Customer Reviews

Disco 2

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

In preparation for my gym routine, I was looking for a couple of "tunes" to pop in as I headed out the door. Browsing my collection, I came upon PSB's "Disco 2", a disc that I hadn't played in some time.

Why not? Although the album was one that had remained "dormant" for quite a while, I loaded it in the player. As I set the Stairmaster, I also hit "play".

Boy, did I get a workout. From the "Absolutely Fabulous" mix to the concluding two for "Yesterday, When I was Mad", I didn't misstep...not once. In fact, the person to my left started taking notice as I was humming - probably too loudly - to the "Boys'" singing.

And the final track, "We All Feel Better in the Dark" allowed me to "cool down" after the strenuous activity.

Now, it may be debated that "Disco 2" is not as good as the first or the third. I can't join in the discussion because I am unfamiliar with both.

However, it works as a catalyst for one trying to get the bod in shape...and that's fine with me.

OK you get both ends of the spectrum here - Pet Shop Boys remixes have always gone the distance and have consistently ranked near the top of the heap production-wise - you never know what to expect really from a remix of theirs - some are so similar to the original wheras others are just turned inside out (hence, the E-Smoove Mix of Liberation which, as much as I like it, wins my "SO REMIXED TO THE POINT WHERE IT HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH THE ORIGINAL ANYMORE" award).
There's some amazing remixes here, there's just one problem...

It is the absolute WORST EVER mixing i have honestly ever heard on a mix CD. Listening to this is SO hard to do cause you love the songs but the mixing is so poorly timed and executed. It's like watching the retarded kid stumble off the short bus.

Danny Rampling, what on earth were you thinking when you put this together??????? I'm serious. This mixing is pathetic.

The definite pinacle of suckitude this mix displays is between tracks 9 and 10. the Rollo mix of Ab Fab (one of my favorite remixes of all time) builds, builds, then climaxes and is all fine, dandy, hands in the air, then all of a sudden, in the middle of THE BEST PART OF THE FREAKIN' TRACK Danny slams it into Yesterday, When I was mad. A Very, VERY BAD slam. "What the F*$*%*$#*ING HELL WAS THAT?" were my exact words the first time I heard it. And what the hell is up with none of the CD index points lining up? They're all like 5 or so seconds too soon!! Was Danny that confident in his oh-so-superior mixing skills that the first thing he wants us to hear at the beginning of every track are his god-awful train-wrecks???

The whole disc is a whopping 45 minutes or so long. EVERY TRACK ON HERE except for Ab Fab & We All Feel Better In The Dark (WHICH IS MIS-LABELED BY THE WAY - THIS IS THE "AMBIENT" MIX, NOT THE "AFTER HOURS CLIMAX" - which would have been better suited anyways) is missing 1/2 of its content.
Umm, earth to Danny - a CD holds 74-80 minutes of music. Was it really necessary to mix out or in during the middle of most of these tracks? You had more than enough time to spare for God sakes.

My goal is to obtain ALL these mixes in full length (i'm missing like 3) in CD quality and totally re-do this mix the way it should have been done in the first place.

If you must buy this, be warned - the mixing ABSOLOUTELY POSITIVELY SUCKS TO THE BITTER EXTREME.

Before I begin it just has to be said that my 4 star rating for this {remix} album is VERY generous and probably reflective of the fact that I feel bad that this album seems to be the object of much undeserved criticism. I think we all have a sense of our likes and dislikes and just how we want(expect) something we already like to be reinterpreted. There are endless possibilities on just how a song can be redone and I found Disco 2 to be quite admirable. Although I am only a novice PSB fan and in many cases these were my first tastes of some of the songs featured, I can say that my listening experience was pleasant and enjoyable. After an 'Absolutely Fabulous' opening, it is evident that this album is not going to be a standard remix compialation album that features a wide variety of remixes that are separate songs( remixes like what you'd find on a Maxi or EP single ). All the songs are all somewhat similar and linked together into one long stetch of music that goes nonstop in the megamix format that you'll hear in night clubs and on your radio staion. Yes, it can get cheesy at times like many megamixes do and of course it's going to sound dated( Liberation is all the proof you need on both counts ), it's already over 10 years old! But if you're choosing to get into PSB NOW then age shouldn't be an issue. Imagine how much easier it would have been for the band to simply throw together a quick compialation of separate remixes already in existence rather than go through the time and effort to do something unique and different than the average band? I like the mixing; it suits the bands' style and shows that they are willing to take risks and try different ideas. After listening to the entire CD in it's entirity I get the feeling that the band may have been trying to actually simulate the whole 'clubbing' experience, from the high jubilation and energy in the beginning until chilling out in a more intimate manner with 'We all feel better in the dark', which gives not so subtle hints at what is usually the culmination of a night out partying on the town. However I must say that I think it would have made a bit more sense and carried on the lighthearted and slightly amusing tone of the album if all those moans and groans had been Male rather than Female...;)

Surely the Pet Shop Boys were bowing to record company pressure to release this. These mish-mash remix albums WERE popular at the time, to be sure. I even bought a copy ( I must admit I buy everything PSB release ). But these song snippets rarely last long enough to get into the groove of the remix ( two to four minutes , tops ) before they are pulled out again. And the repetitive beats just bludgeon the listener until the entire cd becomes one long mind numbing mess. Compared to Disco ( which was a radical idea for its time, an entire album of remixes from one act, from one album - Please ) and Disco 3 ( a great album in its own right , as it contains several new songs as well as remixes of recent songs ) Disco 2 cannot be considered worthwhile. If I owned a Stairmaster ( which I do not ) I might listen to this. Otherwise it sits, lonely, on my shelf.

Having finished up the quite possibly the best album of their career, they release a mix compilation of remixes from that album with a couple snapshots from the Behaviour period. The concept is great and should be followed by any other band doing a remix compilation: Create a seamless mix of your dance mixes into one seamless mix to keep the beat going. However, they failed in picking the best mixes from the period. Here, there is one too many repeat mixes of the same song or wretched mixes like the E-Smoove mix of Liberation. Missing are some of the finer mixes from this period such as the Jam And Spoon Mix of Young Offender, or some other mixes from the behavior era, or some of the mixes included here presented in their entirety (the too cut up approach doesn't work) to make the compilation a little varied ala the original Disco compilation.

One thing I do like is the mix of We All Feel Better in The Dark here, as even though this mix of songs is a little lackluster, it makes great for driving to or going to sleep to, so that very sensual (despite the loss of Chris's vocal) mix of We All Feel Better in The Dark is a nice added touch at the end.

Perhaps a better Disco 2 could have been achieved had the Boys waited for a couple more albums where they could have made a nice flow of mixes between each era from Behaviour up to Nightlife, which would have made a real good listen.

Most people disagree with the mixing; being a DJ I concur with that. But its a CD mastered in 1994. Just listen to some of the mixes of Sasha and Digweed (like Renaissance). Their mixes were NOT state of the Art.

The songs are fantastic, remix editions very hard to find as a single. I played this CD in a party back in 1996 and it really liked very much to the public. I can hear it again and appreciate it as much as I used to in 1995 (first tiem I heard the CD).

For all PSB fans, this is a must have IMO.

The Pet Shop Boys are known for their deft mix of classic pop and electronic dance music. This remix album explores the dance side of some of their early 90's music, with tracks from the album Very and, notably, Absolutely Fabulous, which was only released as a single. Don't expect the songs to sound the same as the album versions -- they don't. If you aren't a dance music fan, chances are good that you won't enjoy this album very much; otherwise, the album is well-produced, fun to listen to, and has aged reasonably well.

I was skeptical when I first bought this CD. "Go West" was my favorite song from the Very album, and I was hoping that the re-mix would save this CD if the other tracks were sub-par. I was deeply disappointed, however, when I heard the re-mix (track 4). I also couldn't stand the "Liberation" mix (track 5). "Oh no! I was a fool to by this album," I thought. It wasn't until track 9 (Absolutely Fabulous mix) that the CD began to really grow on me. I absolutely love this track. Tracks 9, 10, and 11 are all great dance songs, and track 12 is the perfect way to end the album. After listening to the CD another time, I began to notice tracks 2 and 6. All these songs easily make up for my initial resentment of the album. Now, I can't get enough of this CD! Here's a little advice: For best results, listen to this album with the volume and bass turned way up! This is a great pickup for anyone searching for great Pet Shop Boys dance music.

I'm a die hard fan of the pet shop boys (just check my mp3.com page: www.mp3.com/orbiter) and i am deeply dissapointed by Disco 2. It is just a bunch of remixes done by some "DJs" and it lacks all the feeling and music that "Disco" had. It is just aerobics music. I had listened to it 2 or 3 times, but i can't help it. Fortunately, PSB aren't guilty, this album was just made by their recording company to earn some extra money. I'm sorry that i've spent 14 US$ on that. If you want to buy something good, buy anything else from the pet shop boys (Nightlife is awesome !). If you don't buy this record, don't worry. Your PSB collection won't lack anything essential.

All the other reviewers have said it... and I say it too! I am a big PSB fan and I think this is the worst thing they have ever released: a non-stop sequence of lousy remixes-extracts. It all keep repeating itself. I found it so annoying that I couldn't even listen to it for more than two minutes... I just kept passing the tracks untill there were no more tracks left (laughs). Even the fans (like me) will be bitterly disappointed. Forget it!