Deemed the biggest festival & club tracks of the summer, there was a lot of hype surrounding this release.
Disc One – ANDY MURPHY
With a taster of remixes by Mark Ronson & the Business INTL, and other summertime phenomena’s Gypsy & the Cat, Olav Basoski, and Boys Noize – you have the perfect little mesh of ‘2010 meets 2011’ clubbing memories in this CD. Good for nostalgia of times that have passed, but absolutely no indication of things to come. In the musical world, that is.
Teensnake with Coma Cat starts off the disc with what can only be classed as the perfect sound for Sydney’s Cargo Bar on a Friday night. Suave, sophisticated, but with the slightest ambiance of a teen rave. Track 9 throws at you a slightly Cuban ‘We speak no Americano’ number, which can only be classed as fun. Thankyou to the Round Table Nights (feat. Reverend Beat-Man). AndSwedish House Mafia manage to do it again in this album, with that classic ability to want listeners to get up & go; the perfect warm up medley.
A few numbers in here are dance-worthy. But if you wanted to do things properly Disc 1 probably isn’t your best bet. Deadmau5 & WOLFGANG Gartener in Track 16 probably take you the closest you’ll get.
If hectic is what you’re after, go with Disc 3 – ACIDJACKS. Featuring electro pops, acid drops & distorted vocals, this disc is fairly repetitive without any brilliant high notes – so essentially, one would need to GET hectic before listening to this stuff. FeaturingMosten and Malente, Azari & III, Tony Senghore (If You Came Here) and even a cheeky track by Nelly (Hot in Here?) this mix does all it can to produce a dance soundtrack with energy. Unfortunately, the only energy it produces is in my head, which makes me seriously consider swallowing some Panadol Forte.
All in all, Disc 3 reminds me of those DJ sets you accidentally stumble across when lost at a dance festival, and despite complete oblivion as to what you are actually doing, you find yourself joining the dance crowd in a state of wild abandonment. Next thing you know, concerts over, and you’ve wasted a significant amount of time listening to a 2-hour set of artificial garbage. At the time, though, it seemed bearable.
DISC 2 – CALVIN HARRIS
Pick of the lot really. For someone who doesn’t like the sound of his own voice, he sure as hell has a taste for sound. Calvin mixesTIGA , John Dahlback & Joonas Hahmo in a series of sounds with more tune than beat. This is a good thing. A few recognisable numbers in there, but all in all, this is the sort of thing you could put on in the background at any event or venue and have faith in what will boom out of those speakers.
Track 2, is more of Track 1 really, a brilliant little dance floor number with a blend of Brazilian roots to inspire anyone to move their torso. Acid infused beats that culminate in what one would imagine would be a senseless dance for anyone at this point in time.
Track 4, Monster by The Squatters was a bit of a highlight. With those high pops we all know and love, you kinda want to… just… dance. No other way about it really. The following track, Rikkalicious by Herve + Kissy Sellout does all it can to keep things going down the same route. And succeeds.
There is even a remix to Fat Boy Slim’s Praise You, which, lets be honest, I think everyone admits has done its time. Somehow it works here. Not the greatest dance CD of our era, but probably not the worst.
Stick to the artist’s individual sets and I think you’ll be much better off
