Sounds You Can Feel
Thanks to the tireless dedication of scene makers like Doc Martin, Southern California (and the West Coast in general) now commands mad respect in the worldwide house community. It was not always this way. Throughout the '90s, house heads west of the Rockies were used to seeing the left coast as a wasteland of Mickey Mouse breaks and the twee, airy sounds of early trance. But with Martin finding a common ground between house, techno and yes, funky breaks, his perpetual presence on the global circuit turned him into an ad hoc ambassador for all things Californian. Eventually, even the hardest heads started looking westward, with a Who's Who of house (Colette, J.T. Donaldson and Lance DeSardi, just to name a few) relocating to Cali's sunny climes.Now Martin gets to take a victory lap with the enviable honor of producing a mix CD for Derrick Carter's heralded Classic label. He doesn't disappoint. Running through after-hour anthems like Slow Supreme's "Green Tea" and Shaun Escoffery's rousing "Days Like This" before getting dirty withURBNext 100 star Aaron Carl's raunchy "Down" and New Wave-y with Rob Mello's "Fantasize," Sounds You Can Feel is mellower than expected. Still, it's a moody and masterful affair.Scott Sterling--From URB Magazine