Friday, February 23, 2007

CD Review - Ralph Lawson: Fabric 33

The Fabric series descends upon us once again this March. This month the CD compilation is headed up by long time Leeds and Back to Basics resident Ralph Lawson. Ralph’s sound is the result of a long and diverse career in dance music. His sound stands somewhere between electronic, deep house and live elements with splashes of funk, disco and acid. His productions with his 20:20 Soundsystem project and the output of his label 20:20 Vision is evident of this and this Fabric 33 mix is no exception. Rather than wonder down the minimal route like so many of his peers, Ralph has kept true to his sound, which is probably the reason why he’s been around for so long. This mix touches on all the classic Lawson bases. The live funk elements are noted on the 20:20 Soundsystem productions High and Radio by Drum Cult. Deep house is covered by the excellent sounds of Dennis Ferrer with Transitions and Brett Johnson Everything’s Electric. Hints of classic acid swirls are present with Joakim’s Drum Trax and the Tejada remix of Marc Romboy’s Jigsaw. So many brilliant selections, finely blended together by such an experienced dj, showing us that there is some brightness in and amongst all the darkness of the electronic sound.

Ralph Lawson: Fabric 33 is out 12th March 2007

You can catch Ralph Lawson every other week at Back to Basics (Leeds) and will be appearing at Fabric on 24th April

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