to give readers who are considering purchasing this album a little more perspective.

RA REVIEW - 2.5/5 stars
"Renaissance flagship mix series Masters Series returns for a tenth installment with superstar DJ and former Mixmag editor Dave Seaman manning the decks. Musically, The Masters Series 10 is typical of the vein of progressive house Seaman has mined previously on mixes for Renaissance and Global Underground (labels he has been with since the beginning), although his tastes on the latest certainly reflect more modern trends. But fans of the type of fist pumping, melodic, peak hour prog that Seaman helped trademark will not be disappointed by any of these slight changes in style. In fact most will appreciate the peusdo psy-trance basslines or the more tribal elements he occasionally drops in discretely on both. But no matter how much Seaman gussies up the genre, it still sounds tired and generic, and that's a very hard hand to be dealt these days.

The main flaw of this mix is that it's just too, well, progressive. No matter how many edgy selections Seaman whips out in order to prove that he's moved beyond the confines of the genre, the style of mixing especially gives you a sinking sensation that you've been down this road before. On both discs, things start off well with top shelf selections (Apparat, Fairmont, and Dusty Kid on disc one, Solomun, Mugwump, and Tim Deluxe & Sam Obernik on disc two) before Seaman evaporates the goodwill he's built up by moving into the big room with a string of peak hour builders so cheesy and melodically overblown that you'll wonder if you've been teleported back to the late 1990s. It's the trademark prog house "journey" template of programming followed to the letter, but in 2008 it sounds more like a crutch than useful structure, and the result is sleep-inducing boredom. Not even the decent new Mark Knight remix of Underworld's `Beautiful Burnout' at the end of disc one will save you from la-la land.

In the end, The Masters Series 10 sounds like little more than a repackaged late 90s Global Underground mix or any of the numerous others Dave Seaman has already done for Renaissance in the past. In 2008 there are plenty of great new tracks out there to meet the needs of superstar jocks hankering to leave the mundane realm of progressive house, but Seaman plays it so conservatively it's bound to disappoint even genre diehards. Come on, Dave, make the big leap."

First of all, if you are considering this album and you do not already own Seaman's previous Renaissance Masters album, then click on the link there and buy it. That right there is Seaman at the top of his game -- inventive, brash, risky. It's a breath-taking and euphoric set.

This set finds Seaman avoiding the experimentation and innovation that made his previous Masters album such a rousing success. There's a lot here to like, but at the same time it sounds like a set that will not necessarily age well.

DISC ONE: Seaman starts off meditatively with a few songs that sound like musical gloam. It's a good, simmering mood he mixes up, and by the time "Cowboys," Dusty Kid's mellow offering, jogs onto the line-up it feels like Seaman is prepared to take the listener to a world of high-energy lounge. He changes his mind rapidly, though, and the next two songs completely screw with the aura he's created. Suddenly the songs are blistering with techno-prattle and fidgety electro. I was thrown off, but when Seaman's addictively fun mix of "Mr. Decay" rolled on, I was sold. No more lounge, then; instead a gritty, faux-minimal digital landscape is on the menu. He more or less rides this groove over the next five tracks until the climax of "Escalator," which spirals awkwardly away back into a trancey-lounge. He lost me again.

As many have said, these mix CDs (even any DJ set you'll witness at a concert or club) is meant to be a pastiche, it's meant to tell a story, to guide the listener on a journey. This is why the track selection (think of them as landmarks on a trip) are just as important as the mixing (think of it as the street you're driving on). It doesn't matter how great the track selection is (and, in all honesty, there are a few bald spots here) if the mixing leaves the whole set feeling bumpy and unpaved. I get that Seaman wanted to start slow, amp it up, and bring it back down (which, in itself, is a bit of a cop-out, but a totally understandable one). It's just that in this disc he fails to really smooth down the seams between the ups and the downs, and you're left with a schizophrenic disc that has a decent beginning and end and a great middle, but a whole bunch of confusion in between.

DISC TWO wastes no time in getting revved up with a funky tribal groove that Seaman brews to perfection with Mugwump's "Memory Lane Refund." I'm completely with him at this point, enough even to forgive the static-haze he lays over the next track, Garcia's "Trip To Amaltea." Then, suddenly, Solomun's "Deadman" and Sol & Grimm's "Exuma" effectively kill the set with their giant, immovable chunks of trite house sound. I'm honestly not sure which is more responsible -- the songs themselves or Seaman's mixing -- but either way, this eleven minute block was like an ugly roadblock for me. Obtrusive, inexplicable, and even kind of clueless.

This means the next tracks are a welcome relief, even if they are a little cheesy. The tenth song, Jamie Stevens' "Keep Her Space," finally won me back over with its fun, careless pep. The pep is lost however, in the final tracks, some angry-sounding, grittier house pieces. The closer -- DJ Umek's "Faithful Nights" -- is a proper send-off, but it left me wondering just what kind of set I'd listened to and what Seaman's goal had been. Did he want me to get up and dance? Lay back and bob my head? Sit with friends and talk while tapping our feet? Get up and sway? Meditate?

Not bad, for a bipolar set, but also no great shakes. Like I said, check out his work on volume 7 of the Masters Series. It'll blow your mind, and it'll give you a good understanding of just why Seaman should be more capable of producing some quality sets instead of this kind of confusing mish-mosh.

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