Search - Sandra Collins :: Perfecto Presents... Sandra Collins

Should have known...

Timothy Dannenhoffer | NY | 03/29/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I have a few Sandra Collins CD's and I am not overly impressed with any of them.I buy a lot of CD's because I am an aspiring DJ myself and I like to get a "heads up" on some of the better records that are on these CD's - so that I will know ahead of time what I want to get on vinyl myself, before they are released - most DJ's that put out these CD's generally get these records way in advance of when they will become available to you and I.I recognized (and like) a few of the producers that did tracks or remixes on this CD - and so I figured I'd take a chance, even though I did not expect much from the CD itself as a whole.The problem with Sandra Collins in my opinion is that she plays too much trance - too many tunes that bang you over the head - and then slow down and get all pretty and silly in a cheesy kind of way - and then speed up and make you feel like banging your head again.In my opinion dance music should have a funk or a "trippiness" to it - to make you want to dance! Sounds simple enough, right?And the tracks that Sandra selects do not make me feel like dancing at all.Don't get me wrong - perhaps she is a good DJ in a Paul Oakenfold/Tiesto/Christopher Lawrence/Ferry Corsten kind of way - but these are not the kind of DJ's that I like.I like DJ's like Deep Dish, John Digweed, Nick Warren and Sander Kleinenberg - DJ's that bring the funk and the "trippiness", yet keep the "cheese" a million miles away.For those of you familiar with all of the DJ's that I mentioned, then you know exactly what I mean. If you like trance - Paul Oakenfold, Tiesto, Christopher Lawrence, Ferry Corsten - then go buy this CD.But if you prefer progressive house - the "Global Underground" or "Renaissance" sound - then I would recommend passing on this CD.Hope this helped!"

Awesome progressive trance sets

Timothy Humphrey | Rock Hill, SC USA | 10/03/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"These have got to be the best progressive trance sets I have, period. Not that I have a whole lot mind you, haha. Regardless, I've heard my share of trance and progressive trance and I definitely prefer progressive trance over the standard trance fare. Why you say? Because the progressive style incorporates more emotion, more feeling. Progressive trance and progressive house sound so similar it's hard to distinguish exactly what is progressive trance versus progressive house. Maybe the blending of house with trance turns off the pure trance heads. Not me, I love fusion of styles, and Sandra's two sets span enough styles and tempos to make this a thoroughly enjoyable listen from the first song on the first disc to the last song of the second.



The first disc starts off slow and with lots of feeling, like the start of a journey kind of. By the third song the tempo picks up noticeably along with the beat, but not so much you feel like frantically dancing your butt off. In fact, both sets are somewhat mellow in a sense. Maybe not mellow, it just seems like their's a purpose to the music, it's not all about increasing the excitement song after song to reach some climax and then slowly coming back down; it's a smooth danceable ride all the way through. There are pockets of excitement and the following slowdown, but the entire sets aren't like that, unlike a lot of trance sets.



I won't go into each song individually and describe each of them, because I don't really feel like it, but trust me the songs are good, nice track selection. Sandra does have a penchant on these sets for including a soulful section all of a sudden and then cranking up the beat right after. I actually like it because, ya' know, it adds variety :) keeps the sets from becoming boring and predictable. There's enough danceable, soulful, spacey, trancey, housey, and other -ey elements to keep me happy.



The two sets that these two CDs comprise are some of the few, spanning any genre, that I can honestly listen to from beginning to end and like the entire thing. Well, okay, the last track on the first set is kind of slow for my tastes, but it's the closer so I can forgive that. The last song on the second disc, "The Great Escape (Attention Deficit's Freewill Remix)", is awesome, it's an excellent close to the entire CD and always moves me, I LOVE that song!"

Good but not for the beginning trance fan!

RockGod | Atl | 10/21/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I picked up a copy of Sandra Collin's latest hoping that it would be alot like her "Tranceport 3"cd which came out a few years ago.This is a great 2-cd set but is not for beginners.I've been listening to trance ever since 99'.Sandra spins a different kind of trance than most dj's,and you have to let the cd play all the way through without skipping a track to really enjoy the mix.This girl has incredible mixing skills,showing no errors and taking you into dreamland!This is the dark style of progressive trance...a style that is used by such dj's as Christopher Lawrence and other European dj's.You have to be in the right mood,but when you are this cd will really space you out and make you feel out of this world.Check this dj out if you really like trance because you wont be dissapointed!!!"