With the follow up to Desyn Masiello's legendary and award-winning Balance 008 album, Paolo Mojo stops being an "up-and-coming star" and moves into the upper echelons of today's DJ talent. Paolo completely crushes all genres with this mix and makes it likely to be the best album of this year, if not longer. This two-disc album doesn't ask you if you want to dance, it just makes you. From tribal drums, tech house, robotic sound effects, and everything in between, Paolo doesn't follow the typical recipe for a compilation album. This release will send Paolo to the international superstar ranks.
This album is like a big pot of electronic music stew. It's got hearty chunks of deep grooves and tech house. He stirs in stunning and perfectly-sequenced vocals, adds a dash of jazz and a sprinkle of breakbeat. Throw in some pieces of mind-altering funk, disco and breaks and you have Balance 009, Paolo Mojo style. And with any good mix, there are some secret ingredients you can't really make out, but that help to create an incredible album that will please listeners of every demographic. You can hear some influences from Paolo's tours with Sasha, as the blend is extremely detailed with flawless technical features. Also, both discs are layered thick with a variety of melodies, basslines, sound effects, and filters.
Balance 009 includes some original productions from Paolo, beginning with what is soon to be a club smash, "Ruckus." This track is so amazing Paolo even plays it twice on the second disc, and you won't even recognize it the second time around when it's remixed by Buick Project. House junkies will love the a cappella track "Good Beat" from longtime dance heroes Deee-Lite. Timewriter's "Lion Steps" is among many of the strong tracks on the first disc along with the jazzy "Weekender" by Sunday Session. One of the most interesting tracks, both in terms of sound and track selection, is "La Ritournelle" by Sebastian Tellier, which concludes the second disc. Another high point is the Cass & Mangan remix of Paolo's original production "Everybody" off of his own digital label Oosh.
This album is genuinely one of the best I've heard in the past few years. I know it's cliché to say, but you if only buy one album this year, make Paolo Mojo's Balance 009 it.
