Beats HD release Year 1 Anniversary compilation hits the mark

Various Artists – 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY (Beats HD Records)

01 FDJ – Relax (Rumble Edit)
02 Alfred Novack – Two
03 Arkanzas – Lost
04 Zaphy, Horus (IT) – Innovated
05 Techflex – Comrades
06 Kabaya – Hydra
07 Procopis Gkouklias – Chiron
08 Patricio Pereira – The Curse
09 Davide Giorla – You Should Go
10 Sofia Alcon – Dont Let Your Fear Paralyze You
11 Oscar Sanchez – Lachesis
12 Nuta Cookier – Sheraton Star
13 Nola Nolish – Godless
14 Ksi (rus) – Cognition
15 Backfire Alpha – Power
16 FLIPSILV3R – Underground
17 M.Rox – I Feel You
18 Rwbel – Los Pueblos
19 DreiToenig, Andrea Sarri – The Division
20 DMITRY (PT) – Apocalypse
21 Hynka – Bulshit
22 Soares – Blinder Road
23 Plamen N – Sleep

Lisbon-based Beats HD releases their Year 1 Anniversary album with no less than 23 peak time cuts. Kicking off with FDJ’s ‘Relax’ (Rumble Edit) we are thrust into the thick of it. Rolling drums and head-slicing synths play an alarming score to create a sense of urgency. What follows is a stellar collection of tracks that do an excellent job of showcasing the label.

Alfred Novack’s, ‘Two’ uses an echoed vocal sample with layers of sound to give us quality big room techno. It’s a bold and bulky bad-ass of a track. A dull-edged kick drum powers the core. Chiming synths add anxiety and ferociousness to the mix. The pressure continues with Arkanzas ‘Lost’. An echoed, driving kick combines rising synth patterns to spiral with climbing tension. There’s old-school vibes courtesy of Zaphy, Horus (IT)’s ‘Innovated’. Hypnotic acid by way of Techflex’s ‘Comrades’ and the darkly trippy, Kabaya’s ‘Hydra’. Patricio Pereira’s ‘The Curse’ begins with a very uplifting 303, until the break. When a sinister bassline invades the space. A maniac laughs turning acid bliss into a night terror.

The compilation ranges from dark and brooding in Davide Giorla’s ‘You Should Go’. To all-out techno warfare in Oscar Sanchez ‘Lachesis’. The hardest track is by far, Andrea Sarri’s ‘The Division’. There is even some melodic lushness in the form of Soares ‘Blinder Road’.

1 Year Anniversary is a hefty collection of big room techno with plenty of attitudes to fit a wide range of tastes. Rarely, does a compilation pack so many cracking tunes into one package. Beats HD manages to do this and more. I’m looking forward to checking out singles releases and the Lisbon techno scene. Check it out the links below:

Get the release here (click on the basket icon)