This is a good mix CD for anybody interested in electronic dance music, but doesn't know where to start. DJ DB has held a prominent position in New York's underground scene since it's beginning and continues to do so. He's been known both for his skills behind the wheels of steel and as one of the founders of sm:)e communications, a record label which has produced some of the choicest acid breakbeat and acid house cuts to date. Breakbeat Odyssey showcases DB's skills as a DJ through fifteen seamless mixes taken from sm:)e's impressive catalog of ten inch releases.

The mix starts off a with soft beat by Omni Trio, but quickly dives into some heavy breakbeats with the classic Waremouse by 2 Bad Mice and the dope-as-hell-no-matter-how-many-times-you've-heard it The Beat is Over (Everything's Gone to the Beat) by Basco. The latter track is sure to hit even the most rigid beat virgin right between the ears where that lovable organ, the brain, will surely be delighted.

The cuts get trippier from here, with the psychically charged Acid Worm by Caspar Pound and Axel Nose. The sounds start freakin' and driving your mind through more and more intense hallucinogenic grooves, until suddenly the mix switches into some cutting-edge drum 'n' bass featuring Omni Trio, Melt, DJ Trace, DJ Dara, and DB himself. This is where this album really holds water. It starts off accessible enough to the masses through catchy breakbeat tunes that Chemical Brothers fans will surely dig, but it still schools you on some more experimental sounds through it's jazzy, acidic, mind-bending drum 'n' bass cuts. Not only does this make Breakbeat Odyssey interesting, but it gives it a lasting value beyond the been-there-done-that poppiness of it's more mainstream tracks.

Suddenly, yet smoothly enough, DB slams the mix back again into breakbeats and nicely brings Breakbeat Odyssey to a halt. DJ DB has thrown down the warehouse sound onto a piece of digital plastic and brought it home to the benefit of those of you too lazy to make it out of the house on a Saturday night. And for you experienced groovers, Breakbeat Odyssey is a great compilation of solid cuts you'll probably recognize and want to hear again and again.