Marcus Intalex - fabric 35 - tracklisting (and interview)
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Marcus Intalex, king of the more soulful and innovative side of drum‘n’bass, sits in a slightly uncomfortable position on his throne. On one hand, he’s involved in a vibrant, well-supported scene that allows him to play music around the world; on the other, he doesn’t quite fit in with the bulk of the scene. But why should he have to compromise himself to the popular tunes that now reign on the d‘n’b charts? Sure, the kids want to hear them, but he’s not a kid anymore.
He’s a veteran that’s survived a lot, in fact - the initial revolution of d‘n’b (and dance music, for that matter); the building of a close-net scene in Manchester with his mates L Double and ST Files; the development of an incredible and staggering back catalogue of hugely celebrated tunes, mixes and d‘n’b classics; the creation of Soul:r, the label that receives praise and appreciation across all scenes; the growth of his distinguished DJing schedule...the list is immeasurable. So perhaps his general stance in the media, often posed as miserable tyrant (despite his lovely and jocose demeanour), is understandable, as his accrued wisdom has left him somewhat unhappy with the current state of his livelihood and beloved genre.
“Sometimes it’s really difficult because - as the popular sound is moving away from what we do and our sound - I do go to DJ at some places and the crowd really doesn’t like it. It’s just hard sometimes. You kinda gotta take it the way it is. I don’t change my sound because the crowd’s not into it, I can’t. I literally can’t, because I don’t even have the popular tunes that most people like – I refuse to take them with me, that’s not what I’m about. Some gigs are more difficult now then they used to be, but then, on the other hand, these days when we go to some places, there’s a specific crowd that supports what we do. With our music, we need to have a no-compromise attitude: this is us, take it or leave it - I’m very sorry if you don’t like it, but this is what it is. And that’s what we get booked for. We don’t get booked because Andy C’s busy, know what I mean? It doesn’t work like that! I just do my thing; I’ve always stuck to my guns.” – Marcus Intalex
Slow down the beats per minute, turn down the bass and pull the record back to Marcus’ first taste of electronica; quite appropriately, at a futuristic, innovative New Order show at the renowned Hacienda in Manchester. An awakening from his provincial life in the sleepy town of Bromley, the wide-eyed teenager was instantly hooked. A couple weeks later, the freshly inspired youngster abandoned his love of maths and hooked up his mother’s record players to realise he just inherently “knew how to mix.” A couple weeks after that, he found himself apologising to the owner of his local club (Angel in Burnley) for climbing over the DJ box and pulling the plug of the amplifiers, because he didn’t like the music and thought he could do a better job. And that he did, after many humble apologies of course - he started up a night at Angel every Tuesday, and its great success saw it quickly move from a midweek night to taking over the club at the weekend. This proud yet unpretentious attitude has been a leitmotif in the various chapters of Marcus’ legendary career, from his early days as a promoter to his years working in record shops to his famed radio show on Kiss to the eventual globe-spanning recognition that he now enjoys as a producer, DJ, label owner, and promoter (his night Soul:ution is an underground success in both in Manchester and at FABRICLIVE).
“I love the Soul:ution nights we do here. I love Room 3. To have someone like fabric want to be associated with us is brilliant. FABRICLIVE, to an extent, has its own crowd on a Friday night and it’s not necessarily the crowd we play to very often. But we wanted to have a little room where we could create something ourselves and do it that little bit differently. It’s good because we’re not in Room 2, where there’s drum‘n’bass every week. I don’t want to be disassociated from the rest of drum‘n’bass at all – it’s just that the direction the music’s gone has put us out on a limb, which really wasn’t our intention, it just happened. I obviously don’t like a lot of drum‘n’bass, but I absolutely love some of it as well. I do what I love, you know what I mean? I do what I love. And I really couldn’t give two hoots about the other stuff. That’s what I’ve always done, and that’s how I got here, doing a mix CD for fabric.” – Marcus Intalex
On FABRICLIVE 35 – a seductive mix laden with deep, hypnotic grooves and sweeping melodies - Marcus Intalex will open the closed eyes of those so quick to inauspiciously dismiss drum‘n’bass as unmusical. Any listener will fall helpless to the groove-led mix – even the stiffest of hips will sway and the most sceptical heads will nod along as the bass rolls over impeccably smooth and artistic mixes (indeed, mixing must come natural to him). FABRICLIVE 35 is a picturesque showcase of his label’s stunning productions, including a few of Intalex’s own, and embraces some of his most respected collaborators and like-minded peers. With alluring, emotive grooves from Calibre, the rhythmic Breakage touch, Lynx’s ravishing low-slung sub bass, and the fresh soul of Alix Perez, Intalex proves that drum‘n’bass is a unique, multifarious, future-thinking scene with as much strength and deliverance as any. Continually shifting and changing shape with a sharp sense of style, the 19 tracks explore the vast world of d‘n’b, from the mellifluous and smooth to the techy and precise to the warm and soulful.
"What I decided to do is play a broad range of music, some reflecting the club environment, some reflecting the home environment. It leans a little more to the musical side and is quite varied in sound to keep it interesting. I’m well aware that a lot of drum‘n’bass is not particularly listenable for people who like a bit of everything. I’m trying to put a good light on drum‘n’bass and put some tunes on there that are interesting. I wanted to take the best drum‘n’bass out there and put it together to make a good representation of what I think drum‘n’bass is.” – Marcus Intalex
Tracklisting
01. Calibre ft. Lariman –Over Reaction - Signature
02. Calibre – All The Days - Signature
03. Lynx ft. Kemo – Global Enemies – Soul:r
04. Commix – Faceless (Marcus Intalex Remix) – Shogun
05. Jonny L – Come Here – Mr L Records
06. Amaning vs. Dubwise – Smash V.I.P. – Soul:r
07. Soulmatic – Self Belief – Good Looking
08. Calibre ft. DRS – Hustlin’ - Signature
09. Calibre – Mr Right On - Signature
10. Deadly Habit – Synesthesia (Theory Remix) - Tentative
11. Breakage – Clarendon – Digital Soundboy
12. Alix Perez and Lynx – Allegiance – Soul:r
13. Zero Tolerance ft. Steo – Refusal – Soul:r
14. Mistical – Time To Fly – Soul:r
15. Duo Infernale – Feeling Blue – Soul:r
16. Instra:mental – Pacific Heights - Darkestral
17. Bango Collective ft. Kemo and Dennis Jones – Apocalypse – Soul:r
18. Mistical – Groove Me – Soul:r
19. Alix Perez and Sabre – Solitary Native – SGN:LTD
Release Date: fabric first members: 07/08/07 uk/r.o.w. retail: 20/08/07 usa: 18/09/07
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