Theo Parrish - First Floor (CD)

First Floor includes the complete contents of the two EPs Theo Parrish recorded for Peacefrog during 1998. After a perhaps excessively spare opener, the collection moves into a succession of excellent tracks ("Sweet Sticky," "Paradise Architects," "Electric Alley Cat," "JB's Edit") driven by distorted, scratchy, trance-like sample snippets borrowed from disco and jazz-funk. (The back cover even shows Parrish soaking in a bath of records with Ron Carter and Isaac Hayes LPs visible.) Parrish's ingenious use of drum programming and effects add-ons tie each track together just the way a great DJ should. It's the next best thing to seeing him spin.