I did not like the last Ricardo VIllalobos album Thé Au Harem D’Archimède.

After his glorious first outing, TAHDA (um… ta-dah!), was way to minimal for my taste. I got into a few arguments about it. Mostly with the old music editor Dave. He loved it. But to me it seemed neither here, nor there. It was so vapourous, it was basically an album that didn’t exist even though you were physically holding it in your hand.

So when rumours swirled online as to why his Fabric mix was being delayed (over and over again) most just assumed Fabric was just not into what he was giving them. Would Ricardo really turn in a mix CD as translucent as his last outing?

Well the wait is over, after nearly a year and a half of wondering what happened to this project, I hold it in my hands, and am, in fact, listening to it for the 3rd time through right now. I must say -

it gets better and better with each listen!

Damn! This is one fine mix. But guess what?!?! It’s not a mix!

Fabric 36 is a new and distinct album wholly comprised of new tracks by Mr. Villalobos. He has a few guest to sing and sample on some of the tracks, but this album stands alone as Ricardo’s best work since Alcachofa.

Starting out with Pole-esque scratches and burps, Ricardo lays out the base for what he will be building over the next 80 minutes. Layer upon layer is added. Song after song builds up his sound as the original scratches cease and real honest-to-god music (with integrity!) comes at you.

By the end you’re transported to a futuristic street fair in some crazy Latin American village, complete with singing and dancing and tribal drumming, but with Ricardo’s relentless beats simmering on top. I’m sweating just listening to it. Fantastic!

Welcome back Ricardo!