The ever impressive AudioStorm aka Ognjen Vukovic delivers his superb debut album – First Step which takes us on a wonderful journey into progressive sounds filled with melody and deep grooves. Podgorica, Montenegro based producer AudioStorm was fascinated by music from an early age and listened to many different bands including Pink Floyd, Joy Division, Depeche Mode and The Cure. During the 90’s he turned his attention to electronic dance music and began listening to a lot of progressive sounds from the likes of Deep Dish, Darren Emerson, John Digweed and Sasha to name just a few. Over the years this guy has proven hugely popular with releases on many top labels including Baroque, Mistique Music, Balkan Connection, OLD SQL and many more. His Bonzai relationship began with Oblivion EP which was quickly followed up by the very well received Seismic Activity. His sound is definitely reaching far and wide and he consistently rides high on various charts. We are delighted to present his first studio album and we have no doubt it will shake things up.

The album kicks off with a fine slice of melodic progressive house, Day in Penthouse gets into a nice smooth flow with chunky kicks and a rhythmic drum arrangement that leads up to a cool dancey bass line that has a rich warmth. Cascading synths and strings stutter across the sound as we approach a real cool melodic structure. The perfect opener to whet the appetite.

Supernatural delivers another cool melody driven yet slightly deeper progressive vibe. A solid groove is crafted with a tight drum section that sends out fine flowing rhythms alongside a chugging bass line that will definitely get the floors moving. The break brings in more melodic flavours delivering a magical setting before we head back into the main track for the duration.

Moon Safari takes a serious look at progressive house and the qualities shine through in this construction. A strong and solid beat carries us through the intro and reveals a fantastic bubbling bass line that dominates the groove. Percussive layers form up and keep a steady rhythm as cool synths start to fade through alongside some swirling atmospheric pads. A top notch cut that will be a go to tool in any set.

Hidden Door intros with a nice punchy kick and a subtle percussion that lies in the distance. Sweeping synth pads float across the sound in a teasing manner before a powerful pulsating bas shows up to take full control. Shimmering arps ride along the solid deep grooves of the track as we get totally hypnotised by the cacophony of sounds. A wonderful display of prog house that will definitely give any floor the gift of many dancing feet.

At the midway point of the album we are hit with a double header in Warm & Loud which comes in Day and Night mixes. As you’d expect AudioStorm pulls out all the stops once again as he takes us through a master class in constructing melodies and building grooves. The Day Mix has all of the above in abundance, the big hitter on this one are those intricate synth patterns that weave out a solid core of sound. The Night Mix ramps up the pace with a much more club friendly and deeper groove. We still get all the goodness of those superb melodies and a super tight drum arrangement but done in a way that puts the spotlight on the dancey elements from within the deep progressive groove. Take your pick with these ones, each one is a sure fire winner.

Crazy World intros with a punchy kick and slow, deep rooted bass that reverberates beautifully through the sound, cutting through those kicks with ease. Crispy sharp hi-hats start the percussion section off which layers up to become a super tight rhythmic section. Cool chords are scattered throughout the track alongside some expertly crafted sweeping FX. A classic styled 303 acid line fades in and becomes the big focus for the track and compliments the musical elements perfectly. Top notch stuff that will definitely be a favourite among many.

No Gravitation delivers a solid workout filled with deep progressive grooves that suck you in. At the forefront we have a distinctive bass sound that really hooks you in with its probing power. Smooth, rhythmic percussions and drums keep the track on course as the layers continue to build while quirky acid lines form up. Brilliant stuff that will turn a few heads for sure.

Rounding off the album we are presented with the outro Titanium which glitches into creation with an electrifying sound as beautiful, rich voices fade up. In contrast to those voices a sharp edged bass powers into the sound to come up against the softer sounds with a harder edge. What a perfect way to end this album than with a showcase of sublime sounds that bring out a real musical side to the artists performance. This album is not to be missed.

#audiostorm #bonzaiprogressive