Loopus In Fabula - Fat Ladies Bingo

Fabula Records, April 2006

Author: pr0fane
Date: Jun 9, 2006
Views: 2916


content = Review by:
Jannick Andersen // DJ pr0fane (Dance N Dust Records)
www.sunrisesupplies.com



Artist: Loopus In Fabula
Title: Fat Ladies Bingo
Label: Fabula Records
Format: CD
Released: April, 2006
Cover: http://217.160.138.169/pic_b/fab1cd003_b.jpg


Review:

Loopus In Fabula is undoubtedly one of the most well-known acts in the more funky direction of psytrance, and so far with 3 full-length albums in their discography. Behind the name we find the two guys from Italy\'s capital for fashion, Milan, Matteo Stroppa and Jacopo Barbaccia. Their first album, \"Loopus In Fabula\" was released on Australia\'s consistently psychedelic label Demon Tea, and their 2nd album, \"Astrofunk\" was released on their own label, Fabula Records.

Personally I\'ve never been a loyal follower of their music, and I haven\'t heard any of their albums, so when I received the promo of their new album, \"Fat Ladies Bingo\" I approached it with an open mind.


01. Doofy Duck (feat. Ritchie Mantrix) [140 BPM]
The album-opener is \"Doofy Duck\", a track themed over Looney Tunes\' well-known Daffy Duck character. It starts out rather well with a funky, almost progressive grooves with distinct disco-influences, but sadly the whole Daffy Duck theme was over the top. Didn\'t come out as an amusing concept for me, just slightly annoying.

02. Controversy [142 BPM]
After the disappointing album-opener, \"Controversy\" is a bit more to my liking. The grooves are faster and not quite as funky, the vibe is more serious, but there is still a small dose of funk in the melting-pot. It feels sort of like a funky version of Neelix - without the annoying, repeated voice-samples, that made me dislike his latest album, \"No Way To Leave\". Quite good track.

03. Dreamschwartz (rmx for Visnudata) [142 BPM]
Next up is a remix of \"Dreamschwartz\" by the Finnish artist Visnudata. The wacky, funky sounds from the first two tracks are in more the background in this blasting remix - it\'s even more serious than the predecessor, slightly more on the dark side, and very intense and psychedelic. Very pumping dancefloor tune, but still with very fun grooves. Definitely my favourite so far.

04. YSD [140 BPM]
With \"YSD\" the psychedelia is toned down a notch. It starts out sounding like the Scandinavian forest-minimal style from some few years back, but it slowly gets wackier and wackier, ending with some delightful and very bouncy psydisco-elements. Doesn\'t stand out as much as the Visnudata remix, but is among the better tunes on the album.

05. Fat Old Ladies (feat. Paul Kearney) [137 BPM]
The title-track (almost) \"Fat Old Ladies\" starts out with some demented voice-samples and a hard slapbass before it incorporates some truly corny sounds that make it sound like an 80\'s version of the Eurovision Contest on acid - and I mean that in the best possible way. Feels a bit too messy overall to me though.

06. Funky Express [138 BPM]
Next up is \"Funky Express\" which, oddly enough, is the least funky track on the album in my opinion. Apart from the \"Funky Express\" voice-samples it seems rather dull compared to some of the earlier tracks, and it doesn\'t really seem to develop either.

07. Feel Again [136 BPM]
Things rapidly improve with \"Feel Again\", which is one of the strongest points on the album, and undoubtedly is heavily influenced by Donna Summers\' \"I Feel Love\". The electro-influences are back, and although it doesn\'t provide as many surprising twists and turns as some of the earlier tracks, I think I can best describe it as a psychedelic version of Beckers. Really good stuff.

08. Rockit [135 BPM]
The retro electro and disco-elements are left out in \"Rockit\", and it does feel rather nice for a change. It\'s deeper and more pumping than the earlier tracks, but the Loopus-guys still have a few clever, amusing tricks up their sleeves. Think a funky, twisted and not quite as pretentious version of Sentient, add a little bit of breakbeat and you have \"Rockit\". Another cool tune.

09. Lets Dance [134 BPM]
Last but not least is a remix of David Bowie\'s timeless classic \"Let\'s Dance\". The elements from the original are distinct and will definitely cause loads of smiles on the dancefloor, but this remix is definitely a very original and interesting interpretation, and not among those \"original + killer bassline\" remixes that has been flooding the scene in later years. Let\'s Dance!


Bottom line:

As I mentioned in the beginning of the review, I\'m not among Loopus In Fabulas most loyal followers, so I approached \"Fat Ladies Bingo\" with a quite open mind. It was way more progressive-psytrance than I was expecting from my few earlier encounters with Loopus In Fabulas\' music, and overall it was a pleasant surprise. Think psychedelic and twisted, but not as dark and hardcore as the overly popular \"dark psy\". Amusing and funky, but not as mind-bending as the innovative Suomi guys. More on the progressive side, but not as sophisticated as Kino Oko.

Like your psytrance good\'n\'funky? Then \"Fat Ladies Bingo\" is what you\'re looking for.


Favourites:

2, 3 (!!), 4, 7, 8, 9 (!!)


Verdict:

7/10


Links:

Fabula Records: www.fabularecords.com
Loopus In Fabula: www.loopusinfabula.com

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