(Shock Records)

If you are still reeling from post-Two Tribes elation or you missed the national dance event, this is the CD dance compilation for you. The lucky contenders are Pee Wee Ferris mixing CD1, Mark James on CD2 and a bonus third CD of dance classics, all assured to put the ‘doosh’ back into ones life.

Pee Wee Ferris goes straight into banging beats with P.O.S. 51 by BK and Believe in God by M & R Project. A voice tells us that “Twenty years ago, a dance revolution was launched in this town” amongst uplifting synth, sirens, foghorns and build-ups that go places. What I found particularly interesting – unlike my neighbors, is how Pee Wee Ferris picks up the last few syllables of a word and turns it into a wicked distorted NRG sound. Such as Let Me Fly by Darren Styles & Mark Breeze pres. Infextious, and Attitude by Champion Burns. A particular highlight for me was Insane by Dark Monks. He picks up on the main line being sung “I don’t want to be alone” then distorts the word ‘alone,’ drops a bouncy bass, then some claps, a dry beat and other sounds used to give the mix an NRG feel. If you like NRG, this mix will put ‘holes in your head.’

A challenge for many DJs and Producers is to consider musical flow without any interruptions. And if you are a genre hopper, musical flow is often compromised – but not with CD2. A first for Mark James, the compilation mix dances through House, Tech, Trance and Break Beats. Mixing blends in at all the right places, and it is totally catwalk and dance friendly.

Manijama’s No No No starts a tribal, dark set with bongo drums, mid beat beats and smooth high hat. Then deep and funky moves to an eighties disco feel with Am I On Your Mind? by Oxygen feat. Andrea Britton. Naturally blended into the next track is Obsession by DJ Tiesto. Lots of layers of lush including what I suspect are distorted sound bites from Technotronic’s Pump Up the Jam and something from Ictchy and Scratchie? But then Washington by Dica brings in the NRG element to the mix. The sounds remind me of playing arcade games at Timezone as a kid. And with hi hats, claps and a mad techno riff, this is definitely the stand out track. Not too much doof because it is skillfully mixed as a toned down NRG track. If the sounds of the eighties still ring in your ears, but with a modern twist, this is the mix for you.

Oh yes. And the bonus third CD will fill your home, car or patch of grass with classics like 1988 by Binary Finary, Love Stimulation by Humate and For An Angel by Paul Van Dyk, just to name a few. The whole Two Tribes CD compilation rates high on the ‘doosh meter.’ A low rating equals ‘dooshless.’ A high rating equals ‘the neighbors are complaining about the music!’