While he might not be as familiar in the United States as other DJs, Tall Paul is actually a world-renowned DJ who seems to be constantly ranked on DJmag's Top 100 and BPM's annual rankings each year. Not only did he score a residency at the UK's legendary Trade party at an early age, but he also was an integral part of Britain's house and trance scene and in Europe. Always striving to create his own unique vision of blissful groove music, Tall Paul has put out more than 20 mix albums including Dance Nation, The Annual, and The Clubber's Guide on such labels as Moonshine, Ministry of Sound, Virgin, and his own Duty Free Recordings. He has also done remixes for acts such as Blondie, Duran Duran, New Order, and most recently Keane's "Is It Any Wonder?" Those mix compilations, though, were never continuous, so on his newest release, The Beat Technique, Paul has created his first continuous DJ mix which he programmed and mixed to varied results.
Less house and techno-oriented than most of his other albums, The Beat Technique will never be mistaken for as a purely trance or dance compilation. This CD is more mellow and sublime and never really reaches past a midtempo beat. The Beat Technique is more of a mild-mannered groove set that is definitely an easy listen but never invokes any memorable moments and never deviates from its formula. The more than seventy minute mix finds him trying to explore American club styles with a somewhat relentless groove, yet most new listeners will feel that the tracks tend to run together. Tall Paul's collaboration with Dave Aude on "Common Ground," which displays a somewhat mainstream pop sound, evokes a nice vocal trance ambiance that is effective in its use. The closing mash-up of Alabama 3's "No Submission" by Tall Paul and Matt Darey is another great track that is uplifting and is a great combination of rock and house music and definitely a great way to end the mix.
Some of the other decent tracks on the album include Cyclone Rangers' "Other Side," which is a slow-burner that starts off dark and slinky but then builds into a certain seductive excitement, while Robbie Rivera's "Float Away" is an amazing trance track that uses stunning synth sounds and airy vocals to great effect. The other tracks on the CD aren't bad, but they fail to evoke any sense of inspiration which seems to be the problem with the album in general. The reworking of such tracks like Steve Lawler 's "That Sound," which is a great house track, seem to lose their potency after being mixed and become destined as filler space which does nothing to help elevate the sound of the mix as a whole.
While Beat Technique wasn't created to be extremely flashy, it unfortunately doesn't do a lot to set itself apart from its counterparts. Tall Paul definitely shows he has talent but yet this album seems to be a lackluster effort compared to some of his earlier efforts. I do believe that The Beat Technique is an entertaining set but I feel that there are other mix compilations that are more worth listening to and this effort by Tall Paul will only be truly appreciated by his loyal fan base.
