Garth: Unleash the Hound

With his Grayhound label going strong, San Fransisco’s Garth uses this continuous mix to introduce 14 of the label’s tracks to CD. As with most small label comps, several artists (Stranger, Michoacan, Nectar) are featured two or three times. The upside is that the sound is generally coherent. Fans of Grayhound’s fun-loving, high-energy, anything-goes house music won’t be disappointed by what’s on display here: Plenty of thumping beats, groovy electro basslines, and retro/electro touches. Unleash the Hound takes a couple of detours into middle-of-the-road acid jazz, but overall it gives house music lovers plenty of incentive to party like it’s 1989, made extra effective by Garth’s skill behind the decks.