Various Artists - Netwerk Chillout 04

Chillout CDs can be a trying experience; if track selection is too chill, bordeom sets in, whereas if the selection is too lively or distinctive, it defeats its own purpose. The folks at Nettwerk's US branch have wrangled a great lineup, with Massive Attack, UNKLE, and Delirium meshing nicely with mellow mixes of Bjork, The Streets, NERD, and BT. The whole thing feels just about perfect for a hipster dinner party, lovemaking music, or just a way to wind down or wake up, with my personal favorite being Gabriel and Dresden's masterful downtempo mix of Motorcycle's "Rush Comes In," which just goes to prove that a dance classic can be slower than 120 BPM as long as its heart and feet are in the right place. The segues are annoying, and having the album have dicrete tracks would have been much more effective, but in the feast or famine swamps of chillout CDs, this is pretty hard to top.