Goldie has been many things in his illustrious career – actor and reality TV star among them – but when the gold-toothed don comes back to drum & bass; well, he’s just unstoppable. One of the drum & bass scene’s chief innovators and Metalheadz label head, Goldie has been in the game for two decades. His offering on FabricLive58 shows no signs of him slowing down, or any indication that drum & bass has lost its ferocious touch.

Mixing cuts from his own Metalheadz imprint as well as other stables like Shogun Audio (who seem to be irrepressible lately), the album features an impressive roster of talent from Metalheadz such as Jubei, Mikal and Mutated Forms. Opening track Twisted may start with heartbreakingly smooth male vocals and soft keys but eventually breaks down into a shuddering bassline and is perfectly mixed into Marcus Intalex ft S.PY’s Celestial Navigation.

Vocal tracks like Hold It by Mark System featuring Youngman and Lenzman’s Open Page lend a variety and diversity to the selection and break up the heavier sound that permeates through the beginning of the mix. The second half of this session is where it really comes to life and takes on more of a liquid D&B feel, with the first half of tracks possessing a harder, almost industrial breakbeat feel to them. That said, tracks like Mikal’s Higher Forces give a deeper sub bass flavour that nods to the bass-heavy tone of things lately.

Throwing classic gems like Adam F’s Metropolis and his own Timeless (self explanatory tune really) into the mix seem obligatory, particularly when you have one of the driving forces of the scene at the helm. The lasting power of these records is unquestionable and while it may seem a bit of an obvious ending, they still pack as much power now as it did back then.

fabriclive 58 is out now through fabric/Balance Music. Distributed through EMI.