TuneLab
Ewan McVicar
Mixmag Lab London
Ewan McVicar in the Mixmag Lab London is the audio equivalent of finding a box of pristine '90s rave flyers in your attic—suddenly, it's 3 AM, you're covered in sweat, and everything makes perfect sense. We are, once again, absolute suckers for a DJ who treats classic vocal samples not as nostalgia bait but as foundational bricks for a new party. The Lab's no-frills setup is perfect for this, all business with a big soundsystem. Technically, this is a buoyant, peak-time house set averaging 129 BPM and anchored firmly in the euphoric 12A key. The energy arc is a classic rise, starting with soulful warmth and building to piano-driven climaxes, with a smart balance between low-end thump and mid-range melody (0.50 low, 0.38 mid).
McVicar's mixing is energetic but precise, using quick cuts and long blends to keep the momentum sky-high. His harmonic sense is sharp, moving into 9B and 5A to add tension and release without losing the crowd. The track selection is a love letter to house music's enduring joy. Paul Lock's 'Say This' is a modern weapon with an old-school heart, while Buzzy Bus's 'Jump (Hip House)' is pure, unadulterated fun. The Full Intention vocal mix of Michelle Gayle's 'Do You Know' is a flawless opener, and Butch's 'Praise The Lord' is a monstrous, percussive closer.
The highlight might be the sheer audacity of dropping Run-DMC & Jason Nevins's 'It's Like That'—a track so famously overplayed it's become underplayed again, and here it sounds absolutely colossal. Nalin & Kane's 'Beachball' gets a driving Sebastien remix, and Bushwacka!'s 'Monster' provides a darker, techier interlude. The journey starts with the soulful invitation of 'Do You Know', hits its peak with the rave-ready sirens of 'It's Like That', and sends us out chanting to the tribal rhythms of 'Praise The Lord'. A tracklist that reminds us why we fell in love with this nonsense in the first place.