** PLATINUM ON BLACK: THE FINAL CHAPTER

(ffrr)

Almost 10 years after it began with Silver on Black, ffrr's series of dance compilations is coming to an end with a volume mixed by label founder (and now British celebrity DJ) Pete Tong. It's got a couple of hits (though does anybody who buys dance albums not have Funky Green Dogs' "Fired Up" by now?) and a bunch of entertaining tracks, especially the Brand New Heavies' soulful, anthemic "You Are the Universe" and a nasty little novelty by Wayne G. called "Twisted."

But it's also an example of how retrograde and balkanized the club-music scene has become. The series's first few volumes were full of gorgeous, original work that had been inspired by house's possibilities but spiraled off from it. The centerpiece of The Final Chapter is Ultra Nate's dance-floor hit "Free," a slightly better produced take on house tropes that were standard a decade ago. Nearly everything else relies on the same diva vocals, Chicago rhythms, and 125-beats-per-minute tempos that early volumes were trying to get away from. There's no downtempo material, no big beat, no drum 'n' bass, nothing really new -- just the steady pumping of the same old flavor.

-- Douglas Wolk