‘Axtone Presents Thomas Gold’: two discs of the German master at his best (album review)
We can’t be too sure of Thomas Gold’s allegiance these days: one afternoon he’s storming EDC NY with Size Matters, the next he’s releasing a double-disc compilation on Axtone. Either way, for reasons including but not limited to god-given talent, the German bootleg master is widely embraced by the almighty Swedes, and more importantly, their massive following.
Axtone Presents Thomas Gold embodies what the man is all about – masterful bootlegs, euphoric progression, and enduring set lists that present themselves as musical journeys. The 33-track compilation mixed by Gold himself truly showcases his talent, featuring three brand new original productions, reworks of classics, and to no surprise – fresh bootlegs. Read below for our breakdown of the double-disc release.
Disc One
Disc one should catch your attention before you flip the switch, as the track list boasts brand new Thomas Gold productions to open and close the mix. Gold completely disregards a warm up and starts things off with “The Beginning,” a massive progressive house track with detailed chords, a flawless build, and a drop that will double as a stick of dynamite when played in a nightclub. Moving along, we get Thomas’ 2012 rework of “Teenage Crime” and soon after a bootleg of “Sing2Me” with Red Carpet’s “Alright.” Obvious choices like “Resurrection,” “Troll,” and “Eyes Wide Open” made the cut before personal remixes of “Set Fire To The Rain” and “We Want Your Soul.” Closing things out, he reveals another new original mix: “Fanfare.” The impressive drum line, complementary bass, and perfected melody serves for a big room banger that closes the disc as strongly as it opened.
Thomas Gold – The Beginning (Original Mix)
Thomas Gold – Fanfare (Original Mix)
Disc Two
If you can handle it, disc two presents a slew of bootlegs and reworks that up the ante and keeps the energy high. Most of this track list is recognizable off the bat; only this time it has been revamped to fit Gold’s 2012 style, which is ahead of its time as-is. His opening track — a special introduction version of “Alive” — is the kind of track that you can imagine captivating festival crowds after just a few seconds. After that, let the bootlegs commence; Thomas jumps right into his 2012 rework of “AGORa” mixed with edit of Axwell’s “I Found U,” followed by his rework of Sander van Doorn’s “Koko” and his classic remix of Lady Gaga’s “Judas.” Early in the blend you can find another brand new original production, “Circles,” a more euphoric offering for the summer season. After Gold’s remix of “The Wave,” he hits SHM essentials like “Million Voices” and “In My Mind” that make way for his grand finale – mixing up his throwback hard-hitters “What’s Up” and “Work That” for a trip down memory lane.
Thomas Gold – Circles (Original Mix)
Wrap-up
Unlike many DJs who burst onto the scene with one particularly huge track (think Deniz Koyu with “Tung,” for example), Thomas Gold has been infiltrating our iTunes libraries slowly but surely over the past two years. His debut compilation for Axtone is an artifact of a superstar DJ at his best, and leads us to believe that his best days — and productions — are still ahead of him. Between the numerous new originals, previously unreleased bootlegs and mashups that we’ve been trying to track down for months, and the understandable flow of the entire album, Axtone Presents Thomas Gold is worthy of wearing the Axtone brand. No matter how you play it, this release is as good as Gold.
Rating: 4/5
Purchase: iTunes (Out elsewhere June 4th)
Bonus: Check out a five minute minimix of the entire album below.
Tracklist:
Disc 1
1.Thomas Gold – The Beginning
2.Hard Rock Sofa – Quasar
3.Adrian Lux – Teenage Crime (Thomas Gold 2012 Rework)
4. Ziggy – Cosmic (Original Mix)
5.Swanky Tunes, Matisse & Sadko – The Legend
6.Arty, Matisse & Sadko – Trio
7.Thomas Gold – Sing2Me (Original Mix) & Red Carpet ‘Alright’ (Thomas Gold Edit)
8.Henrik B & Rudy – Leave A Light On (NO_ID Remix)
9.Thomas Gold – Marsch Marsch (Thomas Gold 2011 Rework)10.M-3ox feat. Heidrun – Beating Of My Heart (Matisse & Sadko Remix Instrumental)
11.Michael Calfan – Resurrection (Axwell’s ReCut Club Version) 12.Qulinez – Troll (Original Mix)
13.Laidback Luke, Arno Cost & Norman Doray – Trilogy (Original vs. Swanky Tunes Remix) (Thomas Gold Re-Edit)
14.Dirty South & Thomas Gold feat. Kate Elsworth – Eyes Wide Open (Original Mix)
15.Adele – Set Fire To The Rain (Thomas Gold Remix)
16.Moguai – We Want Your Soul (Thomas Gold Remix)
17.Thomas Gold – Fanfare
Disc 2
1.Dirty South & Thomas Gold feat. Kate Elsworth – Alive (Thomas Gold Special Intro Edit)
2.Thomas Gold – AGORa (Thomas Gold 2012 Rework) & Axwell ‘I Found U’ (Thomas Gold Edit)
3.Sander van Doorn – Koko (Thomas Gold Rework)
4.Lady Gaga – Judas (Thomas Gold Remix)
5.Hard Rock Sofa – Blow Up (Thomas Gold & Axwell Remix) & John Dahlback – Blink (Thomas Gold Edit)
6.Thomas Gold – Circles (Original Mix)
7.David Guetta & Afrojack – Lunar
8.Miike Snow – The Wave (Thomas Gold Remix)
9.Otto Knows – Million Voices (Original Mix)
10.Ivan Gough & Feenixpawl feat. Georgi Kay – In My Mind (Axwell Mix)
11.Digitalism – Zdarlight (Thomas Gold Rework)
12.NO_ID – How R U Feeling Right Now (Michael Woods Re-Edit)
13.Steve Aoki feat. Wynter Gordon – Ladi Dadi (Tommy Trash Remix Instrumental)
14.Axwell – Heart Is King
15.Thomas Gold & Alex Kenji – What’s Up (Original Mix)
16.Thomas Gold – Work That (Original Mix)
Categories: Music