Best of Dance Rock, Vol. 1 (CD - 2005)

Best of Dance Rock is an odd title for this disc. While some of the inclusions "rock" and have guitars (whether sampled or played), it's a pretty straightforward dance-pop compilation, focusing on 2004 and early 2005, with much of its content coming from European artists. None of the songs fared well in the U.S. mainstream (or were even designed to do so), but several of them made a significant impact on the Billboard dance chart. While it's all downhill after Annie's opening "Chewing Gum," a few tracks do poke out, whether they're genuinely exciting or haunting in a very gaudy way (hear Eric Prydz's Steve Winwood-sampling "Call on Me" for evidence of the latter). ~ Andy Kellman minimize