Remix Collection

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The remix is one of the oddest things in modern dance music. Often, it is the remix of a particular track that becomes the standout on the charts and dancefloors, while the original pales in comparison. Perhaps it is a postmodern way of balancing out the loss of collaboration caused by too many lone bedroom auteurs. Yet remix collections are usually to be avoided, since they can lack the cohesiveness that only an artist's album can achieve. Berlin DJ/producer/label owner Ellen Allien breaks through this discrepancy with a collection of her own remixes, and they are so dominated by her particular touch that they easily become part of her own canon, sometimes leaving the originals in the dust. This is particularly true of Miss Kittin and Goldenboy's Rippin Kittin, which has been tearing down clubs for several years. She even goes so far as to inject some of her own disembodied vocals into the remix of OMR's The Way We Have Chosen, and in the case of Barbara Morgenstern's Aus Heiterem Himmel, she transmits her pal's vocals through the same bank of disconnecting effects. The same holds true for Covenant's Bullet. At times, Allien's dominance might leave you wondering why she didn't just put the effort into her own recordings, most of which leave these mixes in the dust. But as one of the only ways most electronic producers interact, the remixes serve their function well, particularly for Ellen Allien fans who will most obviously grab this disc. ~ Joshua Glazer, Rovi