my #19 Track of the Year for 2024 is...
Ticon "Models On Cocaine (Volcano on Mars & Animato Remix)"!
look, you've heard me talk before about what an EDM old-timer i am. before i was a fan of martin garrix, before i was betrayed by deadmau5, i was listening to psytrance. i was an infected mushroom fan long before i had even heard of pendulum. but even i hadn't heard the original of this track. and though yes, though the 2010 synth-electro original is very good, this remix really unlocks its potential.
for the most part, psytrance in 2024 has kinda followed a formula. either it's been drop-focused singalong anthems, or it's been bass-heavy 9 minute journeys. we haven't heard much of the older longform sound that was pioneered in the mid 2000s by artists like astrix. so leave it to Volcano on Mars and Animato to team up and perfect it here.
MORE 303s, drums that aren't afraid to reference the original, those hypnotic TTS voices, all layered over better mixing, classic psy basses, and a final section that will really blow you away.
it's weird to say (again), but psytrance is in a great place right now, and it's mostly been because artists are willing to toy with the formula and polish their sound design to a perfect mirror sheen. tracks like this prove that. well worth your 9 minutes.