Album Review: DJ Sneak Fabric 62

The inherent problem with being associated with a certain sound is that escaping from it is nigh on impossible – and with the exception of occasionally dipping his toe into the coolsie tech house waters of Luciano's Cadenza parties, you get the feeling DJ Sneak has little interest in ever straying too far from his jackin' house roots. Which is all good and well for dance music enthusiasts who worship at the altar of all things Chicago, but not exactly music to the ears to those for whom the minimal loopiness is just a little too repetitive.

Like his fellow Windy City veteran Derrick Carter on 2010's Fabric 56 mix, Sneak doesn't fuck with the formula on Fabric 62 – in fact, after leaping straight into things with the relentless drive of Strip Steve and Das Glow's Calcium, he doesn't fuck with much at all over the entire 18 track set. Occasionally Sneak deploys a hook you can hold onto – take the titular vocal sample over the jazzy swing of Yeshua Murillo's I'm Gonna Make You Mine (Jess Moog Mix), likewise Tripmastaz's No Turning Back – but for the most part this is rump-shaking, boompty house music stripped down to its bare essence of kick/off-hat/clap, two-note bass line and trace elements of melodic hooks where required.

Functional grooves do not necessarily a memorable mix make, and Fabric 62 is very, very functional. And while rolling on and on and on with not the slightest hint of a detour might work for Chicago house disciples, Sneak does little to entice the unconverted back for a repeat journey given the destination differs little from the departure coordinates. That Fabric 62 eventually sucks you in anyway is testament to the jack master's skills as a selector.