Eric Estornell needs to slows down or he is going to have a
heart-attack. Under the guises of
Maetrik and
Maceo Plex (amongst others), he
is one of the most in-demand producers, remixers, live performers and DJs on
the planet. Yet, as this record is a testament to, there’s no sign that he’s spreading
himself too thinly or that quality is suffering at the hands of quantity.
Performing live as Maetrik at Cocoon Ibiza’s closing party in
Amnesia last September proved to be another game-changer in
the ever-burgeoning profile of the Texan producer. In fact, the show went down such a
storm that Cocoon have decided to release the recording of it, a move which in
the climate of countless DJ sets streaming on the internet for free, is either stoically
confident or somewhat short-sighted, regardless of the album’s content.
Live albums succeed and fail on their ability to live up to
the gimmicky expectation of being able to communicate a certain ‘live’
element. Thankfully the atmospherics and
wooziness of seeing Maetrik in the flesh is all here. Opening with the
enigmatic tech-house number
The Poem,
eight minutes of tribal bass, urgent snyths and an enigmatic reading aloud of
Dis Poem, a poem by Birmingham
Rastafarian poet
Benjamin Zephaniah, the album cements its ‘live’ credentials.
A moment later, and the set effortless slides into Maetrik’s own ‘Jazzersize’
remix of
Silicone Soul’s
3am,
offering
a funkier bassline, and a badass
vocal sample accompanying the slick and sexy chords underpinning the beats.
Hardworking vocals are a key component to the album’s
effect, and the all-destroying
Particle
House is particularly good example of this. A collage of varying vocal
effects and samples offer a variety of tonal nuances, complimenting perfectly
the straight-forward kick-drums, strings and unrelenting riff. It’s a hugely effective
piece of main-room tech-house, and perfectly exemplifies Maetrik’s unique musical
signature, offering a motive for why he distinguishes between what he does as
Maetrik and what he produces as the lighter, disco-tinged Maceo Plex.
Yet, the
alter-egos aren’t without their inevitable shared qualities, both camp's recent
output have oozed with a sexiness, charisma and certain sense of decadence,
that is hard to pin down.
Penultimate
number Crush On Me is the recipient
of a live reworking; its hypnotic swirling mass of straight-forward techno is
remoulded as it peaks, dips, grinds and twists itself around a cut-up vocal.
Yet, its merit truly lies in warming the listener up for the massive conclusion
of the Maceo Plex’s work 'Under The Sheets'. Still as strong now in early 2012 as it was at the end of the Ibiza season, the
track is the perfect conclusion to the album, its sun-drenched vocals and
goose-bump inducing trance-like drop providing a memorable final chapter. This
is hands in the air euphoria that, whilst bordering on cheesy, has a magical
melodic hook and offers the perfect curveball conclusion to the otherwise
techno-orientated album.