Together - (5:45) 118 BPM
Review: Since ditching his Marquis Hawkes alias some years back, long-serving house and techno producer Mark Hawkins has gone back to his roots, delivering no-nonsense, hype-free workouts for the likes of Aus Music, Repetitive Rhythm Research and Unknown To The Unknown. Here he makes his bow on X-Masters with a predictably solid four-tracker. Title track 'Time & Space' is particularly potent, with Hawkins layering hazy female vocal snippets and warming electric piano chords atop sweaty deep house drums and a genuinely superb bassline. This classic deep house vibe continues on the even deeper, dreamier and more alluring 'Together', before Hawkins opts for enveloping chords, fluctuating wobble bass and locked-in beats on 'Illusion'. Closer 'Lopez', meanwhile, is a fine fusion of deep house and cultured acid house sounds.