ABOUT THIS ITEM

There is no denying the passage of time, and least of all here. Like good cognac, Lambkin's debut album, "From the Cradle To The Rave", has taken decades to fully develop its flavours. It is the product of a life spent in nightclubs. The story of a life transformed by music. It is one man's singular definition of house music, one of 2010's best albums, and a record which, without its very specific and colourful history, would sound utterly different.

The album hangs together so well, is not just a matter of track programming. Crucially, it also sounds cohesive, too. Marcus worked closely on it with James Murphy, who co-wrote several tracks, and it is audibly a product of the DFA stable. It is fat and swollen, pregnant with analogue sounds: unique noises produced from real machines. Murphy's mix, meanwhile, has given it that trademark DFA toughness. It is very much a family affair. As well as Janine 'Planningtorock' Rostron and Saheer Umar from House of House, DFA clan members Juan Maclean, Nancy Whang and Hot Chip's Alexis Taylor, all contribute vocals. Yet, "From the Cradle..." never gets bogged down in 'the collective'. It is always identifiably Shit Robot.

Opener, "Tuff Enuff", lays down a marker, literal and metaphorical. A crisp, knowing homage to Chicago house, Kraftwerk and gay electronic disco, it is almost Marcus saying: 'Look, this is who I am.' The lyrics, meanwhile - written by Murphy - throw down a gauntlet, which Marcus picks up, defiantly. As the album moves from the deliciously oddball "I Found Love" (with Marcus on pitched-down, processed-Barry White vocals) through the hard, hypnotic "Grim Receiver" - part Hawkwind, part S'Express - and the distorted memories of distant warehouse raves explored on "I Got A Feeling", Marcus doesn't waste a beat or put a blip wrong. You barely notice, moreover, that it is all building, imperceptibly but irrefutably, to "Triumph". A soaring kosmiche finale, an Ibiza sunrise pressed on 180g heavyweight vinyl, it is the perfect way to top-out.

01. Tuff Enuff
02. I Found Love
03. Losing My Patience (Feat. Alexis Taylor Of Hot Chip)
04. Take 'Em Up (Feat. Nancy Whang)
05. Grim Receiver (Feat. Juan Maclean)
06. Simple Things (Feat. Ian Svenonious)
07. Answering Machine (Feat. Planningtorock)
08. I Got A Feeling (Feat. Saheer Umar)
09. Triumph (Feat. James Murphy)