Alpha - Pepper: Remixes & Rarities [EP] (1998)

For those who found Come from Heaven, Alpha's debut album, just a bit too consistently downtempo, this remix EP offers a thoroughly enjoyable remedy: remixes, most of them resolutely funky and upbeat, and a few rare tracks that contrast with them nicely. "With" comes in a politely funky hip hop remix courtesy of the Underdog, while "Hazeldub (MoreRockersPeaceAndLoveMix)" is a drum'n'bass setting that manages to be both frenetic and wispily lovely at the same time. "Honey" is an instrumental based too entirely on a single breakbeat, but it segues nicely into the illbient prettiness of Tim Simenon's remix of "Sometime Later." There are some great vocals from Helen White on "Slim," which also features a thunderous drum sample in a nice juxtaposition. Frankly, this album is far superior to the band's debut -- varied in tone and texture, melodically attractive, by turns booty-shaking and bliss-inducing.