The Casual Persona of Mushroom Jazz
More of an experiment or project rather than a production in the established lines of dance music’s preexisting genres, Mark Farina works well within the standards he has set for himself in previous examples of this series. With a genre of such limited popularity and open definition, he expands its concept further while providing the listener with a sense of familiarity through the use of songs with recognizable underground elements (like Jack Kerouac in the CD’s opening track, “The Beat”). What an appropriate track to offset the norm and introduce an artistic and diverse musical selection. To be expected, his hip-hop type blending methods, incorporated into a house style featuring direct cuts and complimentary clashing rhythms, recognize the artist’s intention and give credit to their work. Make no mistake, this album appears more as a sampler and tribute to the diversity of downtempo than a seamlessly-mixed dance CD of Mark's own hand.
Summary
Mark Farina has sorted through and handpicked recently released tracks suited to circle and fill out his Mushroom sound. Downtempo, hip hop, jazz, ambient, and funk are the primary ingredients, with other spices mixed in to fare listeners to their destination in a casually decadent fashion. This is not Mark Farina near to the core of Chicago and San Francisco house, but Mark Farina hovering over the world relaxed on weeknights and rainy days, providing an overview filtered with his vision of contemporary dance, transcending age and genre.
Released October 2008 on OM Records
