Posted date: August 2006

Paolo Mojo is a new face and fast becoming an intrinsic part of the global dance music revolution. With his innovative style of effortlessly mixing multiple genres of music, to creating his own personal niche on the circuit makes him more than just a fresh, pretty face filling the need for new talent. With a new dual disc compilation entitled Balance 009 on the esteemed Australian label EQ, the average listener will be pleasantly surprised at how sonically pleasing it is.

If you know who Mojo is—which is very possible since he got his big break in 2001, with the dual-disc demo entitled Music Is Freedom—then you understand that the road less traveled has been a fruitful one for him. As a result of Freedom, Paolo landed a spot in the Bedroom Bedlam competition sponsored by Muzik Magazine [after eight years of operations, the magazine is now defunct, since 2003—ed.). The contest was revered and respected, and also launched Yousef and James Zabiela’s fledgling careers.

Paolo has been lauded as one of the brightest youngsters starting out today by BBC Radio 1, Mixmag, DJ Magazine and IDJ. It also doesn’t hurt to have thumbs-up endorsements from legends such as John Digweed, Sasha, Danny Tenaglia and Danny Howells, to name a few. Paolo, who had a lifetime obsession with music, fulfilled many of his then dream gigs at London’s Bedrock parties, Zouk in Singapore, Arc in New York City and more recently, stints in Canada and Los Angeles. After this introduction to the man behind a most impressive progressive house sound, you’re probably ready to know more [what also set him apart from most others, though, have been his exquisite and spot-on productions that have graced Sabotage, Alternative Route, Toolroom et al.-ed.].

Balance 009 is an extensive journey into electronic sounds. Overall, the CD contains elements of funk, house, electro, disco, new wave, breaks, and acid, placed into a unique fusion over two discs. The CDs contain tracks, remixes and original edits by Mojo himself. Featured artists include Deee-Lite, Nic Fanciulli, Robert Owens, Sebastian Tellier and many other notables.

There are subtle differences between discs one and two, but each CD distinctly has Mojo written all over it. Disc one opens with “One Night in Cuba” by Kayot, which sets the tone perfectly for what is to come. For about the first five songs there are no vocals or strong bass-lines on the tracks—the songs are musical and set the listener up for exciting twists and turns. Disc one is the perfect soundtrack to the beginning of an all-night party.

With Disc two, Paolo turns everything up a notch. The CD opens with a track by Mojo entitled “Ruckus,” which is immediate fire. From there, the disc is consistent and hard hitting, with a few pleasant suprises. Ultimately, Balance 009 is a voyage with rhythms, melodies and sparse vocals that can take you anywhere you want to go.

Mojo has plenty working in his favor. In 2005, Mojo was personally chosen by Sasha’s Excession booking agency and has since toured worldwide with Sasha’s Fundacion tour. He is currently on an EQ tour, which started in April ’06 and will go through August. He’s spent great time perfecting his own digital label, Oosh, where each LP will contain a track by Paolo Mojo as well as a remix of that track by a respected artist. There is clearly more coming down the pipeline and aimed squarely for this busy DJ, producer and remixer.

Review by: Megan Silvera

For more information on Balance 009, read Tom Cesa’s Onbeat review here.