Annie / Various

The problem with dance floor-designed mix albums is keeping things consistent and entertaining. Though known mostly as a dance-pop diva, Norwegian beauty Annie is also a respected DJ, making this compilation both valid and a thing of curiosity. Annie’s playfulness and impeccable taste shine throughout this eclectic bag of tunes with one simple goal: to keep you dancing and smiling all the way through. She’s dug deep in her crates pulling out the stops with some fabulous obscurities and shit-hot remixes. Beginning with the adorable playtronica of Toy’s "Rabbit Pushing Mover,” Annie never kills the mood, moving on nicely into La Bionda’s synthetic beauty "I Wanna Be Your Lover” and Alan Vega’s rockabilly twister "Jukebox Babe.” The remixes are interesting: Alan Braxe and Fred Falke play house with Death From Above 1979, while Junior Senior turn Le Tigre’s "Nanny Nanny Boo Boo” into a camp disco classic. There is nary a dull moment and DJ-Kicks proves this best in its bottom half where Bow Wow Wow, ESG, Gucci Crew II, Mu and Datarock keep the fire burning bright. As nice as all of this is though, the biggest delight is the inclusion of two exclusive Annie tracks: "Wedding” and "”Gimme Your Money,” which may not match the radiant electro-pop of her album, but they slide nicely into this delectable little dance party.