Trance As You Know it is Getting a Makeover: Tom Fall & Ben Nicky – Hammer

Never having heard of either of these producers and in the midst of a Trance Around the World podcast, I was caught off guard when I heard this gem called “Hammer”, especially when it was described by Above & Beyond as “nice and relaxing”. This song in no way is nice and relaxing, well it is for the first two minutes. But around that two-minute mark things get crazy and we’re hit with a HARD bass line which reminds me of tracks that Nicky Romero or Hardwell have been putting out lately.

I’m not one to get into debates about the sub-genres of dance music, but every time I play this track I think of it more as a House tune than a Trance tune, which just goes to show how the lines are getting blurred these days (check out Tomahawk – a similar example). The more I listen to tracks that are considered Trance, the more I hear wobble bass lines, hard-hitting drops, and all around bangers. They manage to keep the uplifting parts in rotation, but the BPMs have seemed to slow down (closer to 128bpm than 140bpm like the fast-paced Trance of the past). I’m not saying all music of this genre has changed completely, but it has become commonplace to hear these types of tracks and I am in no way complaining, as someone who loves a nice hard drop.

Tomi Fallenius (Finland), better known by most simply as DJ Tom Fall teamed up with fellow up-and-comer Ben Nicky (UK) for this track. Both are in the Trance/Progressive House game but this track has sent ripples across the internet for its banger-esque sound. What I’ve learned after listening to a couple of their solo tracks is that Tom Fall produces songs closer to the House side of the spectrum, some songs similar to those of Michael Woods productions for example. Ben Nicky is on the traditional Trance end of the spectrum, seeing his songs released on Armin Van Buuren‘s record label Armada. You can easily see how the two styles collide for this song.

Grab it on Beatport

Tom Fall & Ben Nicky – Hammer

Alex Kunnari – Lost (Tom Fall Remix) (more of a banger)
Tom Fall ft. Jwaydan – Untouchable (sexy vocals, Kaskade feel to it)
Ben Nicky – Lifeline (more “traditional” Trance)