Taken to the Next Phase

The reactionary days of "you kids are killing us with your downloading!" and big FBI anti-piracy warnings on the back of every major-label offering don't warrant a collection this quirky-cool and risky. The idea of remixing the Isley Brothers is hardly the stunning part; it's the excellent and tasteful selection of remixers on Taken to the Next Phase, an unnecessary but incredibly fun reworking of the Isley Brothers' deepest moments. None of the producers here mishandle the Isleys, but they aren't afraid to attack these tracks with an unexpected attitude either. Reggae hitmaker Steven "Lenky" Marsden's hectic dancehall reworking of "Between the Sheets" is a huge surprise and works wonderfully. Deep house man Gabriel Rene makes "Footsteps in the Dark" a deeper delicious with loopy touches and De La Soul sound like it's the Daisy Age once again on "It's a New Thing" (their update of "It's Your Thing"). The great big killer is saved for last with Mos Def turning "Groove With You" into the title-says-it-all "Beauty in the Dark." The rap world has mined the Isleys' back catalog for their own use plenty of times, and this payback shows how much these artists appreciated it. A remix collection you don't have to make excuses about; that's rare. A throwback that's as funky as the original; that's incredible.