Lights Out

Steve Lawler | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 16, 2002)
• Original Release Date: 2002
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Lights Out
• ASIN: B0000682WN
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #76,782 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Lights Out - Intro (Part 1)

2. Spanish Tale

3. Generate

4. Kasso (Roveli Attack Mix)

5. Harlem Shuffle (Dub 2)

6. Dirty Fingernails

7. Watersong

8. Sunrise

9. Andante (Lights Out Unreleased Dub)

10. Hello

See all 13 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Lights Out - Intro (Part 2)

2. Technological Aspects (The Technical Latin Mix)

3. Musik Presure (Lights Out Edit)

4. The Light (A.T.T. Mix) - P.I.M.P.

5. Thunder - Swing

6. I See The Light (D Ramirez 13th Rusher Mix) (Lights Out Edit) - Desert

7. The Crowd Song (Bassdrum Gangsta Mix)

8. Phostographt (Lights Out Edit)

9. Get It Girl (Lights Out Edit)

10. In The Underground

See all 15 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Different, drum led, progressive house; love it or hate it, September 13, 2002

By 

"whatyouneedtoknowreview" (SANTA MONICA, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lights Out (Audio CD)

This is one of those records that comes along and, love it or hate it, you can't ignore it. "Lights out" is sort of the Lotus `Gullwing' sportscar of DJ mixes this year; it cant be ignored but produces strong opinions both ways.

Lawler is a well known and highly regarded producer, and certainly Lawler's mix and sound is unique, his track selections compelling, yet quirky, and based on other reviews, many of us don't get it. But this is certainly the most unusual selection to come out this year and it belongs in your collection if you have a little time to focus and appreciate the deeper things; here is why.

First of all, what it is? As the elaborate packaging and word copy makes clear, this are the cuts that Lawler plays when he `turns out the lights', meaning presumably, when things get very intense, dark and sexy. So its a very personal mix, not a pick of the hot club favs, and Lawler reaches deep into his collection, this tracks are often obscure. Its progressive house, perhaps, but very tribal too, meaning its deep, somewhat dark, stripped down, intense and sexy--with dashes of trash/glam techno pop.

In case you haven't hear, Lawler is all about drums and percussion (see his "Dark Drums" series), and Lawler has a unique sound that is focused on plenty of mid high range sound in the mix, that emphasis the whoosh, grind, and tick of the percussive elements, and a deep boom that creates a sharp in your face sound that hooks you in. There is not alot of keyboard or fill in or sound effects, although there is a judicious use of vocals to leaven the mix a bit.

At first blush it may seem bland or thin, particularly if you are "waiting" for a keyboard break or some melodic element--or worse, some peak anthemic moment--it won't come. But if you give into the tick, whump and pulse of Lawler's drum groove you won't regret it. Another mistake is to play this too low, its requires volume to appreciate the unique sound of Lawler, it demands your attention and won't work in the background (its the Lotus sportscar, after all.....).

But this is no dilettante art mix, this is about sex and fun, and he throws in the infamous "Orgasm" record which has so many moans and groans it will embarrass you at a stop light if you are not careful. There is also on CD 2 the cross over 80 synth pop sound of "Phostograph" complete with new way sounding German female vocals, this is followed by two more techno pop type tracks that Lawler has mixed it to fit somewhat. This section of CD that surprises you with essentially a bit of trashy, attudinal gay club music, is likely to lose about 40% of listeners who will immediately say "what the [heck] is this?" and hit the skip button. Luckily three pulsing tribal tracks follow that redeems the middle section.

Its a bold move, reflecting Lawler's personal taste and integrity and not what a broad band of listeners expect. I'm not sure it works, I struggle with "Phostograph" and what follows even now, but still, this is perhaps the flaw that you find even in the largest and most valuable diamonds. Buy it and get into it, people.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Steve Lawler is incredible., July 25, 2002

By 

Andrew (Tucson, Az USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lights Out (Audio CD)

Steve Lawler is the only DJ to consistently put amaizing tracks and incredible mixes out. This is no exception. The first disk prepares you slowly for disk 2 (my favorite of the two). Disk 1 picks it up at the paranoid jack track and continues to hold your attention to the end. Disk 2, nothing else to say but incredible, innovative, funky, tribal house, all capped off by a wonderful finish to this set (canteen). This is by far one of the best mixes this year put out by the most interesting house DJ in the buisness. This is a must buy for any Steve Lawler fan or anyone else who is tired of disco-esque house and is looking for something new, seemingly drug induced, but absolutely and perfectly different.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dark from start to finish - a Lawler fan collectible, June 24, 2003

By 

Anand Subramaniam (Chennai, INDIA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lights Out (Audio CD)

Yeah, they're beginning to run out of ideas, aren't they? With the overdose of dance music mix compilations being force-fed to listeners today, the Boxed Boys have been forced to come up with some new stuff just to break the monotony of their GU production line. And so, we have LO01 - an album that by its name promises to be the first of many in a Lights Out series.

The good news is that they picked the right DJ to pilot the course of a new series. Steve Lawler has been called the Brit Danny T because of his penchant for low-bpm dark and tribal house, but comparisons are unfair. With his Dark Drums outings and the Nubreed one-off, Lawler has proved quite amply that he is a DJ in his own right, thank you very much. This is the sound that Lawler plays in Lights Out 01; the sound that Boxed looks set to promote for a little while at least with this series.

To stay as faithful as possible to the theme of the album, Lawler has pulled off quite a few tricks that you don't see very often. Both discs start with his custom-crafted intros which drip with slowly rising menace, and move into territory which Lawler aptly calls "the sleazier side of clubbing". Disc 01 is a little milder - a little bit like the set-up punch of a one-two combination. Controlled, but carries its own sizeable bite. Heavy, booming drums characteristic of tribal house resound throughout, while crackling synths and other-worldly vocals flirt around the edges of the bassline. The tempo is slow and deliberate, calculated to produce the brooding, ominous sound that tribal house fans crave. Disc 02 kicks into a more intense groove, with the sound going a little more hardcore. Fantastic mixing is highlighted here in tracks 6, 7, 8 & 9, where Lawler drags back the charging house beat into a fractured, electro-poppy vocal track, and then swings the pulse all the way back up to 100%. Brilliant stuff - you can see how a club filled with hot, sweaty bodies gyrating in the dark would react to something like that.

So - what's the verdict? This is good, solid tribal tech-house in 2 CDs. Not a classic, but very, very good in the here and now. The only issue that I can think of is that tribal house is a pretty limiting genre of music - unless you're a fan of this kind of sound, you'll have a hard time listening through to this album, coz there isn't too much diversity. It does what it is meant to do, and nothing more. The fact that it does so exceptionally well makes it a keeper.

Disc 01 - 3.5 stars (Good tribal house, sticks to the formula)
Disc 02 - 4.5 stars (Dark & twisted, lives up to the hype)
Niche target audience - Reduces rating
Superlative representation of the tribal sound - Boosts rating

Overall - 4 stars. Nice one, Mr. Lawler.