POLE FOLDER ZERO GOLD ALBUM BEDROCK RELEASE: APRIL 24, 2005 REVIEW: JUNE 1, 2005

This album was brought to my attention by the Tranceaddict forum. However, it shouldn’t push you away from this release. It’s not trance at all - although trance is not necessarily something bad in my book. Rather it’s a solemn, melodic, rhythmic and electronic piece that’s apparently sorted under the “progressive” moniker.
The sound is sometimes reminiscent of Delerium, and two of the female singers featured have indeed worked with Delerium before, namely Shelley Harland and Kirsty Hawkshaw. The songs are intricately programmed, with lots of attention to detail, and while the songs are not as poppy as Leeb’s, they linger in your mind, begging you to listen to them again.
My favourite is possibly “Inner Turmoil”: a fantastic, to the most part instrumental composition, with moody strings, heavy beats and a bubbly bass working underneath. In fact most songs rely a lot on strings and harmonies, and I’m a big sucker for that as you may know by now.
“Zero Gold” is a fabulous debut effort, and is really worth seeking out if you want interesting dance music with depth.

JOHAN CARLSSON