Grizzled Rave Vet Sent to Nu-Rave Heaven/Hell

Nic Nell - It's A Trance Off

I really don’t know what to make of this. It’s either a work of pure, unadulterated genius, or one of the most excruciatingly awful pieces of music my ears have ever been subjected to. Let’s get one thing straight – listening to ‘It’s a Trance Off’ makes me feel old. Decrepit even. If I was to hear this song emanating from my teenage kid’s bedroom, I would feel compelled to bang on the door and tell them to turn the shit down, or preferably off, and listen to some proper music, like Ride or Aphex Twin. I always thought I’d be a Cool Dad, but I’ll probably conform to type in the end. But this is a good thing. I’m 34 years old and I don’t suppose Nic Nell is making music with people like me in mind. Nope, this is PROPER nu-rave – probably the first nu-rave song I’ve heard that actually delivers on the RAVE. This is for glowstick-wielding teenagers; Klaxons fans, clad from head to foot in luminous clothing with large, plastic sunglasses, skinny jeans and household ornaments suspended on chains around their necks. The kids who are swallowing shitty £3 eccys like they’re Smarties and going fucking bug-eyed loony with their big-haired chums at underground, underage parties all over the country. It definitely, definitely, DEFINITELY isn’t for me…

Having said that… it’s growing on me. I can’t stop listening to it. Maybe I’ve gone mad. It’s infectious, joyous music. It’s like N-Trance crossed with At The Drive In and it’s properly bonkers. Yeah, Bonkers, like the happy hardore rave phenomenon that is still going strong. Mental cartoon techno, played at 180bpm plus by the likes of Sharkey, Hixxy and Dougal. Nic Nell has lovingly replicated the sounds of this movement – the Nintendo bleeps, rushy synths and thudding snares – and laid his own distinctive emo-lite vocal over the top. And I know that if I wasn’t a grizzled rave veteran (Castlemorton was my ‘Nam), I’d be whipping off my top, paunch an’ all, and larging it like it was my last day on earth each time this song is played on the radio, which will probably be every 10 minutes in the not too distant future. I liked Rozalla, so why can’t I like Nic Nell? He iz da FuTuRe, rite? He is going to rule the world one day and there’s nothing that me and all my miserable, misanthropic mates can do about it.

In summary then – excruciating genius.

Nic Nell My Space

Joe.