Thursday 23 September 2010

Surgeon: fabric 53

Bonafide Zine

Surgeon
Fabric 53
Fabric

If recent alleged reports of administration are to be believed, clubbing stalwart Fabric may be drawing its final breath as London club land goes even deeper underground (Ed, fortunately this is no longer the case).

It was the rise of the ‘Super Club’ that buried the final nail in the corpse of acid house. Fabric however always remained a beacon of hope amongst the larger-scale clubs, demonstrating a unique and refreshing take on heads down twisted dancing. And this instalment in the legendary mix series is a real testament to that profound take on dance music culture.

Surgeon has bobbed and weaved his way through the underbelly of raving for over a decade with his sets becoming synonymous withy those who prefer the hedonistic rather than chin-stroking side of what was once known as ‘real techno’. Compromising a strong 4/4 bottom end with a range of instrumental electronic textures throughout, the breath taking bone-shaking journey takes in everything from the classic Detroit sounds of Robert Hood and Luke Slater’s Planetary assault Systems, through to the minimal Dubstep of Appleblim and even crazy distorted hip-hop from Starkey and Rustie.

It’s not easy listening, but that’s not the point; however it is uncompromising and ultimately a lot of fun, which is.
If it’s a hard night on the tiles, sound tracked by a man who can justifiably wear the title of legend you are looking for- this is the ultimate mix.

Toby Hemming

The Grid Flotation: Prin Thomas Remix

The Grid: Floatation - Prins Thomas Remix by RichardNorris

Thursday 16 September 2010

G.I. Disco


GI Disco



(BBE/Inertia)

GI Disco is a tenuously linked – but very high quality – comp from BBE that purports to chart the legacy of visiting American GIs in West Germany during the late 70s and early 80s. To a country hooked on Euro-pop and hard rock, the appearance of Afro-American soldiers brought to the nightclubs and airways a healthy and much needed dose of NY disco, funk and boogie.Most fans will already have the majority of these cuts in their collection, leaning as it does solidly towards the dancefloor rather than willful obscurity. But if you think disco means drunken sales reps shimmying to KC And The Sunshine Band, there could be worse places to start discovering the joys of ‘real’ disco music.Opening track Rumors by Times Social club defines well the music of this era, as disco embraced technology and moved away from the media spotlight creating a heavier underground groove. Many people may be familiar with Freeze’s IOU, but it’s the darker dancefloor sound of The O’Jays with Put Our Heads Together, and particularly Surface vamping it up with Falling In Love that really make the grade here.As a collection of classic tracks, the uninitiated could do a lot worse than seek this tightly curated compilation out as a window into the roots of today’s contemporary dancefloor music of all genres. A high velocity package from start to finish, GI Disco is a worthy and very enjoyable comp if not particularly innovative in approach – definitely one for any collection lacking the groove.TOBY HEMMING