Zimmerman, more commonly known as Deadmau5 (pronounced "dead-mouse") has gone from relative obscurity just two short years ago to super-stardom and one of the highest profiles in dance music. His genre is hard to pin down: sometimes it sounds like progressive house, other times like trance, other times like techno.
Random Album Title is no different. Deadmau5's debut album does not disappoint: it shows his full range of sounds, mixed together in a set not unlike the ones the star DJ gives in dance clubs worldwide. Those into vocal dance music will be disappointed however: the tracks on this LP are predominantly instrumental.
Deadmau5 Eases in to his Signature Sound
The album starts out with "Sometimes Things Get, Whatever," which is probably one of the more laid back tracks on the disc. A steady pounding bass beat is accentuated by Deadmau5's signature synth sound, with the repetitive vocal "sometimes things get complicated."
From there the beat kicks up a notch as we move into “Complications,” a track that sounds more house-influenced. A definitive feature of this track is the sound of the heart rate monitor, but that house sound does not last long.
The mix slips back into a more techno-trance feel with the appropriately named “Slip,” with the trademark airy electronic sound of popular trance, and stays there through “Some Kind of Blue,” where the beat comes darker and heavier.
That doesn’t stay long as the following tracks, “Brazil” and “Alone With You,” move back into the happier, lighter beats of today’s trance music, and could easily find a home in any Paul Oakenfold or Tiesto set.
Kaskade Adds House Feel in “I Remember”
Deadmau5 seemingly builds the anticipation for what comes at the tail end of Random Album Title, and is arguably the better half for those who appreciate his more house-influenced work. He sure starts it out right: first up is “I Remember.”
Zimmerman brings in fellow producer and superstar house DJ Kaskade for this track, adding in soft female vocals to the mix. This track is already a certifiable hit for both Kaskade and Deadmau5, and its danceable yet relaxing lounge house-like feel shows why.
“I Remember” sets the stage for what many probably would consider one of the more strongly produced tracks of the album, “Faxing Berlin.” This song actually comes in two parts, but should be considered on the whole.
An Acoustic Feel in “Faxing Berlin,” “Aguru”
The first part features the beat played out on a piano, but as the first part melds into the second, the piano is slowly replaced by the synth. This makes the transition back into the electronic much less jarring, and adds by far to the unique sound of this track.
“Faxing Berlin” and its progressive house sound provides a good lead in to another Deadmau5 hit, “Not Exactly,” but the piano makes a brief return for “Aguru,” a trance-heavy track, before closing out on a minimalist note with “So There I Was.”
Don’t Just Listen to a Single Track
In order to appreciate this album, like several of the better dance albums, it must be listened to from start to finish. Each track plays into the next, taking the listener on a tour of Deadmau5’s wide range of ability.
Arguably, it is this DJ’s unwillingness to stick to a specific type of dance music that makes his music so interesting. One can never predict what Deadmau5 will come out with next.
That’s something dance music does not have enough of these days.
