A fan emailed me today saying that TranceCritic.com has just reviewed my “System” EP release (PGR038.) I checked it out and was blown away; the reviewer was extremely positive! Here was his conclusion:

“Erm… there’s nothing wrong this release. Nothing. Production, writing, dancefloor efficiency, home listening value… Zircon has delivered a release that is airtight in every relevant department, and more than that is refreshing. Here is a track that harks back to the best of dance music’s past and yet manages to seamlessly integrate such influences with production that is bang up to date. Full marks for singles are very rare because the format is limited generally, and there’s usually one duff remix to drag the whole affair down a mark or two. Not here. 10/10 seems overly profound a score for two tracks that don’t clock up ten minutes between them, but as the mantra goes: quality over quantity.”

Definitely the most glowing feedback I’ve received from a reviewer before. Consider that a strong recommendation to pick up the EP, which is available on iTunes, Juno Records, Beatport, and all other major digital retailers.

You can read the review in full right here.

I recently discovered Adam Huszar (aka “Retroid”), a DJ/producer and the owner of the Morphosis Records label, which specializes in progressive electronic music. If you haven’t heard of this label, and you’re a fan of my music and artists like BT, Way Out West, and Hybrid, definitely check it out - their releases are fantastic. You can pick them up on sites like Beatport and listen to previews on the main Morphosis site.

Retroid is a fan of my music and I’m hoping to do a release through Morphosis sometime this year. Until then, you can check out a progressive breaks promo mix he released just a few days ago called Angelion. It’s a free download at RetroidMusic.com and features “System” and “Mindbender”, as well as cuts from artists such as Hybrid, Burufunk and Hyperion.

Enjoy!

Got a Guitar Center nearby? Drop in anytime this month and you might hear a remix of Mindbender playing! Jimmy Hinson (aka Big Giant Circles) works at a GC, and through an internal company contest, got his “Circular Breakdown” remix of Mindbender on to “GC Radio” across the country! You can download the remix, which was the winner of my recent remix contest, here:

zircon - Mindbender (Circular Breakdown Mix)

Congrats again to Jimmy for winning the contest and for earning this excellent remix a spot on GC Radio.

Over the last two months I’ve been submitting my music to OurStage, which is a monthly music and video contest. Artists can submit tunes in about 30 genres, then users go to the site, listen to randomly-selected song pairs, and pick which ones they like more. Over the course of the month, the numbers get whittled down until only the #1 tracks of each genre remain. Genre winners get $100, and the overall highest rated song of any genre gets a whopping $5,000. Awesome idea for a site.

I was very happy to see that my song “Breathing You In” topped the Techno/Club/Dance genre at #1, with “Mindbender” at #2. My girlfriend (and vocalist) Jillian Goldin scored #1 in New Age/World with “Hajime”, and fellow OC ReMixer sgx was #1 in Electronic with “Coactive (Over My Shoulder Mix)”.

In the end, Jill actually came in #1 in the entire contest, out of 15,000 entries, winning the $5k grand prize! Needless to say, I’m very happy for her. But sgx and I also did well, with our tracks coming in at #4 and #3, respectively. We all entered again this month so hopefully we’ll make it to the finals this time, too. A huge thank you for ANYONE that helped vote for our songs in March, and anyone who is helping this month. People like you make being a musician truly worth it.

As a token of my appreciation, here’s a free, full-length track off an upcoming album…

Nimbus - MP3 Download

Enjoy!

I’ve been on a lot of social networking and music sites, but one I’ve discovered recently has caught my attention. It’s called OurStage and it revolves around a monthly contest system where fans vote on music and videos to see which songs and videos are best in their respective categories, and best overall for the month.

So how does it work, exactly? There are a number of categories and artists can submit up to two songs per category per month. Then, as a listener, you simply click the “Judge” button, select a category, and listen to a pair of songs at a time. Once you’ve listened to at least 15 seconds of each (the more, the better - to be fair) you decide which of the two you like more, and by how much. There’s an option if you think they are just as good, too. It’s a really simple process that works well; because you are presented with randomized song pairs it’s hard for artists to unfairly “game” the system.

If you’re interested in checking out the Electronic category, where I’ve entered some music, check out the banner below. Judging is actually really fun.. I spent awhile in the “World” category, myself.

If you’ve visited the zircon MySpace within the last few days, you’ve probably noticed that the blog there is now home to an electronic music review column I’ve just started writing. I’ll be updating it on a regular basis - anywhere from daily to weekly - covering artists, songs, albums, DJ mixes, remixes, and anything else that comes my way. I’ve started with a review of a free album by an unsigned indie artist named Beatdrop, but you can expect reviews of all kinds of artists in the blog, including major label acts.

In other news, Antigravity tracks have been cleaning up on Garageband, with “Mindbender” earning both Track of the Day AND Track of the Week (Techno category) and a perfect 5/5 reviewer rating. “Breathing You In” topped the active Trance charts just a few days ago, hitting #1 and entering the top 40 of all time in the Trance category. Even if you’re not a musician, you can show your support by creating an account there and adding yourself as a fan of mine.

After a few more weeks on the Garageband charts, “Breathing You In” has climbed to the top 15 in the Trance category and was recently named Trance Track of the Week! It has also received awards for “Best Female Vocals”, “Best Production”, and “Best Melody” in the Trance category. The track is also now on the “all time” Trance charts on Garageband as well as the broader Electronica charts. Stay tuned for more updates…

I just finished up a new original song, “ROMance” - and it includes me singing, so you know it’s gonna be interesting. It’s a song about geek love, inspired by autobiographical events with my girlfriend Jill. Influences on it range from Freezepop to Star Salzman and I went the full mile with vocoding, 80s drums, robot voices, and chiptune solos. While the sentiment behind it is of course real, it’s not a “serious” track, so this is just a freebie release for your enjoyment

Listen & download here!
(lyrics)

I also wanted to announce that my MySpace page is undergoing renovations. If you’re on there, feel free to friend me. You can even grab the “Hoookah” player, which includes several cuts from Antigravity, and put it on your own page to spread the love.

The song “Breathing You In” (feat. Jillian Goldin) off my new album Antigravity is the trance track of the day at Garageband.com. Garageband - not to be confused with the sequencing software of the same name - is a huge independent music community with tens of thousands of people posting and reviewing songs in all sorts of genres. Expect updates on chart positions of this song (and others from the album) soon!