If you’re unaware, I’m currently in the running to be Queerty‘s official music reviewer…which I will remind you of in large letters RIGHT NOW.

The contest–which is doing nothing to help aid in a lifelong fight against a laundry list of neuroses and vaguely narcissistic tendencies–is not over until Monday. As I’ve tried to “rise above” and forget about encouraging others to vote, I’ve been reduced to little more than nervous foot tapping and constant page refreshing approximately every three to four minutes.

In short, it’s a normal day for me.

To allay my woes, I’m doing all I can to distract myself with–What else? La Musique.

Way back in the day (as I recall it was either a Tuesday or a Saturday), I had a dream. It was a noble dream as I recall–To be on The Real World.

As a result, I spent a great deal of my childhood afternoon hours silently meditating on the swing outside my home, replaying the imagined events over and over again in my head: Befriending the bitch of the house, getting sassy in the club with the roomies, and, as I recall distinctly, a series-defining fit of rage in which I would dramatically dump a full bowl of cereal atop the Bible thumper’s head during a particularly heated mid-breakfast exchange.

I wasn’t very social back in the day. And, as it turned out, I found that my need for validation was more appropriately surfeited through written form rather than the help of seven absolute strangers and a handful of cameras.

Now if you’re British, you may well be asking yourselves: “What in the bloody Hell is this boy banging on about?” I’m getting to it–Hold your trousers.

Each and every time that I found myself recounting that season trailer, I would place the same track on repeat to supply the show’s mental soundtrack; a track in which I find I can continue to immerse myself completely to this day–Iio‘s 2001 smash, “Rapture.”

After the bra-zilliant 2006 release of their long-coming debut, Poetica, I have always kept tabs on both the group and its hypnotic lead vocalist, Nadia Ali. While Iio has seemingly shifted into “hiatus” after 2007′s remix album, Ali has made headway into the solo sphere. First came her luscious collaboration with Armin Van Buuren (2007′s “Who Is Watching”), followed by a debut solo single (2008′s “Crash And Burn”), and now? Now we have ourselves a little “Love Story.”

“Love Story” is not at all what I was expecting. To me, the track plays like a dreamy, modern reinterpretation of a Stevie Nicks ballad (who is cited as one of Ali’s musical influences) which, while following the standard trance format, still feels that much more hypnotic and ethereal in its strangely detached, dragging manner. Like most of what she does, there’s an impressive omniprescent quality in Ali’s delivery here, taking full hold over the song. In a world plagued by no-name, dime a dozen trance tracks, it’s always a comfort to have a pro like Nadia Ali come in and truly demonstrate command over the dancefloor.

On the down side, I do miss the masterful quality of Ali’s Middle Eastern classical vocal techniques (“Is It Love,” “Kiss You”), which have been seemingly subdued for his release. Blame it on the Bollywood-obsessed college roommate (I learned to forgive with time), but I’m a bit of a sucker for those stomach-turning instant pitch.

DL: Nadia Ali – Love Story (Starkillers Remix) (Sharebee)
DL: Nadia Ali – Love Story (Andy Moor Remix) (Sharebee)

The single, which will be released March 9 on iTunes, is currently available at Beatport along with various remixes from the likes of Starkillers, Andy Moor, and more. MOAH?! Click here to see Nadia Ali’s MySpace.