Elektra Performance 5 Sound 6.5 Bjork is a cutting edge artist. Her songs push the pop envelope and frequently she will release many versions of her singles that have been remixed by the top DJ's in the world. Normally those records are quite cool. I own 5 or 6 of them and they nicely hold me over between Bjork studio records. This record is the first remix effort that disappointed me. The classical instrumentation juxtaposed against the hard floor techno mixes make for a record that is hard to get into. The songs, which are strong by themselves, take second billing to the re-mixes and the effects which in many cases are over powering. This record is for hardcore Bjork fans only.

artist: Jamiroquai   function popUp(URL,NAME) { amznwin=window.open(URL,NAME,'location=yes,scrollbars=yes,status=yes,toolbar=yes,resizable=yes,width=380,height=450,screenX=10,screenY=10,top=10,left=10'); amznwin.focus();} document.open(); document.write(""); document.close(); album: Traveling Without Moving format: CD label: The Work Group/Sony release year: 1997 performance: 8 sound 7 reviewed by: Jerry Del Colliano Jamiroquai has a very distinctive retro Stevie Wonder inspired vibe that is very catchy. I can very relate with the first song "Virtual Insanity". Programming The Audio Revolution makes me virtually insane quite frequently. The record has an uptempo, movin' baseline that runs throughout the record. There is a very retro 70's feel because of the instrumentation and disco beats.

Emancipation Performance Quality = 6.5 Sound Quality = 7 After a prolonged battle with Warner Brothers records The musical genius formerly known as the most popular performer in the World has released his first record on his own, titled appropriately, Emancipation. A three disc set priced around $25 US, Emancipation boldly answers the question "what has Prince been doing for the past few years?"

Chesky Records | Performance 8 | Sound 6.5 | I love spicy music. Badi Assad's "Rhythms" fits right in with my collection of Mambo, Salsa and Latin records. You expect a killer recording from Chesky Records and of course you get it. It is present with very believable soundstaging. The overall tonality is better than most audiophile grade records. The liner notes speak of a 128K oversampling rate and tube mic preamps that hot rod the recording process. I don't really care what it is... the record just sounds great. Certainly the best sounding record I own in the genre.

Sony/Tri-Star Music | Performance 6 | Sound 6 | Bally Sagoo is huge in Europe and India. Conservative estimates on sales of his first record were around 1,500,000 worldwide. Bally is the father of the `Bhangra Beat', born in New Dehli and raised in London, Mr. Sagoo has had a huge range of influences from traditional Indian music to American R&B. This record is way different than what you are used to. You will never hear one of these cuts on your top 40 radio station however the music is pop oriented. It has a female vocal, Indian instrumentation, modern effects like samples and a hip hop groove. It is a very interesting listen with the exception of wen the singer goes over the top with the Indian chanting on a cut or two. That is easy to ignore considering the strengths of the record. Bally Sagoo fits in well with your Massive Attack ...