Artist: Luke Chable Presents Quest
Title: Skyline Road
Label: 68 Recordings
By: Andrew Bilen | 27 November 2007
Tracklist:

• A: Original Mix
• B: DJ Remy Mix

Luke Chable Presents Quest "Skyline Road"

Things have been quiet with respect to Luke Chable, one of the progressive scene's most respected producers, for quite some time now. 'Skyline Road' by Luke Chable alias Quest originally saw the light of day on Therapy Sessions Vol. 2 on Renaissance, where Dave Seaman invited Luke to mix the second disc of that compilation. It was a stellar final track on that mix and has now finally gotten a proper release several years later on DJ Remy's own 68 Recordings imprint, a sub-label of Armada.

The 'Original Mix' sees Luke creating the kind of unique sound that only he could create. Centered around an infectious synth line that could be described as rolling waves of lush progressive house, the original draws on percussion elements more reminiscent of breakbeat, a genre Chable is no stranger to. For anyone who has heard this track on the Therapy Sessions compilation, you can attest to just how perfectly it wrapped up that mix. However, there is one very significant problem with the full 'Original Mix' found here and that would be its length. The track comes in at a whopping twelve minutes, nearly twice the length of the version originally released as part of the aforementioned compilation. Unfortunately, twelve minutes turns out to be far too long for a track that builds up as slowly as Skyline Road and it really ends up hurting the 'Original Mix' in the end. No matter how fantastic a track sounds, there are certain limits to how long it can hold your attention and in this case that limit has been exceeded.

On the flip we have a remix by DJ Remy. Not only did DJ Remy choose to release this track on his own label but he also decided to take on remixing duties as well. Remy manages to twist the light-hearted original into a dark, menacing progressive monster. Very little of the original is left intact on the remix, drawing only the trademark synth stab and tuning it down for a much edgier sound that enters electro house territory. Remy composed an entirely new track around that synth stab and in the process created a monstrous tune that fans of heavy, pounding progressive house will love.

Although the Original Mix is a great track and I couldn't get enough of it on Therapy Sessions Vol. 2, the full mix presented here is simply too long and builds too slowly to be fully enjoyable. This release would have greatly benefited from an edited version of the 'Original Mix.' However, I still recommend checking it out, as for the most part it really is Chable at his best. As for DJ Remy's take, his mix rocks hard and I would wholeheartedly recommend it to fans of heavy progressive or electro house.