Here are some collected opinions about the so-called "Trance Remixes". These are a couple of discs (we are still unsure if they count as RoIOs) which are simply remixed originals. The sound quality is generally Sup

From: Ronald.Girardin@Dartmouth.EDU (Ronald Girardin)
Subject: Trance remixes: stay away from this crap!

Someone recently described what he heard from the Animals trance remixes: "You gotta be crazy....You gotta be crazy..." Well, my thoughts exactly. You gotta be crazy to fork over hard earned money for this kind of mindless piece of shit.

...OK, now I feel better. You may all flame me to a crisp.

peace

ronny

From: Robert Gary Weiner rgw0001@jove.acs.unt.edu
Subject: Reviews of all the known existing Pink Floyd remixes.

Review of Pink Floyd: Trance-Remixes

Many people believe that these "Limited Edition Trance-Remixes" of Pink Floyd albums which have made their way into the public sector were done by The Orb. (The Orb are known for being hard-core fans of the Floyd). Although I would like to believe this, it seems improbable that The Orb are the folks doing the remixes. Pink Floyd are constantly being cited as an important influence on today's ambient music scene. It would naturally follow then, that if any "classic rock" group would lend itself to ambient interpretations, Floyd would. Essentially, these "unofficial" remixes are Floyd albums with lots of modern day techno keyboard work, voices, samples and many other sounds thrown in. What happens is a whole new interpretation of Pink Floyd's music. Some people feel that the music should stand by itself and not be tampered with. However, I do not think it is the intention of the remix creators to distract from the greatness of Pink Floyd's recorded output. Credit is always given to the Floyd themselves. They are remaking Floyd's art into something new and different. In some sense, this is very similar to what Ducamp (and the Dadaists in twenties) did to the Mona Lisa when they painted a moustache on her. The essence of Floyd still remains in the remixes. Granted, some are more successful than others, but that is to be expected. These are Pink Floyd albums reinvigorated and renewed in some sense. One does not always have to agree with the new interpretation, but it is a good effort nevertheless.

All of the trance-remixes have re-colored the original Floyd artwork and the packaging is as about as professional as there is. The discs are picture CDs as well. Even if you don't like the way the music is re-interpreted, the packaging is worth having. Most of them also contain over seventy minutes of music, making them a good buy for your money. What follows is a review of all the known existing remixes. Not all Floyd's back catalog is in trance-remix form yet:

Grades from A to D are assigned to each one to help the reader.

Trance-Remix of Atom Heart Mother

Overall, this one is quite successful at interpreting Floyd's classic experimental album in a modern sense. The "Atom Heart Mother Suite" is really quite good. The suite lends itself to the technoization of it on this disc. There are samples from psychedelic guru Terrance Mckenna scattered throughout. "If" flows really well and is simply gorgeous. "Summer 68" and "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast" are the weakest tunes and are hardly recognizable. "Fat Old Sun" is nice and spacey with an echo effect throughout. Worth owning: A-

Trance-Remix of Meddle

The first part of the disc works pretty well. The ambientization of "One of These Days" is brilliant. Wall to wall sound that is powerful on a loud stereo system. "Pillow of Winds" has a nice keyboard riff throughout the various samples of Gilmour's guitar and voice. "Fearless" is almost reggae with samples of the voices and main guitar riffs. "San Tropez" and "Seamus" are spacey and intact. The new interpretation is at least as good as the original adding a very nice touch with lots of sampled vocals, sounds, and echoed effects throughout them both. That is where the positives stop. "Echoes" is a mess. There are so many things the remixers could have done with this track to make it ambient. Instead, it is repetitive, and believe or not, boring. The vocals are hardly even sampled. Proceed with caution: B

Trance-Remix of Obscured by Clouds

This remix is very uneven. Most of the tracks hardly resemble the Pink Floyd tracks. "Obscured by Clouds" "When Your In" and "Burning Bridges" are good ambient excursions with layered keyboards throughout and samples from 60's guru Timothy Leary. "The Gold It's In" does not work at all and is hardly recognizable. The throbbing beat throughout is more of an annoyance. "Wots.. Uh the Deal", "Stay" and "Mudmen" are nice and relaxing. These are best tracks on this remix with spacey echo effects and multi-layered tracking. "Childhood's End" and "Free Four" don't work as well and are a chore to sit through. "Absolutely Curtains" is a mind blowing trip to the other side and a powerful track. Enter at your own risk: C+

Trance-Remix of Dark Side of the Moon

This remix is also a little uneven. The "Speak to Me: Breathe" suite begins with lots a drum machine noises and samples from the songs. "On the Run" and "Any Colour You Like" are nice with lots of added keyboard sounds to make the already ambient feel of the songs more potent. Surprisingly, both "Time" and "Great Gig in the Sky" are weak. Parts of the songs are sampled over and over again, and make Clare Torry's beautiful voice nothing more than a nerve grater on this one. Lots of potential lost on those two. "Money" has been turned into a typical dance tune that is nothing special. "Us and Them" is the strong point of disc. Echo effects and spacey vocals abound. "Brain Damage" is sparse at best. Don't rush out to listen to this one with headphones! Good try: B-

Trance-Remix of Wish You Were Here

This remix is by far the best of all the remixes. As one would expect, this album lends itself to ambient interpretation more than any other Floyd release. Both parts of "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" are brilliant excursions into the outer limits with samples from The Orb's "Little Fluffy Clouds" scattered throughout. "Welcome to the Machine" and "Have a Cigar" are powerful interpretations with lots of heavy dance beats. "Wish You Were Here" is beautiful. I know I may be crucified here, but it is even better than the original: nice spacey wind sounds echo on Gilmour's gorgeous vocals. A really pleasant listen. This remix definitely lends itself for headphones. A must have: A+

Trance-Remix of Animals

This one is perhaps the worst of all the remixes available. There was much potential to re-interpret the songs in a new and creative fashion, but alas this one is a dud. There is no substance to the interpretations of "Dogs", "Sheep" and "Pigs" although "Dogs" works the best of the three. Some samples of middle eastern music are interspersed throughout "Pigs" but don't work very well: Annoyance city! "Pigs on the Wing" (pts 1&2) work ok but are nothing special. Avoid this one: D

Trance-Remix of Momentary Lapse of Reason

This one is also really good. "Signs of Life"" "New Machine" "Yet Another Movie" and "Terminal Frost" are all redone with spacey effects, voices, and lots of action going on within the songs. Both "Yet Another Movie" and "New Machine" are dark and menacing. "Learning to Fly," "Turning Away" and "Sorrow" are nice interpretations with parts of the songs sampled throughout. "One Slip" is made into a dance tune which just won't quit. Even the horrible "Dogs of War" is at least tolerable in the remixed form. Worth checking out: A

Trance Remix of The Division Bell

The remix of this one is sparse throughout. "Cluster One" has a nice drum machine beat throughout. "What Do You Want From Me" "Marooned" and "Poles Apart" are nice ambient excursions. "A Great Day for Freedom" and "Take it Back" are peppy interpretations that have pleasurable subtle parts throughout. Both "Wearing the Inside Out" and "Keep Talking" are wasted opportunities. "Wearing the Inside Out" only samples Dick Parry's sax solo with out much of a new feel. "Keep Talking," which in its original form is very ambient to begin with, is in word terrible. This song has so much potential here, but even Rick Wright's amazing keyboard solo is absent. "High Hopes" is the best track. Lots of spacey echo effects throughout especially on Gilmour's voice. Both "Lost for Words" and "Coming Back to Life" are left off. Proceed with your ears open and skeptical: B

Trance Remix of Welcome to Remix

This one is a compilation of various remixed tracks. It starts off with "Megamix 21: The Revision Bell: a twenty year tribute to Floyd's music career. There are samples of Floyd tracks from Dark Side of the Moon through The Division Bell. Only Animals and live tracks are not included. There are even some samples from The Final Cut which surprised me. This track is spliced together well and a nice tribute to the Floyd's music. There are no musical additions on this one. "Another Brick in the Wall" dance mix follows and actually works pretty well. A good remix for club dancing. Surprisingly enough, the remix makers have not done The Wall yet. "Money" is a just the recorded version from Collection of Great Dance Songs. "Welcome to the Machine" and "Wish You Were Here" are the same ones from the Wish You Were Here remixes. Keep a skeptical ear: B-

Remix of Pink Floyd: Absolutely Ambient

This is a collection of Floyd tracks remixed together. These tracks are not repeated on any other remix collection in the same form. Like the title suggests, this ambient interpretation of Floyd tracks lives up to its name. The eight minute version of "Echoes" is quite good and much better than the one on Meddle remix with nice manipulation of the keyboards and guitars. "Sheep" is entirely mind blowing. This remixed version is hellish and menacing. Definitely a step above the other remixed version. A 16 minute version of "Another Brick in the Wall" sparkles with lots of layered sound that is tastefully done. "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" lives up to its ambient potential. "Time" is much better than the other remixed version with samples from the Pulp Fiction movie. A drum machine throughout the song with samples from "Is There Anybody Out There" is injected throughout. This is an effectual and strong ending to the disc. Definite ear candy: A

These are all the known Floyd remixes available. IF THE PERSON WHO PUT THESE TOGETHER IS READING THIS REVIEW, THEN TAKE NOTE! When are the remixes for The Wall, The Final Cut, and early albums like More, Umagumma, Saucerful of Secrets, Piper at the Gates of Dawn, and Relics going to surface? I am sure the remix makers could do some pretty mind blowing stuff with the early albums. Remixed version's of Floyd solo material like Nick Mason's Profiles, Water's Music From the Body, and Rick Wrights Wet Dream would also be nice. How about it? David Gilmour has gone on record as saying that he does not care whether Floyd sounds like The Orb or not. Now, with these remixes, people no longer have a need to complain.

Rob Weiner