Black Technosoul

A journeyman for most of his recording career, Eddie Flashin' Fowlkes enjoyed a few years of stability at Tresor Records during the early to mid-'90s. Black Technosoul was his last album for the Berlin-based label, following 3MB Featuring Eddie Flashin Fowlkes (1992), The Project (1992), and Technosoul (aka The Birth of Technosoul, 1993). Moreover, it was his first truly solo album, as all of these prior full-lengths had been collaborations to some degree. As such, Black Technosoul is the most representative of Fowlkes' albums for Tresor, and its title is appropriate, for the music is indeed a variation of the techno sound of the time, one that is injected with elements of soul and jazz music. There's a heavy house influence evident here, also. Considering Tresor's move away from its Berlin-Detroit alliance around the time of this 1996 release, Black Technosoul is a curious entry in the Tresor catalog. It's one of the last of its breed, for sure, and one of the purest bred, for that matter. Aficionados and collectors may want to check it out. Even if Black Technosoul doesn't represent the best of Fowlkes' work to date, which had been spread across innumerable 12" releases for a long list of labels, it's nonetheless a revealing representation of this underrecognized producer's talent and passion for music-making. ~ Jason Birchmeier