Ministry of Sound's Chillout Annual 2002 compiles many of the best downtempo tracks from the U.K. that were popular throughout 2001. In addition, there are a few surprises thrown in to make the album a more interesting listen -- more like a true mix album than the best-of samplers Ministry of Sound usually churn out at assembly-line speeds. Because there are 37 tracks spread across two discs, there are plenty of big names here, as you'd expect with this label: Groove Armada, Zero 7, St. Germain, David Holmes, Little Louie Vega, Science Department, Faithless, and so on. For the most part, the big names deliver the big tracks, most of which are sequenced early in each set. In particular, disc one features the "Soulside Mix" of iio's "Rapture" and disc two features the "Dance Ritual Mix" of Kings of Tomorrow's "Finally" -- easily two of the year's most popular dance tracks featured here in special chill-out mixes. However, it's the small handful of older songs thrown in here and there that make this album better than the average Ministry of Sound album: Nightmares on Wax's "Nights Introlude," Underworld's non-album track "Second Hand," the Chemical Brothers' "Too Many Mornings," and Radiohead's "No Surprises." These older songs come as pleasant surprises in the mix, particularly the latter two, which are both very well known and not the sort of tracks you'd expect to hear on a Ministry of Sound mix. ~ Jason Birchmeier, Rovi