It’s some time since I enjoyed an upfront house mix as much as the first CD on ‘Live & Direct’. There’s something about the driving rhythms, the upbeat bass lines and the big, spacey keyboards that really strikes a chord, especially in the opening few tracks from Arthur Baker (via the remixing desk of Riva Starr), Mendo and the three amigos themselves – MYNC, Romero and Nunez teaming up in the excellent ‘Boogers’. CD2 is hardly outshone by this either, a faster mix that boasts productions from Adam K & JELO, Jose Nunez’ mix of Richard Grey’s ‘Something Going On’ and Layo & Bushwacka’s peak timer ‘The Raw Road’. Only in the Romero/Nunez remix of Aly-Us’ ‘Follow Me’ does the pace let up – but this proves to be a cunning decoy when the drums come back. The third, unmixed CD is merely the clincher – the last leg of a set of pumped up house that is a pure release from start to finish.
5 Out Of 5
Reviewed By: Ben Hogwood