Dakota is the alias of German progressive house producer Markus Schulz, who also works in trance. Under this name, he develops a separate body of club-oriented material from his releases under his own name, with an emphasis on darker textures, progressive structures and a lower-tempo approach than much of his other work.

Overview

Dakota appears as an electronic project associated with progressive trance, progressive house, melodic trance and uplifting trance. The name is also shared by a number of unrelated groups and solo acts, but in this context it refers to Schulz’s pseudonym.

Releases and style

The Dakota project is described as a vehicle for exploring a deeper and more club-focused side of Schulz’s music. Its tracks are presented as separate from his productions under his own name, with different tempos, sound ranges and effects choices. The project’s catalogue includes the album Thoughts Become Things, whose follow-up Thoughts Become Things II continues in the same progressive vein while moving through prog, trance, techno and house elements.

That second album is described as a 14-track release with material such as “Gypsy Room”, “Red Star”, “Where It Went Wrong”, “Terrace 5AM”, “Tears”, “Katowice”, “In a Green Valley”, “Apollo”, “Miami”, “Cape Town” and “Saints”. The singles “Sinners” and “Sleepwalkers” also form part of the project’s profile, with “Sleepwalkers” gaining attention in Schulz’s DJ sets.

Musical character

Dakota’s sound is characterised by progressive trance foundations with techno detail, house influences and melodic passages. The music is described as remaining largely below 130 bpm and drawing on a range of dance sub-genres, with tracks built for underground club play.