Customer Reviews

Fabric 39

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Fabric 39 showcases Robert Hood's take on minimal techno. As a crucial and greatly esteemed figure in techno's history, and undeniably one of its pioneers, this set is an interesting 79-minute journey through stripped-back four-on-the-floor rhythms. There is very little to offend the listener, as all tracks have been stripped of irritating hooks and vocals, or anything else superfluous to rhythm. It is perhaps unsurprising then that the set's most memorable moments arrive with tracks that contain just a little bit more melodic and harmonic content. Hood's own `Who Taught You Math' is practically a symphony compared to the spartan tracks surrounding it, and is one of the highlights. Jeff Mills' `Skin Deep' sounds like the intro from a tech-trance track circa 2001, with the listener expecting a chord change at some point but never receiving one. Fab G's `Bust the Vibes (Real Disco Mix)' and Hood's `The Greatest Dancer' bring some classic disco samples to the mix, sounding strange in this context but irresistible nonetheless. Fabric 39 is a dry listen for much of its running time, but it is in the context of the mix that minimal techno gains much of its quality. If minimal techno isn't your bag, listen to the album first and buy the highlights on their own. If, on the other hand, you love Robert Hood's distinctive brand of techno, you will not be disappointed with the thirty-two tracks on this CD. But then again, you probably own this already.

Hailing from the gritty city of New York, and with a disproportionately strong taste for minimal techno, Robert Hood is one unsung hero whose name should have become household as early as 1992. Masterminding the M-Plant (and, by extension, Drama and Duet) labels has given him the experience necessary to mix an album such as Fabric 39. In Hood's words, "A set from Fabric is the only way I want to go. This mix has to be about the club... any project I do, I like to read like a book... It has to have continuity to take you on a ride. It should have a concept and be able to translate and read as such."

But to truly understand Robert Hood is to understand an emphatic and influential journey back in time to the early `90s, beginning with Jeff Mills, Mike Banks and the Underground Resistance Label, whose early to mid-90's releases would go on to change the shape of Detroit techno and Chicago house. A principle creator and sculptor of most things minimal today, Hood spins Fabric 39 seamlessly and with complete conceptualization. Given Hood's extensive background in shaping modern house music, it should come as no surprise that his latest work not only hits the ground running, it also retains its momentum throughout its sixty-nine minute duration. It is, as such, the perfect minimal clubbing album - which, as a Fabric release, lends a bit of novelty to the mix in particular. It is truly difficult to comprehend this mix finding shelter within a family of notoriously "minimal" electronic house given the fat, squelching sounds of tracks like `School,' `Mr. Funk,' `Legalize!' and `The Greatest Dancer.' There is too much to hear, too much to "see," to accept this album under the mere guise of "minimal."

And so, Hood and his album's warning shot is precisely that - that "minimal" techno is not a blanket term for dull and listless electronica lacking better classification. In this capacity, tracks like `Silicone Fingers,' `Strobe Light,' `Fever' and `Bust The Vibes (Real Disco Mix)' (amongst many others) realize Hood's vision. Fabric 39 is enticingly wide-scoped; it might be surprising that the thirty-two tracks from fifteen years of Detroit techno, Chicago house, tech-house and New York underground are neither disorienting nor tiring. The breathless pace of new-world minimalism is never at a loss for those deliciously sweet and funky grooves produced and sold straight from `90s record boxes. Hood's retrospect-diversity makes for a dynamic and challenging musical experience. The mix rises from mid-tempo to breakneck speeds, paralleled only by diving to strange and unexplored depths of minimalism before rising to the surface with a gasp of sinister funk. And thus, the movement of the album illustrates itself; a colorful, undulating piece of underground artwork whose strength rests at the fingertips - and in the privileged ears - of its creator.

Brewed from a genre and record-label mastermind, forging new standards for track diversity and smudging the lines that have so far defined convention make Fabric 39 the best purchase and most astounding piece of aural craftsmanship the Fabric label has produced in some time. Minimal fans should prepare to have the carpet swept from under them, for Hood's effort is a forceful testament to what experience can bring to a disc's impact. A fantastic compilation.

- James Woodruff