- Good ol’ Mark Farina, he's always there when you need him. Master of the mid-tempo, this connoisseur just can’t help but continue his reign as a stereo idol. His taste in music has always been what sets him apart from his contemporaries. Drawn from instrumental hip-hop to sultry deep house and everything in between, he’s a dj that hasn’t been afraid to a slow down the beat and go “lazy” for a few moments, letting the grooves simmer and sizzle.
So after countless hours on the decks across the far reaches lands, he returns to offer another stroom to what made him so special – The Mushroom Jazz series. In the latest edition, Mushroom Jazz v.5 follows past threads of downbeat hip-hop, but still keeping its groove up more so than down.
Beginning with the laziness of J Boogie’s “Afros in Ya,” those jazz notes open the disc for a relaxing mood. At points it even sounds a bit sleezly with melding of the saxophone, and melodies that twinkle. As those broken beats move along, you start to forget about the music, it becomes part of the background. It’s just there, alone, until Zion I’s “Flow” comes into the picture. With its female hymns, whaling softly for the bedtime, you can’t help but be a bit enticed. Farina makes you feel calm, lazy, and loose all at the same time. With the highlight of the compilation, “Nic’s Groove” by The Foreign Exchange to close the album, you find that the 21 singles put together fit the bill just right. Throughout the new compilation, you get what you pay for, 70 plus minutes of pure Farina mushroom jazz.
But you can’t help to think that you’ve heard this all before, and you essentially have with volume one through four. Everything sounds alike, but it isn’t a bad thing. Some will find this as a 70-minute symphony, one track that begins and then finishes from where it started, while others may find it too mundane with too many similar sounds.
Even though the album is nothing new, you still can’t help but fall for it. Farina is good at what he does as he keeps the compilation up afloat with some very good hip-hop music. It’s still cool, still urban, and still tantalizing.
Tracklist
1. J Boogie - Afros in Ya
2. Colossus - The Tribute
3. Soundproviders - Autumn Evening Breeze
4. DJ Numark - Chali 2na Comin’ Thru
5. Red Astaire - Come Down
6. Zion I - Flow (Fluid Mix Instrumental)
7. DJ Spinna - Nostalgia
8. Mark Farina - Cali Spaces
9. Blu Bizness - Funky for You
10. Wee Bee Foolish – Puttin’in Work (Instrumental)
11. DJ Dez - Hollywood
12. Jazz Liberatorz - Music Makes the World Go Round
13. The Strange Fruit Project - Maintain (Instrumental)
14. Presto ft. LOWD - Back in 92' (Instrumental)
15. Shortie No Mas - You Like My Style
16. The Earl - Here's the Proof
17. Jonny Alpha - Modern Womens Short Stories
18. Starving Artist Crew - He Kick Clap (Instrumental)
19. Pete Rock - It's a Love Thing (Instrumental)
20. Thes One - The Yacht Club
21. The Foreign Exchange - Nic's Groove