Created over the span of two years, Balance 032 marks a creative high point in the career of Madrid-based artist Henry Saiz, and this marks his third appearance in the hallowed compilation series. Spread over an expansive three discs, it has given him the space to curate a truly stunning odyssey of creative expression, one influenced by everything from AI to his recent ADHD diagnosis.
As ever, he has gone above and beyond to ensure that the mix is crammed full of exclusive, unreleased material, with nearly 75% of the music included, both from himself and many of his favourite producers and collaborators, from unknowns through to household names like Röyksopp.
“Since I’ve done two Balance compilations already, I didn’t want to repeat myself,” he says. “My first, ‘Balance 19’, was very important for my career and I knew people would be comparing it with this new one, so I put a lot of effort into it to make it more attractive and to be able to gain more control in the final product sound-wise.” – Henry Saiz
Created in Ableton, which he uses for his DJ sets due to its unlimited creative functionality and precision (“I get bored easily with CDJs”), the mix makes great use of many effects, layerings, and production techniques to enhance the beautiful sounds that lie within.
Part 1 takes a freestyle approach to find a sweet spot between home listening and club warm-up vibes, all woven together through a narrative about the connection between the past, the future, the reinterpretation of old concepts, and AI.
“I used a lot of AI techniques to add creativity to the songs, from cloning vocals to generate atmospheres, to creating grooves using text-to-music always like a tool in order to add to, and not to replace human creativity. Ideally, we will work with AI as a co-pilot also in the studio to make the boring technical process faster and focus more on what really matters: ideas to bring our human experience into the music form.” – Henry Saiz
Packed with symbols and messages, it’s changing tempos span the creepy vaporwave intro of Hal Incandenza’s ‘I Know What You Are’ – setting the tone perfectly with an AI voice telling a human “I know what you are, I know where you come from” – through to chugging electronica, dubby grooves, Indian rhythm, Balearic spoken word, sparkly breakbeats and teases of the clubbier sounds that await in the next disc. The euphoric climax of Saiz’s rework of Swedish duo Genius of Time’s recent release ‘Sunswell’ is the perfect bridge into the next mix, a whirling firework of pretty melody and spine-tingling arpeggiation. The breadth and surprises of this first disc would have made it a standout piece of work on its own, but of course, that’s never enough for Saiz.
Part 2 leans towards the sounds of Henry Saiz in club mode, beginning with the warm blanket of sumptuous Milio’s ‘Dew’, building gradually and flitting between the deep and the soaring. From lush progressive house to the heavenly breaks of Brassica’s epic ‘Celestial Suspension’ through some truly staggering new psychedelically tinged material from Saiz, it’s a mix packed with magical melody. The disc crescendos with the shimmering riffs of Henry Saiz & Imalgi’s ‘Kickboxer’ (released as a single on 13th October to mark the Balance 032 announcement), where synths are made to weep digital tears, and the stunning liquid breaks and heartfelt vocals of Moonlight Wolves ‘All I Need (Third Son Remix)’. As ever, all is not what it seems in his sets, with heavy editing making these truly unique versions.
“People try to Shazam my sets and usually don’t get the ID because of all the heavy editing I do while I play. Lately, I learned this hyperactivity and need for challenging projects that motivate me comes from my ADHD. So, I guess the DNA of my sets would be coherent eclecticism but also a melodic journey that changes and evolves straight to a climax.” – Henry Saiz
The final chapter of this sprawling compilation explores the increasing tempos of the current era, expanding Saiz’s DNA into new territory while maintaining all the classy elements of his sound.
“The current vogue for faster tempos may be due to the constant stimulation we get from technology and how we process information nowadays. My DJ style has become faster because the world is going faster. My DJ sets are now moving through 110 to 140 bpm territories. I didn’t enjoy much music with faster BPMs a few years ago because it felt very overwhelming and had too many elements, but now people are producing music that works great at faster speeds because they have fewer elements and a groove that works that way. As long as the track takes you somewhere and makes you feel something through melody, that’s what counts for me.” – Henry Saiz
A deep and spacey feel early on with plenty of dubby touches gives way to meatier sounds, psychedelic tones woven into the heavier rhythms as the tempos gradually creep upwards and elements of trance abound through a flurry of Saiz exclusives. A grandstand finish is guaranteed by way of his incredible chugging-based rework of Moonlight Wolves’ ‘Mantra’, the light dreamy beauty of Henry Saiz & Somfay’s ‘To Steal a Star from The Night’ and the intense synth overload of H. Haze’s ‘La Fuerza’. A perfect end to a truly remarkable body of work.
Tracklisting (3CD/DIGITAL/STREAM): Buy / Stream link: https://ffm.to/balance032
PART 1
01.Hal Incandenza – I Know What You Are
02. Henry Saiz – Black Earth
03. Efferent & Henry Saiz – All That Was Will Forever Be
04. Henry Saiz x RQS feat. Eloy – Tropical Mirage
05. True ZeroX – Full Moon Summer
06. Guillermo Medín & Henry Saiz – In Jeopardy
07. Hal Incandenza – El Loco Soy Yo
08. Robert Feltman – About Gravity
09. R.I.P Bestia – Ancient Subatomic Voyage (Henry Saiz GOA Remix)
10. Romina (AR) & Henry Saiz – Les Chants des Baleines
11. Karmon – Continuum
12. Röyksopp – This Time, This Place (Henry Saiz Downtempo Egodeath Version)
13. Genius of Time – Sunswell (Henry Saiz’s Cuban Acid Trip Remix)
PART 2
01. Milio – Dew
02. Bostro Pesopeo – Duschen
03. Wil Mancia & Henry Saiz – Hidden Valley
04. Henry Saiz – Entre Dos Mundos
05. Brassica – Celestial Suspension
06. Eden Burns – Free Your Mind
07. Rollin & Josh Wetherington – Acid Glance
08. Frømme – Stairway to Heaven (Henry Saiz Balance Version)
09. Hal Incandenza – Incivitas (Henry Saiz Balance Version)
10. Henry Saiz – DMT (Guy J Remix)
11. Marshall White & Henry Saiz – Stargazer
12. Miss Melera – Jade
13. Damabiah & Henry Saiz – Selene
14. Gonzalo Aranda – Prometheus (Balance Version)
15. Space Dimension Controller – End Times Optimist
16. Henry Saiz & Imalgi – Kickboxer
17. Moonlight Wolves – All I Need (Third Son Remix)
PART 3
01. Big Zen – Buoyant Beat
02. Wa Wu We – What’s Left?
03. NVSBL – Purple Dawn
04. Kris Omen – Nebula (Henry Saiz Balance Version)
05. Voiski – Hazy Suns
06. Aurora Halal – Eternal Blue (Wata Igarashi Crossing Remix)
07. Adwer – Squelch.3
08. Henry Saiz – Mindtrap
09. Polygonia – Implosion of the Known (Henry Saiz Melodic Version)
10. NorB & juSt b – At This Moment (Henry Saiz Remix)
11. NVSBL – The Drive
12. Planetary Assault Systems – Eden Tide (Barker Remix)
13. Moonlight Wolves – Mantra (Henry Saiz Remix)
14. Somfay & Henry Saiz – To Steal a Star from The Night
15. H. Haze – La Fuerza
3LP
A1. Hal Incandenza – I Know What You Are
A2. Guillermo Medín & Henry Saiz – In Jeopardy
A3. Robert Feltman – About Gravity
A4. Karmon – Continuum
B1. Röyksopp – This Time, This Place (Henry Saiz Downtempo Egodeath Version)
B2. Genius of Time – Sunswell (Henry Saiz’s Cuban Acid Trip Remix)
C1. Milio – Dew
C2. Henry Saiz – Entre Dos Mundos
C3. Brassica – Celestial Suspension
D1. Marshall White & Henry Saiz – Stargazer
D2. Henry Saiz & Imalgi – Kickboxer
D3. Moonlight Wolves – All I Need (Third Son Remix)
E1. NVSBL – Purple Dawn
E2. Henry Saiz – Mindtrap
E3. Polygonia – Implosion of the Known (Henry Saiz Melodic Version)
F1. Moonlight Wolves – Mantra (Henry Saiz Remix)
F2. Somfay & Henry Saiz – To Steal a Star from The Night
F3. H. Haze – La Fuerza
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