- One name to really emerge onto the scene in the last year has been Nic Fanciulli. At only 24, Nic has been one of the rising stars in the UK, impressing everywhere he plays with his trademark deep smooth and sometimes gritty house sounds. Nic has been featured on the Essential Mix a few times, but it’s this album on Renaissance that sees Nic get his first big chance to shine on the compilation market. This time we all get to hear what the fuss is all about…
The first disc is a very smooth journey. Some early highlights include the very delightful ‘For The Time Being’ by Phonique as well as the very seductive ‘Makes Me Feel (Deeper)’. There are some classic lazy summer house tunes that follow by G-Club and Froome in particular while the pace slowly starts to rise with Sandy Rivera’s vocal number in ‘Changes’. Some grittier elements make their way into the mix with tunes by PJ Davy as well as the very tasty basslines of Mr. Gil And Ricardo Motta. The 3am Mix of Steady Job sees some nice melodic twirls come into the mix, taking the latter stages into a more peak time area, also shown by the epic sounds of Big Time Disco. The smooth drum patterns of Dunky Frummer lead into the finale of disc one, that being Basement Jaxx’s classic 90’s house anthem, ‘Fly Life’.
The 2nd disc again begins with some very nice smooth sounds thanks to the warm pads and deep grooves of ‘Re:Evaluate’. Paul Woolford puts on his Bobby Peru guise and delivers a twisted array of sounds in ‘Heart’ while Buick Project deliver a bouncy and upbeat remix of Soul Mekanik’s ‘Wanna Get Wet’. Jamie Anderson’s mix of ‘Motor Strings’ by Paolo Mojo provides a delicious highlight in the 2nd disc as some smooth beats and subtle but devilish basslines flow delightfully. Nic Fanciulli gets in on the act himself with a quirky and chunky effort in ‘Squirreled’. The pace and intensity starts to lift as the mix comes towards its finale, first with the quirky and tripped out sounds of the Trentemøller remix of Coincidance. Booka Shade’s ‘Mandarine Girl’ is a fruity production filled with haunting melodies and crisp beats and it leads into the outro that thanks softly takes you out in style.
It must be said that Nic has certainly delivered a very good album. Nic has often been compared to Desyn Masiello, and as such if I were to make a comparison with Desyn’s Balance mix then I would have to say that it just falls short. But it also must be said that it is a different mix, a mix that stays in the smoother and laid back state more so then that of Desyn’s mix. It’s a first big statement for Nic in the compilation market and based on this effort, it certainly won’t be his last.