- It should come as no surprise that Joris Voorn wove together 65 tracks for his fabric mix. Arguably, the Dutchman's career highlight came when he did much the same on Balance 014 back in 2009. But while that mix was a trip through deep, emotive house and techno with absorbing peaks and twists, this new one is a much more linear ride through soft techno.
As in Voorn's own pristine productions, there isn't a hi-hat out of place, an unnecessary kick drum, nor a vocal whisper that hasn't been fawned over on fabric 83. As a technical demonstration of his skill and studio patience, it's second to none. But over the course of the mix, the focus on detail is almost exhausting. There are so few kinks or gear changes along the way that it's easy to find yourself adrift, at which point it seems as if the mix could play through from any point and still not disrupt the flow.
The microscopic ups and downs in each track soon become a tired trick, but there are some moments that stand out. Specifically, the first 20 minutes or so make for a pitch-perfect opening passage. First you're sucked into a cavernous dub chamber, then an angelic acapella empties your mind before you sink into a light techno groove. Voorn stitches in church bells, crystalline keys and dehumanised vocals—he's also unafraid of a teary trance pad—as he works on keeping you suspended in that moment. Predictably, the selections from Cobblestone Jazz, Donnacha Costello and Robert Hood work best when chopped, edited and looped ad infinitum.
Voorn's grandly emotional "Looks Fake Obviously" offers the first break in the clouds. Forty minutes in and the mix has been studiously insular and heads down, so the track's radiant keys offer a welcome breath of fresh air—albeit momentarily. Soon after, Voorn is back to chasing a perfectly reduced groove with slightly tougher cuts from Speedy J, Truncate, Sebastian Mullaert and more, often a few at once. It's impossible to pick apart those inner workings, which is itself an achievement (if not a well-tested one in 2015). Zooming out from the picture, however, it all looks rather less perfect.
Tracklist01. Sunset Graves - So, Who's Gonna Watch You Die?
Application - Front End (Remixed by Pye Corner Audio)
BLNDR - Isolate Frequencies 2
Lo Grounds - Fatalism
02. Deft - Blue Jasmine
ambiq - Loka
ambiq - Toxic Underground
Reggy van Oers - Loctivity
03. Plastikman - Consumed
The Persuader - Pinnharan
Van Bonn - Abroad
Arnold Tempo - Quarion Was Digging For Water
Donnacha Costello - Grape A
Deepchord - DC14 (A1)
04. Siopis feat. Mr Brean - Listen To The Whispers (Jody Hannan Remix)
Joris Voorn - Where Have You Gone? (Part 1)
Lau Frank - 7am (Dachshund Remix)
Audio Werner & Jichael Mackson - Schlamm
Roland Klinkenberg - L'Esprit De L’Escalier
05. Howling - Signs (Matom Remix)
Christian Fennesz - Kae
Julien Aubert - Feelmar (Gaspard de La Montagne Remix)
Martin Aquino - Red Pavement (Halo & Alex Fuente Remix)
Christian Fennesz - Euclides
John Tejada - Two 0 One
Glacial - Entropy
06. Joris Voorn - Fall (Nobody Home Dream Interpretation Mix)
Giash - Space Odyssey
07. Cobblestone Jazz - Drawn From The Side Of Crime
08. Sounds Like Us - Little Helper 163-4
Donnacha Costello - Backache
Sagat - Body
Roland Klinkenberg - Departures
09. Monobox - Realm
Tadeo - Deep Space
Robert Hood - A.M. Track
Reggy van Oers - Mavie
10. Joris Voorn - Looks Fake Obviously
11. Nasty Habits - Shadow Boxing
Anton Pieete - Next Year (Mosca's Skaep Niwt Version)
Tom Day & Monsoonsiren - Love Is Rare
Tom Day & Monsoonsiren - Dreams
Joris Voorn - Left (Roland Klinkenberg Remix)
12. Wolfgang Voigt - Empathie
Rekord 61 - Sverh (Radio Slave F.Y.M Remix 2)
13. Joran van Pol - Exist
Speedy J - Fill 17
14. Truncate - Concentrate (Truncate Rework)
Robert Hood - Shaker
15. Cobblestone Jazz - Northern Lights
Dani Labb - Asha
Timothy Blake - Squiggles (The Mole Remix)
16. Sebastian Mullaert - Direct Experience (Remake)
Swann Decamme - Go Away (Dan Bexley & Chad Bostock Remix)
Art Of Tones - Unstopped (The Revenge Remix)
Awanto 3 - Bubbles Made Me Cry
Joris Voorn - Mugged (Anton Pieete Remix)
17. Joseph S Joyce - Vedanta (Sebastian Mullaert Remix)
Nobody Home - Entheogen
18. Tozzy - Anoat
Mike Parker - Forward (The 5am Mix)
Max Loderbauer - Slowrag
19. Application - Front End (Remixed by Pye Corner Audio)
Jake Chudnow - Prelude To Shona
Stefan Vincent - The Void She Left
20. TCF - D7 08 2A 8D 2A 37 FA FE 17 0E 62 39 06 81 C8 A1 49 30 6F ED 56 AD 5E 04