There’s a synth arp in the first thirty seconds of Love To Forget that I would recognise as ARTY with my eyes shut, that liquid, faintly melancholy pluck he’s been refining since his Anjunabeats days. This is him back in melodic-trance mode after years of chasing the American festival-pop dollar, and the homecoming suits him. The track is built around a vocal about wanting to forget someone, about as on-the-nose as the title promises, and ARTY’s production is emotional enough to sell it regardless. The drop is restrained by big-room standards, more of a lift than an explosion, riding that arpeggio up into a wide-open chorus. The melodic detail has always been his real strength, and Love To Forget leans hard into it, letting the little counter-melodies carry the weight. It takes me back to the era when Anjunabeats releases genuinely felt like events, before the sound got flattened into a hundred soundalikes. I don’t reach for trance much these days, and this snuck onto three separate playlists this week. Genuinely glad he came home to this sound.
ARTY is no stranger to this blog. Last time: ARTY x Laidback Luke feat. James Hersy - Lost In The Crowd