DJ Harry’s ‘Collision’
makes the casual listener
sit up and take notice

"Collision" DJ Harry (SCI Fidelity Records)

Music reviewers often find difficulty in describing in detail albums composed by deejays who have recently crossed over into the realm of the recording artist. Suitable words to describe celestial bleeps, blips and beats are few, and an ear for matching beats, it seems, does not always translate to an aptitude for developing a record worth the time and ink it takes to compose a review.

One notable exception, however, is "Collision," the brassy, propulsive collection of plugged-in grooves by Boulder, Colo.'s DJ Harry. A frothy fusion of thick beats and futuristic jazz-rock, "Collision" is a whirling synthesis of hypnotic dance floor rhythms, raunchy slap bass lines, sprightly guitar licks and assorted whooshes, buzzes and chimes that for once makes the casual listener sit up and take notice.

True, other deejays-turned-recording stars have used similar formulas, though a scant few have shown the gift for constructing the same sort of engaging soundscapes DJ Harry is capable of.

To his credit, Harry forges his own addictive rhythms and melodies from scratch, though he could just as easily lift vintage funk grooves off disc via sampler. On the wistful "All My Life," enchanting vocalist Lissie gives breath to DJ Harry's languid track, uttering lines from her own personal diary to lend uncommon sincerity to the casual dance number. Lush and laid back, it evokes such down-tempo luminaries as Esthero and Zero 7.

Other standouts, such as the breezy "Shadows" and the funky "Aquarium Man" and "Send in the Clowns," are as interesting to the ear as they are compelling to the feet.