Submitted by rysh on 28th July, 10:36AM

As a DJ, Danny Tenaglia has achieved a lot in his career, touring around the world and playing in all the biggest clubs, no wonder he has been so busy he hasn’t made a mix compilation in 6 years. ‘Futurism’ is a two CD collection of his current sound; tribal, techy tunes with low vocal samples and strong transitions.

The first disc slowly gets under way with an atmospheric intro; the drums aren’t far off and soon comes the beat. The mix moves along as would be expected, Danny skilfully blends each track together, with over two decades of experience, you’d bet he could. ‘Cyclette,’ by Jitzu & Sire G adds some variance, the quirky computer sounding riff soon disappears for ‘Hankkofloppe,’ Tenaglia uses such short breaks to emphasise the tribalness of each successive track. Though claimed to be the current sound of ‘Danny Tenaglia’ such past hits as Luca Bachetti’s ‘Rolling Brooklyn’ are great to hear, those slow brooding noises which build to all sorts of psychotic sounds make for a nice change. The disc progressively moves up and down until the climax, Tenaglia’s first single since 2004, ‘The Space Dance,’ dedicated to Space nightclub in Ibiza. It’s a cool little track, eerie vocals and lots of bizarre clattery hits, unfortunately it’s let down by the main vocal line – all together, it’s a nice summary of this first CD.

Complimenting the first disc, Danny Tenaglia starts off with yet more vocal samples and atmospherics, Punto ‘3Tempo3’ is a great rolling number as it really gets the compilation moving again. Although starting off so well, it feels as though the next few tracks drop the overall tempo quite a bit and it isn’t until about midway that it picks up again. Hertz and then Joris Voorn add something extra with their contributions to the mix, ‘No Revolution’ is a prime example of well made Techno, simple deep vocals and sharp percussion make for a great ride. Yet again Danny turns the mood around with ‘Birth,’ though it sort of feels as if in the wrong direction. The last few tracks, combined with the vocals of ‘The Space Dance,’ work quite well in gradually lowering the tempo until Danny can end the compilation with some more atmospherics.

Unlike traditional compilations where the mix focuses on either creating a gradual build up to a climax, or remains steadfast in its overall groove and tempo, Danny Tenaglia chooses to go up with the first CD, and then slowly wind it down at the end of the second. The seasoned pro he is, Danny has managed to make a solid compilation with ‘Futurism,’ a somewhat contradictory look at what Tenaglia is currently playing with more than a few tunes from the past.

3.5/5