Nick Warren – The Soundgarden - Volume One

So is this the last physical mix we've had from Mr Warren . Anyway CD1 wins on this 2CD release. Every song blends seamlessly into the next on the first disc with beautiful progression. The second is good until track 9 and the whole mix is elevated to sonic bliss demonstrating how placing a song at a certain point is a beautiful thing. The production is really good also .

While I've admittedly had trouble garnering interest in CD2, CD1 is superlative. It is an imperfect mix, yet one of the most perfect sets I've encountered. This is Nick Warren at perhaps his finest hour (and eighteen minutes). In my conceptualization of The Soundgarden, this ambient/downtempo mix features the synths, textures and soundscapes I would associate with that poetic denomination. The flora and fauna of these tracks thrive in an Edenic garden.

The music pulses, drifts and meanders as we traverse a wide variety of emotive themes: solitude; melancholy; ecstasy -- despite remaining in a stasis of chilled-out vibes. Neo-classical pieces in composers Frahms and Arnalds are deftly woven into this sonic fabric. Sometimes the transitions are a delicate, wispy float onto the next track, other times surprisingly explosive for a downtempo mix (e.g. Says into Low Ball).

There is much beauty effusing from the majority of compositions here. Nick Warren maintains a steady course throughout most of the journey, beginning to falter only towards the end; I find One More Day To Regret and especially Out Of My Mind to be unfortunately regretful and out of place. The final track is a minor resuscitation from this hiccup, but not enough to fully purge the stain from such an otherwise immaculate compilation. Nevertheless, this mix remains overall gorgeous and fully worth anyone's time. I will treasure this set in my library for the years to come, and it shall likely age as well as Nick Warren's storied career is maturing.

You have to applaud Nick Warren for keeping the DJ mix compilation alive - and the art of it too! The first disc is a very ambient affair, and while it picks up the pace on the second disc it never becomes 'peak time' progressive house. The latter would've been the easy choice - to cater to the fans of 90's/00's Nick Warren. Instead he balances (...get it?) the downtempo house sound without ever becoming café background music.