After listening to the first few tracks on 'Dos' you could be forgiven for thinking you have stumbled upon the latest album by Prince. The electro-beat, the P-funk and sexy falsetto vocals are straight out of the Prince school of dance music, even if the title of this album isn't. It could have been worse, it could have been called "Linux".

1. Escalate
2. Soda
3. Blackbird
4. Complicated
5. Crest
6. Travel
7. I Want It
8. Don't Stop
9. Give It To Me
10. Wire
11. On The Floor
12. Dot
13. Miko
14. Left
15. Channel

Michael Fakesch was one half of the German dance music group Funkstörung and "Dos" is his second solo effort. It's like Jamie Liddell meets acid house and hip-hop, with blue-eyed p-funk mixed in with some serious electronica. Vintage analogue keyboards and some excellent samples, particularly on the groove-tastic "Give It To Me" make this truly great dance album, up there with recent releases by the Herbaliser and J.U.S.T.I.C.E.

The slap bass and chorus on "Soda" give it a real Justin Timberlake-pop vibe, but the breakdowns show how much electronica is working to keep that groove going. "Complicated" is musically as far away from the Avril Lavigne song of the same name. It's a skinky R&B killer and it's definitely one to get the ladies on the dance floor. The spooky and cinematic "Wire" is a nod to Michael's soundtrack work.

There really is a renaissance going on among European dance acts and "Dos" is no exception. From a soul influenced direction, it's up there with the very best electronic music out there at the moment. But, like Funkstorung's strong cut-up style, Michael Fakesch's sound doesn't wander in middle ground; you may love it, you may hate it. It's rich, funky and packs one hell of a punch.

~ Jamie Hailstone

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