Paramida’s second EP for her Love on the Rocks label conjures ambient house dreams as it transcends the boundaries of trance

Panorama Bar resident Paramida gives trance a good name with second EP Moonrise VII, released via her boutique label Love on the Rocks. If you want a copy of the 12″ (and you will) then act fast or despair at the aftermarket prices on Discogs. At turns propulsive and immersive, Paramida successfully rehabilitates mid-nineties dancefloor sounds for today, travelling off-piste where past practitioners ended up playing it safe.  

“Sailor Moon House” may induce Mitsubishi flashbacks and as such should probably come with a warning for those operating heavy machinery or even going about their everyday business. A speedy number that evokes the ocean while trading in the weightlessness of dreams, Paramida’s relentless rhythms ensure that proceedings remain grounded in the visceral pleasure of repetitive beats. The track’s acid-washed continental drift makes for an immersive, peak time ambient house experience to get lost in. 

On the flip, Paramida reworks SYT’s 1995 progressive houser “Drift” into a rough and tough tribal workout. Think Billy Nasty running a Goa division of Guerilla Records or even ALFOS without the 122 BPM ceiling. Closer “33” flatlines the beats in favour of Balearic transcendentalism and acid exoticism, encouraging backroom chemical meditation under army surplus nets and camouflage tarpaulins. It’s a third eye opening glimpse into the Fourth World that leaves you in a state of blissful contemplation, ready for the next rush.

Love on the Rocks Bandcamp

Stewart Gardiner
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