Oddly enough, just when Britain's big trance comedown started to creep in, there were moments when some purveyors of the thinning scene seemed more clear-headed than ever before. The fact that
Gatecrasher Global Sound System is probably the most creatively successful effort for the super-club's series should say quite a bit. Responding to diminishing returns with a tighter, more effective mix of quality tracks that highlight both the scene's obscure talents (
Subtle By Design, Flutlicht, etc.) and overground stars (
Cygnus X,
Paul Van Dyk), the feeling of recapturing a clogged scene is a potent one. The first disc, for example, has a sweet (not sugary) deep-trance set that's more akin to an across the table seduction than a slobbery, E'd-up smack on the cheek, while the second disc's mix of the harder 4/4 sounds of a night's climax lacks almost all the droning repercussions of the usually irksome genre. Even the unnecessary showcases of mega-lightweights like BT's "Dreaming" or Moby's "Natural Blues" can't lessen the impact too much. This is super-club music with a regained sense of dignity and decorum. With a realization that only giving people what they want is dangerously incestuous. They might not be a "super-club" for long, but Gatecrasher is starting to remember what really made the punters stream into their huge rooms in the first place. ~ Dean Carlson, All Music Guide