Plastic Compilation, Vol. 3

Amazon.com
This third collection in Nettwork Records' Plastic series boasts the same qualities as volume 1 and volume 2: gifted DJs, driving danceability and a solid selection of material, ripe for the mixing. Kicking off the disc with his usual flair for dream-trance composition, BT uses Sarah McLachlan's "I Love You" to ethereal effect, lacing her voice with reverb and arranging it around heavenly dance-floor ambience. Moby's "Bodyrock" (off the seminal 1999 release Play) gets inventive, submerging that song's big beats in deep, long bass grooves, and expanding slightly with a stretched-out diva motif. Delerium, Povi, and Beth Orton all go under the DJ's knife, emerging with unexpected, Picasso-like twists of reality. They even threw in the Chemical Brothers and Sasha's massive club hit "Xpander" for good measure. A fun, quality compilation, especially for those just getting to know the genre. --Matthew Cooke

Tracks:

I Love You (BT Mix) - Sarah McLachlan
Xpander - Sasha
Heaven's Earth (Matt Darey Remix) - Delerium
Take A Picture (Hybrid Mix) - Filter
Dreaming (Tiesto Mix) - BT
Bodyrock (Hybrid's Bodyshock Remix) - Moby
Dragonflies (Uberzone's Strapped To Your Bed Mix) - Povi
Sing It Back (Tee's Radio Mix) - Moloko
Under The Influence - The Chemical Brothers
Central Reservation (Ibadan Spiritual Life Radio Edit) - Beth Orton

Amazon.com

This third collection in Nettwork Records' Plastic series boasts the same qualities as volume 1 and volume 2: gifted DJs, driving danceability and a solid selection of material, ripe for the mixing. Kicking off the disc with his usual flair for dream-trance composition, BT uses Sarah McLachlan's "I Love You" to ethereal effect, lacing her voice with reverb and arranging it around heavenly dance-floor ambience. Moby's "Bodyrock" (off the seminal 1999 release Play) gets inventive, submerging that song's big beats in deep, long bass grooves, and expanding slightly with a stretched-out diva motif. Delerium, Povi, and Beth Orton all go under the DJ's knife, emerging with unexpected, Picasso-like twists of reality. They even threw in the Chemical Brothers and Sasha's massive club hit "Xpander" for good measure. A fun, quality compilation, especially for those just getting to know the genre. --Matthew Cooke

Customer Reviews:

Several tracks make this a keeper.......2004-09-26

There are such great classics on this album. Unfortunately, there are also some tracks that just don't connect. In fact, the entire second half of the album just seems to argue with the tendancies of the first half. Nevertheless, BT's mix of I Love You opens up the album beautifully. And Heaven's Earth... this has to be one of the best vocal trance songs I'll ever hear. It is pure bliss that has moved me to the point of tears more than once. And Tiesto's Dreaming mix is memorable enough to save the album. It's too bad these three great tracks aren't accompanied by something more appropriate.

Dragonflies is also an excellent song. The Take A Picture Hybrid Mix is cool as well.

Pretty good........2003-03-06

Yeah, scintillating title for a review, but it's accurate. Nothing out-&-out bad... but you can't shake the feeling that you've been shorted a track or two.

So, I'll stick to the highlights. Povi ("Dragonflies") is a treat with only one flaw: too bloody short!! I want it remixed to about 10 minutes or more, as it's such an infectious little tune, very open, & I like to drop it in after too much aggro or industrial.

At least as good is the Hybrid remix of Moby's "Bodyrock". I'm not a big Moby fan, but I almost bought an album after hearing this. (Please note that I said "almost".)

Beth Orton's "Central Reservation" is quite good, but a little wimpy to end the CD on. I find I enjoy it more if the randomiser puts it on first.

The one I secretly enjoy most, though, is Hybrid's remix of Filter's "Take a Picture". You wouldn't believe it's the same song -- about all that remains is the vocal line, & everything else (key, rhythmic structure, BPM) has been messed with at some point. Hybrid has a talent for reworking pieces that never caught my attention in their original state.

Not the best of the Plastic Compilation series, but far from the worst.

This is the album that got me into the series.......2002-12-19

The third volume of the Plastic Compilation series is what made me a fan. At the time, I hadn't heard any of Sarah McLachlan's music remixed so I was awfully curious to hear her schmaltzy ballad "I Love You" remixed into a dance mix. The BT mix of "I Love You" is nothing to write home about. It sounds like your standard trance song nevertheless the remix does improve an otherwise schmaltzy ballad. Frankly I can't listen to the original version without gagging because of the insipid lyrics and way too mellow music. The dance beats makes the song somewhat more interesting although BT could have done a better remixing job and not make the song sound like any other trance song I hear in the nightclubs. Although I am not wild about Sasha, I think his best song to date is "Xpander". Classic trance song. The only flaw is that it is a four minute edit. UGH! I hate edits. I wish Nettwerk used the full-length version and got rid of Filter's godawful hit "Take a Picture". What a awful song, even worse as a remix. I can't say that I am a big fan of Povi's "Dragonflies" either. I could have lived without that song too. Still the rest of the album is fantastic. I love the Matt Darey mix of Delerium's "Heaven's Earth" and BT's "Dreaming". Those two songs are my favorite tracks on the album. I must admit that "Bodyrock" is not one of my favorite Moby songs but could have been worse, it could have been "Southside" or "Honey". I also loved Moloko's classic "Sing It Back" and The Chemical Brothers' "Under the Influence". Beth Orton's "Central Reservation" seemed a bit out of a place on this album. A bit too mellow for an album filled with dance songs. I like the song but I thought it didn't sound right on this album. Although flawed, I still love the third volume in the Plastic Compilation series.

Best of the Plastics.......2001-06-19

I have a feeling if you bought Plastic #1 and then #2, that you might have gotten a little tired of the series and was doubtful about this one being much of an improvement. However, this one is definitely better than 1 and 2. It includes new artists that I think are much more gifted than the artists that were popular around the time the earlier complilations were made. Besides that, it also continues using the artists that made the last ones good and still deserve credit, like Sasha, BT, Chemical Brothers, and even some Uberzone. On a scale of 1-3 stars, here's how I rate all the tracks:

Sarah McLachlan-I Love You-BT Mix: * Sasha-Xpander: *** Delerium-Heaven's Earth-Matt Darey Remix: *** Filter-Take A Picture-Hybrid Mix: *** BT-Dreaming-Tiesto Mix: * Moby-Bodyrock-Hybrid's Bodyshock Remix: *** Povi-Dragonflies-Uberzone's Mix: *** Moloko-Sing It Back-Tee's Radio Mix: ** The Chemical Brothers-Under The Influence: ** Beth Orton-Central Reservation-Ibadan Radio Edit: ***

Absolutely the only dissapointment I have with this CD is that the BT material is very dissapointing. Otherwise the tracks would be okay, if not for the fact that BT is usually flawlessly good. The "Love You" Mix seems to be something he did in his spare time one day when he had absolutely nothing to do, and the Tiesto mix is...boring (not that that's Brian's fault). But since some people love these tracks, you might feel differently, which gives you even more reason to buy this NOW.

*As a footnote, if you have no idea who these artists are that mix the songs, and you are in the first place interested in this album for maybe the Sarah McLachlan or Filter material, be warned: this is not pop/alternative/rock. This is electronic. These songs will sound possibly nothing like the original, they might not even include the song's chorus. Just making sure...

Run Work Play Enjoy.......2001-04-06

Like good dance music but are confused because the last time you were shakin your booty on the dance floor was when strobes lights were bouncing off the twirling glass ball in the middle of the club and x was just a letter in the alphabet ? Well this is a perfect CD for the not so hip person who likes dance grooves for other than going to the club. If you like some stimulation while you work out or want to see how some things hardly change take a listen to this compilation. With the proliferation of dance compilations and so many different styles this is a solid choice. Some of the other reviewers have gone into the particulars, including he editor so suffice to say it is familiar yet different mix. My personal faves are "I love you" by Sarah Mclauchlan , "Central Rservation" by Beth Orton, "Sing it back" by Moloko and of course heavies Moby and Chemical Bros. Put on your headphones, jump on the bike, hit the trail, strap on the blades put on the exercise video or just groove, but you'll have to move, so enjoy this good mix of uptempo music. Highly recommended for novices and people not neccessarily into the dance scene.

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