- Ralph Falcon is perhaps most known for ‘Dark Beat’, a track produced in collaboration with Oscar G. His solo releases have been less prominent – although fans will remember ‘I Need Someone’, which ably demonstrated Falcon’s ability to deliver a well executed, growling tribal track. Indeed Falcon’s releases are a bit of a rarity, which makes it all the more necessary that they deliver the goods.
Unfortunately, ‘The Dig’ is nothing out of the ordinary. It’s a dark tribal track with transient chimes and gongs, a reverb-drenched synth line, and snippet of a Middle Eastern vocal that makes you feel like you’re in a dark Turkish S&M chamber. It’s not a bad idea, but it feels a little puffed up and grander than it really should.
Skip the Umek remix too, a commercially minded techno track made from clichéd elements such as sirens and Euro trance zaps, and head for the Radio Slave remix, which turns the original into a sleek techno monster that wouldn’t sound out of place on the soundtrack to The Terminator. Falcon’s dark and haunting synth riff sounds far more at home here, and stripped of the most obvious tribal elements there is much more room to breathe. The only real criticism I would make is the unnecessary use of the vocal, but thankfully this doesn’t feature for too long leaving you to get on with the dark trip in hand.
TracklistA1 The Dig (Original)
A2 The Dig (Umek Remix)
B1 The Dig (Radio Slave Remix)