It's been a frustrating year for fans of Fierce Angel, with new releases few and far between. Worse still, much of what did come out was in the mixed format that I'd previously jumped ship from HedKandi to avoid. So it is something of a relief to find this: a new album, unmixed and kept to just 2 discs (avoiding the occasional dips in quality that some of the 3 disc predecessors suffered from). The packaging, as ever, is excellent and reflects the quality of the material chosen for this album.
I'm not familiar with the majority of the tracks included here but it's no surprise to find a cohesive collection with Mark Doyle still at the helm. His sleeve notes describe the sound as "all things deep, moody, sporting a bit of attitude and a big hook". Disc 1 is mainly deep vocal house, whilst Disc 2 enters more eclectic territory (including elements of trance, instrumental house, Euro dance etc).
There are many great tracks here but standouts include:-
'I am the moon' - Karin De Ponti: naggingly insistent bass, spooky production, soulful vocals
'Rebound' - The Wizard Brian Coxx & Alias Rhythm: haunting vocal house with a worried vocal accompanied by an uneasy, galloping bassline
'How to Love' - Peyton Vs DJ Kolya & Mutaya: the always amazing Peyton lends his smooth, emotional voice to a track for which Eric Kupper provides his trademark impetus
'Kalifornia' - Norman Doray: closest thing here to the 'Fierce Disco' sound, with a classic 70s disco riff standing alone (no vocals) against a punchy dance bassline
'We Are The Night' - In The Screen feat. Rachael Starr: space age synths & plaintive vocal suddenly stalked by a monster bassline (influenced by Cerrone's classic 'Supernature'?)
It's not perfect by any means - disc 2 in particular focuses on a few too many harder sounding tracks that fail to engage and stray too far from the 'deep house' sound that most people purchasing this album will probably be hoping for. Nonetheless, this is a well thought out and impressive collection.