Reality Shift – Nirvana is a pulsing, mind-altering, high-octane techno track that blends incessant trance energy with international sounds.
Reality Shift is a producer, drummer, and DJ, born and bred in Brighton. Emerging from the rich musical heritage of his hometown, Reality Shift’s latest release, ‘Nirvana’ echoes this artist’s mindspace. The vibe is bold and energetic. The melody is hypnotic and euphoric, conveying a sense of resilience and relentlessness to pursue truth within and free expression, against all odds, against the status quo.
The sound arrangement is captivating. It starts with an unsettling, voice recording of a news report on civil unrest violence happening somewhere, and a curfew being put into effect. There is an animalistic, ‘it’s time for chaos’ feel from there. A high-tempo trance beat starts to play, gradually picking up the tempo. Angelic vocals enter, crooning, heralding the start of a psychedelic journey within, closing off to the violent world outside.
The intense trance beats accelerate further, forming the base on which loud, wild trumpet melodies play. It’s an end-of-the-world festival-like atmosphere, a feeling of a party where the euphoria never ends.
Around halfway in, the track takes a deeper, more reflective sound, with the gripping, emotional melody section that fantastically drops into another big horn section. The track’s intensity then sustains with effects and distortions until it gradually wanes and concludes satisfactorily.
The artist has this to say about his inspirations for this track – ‘“I was initially inspired by Day Din’s Mr Trumpet to fuse big horn sections into electronic music. I have also been exploring latin / trance combinations so on this track I thought it would be fun to go the whole way and have a Mexican Tijuana style drop. And I really liked this catchy sample… no matter how you are feeling, it lifts you up and makes you smile – so when I heard it, I knew I had to find somewhere to use it.”
‘Reality Shift – Nirvana’ encapsulates a gripping, sometimes frightening, but irreversibly perception-altering journey we all must take to evolve to the next step. It’s a rallying cry for revolution, expression, and the pursuit of endless bliss, which only comes from looking within.
