Live, Mark Farina has been one of the best DJing experiences I've ever witnessed. Almost every other song stood out as something unique, and it excited the crowd to a point you didn't think they could be elevated to anymore. The bad thing about getting the mixes of DJs that put on these kind of shows is that when the same feeling isn't replicated on your home stereo, you can't tell if these songs on the disk are different from the ones you heard live or if the alcohol or other such chemicals made them sound better than they were on the night of. And that's the dilemma here with Farina's Sessions.
It's a nice mix but it's just not full of the exceptional, euphoric tracks Farina is known for dropping on a live crowd recently. Also missing from this mix that's present at Farina's recent shows is his skillful transitions from house to funky breaks/hip-hop, which does give evidence of a different approach on disc than live. There are a few killer tunes here and there but maybe not enough for the casual fan. Gavin Boyce's "So Obvious" has such a festive spirit with its room-full-of-boys harmonies and is worth hunting down by itself. Iz & Diz's "Mouth" is a hot "foul-mouthed" cut full of clever tongue clicks, punchy horns, and some hide & seek vocal harmonies and the Magik Johnson remix of Michael Scott's "Do it down" is a spacey jog with just enough melody to keep the robotic piece from becoming boring. But the track that steals the show is "Southic" by Prztz, a celebratory jam with sped-up soul vocals and your grandmother's electric organ kicking it out like proper house should. But unfortunately, all of these mentioned are only found on the last half of the second disk, which some listeners may never get to.
Yet after saying all of that, if you''ve been a fan of Farina for years, Sessions will be a pleasant addition to your collection, giving folks some auditory return to his Chicago/Detroit house roots where he honed his skills, eventually getting to the worldwide status he has now. And if you're not sure what kind of house that entails, think quirky bleeps and stomping kick drums that together with minimalist garnishing creates a thumping ambience. Sessions is full of familiar works such as The Juan McLean with "Give Me Every Little Thing," Layo & Bushwacka with "Life 2 Live," and DJ Sneak with "React Dat Booty." And there's some familiar remixers with JT Donaldson, King Kooba, and Greenskeepers taking their turns on Jabwai, Colossius, and Tracy Cooper respectively. A couple of Farina's own tracks are included ("Bringin' It Back" & "The Watch") but neither are notable and are actually a little on the monotone side of things when placed against the rest of the collection.
Long story short, a nice funky background collection with a few teases at moving your ass.
