When a compilation titles itself The Ultra Lounge and promises it's going to deliver "succulent chilled beats", I don't have to tell you that's a tall order to fill. Don't confuse this Ultra Lounge with the swinging, classic 50s horns of Ultra-Lounge, this compilation was inspired by the Ultra Lounge hot spots of high class hotel fame. The kind of places the young, rich and impossibly hip go to rub shoulders with the young, rich and impossibly hip (or at least that's the popular image). So grab your martini and step inside.

1. Lemon Jelly "95 AKA Make Things Right"
2. Stef Heinz & Jens Buchert "Sunseek"
3. Nitin Sawhney "Sunset"
4. Ursula 1000 "Arrastão"
5. Lawrence Welk Orchestra "Blue Velvet (Smitty remix)"
6. Vanessa Daou "Passed"
7. Gabrielle Chiararo "Fool Me"
8. Luxe Collective "Isn't It Sad"
9. The Real Tuesday Weld "The Ugly And The Beautiful"
10. Jens Buchert "Mélange Eléctrique"
11. Teddy Rok Seven "Feel (Afterlife remix)"
12. Mohan "The Dark Whole Of Light"
13. Jojo Effect "Moods"
14. Stolen Identity "Who Are You (chilled)"
15. Tosca "Rondo Acapricio"
16. Bebel Gilberto "Cada Beijo (Thievery Corporation mix)"
17. Chris Coco Vs. Afterlife "Home"
18. Garry Judd "A Strange Story"
19. Lisa Maroni "Rio Sunset"
20. Lemongrass "Sync It Up To Love"
21. Andrea Ravel "White Noise"
22. Mariana Murdocco & Andrew Kremer "Vuelvo"
23. Halfset "Electrolooks"
24. Blank & Jones "Revealed (Bliss remix)"

There is no shortage of respect here when it comes to the artists invovled in this two-disc collection. From Austria's venerable Tosca, to Brazil's bossa nova sweetheart Bebel Gilberto, on to Afterlife, Lemon Jelly, and New York's maven of kitsch Ursula 1000, even the Lawrence Welk Orchestra. Not to mention plenty of newcomers like Mohan and Garry Judd, who both have reviews of their work here at Properly Chilled. In all, there are 24 tracks and 16 of them are exclusive to this release.

Just like its mix of both young and established talent, this collection drops Nitin Sawhney classics like "Sunset" next to Ursula 1000's "Arrastão" from his latest full-length, Here Comes Tomorrow. Just mixing known and new isn't enough though, as you'll also catch a little original style lounge in "Blue Velvet" by the Lawrence Welk Orchestra mixed up into a Afro-downbeat lounge cut by Smitty.

In the end I have to say, the title isn't misleading. The Ultra Lounge is a little bit jazzy, a bit bossa nova, definitely soul jazz and soulful, often poppy, and a speck acoustic downbeat with its styles switching up more frequently and unexpectedly than Hollywood celebrity lovers. Altogether it's pretty succulent and will definitely do what compilations like this one do best; introduce open ears to sounds they haven't heard before.

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