DJ Dara - Halfway Home (CD)

All Music Guide

DJ Dara's second production album is quite a leap from the straight house-influenced breakbeats on 1997's Rinsimus Maximus. His recent mix sessions and live dates had included a lot of tough, two-step tracks from labels like Renegade Hardware and Technical Itch, so it's no surprise to find that Halfway Home has a very similar sound. While a few tracks have piano runs and a sound reminiscent of his earlier material, many of the tracks here ("Heartbeat," "93rd Current") are technological nightmares that rank with the best of Optical and Ed Rush. To say nothing of his mixing skills, DJ Dara's obviously come a long way as a producer and Halfway Home is solid proof.

- John Bush, All Music Guide