Artist: Eric Prydz
Album: Opus
Label: Pryda Recordings
Release date: 05/02/16
After half a year of expectation, discussion and teasers, this 5th of February my ears were finally flooded with the whole of Eric Prydz's new album without any interruptions. The prolific artist, who already has an extended production back-catalogue with countless singles and EP releases under his name, finally dares to lay down his essence in a full-length piece under the name of 'Opus'. His new work, compiled in two different discs, combines some of his classic house gems with extremely quality new offerings. With the first listening you can detect Prydz's music print: progressive house basslines, four-bar chord progressions, remarkable leading synths, drums and keyboard melodies.
Raking up his Cirez D and Pryda influences – two of his most famous aliases – Eric provides an album full of euphoric clubbing material but with a clear transition to more elaborated pieces with electro-rock, techno and even trance tints. Surprisingly the first CD delights us with more electronic acoustic sounds than he has subjected us to before and prominent use of percussion instruments; Som Sas and Collider are clear evidence of this. But without any doubt the track that stands out, though not for all tastes, is Moody Mondays (vocals courtesy of The Cut) an electronic '80s New Wave cut with which the artist has broken his usual music frame. There is also a tendency to introduce darker sounds and a certain underground groove that approaches techno beats in tunes like Klepht and Trubbel, showing in this whole first disc greater variation than in the second.
When you play part II, the musical ambience changes considerably. Closer to Prydz's more mainstream productions, the CD collects some of his classic great dance-floor hits such as Liberate and Generate but with enough space for new material like Trubble, Oddity and Breath. Also worth highlighting, Sunset at Café Mambo, an ode to his Ibiza house where the synths take a special limelight and representative of some of the album's best work.
Despite this, the excessive duration of the tracks can create monotony throughout the album, where the melodies become the main recurrent element. The mix of old anthems and new productions, however, does make it easier to digest. There is no doubt that with Opus, Eric Prydz shows the clear continuity between his fine work behind the decks and his experience as a producer, reaffirming his position as the prince of the progressive house wave.
Tracklist
1. Liam
2. Black Dyce
3. Collider
4. Som Sas
5. Last Dragon
6. Moody Mondays (featuring The Cut)
7. Floj
8. Trubble
9. Klepht
10. Eclipse
11. Sunset at Café Mambo
12. Breathe (featuring Rob Swire
13. Generate
14. Oddity
15. Mija (Re-scored)
16. Every Day
17. Liberate
18. The Matrix
19. Opus
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