Album Review: Paul Oakenfold, "A Lively Mind" (Maverick)
The product is different, but the result is the same. Paul Oakenfold , an artist best known for spinning, producing and remixing, releases an album of original compositions that will make you want to get on the dance floor.
The folks at Maverick, Oakenfold's label, are referring to "A Lively Mind" as an "artist album." That basically means that Oakenfold is creating the music instead of just shaping it. It's his second so-called artist album, following 2002's "Bunkka."
"A Lively Mind" is a worthy successor to "Bunkka," though there's very little on it that can compare to the rush of the earlier album's "Starry Eyed Surprise" or "Ready Steady Go."
Although Oakenfold is a man of many talents, he's not going to try and tell you that he's a singer. Just like on "Bunkka," which featured the likes of Ice Cube, Nelly Furtado and Perry Farrell, "A Lively Mind" spotlights many guest vocalists.
The most memorable spin on the mic this time around comes courtesy of, we kid you not, Brittany Murphy. The film star, known for such flicks as "8 Mile" and "Sin City," does a great job with the heady rave "Faster Kill Pussycat," which opens the album.
Other highlights include the muscular "No Compromise," featuring Spitfire, and the explosive "Set It Off," where house-music legend Oakenfold jams with hip-hop icon Grandmaster Flash.
Although a few of the collaborations with guest singers on the new album are memorable, Oakenfold saves his best moves for the non-vocal numbers. For instance, the cleverly titled "Save the Last Trance For Me" is an absolute slice of dance-floor heaven.
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