DJ Hell - International Deejay Gigolos CD Ten

This two CD release from DJ Hell; techno innovator, electro creator, and all-round bad-ass a&r man for I.D.G, is the choicest acid house, electro, and techno with a side lesson in subtlety. Let's face it, DJ Hell isn't going to pull a duff album out his sleeve anytime soon, and this collusion of part mixed, part unmixed tracks and 11 brand new Gigolo artists is another exciting glimpse into where the artist envisions music is heading. Belgium's Arbotique is mixed up with Romania's The Model, and preceded by Cologne's DJ Rebecca Von Kalinowsky, with more nationalities and new faces peppered around the rest of the discs. In fact, the album does more to unite the European nations than Eurovision, just with exceedingly better tunes, and 18 of the total 26 tracks are previously unreleased, anywhere. The break stabs of the 80s are re-awakened by Paul Chamber's Bitter Cliche and Kikumoto Allstars' bodyrockin' Jack the House entices the increasingly angry synths of Outlander's The Vamp (Kevin Gorman mix). Standout tracks include Mount Sims' Nailed To The Wall, and Herman Schwartz's Replicant's Suffering is as close as you can get to an imaginary meeting between Bladerunner and Jean Michel Jarre. Minimal house throbs, distortion, electronic washes, and pumping retro synth are the key ideas, jangling and squelching CD Ten into a favourite spot in your music collection. [Alex Burden]