Artist: Peter Martin
Title: Elapse Relapse EP
Label: Primal Records
By: Illya Zubaryev | 3 October 2006
Tracklist:

• A1: Muse
• B1: Elapse Relapse
• B2: 1984

Peter Martin "Elapse Relapse EP"

There isn't a whole lot of information about Peter Martin out there and he's certainly not an artist that everybody knows of and raves about. However, that may all change soon; the first reason being his newly released 3-track EP, 'Elapse Relapse'. A Texas based progressive producer, Peter had quietly released a wonderful remix of Sasha's 'Goldenarm' which got a lot of DJs interested and raised some eyebrows. This brought him a sensible level of worldwide exposure and after a temporary quiet period, he has strongly returned once more in the last 2 years. With a variety of remixes and personal productions appearing with increasing frequency, this recent EP generates a fair amount of anticipation and curiosity.

The first track is titled 'Muse' and quickly immerses the listener in a lively atmosphere, introducing us to Peter Martin's fresh, progressive sound. Even as early as the 1 minute mark, we encounter a hefty amount of detail, effects, samples and layers. The track then continues to evolve in this fashion until a fading breakdown presents a melodic, yet original reverberating synth line. The common expectation at this point is a drum fill and an emphatic chorus with a heavy bass line and all the sounds coming together in a smooth and balanced fashion. This is not the case with 'Muse' however. The surprise and what can be considered a negative for this tune is that the bass line is very light throughout, not providing the element of definition one might expect. In turn, some elements present in the track at times see to get in each other’s way, the mass of detail and sound causing a sort of disarray or over-saturation. On the other hand, this complex technique of layering and detail is somewhat uncommon and certainly provides home-listening replay value, an adventure of sound for the listener, and of course great remix potential.

The second track is titled 'Elapse Relapse' and although this time Peter uses a more traditional progressive house approach, it takes nothing away from the music. The drum track is relatively simple, but allows the rest of the song elements to shine. Progressing towards a climax, the track introduces elements one by one, layering delayed effects and samples over the main backing strings, bass line and synth of the track. We receive a taste of the defining thematic melody in the first third of the tune via a short stripped down breakdown and the strings are sublime. It is then hidden once more before the main climatic breakdown comes in and everything comes together in full force this time, the numerous melodies full of emotion and beauty, captivating the listener wonderfully. Unlike a lot of EDM tracks that are more lengthy (this one clocking in at 10min), even as we near the end, all of the sounds fading and trickling away, there is no desire to press stop – the track is spellbinding from start to finish.

The third and final track is called '1984' and it was a shocker. For more than 2 minutes, the listener is set aback as there are no drums to be heard, no driving bass, and no regular EDM elements to speak of. In fact, a largely ambient, slow tone is set; the sound palette comprising of long, heavy, layered synth sounds, similar to that of a film soundtrack. However, what happens next pretty much defies any description of words. This ambient, hushed song comes alive in a huge way, the light drum breakdown turning into an absolutely epic, soul-stirring climax. The song becomes so breathtaking my eyes fill with tears, my heart shaken. I have to say that although this is subjective and I may be more emotional than some, I am writing with complete sincerity, honesty, and hopefully you can understand how I am feeling when you give this one a listen. I often put this track on repeat, and each time, I never want this touching and utterly heart-stopping experience to end. '1984' alone makes this release a must-buy, providing not only variety for the listener, but most importantly and hopefully of course, an experience akin to that of my own as well.

Overall, this release has something for everyone. 'Muse' fills the role of a technically complex, modern sound vision, a progressive floor-killer is found in 'Elapse Relapse' and last but definitely not least we have the grand masterpiece of a finale in '1984'. Peter Martin's vision of sound is nothing short of dazzling and this release is promising and very highly recommended.