Perfecto: Vegas

AMG Review of Perfecto: Vegas

Dave Shim
All Music Guide

With credits and credentials stretching back to the genesis of the U.K. rave scene of the late '80s, few DJs have had as much impact on the overall mainstreaming of electronic dance music as Paul Oakenfold. Under his shepherding in the late '90s, the formerly underground genres trance and progressive house, became electronica's default pop crossover styles. While the club music landscape of the late 2000s evolved into a far more eclectic arena -- with the resurgent disco movement and electro house finding favor, once again -- Oakenfold basically stuck to guns, plying his trade across perfectly mixed, progressive-flavored dance fare, stepping out of the DJ booth only occasionally to pen a mere three artist albums. While the days of spearheading musical revolutions are well past for this veteran DJ, he has, proven his mettle as a savvy artist-marketer with numerous film, TV, and video game credits, even launching a full-on Ibizan-styled club experience at Las Vegas' Palms Hotel & Casino, a venture that's been commemorated with the release of his 2009 double-CD mix set Perfecto: Vegas. Despite its nakedly commercial origins and too-obvious lifestyle-targeted marketing, there isn't much here to dissuade die-hard fans or even newcomers, as the mixing, track selection, and programming are as tight as anything the DJ was releasing during his late-'90s prime.