Lemon Soul – Dragonfly

Dragonfly’s newest darlings, Zen Lemonade, consist of Gus Till and his other half, Super Cozi. The Zen Lemonade project has made waves in the trance scene in the UK and globally, with a lot of top crossover jocks (notably John 00 Flemming) getting rather excited at their angle on things.

Juicy Science is a high-powered linear trance workout, with distant low-set 303’s providing the root and perfect percussion building up the energy. Some cute laidback pads make for a nice danceable excursion, which while being low on psychedelic twist factor stands out as a competent mix of trance and housey elements. Dark Star has a more outdoor-friendly vibe, with a driving bassline and busy percussive runs and feedback-heavy stabs over the top. Cloud 19 has some of the most delightful and far-stretching pads I’ve ever heard, with a jaw dropping (if slightly cheesy) Eastern melody at its centre.

Zodiac Guns is just odd, with drums that sound like they were lifted from John Coltrane’s backing band and an odd vocal collaboration with a half-vocoded björk meets a barry-white-cum-cookie-monster and St. Etienne style trip-hop reggae stuff. Confused? Don’t worry, we’re back on planet trance with Brazil Mon Amour, with a funky bassline, relentless drum programming and an escalating party vibe that’s enough to work any dancefloor.

Pussy Galore is a pulsating, escalating tune with all the elements of a classic trance trailblazer – a wicked bassline, perfectly-placed stabs and melodies to die for. It goes on for hours, has some wonderful moments, and after deviating from the massing energy onslaught it ties it all back up in a stylish hands-in-the-air moment. Two linear dancefloor tracks later, Motherland closes things with rapping, fat beats, and eastern influences evident again in one of the most individual, if not the most satisfying conclusion to an album.

All in all this husband and wife team are charged with ideas, and buckled up with the guts to put those ideas into action. And props to Dragonfly for having similar strength to put their weight behind this release. Not all their ideas work though, but we can forgive them – I think we might have a psytrance John & Yoko on our hands.