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Tatanka - Afrika E.P

Label: Zanzatraxx
Catalog#: DJUZ 022
Released: 27 June 2011
Style: Hardstyle

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Tatanka. Named after the sturdy Bison, it's a name well given to this Italian "Bison" who, like the beast is very quiet, but when he makes an entrance, he does it with great, almost unstoppable force.
That's exactly what Tatanka has done with his new E.P - Afrika.

Unlike most artists, Tatanka is quite a quiet guy. He doesn't Twitter much, he doesn't Facebook much, I'm starting to even wonder if he uses the internet. This guy doesn't seem to take much notice of Social Media like everyone else seems to be doing this day and age. Maybe that's a good thing in a way. It keeps his mind fresh and clean and not polluted by overwhelming comments or trash talk. We haven't seen a release from this guy since his "Tokyo E.P" around the same time in 2010.
As it seems, Tatanka has been very busy in the studio, because the "Afrika E.P" contains no less than 6 (!) tracks. That's half an album right there!

I'll be discussing each track in detail below. However, the 2 edits/cuts will be disregarded as they're just minor edits for one of the tracks on the E.P.

On a Cloud
The intro reminds me of "The Prodigy - Voodoo People", which is a good choice, because that track is awesome.
The vocals are a little "corny", but hey, if they're followed by an awesome round of banging kicks, I'll just forget about it. The vocals in the break however, make a little more sense and are quite truthful. Maybe this is the reason Tatanka isn't so active on Social Media, he doesn't want to loose sight of what's important. Got to give it to him.

I really enjoy the kicks. It may seem strange, but they have a slight "Zatox" feeling to them. Maybe it's just the Italian way and they like to add an overdose of crunch to their mid range. I'm a fan though.
The melody is quite catchy and very Tatanka like, which makes "On a Cloud" slightly rawer than the usual euphoric tracks. I can safely say that it's euphorically raw.

This E.P contains 2 edits of this track. Basically just cutting out certain "unwanted" things people (ie: DJ's) may feel they won't need.
Basically the singing part of the break has been left out in both cuts, which makes for a shorter break.

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Afrika
From the first bongo hit (yes, you read it right.. bongo's), I was in love. This is such a refreshing sound, although not new, it has been put together so well you can't help but applaud the guy.
The mid intro is so pounding, again with crunchy mid's in the kick. Like most tracks however, they do more justice on huge sound machines. Probably the first time I actually took the time to enjoy this track was at "BLACK" in Belgium. What a pounder.

The break is great as well, I can just imagine a handful of African women in Tatanka's studio slamming on bongo's and shaking other "unknown" instruments all the while singing in choir. Of course, everything is sampled, but it still doesn't take away the fun the track has placed upon me.
The climax is very well done. No need for an over complicated melody. Just lay down some pounding kicks, And use some of that good old Sidechaining (however, this melody isn't side chained, at least not in the typical manner), the same effect has been 'reproduced', in a way.

This would probably have to be my favorite track on the whole E.P. A very well put together track, refreshing and still rough enough to go completely nuts to.

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Jazzy
Well, as the title puts it, this track is quite jazzy using some jazz samples which is cool, I guess. The whole atmosphere created is very jazzy and has a slight funkiness to it. I wouldn't say this is one of my favorite tracks, however I did find the mid outro to be quite amusing. The screech used is great and makes for a nice ending to this "Jazzy" track.
I believe this is the first time anyone has tried to fuse Jazz with Hardstyle. At least, as "in your face" as what Tatanka has managed to do.
Again, it's refreshing and quite funky. However, I don't really like the vocals used. It seems in all the tracks up until now, the same vocalist has been used and although it creates a nice connection with all the tracks on the same E.P, it tends to become tiresome in a way. On the other hand, it does put a big, red Tatanka stamp all over it, so you know from the very first word spoke that it's a Tatanka track you're listening to.

Nonetheless, Jazzy is a great track. Albeit not one of my favorites, I do respect Tatanka for trying something different. As most of the tracks on this E.P, it's very refreshing.

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Keep on Buzzing (Zanza Labs Mix)
The build-up to the mid intro is great with some buzzing noises coming through from the background, almost building suspsense, like watching a black cloud of killer bee's decending from the heavens. You just know they're going to do some damage and that is the effect Tatanka has sought after and achieved. Because we know what follows (the kicks) are going to do some major damage. And they do!
The kick Tatanka (or Zanza Labs) has used in the mid-intro is different to the previous tracks' kicks, which is good. It's a little harder than the previous kicks. Again, the melody has been kept quite simple which just allows you to fist pump throughout the whole climax. Unfortunately, this is one of the shortest tracks on the E.P, it's even shorter than the "On a Cloud" edit's which follow, which is too bad. But, luckily it pounds right on through, which I'm sure lot's of you will appreciate and it more than make's up for that missing minute or so.

I like the use of the "buzzing" sample throughout the mid outro. It spices things up a bit.
Again, "Keep on Buzzing" lies underneath the level of "On a Cloud" and "Afrika", it's still a great track though, but with 4 original tracks on 1 E.P, it's hard to keep all of them up to the same level of awesomeness.

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To conclude, Tatanka has been busy in his studio for quite some time and has churned out a handful of really interesting tracks, some more interesting than others.
He's still kept his sound, which is a good thing. It really makes all of his tracks quite unique, I just wish he would release more than 4 tracks a year. Although, this way it does kind of make him more exclusive, doesn't it?
Having only been released this week, Tatanka has managed to blast "Afrika" all the way to the #1 spot on the Hardstyle.com charts, something that isn't very easy to do in today's scene. So, congratulations on that feat Tatanka!

So, let us know what you think about this E.P in the comment section (all together now..) ... BELOOWW!