Some of the slower and more intentionally lush points are the highlights of this disc. Near The Parenthesis' "A Brief Walk In The Sea" sets the mood and blends in beautifully to the sumptuous R3solve track "All That You Lost." He even stops to bring in some less current cuts, such as Boards of Canada's "Amo Bishop Roden" and Plaid's "Marry."
Even though constrained to an overall "down" ethos, the first disc still shows a surprising amount of range. The idea of a soundtrack for the day is extremely well executed, and also engaging on multiple levels, as the energy is just as often lively as it is tranquil. There are moments of hip-hop beats (Michna's "Believe In It"), glitchy ambient-electro (for example, the remix of Cyan341's "Pattern" and Modeselektor's "Vote Or Die") and even some turns with light drum 'n bass (Ed Chamberlain's "Zarathustra" and Quivver's "Chasin A Feeling"). The end result is uniformly strong, even as styles interweave and flow throughout the disc.
With the unique feel of the first disc, it's forgivable if the second doesn't quite reach that same level of discovery for the listener. Not to diminish its quality, but simply to say that we're stepping into more familiar territory. However, the nice surprise for this disc is how expertly Zabiela seems to blend some of the styles he has been experimenting with through the years. At its core, this disc is an energetic romp through electro, some tech- and progressive house, and some breaks territories.
This "Up" mix starts off strong with "Afghanistan" by Komytea, who have been displaying some impressive club tracks lately. Things move into slightly darker territory with Paul Woolford's "Surrender", while also managing to keep things melodic. Which is another nice surprise with this disc; things are surprisingly tuneful, given the chosen grouping of styles. There are moments of bangin' club cuts that fill the floor, such as with Komytea's slick "Professional Killers" and Extrawelt's hip hop-tinged "Added Planet." And then there are also some really nice melodies thrown in that catch you as much for their variety as for their appropriateness to the mix. One of the standouts is the Club Mix of Luomo & Apparat's "Love You All", but also the glitched-out melodic sensibility of the closer, "Since You Are Gone" by Oliver Koletzki.
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