**1/2 The Pastels

ILLUMINATI

(Up)

The Pastels are an indie-rock trio from Glasgow with a knack for crafting songs with sweet guitar-pop melodies that sound as if they were being performed by hack musicians suffering from legendary Scottish hangovers -- not exactly your prime candidates for a '90s-style cut-and-paste remix job. Nevertheless, 12 tracks from the band's 1997 CD Illumination hold up well to some electronic tinkering by the diverse cast of remixers who guest on Illuminati. My Bloody Valentine auteur Kevin Shields deconstructs "Magic Nights" into a short, sublime blast of Loveless-like buzz and swirl. The Stereolab folks apply their trademark analog bleep-and-burble treatment to "One Wild Moment. And rather than remixing "Rough Riders," the unconventional DC punk band the Make Up take the opportunity to perform a funky cover of the Pastels' supremely unfunky original.

The 12 other contributors rely primarily on electronic manipulations. Japanese pop savant Cornelius gives "Windy Hill" a new sing-songy, bubblegum feel. And British ambient specialist Third Eye Foundation lay a pretty vocal sample and a cute little keyboard riff from "On the Way" over a dark and drawn-out wash of atmospheric textures.

-- Mike Bruno