Its unfortunate that I recently discovered this record and don't see how I could have missed such an epic release. 12 Years old but was still touched by this record and had tears of joy from pure audio bliss again and again. A true uplifting trance record that reflects the spirit of what once was. I think I also had so many tears realizing that Trance is in a coma nowadays. Hopefully someday that will change and I will await the next Golden Age of Trance.

It's easy to say that epic, uplifting trance had been on the decline since roughly 1999 up to the point of the release of "Havannah" in early 2004. The global economy and risks of terrorism, no doubt, had sunk into the psyche of clubgoers (and DJs), effectively chilling the mood and consumer taste in EDM. It's little wonder why, when "Havannah" hit the shelves, there was an elevated level of excitement rarely seen about a particular record, particularly among the trance DJ set, many of whom had been forced to absorb more deeper, darker, progressive house sounds into their playlists in the prior years. Take your pick with any song in this release: the A-side original, or either the Mike Shiver or Misja Helsloot on the B-side, and you can't really go wrong. The A-side and Shiver tracks contain the main guitar sample and highlight the build of the track around that sample, and each does it with precision that generates a truly uplifting, energetic emotion in the listener. Helsloot deepens the vibe a bit, manipulating the guitar a bit to a bonafide Ibiza sunset sound and adds some spoken word samples, but still pulls off a winner. No cheese here, folks: the label says "Trance Revolution Recordings", and with the first release on the label (backed by a then-unknown Bjorn Akesson, whom would go on to much greater success) revolutionized what a trance record could sound and feel like.