Andrew Bayer is one of those producers in the EDM scene who truly fits the stereotype of a creative artist – one who isn’t afraid to experiment, one who excels at his craft and one who has years of mastery in it. Bayer has followed quite a distinctive artistic path, but through it all, he has stayed close to the trance scene and the Anjunabeats family.

Last year, he pushed his creativity to the max for an innovative, genre-defying album with either tracks, with vocals on all tracks sung by only two vocalists who were also long time collaborators. Providing a sense of cohesion through the acoustic-infused, soothing sound design, In My Last Life (released 24 August, 2018) caught the attention of Anjuna fans all over the world for its uniqueness.

Of course, as a trance artist in the industry, touring is almost a must, but the songs from In My Last Life wouldn’t fit the energetic, hectic vibe of the dance-floor. And so it was that Bayer set about making club mixes for each of the tunes from his album, which he has now packaged into his new (remix) album, In My Next Life. Referring to them as “In My Next Life” mixes, in a clear reference to the album title and message, Bayer has managed to add energy, bass and bliss to his more introspective original mixes. If you listen to the original and club mixes side by side, apart from the vocals, you would be hard pressed to find any other similarities. Bayer has re-imagined each of his tracks from scratch (from the acapella), in a manner that it sounds like a completely different song altogether. To have that kind of creative vision, and to execute it the way he has – that is part of what makes him an artist in the truest sense of the word.

Before we discuss each track at length, some overarching features of the album in general seemed to stand out after the first listen. It’s worth noting that apart from the Genix collaboration on Love You More, there are no other producers featured on the album, and only two vocalists – Alison May and Ane Brun. This decision results in Bayer’s sound being conveyed clearly through each tune, adding a touch of finality and a sense of intimacy to the listening experience. Bayer’s innovative and novel take on dance music shows up very distinctively in this remix album – each of these songs doesn’t follow the cliched verse-chorus-drop pattern, instead employing a true meld of voice and rhythm, in a manner such that you can’t predict when the bass will enter or leave – with the songs still feeling cohesive and smooth. Bayer is notorious for his crisp, compressed and tight mix downs – something that pervades this album as a whole and adds a sense of purpose to each of the tracks. Many of the synths here remind me of Above & Beyond songs; in reality, it should be the other way around, for Bayer is often a co-writer on many A&B tunes – including Northern Soul, a Grammy nominee.

Here’s a track by track review of the album, arranged in order from my most favorite to least. The fact that even my least favorite song on this list beats most of the trance releases this year (and that I’ve played it more than 10 times by now) goes to show the caliber of the album as a whole.

Your Eyes – Played at ABGT 300 by the man himself, this tune was one of the most acclaimed from the original album and his set too. Again demonstrating unhindered flow between melody, vocals and “drops”, this tune begins with the raw, intro drop which features a solid bassline and some apt FX on the leads, with sound design similar to A&B’s 2018 single Rocket Science. Moving quickly into a verse from this stage with some beautiful filtering which keeps the beat alive (allowing the transition to be smoother than an abrupt impact), Alison May introduces the melodic pattern in this song with just four bars, after which Bayer seamlessly moves back to the pounding intro section. And this section is quite like the paradigmatic progressive trance intros with 3 bars of bass and one of silence – and boy does it bang. This track notably features a choir singing the backing chords, spraying some heartfelt love onto the already intimate lyrics.

Hold On To You – My favorite vocal performance in this album comes from Ane Brun in this tune, titled Hold On To You. From dubstep-inspired fills and exquisite transitions, this track takes you through a journey transcending energy and emotion. With the chord progression clear in each second of the tune through the bassline and the backing leads playing an arpeggio, Ane Brun’s voice flows beautifully and seamlessly above. The soulful vocals almost necessitate that they be part of the climax, so it’s no surprise that Bayer sticks with the melody of the chord progression with the vocals retaining their prominence. The intro and outro sections are both filled with groove and purposeful grit – my favorite part of which is the modulated, gated gritty bass which rises and falls in pitch every eight bars. This intricate sound design is what separates Bayer from the rest; in general, I’ve found that its this attention to detail which makes a mediocre track phenomenal.

End Of All Things – Employing one of the most nostalgic chord progressions known to man, in a rather progressive house, Alpha 9/ARTY-esque release, this tune is one of the more standard ones in the album. Beginning with a creative, vibrant intro filled with square synths in an in-your-face mixdown, it goes right into a vocal section so mellow it would be fit for play as a hymn. The vocal production here is excellent – listen to the perfect reverb and stacking on the vocals which adds that sense of grandeur and finality. The drop itself exploits the chord progression through a simple motif, with a lead reminiscent to the chime in the Alpha 9 remix of Shivers, giving this tune an other-wordly vibe. This chord progression has been used reasonably often for sentimentality – most notably in Michael Brun’s All I Ever Wanted (a progressive house song taken from the Netflix film XOXO).

Immortal Lover – The first single to be released off of this album, and boy did it gain tons of traction. It was played by A&B in their Tomorrowland 2018 set, and has been a fan favorite ever since. The basses in the intro get the beat started, as a subtle, quirky riser prepares you for the ‘drop’. You’d better be listening with your best headphones that can catch those 50 Hz basses well, because this one is full of them. Atmospheric pads complement the lovely vocals, as a breakdown precedes the introduction of the main melody in the drop itself. Charming bells develop the melody in the drop section, ending on a rather satisfied note. Brass-sounding stabs add punch to the mix, even as it is low-pass-filtered to make way for the vocals. Opting for a more mono imaged bassline on this one, it’s definitely one suited for festival and club play.

Tidal Wave – One of the tracks on the album which retains the magical, surreal quality of the ambient original tune, Tidal Wave lets the vocals move from verse to prechorus to chorus, as the topline tells a story of ups and downs through its chord progression. A cascade of supersaws introduces the main melody. With this tune in specific gaining tons of playlist support, its Spotify play count is in the hundred thousands already, and deservedly so. Unlike the other tunes, this one does without an intro bassline, but the melodic drop makes up for this with its soothing leads and backing chords. I particularly love the eccentric fills that come in every few bars in the drop, which add to the flow and continuation required of an almost six minute long song.

Open End Resource – A personal favorite for the months after it was released, but in all honesty, its appeal has dampened slightly after so many late night plays. A trademark Bayer influence, soothing vocals backed by almost nothing go straight into climaxes of intense basses and kicks. This happens twice in this tune – the first time focusing on the rhythm with just one note being played, but with the chord progression and bass pattern at the forefront in the second iteration. Some intricate FX, such as vocal loops, are used in conjunction with some organic elements like a guitar to add a sense of memorability to the tune, if it isn’t noteworthy enough yet. A brief silence to build up tension precedes the introduction of the main melody (32 bars long, but easy to sing along to) with a well-layered, powerful synth covering almost all frequencies well. The drop follows the chord progression, which is fantastic – the last time I enjoyed a chord-progression based drop this much was Ben Gold’s I’m In A State of Trance, which is now three years old, and still an iconic tune.

Love You More – The one and only producer collaboration on this album of eight, and it’s with Anjuna mastermind Genix. Known for his raw, rough sound (basses, drums, leads, everything), it should come as no surprise that this tune is the only one with a percussion-led drop. One of the few collaborations which actually does sound like a balance of both artists’ styles, this tune is full of groove with Genix’s drum programming on the drop (and some rough white noise added in for good measure) and Bayer’s melodic influence on the supersaws and signature basslines. Bordering on the tech-trance sound which Genix has been working a lot with lately, the buildup sees some techno-infused leads take centre stage before the club-rocking drop enters the picture. The intro and outro includes a rhythm two kicks in the first two bars – giving the tune its much needed energy. It’s appart that Beyer did the leads in this drop too. The vocal chops and riffs enhance this tune’s catchiness exponentially too. If you’re loving the beat on this tune, Genix has a solo original coming soon on Anjunabeats, so stay tuned.

In My Last Life – The title track also got a club mix, leaving listeners to deal with the somewhat confusing title of ‘In My Last Life (In My Next Life Mix)’. I wrote about this briefly earlier, but I will reiterate what I mentioned. Pleasing harmonies between the vocals and the chord progression create a wonderful ambient vibe. Andrew Bayer has chosen long buildups for many of his previous club mixes too, and he continues to do so here. Some risers and oscillating white noise reminds you of something you would see in a bigroom/hardstyle track, and really gets the energy flowing before the drop. A simple yet catchy motif carries the entirety of the drop, as new sonic elements are introduced every few bars in the true progressive style. With similar leads to Ruben de Ronde & Estiva’s Rainbow, this track relies on its stunning chord progression to do all the teary work. I’m feeling quite guilty that a track as beautiful as this has ended up at the bottom of my list – but that’s a testament to Bayer’s talent, and nothing else.

With quality seeping from every sound in every song in this album, it’s undoubtedly one that is a contender for our album of the year for 2019 – and it’s definitely our favorite that’s been released this year till date. But, with two thirds of the year still ahead of us, and albums due from Gareth Emery & Ashley Wallbridge, Aly & Fila, Giuseppe Ottaviani and perhaps even Grum, it’s hard to say irrefutably that this one is it. But boy do I hope that one of those ones beats this record, because that would mean absolute bliss – the standards have been set very very high. Albums from other subgenres which are in contention include Avicii’s Tim, Dabin’s Wild Youth (already released) and more, but its going to be equally hard for them to beat In My Next life.

If these eight tracks aren’t enough to satiate your high-quality-trance cravings, fear not, for Bayer has another tune out late next month as part of the Anjunabeats Vol 14 mix compilation. It’s called Magitek, and was known to many (especially the Anjunafamily) as ‘Unicorn ID’, debuted by A&B at ASOT900 and supported further multiple times since. It bears some minor semblance to the intro to the In My Next Life mix of End of All Things, with its equally colorful, flanger-distorted leads, and jelly-like basses. My admiration for Andrew Bayer has increased exponentially since the release of the first In My Next Life mix, and I am sure it will continue to do so for a while to come.

For now, however, play this record for nights on end, and try to catch every minute detail that Bayer put into each song’s production process. Before I finish, a last word of advice would be to go and buy the Extended Mixes of these – because they’re really a journey in and of themselves.