CD TRACK REVIEWS

Tiesto - "Elements of Life"
By: Samhouze bio

Two years have passed since Tiesto last finished on top of DJ Mag's annual DJ rankings. Some would say before that time, he was the best. With compilation albums like “Magik”, “In Search of Sunrise” and “Nyana” and artist albums such as the spectacular "In My Memory" and the half decent "Just Be”, he has continued to push himself musically, making it his passion. His evolution as an artist has been rather clear to see for all who have followed his career. His latest effort at an artist album called, "Elements of Life". I find it the weakest of his efforts to date.

"Elements of Life" doesn't fit in with my direction. It starts off on a good note with "Ten Seconds before Sunrise". The introduction to this song is long and very Trancey. There is fantastic feeling of anticipation of what is to come through the rest of the album. However, as the next few songs play through, I find the vocals distract me from what could be potentially good songs. Both "Everything" and "Can You Feel Me" are great examples of this. It’s almost as though from track three through to track seven he hits a plateau and while songs start with intent, they usually go nowhere leaving me highly unsatisfied.

There are bright spots to this CD. "Break My Fall" is a nicely paced track produced in collaboration with Brian Transeau (BT). BT provides the vocals for this song and I see it making a few waves in the Trance genre. The second half of this CD is better listening, with the energy going up. "Dance 4 Life" was a song Tiesto created for AIDS. It features vocals by Maxi Jazz of Faithless that I could really do without. Just like "In the Dark" and "He's a Pirate", I look forward to other remixes as these are songs with great potential. My favourite song on the compilation is the title song of the album "Elements of Life" that begins with electronicized organ gradually building into a hard hitting beat.

Overall though, I was disappointed. The CD spent far too much time idling in third gear. Perhaps if he had started out with a mellow track rather than build terrific anticipation, I might have enjoyed it more. I've always said artist albums never reflect the artist’s skills as a DJ as there is usually no story being told.

Is Tiesto still worthy of his status as one of EDM's leaders? It’s a question leading to fantastic debate between his critics and his hundreds and thousands of adoring fans who pack clubs, soccer stadiums, parks and beaches to see him play.

My opinion? Not anymore. However, while he may never again dominate the EDMS, I think we will continue to hear his sound evolve until he finds his next niche. "Elements of Life" lacked soul.