Deee-Lite

Something of a B-sides, remixes, and greatest-hits collection all in one, Sampladelic feels unfortunately less like a real career celebration and more like a hastily assembled package done at label behest. DJ Dmitry assembled the album, but the fact that most of the remixes collected were done in the year of its appearance makes it seem like one of the endless collection of mix collections on Cleopatra done solely for money. The end result is patchy at best, more of a sampler for other mixers and DJs than for the band (and the occasional inclusion of drum'n'bass loops smacks more of attempts to make the band more "relevant" for the mid-'90s). The musical fusions that helped to make the band stand out in the first place are de-emphasized in favor of a variety of various house and techno approaches straight up, rather than intermingling in true Deee-Lite style. Lady Miss Kier, meanwhile, gets some spotlight moments here and there but otherwise is in usual remix style reduced to a few lines here and there per song. She does get some a cappella between some tracks, which is quite cool but not quite enough. Taken on its own terms, though, there's some fine stuff floating around. When Dmitry tackles things himself, whether via the old "Sampladelic" mixes with the full group or in his new partnership with DJ Silver, the results are often spirited, as the just-experimental-enough tweaking of "D.M.T." and an original remix of "Groove Is in the Heart" shows. As for the outsiders, Hani's deep, moody crawl on "Say Ahh..." is a winner, high-pitched tones and a low, murky synth crunch snaking through the mix, while Carl Cox's crisp take on "Heart Be Still" and Todd Terry's in-your-face house bounce for "Bittersweet Loving" are also worth a listen. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide