DJ Manny's music can be as frenetic and twisted as the work of his peers in the footwork scene, but his pillowy synths and romantic vibes maintain the sensuality of R&B slow jams. His first full-length for Planet Mu, following an LP on Teklife and dozens of digital releases, is an attempt to make an R&B love album within a footwork context while branching out into several other styles of dance music. The album's first two tracks blend intimate vocals with ambient synth pads, underpinned by busy beats which provide a framework but don't trample over everything and disrupt the mood. Manny shifts gears quickly instead of doing an entire album in this vein, which is kind of a relief, since his vocals aren't the strongest part of his music. "You All I Need" is much closer to the atmospheric side of Detroit techno, with a whistling melody and sparkling synths drizzled over an insistent but not frantic beat pattern. "Club GTA" is a more commanding club cut with a heavier, thumpier kick drum, registering as both tense and enlightening. The sampled diva vocals in "Wants My Body" (featuring DJ Chap) emphasize footwork's roots in classic Chicago house, yet the way they're occasionally time-stretched and skewered plays with the listener's perception and serves as a reminder of how avant-garde this stuff can be. "Havin' Fun" (with DJ Phil) injects some dark humor into the middle of the album, looping a bit of slapstick violence for a piece of footwork shock value on par with DJ Rashad's "Shoot Me." While several tracks on the album incorporate breakbeats, "Good Love" is much closer to atmospheric jungle, with just a few elements (jittery hi-hats, a wailing siren synth) that mark it as the work of an outsider. The album's sublime title track brilliantly mixes levitating synth arpeggios with skittering breakbeats, and the effect is thoroughly uplifting. The same can be said about the rest of the album's strongest moments -- even as he balances toughness with tenderness, Manny's music always seems like it's coming from a positive mental state, so it produces joyous feelings. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi

1		Never Was Ah Hoe
2		U Want It
3		You All I Need
4		Club GTA
5		All I Need
6		Wants My Body
7		Havin' Fun
8		Good Love
9		Signals in My Head
10		That Thang
11		Smoke 'n' Fade Away
12		At First Site

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