Maxi-Single CDR, Section 44, 2006
www.tristraum.com
Tristraum’s debut album “Gray” was a haunting epic combining elements of modern day Synthpop and New Wave with Ethereal harmonies. Being that the albums content was of a slower down tempo nature, it is to no surprise that their latest release “First Embrace”, the second maxi-single to be taken from the album, has been given the club treatment of upbeat remixes and accessible dance floor tracks.
Synthpop duo Eloquent provide the first mix of the title track, which includes lots of neat interesting little twists and turns throughout without moving too far away from the songs original format. Next up we have one of the highlights of the maxi-single. The “Amurai Club Mix” is a great reworking of the track and in my opinion adds a bit of much needed variety to what is to follow later on. The second highlight of the album has to be Sequentia’s fantastic remix of “I’m Under No One”, a track that fits quite nicely at the top of the list as one of my preferred Tristraum songs. Krystyna Eller’s vocals soar through this beautifully remixed track to make this a firm favourite on the disc in my book. Unfortunately after this the single seems to dip a bit, with three or four of the remixes on the maxi-single not really meeting up to the standards of their original counterparts. I especially found that with the last two tracks you are often left wondering if the tracks are going somewhere magical, only to be disappointed by the end result .
The maxi-single on the whole does have some very interesting ideas but at the same time is let down by some weaker remixes. Personally I’d consider buying it purely for the remix efforts of Sequentia and Eloquent, and I definitely think that DJ’s should keep an eye out for the “Amurai Club Mix”, as it’s one you won’t want to miss.
[6.5/10]
— Paul Marcham