Your thoughts on A State of Trance since Armin won the Top 100, do you think its changed? got better? or worse?

Thought this would be a nice discussion thread!

i'm glad that someone thought to discuss about this...sometimes i think if asot it's like before , but i feel in every asot episode that armin is getting better with his mixes. he will never disappoint us and since he won the 100 top he surely got better, he'll be the same ! i know that

i stopped listening to it ages ago, keep telling myself to but then i forget

you should get yourself on here on a Thurday evenings mate

Personally i prefered the old ID&T format not sure if thats because Armin generally stuck with 'trance' and didn't feel the need to incorporate any other styles but when i listen back to older episodes (number 069) being one in particular non of the recent shows have come close....

Musically, I think its exactly the same. It all depends what the records being released at the time are like. What people need to try and remember is that its not about puting a great mix out there every week. Thats what CD releases are for. Its about getting the new tunes out there for people to hear, good or not so good, and letting people make their own minds up. So if some ASOTs are not as good as others, its down to the producers i say.

Just for the record though, as Nick mentioned it, I definately prefered the old format with less talking and no shout outs etc, but I guess thats just to make it more accessible to a wider range of listeners. If thats what you mean by 'has it changed?' then I suppose it has but it was like that long before he won the DJ mag poll.

tbh wasnt too impressed with the top 20 mix of 2007, but then again he didnt choose them tracks, still prefer some of the older episodes...

Haven't listened to ASOT or any other radio-program in ages, can't even remember the last time i heard Armin speak or play. But all the fresh tracks i've heard aren't good at all which makes me think that i'm not missing anything...

it hasn't been that long since the dj mag results were out
nobody changes in that time, i think it's better to compare asot from the beginning when it was dutch to what it is today.

my personal taste has kinda drifted away from the main style of asot, so i naturally have better memories of the old episodes. though i doubt i would enjoy them that much anymore. armin does play a lot more slower and progressive tracks in the beginning now, which is a great thing and gives me a good reason to tune in the first 30-60mins now and then.

I think our good friend Doddsy has hit the nail on the head ! CD releases are for whacking out the great mix productions. ASOT is simply the form of media which allows armin to play the recent releases and allow people to make thier own minds up... which is exactly why some weeks im amazed by the standard of the asot show and other weeks it leaves me feeling nothing much at all. The format has changed a little since the days of no shoutouts and less chit chat, but to be honest I dont really think the show has changed much in terms of talent/styles...

... and... I still think Thursday nights just wouldnt be the same without it.

GDJB is ofcourse a great warm-up these days too

short answer.. no it is no what it used to be.
but i still like some episodes but its like someone said above there are more styles than only trance
and i like them yeah but i still listen to the old episodes when i feel like i need some "trance" haha but since
intuition changed to a monthly show format i have to listen asot because if you want new music it is the place
where you get it

will u cant compare the new episodes with the old one ...the old is too much better but anyway they still nt bad ..... i lsn to some new episodes once in a while when i dont have time to skip songs ... and i knw the latest tunes from it anyway armin van buuren still number 1 who can denay

I think it is awesome, i love every tune that gets played and i love Armin long time.

ASOT hasn't been the same since 2004. I remember the good old days back in 2001/2002 when it all was underground. Armin talking about tracks in the first hour. The occasional XXL broadcast and the main focus on bringing the best tracks around the globe. Now it's more of a promotion show for Armins friends. I still respect Armin, don't get me wrong. But I long for the days when it all was about the music and nothing but the music..

u gotta believe him..

i stoppsed listeninger a year ago

Lol Heini, we know he secretly loves asot... but he just shows up on the 2nd hour of every show just to be grumpy about the 1st hour

indeed, not my cup of tea either.. i used to listen to it, but haven't since ages.. can't stand the current trance age, don't like the tracks at all.. keep remembering the good old days

+1 I used to love listening to ASOT around 01-04. But the show has changed in tandem with what Armin tends to be playing these days. I find ASOT really boring and generic.

I would have to agree with this. ASOT is a testing ground for Armin these days, he basically seems to just wack all the stuff he gets sent onto the show and looks for what we think of them. Problem with that is that now some shows are just full of crap tunes.

True that,, not even bothered to listen anymore. Usually checking the tracklist the day after... usually dissapointing indeed.

Yes I agree fly... some of the shows contain poor or average tracks...

BUT........... Some of the shows are amazing !! Why shouldnt we listen to a show that activly tries to promote or find new artists ?

I agree with the fact we should be trying to find new tunes, and looking forward to that. But the previous generations of ASOT had that but had a bet selection process. It seems Armin isn't really checking what he is putting on their show, just everything he can. Rather than selecting some obvious tunes and mixing them with more challenging material.

ASOT is definitely the place to find decent new trance n progressive tracks, episode 200 was the ultimate mix, keeping the energy going for the duration, my favourite mix ever.

It did seem to coast for a while after that, but so many awesome tunes are aired on ASOT you can't deny it's not a good resource for music still. He's still bringing fresh new stuff for the masses, which is what ASOT is about.

Armin Van Buuren - Y.F.H (You f**king Hero)

It's still a very good show, the bench mark infact. But i must say am starting to put Trance Around The World on a par with it .I think ASOT will always be league leader, but Armin needs to keep on his game to keep it no 1.

It is difficult to come up with the right words to describe the concept of ASOT. I read on so many forums about it being bashed to pieces yet people still tune in as it is still regarded as the yardstick for the new tunes in trance music. For me it still carries more clout than Club Life and Trance Around The World for example.

Armin has always maintained that ASOT is not really about him, it is about the tunes. Yes sometimes episodes can be disappointing, but once in a while it can be so good you are left begging for more. I admit that I have become increasingly frustrated with the show over the past six months, but ultimately it is about the tunes where we have to make our judgements.

The one thing I would say about Armin is this, any time I start having doubts about him, he puts on a recording of one of his live gigs onto the show, and he wins me over every time. He still has that magic touch, and for me he is still one of the best DJs in the world. But sometimes I wish the quality of ASOT would reflect that.

I miss the days of The Newest Tunes Selected and Non-Stop In The Mix, along with the amazing XXL episodes. But due to Armin's schedule playing so many gigs internationally, it is probably not possible to go back to this format anymore.

So true
I missed the shows in the last couple of weeks due to a busy schedule
But indeed I miss the old ASOT format.
I was always curious what kind of new tunes Armin had in store for us

Strange thing though is that people always complain about ASOT and say they love TATW more.
But when I compare the tracklists of both shows then I see many tunes that both A&B and Armin played

TATW is deffinatly catching up with asot in my opinion. If I do listen to radiosets, then tatw and asot, along with gdjb are 90% of what I listen to. I just Love it when armin plays an hour of a really nice live set !!

No
it sucks now

I agree with Impact. When I do listen, I can usually only stand the first 30 - 60 minutes most of the time but sometimes armin lays down and incredible set.

Just out of curiosity... wondering if any of you actually have all shows from 0 - present ?

I've got most of them mate, which are you after?

I guess I dont really need them anymore, but I used to have all episodes 1 - 150 on a handful of dvds. Cant find them Never got around to putting them back onto HD. My HD has most of them from 150 - present. I think I can live without them though, to be honest theres not enough time in life to keep going back and reliving old episodes.

I`ll download them all again one day no doubt... I dont feel complete without them now haha. Saddo !!

I was always curious to hear the very first one if you have that?

Yea. ASOT is becoming more generic and rather mundane. But its still amazing to hear the Future Favorite and the most voted songs. They're prob the only thing worth listening too. occasionally he mixes an amazing tune from the past...... this week was prob Oceanlabs - Sirens from the sea. brought back some good memories.

in the end its all trance anyway. hu cares hu plays it! still sounds amazing..

It's gettin' to be more dance than trance lately

Asot may not sound how it used to, and i know that may have upset some peopl, also the change in format. What it represents has not changed tho, it is still essentially a weekly show showcasing the best of the genre. in actuality it may not be armin changing, but the music being created.

It's all about taste - and tastes can change.

Armin reflects each week the current crop of releases, some weeks may seem better than others but that depends on your taste. I have every single ASOT, some I like, some I don't but I keep coming back because overall I love the music.

well, in my opinion the older asot's are better then the new one's. anyhow, in the main asot is truly nice to listen and stands in the forefront of radio shows.

Hardly ever listen these days.

Armin doesnt help him cause when he releases ASOT Best of 2008 towards the end of April 2008. Some tunes are two years old. Also, its a megamix. Grrr.

the show died around the 260 mark

He plays way too much vocal rubbish imo and his sets dont flow very well.

Very hit and miss at the moment, there's been some brilliant episodes (mainly the recorded sets from Amnesia etc) and some absolute rubbish recently!

The Armin that presents ASOT seems to be completely different to the Armin that DJ's in the clubs nowadays, each gig i've seen him at this year he's been brilliant

Nice thread, interesting question posed indeed. I can't really say much about ASOT because I never really listened to them, only episodes I have heard is 129 & 309. Besides the obvious difference in style, I just noticed that the new episode does a lot more promoting for other artists. What I mean is, they get Lange, Sander van Doorn or Jose Amnesia to present their own track, whereas I don't remember that much talking in the older episode, which had amazing tracks.

I'd really love to listen to the first episode!