People who sniff at Kirk Degiorgio's argument that techno is an extension of jazz would do well to check out either of his '90s mix sets for X:Treme. The producer/DJ makes a good case -- here, at least -- for himself. Check One is his first official mix, dating from 1996, and it encompasses drum'n'bass, moody U.K./Detroit-style techno (both ambient and not), and electronically-enhanced jazz of the '60s and '70s. Roughly 30 years separate the oldest selection from the latest, and those two, as well as most of the tracks that fall in between, share something in that they each feature innovative use of keyboards. Much can be made of the equipment that was used in creating these tracks, whether you're talking about Herbie Hancock's ARP or Bobby Lyle's DX-7, but it all boils down to how the machines are put to use. It turns out that they are put to use in a way that stimulates the brain and regularly causes the feet to move. The most impressive -- and more importantly, most ear-pleasing -- stretch that binds the worlds of techno and jazz together occurs in the middle of the second disc. Weather Report's percussive freight train Non-Stop Home liquefies into the soft opening keyboard tones of Degiorgio's own Epic, a track that gradually develops into a dense breakbeat pattern augmented by swarming ambient effects. Just as it shows signs of fading out, Hancock's gravitating Nobu drifts in to provide respite from the past 12 minutes of heavy rhythms. Throughout the set, one sound is likely to vary greatly from the one that trails it. Your navigator is able to harness them all and present them with a stunning degree of finesse. ~ Andy Kellman, Rovi

1		T'Raenon
2		Airbag
3		Solina
4		Utopia Planetia
5		Las Palmas
6		Love, Love
7		Veil
8		ID Clones
9		Vortex
10		Meditative Fusion
11		Eau Rouge
12		Microlovr
13		Attention Please
14		Flights of Fantasy
15		Terra Firma
16		Inner Space
17		Non-Stop Home
18		Epic
19		Nobu
20		Olivine
21		The Third Ear
22		Everlast
23		Soon