Sasha is undeniably one of the masters when it comes to telling a story by sound, be it by using his own music, or by melding together an amazing variety of works by other artists. This time, it’s Fabric’s turn to present us with another one of his timeless mixes.
In Fabric 99, Sasha fashions a universe of echoing voices and melodies, sometimes held together and grounded by bass and rhythm, other times left to float freely in the ether. The result is an emotional and moving mix, as is usually the case with his sessions, but this time the ebb and flow of the music feels deeper, more adventurous. The sense of where a song ends and another begins is blurred further than ever, such is the care in the selection, sequence, and mixing of the collection, a fitting addition for commemorating the last Fabric mix before hitting the 100 mark and changing format.
Starting with the ambient textures and evocative vocals of the two first tracks, Stretch Your Eyes by Agnes Obel and I Wanna by Marbert Rosel, the mix begins to pick up the pace and before you know it, the delicate chords of Whitesquare’s Abraxas are giving way to the steady beat of After Rhône 2013 by Crowdpleaser, and then the haunting notes of Lost Forever In A Happy Crowd, by Exercise One and Mathew Jonson, fill the air, lingering on and on in your head even long after the song is over.
Then, things get deep with Sasha’s own Smoke Monk, on a special Fabric mix, which in turns morphs into the broken beats of Needle & Thread by Objekt without losing the flow of the session. Things come to a halt for a moment, starting again to return to the depths of house for the last part of the mix, with music from Jono Ma & Dreems, Efdemin, Carl Craig, George Fitzgerald, etc. This brings everything together and makes for an excellent segment before transitioning into the last tune, Sasha’s remix of Baile’s Amae, closing the session with a downtempo vibe.
Sasha’s domain of mood and emotion is flawless in this mix, and the music becomes one long fluid session where all the parts connect and interact until it seems like they were always meant to have been put together this way. Older classic songs are paired with newer, cutting-edge tracks, which gives a feeling of timelessness, putting a connection between the different eras of electronic music into perspective. It is a proper trip into both the future and the past, and who other than Sasha to take us through such a journey.
Fabric’s collections have always given us the latest and the best electronic music mixed by top artists from around the globe, and we look forward to finding out what they have in mind to keep this excellent collection going into, at least, 100 more sets.
Fabric 99 came out on June 22nd, you can listen to samples and order it in CD or as a digital album at the venue’s website. A 4xLP vinyl edition, including full-length versions of 16 of the mix´s 20 tracks, will be available on July 27th, and can be pre-ordered here.
