Paul Oakenfold’s A Lively Mind is the latest work of this commercial/trance disk jockey. While Oakenfold has enjoyed a fair amount of success in the United States creating bland remixes and forgettable collaborations, little of that compares with a couple of standout tracks on the album.
Take a little bit of what Armand Van Helden and Benny Benassi are doing today and you have a taste of what you’re in for.
Kicking it off with Oakenfold’s curious collaboration with Brittany Murphy is “Faster Kill Pussycat.” This energetic track blends harsh synthesizers, a heavy guitar riff, and Murphy’s vocals to create a very American-friendly dance track. The composition is great and Murphy’s voice is surprisingly good for this type of music. It is easily the best track on the disc as it leaves you wanting more of this, especially after listening to the rest.
Pharrell Williams also makes an appearance in this album on “Sex ‘n Money.” Not typical of what you might expect to hear Williams work on, with an electro clash beat and calmly delivered lyrics driven with another heavy guitar riff, it is very reminiscent of the work of Felix the Housecat, but less annoying. Of course this wouldn’t be electro clash without the obligatory female robotic voice, and it is there. Putting it all together, you have another of the gems of this album.
“No Compromise” is a track that’s all Oakenfold with a subtle electro beat making use of the electric guitar – very nice. With solid vocals delivered by Spitfire, this track is the most lyrically driven track on the disk.
From there on the disc falls into what you would expect from Oakenfold: forgettable trance and other tracks containing weird samples. It is almost like taking a trip back to the ’90s. This wasn’t too hot back then, and it still isn’t.
There are few beats worth listening to repeatedly, and those in “Save the Last Trance for Me,” “Vulnerable,” “Praise the Lord” and several other tracks don’t come close to them. “Set it Off” and “Amsterdam” come off as the least inspired. “Amsterdam” sounds like cheap knockoff of Tiesto’s Lethal Industry.
While still not a solid album, there are some tracks worth checking out. The first three tracks, while excellently produced, do draw on the innovation of others and thus fail to blow you away. Some tracks might make their way onto commercials or movies, but that’s just the type of music Oakenfold makes. So while you wait for the next great moment in dance and electronic music, this will just be an interlude.